Davao

[GoodEnough]

Agreed about both reliability and price.

Still, as I sit in my basement debating which session of my local beer festival to attend, I am prepared to support any brew in the Phils that isn't San Miguel product.

On the other hand, San Mig is no worse than most American mass produced beers like Bud and Millers; they all taste somewhat like water with alcohol added. However, I don't believe that the great mass of local beer drinkers is going to be weaned away from San Mig anytime soon.

GE.

[Shining Wit]

Here you go GE.

Not exactly Davao-specific but useful nevertheless.

I have tried the full range of Rogue's Ale (available at StockPile in Sapphire in Ortigas Center) and it's OK. Biggest problem with pinoy craft beers is the Quality Control.

Second problem is they are "outrageously expensive" relative to the tried and true SMB.

http://www.wheninmanila.com/5-philip...an-enjoy-beer/

http://www.spot.ph/eatdrink/the-late...eers-in-manila

Agreed about both reliability and price.

Still, as I sit in my basement debating which session of my local beer festival to attend, I am prepared to support any brew in the Phils that isn't San Miguel product.

[GoodEnough]

Here you go GE.

Not exactly Davao-specific but useful nevertheless.

I have tried the full range of Rogue's Ale (available at StockPile in Sapphire in Ortigas Center) and it's OK. Biggest problem with pinoy craft beers is the Quality Control.

Second problem is they are "outrageously expensive" relative to the tried and true SMB.

http://www.wheninmanila.com/5-philip...an-enjoy-beer/

http://www.spot.ph/eatdrink/the-late...eers-in-manila

Thanks RK. I keep a few bottles of Stell around the fridge just in case I get the beer urge, but it's enough for me. As I said, I don't really like beer that much and so rarely indulge.

GE.

[Red Kilt]

I don't know of any micro-brewed beers available here, which doesn't mean they don't exist.

Here you go GE.

Not exactly Davao-specific but useful nevertheless.

I have tried the full range of Rogue's Ale (available at StockPile in Sapphire in Ortigas Center) and it's OK. Biggest problem with pinoy craft beers is the Quality Control.

Second problem is they are "outrageously expensive" relative to the tried and true SMB.

http://www.wheninmanila.com/5-philip...an-enjoy-beer/

http://www.spot.ph/eatdrink/the-late...eers-in-manila

[GoodEnough]

Obviously the microbrewery revolution hasn't reached Davao yet.

The Bottle Shop in Magallanes has a wide variety of imported bottles and a surprisingly large number of local brews, bottled and draft. They also have a couple of other outlets, in Makati I think.

Of more relevance to members might be that G-Point serves its own house beers, both in the main bar and in the regular {non FL} bar around the corner in Adriatico St. Whwn I have been in the latter, any groups have been of uni / yuppy type Filipinos, so it may be that they have little idea what they are drinking but are happy to flash the cash!

I'm not much of a beer drinker, but I do know that you can buy a few imported beers--Stella Artois, Corona for example--in S&are in Davao. Swiss Deli also serves some German lager and dark beers, and I'm guessing that Bondi & Burke, under Australian ownership, might serve some Australian beer. But I don't know of any micro-brewed beers available here, which doesn't mean they don't exist.

GE.

[Shining Wit]

Stick to your old habits OM (have you tried SM Super Dry?)

I think it is the closest to the good Aussie beers that I have found here (with or without ice).

Good, well managed wine served in "real" restaurants (like Bon Appetit in Davao and Zuni in Greenbelt (there are others too)) is worth trying but only if you don't mind paying the premium price for such tipples.

Obviously the microbrewery revolution hasn't reached Davao yet.

The Bottle Shop in Magallanes has a wide variety of imported bottles and a surprisingly large number of local brews, bottled and draft. They also have a couple of other outlets, in Makati I think.

Of more relevance to members might be that G-Point serves its own house beers, both in the main bar and in the regular {non FL} bar around the corner in Adriatico St. Whwn I have been in the latter, any groups have been of uni / yuppy type Filipinos, so it may be that they have little idea what they are drinking but are happy to flash the cash!

[GoodEnough]

De Bonte Koe serve an excellent house wine at a cheap price per glass (160? But Henny would never tell me where the wine was from or the brand. Secret he said. Anyone had the inside info?

