Different kind of Night Vibes

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Monsieur Jamin has been talking about doing a massive Champagne night, which he decided to call 夜檳紛 after the laughable campaign Night Vibes Hong Kong (香港夜繽紛) by the Hong Kong government. Our friend had amassed a collection of Champagne which are rare by virtue of their small productions, and being the teetotaler that he is, needed a few more mouths to be able to taste through the collection. I requested Mrs Film Buff's attendance so that Foursheets would have someone to talk to during the long session, and eventually we grew to a group of 13.

Dinner arrangements were made at Tempura Tenon (天ぷら 天穩), a place whose cuisine a few friends had praised for some time. I have been really curious, as Chef Wing's work at his former establishment also got great reviews from friends. There is, of course, a dearth of decent tempura restaurants in Hong Kong, and I have long given up hope of having nice tempura in town. So I was kinda excited about the food at dinner.

Cold chawanmushi (冷やし茶碗蒸し) - the custard was actually made with corn, together with both white and yellow corn on top. Very sweet and refreshing.

Ginkgo nuts (銀杏) - from Aichi Prefecture (愛知県). The bitterness was pretty strong.

Prawn legs (車海老のあし) - this was pretty nicely done.

Japanese tiger prawn (車海老) - from Kagoshima Prefecture (鹿児島県). Taken with some curry salt. The prawn itself was sweet, while the batter was slightly thicker than expected.

Splendid alfonsino (金目鯛) - from Chiba Prefecture (千葉県). Taken with the seaweed salt, this showed off the flavors of the fish pretty well. My second piece taken with ten-tsuyu (天つゆ) was less impressive.

Manganji pepper (万願寺とうがらし) - definitely tasted the sweetness. Very nice.

Japanese glass shrimp (白海老) - from Toyama Bay (富山湾). I like seafood tempura wrapped in perilla leaves and fried, but in this case the batter was just too soggy. The caviar on top was small grain, black, and came from a tin that looked like it was Royal Caviar Club.

Clam (蛤) - the clam from Kagoshima Prefecture was HUGE, which was why we each only got half a clam. This was nice and chewy on the edges, with lots of springiness and sweetness. The middle of the clam was, as expected, heavier in terms of flavors.

Conger eel (穴子) - came with some sansho (山椒) marinated in soy sauce. The batter here was very crispy.

Fig with tofu sauce (無花果白和え) - good and refreshing palate-cleanser.

Botan shrimp (牡丹海老) - the shrimp was sweet, but the texture was mushy... as was the batter.

Sea urchin (雲丹) - from Kaneyo Kamomeyo Suisan (カネヨ鴎洋水産), on top of a piece of deep-fried kombu.

Pacific saury (秋刀魚) - rolled with plum sauce and perilla leaves (梅紫蘇). Very fatty and tender, melting in the mouth. Very nice.

Matsutake (松茸) - from Yunnan Province, of course. The batter was very crispy, and the shroom had a very springy and firm texture. A little sweet and overall nice flavors.

Japanese horsehair crab (毛蟹) - I was among the first to show up and while we waited for our hosts to arrive, I saw one of the cooks furiously removing crab meat from the shells and piling them onto the carapace. We each got a quarter of the resulting stuffed crab.

This was the final savory dish - a very delicious bowl of noodles in chicken broth. The broth was thick and rich, with lots of chicken flavors.

Shark's fin (フカヒレ) Abalone and sea cucumber (鮑と海鼠) - I told Chef Wing that I did not eat shark's fin, so he substituted these for me. The batter for abalone tasted noticeably sweeter.

Melon (メロン) - very ripe and sweet.

It was interesting to come try this Hong Kong-style tempura, where vegetables take a backseat as diners tend to focus on what they perceive as premium seafood. As I explained to our host, while the experience was a far cry from what I've enjoyed in Tokyo, it may be difficult to find a place that delivers better in Hong Kong. There is a reason why I almost never look for tempura in town...

As it turned out, we had a whopping 12 bottles to go through tonight...

2009 Roses de Jeanne La Haut Lemblé, dégorgée en Avril 2013 - nice notes of lemon on the nose, the toast wasn't too strong, and there was a little flint. Good acidity on the palate, and later on the depth of flavors was quite good, with a little bit of savory minerals.

Gaspard Brochet 333.d, dégorgée 10 Octobre 2023 - there was more savory minerals on the nose, with sharper acidity. Very fragrant nose with red fruits. The palate was leaner and kinda tightens up on the finish.

Jérôme Lefèvre Cuvée Playing with Fire, dégorgée en Fevrier 2022 - this was even more oxidized and savory on the bigger, punchier nose, with more sulfur. More tannins and slightly grippy on the palate, and a little bitter on the finish.

2017 Bourgeois-Diaz Les Justices, dégorgée le 23 Septembre 2022 - this was really savory and oxidized on the nose. The acidity was slightly high but not too harsh.

2019 Legrand-Latour Campanien, dégorgée en Juillet 2023 - definitely reductive nose, and very bongwater with the classic flavor profile. No likey.

2020 Legrand-Latour Éocène, dégorgée en Fevrier 2025 - this, on the other hand, was not bongwater. A bit oxidized, with a good balance of acidity, but the palate was flat and one-dimensional.

Jules Brochet Prémices, dégorgée en Juillet 2024 - HUGE toasty nose, bordering on chewing on a piece of oak. Great if one likes toasty wines.

2019 Jules Brochet Éole, dégorgée en Janvier 2025 - also oaky on the nose, with more minerals. Big and savory on the palate, with good acidity, too.

2013 Brigitte Fallon, dégorgée en Octobre 2021 - nice and toasty on the nose. Lots of depth on the palate, really big and savory like Chinese salted plum, almost a little fermented. Not too lean on the palate and the maturity shows a little.

2019 Aurelién Lurquin Les Traverses, dégorgée le 18 Novembre 2022 - initially served too cold and needed warming up. Nose was a little fermented.

2008 Larmandier-Bernier Premier Cru Terre de Vertus

2004 Robert Dufour The Ballad of the Villages, dégorgée le 9 Mai 2022 - flinty, mineral, and savory on the nose, but also a little beeswax and plastic on the palate.

A pretty fun evening, and as we discussed... with the very small production numbers for many of these bottlings, it would be difficult to do the same tasting again. Many thanks to Monsieur Jamin and everyone who contributed.