Chateau Angelus 2003

31 October 2010: Much higher percentage (about 10% higher) of Cabernet Franc in the blend for this very heat wave vintage. Approximately 56% Cabernet Franc, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot.  Deep ruby core. A rich and spicy nose layered with blackcurrant leaf, blackberry, prune, violet, pencil shavings and mineral notes. On the palate, abundant sweet fruit on entry, blackberry compote, plums, preserved prunes, figs, complemented by warm spices, almost like a melange of Christmas flavours, with just a hint of herbaceous character. Fine textured, chewy tannin not yet integrated, and firm acidity.  This is only a half bottle. Absolutely delicious now, when paired with a saucey lamb shank dish, osso bucco or cote de boeuf, and with capacity to age for 15+ years. 18/20

Le Sublime du Chateau Fombrauge 2005

31 October 2010: A white Bordeaux from the right bank.  Relatively small production of 9,000 bottles.  A blend of approximately 40% Sauvignon Blanc, 40% Semillon, 20% Sauvignon Gris.  Bright golden hue. Though still very youthful on the nose, already presenting a complexity of honey, lanolin, marzipan, complemented by tropical fruit notes of melon, tinned pineapple and mango. A rich style wine offering weight, ripe fruit, firm acidity and complexity. The high alcohol level (14%) is sticking out a bit but perhaps it will resolve itself over time!! 16.5/20

Shanghainese fare and some deliciously matching wines!

23 Oct 2010: Last night we tried a new Shanghainese restaurant in Causeway Bay called "Zhi Wei House".  The chef apparently used to cook at the Shanghai Fraternity Club. The food was very tasty in a traditional style, as the restaurant name suggested.  We started with 3 small starter dishes: smoked egg, crispy eel and chopped spinach and tofu skin.  For main dishes, we had stir fried prawns Shanghainese style, hairy crab roe with glass noodles, smoked chicken, sweet and sour Mandarin fish with pine nuts, braised pork with gluten, Shanghainese ham sandwich (served with fluffy plain flour roll and crispy tofu cracker), chilli pepper and eggplant, and stir fried green veggie. We then finished the meal with the traditional red bean pancake and the pan-fried eight-treasure rice, a favourite of mine! 

I thought all the dishes were well presented, perfectly flavoured and cooked.  I highly recommend the ham sandwich, the chilli pepper and eggplant stirfry and the eight treasure rice!  What I also appreciated was the very friendly and personal service, despite the impression that they were a little understaffed, by normal restaurant standard.  We did not feel pressured to leave, even when we had settled the bill and we were the last table hanging around at close to midnight.  We opened a few bottles this evening and it was perhaps helpful that we presented a small glass to the manager to try (I was told that she enjoyed a sip or two!)!  I also quite liked the decor of the dining room, lighting not too bright, and quite simply designed but in a tasteful way.  So I definitely will be returning.....now that I have discovered how well Shanghainese food married with certain wine styles!

1982 Château Margaux

17 Oct 2010: It was almost irresistible to drink a great vintage from Château Margaux after watching the DVD made by BBC at the Château - it conveyed such charm, warmth and personality about the chateau that made it rather endearing.....So on a simple supper night: rib eye steak on a bed of Caesar salad with crunchy croutons, we enjoyed and pondered on the lingering finish of the 1982 Margaux. 

Double decanted.  Vibrant ruby colour.  A complex nose of a multitude of  intense fruity, floral, spicy and vegetal notes reminiscent of violet, dried blueberry, blackcurrant jelly, spicy oak, cinnamon, ginger, hoi sin sauce, lead pencil, cedar, tobacco and even a hint of chocolate. Sensuous texture and graceful allure, flaunting silky tannin and still firm acidity.  A beautiful sweetness  from the ripe fruit on entry, the wine glides down your palate, caresses every taste bud with such tenderness and warmth (a reminder of the hot vintage), leaving you with the memory of a wine at the epitome of its femininity while retaining an authoritative firmness.  A reflective wine, lingering on your mind about its beguiling qualities.  Superb, drinking at its best…..with a long life ahead, 20+ years.  19.5/20

The Diverse Styles of Château Margaux



Array of Margaux Wines

 13 Oct 2010:  Dinner at Restaurant Petrus at the Island Shangri-La Hotel where we were served wines from Château Margaux - this probably would have raised a few eyebrows in France but not in Hong Kong.  The neon lighting across the urban landscape transformed into fairy lights sprinkled over a sea of darkness from the height of the restaurant, adding an extra dimension to the romantic renaissance décor of the dining room.  We were delighted that Thibault Pontallier (Paul's son) was able to join us to represent the Château.  Thibault spoke about the Château where he grew up, with much affection and then about the wines with even more passion.  Conscious of his young age, he nevertheless impressed us with his energy, enthusiasm, confidence and knowledge - the Château couldn't possibly have found a better brand ambassador for Asia!

