Vinum et Vita

1996 Bruno Paillard NPU

2012-02-14T16:40:00.002+08:00

13 Feb 2012: I finally got to try the 1996 Bruno Paillard NPU ('Nec Plus Ultra' aka 'There is nothing beyond').....perhaps not as far as this, but it was a pretty stunning champagne. A wine that took 15 years in the making. Only made in the best vintages, the first release being 1990 and the second 1995 and now 1996 being the 3rd time ever released. Selection of 4 grand crus: Bouzy, Verzenay, Oger and Le Mesnil sur Oger. Fermented in small oak barrels for 9 months, before further selection of the best barriques (50% Chardonnay, 50% Pinot Noir). Only 6,523 bottles were produced. The wine then spent 12 years ageing on its lees before disgorgement. Tiny amount of dosage as a finishing touch. The bottles then spent another 2.5 years of ageing in the cellars before release. All in all, 15 years!!!

Well, the result was a very stunning effort. Opulent, richly balanced, harmoniously mature and wonderfully complex, with brioche, pear, nutty, and floral notes...infusing a wine with a creamy and mouthfilling texture, lifted by a vibrant freshness. Finish was extremely long....I was unfortunately too busy in the kitchen that I had forgotten to ask for mine to be served in a white wine glass....still a very remarkable wine and better paired with food, such as my roast chicken or better still pasta or risotto with black truffle in roast chicken jus (like the one they make so well at Amuse-Bouche)! 18.5/20

Same evening, we had a 1990 Meursault Clos de La Barre, Comtes Lafon, which was saved by some aeration....it had initially emerged from the bottle, tasting rather flat, but I had insisted on having it decanted....and voilà, a bit of transformation! Still it needed drinking up.....15.5/20

The 1997 Cheval Blanc that Charles kindly brought to dinner was deliciously perfumed, showing sweet tobacco, leather, plum preserve, blueberry, violet and sweet spice. Not a wine boasting of structure, depth, concentration or power, but rather delighted us with its approachability and charm. Drink now. 17/20

Battle of 1959 Pomerols: Petrus and Lafleur

2012-02-14T16:04:00.002+08:00

12 Feb 2011: A few days ago, we were generously treated by a good friend to dinner at Lung King Heen (the 3 Michelin-star Chinese restaurant) at the Four Seasons Hotel, HK. Each of us brought a bottle of old Pomerol. Lung King Heen proved to be a fine venue to enjoy 2 very special bottles: 1959 Château Lafleur and 1959 Château Pétrus: same vintage, same commune. (The sommelier did a very fine job handling these 2 old bottles, even though he pretended to be rather nervous about them.) The levels of the two wine were within a millimetre or two of each other but the results of the tasting seemed to have put them much further apart than the short distance within a commune! The colours were quite similar, both showing a medium intensity of garnet.

The 1959 Pétrus instantly delighted us with a very gratifyingly perfumed bouquet of plum, blueberry, leather, cigar box, spicy and mocha....gradually developing into gamey/animal notes, with a caramelised edge. Rather sweet note on entry, a lusciously smooth and rich mouthfeel accompanying the full-bodied texture. A long finish. It was nonetheless a gorgeously heady drop but seemed to be a little lacking in energy and vigour, drinking just past the plateau perhaps? Drink within 3 - 5 years for best enjoyment. 17/20

The 1959 Lafleur was disappointing. Herbaceous, blueberry, violet, leather, smokey and stoney. Various nuances of caramel and metallic taints on the nose. The palate was ungenerous and rather mean, compared to the lush silky texture of the Pétrus. Some redeeming features on the nose giving it some claim to pedigree, but not a memorable experience otherwise. Drink up if you still have a few bottles! 14.5/20

We had started the evening with a 1995 Meursault-Charmes, Roulot, which tasted amazingly fresh and invigorating, quite a nice surprise when one almost invariably expects the worst from white burgundies with some age. Citrus, mineral, blossom, white peach, honey, hazelnut and spice on the nose. The palate is smooth and nicely rounded, extremely harmonious and well-structured. The sleek and clean finish lasted almost a couple of minutes. Drinking absolutely at peak now....a marvellous wine to be enjoyed now and over next 8 - 10 years. (I had saved a few drops to try again at the end of the meal and it still tasted remarkably fresh.) 18/20

The crabmeat baked in its shell went very well with the Roulot wine.....there was just enough acidity from the wine to balance the richness of the crabmeat. Given the old Pomerol theme, our host had chosen some gamey items to go with it.....Peking duck with delightfully crispy skin which was most professionally served in 2 courses (with plenty of second helpings of each course, as the duck was only shared by 3 people) and roast pigeon, which was rather tasty - both dishes worked amazingly well with the old Pomerol. The Wuxi style pork at the end was less well prepared than I remembered.....the best version came individually served in mini-casseroles. A final dish of stir fried long beans was all we needed to round off this most indulgent meal.

A very interesting comparison of 2 wines from the same commune and same vintage.....had they been so different from Day 1? I would love to find out.......(By the way, one bottle had come from a US source and the other from a UK source.)

Faiveley: for the patient winelovers

2012-02-11T15:11:00.002+08:00

10 Feb 2012: I helped organise the Faiveley wine dinner last night at Island Tang Restaurant. Decanting was not possible with so many bottles of wine – so we just arranged for the red wine to be opened at 6 pm, with the white wine around 7:30 pm. Young Etienne Payen, brand ambassador of the domaine, joined us from Shenzhen.

The 2008 Corton Charlemagne was a little closed at the beginning and took about an hour or more to open up in the glass. Citrus, green apple and white peach notes, with hints of toasty oak and nutty character. On the palate, subtle nuances of oak influence and minerality are nicely complemented by flavour intensity and acidity, giving the wine a classic and ageless quality. This wine is already enjoyable with some aeration, but it will be an absolute beauty in 3 – 4 years’ time. Giving the youthfulness and nicely chiseled acidity, it made a very fine accompaniment to the baked crab meat served in its own shell.

The 2007 Gevrey Chambertin Clos des Issarts was drinking beautifully now. A slightly funky nose of red fruit and rose petals, layered with something earthy and mineral. On the palate, it shows a more delicate structure of finesse and gracefulness, combining just the right amount of acidity, fine tannin and gorgeous fruit, wrapped in lighter style frame, with reference to its higher altitude. The pairing with deep fried frog’s legs with pepper and salt was impeccable. The Peking duck also worked beautifully with this wine…..much better than with the still very robust and tannic 2005 Echézeaux, which showed a concentrated nose of black fruit and spice, still very austere, despite its mouthfilling richness. To be honest, I didn’t mind the tannin so much and thought it robust enough to stand up to the intensely flavoured and rich preserved liver sausage stuffing inside the pigeon’s leg! Clearly a wine for the medium-long haul, with further life of 10 – 15 years, and drinking much better from 2015.

Frog's legs with salt and pepper and pigeon leg stuffed with preserved liver sausage

2004 was a challenging vintage but it was well expressed in the style of the 2004 Chambertin Clos de Bèze. A lovely perfume of raspberry, plum, leather and tea leaves, with a slight herbal and vegetal quality. A little sappy on the palate. A wine with much sophistication, depth, elegance and finesse, if not density, concentration and power. A wine better enjoyed in the longer term. Try it again in 2016+!

2000 Mazis Chambertin was a clear favourite amongst us…..In true Mazis style, the wine demonstrated more firm structure, concentration, power, enhanced by a suppleness from the vintage and warm spicy note. Black fruit, liquorice, forest floor…...this wine has beautiful acidity and ripe tannin that makes it a perfect pair with the grilled rack of lamb with sea salt, and also the wok-fried rice noodles with sliced beef and XO sauce.

The 1998 Latricières Chambertin demonstrated a very sophisticated structure with subdued fruit quality and firm ripe tannin that was starting to mellow. Latricières has deeper and cooler soil (more clay content) and needs a wamer vintage to show its finest. The wine took a long time to speak to us….it could have done with some decanting. There’s an untamed/austere edge to it at the beginning , but eventually it opened up to reveal a more harmonious wine of immense muscular dimensions and great complexity of plum, earth and mushroom like vegetal character. A wine built for the really long haul, best to be enjoyed after 2015+, or now with plenty of aeration. Finishes long.

The stewed Wagyu beef cheef with Zhu Haw sauce was delicious, but it didn’t quite find good company with the wines of the evening….perhaps the 2000 Mazis Chambertin?

Grilled Rack of Lamb with Sea Salt

I thought the restaurant did a very good job with the food and the serving of the wine - I particularly recommend the pigeon leg stuffed with liver sausage, the simply grilled rack of lamb with sea salt and the Peking duck. The baked crabmeat was not as good as the version at Lung King Heen or China Club - the breadcrumbed top was more like a doughy skin than a light dusting. The braised kale was also not as successful - should have just asked for simply stir-fried kale.

Dinner at The French Window with a 1951 bottle and a Jayer

2012-01-29T16:46:00.000+08:00

28 Jan 2012: Dinner at The French Window. As it's a slightly special event, we organised a bottle of 2002 Cristal, Louis Roederer from the restaurant's wine list to be opened. (We had brought the other bottles with us.) We all had the champagne served in white wine glasses as it's still rather closed, and needed better aeration to release aromas of blossom, granny smith apple, pear, citrus and toast. On the palate, minerality, herbal and cardamon notes abound, leaving a slight almond aftertaste, in the rather long and crisp finish. Racy and classic, with beautiful delineation. This is still very much in its youth, with plenty of evolution to look forward to. 17.5/20

Foie gras terrine

I had the foie gras terrine, served with intensely flavoured blackberry and fig preserve, as starter, because I thought it would go well with the 1951 Laville Haut Brion. This wine went through the most amazing evolution during the 2.5 hour dinner. Medium golden colour. A whiff of musty stink at the beginning was not enough to put us off the rich undertone of honey, honeysuckle, spicy and smokey bouquet. The mustiness gradually disappeared and a note of ripe fruit returned, like guava and gooseberry. The rounded and viscous texture was laced with very fine acidity, rendering a timeless freshness to this 60-year-old wine. An intense spicy note of ginger preserve and rich fruit character dominated the palate. As the evening progressed, the bouquet took on a macadamia nutty and nougat like complexity. The finish lasted almost 2 minutes, leaving us with a most memerable smokey and spicy honeyed aftertaste. We were all totally gobsmacked with how this wine transformed during dinner and it was just the most wonderful revelation. 17.5/20 (We bought this bottle with a very special purpose: 1951 is the birth year of our dear friend and it's just the most wonderful experience to share it with him on this special occasion!)

Our red wine was a bottle of the 1985 Vosne-Romanée Cros Parantoux by the legendary Henri Jayer. We wanted to try this bottle ahead of the Christie's auction next week of wines directly from the cellars of the domaine! Well, our bottle, though with a stained label, was absolutely stunning! Still showing much youthful vigour and energy. Rose pot pourri, redcurrant, cherry and blackberry aromas, layered with leather, mushroom, star anise and mineral notes. On the palate, the wine shows a freshness that belies its age and a concentration and power that is understated but very much present. For me, this wine is nowhere near its apogée, which may come in 4 - 5 years' time. There is already a very harmonious structure of vibrant acidity and fine tannin. The velvety texture leading to a nice long finish that could easily last a couple of minutes for me. A very fine example of first rate burgundy from a master at the top of his game. Drink till 2025+. 18.5/20 (Just a thought: what price would you pay for a bottle of wine like this? Does the market price really justify the enjoyment?)

