On the 11th day of Chinese New Year this year, the suburb of Petaling Jaya’s Seksyen 19 buzzed to life with the throaty purrs of V8s and the keening wail of V12s, as members of the Ferrari Owners’ Club Malaysia (FOCM) pulled into the New Ocean World Fine Food City. At this purpose-built lifestyle gourmet mall, its driveway was filled to the brim with Ferraris of all makes and vintages, ranging from the 430s and 458s to classic 328s as well as modern-day SF90 hybrids. Stealing the show were not one but two V12 Purosangues, Ferrari’s first crossover vehicle, boasting a natural aspirated 6.5-litre V12, and bearing the distinction of being the very first Ferrari with four doors.
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As the members of the FOCM alighted, they made for the grand double doors and six-story atrium of the New Ocean World Fine Food City, riding up in bubble lifts and arriving at the Pacific Grand Ballroom. Here, under ceiling lights that recalled stars in the sky, FOCM members and their partners were welcomed by a swirling animation of a golden cobra on the triple-volume LED ballroom wall.
View more photos of Chivas Regal’s presence during the event
To kick off the evening, guests were presented with the opportunity to immortalise their evening through a sketch artist and a personalised portrait with Enzo Ferrari’s quote. Here, they also marvelled at the very new Great Characters Enzo Ferrari Special Edition Giallo Modena writing instrument, the second iteration of Montblanc’s partnership with Ferrari.
View more photos of guests experiencing Montblanc’s finest writing instruments
An opulent bar setup by Chivas Regal, the official partner to team Scuderia Ferrari, served up Chivas Regal Ultis XX on the rocks and with soda, an indulgence of smooth fruity flavours with the component malt whiskies aged to 20 years. At another end, Martell’s brand ambassador Jean-Baptiste Gourvil held court, sharing the secrets of Martell’s Single Cru with guests, taking them through the unique properties of each ‘cru’ (or territory) that produces a distinctive style of cognac within the region that birthed this drink.
Standing proud like a beacon in the foyer was a singular bottle of L’Or de Jean Martell Assemblage du Serpent. This item, which would be subject to a feisty bidding session later on, represented the cognac maison’s tribute to this year’s zodiac animal, with only 500 numbered Baccarat decanters made available worldwide. Maison Martell’s cellar master Christophe Valtaud had expressly crafted this flagship expression with component eaux-de-vie originating from the specific and exact years coinciding with the Chinese zodiac snake.
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As the doors swung open, the guests were welcomed into the room by celebrity emcee, radio deejay and Hong Kong-movie actress Angel Wong Chui Ling. As she delivered feng shui insights into what the year of snake holds for other animal signs, the room was abuzz with activity, thanks to a booth by Oppo offering the top-of-the-range Find X8 mobile devices, a postcard writing corner by Montblanc, as well as an array of auction items on show.
A high-spirited lion dance performance ensued, with mid-air gravity-defying jumps, as well as the customary tossing of yee sang before the stage was handed to the evening’s performers, D’JessO led by vocalists Jess and Lenny.
The undoubted highlight that evening arrived when the emcee invited FOCM’s very own three-term club president Dato’ Tan Su Cheng onstage to join her in an auction of six unique objects. Among them were the Acqua Di Parma Luce di Rosa Masterpiece edition, an artist-designed cigar humidor, Montblanc’s Year of the Snake fountain pen, and a trio of Screaming Eagle vintages, all of which are signed by Heidi Barrett, the iconic winemaker of this cult wine.
And as the auction closed, a slew of lucky draw items were handed out to the guests, including hotel stays by JNE Tour Travel, OPPO’s Find X8 smartphones, and Montblanc leather accessories and luggage bags, a triumphant finale that carried into song and dance till the hush of night.
Photography by Ken Lim / Momenz Creation
Videography by SK Seaw / Momenz Creation
