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Because I was conducting educational tastings for the Samsung credit card holders, I was invited by Mrs. Lee, the daughter of Samsung’s founder and former chairman, to her home for a traditional Korean meal, which was greatly anticipated given the number of European-styled meals we had had in Korea. One does not often think of Korean cuisine equaling the finest Japanese and Chinese cooking, but this meal proved differently. My experience with Korean cuisine has been somewhat limited to Korean barbecue joints, which are high on spicy kimchi (fermented pickled cabbage) and fatty, grilled ribs. This meal of exquisite elegance and finesse proves that Korean cuisine can be truly first-class, competing with the world’s finest. The prawn salad with garlic yuzu was delicate yet intensely flavored. That was followed by beautiful pancake rolls with an assortment of vegetables to be wrapped in the pancakes. The delicacy and flavors of all the component parts were exquisite. The same thing can be said for the croaker filet, egg battered zucchini, and marinated beef rib eye, all of which were perfectly executed. The tour de force course of the evening was the royal hot pot, a huge pot of boiling oil surrounded by 10-12 different vegetables and meats. It was remarkable, with again, everything intensely flavored, yet delicate. We finished with their famed char-broiled beef short ribs and a dumpling soup with steamed rice. These were the finest Korean beef short ribs I have ever tasted, and were far superior to anything I have had at a Korean barbecue restaurant. We concluded with a typical Korean dessert of dried persimmon ginger punch and a rice cake with pine nuts and ginseng, an incredible expression of Korean food that was refreshing and light.

As for the impeccable selection of wines, the 1999 Roederer Cristal was superb. Its beautiful perfume of white flowers, quince, and biscuits soared from the glass. That was followed by a truly magnificent wine. 1996 is the epicenter of the serious problem of prematurely oxidized white Burgundies, but Domaine Laflaive seems to have escaped that problem. Every bottle of the 1996 Bâtard Montrachet served at this dinner was exquisite. This still youthful, full-bodied, powerful 1996 reveals superb acidity as well as terrific flavor intensity. We finished with Guigal’s 1988 Côte Rôtie La Mouline. At twenty years of age, this wine is just hitting its peak of perfection ... and I do mean perfection. An extraordinary nose of smoked duck, soy, incense, black fruits, truffles, and spice is followed by an exceptionally opulent, full-bodied wine with velvety sweetness, a seamless integration of all its component parts, and a remarkable finish that lasts more than a minute. Pure perfection, it is a great example of Côte Rôtie. What is so amazing is that at twenty years of age, the 42 months of aging it spent in 100% new French oak has totally disappeared from the wine’s aromas and flavors - a tribute to the master, Guigal.

This was a great night and my deepest appreciation and thanks to Mrs. Lee for being such a gracious and generous hostess.