Last night the Asia Society New York held a wine reception with the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office to celebrate and discuss the "Wine Boom in Hong Kong." The reception exclusively featured American wines from California, Oregon, and Washington, and Donald Tong Chi-Keung, the Hong Kong Commissioner for Economic and Trade Affairs U.S.A., reinforced the ties between the U.S. and Hong Kong. He shared that Hong Kong is the third largest destination for U.S. wine and that those exports grew nearly five-fold from 2008 to 2010 after Hong Kong abolished all duties on wine. The commissioner also stressed Hong Kong's commitment to wine by highlighting programs to certify wine storage facilities that meet certain standards and to cut down on counterfeit wines.
The crowd was rowdy by the time sommelier Jeff Andrews took to the podium to suggest some wines that would pair well with Asian food. Andrews pointed out that "10, 20 years ago no one was interested in pairing Asian food with wine. But they are now." The takeaway? "You do not want Cabernet!"
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