A Wine for One’s Home

A Wine for One’s Home  

Cambodian businessman and entrepreneur Edward Chea has taken a long and somewhat circuitous route to wine. It is a journey that has involved travelling the world over and cultivating businesses across a number of industries. It has also included plenty of hard work and more than a few brave decisions.

He considers himself fortunate to have enjoyed remarkable success both in business and in the art of living one’s best life. His most cherished partnership is that of his family: his wife, Ling Ling and their two beautiful young children.

Along this path, he has developed an appreciation for the many fine places, people, cultures, arts, and gastronomy he has experienced. An enjoyment of fine wine soon became a passion, and then Edward Chea decided to make another bold move. 

When launching his own wine company, Edward stated he wanted to go beyond merely importing and selling fine wine; his desire was to create a wine specifically for his people, their culture and their culinary traditions: a wine created by a Cambodian for Cambodia.

Renowned viticulturist and wine broker Adam Jacobs shares a story from his early days managing vineyards in McLaren Vale; some 30 years ago, he employed a working detail of Cambodians who were passing through the region. His comment at the time was that they always showed up, rarely, if ever, complained and did twice the work of the local crews in half the time.

Adam was always grateful to that small, no-nonsense, hard-working Khmer group; he appreciated their honest work ethic and genuinely friendly nature. In fact, whilst they moved on to other regions and other harvests, he never saw them again, but he also never forgot them.

Little could he know that over a quarter of a century later, he would meet Edward Chea, who would ask him to source the grapes and oversee the production of a high-quality red wine, specifically for the Cambodian market.

“I immediately thought of that Khmer work detail all those years ago, and whilst this was a unique and very special opportunity, it also felt like a chance to say thank you.” 

Adam delved into his extensive client list and vast industry network to source an extraordinary parcel of old vine Shiraz grapes from Australia’s preeminent wine region, the Barossa Valley in South Australia. Widely recognised for producing some of the world’s finest wines, the Barossa boasts the oldest and most treasured Shiraz vineyards. With some of these vines continuously producing wine grapes for over 150 years, the world of wine regards them as living national treasures. 

Being able to source exceptional fruit from ancient vines was the starting point. After harvest, through countless tasting sessions, briefings, and discussions with winemakers, and with a mindfulness bordering on obsessive attention to detail, the Edward Estate ‘Peppertree’ Shiraz was born.

The first release has recently arrived in Cambodia and is now available at places like Pepe’s Steakhouse in Phnom Penh. A recent tasting there, paired with some perfectly prepared beef brisket, was highly impressive.

Colour: deep, dark plum, ox blood purple, with a youthful halo of luminous violet.

Aroma: A classic Barossa bouquet of ripe plum, violets, framboise, licorice, baking spices and hints of dried herbs and smoked sausage.

The Palate: shows a full-bodied, fruit-driven red wine with depth, balance and finesse. A rich, creamy entry of ripe forest berry fruits leads into an enticing core of ripe, jammy plum and raspberry with notes of five-spice, and a dash of umami. This is supported by fine, elegant tannins and subtle minerality.

Conclusion: This is a cracker of a Barossa Shiraz, a trapeze act of balancing power and finesse, a wine truly worthy of its heritage, name and destination. Excellent for pairing with smoked, barbecued or roasted red meats. Try it with a steaming bowl of Samlor Korkor Sachko.

Darren Gall