In the cellar at La Cabane

A chalet in Hong Kong 

The setting is two quirky wooden chalets for the cellar and the bistro located amidst the labyrinthine steps on Hollywood Road, beneath an impressive array of skyscrapers. The two founders were set on creating a rustic atmosphere, and they certainly have achieved it! In the cellar, the wines are displayed on wooden shelves, arranged by appellation and colour on the mandatory ‘hand-made’ furniture. They have made just one concession to modernity – the air-conditioning, to keep the temperature at 14°C, even when the mercury soars to 35°C outside. 

Return to nature 

After Karim Hadjadj left Hong Kong for Europe, former banker Cristobal Huneeus took over at the helm of La Cabane. His bedside drinking wine is French – La Mémé by Domaine Gramenon in the Rhone Valley. This pure single varietal Grenache is made from vines over one hundred years old and it would open the door to natural wines for him.

From Australia to Hungary  

Consequently, the cellar of La Cabane was primarily designed to stray off the well-trodden path. French wines are still in the majority but Cristobal and Karim introduced a more varied range of regions. Most importantly, 40% of the wines listed take imbibers on a tour of around fifteen countries other than France – Australia and South Africa, of course, but also more iconoclastic destinations yet at the same time bastions of wine like Georgia, the Czech Republic, Austria and Hungary.

“For us and for me – I’m half French, half Chilean – it was important to recreate biodiversity. So our wine list had to be very broad-ranging. We have also chosen to make a long-term commitment to winegrowers – from a people perspective, it’s important. The idea is to have continuity over several vintages and not to embark on a constant race for new listings”.

Chenin, savagnin, grenache 

Cristobal and Karim are also Chenin enthusiasts. They like theirs dry – say Australian Chenins or Savennières – and sweet with Coteaux-du-Layon. They also have a soft spot for Savagnin, the king of Jura grape varieties, and La Cabane stocks wines by Domaine Overnoy and Jean-François Ganevat, the gurus of sulphur-free winemaking, along with representatives of new-generation Jura like Tony Bornard. French and Spanish Grenache also have a good showing.  

Pushing the boundaries

Always on the look-out for new things, Cristobal recently honed in on hybrid grape varieties in Quebec, like Crescent and Frontenac, which can withstand the cold and, he explains, open up new avenues in terms of wine aromatics. The shelves at La Cabane already feature some, with wines by Frédéric Simon at Pinard & Filles and La Garagista Winery. La Cabane in some ways mirrors Hong Kong, a world-class port city and crossroads where the entire world converges.