As president of the Federation of Hong Kong Restaurant Owners, William Mark is a familiar sight at openings, wine dinners and other VIP-studded events. His enjoyment of good food and wine is obvious, and his palate was trained from an early age.
'I started drinking well before the legal age,' he admits. 'As a kid, my father took me to restaurants and his friends would give me beer and Chinese liquor - I was under 10. I didn't really like it, but the adults would encourage me when I took a sip - they'd say I was very brave - so I'd drink a little more. I didn't like the taste, but I liked the reaction; I was trying to be more grown-up. I started to drink alcohol at this very early age almost regularly - at least twice a month. Even when I was that young, my father would send me to buy Chinese rice wine for him - I don't think there were any regulations at that time about selling to young people. I didn't like rice wine then, I still don't. It's very strong, and it doesn't have a pleasant aroma.'
His real love now is grape wine, and he recalls his first taste from the vine. 'It was back in the 1950s; I remember it so distinctly. The first bottle I ever tasted was Chianti because it was the cheapest thing. It was $6 or $7 a bottle - at that time, whisky was $18. I didn't particularly like it because at the time I was regularly drinking whisky and brandy; wine was too mild. Compared to 40 per cent alcohol, 14 per cent is very mild.'
It took almost two decades before he started to like wine. 'In the early 70s I had some friends who were connoisseurs, and I started to drink some decent wine. It all started with Chateau Margaux - I liked its smoothness and richness. I like cabernet sauvignons and chardonnays, I don't mind shiraz, but I don't like merlot. That's why I never buy Petrus - I don't like to drink it because it's too heavy on the merlot. Cabernet sauvignon is more masculine, more full-bodied. Merlot is a bit too delicate. I go for the grape varietals more than the district. I like the Old World cabernets and New World cabernets.'
He likes to seek out bargains in wine. 'I really like Chilean cabernet. My friends think I'm out of my mind, because I like Caballo Loco, it's expensive for a Chilean - it's $490. But it's very good, and I don't mind paying that kind of money because if you want similar quality in a French product you can't buy it for less than $2,000. Back in the 80s I fell in love with Penfolds Grange, but that was before it got very expensive. Even at Gaddi's [at The Peninsula hotel] they were offering it for a few hundred - now it's a few thousand.'
His own collection is quite small - just over 100 bottles, because he tends to buy wines when they're ready to drink. 'I have 24 bottles which I really treasure - two cases of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1990, which I bought when my little girl was born. I'll keep it until she comes of age, then we'll drink it.
