a spiritual journey in chinatown

candles. wine. wafer.
it struck me that this had all the trappings of a holy communion. but this was a different spiritual journey in kuala lumpur's chinatown, a warren of lanes more famous for game, gambling and maybe gangsters.
candles flickered from every imaginable point and then some as i made my way through the treasure trove that is peter hoe's evolution and beyond lifestyle boutique at the lee rubber building in petaling street or chinatown.
green, gold and beige was the theme and the main offering of the night was good food and exquisite framingham wines from new zealand, known to most now as middle earth and formerly kiwi land, and also aotearoa, land of the long white cloud.
the candles lit up the cocktail of crispily fresh framingham sauvignon blanc that went quite nicely with the also-crisp warm foccacia with shredded mushroom. wine and wafer communed and commingled in me.
the straw-yellow sauvignon blanc 2004 had hints of lime and fruit, particularly grapefruit with a robust body and a refreshing but dry finish. just nice.
was the messiah in town, i wondered as wine and wafer kept replenishing before the call came for us to ascend the stairway to heaven
up we went through the art-deco building and onto the roof-top where candle-lit tables with wine glasses competed for attention with the sounds and smells of chinatown, the shimmering city skyline and the twinkling stars in the night sky.
good company surrounded me as the appetiser announced its appearance with the familiar fragrance of curry leaf. it was a crispy tuna dumpling infused with curry leaf paired with a framingham dry riesling.
the tuna dumpling (chinese sui kow or japanese gyoza) appeared to be a rather tasty fish vadai that went well with the riesling, which tasted of honey and toast with a lime and fruity finish.
all too soon, the ever-efficient waiters brought the second offering of the night, a first course of smoked salmon kerabu style with basil oil that partnered a framingham classic riesling.
the wine dominated the salmon, tasting sweeter than the previous riesling. lionel lau, speaking on behalf of distributors pernod ricard assured us the sugar content was the same. to me, it was fruitier with a pronounced peachy taste with lime hovering in the background.
the 150 select crowd at the rooftop were kept busy as the waiters swept in with the main course quickly, offering us charbroiled lamb cutlets on a chinese yam rice with pak choy and crispy kai lan together with a glass of framingham pinot noir.
the cutlets were crunchy and juicy, the wine spicy and plummy. i could go on but let's just say it has to be savoured. hints of cherries and berries in the wine combined well with the lamb and its bed of rice and veggies for a great finish to dinner under the stars.
the night did not end there. we quickly swapped the rooftop for peter hoe's boutique for wine, women and song.