Pheasant in soya sauce

I chose a rather creative dish as main course: pheasant cooked in soya sauce with celeriac puree and grapes. It's the best pheasant I'd ever had. I normally don't like pheasant much and find it quite bland. This version however was moist and tender, and full of lovely soya sauced flavoured meat jus, which married rather well with the somewhat challenging flavours of the celeriac.   The restaurant has a page dedicated to some creative game dishes. I rather liked the sound of the venison dish too (wish they would call it venison, rather than deer on the menu though) - another visit would be necessary! Richard and Frank shared the côte de boeuf which was juicy and cooked perfectly rare! Anne had the lobster dish for main course which looked rather nice too. Decoration is a big thing at the French Window and all the dishes came artistically decorated - quite appropriately served in plates that took the shape of an artist palette.

We ended the meal with a 1996 Yquem in half bottle. Just perfectly sweet, with great balancing acidity within a more delicate and elegant framework. Honey, marmalade, apricot and rye bread came to mind. Nicely harmonious, but it's not a massively rich, unctuous and concentrated Yquem. Rather delicious, with a very long life ahead! 17/20

We enjoyed it over a couple of desserts and a cheese platter to share. Not a bad selection either: we had munster, comté, mimolette, livarot and Ossau Iraty. When we asked for bread, they had to bake the rolls again.....which took quite a bit longer to arrive.

It was a very high quality experience at the French Window, from the quality of the food, the presentation, the service to the ambiance. (Quite a change from our experience there last time. The most improvement came from the service.) Pity that it wasn't busier, the restaurant looked half empty. Located in the shopping mall, quite a few people started their dinner rather early.   Our waiter came round to ask us for our feedback on the dinner - a rather nice touch!

1999 Bonnes Mares, Roumier

2012-01-25T22:14:00.001+08:00

25 Jan 2012: Garnet-ruby core. A sophisticated wine marked by finesse and elegant structure, subtle complexity of primary just turning secondary, raspberry, dark cherry, tea leaves, mushroom and undergrowth with mineral nuances. Very 3-dimensional, rounded mouthfeel, and a long-lasting finish with hints of sweet fruit. The fine tannin not fully integrated, and there is a good level of acidity. This is drinking well today, with food, and has the material to last a couple more decades. Totally indulging! 18.5/20

Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze

2012-01-24T22:07:00.003+08:00

23 Jan 2012: Chinese New Year Day. French bistro-themed dinner and everyone brought a bottle. Rachel brought us some really delicious home-made pissaladière (3 types - plain onion, with anchovy and with olive), accompanied by a 1979 Lanson in magnum (48% Chardonnay and 52% Pinot Noir). A bright lemon colour, with fine bubbles and a creamy mousse. Tasting very fresh on entry, with complexities of brioche, ripe pear, marzipan and a little savoury on the nose, but a little simple on the palate. Still pretty remarkable for its age to show such verve and freshness.

1983 Corton Charlemagne, Louis Latour was a golden colour, but did not taste madeirised at all, just a mature bouquet of honey, apricot and oatmeal, rather characteristic of a vintage that delivered a bundle of over-ripeness to healthy Chardonnay grapes (evidence of noble rot in certain patches). The richness was perhaps not matched with sufficent acidity to give the wine the ideal balance, now that the wine was almost 30 years old. I found it rather cloying and this certainly did not go well with the much-praised jambon persillé (from Monsieur Chatté), complete with dijon mustard and cornichons! Drink now! 15/20

The reds

The still robust structure, with the still to be resolved, yet fine-textured tannin, of the 1988 Pommard Les Vignets, Leroy was true to form. It showed some rustic characteristics, meaty and earthy, but also managed to retain remnants of the rich fruit of the vintage, with some spicy nuances.  Good level of acidity. This wine is drinking now, further development in bottle would probably help integrate the residual tannin, but I am not so sure the fruit will hold out that long! 16/20

The 1978 Volnay, de Montille was one of the star performers of the evening. It showed a bright ruby-garnet colour. A raspberry and mocha bouquet, infused with minerality, and some hints of caramel. The feminine characteristics suitably delivered in the soft silky texture. The palate lifted by the just right amount of acidity. A divine expression of Volnay and testimony to the very fine and ripe fruit from the vintage of 1978, with a lot of ageworthy material. This wine was made to last the ages and this fine example at the Village level just went to show what a fine craftsman Hubert de Montille was! Drink now and with at least 6 - 8 years ahead of enjoyment at this peak. 17.5/20

Finally, we had two vintages of Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Rousseau to go with Richard's coq au vin: 1985 and 1995.  The 1985 showed a completely tertiary bouquet of mushroom, gamey and savoury notes,with some nuances of Asian spices.  The velvety palate, though very approachable and appealing, revealed a less robust structure, less stuffing, for this wine to age much further. Long finish. A beautifully aged wine for drinking now and over the next 8 - 10 years.  (I thought the wine collapsed a bit in the glass after about 2 hours.) 17/20

The more youthful 1995 version was totally different: pure red fruit of strawberry and raspberry, violet, spicy and toasty oak, with some Asian spices. A lot of energy still contained inside the robust structure of ripe tannin and a medium level of acidity, with plenty of complexity on the palate.  A wine graceful and elegant on the one hand, and powerful and structured on the other.  Drinking beautifully now and will continue to drink well for next 10 - 15+ years. 18/20

Continuing with the theme of bistro style supple, we had lots of cheese (Maroilles, Epoisses, Comté, Mimolette and Wasabique) served with proper bread (all the way from L'Atelier de Robuchon - thank you Eric!). And then my pear tart!

My pear tart!

To finish, I served a half bottle of Autumn Glory from Chiltern Valley Winery in Hambleden, England. I cannot really remember the grape variety, was it Huxelrebe or Seyval Blanc?? Herbal, grapefruit, white chocolate and nougat. Luscious, well-balanced. Finish a little on the short side. Not a shabby effort at all for an English dessert wine!

1988 Richebourg vs 1988 La Tache

2012-01-22T01:48:00.000+08:00

19 Jan 2012: Richard's birthday. We had a good honest meal at the Hong Kong Club and a couple of bottles of 'grown-up' wine. The 1997 Meursault-Charmes, Comtes Lafon showed a golden colour with amber glints and was unfortunately madeirised, which didn't bother me as a dessert wine to go with cheese! So we ordered a bottle of 2005 Corton-Charlemagne, Bruno Clair. White blossom, lime zest, green fruit, flinty and chalky, with the slightest hint of toast. Crisp acidity. Medium-full bodied, in a rather delineated and muscular style, with some complexity and understated power.  This perhaps could do with a bit more time to develop in the bottle. 16.5/20

1988 Richebourg, Meo-Camuzet. Medium garnet colour. A mature and developed bouquet of tinned raspberry, coffee, Asian spices (cloves and nutmeg), tobacco, leather, earthy and gamey. The wine effortlessly coats the palate and gives the most ethereal and enchanting sensation of what great burgundy at its peak must taste and feel like: silky, elegant, sublime, harmonious and otherworldly!  A very classy finish. Drinking totally at peak now and will drink well at this plateau for another 4 - 5+ years (depending on storage)? 18.5/20

1988 La Tache, DRC: Deep garnet colour. As if the two wines were separated by a good decade, the La Tache was still relatively developing its bouquet, a little closed on the nose initially. After some time in the glass, it revealed a nose of bright cherry and strawberry, floral, tea leaves, savoury, floral, Asian spices, with a hint of eucalyptus on the nose.  Medium bodied, tannin still not fully integrated, needing a bit more time to round off the edges. Though a little backward and unforthcoming, I was rather impressed by the power yet to be unleashed, and its vibrancy and energy. It was for me the better wine to go with food...It might not be as elegant and accessible today as the Meo-Camuzet Richebourg but I am confident it has the potential to develop into the better wine in 5 - 6 years' time? 18.5/20

So happy to finally taste the 1988 Richebourg, Meo-Camuzet as our last effort was met with cork taint!

Guincho a Galera

2012-01-22T01:47:00.001+08:00

20 Jan 2012: As part of Richard's birthday present, I took him to try out a new restaurant - the newly opened Guincho a Galera in Hotel Lisboa, Macau. It is in the same spot where Robuchon used to be, the latter having relocated to the top floor of the Grand Lisboa. The only change the hotel did was the uniform for the waitresses, who all donned a cheerful-looking polka-dot patterned apron as part of the uniform and a smiley face! Forteleza do Guincho is one of 10 Michelin-starred restaurants in Portugal and is the main restaurant of Hotel Forteleza do Guincho at Cascais (south of Lisbon), situated inside a 17th century fort overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Presiding over the kitchen is Antoine Westermann (Le Buerehiesel, Strasbourg) who has been with the restaurant since 1998. The cuisine there is French with a Portuguese accent. This offshoot in Macau opened on 9th January. On this Friday night, there were not too many diners at the restaurant, which suited us very well, as we would get more attention from the kitchen! The private room was occupied, as was another table for 2 next to us.

Salt cod cakes

As amuse-bouche, we were given 2 pieces of deep-fried salt cod cakes (bacalhau) with tomato chutney. Very tasty and the cod fish mixture with potato was not heavy at all, covered with a light batter, which made it look a bit like a bird's nest, very similar to the one that Cantonese use for deep-fried taro dumplings.

Caldo Verde Soup

For first course, Richard took the Caldo Verde soup, a soup made with cabbage and potato, a Portuguese staple. According to Richard, it was the best Caldo Verde he'd ever had!

Spring Vegetable Salad

Treasure hunt inside veggie salad

For first course, I had the spring vegetable salad. I had very little expectation but what arrived was an artistic and colourful display of freshness and an impression of intense flavours. It's an assembly of lightly dressed steamed baby carrots and turnips, courgette, onion, asparagus and fresh salad leaves, crowned with an intensely flavoured tomato, all of the above atop a caramelised thin crisp covering some delicious sauteed wild mushrooms inside a crouton ring. An absolutely delightful way to start the meal!

Slow-cooked pork loin

Richard's main course was a slow-cooked pork loin, with wild mushrooms and potato cake, accompanied by a few pieces of crispy skinned pork belly. The pork was ever so tender and intensely flavoured.

Duck Rice

I chose the traditional Portuguese dish -duck rice as my main course. Probably the best duck rice I've had! The duck breast was beautifully cooked, tender and full of flavours, served with a mire-poix of beans and vegetables, and some baked rice with a crispy top. The dish came with a savoury and rich duck blood sauce. It really was a marvellous interpretation of a great classic! So tasty that I ate all of it and felt rather full afterwards!

Petits fours - with Macanese egg tarts - Richard rather impatienty snatched his egg tart.........hence only one here!

Not sure if it's the case that the more stars the restaurant has, the daintier the portions get....but I certainly appreciate these healthy without being too generous portions. Service was attentive and professional.

The wine list was presented in an ipad - it's the only practical way of presenting the wine list as the hardbacked version is more like an encyclopaedia! (Richard could not resist asking for it and they dutifully brought it round, together with an extra stool to put it on!) The Portuguese section is a relatively small one, compared with the pages and pages of high end Bordeaux and Burgundy.....but there are some real gems there and I cannot wait to go back to the restaurant to try the other Portuguese reds that I identified!

