A Culinary & Cultural Adventure to Taipei

HKU Museum Society is delighted to present a fundraising trip for our 30th Anniversary Endowment Fund. “By invitation only”, our members will be treated to a culinary and cultural weekend adventure in Taipei which include visits to private collections and a gastronomic agenda designed by great bon vivant and wine aficionado Mr. Nical Wu from the eslite Corporation. We will be welcomed as special guests at the beautiful eslite Hotel, an urban oasis by Pritzker Prize award-winning architect Mr. Toyo Ito, located in the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park.

On Culinary
As General Manager of eslite spectrum Company, Nical plays a critical role in cultivating areas of wine, food, life style groceries and fine dining for the eslite Corporation. A man with enormous wine tasting experience, Nical began studying wine in 1992 undertaking training courses at a number of prominent French wineries including Dom Leroy and Henri de Villamon. He has taken part in tastings of the rare Chateau Lafitte Rothschild 1965, Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1900, Chateau Petrus 1900 and 1947 (mag.) and many more! Since 1996 Nical has also been conducting wine seminars at eslite Bookstores as well as in partnership with Cathay Pacific Airlines.

A pioneer of fine wine appreciation in Taipei, Nical was honoured with the French Chevalier award in 2001. He is the "go to" person for chateau representatives and celebrity chefs when they visit Taiwan. Through his extensive network, Nical has organized officially (and unofficially) over a dozen impressive wine tasting dinners which showcased the world's best wines paired with iconic dishes prepared with locally sourced ingredients. For this trip, he will be planning two wine-paired dinners for our tasting.

On Cultural
During our stay in Taipei, we will embrace various aspects of Chinese culture through tea tastings, special visits to see exclusive collections of Chinese embroideries, textile and baby carriers from private collectors as well as contemporary art at the eslite Gallery. In addition, we will also explore the beautiful natural landscapes of Yangmingshan and have a chance to purchase Taiwan’s bountiful products.