I think I do, but I'm not going to share his secret, as he's a good friend. I would disagree about the "excellence" however. It's an ordinary table wine (my opinion only) and I could show you two or three places in Davao where you could buy similar wine for about Php500 a bottle.

GE.

[Ms Account]

My alternative would be De Bonte Koe on Rizal St. , owned and operated by Henny, a Dutch guy. .

De Bonte Koe serve an excellent house wine at a cheap price per glass (160? But Henny would never tell me where the wine was from or the brand. Secret he said. Anyone had the inside info?

[Red Kilt]

<SNIP> Truth be told, I usually drink SM Pilsen (with ice, yet) in many places in the Philippines. Fewer pesky problems with storage and "maderization", not to mention the relatively poor selections and comparatively high prices of wine here.

Stick to your old habits OM (have you tried SM Super Dry?)

I think it is the closest to the good Aussie beers that I have found here (with or without ice).

Good, well managed wine served in "real" restaurants (like Bon Appetit in Davao and Zuni in Greenbelt (there are others too)) is worth trying but only if you don't mind paying the premium price for such tipples.

[Red Kilt]

<SNIP>

One lesson I've learned here is that many places that sell wines know little to nothing about appropriate storage, so it's important to take more than a cursory sniff before taking the first swallow. I've learned that the hard way and had a few unpleasant surprises as a result.

GE has hit the nail on the head with his statement that I just quoted.

There are a very small number of places in the PI that "specialize" in wine and the serious wine sellers (of which there are but a few) import their wine in temperature-controlled containers. I know this from my attendance at the Makati Cheese Club that meets at the Makati Polo Club. Top wines are served, and in my chats with the major wine outlet owners they tell me that getting their wine shipped properly at a constant temperature is the bane of their existence. Imagine a container sitting on a wharf or an airport apron for 12 or so hours in the Philippine tropical sun. The serious guys track their wine from cellar to port, even sending their own transport to get hold of the wine as soon as possible after arrival. I would expect that wine shipped to other ports in the Philippines (excluding Davao and Cebu) will have come through Manila and who knows what route it has taken after arrival.

Only the "A" section of society attends the MCC and only a small percentage of them have much knowledge of wine, so I think claims by earlier posters that many filipinos have well-developed wine palates is an exception that doesn't prove the rule. The buyers of the best wine are primarily foreigners and well-heeled A-class filipinos; those gfs and asawas who appreciate wine are always linked to foreigners and have been educated accordingly.

I know I have used "always" and "every" terms here which are a bit presumptuous given my empirical data comes from chats with wine sellers but remember there are 100 M people in the Philippines so 1000 pinoys with a wine nose represents a miniscule number in the whole scheme of things.

[StevieW]

My original plan was to go to Cebu after Camiguin, but whilst in Camiguin, I got contacted by R and decided to meet up with her in Davao instead. She's originally from Davao and I met her in Singapore a few years back, for those who know the place, at OT. I managed to get her number and we arranged the occasional meet ups whilst we were both in Singapore. She tells me she's going to be flying back to Davao on 23rd Feb, but then I'm supposed to be meeting a friend on 24th at 05.00 in Cebu airport. After some persuading are reschedules her flight for the 18th. So, after an evening of unsuccessful girly bar searching in Cagayan, I take the 6 am flight from Cagayan to Davao the next morning. I get to the Apo View hotel just after 8, check in, drug myself up to the eyeballs and go to bed, hoping that I'll feel better by the time are arrives. Original plan was that she'd pop home (Half hour outside Davao), drop off her bags and then come to the hotel around 6 ish, but then turns out her mom is cooking dinner for her. Sleep wasn't great so in the early evening I shower and then go out for a wander and some food. According to the forum, there was supposed to be a couple of Hot Legs bars around. But could I find them? No. Seemed like Cagayan again, just couldn't find anything despite the descriptions given.

Anyway, I get some food and head back to the hotel and have another nap. Are arrives around 8.30 and straight up to my room. She practically jumps on top of me whilst I'm still in bed; well it has been almost two and a half years since we last saw each other. Probably just as well I didn't get any action in Cagayan as this reunion started off with a great about of sex; BBBJ, DATY, cowgirl, reverse, doggy, mish. She's got great tits (not sure about size, maybe see cup?) for sucking on and it's great to see them swinging around when she's on top. Not quite what I needed to cure my cold, but very satisfying. She gives a great GFE and at the same time, doesn't really expect me to be her BF. Her FB status says she's in a relationship with someone (not a Filipino guy) but I've never asked her about that.