For the white wine, we had the 2009 Renoma Branco, Niepoort. A blend of many grapes including Codega, Rabigato, Donzelinho, Viosinho and Arinto, with average age around 60 years old, planted at altitudes of 400 - 800 metres. Aged on lees for 8 months in French oak (228 litre and 500 litre casks). Straw colour. Citrus, dried apricot, candied fruit and honey on the nose, with nuances of almond, eucalyptus, spice and mineral on the palate. Refreshing and savoury, showing great character, a rounded mouthfeel and a nice long finish. Crafty balance between lovely ripe fruit and acidity. Entry level wine but did a perfect job for us as a first course wine. (Great value on the wine list at only MOP 250!) Drink now and over next 1 - 2 years. 16/20

For the red, I took a long time to choose from the relatively smaller Portuguese section (as I was tempted by so many possibilities in the Douro section, which dominates at the moment) but in the end went for the 2007 Pintas, Wine and Soul. It came with an alarming 15% alcohol! Deep ruby. Black cherry, berries, lifted with notes of liquorice, herbal, tobacco, chocolate and violet. Full-bodied, with firm acidity and ripe tannin. Sweet entry, followed by an explosive mouthfeel, and a spicy and long aftertaste. A powerful wine, as intensely flavoured as the food, all wrapped inside a velvety texture and robust structure with balance and elegance. Can be enjoyed now with 2 - 3 hours of aeration and over next 10 - 15 years. Fabulous wine!!! 17.5/20

Husband and wife team behind Wine and Soul: Jorge Serôdio Borges ( ex Niepoort and Passadouro) and Sandra Tavares (winemaker at Quinta do Vale D. Maria in the Douro, and also Chocopalha, her family’s property in Estramadura). Pintas came from a 70 year old vineyard, with about 30 different grape varieties. Fermentation took place in lagares at a controlled temperature. Grapes were foot-trodden for about 12 days.

If you're visiting Portugal soon, here's a very good article with tips for top restaurants: http://portugalconfidential.com/2010/12/2011-michelin-star-restaurants-in-portugal/

I am convinced that Portugal is an exciting place for wine discovery and I believe it has great potential for those seeking something different and indigenous! I just wish the alcohol management could be improved slightly to come under 14.5%!

As for the Guincho a Galera in Macau, definitey looking forward to returning to try out the other dishes and more exciting wines from the wine list! Hopefully, we may see more wines from other Portuguese regions next time, such as Alentejo, Dao and Bairrada??!!

Old Australian Wine

2012-01-14T22:06:00.002+08:00

Scampi and scallops - best scampi ever!

12 Jan 2012: Robert's last dinner in HK before he headed back to Sydney. I decided to take him to Amuse Bouche to regain his confidence in fine dining in Hong Kong. He once again ordered the tasting menu at Amuse Bouche....and this time he had nothing but compliments for the quality of the cooking. The black truffle capuccino was a particular highlight for him, as was the scampi and scallop dish - Robert said best scampi he'd ever had. I had the same dish as main course - the freshness, flavours, and texture, all in perfect proportions.....

I took 2 old Australian bottles along to dinner.....

Chicken liver pate and quail

Yellowtail carpaccio in ginger/wasabi dressing - isn't it like a bouquet of flowers?

1981 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay: Golden colour. A nutty, spicy and honeyed bouquet of honeysuckle, macadamia nuts, dried apricot, dried mango, oatmeal, liquorice and preserved ginger, with hints of smoke. Full-bodied, luscious, still fresh with good acidity. Very long finish, almost sweet......Melanie made the best selection of first course, pairing this wine with a chicken liver pâté and roast quail dish.....I probably made the worst selection in terms of food-wine pairing: a very colourful (and tasty) dish of yellow tail carpaccio with salmon roe and ginger/shallot/wasabi dressing......The wine which was so impressive initially, however, did not last the evening and 2.5 hours later, it had lost its zing a bit and became a little dull..... Drink now! 17/20

1987 Cullen's Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot: Garnet-ruby. Quite a reductive nose (brussel sprouts, cabbage) dominating the other aromas, cedar, earthy, mocha and cherry/plum. Rather lacking in fruit and rather austere/ungenerous on the palate. Slightly drying finish. Tried to give it the benefit of further aeration...but to no avail. It became less and less interesting. The little fruit it had at the beginning had disappeared by the end of the evening......14/20

The Cullen's might not have been a great example but I have no doubt that great Australian wines do age (and rather well, in the case of the Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay!). Perhaps it's time we tried the other old bottles from Australia.......otherwise, we'll never know, will we??

Dinner at Lung King Heen

2012-01-14T20:39:00.002+08:00

11 Jan 2012: Robert, our house guest, took us to dinner at Lung King Heen, the 3-Michelin starred restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel, HK. As Robert was our host, we deferred to him for the choice of food. As a lover of the fine cuisine and visitor from Australia, Robert came to the most logical conclusion - the tasting menu.....menu degustation that normally would allow you to experience the high quality culinary skills of the chef in a Western cuisine restaurant. From memory, the tasting menu at Lung King Heen was:

Trio of barbecue pork, roast suckling pig and roast goose
Sweet and sour seafood soup - which I had changed to salt and pepper seasoned frog's legs as I thought sweet and sour soup would not work well with our wine
Lobster in a spicy sauce
Steamed garoupa and braised abalone slice in oyster sauce
Sautéed wagyu beef cubes with morel mushrooms and capsicum (I had the capsicum removed because of Robert's allergy)
Fried rice with scallops and vegetables - which I had changed to plain stir-fried noodles in soya sauce, as Richard is not a big fan of scallops
Ginger flavoured crème brûlée
Petits Fours

Mount Phoenix organic tea

This menu came with wine pairing which we didn't need as we had brought our own wine.

The meaty first course trio included some Cantonese classics and while they required great roasting skills to ensure juicy meat and in the case of the suckling pig, crispy skin, I could not see how this dish could be a fine demonstration of the creativity and culinary skills of the chef.

Salt n pepper seasoned frog's legs

The salt and pepper seasoned frog's legs were quite yummy but again its production did not require much creativity.

Lobster smothered in spicy sauce

The lobster dish didn't work so well for us - it was completely smothered in spicy sauce, that it was hard to taste any freshness in the lobster. We all slept rather badly because of something not so agreeable and digestible in this dish, possibly the garlic and spice?

Abalone and garoupa in oyster sauce

The next dish was drowned in intensely flavoured oyster sauce, so much so that the sauce completely overpowered the not-so-tender garoupa and there was just too much sauce.

The wagyu beef was tasty and well-executed but you could frankly have this dish in less prestigious institutions.

I liked the plain stir-fried noodles in soya sauce best - simple, tasty, not too oily, with the just right texture for the noodles - moist and not quite al dente! But sigh! This is a daily 'dai pai dong' staple, along with your plain congee and deep-fried dough stick!

The ginger-flavoured crème brûlée was tasty but it's a rather common local interpretation of the classic French dessert - seen in more than one restaurant in HK. By this time, we concluded that we had had a most ordinary Cantonese cuisine meal, with no highlights at all, rather disappoing for a restaurant with 3-star fame! We were at least delighted with the superior quality of the organic Mount Phoenix tea, which was rather sublime, bitter sweet, elegant, lovely fine-textured tannic finish. Marvellous!

Service was impeccable, but it was the food that really disappointed. We probably should have gone for the a la carte, but anyone would have expected the tasting menu of a 3-Michelin restaurant to provide you with the opportunity to sample the culinary skills of the chef.....one that would leave you thinking that you had had a very refined dining experience...instead we felt that we had just had an ordinarily good Cantonese dinner, with no intention to return in a hurry (rather a relief because it's so difficult to get a table there nowwith its starry fame J)! The restaurant may wish to rename the Tasting Menu as the Cantonese Classics Menu and have another menu that would be more representative of the quality of this institution.

We were quite pleased with the wines I took to dinner:

1992 Meursault-Perrières, Comtes Lafon: Golden with some amber highlights. An intensely rich and hugely complex bouquet rose from the glass, layered fig, guava, pear tart, brioche, and honeysuckle, with lashes of honey, nougat and liquorice. Simply stunning and utterly fulfilling on the palate, a harmonious and totally integrated medium-full bodied wine, well-balanced and eleganty structured with firm and vibrant acidity. I felt compelled to take time to allow the complex flavours to fill each part of the palate, with a finish that went on for a very long while. Drink at peak now but will go on drinking well for at least 5 - 6+ years. 18.5/20

2007 Hospices de Beaune Corton Grand Cru Cuvée Docteur Peste, élevage by Jadot: Lovely ruby colour. A very pure nose of red fruit (cherry and raspberry), rose, nutmeg, cloves, developing into earthy, mushroom and tea leaves with time in the glass. Some well-integrated fine-textured tannin with not too much acidity. Classic, charming, expressive and well-structured given the vintage. Drink now and over next 10+ years. (I have become a big fan of 2007 vintage - the best, even the Grand Cru (with a bit of aeration), is drinking so well in youth, with so much more going for it! Very much underappreciated and misunderstood!) I still have a bottle of this and it will make interesting comparison with the same wine, but 'tended' by Faiveley (one of the barrels we bought for the 2007 vintage). 17.5/20

Suffice to say we're not in a hurry to go back to Lung King Heen.....another rather disappointing Chinese restaurant experience....next time we'd better go with someone who's well known to the restaurant to ensure a first class experience (not being a 'who's who' is a real handicap when it comes to these famous Chinese restaurants in HK - so what about the consistent quality that the Michelin guide values so much??!!!).

Ponsot and de Montille

2012-01-13T14:09:00.002+08:00

11 Jan 2012: Dinner at the Pawn with Paulo....and 2 winemakers from Burgundy - Laurent Ponsot and Etienne de Montille. The chef did a great job - loved the beetroot flavoured smoked salmon and the roast meat galore! Great Sunday supper.

2004 Morey Saint Denis Monts Luisants, Ponsot: 100% Aligoté. Citrus, green apple, floral, with a savoury and minerally finish. Who says Aligoté cannot age?? Still tasting very fresh, showing much character, a lovely structure and a light crisp finish. 16/20

2007 Puligny Montrachet Champ Gains, Deux Montille: Ripe apple, lemon and floral. Quite austere initially, requiring some time to open up. A lovely balanced wine, showing a light touch of oak and a medium body, drinking well now and will probably benefit from some bottle age. 16+/20

2007 Volnay Taillepieds, de Montille: Classic youthful burgundian nose of stony mineral, floral and pure red fruit. This wine initially shows some tightness and astringency within a framework of some very fine raw material, but loosens up after an hour of aeration into a very pure, refined and classy Volnay, complete with silky texture and a long finish.  Can drink now with aeration, or even better in a couple of years. 16.5/20

2000 Pommard Rugiens, de Montille (in magnum): Velvety textured, well-structured, very accessible now. Red fruit, earthy, savoury and gamey, with some mineral nuances.  Fine tannin, with good acidity.....the wine seemed to be losing energy in the glass. Drink now. 15.5/20

2007 Griotte Chambertin, Ponsot:  A great example of the vintage. Showing extreme complexity of cherry, earthy, smoky and spicy notes. Beautiful and elegant structure, with everything in balance and total harmony, leading to a nice long finish. A beauty, showing much pedigree and class.  Drink now but will continue to evolve. One for the cellar! (Laurent said he was very happy with his 2007 wines!) 18/20

2003 Clos de La Roche Vieilles Vignes, Ponsot: A port-like nose of plum, dark cherry, raisin, fruitcake and mocha. There is some nice acidity, but quite rich, concentrated and rounded. Opulent palate, but lacking in vibrancy for me. Drink now and over next 3 - 4 years. 16/20

Thank you, Paulo! Great Sunday supper!

