Chef Darren Chin
What the most respected cognac house commands, it gets. And this year, Hennessy X.O Odyssey’s second edition taps into Chef Darren Chin’s culinary finesse, where in a lively little corner of Taman Tun Dr Ismail, at the three-storey DC restaurant Chef Darren founded in 2014, he has curated a seven-course menu that complements and articulates the tasting notes of the Hennessy X.O.
When the Hennessy X.O Odyssey winnowed its way to the hearts (and palates) of Malaysians last year, the then-newly introduced culinary platform did exactly what it could to serve up what the House of Hennessy and its most esteemed patrons would expect—an exclusive gastronomic experience that was unrivalled. Diners familiar with the Hennessy X.O culinary collaborations would see the shadows of the annual Hennessy X.O Appreciation Grows affair in Odyssey, and the Odyssey journey is as all-encompassing in its flavours as those of Appreciation Grows.
With a week left till Hennessy X.O Odyssey 2017 is done for the year, BAZAAR speaks to Chef Darren about perfect pairings.
Perfect pairings for Hennessy X.O Odyssey …
For the first course, the Botan Ebi, which is slightly seared on the outside, we wanted to accentuate the sweetness of a crustacean. I didn’t want to serve lobster because everyone serves lobster with cognac, so I thought we’d do something different, Prawns, in general, exude a very nice, sweet taste, and we’ve paired that up with heirloom tomatoes from our garden, which pairs really well. The thing about pairing with alcohol is that if we’re not careful, sometimes one dominate the other, but in this case, because it’s so smooth, it pairs so well that it one doesn’t dominate the other. This is the classic example of “perfect pairing”.
Sweet Notes: Botan Ebi with heirloom tomato granite, konbu, lemon basil, and chili oil, served with Hennessy X.O, on the rocks
