Amateur wine competitions are one of my favorite activities to attend.
1) Because I can usually do relatively well being the wannabe wine enthusiast that I am.
2) It’s really casual and has no pomp,
3) It’s a lot of fun.
So when I heard that Equatorial Wines were teaming with Celina’s Gastrobar to organize such as event, I had to get involved.
I have known Mike Back (Aussie) and James Coetzee (Springbok), the founders of Equatorial Wines from before they founded EQ Wines. What I can tell you is that they are both massive wine professionals with a rich background in wine appreciation. They pride themselves on only bringing great wine of good value to Singapore – One of my personal favorites is a great Californian Old Vine Zinfandel for $34!
This might help to explain why that in less than one year of business, their wines are already in dozens of high-end restaurants and hotels. Kudos guys!
As for Celina’s Gastrobar, I came across this unassuming drinking-hole totally by chance, and I am so glad I did. Celina’s Gastrobar, in this author’s opinion, is one of the hidden finds of the CBD.
Aside from their great selection and price-range drinks, there are two things about coming to Celina’s that really make it a great experience, 1) Owners Kok and Celina are so welcoming. Going to Celina’s for me conjures a similar concept as the 80s American TV show – Cheers. They make an effort to get to know everyone who stops in and everyone knows your name 
. And 2) The food. Honestly, coming here for the first time, you would not imagine that this small outfit could conjure such unique and exciting dishes…See photos for some examples.
Anyway, back to the wine challenge – the theme of the night was that each team would ‘battle’ each other in a sort of ‘blind wine tasting cum pub quiz’. The prizes of course being various bottles of wine.
Led by ‘MC’ Mike, we were led through a succession of 6 wines (3 whites and 3 reds), each paired with some delicious creations from Celina’s kitchen.
Below are a few other snaps shots of the food were dished up. Look out for the Chicken Liver Pate. I make no joke when I say this is the best pate, hands down, I have eaten in Singapore. It is served with fresh (from scratch) baked Foccacio bread and is a great snack with a cool class of rose or a beer.
Starting at about 8pm, myself and the participating teams were getting progressively louder and drunk as time passed.
A special mention to the participating teams – I hope you all had as great as night as I did…and considering that most f you didn’t leave until midnight +, i’ll take that as a yes.
To find out more information about Equatorial Wines,send an email to Mike
For Celina’s Gastrobar, they are located at 51 Duxton Rd. They do frequent events, themed nights and promotions..To be added to their mailing list, contact Celina