Dinner at Stonehouse

2012-01-13T14:08:00.000+08:00

11 Jan 2012: Last week, we were invited to dinner at Stonehouse by Kelly. Stonehouse used to be a one-table private kitchen in a three-storey colonial house with red lanterns hanging from the door. It has recently moved into more spacious and less romantic settings at the Cosmo Hotel, Wanchai. The signature dish is the roasted suckling pig, which arrived with delicious crispy skin, succulent, tender and flavoursome meat.....gorgeous! The restaurant staff served up the rack and trotters afterwards after the skin had been served. Those were the best bits, I thought....so full of flavours!

Really yummy suckling pig

I was also very impressed by the soup made with hundreds of chicken feet - check it out! The collagen from the chicken feet has been nicely extracted and given the soup a rather smooth and viscous texture.....so yummy!

A mound of chicken feet!

For the wines, we started with a 1996 Veuve Clicquot, followed by two vintages of Chassagne Montrachet Les Chenevottes, Michel Niellon: 1989 and 1992. The 1989 showed to be a more substantial wine, with fuller body, but less acidity. A lovely bouquet of mango, fig, honeysuckle, liquorice and mineral. 15.5/20 The 1992 for me seemed better balanced and more delineated, with firm acidity and a bit more energy.....giving lift to the bouquet of guava, pineapple, white flowers and mineral. 16.5/20

We then tasted a 2008 Ma Belle-Fille, Peter Michael. Butterscotch, honey, nectarine, sweet lemon tart and spicy.  Rich and unctuous, with a decent amount of balancing acidity. Almost dessert-wine like with its 15.4% alcohol.....the wine continued to develop in glass and it took about 2 hours of aeration to open up.  A monster of wine - like a very intense version of Condrieu! More homework for me on Californian wines.....not quite getting this. 16+/20

1971 Richebourg, Camille Giroud: Garnet core. Red fruit, tea leaves, autumn pot pourri, truffle and forest floor......sweet caramel note on entry, but quickly fading into an ungenerous palate, with lean fruit and a drying finish.  Past its peak! 14.5/20

1999 Vieux Chateau Certan (in magnum): 85% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep ruby. A layered bouquet of black cherry, liquorice, coffee, chocolate and violet. Elegant and velvety textured, displaying pure fruit and layered texture. Tannin beginning to soften but still evident.  Not the richest and most opulent of Vieux Chateau Certan, but a very fine effort for this vintage. 17/20

2000 Rayas: Pale garnet. A very animale and tawny port-like nose......kirsch, herbal, strawberry, red berries, raisin, fruitcake, smokey and caramel. The silky texture, fruit-packed palate and fleshy mouthfeel belie the whopping 15.2% alcohol. Without the support of firm and fresh acidity, it tasted vinous (liqueur-like) and rather unflattering, but seductive all the same with its jammy charm. I had never tasted Rayas this young before....perhaps this will develop into greater things??  Not a favourite of mine today. 16/20

1997 Querciabellia Chianti Classico Riserva (in magnum): Mostly organically-grown Sangiovese, with some addition of Cabernet Sauvignon. The estate has been biodynamic since 2000.  Deep ruby.  Herbal, sour cherry, berries, earthy, mineral, smoke and plenty of violets. A little weak on mid-palate and finish, but still showing a reasonably firm structure and good acidity. Great with food....if this wasn't tasted blind, then I would have picked this to go with the suckling pig! Drinking at peak now, without showing signs of fatigue....can probably drink well for another 2 - 3 years. 16.5/20

The private room came complete with karaoke set. Dawn saved the day, quite literally, with her beautiful singing! I definitely got the best seat at the table.....next to Mr. Xiong who authored "Appreciation of The World's Top 100 Great and Rare Wines" and I even got him to autograph it for me!

Some Lovely Burgs

2012-01-04T18:00:00.002+08:00

4 Jan 2012: A group of us got together for a 1996 and 1999 Burgundy evening at the restaurant Twyst in Sheung Wan. Not quite sure why we came up with those 2 vintages.....but someone normally breaks the rule. So we've got a 2003 too for a stylistic detour!

1999 Vosne-Romanée Les Suchots, Sylvain Cathiard: A very different style from the Rouget. Very open on the nose, earthy, black fruit, a little of the brûlée note and coffee. Mouthfilling and a velvety texture balanced by lively acidity. Seductive and full-on charm. Drinking well now and for the next 8 - 10+ years. 17/20

1999 Vosne-Romanée Les Beaumonts, Emmanuel Rouget: Needed decanting. A little closed initially. Quite taut and poised. Mineral, floral, red and black fruit, tea leaves, spices and herbal. Medium bodied, balanced acidity. Elegantly structured. Long finish. Not quite ready to drink yet. Can do a couple more years of bottling before trying again. Will drink well for next 10 - 12 years. 17.5/20

2003 Echézeaux, Méo-Camuzet: Stylistically rather atypically burgundy. Quite a beefy and concentrated wine, despite there being some balancing elegance underneath the rich chocolatey, coffee, liquorice and raisiny nose, redolent of dark plum and cherry preserve. Voluptuous, with mouthcoating texture and ripe tannin. Hint of burning at the long finish. Great with food - perfect with my duck confit! Drink now with some aeration and can drink well for next 10 - 12 years. 17/20

1996 Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Prieuré Roch: Garnet at rim. Lovely perfume and mid weight frame with firm acidity. Mature bouquet of pot pourri, forest floor, tea leaves, animale, leather, spices and a hint of caramel. Not the usual muscular structure, less concentrated than I expected. Finishes long. A gorgeous drop now, quite evolved, plenty of complexity and finesse and will provide great drinking in the next 10 - 12+ years. 18/20

We also brought a surprise bottle of Vosne-Romanée, bottled by Lebègue which we opened the previous night and dismissed it as not being on top form. We had no idea of the vintage but quite likely a bottle from the 50's. Surprisingly, it tasted rather well and could easily compete for wine of the evening! We suspect it could have been a declassified bottle....which might explain the concentration of fruit, the finesse, structure and length!

1993 Chambertin Clos de Beze, Jadot

2012-01-03T15:53:00.001+08:00

3 January 2012: To accompany our coquelet roasted with garlic, onion and carrots, we opened a bottle of 1993 Chambertin Clos de Bèze, Louis Jadot. Initially not very generous on the palate, austere, angular, a little funky even on the nose. Closed down after 1 hour in glass. The transformation happened after about 2.5 hours of decanting. Yummy pinot fruit, forest floor, mushroom, leather and a touch of spice. A solid palate, showing robust structure, well-integrated acidity, sinewy muscles and finishing with a long length. A very strong reflection of terroir and vintage. 18/20

My Kind of Party Wines

2012-01-03T15:50:00.000+08:00

3 January 2012: I recently was introduced to two wines, both in magnum format, which I thought did a wonderful job as the perfect party wine!

2003 Barbera d'Alba Riserva Vigneto Pozzo dell'Annunziata, Roberto Voerzio (in magnum): (Double-decanted before leaving in an open bottle for 6 hours before serving.) 14.5% alcohol. Deep ruby hue. Very ripe and bright black cherry fruit preserve, liquorice, minerals and toasty oak. Youthful, fresh and vibrant, intensity and complexity wrapped within a robust structure and full body. Weighty on the palate, smooth and ripe tannin, balanced by exhilarating acidity (which I love). A wine of complexity, concentration and length. A phenomenal effort for this often under-appreciated grape variety! Drink now with plenty of aeration and for the next 8 - 10 years while the vibrancy is upheld! Can't help noticing some stylistic similarity with an Amarone or a sturdy Valpolicella Superiore from a top name! 17.5/20

2001 Rosso Ca' del Merlo, Giuseppe Quintarelli: 15% alcohol. Traditional Valpolicella blend grapes from very old vines from a single hilltop vineyard. Late-harvested and partially made in the ripasso method. Ca' del Merlo is translated as 'House of the Blackbird'. This is an IGT Veneto wine from Giuseppe Quintarelli, dubbed the Master of Veneto. Herbal, plum, black cherry, earthy, liquorice and some leather. Harmonious and perfectly balanced (despite the high alcohol), with a velvety texture. Delicious with the wood-fired spring lamb! A mid-weight wine with character and a lovely finish. Drink at peak now and over next 4 - 5 years for best enjoyment. 16/20

1993 Bonnes Mares Roumier

2012-01-03T15:07:00.001+08:00

3 Jan 2012: A few days ago, Richard treated me to a bottle of 1993 Bonnes Mares by Roumier - always a treat for me to have a Roumier Bonnes Mares! Quite high-toned initially, a very captivating bouquet of wolfberry, ripe red and black fruit, cranberry jelly, mixed with animale, leather, coffee, Asian spices and a whiff of caramel. Fine tannin that has yet to fully integrate, but already a silky texture. Prominent acidity. Became much more harmonious after about 2 hours of aeration. A very fine wine. Can benefit from a couple more years in bottle for further integration.....drink till 2025+. 18/20

1928 Mouton Rothschild

2012-01-03T14:57:00.002+08:00

The almost label-less bottle

1 January 2012: Happy New Year! While reorganising a few bottles at home, we found this bottle buried in a bin with a few other oldies, this one practically without a label. The word 'Mouton' was distinguishable from the top of the capsule but the vintage escaped us initially. Only did we look hard enough, were we able to make out the vintage - 1928!

The faintest clue of the vintage

Deep garnet, slight bricking at rim. Plum, violet, mocha, leather, caramel, nutmeg. Drying finish with a slight acidic kick at the end. Very long aftertaste. Magnificent for a wine of this age, maintaining such freshness, structure and sweet fruit. A concentrated vintage with plenty of everything, tannin, acidity and fruit. This is drinking at peak, showing just a hint of fading. Drink within next 4-5 years for best enjoyment. 18/20

The very intact cork

According to Michael Broadbent, 1928 was the first of the famous twin vintages of the 1920s; both great but of contrasting substance and style. Summer heat thickened the skins, from which were extracted deep colouring matter and tannin; excpetionally good ripening conditions were responsible for the richness and body. The longest-lived vintage of the decade. A 5-star vintage.

First Visit to Amo Eno

2011-12-29T12:20:00.004+08:00

Savoury HK waffles with 3 dips

29 Dec 2011: I could not resist the temptation any longer and decided to take a quick look at Amo Eno, the latest wine bar concept in HK. Amo Eno (Love Wine) is the brainchild of 3 people: Andrew Bradbury (formerly Wine Director of Aureole, Las Vegas) who has mastered the art of combining wine and technology, Brook Bradbury (Design Director) and Charles Banks (Investor). Amo Eno features a very large range of wine by the glass, with everything from a tasting sample priced at HK$ 19 to a tasting sample at over HK$ 1,000. There is something for everyone, with wines sourced from France, Italy, Spain, Austria, California, Canada and so on....and grape varieties from the familiar to the more adventurous. It's very smartly designed, making full use of glass and light bulbs to create a more open feel within what would normally be quite a small space! It's quite easy to go wild there with the spending.....a bit of strategic planning wouldn't be a bad idea!

