Ever heard a story with each bite?

On top of being a passionate chef and culinarian, I am also a Filipino-Canadian sommelier and wine commentator. I travel a lot as a Certified Vinitaly Italian Wine Ambassador and a wine reviewer of Progetto Vino Collisioni . My understanding of the marriage between food and beverage is much more nuanced. As a sommelier and wine commentator, my expertise is based on understanding terroir – a product’s “sense of place”. I love that products such as fine cheeses, nectars, oils, coffees, teas and wines have the ability to express the places where they are grown and produced. As consumers, our duty is to get to know their expressions better by submitting ourselves to savouring and EXPERIENCING them to the FULLEST, not just to consume!

 

When we do that, we also honour their producers – particularly the farmers of the world! After all, we can only create lasting memories from things genuinely experienced. Memories of wine country cuisine linger because they are some of the most connected dining experiences. They are about stories, memories and connections. Wine country cuisine allows us to experience food and beverages that have a “taste of place ”. As I am now cultivating Philippines’ first wine hamlets (under Wine Hamlet Philippines), I feel it is also timely to introduce wine country cuisine to Filipinos through Olive Rose Vineyard and Farm Kitchen in Nasugbu, Batangas and Olive Rose-The Farmhouse Table in Ayala Mall Manila Bay.