Château Lafleur 1975

Tasted on 15 March 201o: a beautifully-aged wine displaying elegance, subtlety and beguiling complexity. Garnet-ruby core. Alluring perfume of blackberries, chocolate, violet, rose petals, overlying cedar, spicy liquorice and leather. Medium body and soft silky tannins gave the wine a velvety texture. A wine still in its prime, with still a hint of fruit character and a respectable level of acidity. The lingering finish left one wondering if wine could be better made?!! Score: 19.5/20

An Italian Affair

Last Saturday (20 March 2010), after a convivial lunch at a friend's place where we were treated to some very tasty food washed down with a magnum of 2007 Pommard Les Pézerolles, Domaine de Montille, which was surprisingly ready for drinking now, we joined a friend at a fabulous evening at Grissini to celebrate his birthday. The restaurant did a superb job pairing the dishes prepared by 2-Michelin star chef Claudio Sadler from Milan, with wines from different Italian wine regions.

The 2007 21 Settembre by Luca Abrate from Piemonte was a very interesting discovery......it went extremely well with the handmade goose liver terrine with raisins and walnuts. Named after the birthday of Luca Abrate's daughter on 21 September 2006, the wine is produced in small quantities (for 2007 vintage, 7,500bottles and 1,200 magnums). Arneis grapes (which were left on vines for extra ripening and flavour concentration after being separated from the main trunk and water source) gave the wine a medium body, a viscous texture and a perfumed nose of intense aromas reflecting the ripeness of the grapes - nutty, ripe yellow peach, floral, dried apricots, sultanas and honey. Expertly crafted wine, which has maintained a good level of acidity to balance the perceived sweetness. Medium length finish, with an almost sweet and fruity aftertaste. The next wine was a 2007 Sauvignon Blanc by Schiopetto from Friuli. Light body, with the characteristic but subtle notes of Sauvignon Blanc: gooseberry, grassy, bell pepper, without overpowering the perception of the minerality of this refreshing wine, with a medium length finish. Not sure it was the perfect match for the lobster salad but the wine was a well-made example from Friuli. The third wine, 2007 Vinnae by Jermann in Friuli (90% Ribolla Gialla, 5% Riesling, 5% Tocai Friulano) was a thoughtful wine....it probably deserved more attention than I could give it, at risk of ignoring my neighbours. I could see some similarity with Viognier, smoky, mineraly, very ripe pears or even pear drops, floral (honeysuckle) and a nutty character (macadamia)....lacked length and I thought there was an aftertaste reminiscent of bitter orange or tangerine peel. Not sure it was the best match with the slighty spicy skate wing and broccoli soup, which I felt was an acquired taste....

Then came the red wines......the 2006 Chianti Classico by Castello dei Rampolla just about measured up to the sublime dish of cheese and pepper ravioli with stuffed calamari.....a classic Chianti, cheerful, went well with food but not complex. I thought the 2005 Ca' Marcanda Magari by Gaja was the real winner of the whole evening. An outstanding example of Cabernet Sauvignon from Italy.....intense and complex, with notes of cedar, blackcurrant, black cherries, violet, spicy liquorice, savoury and minerality. Well-integrated ripe tannins. Well-structured and balanced. A perfect wine to go with the succulent Tuscan Cinta Senese pork loin with an interesting liquorice sauce.

The dessert wine was Recioto di Soave Vigna Morogone by Tamellini 2004. I liked it on its own, without the distraction of the dessert platter. Honey, walnut, spicy, orange peel, kumquat notes. Full body with well-measured acidity. Nice length. Just a perfect end to the evening.....(actually it wasn't.....more champagne followed.......)

Château Pétrus 1990

We managed to find a couple of partridges in the freezer and decided on a dinner of roast partridges on a bed of julienne carrots, with caramelised onion and parsnips. As accompaniment, we tried the coriander and shallot chilli jelly from The Chilli Queen (bought in the UK at a Christmas fair last year) in place of the usual cumberland sauce or redcurrant jelly. Yummy! And a beautiful Pétrus 1990 to go with our dish......

Tasted 13 March 2010: An absolute classic and beauty, an alluring bouquet of chocolate, mocha, black cherry and violet, with a medium body, mellowed tannins, balancing acidity. A finish that went on and on. The kind of wine that made you pause and reflect with every sip.......so different from the 1989 Petrus that we had a short while ago (tasted 20 February 2010) - the latter had a nose and palate of something brûlée and lacked the elegance of the 1990. Score for the 1990: 19/20

A marvellous evening with Pol Roger and Clos de Tart!