I was told that the badly needed bar stools would be coming soon.....as would be an Enomatic that takes sparkling wine. For now, there is no tasting measure for sparkling wine - not that it bothered me. I rather enjoyed the glass of Agrapart Les Sept Crus (100% Chardonnay, a blend of wine made from young vines planted in the 7 crus owned by the family, entry-level champagne, refreshing with nice complexity and a lovely creamy texture). There is a semi private area, which comfortably seats 12 I think. I ordered a snack from the menu: the savoury Hong Kong waffles, with dips: champagne mustard, muscat bacon and sherry cherry chutney. The muscat bacon was a firm favourite....a naughty play between sweet and savoury! I wasn't so sure about the sherry cherry, thinking that it might be too much for pairing with most wines, except Italian reds? Richard quite liked the champagne mustard - I was thinking a parmesan or cheesy dip would be better. We were told by the friendly sommelier that the sandwiches were really delicious and the ingredients of very high quality. The best value French white was probably the Bouzeron by de Villaine. I haven't spent too much time browsing the reds, but the Petalos by Descendientes de J. Palacios caught my eye as a good value red!

I am definitely going back to try again when we have a bigger group. There are 3 pouring measures....I recommend going for the middle-sized measure and sharing with someone! Also a great place for corporate entertainment!

Faiveley Mercurey Blanc and an under-appreciated Roumier

2011-12-29T11:39:00.000+08:00

The simplified label of Faiveley Mercurey

28 Dec 2011: Dinner at Spring Moon Restaurant at the Peninsula Hotel, HK - there was an urgent need to use up a soon-to-expire cash voucher! We had brought a half bottle of 2005 Roumier Morey Saint Denis Clos de La Bussière with us. So we ordered a half bottle of 2008 Mercurey Blanc by Domaine Faiveley on the wine list. The wine list described the wine as Mercurey Blanc Domaine de La Croix Jacquelet, Domaine Faiveley but when the bottle arrived, it just says "Mercurey". There followed a long deliberation between Richard and the restaurant sommelier about the wine.  After enquiring at the domaine, I was told that before the 2008 vintage, the domaine had used the name "Domaine de La Croix Jacquelet" which was a lieu-dit next to where the wine was vinified.  From the 2008 vintage, this lieu-dit name was dropped from the label, leaving it just "Mercurey" - it's effectively the same wine!  Perhaps the restaurant would like to update the wine list to avoid further confusion!

Mercurey is a commune from the Côte Chalonnaise. Better known for its reds, but there is also a decent quantity of white being produced. The whites tend to have spicy, nutty and floral character, with a hint of flint. The 2008 from Faiveley definitely showed some flinty and grassy character, with some stylistic similarity to a Sauvignon Blanc, but it remains a simple wine, better as aperitif than served with food! Amongst all the white wine from the Côte Chalonnaise, my favourite is perhaps the Rully for floral, minerality and flinty character, wihth lemony and peach notes. while Montagny is great for pairing with food with creamy sauce - I love that honeyed and nutty character and fat mouthfeel, which in the right hands should be balanced by some refreshing minerality and acidity!

The half bottle of 2005 Roumier Morey-Saint-Denis Clos de la Bussière was simply not ready, but we waited ever so patiently for it to open up in the glass! By the end of the dinner, it showed a lovely red fruit and mineral-laced nose, with some nuances of earth and tea leaves. Palate packed with ripe fruit and an integrated structure of ripe tannin and fine acidity.  Gorgeous finish. A very classy wine offering qualities of a top premier cru, still retaining a touch of its typical rustic charm. If I may quote Allen Meadows: ".....And in terms of value, I have noticed a real improvement in the Clos de la Bussière over the last few vintages and if there is a value play in the Roumier portfolio other than the Les Cras, the Bussière is it." Try this 2005 again in 3 - 4 years time, and I am sure it will deliver some very gratifying results! 16.5+/20

Morey-Saint-Denis Clos de la Bussière (around 2.59 ha) is a monopoly of the Domaine Georges Roumier. It was once upon a time donated to the Abbaye de la Bussière. Today, a boutique hotel takes the place of the once holy buildings. Red clay soils dominate here, lending a rustic style to the wine. This premier cru is literally next door to Chambolle Musigny (below the level of Les Sentiers).

Service at dinner was excellent, but we were both a little disappointed by the food - we came to the conclusion that we didn't know which dishes to order. The deep-fried garoupa in soya sauce and scallion was a little on the soggy side. The crab claw in egg white was ok, but at this price, did not quite compare with same dish at Tim's Kitchen or Man Wah. The Szechuan prawns in chilli sauce were rather indifferent, after having been warned about the degree of spiciness. I had to pile on extra chilli sauce to remind myself that it was meant to be a spicy dish. The version at the China Club was much better. The only dish which was quite tasty was the Wuxi style spare ribs, which came piping hot, served in a claypot, with plenty of sauce. The sauce was tasty, but the texture was quite thin.  A similar dish at Lung King Heen, at the Four Seasons, which came individually served in mini pots, seemed to me the superior version, with a slightly thicker sauce.  Finally, we should have gone for stir fried green vegetable rather than the rather bland stir fried mixed vegetable in a bird's nest! Not the most appetising looking dish!

We kept admiring our next door neighbour's dishes - they seemed to know what to order.....and brought their own magnum bottle of Clos des Papes.  Next time, I think we will just take a quick look around us and say to our waiter, "We'll have exactly the same dishes as the other table!"

1998 Dujac Clos Saint Denis

2011-12-29T10:38:00.000+08:00

27 Dec 2011: Deep ruby core. Best with 1.5 hours of decanting. A most enchanting perfume of violet, black cherry and plum, with earthy, forest floor and Asian spices. Beautiful and pure ripe pinot fruit on entry, leading to a velvety texture, framing the ripe and firm tannin and lowish acidity. I love the very rounded and substantial mouthfeel and understated elegance. Drinking well now and for next 10 - 12+ years. 18/20

Celebrating Single Varietal Rhone Wines

2011-12-26T15:42:00.001+08:00

26 Dec 2011: A few days ago, a group of us got together at the New Shanghai Restaurant at the HK Convention & Exhibition Centre for dinner.  It was a relatively chilly evening in HK and in anticipation of the hearty Shanghainese food, we decided on the theme of Rhone Valley wines.

2008 Les Chaillées de L'Enfer, Domaine Georges Vernay: 100% Viognier. Floral, honeysuckle and violet, apricot, peach, with nuances of smoke and minerality. Full-bodied, unctuous, but deftly balanced with good level of acidity. Very very long finish. A little young to drink now - plenty of decanting is recommended. Drink over next 10 - 15 years. It went brilliantly with the Shanghainese ham sandwich smeared with osmanthus-flavoured syrup. 17.5/20

The vines for this wine are planted at south to southeast exposure on very steep granitic slopes. Average age 40 years old. Production is about 5,000 bottles. Cold soak on skin before fermentation. Fermentation in 225 litre barrels during 3 - 4 weeks, plus ageing on fine lees before bottling - about 12 months after vintage.

This domaine is the second largest producer in the appellation of Condrieu. Georges Vernay created the business with just 1.5 ha of Condrieu vines. Today, the estate has 7 ha of Condrieu vines, of which 3 ha are planted with very old vines dedicated to the prestigious cuvées of Les Chaillées de L'Enfer and Coteau de Vernon. They now also have substantial plantins in Côte Rôtie and Saint Joseph. See: http://www.georges-vernay.fr/

2004 Pure, Châteauneuf du Pape, Domaine La Barroche: 100% Grenache. Red cherry, raspberry, white pepper, liquorice, slightly vegetal, Mediterranean herbs, slowly developing into prune, dried fruit and caramel notes with further aeration in the decanter.  Initially a slight bitterness at the finish, which dissipated after some aeration. Sweet fruit on entry, expanding with its complex flavours on the palate and a long finish. Med-weight Châteauneuf du Pape, made with a light touch.  Lovely complexity and finesse. Drink now and over next 8 - 10 years. 16.5/20

The vines for this wine come from a single parcel (named Grand Pierre) of 100-year-old vines planted on sandy soils, next to the Rayas sector. Fermentation at 31 degrees in concrete tanks with maceration of about 4 weeks. 15-month ageing takes places in old 35 hectolitre oak casks for gentle oxygenation.

The family has been making wine at the domaine siince 14th Century. 2003 was the first vintage sold in bottle and not in bulk. Julien Barrot took over the running of the domaine in 2006. They now have 30 acres of plantings in the Châteauneuf du Pape area, mainly around north and northeast. Harmonious viticulture, respect of the ecosystem, gravity-feeding and biodynamic practices (activities linked to the lunar calendar) are prevalent at the domaine. This is a domaine worth watching! Check out: http://www.domainelabarroche.com/

2004 Hermitage, Chave: Deep ruby core.  A rich bouquet of sweet ripe fruit of red and black berries, black cherry and cassis, spiced up with black pepper and liquorice, complete with chocolate and earthy and herbal notes. Despite challenges of this difficult vintage, this wine shows well-integrated acidity and ripe tannin, aromatic complexities, wrapped up in a structured yet supple frame with much roundness and weight.  Full of energy and life.  This wine of immense structure can be enjoyed now and will benefit from further cellaring. Drink now and over next 15-20 years.   17.5/20

The Chave estate has been operating since 1481 and is now managed by Jean Louis Chave, a graduate of UC Davis. The Chave family owns vines in 9 of the 18 vineyards of Hermitage, each expressing its own terroir and demonstrating unique characteristics. Finesse, structure and complexity are at the heart of the Chave style. The family firmly upholds the belief that "it is the terroirs that make the wine" and it is this belief that forms their guiding principle in the viticulture, the selection of wine for the final blend and the vinification. The blending for the red typically comes from these vineyards:

Les Bessards: the backbone of the wine providing colour and intensity. Les Bessards is one of the greatest vineyards on the hill, a large site on granite soils at the western end.

Le Méal: another large site, next to Les Bessards, but with more chalky soils. This provides the aromatics.
L'Hermite: a monopole, discussed above, providing the supple edge. There are 15% white grapevines planted with the red in this vineyard. (The appellation rules permit the use of up to 15% white grapes in the final blend.)
Les Roucoles: despite this site being favoured for white grapes, a small amount of red from this vineyard provides some tannic structure to the final blend.
Peléat: discussed above, another monopole, providing colour, tannin and character.

Separately vinified before blending. Fermentation in stainless steel or open wooden vats. The wine sees some wood, including new and old barrels, and 13 hectolitre-casks, depending on the vintage and the blend.

Love to try the white from Chave, which is also of very high quality!

We finished with a sweet wine from Aix-en-Provence: Margot, Domaine de La Brillane. Margot was the brainchild between Chef Gérald Passédat of Le Petit Nice, Marseille, and the domaine, conceived in 2007. They both wanted to create a unique wine that expresses the essence of the south, the flavours and the aromas. The resultant wine is a dessert wine, made organically, in a class of its own, and is a great match with dessert and chocolate dishes, as well as foie-gras based dishes.  100% Grenache (from vines of around 45 years of age). The grapes were dried for 2 months before fermentation to concentrate the acidities and the sugars.  Only 500 bottles made. There is a firm tannic structure, but it can be enjoyed at youth or with some age. On the nose, dried raisins, Chinese dates, orange peel, Christmas pudding and fig preserve.  Sweet, without being cloying, just the right amount of freshness. Website: http://www.labrillane.com/

I had brought this wine back to Hong Kong after my stay at Le Petit Nice this summer but had not tried it until this evening. At this dinner, it was used to pair with the pan-fried Eight Treasure Rice, one of my favourite desserts from Shanghainese cuisine.  Another dessert that this would work well would be the Pan-Fried lotus seed paste pancake......And of course Christmas pudding!!

