Celebrity Life

Those waiting on the next public holiday, take note: Mid-Autumn Festival lands on 21 September (a Tuesday!) this year. It may still feel a ways away, but it's never too early to get ahold of those golden-yellow, buttery pastries. Don't miss out on yearly go-tos, traditional double-yolk lotus paste and creamy lava custard, or seasonal specials — bunny shapes or mooncakes stuffed with caviar.

Below, we've rounded up some of the best picks for the season.

Fortnum & Mason

Fortnum & Mason's egg-custard mooncakes are ones that stay true to the British brand's reputed expertise in tea blends and classic brews. Unveiling three new flavours infused with popular Fortnum blends — Earl Grey, Rose Pouchong and Matcha — the six-pack gift box (HK$588) tugs open at the bottom to unveil three miniature tins of loose leaves for a complete tea pairing experience at home. Naturally, Earl Grey is served with the classic blend of earl grey leaves; Rose Pouchong with Queen Anne, a mixture of rich Assam and Ceylon; and Matcha with the flowery notes of Victoria Grey. Orders can be placed at the Fortnum & Mason flagship.

Fortnum & Mason, Shop 022, G/F, K11 Musea, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong, +852 3916 8181

Godiva

Godiva's 'mooncakes' are easy to love; no cake per se but beautifully decorated, decadent bites of luscious chocolate in its place. What does change, however, are the renowned chocolatier's range of flavours developed by Godiva's own chef chocolatier Sébastien Bauer. There are some that nod towards traditional Chinese flavours — lychee white oolong white chocolate mooncake, ginger mango dark chocolate mooncake or matcha kumquat white chocolate mooncake; others that verge on the edge of luxury — black truffle apricot milk chocolate mooncake made with Italian black truffle; and ones that are just an all-round tasty treat for the festival — passionfruit hazelnut milk chocolate mooncake and raspberry and rose white chocolate mooncake.

Godiva, various locations including Shop 1029-30, Level One, ifc mall, 1 Harbour View Street, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2805 0518

Duddell's

Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurant Duddell's collaborated with the artists of Macao-based MO-DESIGN to create two lava cream custard mooncakes gift boxes inspired by Chinese traditions. The Signature Gift Box (HK$ 398) is inspired by the Mid-Autumn practice of moon-gazing and features red, blue and gold tones with a 3D moon. The Limited Edition LED Lantern Gift Box (HK$ 588) combines mooncakes and lanterns using traditional paper-cutting techniques and a lenticular sheet to create a mesmerising illuminated effect.

Duddell's, 1 Duddell Street, Central, Hong kong, +852 2525 9191

The Langham Hong Kong

This Mid-Autumn Festival, Chef Kwong Wai Keung of three Michelin-star T’ang Court at The Langham Hong Kong conceptualised two classic mooncake flavours to celebrate with family and friends. The treats are presented in an elegant package adorned with peonies, which traditionally symbolise good fortune and prosperity, as part of the hotel's series of collectable floral boxes. Flavours include the signature classic Mini Custard with Egg Yolk Mooncake (box of six mini HK$518) and the White Lotus Seed Paste with Double Egg Yolks Mooncake (box of four HK$ 548).

The Langham, Hong Kong, 8 Peking Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, +852 2375 1133

Kiki Noodle Bar

At Kiki Noodle Bar, it's the beloved dried sakura shrimp with taro mochi mooncakes that marks the return of Mid-Autumn festivities. Made in Hong Kong in limited quantities — only 1,500 sets — the secret recipe continues the noodle bar's affinity for innovative serves with a low-sugar mooncake made with chewy glutinous rice centre surrounded by sweet, nutty taro and dried sakura shrimp from Taiwan. Packaged in a box of six, the mooncakes arrive in a sweet bunny-shaped bag with two Peach Oolong teabags for a full pairing.

Vouchers are currently available for pre-orders at any Kiki Noodle Bar or Kiki Tea outpost. Order before 31 August for the early-bird offer: HK$238 (HK$298 for original). Collection period will be from 6 through 20 September.

Kiki Noodle Bar, various locations including Shop 2017, Podium Level 2, ifc mall, 1 Harbour View Street, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2114 3426

Dang Wen Li by Dominique Ansel

A brief whisk-away to New York City is what Dang Wen Li by Dominique Ansel has created for this Mid-Autumn celebration. Reminiscent on the bakery's NYC hometown, the sculptural 'Fly Me to New York' gift set (HK$498) displays all the recognised icons of the city's skyline — yellow cabs, Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge and Guggenheim Museum — against golden autumnal foliage and in a transparent globe. Inside, a set of six hand-crafted mooncakes in two delectable flavours: earl grey custard and classic custard — both a smooth, velvety finish against golden buttery pastry. Orders can be placed in-stores.

Dang Wen Li by Dominique Ansel, Shop 2, G/F, 80 Queen's Road Central, Central, Hong Kong, +852 3482 7735

Green Monday

For the health-conscious among us, Green Common has rolled out mooncake variations of its own, completely free of preservatives with zero cholesterol and trans fat. There's a brand-new range of vegan custard mooncake (HK$308) made using vegan creamery Miyoko's vegan butter and a squeaky clean-list of ingredients including agave syrup, plant-based milk and flaxseed powder. Also available, the anticipated return of brand's well-loved speciality mooncakes (HK$328) from the previous year: figs with pistachios and oats, mixed nuts with blueberries and purple sweet potato.