5 days with R, daily morning glory taken care of, bit of sightseeing or diving, back to the hotel for some shower sex, dinner and back to the hotel for a night time session before going to bed.

On her last night there, are takes me to a few clubs. First club was a Hot Legs club on Palma Gil Street. Unfortunately, it was a men only club, but they did suggest another of their Hot Legs a few blocks away. They tried to tout one of their trikes to take us there but instead we thought we'd try the club across the street. I don't remember the name of the club, but it's directly opposite Hot Legs. There's no fee to go in. I personally didn't find it that interesting there. They have a stage with one or sometimes two girls dancing. All the girls were average looking, not a single smile on their face. Are goes off to the toilets and when she comes back she tells me there's a private room at the back. She did tell also tell me what the prices of the LDs were but as I wasn't really interested in this place I didn't make a conscious effort to remember; sorry guys, I'm also going to blame my cold for not remembering. We finish our drink and decide to find the other Hot Legs. She wouldn't trust my sense of direction so it took us a lot longer to get there than it should have. It's next to My Hotel; yes the hotel is called "My Hotel", which is on San Pedro Street near the Pelayo Street junction. Again, no entry fee. They have quite a large room there with plenty of seating around, and quite a large stage at the front, they even had 6 dancers on the stage at one point. Even though the club wasn't full, there will still a lot of people there. We go and find a seat / table near the stage to watch the show. From what I could see from my local vicinity, the furniture was just shit; wooden boxes acting as tables and the couches were all in such a bad state, oh well, I didn't come here for the furniture. Seems that each dancer normally does three sets, first clothed, second in underwear, and third either topless or fully naked depending on the girl, but a few of the girls didn't do the 3rd set. Overall, some very hot dancers there, but there were some average looking girls, and one of them looked like she was in her late 30's! There were also about 15 or so girls milling around. These girls do not dance and they are there just to sit with the customers, clients, pervs, whatever you want to call them. After 5 minutes or so, one of these girls takes a seat at the end of our couch. She's quite plain looking with average body. Are is sitting between us and she manages to get a little info about their pay. LDs are 150 and the girls get 50 pesos from this. Dancers get paid 240, or 600 if they do the 3rd set. Again, there was mention of a private room, but generally private rooms don't interest me and I didn't make a note of the price. Nothing was mentioned about being able to take the girls out, but I think I read somewhere that you could pay to do this at Hot Legs. I went to the smoking area which is upstairs and there's a couple of notices there referring to 10k fines. Not sure what the first one said as it was written in Filipino, but the other was about depositing their cell phones whilst on duty.

I had one more night after are left, and I went back to the first Hot Legs. Really can't understand why they stipulated men only. It's a much smaller place with smaller stage. Overall, girls are less attractive and they seem to be a lot pushier. As soon as I'the sat down, there were 5 girls swarming me. Didn't really like that so I told them to leave me and that I just wanted to sit alone for a while. Dancers only did two sets, with the second only showing their bras. For me, I didn't really find this place that entertaining.

I wish R had taken me to the clubs sooner. Even if the girls couldn't be barfined, I did enjoy the shows, and if they could, I had a feeling that R would have been up for a threesome. Actually, trip would have been even better if I didn't have a cold. It was a nice week, but sadly I won't be back. I only go to these places for diving and once I've been there I don't feel the need to come back considering there are so many other destinations. But then, there are still a lot of places in Philippines I haven't been to, so more research for other hot spots to visit in the future.

[GoodEnough]

Davao City sounds like a mini wine mecca. Truth be told, I usually drink SM Pilsen (with ice, yet) in many places in the Philippines. Fewer pesky problems with storage and "maderization", not to mention the relatively poor selections and comparatively high prices of wine here. Will definitely sample a bottle or two of wine when in Davao, though!

Sante'. (don't know how to type in the "accent aigu" here).

OM.