Last night (12 March 2010), we were treated by Hong Kong wine personality Paulo Pong to a delicious feast paired with exquisite champagne by Pol Roger and lovely Clos de Tart at T'ang Court at the Langham Hotel TST in Hong Kong. Mr. Patrice Noyelle from Pol Roger was there to tell us about the history of Pol Roger and the wines we were going to try. Jeannie Cho Lee MW concurred that champagne was a perfect accompaniment to Chinese food, with its variety of flavours and textures. We started with the Brut, followed by the non-dosage Pure, which was austere, refreshing and laced with minerality, lime/citrus and dry toast flavours. I rather preferred the Brut 2000 to go with the baked crab meat in its shell, which was extremely moist, almost creamy (helped by the onion) and rich in flavours. My favourites were the two Pinot Noir-dominated Cuvée Winston Churchills (1998 followed by 1996) were rich, complex and extremely memorable with enticing bouquet. The 1998 was much more forthcoming, with floral and baked apple character, underneath the bakery and confectionery notes. The 1996 was an exceptional wine, rich, complex, perfumed, with an almost full body and a creamy texture, with potential to age much further, with its high acidity level and strong mineral character. The finish was exceptionally long. The two champagnes were lovely accompaniment to the lobster/mustard and prawn dish as well as the garoupa with celery. Our host interestingly pointed out how well the 1996 went with the celery! We then switched to red burgundy. The Clos de Tart 1990 was absolutely beautiful, classic, with the familiar burgundian farmyard and warm spicy character, with still plenty of red fruit suggesting a wine still in its prime. A lingering finish. The 1988 was elegant but seemed less interesting and overshadowed by the 1990, with a medium length finish. All in all, the stars of the evening were the 1996 Cuvée Winston Churchill and the 1990 Clos de Tart, scoring 18.5 and 18/20 respectively in my view! A big thank you to our generous host!

2004 Aleah, Villa Mangiacane

Tasted 7 Mar 2010: Intense ruby core. Aromas of chocolate, black cherry (black forest cake), warm spices, liquorice, vanilla, with a mineral and savoury character. On the palate, a rich and mouth-filling sensation, with medium level of firm tannins, and a good level of acidity, giving structure and balance to this wine. Medium length finish. An excellent value-quality equation. Drinking well now, but well-deserving of ageing in bottle for another 6-8 years for further development. Score: 17/20

Some technical details: 100% Merlot. From vineyards in San Casciano Val di Pesa in Toscana. Vinification in stainless steel, followed by 18 months in French oak barriques. Website for the winemaker: www.mangiacane.it

Room to Read, Hong Kong, 25 Feb 2010

A very successful FT-sponsored fund-raising evening in Hong Kong by Room to Read (www.roomtoread.org). US$ 3 million raised, in the Conrad Hotel ballroom, full of enthusiastic and philanthropic people from Hong Kong....much encouraged by the energetic and skilful John Wood, Room to Read's founder, and delighted by the presence of Jancis Robinson introducing us to some interesting new wines and talking about other more familiar ones featuring in the evening menu. I was most impressed by the 2006 Oremus, Mandolas Dry Furmint from Tokaji, Hungary a place we normally associate with nectar-like sweet wines. The dry version showed aromas of lanolin, exotic fruit (passion fruit, pineapple, etc), honey, macadamia nuts. The richness was evident but subtle enough to reveal its mineral character and the fresh acidity helped give the wine a lovely balance. Went very well with the spicy salmon tartare......can imagine it going well with some Asian dishes.....a very interesting discovery!

Tasting of 2 Wines by Denis Mortet

We tasted two amazing wines by Denis Mortet in February.

1998 Chambertin, Denis Mortet

Tasted 23 Feb 2010: Ruby core. Intense nose of gamey, spicy, savoury notes interlaced with attractive red cherry character. Palate of red fruit and spices, balanced by silky tannins and a good level of acidity. Lingering finish. A very classic burgundy, well-developed for drinking now, and over the next 5 - 6 years. Score: 18/20

1999 Clos Vougeot, Denis Mortet
Tasted 14 Feb 2010: An absolute beauty, sensual and alluring, with its very attractive, almost perfumed bouquet (red fruit, earthy, rose, violets, and lightly spicy), its very silky texture, elegant body, and a finish that goes on for a long time….just a beautiful wine! Drinking very well now, and over the next 6 - 8 years. Score: 18.5/20

Restaurant Jean Georges, New York, 4 Feb 2010

We had a most amazing dinner, taking in the actions and personalities of the main dining room comfortably ensconced in one of the romantic alcoves. The comprehensive menu... featured a number of innovative, harmonious and beautifully presented dishes. We highly recommend the sesame crab starter and the turbot in Chateau Chalon sauce. The chef surprised us with a polenta gnocchi in lemon and truffle sauce - very original and refreshing! The desserts were a fine selection of complementing flavours under different themes. We tried the chocolate and the citrus selections - divine without being too rich. The wine list included a good selection of half and magnum bottles! The halves are great for pairing with food when you have a small party!