Grand opening

When the staggering HK$28,880 per head six-course dinner was announced, all 12 seats were snapped up within a day. The Saturday night event, organised by Restaurant Petrus at the Island Shangri-La, is an example of Hong Kong's growing interest in wine: although the menu will be replete with gastronomic delights, the focus of the evening is on the wines.

Wine dinners - once the preserve of high-end restaurants - have become a frequent feature around town. At the luxury end of the spectrum are dinners such as the one at Petrus, where the bottles include champagne Krug 1990, Burgundy grand cru Chevalier-Montrachet Domaine Leflaive 1989, Bordeaux premier cru Chateau Margaux 1982 and the highlight - and the namesake of the restaurant - a magnum of Chateau Petrus 1945.

'The price [for the dinner] may seem high but the magnum of Chateau Petrus alone is listed at HK$380,000 on our wine list,' says Kent Wong Koon-kwan, the restaurant's sommelier.

Petrus executive chef Frederic Chabbert says: 'These wines are so rare, to find them is like searching for a priceless antique. Even if you find one, you must find someone willing to sell it to you. That is why many of our regular customers who know the prices of these wines will really appreciate this wine dinner.'

Wong recalls a similarly pricey event to mark the handover, when guests each paid HK$25,000 for a meal featuring 12 vintages of Petrus. Nowadays, little occasion is necessary to warrant a wine dinner.

'There are two main reasons for wine dinners,' says Patrice Le Nouvel, the Petrus maitre d'. 'Sometimes, it is done by the restaurants to provide something special for their guests. Other times the restaurants work together with wineries to promote and educate diners about the producer's wines.'