We started the evening with some gougères and a glass (or two) of 2004 Pierre Gimonnet Fleuron 1er Cru. Pierre Gimonnet is a grower champagne house based in the Côtes des Blancs.  The family has been making champagne since 1750 and has been described by Michael Edwards in his book "The Finest Wines of Champagne", as the producer of the "bluest of blue-chip Chardonnay champagnes, famous for their finesse".  The family has grand cru holdings in Cramant and Chouilly as well as vineyards in premier cru Cuis, known for its characteristic piercing acidity.  The Fleuron is the family's traditional vintage cuvée, only released in the finest years.  It is a blended champagne with wine from selected vineyards.  The wine is aged on fine lees in bottle for at least 4 years, and released after an additional 3 months of resting. Tasting note for the 2004 Fleuron: "Beautifully balanced champagne of poise and elegance, still a little tight and restrained in its youth, demonstrating a character of green fruit and mineral, layered with some floral and toasty notes, and a delicately creamy texture, with fine mousse, unrelenting acidity and a refreshing finish."    A great value-qualit ratio for wine of such quality. 17/20

Bolstered by the mouth-watering acidity, we were primed for a gourmand dinner prepared by the chef.  First course was seared scallop in a creamy nage with shaved tonka bean.  This was accompanied by the Pavillon Blanc 1998.  This could just be the finest Pavillon Blanc I had ever tasted. (Pavillon Blanc is 100% Sauvignon Blanc.)  It is simply amazing to taste this 12-year-old wine - such a revelation.  A light golden colour.  A wine of immense complexity, depth and lengthy, exuding notes of gooseberry preserve, lemon peel, honey, lanolin, grilled hazelnuts, smoke, and white chocolate spiciness.  The smokey and nutty nuances were even more enhanced on the palate.  Great balance, with a sensuous texture and still plenty of acidity, and a long finish.  Drinking well now and will continue to do so over next 10 - 15 years.  I thought the wine was perhaps a little too characterful (in the positive sense) for the delicate scallop.   I could imagine matching the wine with something like a smokey oyster bisque or a hot smoked salmon dish, or the Chinese smoked chicken dish!  18/20



Fregola sarda pasta

 Next course was the fregola sarda pasta with black pudding, chesnut, apple and warm truffled oxtail jelly.  It actually was really tasty with a very interesting mélange of textures from the ingredients, and a really perfect accompaniment to the second wine of the evening: Pavillon Rouge 2000.  Nose of red fruit, red cherries, blueberries, cedar and mint.  Perfumed, elegant and well-made.  Still a little young, despite it being the second wine of the Château.  The wine opened up further in the glass and gained some more complexity and length.  Drinking well now and will continue to evolve over next 4 - 5 years.  16/20

The third course was veal chop, with wild mushroom and young spinach fricassée, which was extremely well executed by the chef.  The veal delivered such a concentration of flavours and such tenderness.  This was paired with the 1990 Margaux, rated 100 points by Robert Parker.  1990 was a warm vintage and the style of this wine truly reflects the terroir of Margaux and the vintage.  An endearing wine, sensual and alluring.  A complex perfume layered with blackcurrant jelly, blueberry, prune, fig, date, tobacco, balsamic and caramel.  The wine, already decanted for 2.5 hours by now, still tasted very fresh and youthful, with velvety tannin and firm acidity.  Perfect in every way, balance, weight, concentration, depth, and length. Drinking well now (with the right amount of decanting) and will continue to evolve over the next 20+ years.  18.5/20 (It was  a little unfortunate that we had a couple of corked bottles - so we were all rationed to a very small amount, but we made sure to make up for this deficiency with more of the 1986!)



Roast pigeon with foie gras
and giblet sauce

The roast Challans squab, with foie gras and potatoes, and served with giblet sauce, was beautifully cooked, if a little on the rich side.  The meaty, gamey character of the pigeon and giblet sauce married very well with the 1986 Margaux (RP96), an antithesis to the 1990.  The latter so charming, graceful and feminine and the former austere, powerful and masculine.  I was very impressed by the style of the 1986.  It has a nose reminiscent of blueberry, black cherry, blackberry, fig, date, cedar, smoke and a hint of earthy mineral character.  More tannic than the 1990, and displaying a strong backbone of acidity.  This is a wine that will continue to evolve over 20+ years, with a potentially very interesting ageing profile.  18/20

For the cheese course, I returned to the Pavillon Blanc which was really the best wine to go with the cheese selection.  I was very happy that the restaurant managed to source the Abbaye de Citeaux, one of my favourite cheeses (and it's from Burgundy!)......

A beautiful presentation of petits fours graced our table towards the end of this rather indulgent meal.   By this time, we had all been well "nourished" that we hardly made an attempt at these delightful delicacies. 

Congratulations to David and his team and chef Frédéric, who did an amazing job with the food and the service to complement this impressive array of wines - the evening could not have been better!