I don't want to oversell the wine availability, and I didn't mean to suggest that decent wine selections are ubiquitous here. The best selection by far is at Swiss Deli on Lanang. There's a wine cellar on the bottom floor, with a broad selection of wines ranging from about Php500 to Php20,000 and pretty much all price points in between. Bon Appétit has a decent selection, though not nearly as broad as Swiss Deli, and it's mark-ups are significantly higher. If you want the cheapest wine prices in town, there's a small wine store just off Torres St. That has the best prices I've found here and a surprisingly good selection of Bordeaux. I forget the name, but if you want it, PM me and I'll dig it out. I mostly drink the good stuff at home, and I drink mostly French Bordeaux, Burgundies and a few Beaujolais. Most of my wines I've bought from Swiss Deli, though Yves, the proprietor of Bon Appétit has gotten me a few bottles from his supplier (LE Cellier) in Manila. I've also bought some nice, aged Chiantis from the wine store to which I referred earlier, as well as a couple of Siran. Bottled wines. My favorite wine in general, is a Margaux, and those I buy from Swiss Deli.

Somewhat surprisingly, at least for me, S&are, the gigantic warehouse store, has a very competitively priced Champagne section. It sells the Taittinger Rosé for about Php3,800 and the Brut for a few hundred pesos less. It also has Veuve Cliquot at about Php3,500 for the Brut. It doesn't have much of a selection of European reds or whites.

One lesson I've learned here is that many places that sell wines know little to nothing about appropriate storage, so it's important to take more than a cursory sniff before taking the first swallow. I've learned that the hard way and had a few unpleasant surprises as a result.

GE.

[Hutsori]

Thanks for the history Huts. I had no idea that one of my favorite Chateaux has a Filipino connection. I just assumed, to the extent I might have thought about it at all, that it was French-owned and operated.

GE.

You're welcome. Some names give clues to the origins and ownership, such as Lynch-Bages (my favorite affordable grand cru claret) was founded by the Irish (Galway) Lynch family, more Irish links to Leoville-Barton, Dillon, Phelan Segur, Boyd-Cantenac, etc., and Talbot by an Anglo-Norman family - though English and Irish many have Norman origins. Of course ownership changes often. The Miailhe family's chateau is one the longest continuously held presently. The Japanese acquired several in '80s and '90s, and today it's the Chinese who own over 100 in France. Now 100 may seem like a lot, but there are about 7,400 in Bordeaux.

[Omega 3]

I'm a wine lover and a (strictly amateur) oenophile, but I know Filipinos here in Davao--my asawa included--who know at least as much and possibly more than I do about French and Italian reds.

I often compare the wine knowledge situation here to that of the US when I was growing up. At that time, few Americans, of my parents' generation traveled abroad for business or pleasure, and the wine knowledge of even reasonably well educated American families was limited. All that my parents knew was that "red went with meat" and "white went with fish,"*** .

One of my early favorite films was "From Russia with Love" (early 60's). Sean Connery was the quintessential James Bond (although Daniel Craig may be the most faithful to Ian Fleming's original fictional character). There is a classic line in part of the immortal train scene in From Russia With Love where James Bond "outs" villain Robert Shaw, by inferring that no true Englishman would order red wine with fish!

Davao City sounds like a mini wine mecca. Truth be told, I usually drink SM Pilsen (with ice, yet) in many places in the Philippines. Fewer pesky problems with storage and "maderization", not to mention the relatively poor selections and comparatively high prices of wine here. Will definitely sample a bottle or two of wine when in Davao, though!

Sante'. (don't know how to type in the "accent aigu" here).

OM.

[Omega 3]

That's the Miailhe family, which was once also a part owner of Chateau Palmer and involved in whole or in part with several others such as Pichon Longueville Lalande, names which to an oenophile are big deals. ***
Though the family has had long trade and business ties with the country, I think it's a bit of stretch to call them a Filipino family. It's certainly much less so than the Ayala-Zobels. Nevertheless, all the intersections of these different nationalities (English, Anglo-Norman Irish, French, and Filipino, with likely a bit of Spanish and maybe even Chinese on the Somes's side) in Manila makes for an interesting history.

Thank you, Monsieur Huts, for your kind correction and fascinating history of this illustrious family's long-standing connections to the Philippines.

If memory serves, there is even a Philippines flag flying at the entrance to Chateau Siran, just across from the EU flag.

OM.