Imagine a gift of mooncakes that are specially crafted with rare and fine ingredients such as wild snow chrysanthemum and Tuscan spring water. The Straits Times' premium wine club, ST Wine, is collaborating with boutique gift company Empire Artisans to present a collection of Mid-Autumn wine gift sets featuring mooncakes of outstanding quality and curated fine wines.
Empire Artisans is a home-grown firm specialising in high-end lifestyle and gifting experiences, such as its exclusive applewood smoked bak kwa (barbecued meat) that comes in a gold and velvet gift box.
Its baked skin mooncakes are packaged in an elegant gold box containing four smaller gold boxes, each containing an individually sealed mooncake.
The top-of-the-range Emperor Snow Chrysanthemum Double Yolk Mooncake is infused with delicate flavours of wild snow chrysanthemum harvested from the snow-capped Kunlun Mountains in Xinjiang. The snow chrysanthemum is a much sought-after and hard-to-procure ingredient as the low-yielding flower has a short blooming season.
Empire Artisans spent three years on the research and development of its recipes and sourcing for top-rate ingredients. The aim was to make the "ultimate mooncake", a company spokesman said.
Mr Tan Ooi Boon, senior vice-president (business development) for The Straits Times, said: "We are delighted to partner Empire Artisan because they share our mission in offering the best product at the best price for our readers. Just like wine, not all mooncakes are created equally. Their secret is in the finest ingredients used, such as snow chrysanthemum, which results in an exquisite floral honey- like aftertaste for their mooncakes."
The wines featured in the gift sets are a Chilean red, the Montes Alpha Merlot 2013 rated JS 92 by James Suckling, and the Evans & Tate Breathing Space Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 rated JH 90.
The gift sets are available for order at stwine.sg
Get two bottles of wine with one box of Prince Double Yolk Imperial Lotus Paste Mooncake at $188, or two bottles of ST Wine with one box of Emperor Snow Chrysanthemum Double Yolk Mooncake at $238. Mooncake gift sets without wine are also available at $168 for two boxes of the Prince Double Yolk Imperial Lotus Paste Mooncake and $268 for two boxes of the Emperor Snow Chrysanthemum Double Yolk Mooncake. Prices are net and include delivery.
ST Wine also has special wine packages which are curated, with new wines featured monthly.
Join the ST Wine Club and enjoy surprise monthly packages of fine wines delivered to your doorstep.
•For enquiries, e-mail STWine@ sph.com.sg or call 6319-5076 during office hours.
