One red, ......one white

With Chinese New Year fast approaching, China Daily invites Asia's leading wine experts and educators to pick two moderately priced wines that would complement foods at the year's biggest banquet. Mike Peters reports.

What would a Chinese New Year banquet be without some nice tipple?

For centuries, the drink of choice at Spring Festival feasts has been baijiu, the potent Chinese white liquor that has fueled generations of merry-making.

With the growing popularity of grape wine in China, however, we pondered the challenge of matching appropriate vintages with such a meal.

Conventional wine-pairing dinners generally cater to the format of European fine dining: Courses are served one at a time, with a different wine matched to each. That's not practical at a Chinese banquet - and many everyday Chinese meals - when courses arrive in waves if not all at once.

So we challenged Asia's eight members of the Institute of Masters of Wine to keep it simple, and suggest one red and one white for the night.

None were tempted to go "lowest common denominator" - forget about inoffensive soft whites or delicate reds that lack the oomph to compete with what might be on the table. "You need a certain amount of acidity to marry wines well with food," one says, echoing a common theme. The words "spicy", "mineral", "peppery" and "fragrant" occur repeatedly in the descriptors below. Sissy wines need not apply.

Fongyee Walker, Beijing

Red: Elephant Hill Hawkes Bay NZ Syrah 2013 - This is a classic, spicy, peppery, elegant syrah from the Hawkes Bay area, New Zealand. It is The Bomb to have with jaozi for New Year, because it has this beautiful acidity that goes so well. In fact, you don't even need vinegar when you eat jaozi (dumplings) with this syrah. It's also really, really good with all sorts of traditional mian tiao (noodles). It makes a dish more fragrant, more lifted, more enjoyable.

White: Reichsgraf Von Kesselstatt Graach Josephshofer Riesling Kabinett 2014 - Wonderful, beautiful balance of sweet-sour that will go with a really wide range of Chinese food. It's really flexible and can go with dishes that are a little bit sweet, a little bit salty.

Jeannie Cho Lee, Hong Kong

Red: 2013 Maycas del Limari, San Julian Pinot Noir, Limari, Chile - In the limestone soil of Limari where this vineyard is located, this arid, cool region produces delicious, dark and red berry-filled pinot noir with a firm backbone of acidity. The savory spices and herbs add to the depth and layers of this elegant red with medium body, light tannins and lovely freshness and restraint. Perfect to enjoy now and over the next five years.

White: 2013 Domaine Arnoux Pere Et Fils, Pernand-Vergelesses Les Combottes Blanc, Burgundy, France - Stony, minerally, a well-made light-bodied white from Pernand-Vergelesses. I love this wine's lean, angular style with crisp acidity, a fine backbone of minerality and a salty finish. Perfect to enjoy now.

Tan Ying Hsien, Singapore

Red: 2013 Morgon Classique, Jean Foillard - Gamay and Beaujolais are typically seen as the poor cousins of pinot noir and red Burgundy. The gamay grape variety is very old and the best Beaujolais producers such as Domain Jean Foillard make excellent examples from the top vineyards such Morgon. The wine is packed with juicy, spicy red fruit wrapped round a fresh, firm structure that make it an ideal accompaniment to many classic roast meats and poultry in Chinese cuisine. Examples like this one have the potential to age, rounding out to something akin to a good quality mature Burgundy.

White: 2013 Mtsvane Qvevri, Georgia, Winery Khareba Monastery - Some may object to this being considered a white wine as this style is today often referred to as orange or amber wine. However it might be categorized in terms of color, the wine has a unique expression of distinctive flavors and mouth-feel arising out of its traditional Georgian method of production using an ancient Georgian grape variety, mtsvane. Maceration and fermentation on grape skins and pips in underground clay amphora (qveri) afford it a dry, tannic structure missing from most "modern" white wines. This structural texture combined with its aromatic peach, apricot and tropical fruit character make it an ideal pairing with robustly flavored Chinese dishes.

Annette Scarfe, Singapore

Red: Rioja Reserva "Vina Ardanza", La Rioja Alta - an older vintage if possible. The soft tannins and juicy fruit match with a range of foods from mild to spicy.

White: Albarino, Pazo Barrantes - Another Spanish wine, its fresh acidity and oily texture is perfect with our fried dishes and seafood.

Sonal Holland, India

Red: Felton Road Pinot Noir Bannockburn, New Zealand - Purity of pinot noir expression, finesse and elegance over power and concentration. The spicy and umami flavors of Chinese food can be wonderfully balanced by the light tannins, perfumed and spicy flavors of this exquisite wine.

White: Weingut Laurenz V. Singing Gruner Veltliner, Kremstal, Austria. - Floral, ripe with nuances of mineral, with a refreshing, zippy finish complements beautifully the myriad flavors of Chinese cuisine.

Kenichi Ohashi, Japan

Red: 2013 Chateau Mercian Mariko Vineyard Syrah (Nagano, Japan) - High altitude, cool climate style linear Japanese Syrah showing abundant rotundone pepperiness.

White: 2015 Chateau Mercian Koshu girs de gris (Yamanashi, Japan) - Somewhat longer macerated style of pink-skinned Koshu, having spiciness with quality oak tone.

Debra Meiburg, Hong Kong

Red: Matua Single Vineyard Pinot Noir Central Otago 2014 is such a winner due to its versatility with so many dishes at a typical Chinese banquets. It has sufficient weight and concentration to stand up to powerful sauces like hoisin, plum or salty soy. This wine was awarded a silver medal by a panel of pan-Asian experts at the 2016 Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Wine & Spirit Competition.

White: You can never go wrong with a bottle of Dr. Loosen, whether the popular Dr. L Riesling QbA or Dr. Loosen's classic Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett (both available from Pudao). These graceful bottles from the Mosel Valley in Germany are laden with nectarine and honeysuckle fruit followed by a deliciously juicy and bright palate. The wine's hint of sweetness and delicate alcohol are counterbalanced by a long, flavorful finish making this wine an ingenious match for a wide range of dishes.

Contact the writer at michaelpeters@chinadaily.com.cn