Liora Levi adds Red Stars to the Maldives: "what met me was truly overwhelming"
Wine writer, presenter and Star Wine List’s Ambassador Manager Liora Levi has awarded Red Stars to two Maldives hotels that she recently discovered. And whilst you may have these South Asian islands on your radar as a holiday destination, Liora can report that, if you know where to look, your wine experience will also be worthy of a postcard home.
“This was my first visit to the Maldives,” says Liora, “but I think this is probably the destination that has been on my bucket list the longest – since I was a little girl, basically. I’ve been terrified that the islands would sink in the sea before I got the chance to visit.”
Liora’s Red Stars go to the Constance Moofushi Maldives and Constance Halaveli Maldives, so we asked her about her experience.
How did you choose where to visit whilst there?
"First of all, alcohol is not allowed in Malé, the capital city of the Maldives (and, sadly I didn’t have time to visit the city, which I would have loved to do just to dive into all the offers of tasty curries). So to be able to enjoy food and wine in the Maldives you need to travel to the resorts, and there is more or less only one resort per island, which means that you have to decide where to go before you travel there. Moving between islands is done by seaplane mostly, so it is not like you can just stop by another resort for dinner!"
And what did you expect from the wine offering?
"Well, I have visited other resorts in the Constance group previously, so I already suspected that there would be a nice selection. However, what met me was truly overwhelming – I could have stayed on for months and still had plenty of exciting wines to choose from. Obviously, my wallet would not have allowed me to, even though the prices – at Moofushi, especially – are amazing."
What was your favourite pairing to the local cuisine?
"I must say that I love a good curry and I found that a great deal of the Pinot Noir selection that I tried, both from New Zealand and France, worked quite well when the curries weren’t too spicy.
"Also, Pinot Noir being one of my favourite grapes, I find that it pairs well with nearly everything – obviously with meats and barbecues but also with the local white fish, which there was plenty of."
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