By the Glass: Wine seminars provide rare tasting opportunities

The Hawaii Food & Wine Festival hits Oahu this month with a list of unforgettable events that feature chefs, winemakers, master sommeliers and mixologists who are superstars in their fields. This annual gathering offers opportunities for culinary students and other aspiring professionals to work with these top professionals.

Being a wine person, I am especially looking forward to three seminars on Oct. 27 at the Halekulani Hotel, orchestrated by Kevin Toyama, the hotel’s cellar­master.

>> Somm: The Gang of Four ($125): The day begins at 9 a.m. with a spotlight on three game-changing winemakers from the Beaujolais region of France — Jean Foillard, Charly Thevenet and Mathieu Lapierre.

They are three of the “Gang of Four,” a band of like-minded vigne­rons who helped revolutionize grape growing and winemaking by taking a back-to-basics, sustainable methodology. Their approaches took hold in their region and later spread throughout France and abroad. The gang has been noted for its far-reaching influence and has developed a cult status, especially in the sommelier community.

The gang champions old-vine, heirloom gamay noir, a variety that is a descendant of pinot noir, which at least partially explains its attributes of deliciousness, umami and food-friendliness. In addition, while the wines are charming in their youth, they improve with age, developing attributes reminiscent of Burgundian pinot noir.

>> Burgundy: Through the glass of Domaine Robert-Denogent ($125): The second tasting, at 10:30 a.m., features Antoine and Nicholas Robert of Domaine Robert-Denogent from Burgundy, France. This small, family- owned domaine specializes in small-batch, old-vine chardonnay bottlings from their home region of Maconnais in southern Burgundy.

Participants will sample three of the family’s flagship Pouilly-Fuisse single-vineyard bottlings: Les Reisses, featuring 85-year-old vines; Les Carrons “Vieilles Vignes,” with 92-year-old vines; and the crown jewel, “Cuvee Claude Denogent,” with 85-year-old vines.

This tasting offers participants a rare, memorable opportunity, especially because this family is a leader in the region for practicing uber-sustainable growing and production methods. I believe this enhances the specialness of each wine and makes evident a respect for their special parcels. The family is considered the fifth member of the “Gang of Four” because their methodologies are in tune.

>> The Art of Wine & Food Pairing: A Match Made in Germany ($150): At 12:30 p.m., the final wine seminar of the day approaches world-class foods and wines from a unique perspective.

In the old days, we typically drank chardonnay-based white wines with cream and butter sauces of the French genre, and cabernet-based red wines with French-styled red-wine sauces. But times have changed, and this seminar will offer new approaches to pairing food and wine.

The cuisine will be prepared by chef Masaharu Morimoto, while wines will come from three of Germany’s iconic wine-producing families: Andrea Wirsching (Weingut Hans Wirsching, Franken), Johannes Hasselbach (Weingut Gunderloch, Rheinhessen) and Johannes Haart (Weingut Reinhold Haart, Mosel).

This will be an invaluable exercise in pairing contemporary Asian-inspired foods with remarkably light white wines, from dry to slightly sweet.

Outside the seminars, the festival will feature a long, impressive list of more sensational winemakers. And imagine, while it can be tough to get an appointment at any of their wineries, these experts and their wines will be accessible for you to experience firsthand.

Thanks go to Warren Shon and Roberto Viernes of Southern Glazer’s Wines & Spirits for ensuring that the festival’s wine program is just as enlightening as that of the cuisine.

Chuck Furuya is a master sommelier and a partner in the DK Restaurants group. Follow his blog at chuckfuruya.com.