If you haven't already filled your Friday evening with al fresco dining and drinks on rooftop terraces, head down to Carrefour Shuangjing for the opening of their latest wine fair.

Temperatures have officially risen, and you know what that means: Summer menus are popping about, enticing you with grilled meats and creative uses of summer fruits and veggies. Read on for wine and cheese events, new openings and closings and where you can get a bite of that delicious-looking strawberry macaron.

“Grape Press” is a regular magazine column in which we recommend wines to suit various occasions and price points.

Chinese New Year is one of those festivals in which wine is now a gift of choice. Ice wine has in recent years become increasingly popular, and not only for gifting purposes.

But what is ice wine? It’s a dessert wine made from grapes which, in the Northern Hemisphere, are harvested as late as December or even January. Only healthy berries are picked in conditions around -10°C. After the fruit is pressed in the winery, the frozen water is removed, leaving only a thick, concentrated nectar for fermentation. In fact, the sweetness of ice wine affects the alcohol content. Most yeasts die when the alcohol reaches a level of 5-10 percent ABV – there’s just too much sugar for the poor yeast to survive! So if you see an ice wine listed as 15 percent ABV, it can’t be the real deal.

Controversy abounds in Beijing. A section of the city wants to become English-only, an exciting wine win is dampened by certain one-sided parameters, China has a strong showing at a plagiarism exhibit and pollution remains a heated health topic.

“Last Orders” is a regular magazine column in which we ask noteworthy Beijingers to imagine their final meal before leaving the city for good. This month’s host: Ignace Lecleir, general manager at Temple Restaurant Beijing (TRB).

The venue

Preferably, the feast would begin at 11am in the morning, if not at dawn, and last all the way until midnight. I’d want to have the focus on the Chinese cuisine I’ve grown to love over the years. The menu will contain a selection of Chinese and Western dishes that would awaken my taste memory. I’d like to have my entire team, some friends and family to join me. The venue of my choice will be Temple Restaurant Beijing, where I’m currently working.