In the world of fine dining, much is made of culinary philosophy — the principles and practices that define a chef’s approach to creating memorable dishes. In the same way, sommeliers bring their own unique perspectives to the selection and pairing of wines, guided by their oenological philosophies. Much like a chef's culinary ethos, a sommelier's oenological perspective transforms each glass of wine into an experience that goes beyond the palate.
We asked 4 sommeliers to share their insights and experiences. From their personal journeys into the world of wine, their methods for selecting wines and their approach to evaluating different varietals, to their strategies for pairing wine with food, these conversations offer a comprehensive look at what drives their expertise.
What is your personal philosophy when it comes to selecting and pairing wines?
“I really like well-made wine that speaks of a place that has been farmed in a responsible way. The deeper you go into biodynamics, it comes down to the winemaker or farmer who’s looking after it. There are people who are probably doing it for the marketing angle, and others who holistically believe in it. For me the idea behind it is that it creates an ecosystem that is better able to balance and fend off pests and disease, which results in a healthier ecosystem that you’re drawing food from. Like if you’ve ever tried a great carrot or celery from a good farm, it’s sweet, crunchy and delicious, which speaks to the ethos of how you can get the best quality food, and it’s the same for wine.”
- Benjamin Hasko MS MW, Beverage Director at Cloudstreet
“While I’m still relatively young and exploring, I embrace a fresh, open-minded and adventurous approach. I'm open to tasting different wines without judging them by the labels. To craft interesting wine pairings, especially in the selection of whites and Champagnes, I often feature lesser-known labels and more natural wines that bring a broader perspective to the list. I also incorporate interesting Korean drinks and create non-alcoholic pairings. With my culinary experience, I've applied cooking techniques in creating non-alcoholic drinks, and by experimenting with interesting ingredient combinations, I have also developed new and varied non-alcoholic pairings that veer away from the usual.”
- Ocean Kang, Sommelier at NAE:UM
“I am always on the lookout for something new, as I tend to get bored easily. This drives me to constantly explore more wines and read up as often as possible to stay up to date with current trends and understand market demand. When I come across rare or new wines, I’m eager to bring them in, and it's a great joy to see our customers enjoying them. I focus on wines that offer taste, balance, and structure. Understanding the philosophy of each winery, their stories, and the deep heritage of each region are wonderful narratives to bring to the table. There are a few wineries I’ve been in touch with for over 20 years, and it’s always fascinating to see how their wines evolve over time. I have a small habit of holding back vintages to observe how they develop. It’s a bonus for our customers when we can offer them older bottles and witness their expressions as they taste the wines and let them open up over time. Dining and wining is truly a sensory journey.”
- Kelvin Tay, Head Sommelier at Shisen Hanten
What qualities do you prioritise when evaluating a wine?
“At the moment our focus is that the wine has to be clean. By that I mean it's not funky, not faulty, and doesn't have any odd characters bouncing around. Like, I never want to sell a wine because it's a natural wine. I never want to sell a wine because it's biodynamic. For me that’s a plus, but it's never a focus of what we do and it's why if you look through the list at Cloudstreet and there's no indication on sulphur levels or organics or biodynamic – it's just wines that we stand behind. Although personally, I gravitate more towards wines that do happen to be more organic and biodynamic, but I think that's more reflective of the quality of the wine in the glass. If you look globally at the moment, a lot of the top producers around the world are either working biodynamically or organically or using principles of either whether it's certified or uncertified. So I think it's just becoming more mainstream.”
- Benjamin Hasko MS MW, Beverage Director at Cloudstreet
“There are two hats that I wear when I taste wine: that of a consumer and that of a buyer. As a buyer, I look for balance, structure, and how well the wines are made, considering the characteristics of the regions or grape varieties as well. The Royal Hobart Wine Show has broadened my perspective on Cabernet Sauvignon from Australia. I was adventurous enough to do three full days of Cabernet flights, which, for any wine judge, is one of the toughest tastings. Young Cabernet can be stocky, minty, and cedar-like, with eucalyptus notes and high tannins, which not everyone appreciates. However, given time, these wines can evolve into beautifully vibrant expressions of dark fruits, with enhanced structure and texture. As a consumer, I try to envision the ageing potential of the wines, imagining how they might taste in 5, 10, or even 15 years.”
- Kelvin Tay, Head Sommelier at Shisen Hanten
Are there any wine regions or producers you’re particularly excited about right now? Why do they interest you?
“I am quite excited about white wines coming from the region of Bordeaux. It is like an invisible revolution. Fun, exciting and unique. At an affordable price as well.”