1986 Taltarni French Syrah

10 Oct 2010: I was given this bottle of wine as a leaving present from Loic Le Calvez, the COO and Chief Winemaker of Taltarni.  I thought I would save it for a special moment to open it.  A deep ruby hue.  Aromas of black cherry, red fruit, liquorice, cloves and herbal notes leapt out of the glass.  Medium-full body, firm acidity, with medium tannin but on the palate, the fruit did not quite show, initially.  I was intrigued enough to leave the wine in the decanter.  Every half hour, I went back to check the wine....a dramatic improvement resulted in the fourth hour of decanting when the wine suddenly regained a new life, took on more complexity and length; it started showing very pure ripe fruit, black cherries, blackberries, plums, liquorice, spices, cloves, black pepper, spicy oak, herbal.  On the palate, it reminded me of a cool climate Syrah, like a very well-made Cornas or Hermitage.  In fact, I kept the bottle for another day and it tasted as fresh as it did the day before.  Medium bodied, good level of acidity, softened tannin, plenty of fruit, medium length finish.  A very well made wine and true to its name of French Syrah, made in the Pyrenees of Australia!   What an amazing discovery!  A 24-year old Shiraz from Australia, made in the French style, and with only 13.2% alcohol!  Almost unheard of these days!

1989 Haut Brion

9 October 2010: Saturday night.  Grouse dinner, with redcurrant jelly, red cabbage and mashed swede.   After a disappointing half bottle of 1982 La Mission Haut Brion, which turned out to be bretty and showed very little fruit, drying out finish with rather unbalanced acidity, we decided to open a half bottle of 1989 Haut Brion.  The wine was rather closed initially.  After half an hour in the decanter and in the glass, it gradually revealed an exuberant bouquet consisting of ripe fruit, with notes of blueberry and blackcurrant preserve, complemented by a slightly burnt fruit note characteristic of this hot vintage, tobacco, gravel, leather, cedar, violet, and even a hint of dried fruit peel.  The well-knit structure of firm acidity and soft ripe tannin carried the fruity, spicy, chocolatey and minty flavours across the palate and they lingered to leave the impression of an intellectually serious wine, that spoke of majestic expression, purity, complexity and richness.  An opulent wine that required time and patience to understand perfectly.  The wine continued to improve over a 2-hour period.  Judging from this half botle example, I have no doubt this wine will continue to evolve over the next 15 years.  19/20

1971 Rousseau Chambertin

6 Oct 2010: A very simple supper at home and we were curious about this bottle that had lost its label and the cork was feeling rather loose. So we opened the bottle, tasted it and were so intrigued that we rinsed the cork to see what lay underneath! We were totally flabbergasted to discover that we actually pulled the cork of a grand vin!!


What a gem! An intoxicating bouquet of wild rose, violet, chocolate, mocha, cinnamon, tobacco, compounded with the complexity of earthy farmyard vegetal notes. The wine started on the palate with a deliciously sweet entry, almost caramel-like, tasting still so fresh and with a subtle concentration of red fruit, floral and mineral flavours and a silk-like texture that caresses the taste buds. Classic elegant first class Burgundy by a top winemaker for a year that was not without its share of problems. 19/20

What a marvellous flight of top wines!

30 Sep 2010: The eve of the Chinese National Day.  We felt very privileged to be invited to a special dinner at the China Club where we were served some marvellous first class wines, and from rather large formats!  We were welcomed with a glass of 2003 Louis Roederer Blanc de Blancs, which was ever so refreshing!  The red wines that followed formed a truly impressive list:  2003 Pavie, 2000 Cheval Blanc (Jeroboam), 1995 Mouton Rothschild (Jeroboam), 1989 Margaux (Imperial), 1990 Lafite (Jeroboam) and 1990 Latour.  Pavie and Latour were the only two wines in 750 ml bottles.  I was impressed on two levels: one was the visual impression that these large formats created, just a marvellous sight; and the other was how the 1990 performed and best of all how the 1990 Latour performed on such an evening!  The Latour spoke of power, concentration and length, the Lafite, more about complexity and elegance. I was equally impressed by the 2000 Cheval Blanc, which drank beautifully, with soft blackcurrant and plum ripe fruit notes, coffee and chocolate character, and would be developing for a very long time.  Despite its perfumed nose, 1989 Margaux was a little overwhelmed on this occasion - it seemed much more delicate and less structured, even for its Imperial format.  The 1995 Mouton perhaps was the weakest in my view.  Pavie was very much burnt fruit character, great with food but perhaps did not quite have the complexity and length of the others.  If I had to rate them, despite each being a great wine on its own merit, it would look like this, from highest to lowest score: 1990 Latour, 2000 Cheval Blanc, 1990 Lafite, 1989 Margaux, 1995 Mouton and 2003 Pavie.  Incidentally, it was a great idea to organise such tasting dinner at the China Club, which did a fantastic job with both food and service.