A quick word on the food.....very nicely presented and well-excuted food. I enjoyed all the dishes, perhaps least favourite being the duck, a bit on the tough side. The Shanghainese dumplings and the pork buns were very delicious. The best part was the professional service and the spacious dining room....quite a rare find in Hong Kong. Do give this a try next time you're looking for a Shanghainese restaurant for your wine dinners.

2000 Richebourg, DRC and 2004 Cristal

2011-12-26T13:10:00.003+08:00

24 Dec 2011: Christmas Eve dinner at the China Club in Hong Kong. A fine occasion to share a bottle or two of something special. 2004 Cristal, Louis Roederer: 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. Beautiful pure fruit of apple and citrus, layered with floral and mineral nuances. I can only think of linearity and precision for this well-crafted champagne of phenomenal delicacy and elegance. Creamy mousse and full of vibrant positive energy. This wine will reward the patient collector, but it can easily be enjoyed today. 18/20

2000 Richebourg, DRC: After about half an hour of aeration, gorgeously ripe red cherry, pot pourri, forest floor, truffle and a richly spicy nose, infiltrated with the hallmark minerality. Harmoniously balanced, perfect acidity, with well-integrated fine tannin giving the wine a velvety and mouthcoating texture in a mid-weight frame, guiding the delicate and complex flavours permeate the palate. Not the richest, nor most powerful or structured Richebourg, but the pedigree, aromatic seduction and sophistication are very evident. Quite refined. We took the remainder of the bottle home and it had graduated into this totally seductive, sumptuous and velvety nectar, with a very long finish! There was a fine Richebourg! This wine can do with a few more years of cellaring for best enjoyment and it should provide some very fine enjoyment over 15+ years! 18+/20

Apart from the first two courses which were seriously and unforgivably disappointing (barbecued pork that could be made into tough old boots and stone-cold Peking duck and pancakes - the pancakes were so cold that they went soggy and stuck together!), the other dishes, while not of first class gourmet quality, did live up to the usual expectations. For this wintry season, I recommend two claypot dishes: braised garoupa with beancurd and spring onion and aubergines and minced pork!

A few magnums and Christmas is almost here!!!

2011-12-24T16:25:00.003+08:00

23 Dec 2011: Our annual pre-Christmas celebration at home....always a nice reminder that Christmas is just a couple of days away! This year Richard and I shared the cooking duties.....Our menu read:

Amuse Bouche: Ivy's Prawn Toast and Engel's Samosas
Starter: Ivy's oven-roasted halibut in a lightly spicy lemongrass and coriander broth
Main Course: Richard's braised beef in rich red wine sauce, served with fingerling potatoes and pea shoots
The best of English cheese: Stinking Bishop, Mrs. Montgomery's Cheddar and Stilton
Dessert: Carribean rum cake and mince pies, served with rum butter (so yummy that I highly recommend anyone to rush out to M&S to secure a few pots!)

All the wines were in magnum format, except the champagne and dessert wine:

1990 Krug: Light golden hue. A rich and mature nose of savoury, mushroom, gingerbread, kumquat confit, honey and caramel. Creamy mousse, very fine bubbles, and a harmonious wine, perhaps a touch lacking in vibrancy and energy. Long finish. Drink now. 17.5/20

1996 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet (in magnum): This tasted much fresher and much more youthful than the 750 ml bottle we had 3 weeks ago, in fact almost like a different wine! Heaps of minerality, some citrus and floral character. Beautifully structured, showing real pedigree, class and purity. Suitably weighty, and deftly balanced by firm acidity. Finishes very long. A glorious wine that is so easily enjoyed now and has at least another 15+ years of drinking window. 19/20

1989 Haut Brion (in magnum): Ruby core. Compared to the 1990, a much more tertiary nose of smokey, earthy, leather, cedar, graphite and savoury....some blue and black berries and liquorice notes. Elegantly structured and velvety texture. Acidity not particularly high and well-integated tannin. Glorious and majestic. Drink now and over next 20 years. 18.5/20

1990 Haut Brion (in magnum): Deeper ruby. Some similarity on the nose: smoke, tobacco, plum, black cherry, blackberry and cassis, lifted by some spicy and earthy notes. Compared to the 1989, this shows more energy on the palate, a bit more acidity and a more rounded mouthfeel. If 1989 could be described as elegant and graceful, then the 1990 was rather voluptuous, plump and supple. After 3 hours, the wine shut down a bit in the glass, and the mid palate went a little hollow. Equally long finish. Drink now and over next 20+ years. 19/20

We left 2 glasses of each wine out as benchmark and had totally forgotten about them until the following morning. One of them showed clear signs of deterioration while the other smelt and tasted still rather fresh......the winner was interestingly the 1990, and not the legendary 100-pointer 1989!

2001 Climens: Golden core, with amber highlights. Orange marmalade, apricot and honey. Racy acidity, balancing the richness. Very very long finish. Drink now and over next 50+ years. 18/20

The irresistible rum cake!!!

Unfortunately the Climens had to compete a bit with the rum cake, which was a really very pleasant surpirse! I bought this cake in August at the airport in Barbados, quite by accident. I was actually looking for aged rum, but didn't find many fine samples. Then I overheard someone saying, "These are the best rum cakes" in front of the Tortuga shelf (as there were two brands competing side by side). So I joined the crowd browsing the immense selection of rum cakes of different flavours: original, coffee, banana, key lime, chocolate, coconut, etc. I chose the Original Version of the Tortuga brand of Carribean Rum Cake, apparently from the Cayman Islands (and they ship worldwide!!! Check out: http://www.tortugarums.com/). Soft and moist, totally infused with spices and rum, and made even more irresistible with a good dollop of Marks & Spencer's spiced rum butter!!! If you are a big fan of moist carrot cake with lots of sour cream icing, think rum and you have this version of rum cake, topped with rum butter! I highly recommend! (And the mince pies came from M&S too - yummy!)

Happy Holidays, everyone!!!

2001 Bouchard Montrachet

2011-12-22T15:46:00.004+08:00

22 Dec 2011: Dinner at Amuse-Bouche. Always a great meal there, with extremely professional and friendly service and perfectly executed dishes.

The 2001 Bouchard Montrachet was sensational. An enticing perfume of white peach, tropical fruit and white flower notes overlaid with mineral, savoury and spicy nuances. Intensifying bouquet with further aeration, which gives the wine more complexity and body. Beautifully textured, rich but not heavy, lifted by very vibrant acidity. Love the very long and spicy finish. Drink now or even better in 2 - 3 years, with a very long life ahead. 18/20

This was followed by a 1985 Charles Noellat Richebourg which had a hard act to follow. Garnet. Very tertiary nose of gamey, leather, coffee, dried rose petals, autumn leaves, earthy and balsamic. Sweet fruit on entry. Though no lacking in complexity, it was not as fleshy and opulent as one would expect from a Grand Cru.....rather weak on the palate. Slightly drying finish. Drink now and over next 4 - 5 years. 17/20

2004 Le Petit Cheval (half bottle)

2011-12-22T14:49:00.001+08:00

22 Dec 2011: 2004 Le Petit Cheval (half bottle): 50% Merlot; 50% Cabernet Franc. Black cherry, blackberry preserve, cassis, graphite, liquorice, tobacco, smoke, vanilla, toasty oak, with just a hint of cedar. Medium tannin. Good acidity. Velvety. So easy to adore and even easier to drink! Lovely finish, though on the short and simple side. Drink now and over next 6 - 8 years. 16/20

1978 Brane Cantenac in magnum

2011-12-22T14:40:00.004+08:00

22 Dec 2011: Kicking off the Christmas celebrations with a magnum of 1978 Brane Cantenac! Garnet core, bricking at the rim. Mature and spicy bouquet of leather, earthy, stony, savoury and cigar smoke. Silky tannin, very smooth texture and not much acidity. Harmonious, mellow and balanced, while not exhilarating. Finish could be a bit longer but lovely palate. Drinking at peak, with no signs of deterioration as yet, but I wouldn't hold onto these magnums for too much longer, say 2 - 3 years for best enjoyment! 16.5/20

2006 La Mission Haut Brion

2011-12-17T17:57:00.001+08:00

17 Dec 2011: Last night, we went to the Commanderie de Bordeaux Gala Dinner. As usual, lots of inductions (including Richard's) that took a good part of half an hour before food arrived. The first course should have been named 'Death by Foie Gras'.....I have not seen so much foie gras on one plate......foie gras terrine with black truffle, foie gras foam and pan fried foie gras with pain d'épicé crust......The Aile d'Argent Blanc 2007 did a good job pairing with it. The honey, lanolin, passion fruit, elderflower and slightly grassy and herbal nose, with a medium weight body, and fresh acidity to balance the richness on the palate, paired just well with the foie gras.  Drink now and over next 8 - 10 years. 16/20 The Pavillon Rouge 2004 in magnum, which showed some smokey and earthy character, underneath the slightly green and underripe nose......was a little ungenerous and disappointing. Drink now and for next 4 - 5 years?  15/20

I was not sure why the second course of double boiled black truffle consommé with forest mushroom ravioli was chosen to pair with the Grand Puy Lacoste 2006 and Calon Ségur 2004.   Lovely nose for the Grand Puy Lacoste: plum, cassis, black cherry, liquorice, chocolate, slightly smokey and some minerality...the acidity was lower and the finish, though rounded and smooth, was a little on the short side, after the textured body and smooth ripe tannin structure. Perhaps it was heading for a shutdown......16/20 None of us found the Calon Ségur 2004 endearing at all.....quite a lot of underripeness, lead pencil, graphite. Astringent tannin. 15.5/20

The 2006 La Mission Haut Brion was chosen to pair with the slow roasted tenderloin, with braised oxtail buckwheat crepe roulade.  Defnitely for me, star of the evening. It showed lovely terroir characteristics, gravelling, smokey, spicy and violet, plus a concentrated fruit ripeness which I liked.  Excellent acidity and ripe smooth tannin, all wrapped up in a firm but rounded structure with plenty of density and minerality.  Yummy. Not sure how long it was opened for, but you could argue that it's still not ready....but I rather like the acidity and the structure to go with the food. Drink now and over next 25+ years. 18.5/20

I found the 1998 Mouton Rothschild slightly disappointing. I found it rather austere, ungenerous and somewhat on the lean and mean side. Something herbal and earthy on the nose. Rather quiet and subdued for a wine of its stature. An uninteresting finish. Drink now and over next 10+ years......17/20 Strangely it was used to pair with the cheese, deep fried Brie de Meaux spring rolls - a number of us complained that there was no cheese inside the spring rolls, just some crispy skin and some chutney!

The dessert platter was rather nice and a nice match with the 1997 Coutet - honey, gingerbread, orange peel and pineapple. Quite nice. 16/20

A few charity announcements in the middle.....hope they sold lots of the watches designed by local students......rather smart!

