Merrick: I love rendang, I love curries, I love spicy Asian food.

Mike: Evening curry or 2am curry?

Merrick: All of them! I love beer but the problem with beer is that it fills you up. I look at a dish like a beef rendang and I want to be able to have as much of it as I can consume.

Mike: Some sommeliers will have you reaching for beer with curry. And there’s an innate sort of a sensibility to that. But I also say, nah. Let’s grow up and not take the easy route with spice and curries. What I really think we should be doing is going for textural white wines. Particularly stuff that seems incongruous from Mediterranean sources. The southern parts of Europe – vermentino, fiano, saline white wines.

Merrick: I was thinking along the same lines as you but bourbon and Coke.

Mike: Well, that’s also a Mediterranean, Southern-style drink – super Southern! Put a piece of blood orange in it. Perhaps I’d go a nice little chardy. Texture goes against the grain with a spice element. Australian styles are refreshing, so can soothe the ‘ouchy mouth’ you get after  consuming curry. Many people complain of spicy ‘ouchy mouth’ after curry.