Green Monday, various locations including Shop B2, B/F, Landmark Alexandra, 18 Chater Road, Central, Hong Kong

Rosewood Hong Kong

In addition to traditional mooncake flavours, Rosewood Hong Kong is celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival with a special collaboration with local food brand Dashijie to reinterpret traditional recipes. The hotel's mooncakes, named “Love Parcels from the Moon," are sold in sustainable packages and are curated by Chinese Executive Chef Li Chi-Wai of Legacy House. The collection comprises five flavours, including Rosewood Traditional White Lotus Seed Paste with Double Egg Yolks (HK$498/box) and Rosewood Mini Assorted Flavour Mooncakes (HK$458/box), a selection of classic and creative flavours.

Rosewood Hong Kong, No18, Salisbury Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, +852 3891 8888

Sift

You'll find Sift's selection of mooncakes (HK$202) to be extra delightful this season; a can't-go-wrong classic that'll put smile on faces. They're the crowd-favourite flavour of lava custard! They're bite-size! They're shaped like leaping bunnies! Made with Sift's own signature recipe, the crumbly pastry breaks open to make way for a molten stream of salted egg yolk custard. A most delicious treat this Mid-Autumn Festival. Orders can be placed here.

Sift, various locations including Shop 240-241, Prince's Building, 10 Chater Road, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2147 2968

China Tang

This year, fine dining establishment China Tang is going back to the origins with a collection of modern-classic mooncake boxes (HK$388) with Chinoiserie motifs. Flavours include the “Mini Crafted Egg Custard” mooncakes, which are fluffy-yet-flaky on the outside with a creamy and decadent filling, and the classic “Authentic White Lotus Seed Paste with Double Egg Yolks” mooncakes, made with silky lotus seed paste and golden egg yolks. The colourful boxes are eco-friendly and ca be repurposed for other uses.

China Tang, two locations including shop 411-413, 4/F, Landmark Atrium, 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central, Hong Kong, +852 2522 2148

The Cakery

In celebration of this year's Autumn Festival, The Cakery, Hong Kong's popular health-conscious bakery, has launched a selection of guilt-free mooncakes packaged in an elegant Chinoiserie-inspired gift box (HK$628). The collection includes four inventive flavours, like the refreshing Mango Bean Paste Lava Mooncake and the Taro Bean Paste Mooncake, which celebrates the versatile ingredient.

The Cakery, various locations including shop 124, 1/F, Lee Gardens 2, 28 Yun Ping Road, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

Header image courtesy of The Cakery

The post Mid-Autumn Festival 2021: Where to Get the Best Mooncakes appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

Fifty metres underground — this is the depth that local winemakers chose when they decided to store 10,000 wine bottles in the Aven d'Orgnac caves, an underground tourist attraction located at the southern end of the limestone plateau of the Gorges de l'Ardèche.

The experiment began in March 2018, when a new storage facility was specially created in a disused access tunnel to allow wine to mature in what amounts to a highly stable and peaceful environment.

A living product that ages best in undisturbed darkness, the wine will have benefited from ideal conditions: A constant temperature of around 12°C and an all-year-long rate of humidity of over 95%.

On December 12, 1,000 bottles of Côtes du Vivarais "Grand Aven 2017" from this treasure trove will be passed from hand to hand by a chain of human volunteers who will bring them back to the surface after two years underground. Thereafter, they will go under the hammer with a range of other local vintages in an auction with modest reserve prices.

Lots on offer will include 150 magnums of Terra Helvorum 2017 starting at 30 euros, 350 bottles of 2015 Terra Helvorum for as little as 15 euros and 350 bottles of Grand Aven 2016 from just 10 euros.

On land and sea

These days, experiments to store wine deep underground are very much in vogue in France. On June 3 of this year, 500 bottles were placed in racks at a depth of 103 metres in caves in Padirac under the watchful eye of Serge Dubs, the Best Sommelier of the World in 1989.

The first of these to return to the surface will be brought up for an initial tasting in the spring of 2021. And let's not forget that this experiment is focused on a very particular wine: A Clos Triguedina Cahors, christened Cuvée Probus, which has been produced to honour the 130-year anniversary of the Padirac Chasm.

Surprisingly enough, this new approach to maturing wine was initially inspired by a find at sea. In 2010, divers in the Baltic discovered a wreck containing what turned out to be a cargo of champagne, which was probably on its way to 1840s Russia.

The wave of experimentation that is now ongoing began when the bubbly, which was made by such houses as Veuve Clicquot, Heidsieck and the now defunct Juglar, was discovered to still be delicious after some 170 years under water.

In Saint-Jean-de-Luz in the French Basque country, winemaker Emmanuel Poirmeur has registered a patent for a process that involves vinifying wine in special vats at a depth of 15 metres under water. For its part, Leclerc-Briant set a record when it vinified one of its champagnes at a depth of 60 meters under the Atlantic in 2012, not surprisingly the vintage was christened "Abyss."

The post 18 of the Best Hong Kong Mooncakes To Indulge in This Mid-Autumn 2020 appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

We're getting some last-minute inspiration for our hotly-anticipated night of celebrations this Friday; bring on ornate, opulent and altogether masterful Asian-influenced attire.

The post Top 10 Looks: Chinoiserie Style appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.