So there ended the 25th Anniversary series of wine dinners.....for the HK Chapter of the Commanderie de Bordeaux.......a jovial and well-attended event!

La Romanee, etc.......

2011-12-15T09:30:00.000+08:00

15 Dec 2011: A short while ago a group of us took advantage of a friend's booking at TBLS (our friend couldn't use it and didn't want to let it go to waste - so I quickly snapped it up!). TBLS (for Tablespoon) is a cosy little restaurant tucked away on the top floor of a commercial block on Hollywood Road. Based on the concept of favourite comfort food dishes, Chef Que Vinh Dang embellishes them with fresh local ingredients, his very individual creative twist and innovative presentation. The results are simply jaw-droppingly delicious. The open kitchen ambiance lends further intimacy to the diners and the culinary team. Check out the website: http://www.tbls-kitchenstudio.com/

There is a new menu every month and as we arrived on 1st December, we were among the first to sample the December menu - "Best of 2011":

Soup & Sandwich:

Sweet Corn Soup with Paprika Popcorn
Chiptole Pork Belly Sandwich with Oaxaca Cheese, Avocado and Pickled Onions

Happy Memories:
Sobrassada, Poached Egg, Garlic Mashed Potato, Crispy Serrano Ham

Ceviche:
Yellowtail Ceviche, Smoked Pineapple, Fresh Guacamole, Tomato Water Jelly

Pastrami Brined Turkey:
Turkey Breast, Foie Gras, Sweet Potato Puree, Honey Mustard Cabbage, Sour Cherry and Pear Chutney

Jasmine Tea Party:
Jasmine Tea Panna Cotta, Strawberry Water, Milk Chocolate Mochi Ravioli

PB&J:
Peanut Butter Ice Cream, Homemade Strawberry Jam, Macaroon Sandwich

Soup and Sandwich at TBLS - the pork belly sandwich is simply sensational!

Happy Memories - looks more like a Steamed Vegetable Bun - that's what I call comfort food!!

My top marks went to the Soup and Sandwich course.......I could easily do with two of these and nothing else! The Happy Memories dish was very innovatively presented but quite filling. The turkey dish was the only disappointment....the turkey meat tasted quite rubbery and the foie gras was so rich that it kind of clashed with the rather delicate turkey meat.  The desserts were refreshing and thoughtfully presented, but I'm not a big fan of fancy desserts - yes, bring me some sticky toffee pudding, bread & butter pudding, apple and rhubarb crumble,.....!!!!

La Paulée style - so each of us brought a bottle. Paul and David set the pace....Paul bringing a 2000 Coche-Dury Corton Charlemagne and David a 1966 La Romanée (bottled by Bichot).  Richard thought the 1962 La Romanée (bottled by Leroy) would make some interesting comparison and Mike brought a 1996 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet. My contribution was a Selosse Initial.

NV Selosse Initial: 100% Chardonnay from Avize, Cramant and Oger, and blended from different vintages. This is a February 2009 disgorged bottle. Creamy and textured, with layered nuances of savoury, mushroom, hazelnuts, freshed by honeysuckle, honey and toasty notes, caressing the palate. Great sense of delineated minerality and terroir. Beautifully crafted. Love the acidity, complexity and the finish. Drink now and over next 8 - 10 years.  17.5/20

2000 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne and 1996 Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet

2000 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne: Quite tightly wound and restrained, oozing of purity, linearity, nobility, tension and minerality, with masses of energy and power yet to be released. Lime blossom, apple compote and a hint of candied fruit. It just keeps evolving in the glass. The cool character now matched rather well with the ceviche! Drink now (with a good amount of aeration) and over next 15 - 20 years, with good cellaring. 18/20

1996 Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet: Amazing freshness and youthfulness. Really needs decanting if it's an available option. Floral, toasty, smokey, some nutty character, with plenty of minerality bolstering the bouquet. Palate gaining weight and further complexity in the glass, finding equilibrium with the racy acidity. Love the spicy finish. A heavy weight wine, yet so fresh and vibrant to enjoy now. A long long life ahead. 18+/20

1962 and 1966 La Romanée

1962 La Romanée (Leroy bottling): Last vintage under Leroy bottling. Still ruby at core, bricking at rim. Rather funky nose initially, settling into a very mature bouquet of animal, wet saddle, earthy, pomegranate and hoi sin sauce. Acidity a bit too prominent.  The silky texture a saving feature. A bit disappointing as a grand cru. Bottle number 329. Drink now! 15.5/20

1966 La Romanée (Bichot bottling): Bichot did the bottling between 1963 and 1975 for this wine.  Now this is proper Grand Cru material, with a classy and sophisticated mature bouquet of coffee, earthy, autumn leaves on the forest floor and some spicy notes. Impressive by its sheer class and elegance.  Silky frame, with a slight acidity kick on the aftertaste, which could benefit from a bit more time to settle down in the glass/decanter. (We kind of hurried through the 2 reds, as we probably spent too long on the white wines which paired better with the dishes at TBLS.....) Finishes long. Drink now and over next 8 - 10 years, depending on storage. 17.5/20
Decently respectable, the La Romanées didn't quite provide the wow factor, but the whites certainly did a very impressive job.  Given how little faith I have in old burgs and potentially premoxed whites, I actually brought a couple of back-ups!

I will definitely return to TBLS if I get lucky with the booking again, but I will probably do it slightly differently.....keep to a simple wine theme and have all the reds and whites on the table for everyone to help themselves, as the menu does not quite allow a natural transition from white to red.....

1997 Leroy Clos de La Roche

2011-12-11T23:38:00.001+08:00

11 Dec 2011: Garnet core, bricking at the rim. Quite bretty initially, and a slight metallic taste. After about an hour of decanting, red cherry, five spice, saddle, dried rose petal and forest floor on the nose, with a whiff of caramel, with savoury and minerally/wet stones nuances on the palate. Silky tannin, initially the acidity somewhat stuck out, with aeration the fruit came out and the wine took on some balance and harmony, even if it was way past its best days. Slightly sweet finish. Drink now! Better with food - it did a very respectable job pairing with the roast pork loin, with caramelised apple jus, and mashed swede! 16/20

Bordeaux 2000 and 2001

2011-12-11T11:16:00.001+08:00

10 Dec 2011: Dinner at Ta Pantry, a very charming 1-table only private kitchen in the setting of a cosy apartment, on Star Street in HK. Esther (Proprietor and Head Chef) had already committed to another event but we were very well looked after by the team of chefs and waiter as well as Esther's sister. Ta Pantry offers different set menus, all based on Esther's interpretation of different regional cuisine types. Our theme was L'Indochine.  I liked most the starter of Hokkaido scallop in a green mango curry carpaccio, on sea urchin cream and the Coco Balsamic linguine tossed with exotic mushrooms (probably could do without the squid). (Patrick and I asked for seconds, but they said they had run out!) The crabmeat ravioli in lemongrass scented chicken broth was delicious but I thought the pasta was a little too chewy for the delicately-flavoured broth.....wonton skin might be a better alternative.....I didn't try the veal cheek cooked with star anise, accompanied by compote of mint and pineapple, and brussel sprouts, which looked delicious but the portion looked quite small to me, given that we kind of needed more meaty sustenance to keep up with the flight of hearty wines! A nice cheese platter and dessert of red wine poached pear crumble, with tapioca and tiramisu ice-cream rounded up the evening.

Each couple (sorry Christine couldn't join us) brought 2 bottles, one each from the 2000 and 2001 vintages, for their chosen Bordeaux château. I thought that both 2000 and 2001 vintages were drinking beautifully now, although the 2000's, with the higher concentration, intensity and ripeness, would have much more evolution ahead in the bottle and a much longer life, longer than the 2001 by about 10 - 15 years, based on the bottles this evening. The 2001's all showed a hint of greenness from this vintage, sometimes already apparent on the nose but much more evident on the palate.  The 2001's also had a slightly shorter finish (and slightly drying) compared with the 2000's.

As for the vintage conditions, 2000 enjoyed a hot dry August and September, with rain arriving around mid October. The wines are rich, robustly structured, deep-coloured and tannic, with good acidity. These are wines for long-term cellaring. 2001 enjoyed a hot dry August but a cooler and drier September. This resulted in less power and concentration but there would be more elegance and charm. Merlot did well in 2001. Rain arrived towards end of the harvest.

2001 Angélus, Saint-Emilion: Gratifying nose of black cherry, chocolate, mocha, liquorice, and spicy, with plums and figs gradually coming to the fore. Well-balanced and elegant, within a moderately proportioned supple structure, much less generous than the 2000. Slightly drying finish. Best to be enjoyed with food. Drink now and for next 6 - 8 years. 16/20

2000 Angélus, Saint Emilion: Very similar nose, but with much more intensity and concentratation than the 2001, enhanced by graphite, minerality and cigar box character. An opulent and full-bodied wine of tremendous proportions and great textural richness, complete with elegantly layered complexities and balancing acidity refreshing the palate.  Voluptuous and seductive. A phenomenal effort and a substantial vin de garde. Suspect this would have a relatively high percentage of Cabernet Franc in the final blend. Drinking now (with decanting time of 2 hours) and for next 20+ years. 18.5/20

2001 Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol: 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc. A rich bouquet of blackberry, black cherry, violet, liquorice, cedar and minerality. Some slightly camphor/forest floor and leather nuances. Very supple structure, with low-ish acidity and a ripe tannic structure, perhaps just a touch less concentrated than the 2000, but this pair was probably closest stylistically than the other pairs. Drink now and for the next 10 - 15+ years. 17/20

2000 Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol: 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Cassis, blackberry, violet, mocha, liquorice, underlined with minerality, with cedar after some aeration in the glass. Very admirable for the purity of fruit, measured elegance and supple texture. Lower in acidity than the 2000 Angélus, but very firm tannic structure.   Finishes long - slightly drying.  An intellectual wine. Definitely drinking now and for the next 15+ years. 17.5+/20

2001 Léoville Poyferré, Saint Julien: Something quite savoury here, with blackkcurrant leaf and plums. Well-textured and balanced. Slightly bitter finish. Drink now and for next 6- 8 years. 16/20

2000 Léoville Poyferré, Saint Julien: (The field blend for Léoville Poyferré is typically 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 8% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc, with 75% new oak and ageing for upt to 20 months.) This was a beauty. Very elegantly structured and velvety textured with rich fruit concentration and ripe but firm tannin. Savoury, minerally/graphite, blackcurrant, cassis, , blackberry compote and violet. Lingering finish. Absolutely gorgeous. Drinking very well now and for the next 15+ years. 18/20

2001 Gruaud Larose, Saint Julien: I found this rather austere and rather backward, not eager to please. I suspect this might improve with more decanting time. Some tobacco, leather and herbal notes accompanying the plum and star anise and clove spices.  Rather lighter in structure. Drink now and for next 6 - 8 years. 16/20

2000 Gruaud Larose, Saint Julien: (The field blend is around 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 5% each for Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, with around 50% new oak.) A classic Saint Julien, showing some of the muscles, balanced by supple elegance. Blueberry and blackberry, violet, herbal, leather and something from the forest floor. This shows more evolution than the Léoville Poyferré. Beautiful to drink now and for the next 15+ years. 17.5/20

Thank you to Jonathan and Lorraine for hosting us. My vote would be the Angélus 2000 as my top wine, followed by the Léoville Poyferré 2000. Best 2001 was the Vieux Château Certan.  All great wines and really perfect with food at this relative young age!