- Leslie Loo, Head Sommelier at Born
“Gavalas winery from Santorini, Greece. Greek wine is grown high in volcanic soil. You can feel the minerality in the wine, and even as the grapes ripen, the acidity does not decrease. I’m always looking for unique wines and I feel there’s a lot of potential and more interesting wines to explore in Greece.”
- Ocean Kang, Sommelier at NAE:UM
“I have been deeply into Spanish wines for the past 20-plus years and have discovered great wines across all 68 DOs (Denominación de Origen). I find them accessible and reasonably priced. When I was younger, I wanted to make wine more accessible and aimed to find the sweet spot of selling wines between $110-$150 per bottle. At this price, why stop at just one bottle? This remains my objective—to price wines lower and encourage our consumers to purchase more.”
- Kelvin Tay, Head Sommelier at Shisen Hanten
How do you approach pairing wine with food? Can you walk us through your process? Can you share a memorable pairing experience that showcases your approach?
“In a full pairing, I follow the fundamentals of starting from light to fuller wines, depending on the intensity of the dishes as the meal progresses. And more specifically, I like to combine similar flavours to enhance one another, or marry contrasting flavours that complement each other, for example, a robust Typhoon Shelter Lobster dish with an elegant new-world Pinot Noir! The acidity from the Pinot Noir will complement the aromatics as well as the sweetness and meatiness of the lobster.”
- Leslie Loo, Head Sommelier at Born
“Some pairings require a lot of creativity. For example, with one of our signature dishes, the Marron (Sri Lankan Curry of Western Australian Blue Marron with Aromatic Coconut Broth), we’re currently pairing it with a sake, but not the classic kind; this sake has a slightly funky style where it’s kind of mushroomy, nutty and savoury with a little bit of sweetness. It’s just an all around very distinctive sake, which manages to marry with such an incredibly complex dish.
I work closely with the culinary team and co-head chefs Mark and Shah. We do a lot of tasting and experimenting. Sometimes, the experiments taste terrible, and sometimes it just all clicks and you’re like that works better than I could have hoped.
At the same time, Rishi is also involved in every aspect of what goes on at Cloudstreet and across the group. He has a chef’s palate, which I really do value – somebody providing a contrasting view. He trusts us to put everything together but he’ll often want to taste the pairings and combinations, so there’ll be some back and forth. I think over time, Rishi knows better than anybody else what a Cloudstreet dish is, what fits within the brand and what we do here. I think we have a tricky balance to running a two-Michelin-starred restaurant — that you want to be really creative, but at the same time there’s guest expectations. So if I find some crazy, really wacky wine that does pair well with the dish, but only resonates with 50% of the guests, then that’s not okay. I need to find wines that are really interesting, work well with the dish, and also work well with expectations and will be agreeable with most people. If we go into the non-alcoholic pairings, similarly, we’ll work with the culinary team to develop it, and they get updated as the dishes change. Everyone gets to taste and give comments.”
- Benjamin Hasko MS MW, Beverage Director at Cloudstreet
“My approach to pairing wine with food depends on the menu. For instance, NAE:UM offers dishes with a lighter flavour profile, so I like to start with a white wine or Champagne, then follow with wines with less tannins or a lighter pinot noir if it’s a red wine. At NAE:UM, I also like to incorporate Korean rice wine or sake in the pairing, as these match well with rice-based dishes due to their similar ingredients. Additionally, as Singaporeans are very curious about Korean rice wine, it provides more options for them to explore this style of beverage.
A memorable pairing experience that inspired me was at Mosu in Seoul. I was really surprised by the varied, delicate and harmonious beverage pairing, from sake to wine and Yakju. The most surprising pairing was with the dessert – they served Reinhold Haart Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Spatlese from Mosel, Germany. It was my first time trying Riesling Spatlese with dessert, and it had a very good balance with acidity. Usually, many restaurants will serve a sweet dessert wine like sherry, Rivesaltes or a super sweet wine. It was a moment when all preconceptions were broken.”
- Ocean Kang, Sommelier at NAE:UM
“When I look at a dish, I consider the ingredients and imagine the taste in my mind. I think of the best wines I’ve tasted that would pair well with the dish, picturing the depth and breadth, acidity or tannin, and the characteristics and structure of the wines. Once we have the dishes, we taste them again and compare this with the imagined taste. Somehow, I can visualise the taste and match them in my mind. I was fortunate to work with Chef Paul Pairet for a year (before he opened Mr & Mrs Bund and Ultraviolet). He opened another door of taste for me and further refined my palate. Now that I’m here at Shisen Hanten, where the flavours are on the extreme end, and understanding Chef Kentaro’s family history and taste, it’s pushing me into another realm of flavour.”
- Kelvin Tay, Head Sommelier at Shisen Hanten