The Premium Super Second Growth - Cos d'Estournel

2011-12-04T11:44:00.001+08:00

2 December 2011: In celebration of its 25th Anniversary, the HK Chapter of Commanderie de Bordeaux had organised a series of special dinners, sourcing wine directly from the châteaux. On this evening, it was Château Cos d'Estournel. Président Directeur Général Jean-Guillaume Prats spoke with much enthusiasm and pride of the achievements Bordeaux had made in this Century, with the help of global warming, and enhanced capital for investment in wineries and vineyards, making great wines a regular possibility. He also very politically correctly applauded the audience in continuing to support Bordeaux, buying Bordeaux wine even with the staggering case prices.

The Grand Hyatt did a great job with the dishes, in particular I really enjoyed the pairing of braised venison shoulder with 2005 Cos d'Estournel!

Marinated Scallop Carpaccio and Lobster Tartar on Cauliflower Pannacotta, Oscietra Caviar

Pan-fried Foie Gras with Brioche and Dry Fruit Crust, Winter Berry Jelly, Mache and Light Coffee Foam

Slow-roasted Venison Loin and Truffle Crepinette, Braised Shoulder, Mushrooms, Chestnut Puree, Shallots Fondant, Juniper-Rosemary Jus

Baked Vacherin cheese with Oven Fresh Baguette

Pear William Creme Chibouste with Vanilla Poached Pear, Cassis Ice Cream and Fig

2008 Cos d'Estournel Blanc: 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon.   Elderflower, grapefruit, a salty minerality. Medium-bodied, the mild richness well-balanced by acidity just right. Did a great job pairing with the sweet raw scallop. 15.5/20

2007 Cos d'Estournel: 2007, a vintage saved by an Indian summer, late harvest, towards end of the ripening season, Jean-Guillaume compared to 1979. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. In the words of Jean-Guillaume, fruity and seductive. Plum, black cherry pie, cassis, incense, bergamot, liquorice and some toasted oak. Very smooth tannin, with only the slightest hint of astringency. Medium bodied. Drinking very well now (a great food wine!) and for the next 12+ years. 17/20

2002 Cos d'Estournel: Likened to 1955 by Jean-Guillaume, very smalll berries and very little juice.  Much less generous than the 2007. Blackcurrant leaf, cigar box, mixed berries (more red than black), with a hint of herbaceousness. Not showing its best here. Rather reserved, slightly mean on the palate. Lighter bodied than the 2007 vintage. Drink now and for next 10+ years. 15.5/20

2005 Cos d'Estournel: 2005 vintage: very long ripening season from budding to flowering; humid winter giving the vines a good water reserve, very dry summer, rain in early August (helped veraison), very cool nights in September. 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, blended with 19% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Gorgeous beauty, with an aristocratic nose, regal power and yet supreme elegance. Plum, blackberries, chocolate, cardamon spices, cayenne pepper, with a hint of leather. Ripe palate-coating velvety texture, with firm acidity giving the wine such regal poise.  Long sweet finish.  Surprising drinking very well now, and for the next 30+ years! 19.5/20

2000 Cos d'Estournel: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, and 2% Cabernet Franc. Lead pencil, black cherry, herbal, violet and cedar, only very lightly spiced. Where the 2005 was powerful and elegant, 2002 was graceful and charming, but much more evolved. A lovely wine but not one for the very long haul. Drink now and for next 10 - 15 years. 16.5/20

We didn't have the 2003 Cos d'Estournel, which when I last tasted a year ago was nowhere near ready for drinking. Jean-Guillaume briefly talked about the challenges from the heat wave in 2003. It was 46 degrees Celsius in Bordeaux and the topsoil measured 52 degrees Celsius.  2003 could certainly look forward to the lasting greatness of 1961 and 1982!

All fabulous wines that just proved the great improvements this chateau had made in this decade - simply stunning wines!  Everyone's favourite seemed clearly the 2005, but I was also rather fond of the 2007, especially to accompany food with spicy or complexly flavoured dishes (thinking of meatballs in spicy tomato sauce, those gourmet mini-burgers or chicken or lamb tagine with cous-cous or even just a well-seasoned lasagne!!! Yummy!).

2004 Red Burgundies

2011-11-29T20:37:00.001+08:00

26 November 2011: We’ve been dining at different restaurants in the UK and France this past week. When we eat out, especially with the mark-ups at high-end restaurants, we tend to be quite modest in our choice of wine. So we restrict ourselves to a certain budget. Another restriction we have is that Richard is rather fixated on his two-region wine preference (Bordeaux and Burgundy, never mind the rest of France and the rest of the world) that we find ourselves choosing from a very limited range. Working within these parameters, we have been choosing a number of Burgundy reds from the 2004 vintage, a vintage rather prevalent on restaurant wine list at the moment, given its drinkability and lack of material for long-term ageing. 2004 was a very challenging vintage for Burgundy and picking with optimum phenolic ripeness was the exception rather than the rule. So the exceptions have been generally rather well-received and the norms not so well, ranging from undrinkable to just about acceptable.

We were at L’Hostellierie de Levernois in Burgundy earlier this week and we went through 3 bottles of 2004 vintage and the results were:

2004 Ruchottes-Chambertin, Christophe Roumier: corked!

2004 Bonnes Mares, Drouhin-Laroze: rather indifferent and insipid, quite herbaceous, wouldn't qualify for Grand Cru level of quality

2004 Bonnes Mares, Georges Roumier: some very good material here, juicy red fruit, a little spicy and minerally, a little herbaceous, but definitely got structure, reasonable concentration, nicely presented complexity, and beautifullly integrated acidity and only slightly astringent tannin, perhaps not for the very long haul, but certainly drinking well now and for next 10 - 12+ years and excellent with food. Definitely in the class of Grand Cru and very fine for this vintage.

Then we were at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in London and we had:

2004 Pommard Rugiens, de Courcel (first bottle): too funky a nose, terribly bretty, not pleasant at all

2004 Pommard Rugiens, de Courcel (second bottle): too acidic, not balanced at all, totally undrinkable

(So I grabbed the wine list and ordered a bottle of 2006 Saumur-Champigny…and it was lovely!)

This was followed by dinner at Le Manoir Aux Quat’Saisons, and this time we ordered:

2004 Nuits-Saint-Georges Les Chaignots, Henri Gouges: there was sufficient amount of red fruit, spice and earthy character, interlaid with some stalkiness. Lacking in intensity and concentration, but still got some structure and acidity to go well with food. Drink now.

Lessons learnt?? Be a bit more adventurous with the wine list!! Lesser vintages can still produce very respectable wine, in the right hands!

2006 Chateauneuf du Pape, Domaine Charvin

2011-11-29T20:20:00.001+08:00

26 November 2011: Continuing with the theme of looking for good value items on the wine list - quite challenging at top tables in the UK with very high mark-ups, and if you're used to the BYO or corkage-friendly restaurant scene in HK. Richard let me have a go at the wine list at our second dinner at Le Manoir Aux Quat'Saisons. I made a beeline for the regions of Languedoc-Roussillon, Italy, Spain, Rhone and even Austria. I would be quite keen to try the Blaufrankisch on the list but that might be taking too much risk (with Richard, I mean)....I also spotted a well-priced 2002 La Muntada, Domaine Gauby, an interesting wine from Terra Alta, Turriga from Sardinia, and finally I decided to go for the least risky option! 2006 Châteauneuf du Pape, Domaine Charvin. And it did a very fine job pairing with Richard's partridge.

Roughly 85% Grenache and the balance made up of equal portions of Syrah, Mourvèdre, and Vaccarèse. Tank-fermented. The estate Charvin was established in 1851 but sold its wine to negociants until 1990 when the estate took up domaine bottling. The domaine, now looked after by the 6th generation Laurent, has been producing great wines in recent vintages, albeit in limited quantity of 2,500 cases annually. This 2006 is a very fine example!

A deep ruby core. Intense nose of red cherry and crushed red berries, cloves, liquorice, freshly ground white pepper and a savoury note. Full-bodied, packed with concentrated sweet ripe fruit, balancing acidity and velvety tannin. Voluptuous and rich, but there is a very admirable freshness and elegance about it. A seriously great effort from a new generation winemaker who has been going from strength to strength and whose wine has been much compared to that of Rayas. As a vintage, 2006 is less intense and dense and probably reaches its peak much earlier than 2007. Drinking well now and for next 12+ years. Still relatively well-valued. I highly recommend! 17.5/20

16 Vintages of Meo-Camuzet Richebourg

2011-11-29T19:58:00.001+08:00

The Line-Up

Bouilland, France, 22 November 2011: It was a great privilege for me to take part in this spectacular tasting of 16 vintages of Richebourg from the domaine of Méo-Camuzet, alongside serious Burgundian experts as well as Jean-Nicolas himself from the domaine. Becky and Russell very kindly allowed us to organise this tasting in their homely farmhouse so that we could effortlessly move into the dining area after tasting to indulge ourselves over a most delicious buffet of peat-infused smoked salmon, ham, roast pork and salad, prepared by Russell, plus a few magnums. It has become a bit of a tradition for us: there's the year-long preparation in making sure there would be as few gaps as possible in the line-up, the heightened anticipation of how the wine would show, and the opportunity of being able to discuss the wines with so many Burgundy lovers and experts during the tasting. Russell very sweetly said that every time we turned up, he knew that Christmas would be a bit closer!
We were very lucky with the bottles……all of them were presented in perfect condition and only one managed to disappoint us with cork taint. Jasper, who kindly organised the bottles in the right chronological order and prepared the tasting sheets, remarked, “Well, these bottles are running out of time to spring any surprises on us!”, after pulling the cork of the 12th bottle (starting from the youngest).

Etienne Camuzet was deputé for the Côte d’Or from 1902 to 1932. He purchased some significant vineyard holdings as well as the Château de Clos de Vougeot, which he later gave to the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Tastevin. Upon his death, his vineyard holdings passed to his daughter, Maria Noirot, who died childless, and subsequently to a distant relative, Jean Méo in 1959. At this time, the vineyards were looked after by sharecroppers, notably Henri Jayer, and the wine sold off in bulk. Domaine bottling began in 1985. Jean-Nicolas took over in 1989. The domaine’s 0.35 ha holding of Richebourg is situated at the top of Les Verroilles.

I think it would be fair to say that it was a very rare occasion to be able to taste all these vintages in one go and that we would generally concur that that the wines showed much consistency in style over the years (since Jean-Nicolas took over) and they all demonstrated true vintage characteristics.

Jean-Nicolas diligently writing his tasting notes

So here they are and my impressions of them:

2006 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Still very youthful. Quite closed on the nose. Spicy red fruit and floral. Nicely structured and in total harmony, but lacked concentration and depth for me. Good length. Drink from 2014+. 17/20

2005 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Purity, concentration, intensity and much depth of character. Ripe wildberries, plum, violet, spicy and with plenty of minerality. The wine expands on the mid-palate, leading to a seriously long finish. A very serious wine, skilfully crafted, with a very long life ahead. Drink from 2018+. 19.5/20

2004 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: This bottle has evolved much more than expected. Typicity of the vintage is evident: slight stalky, herbaceous character, underlying the red cherry, spicy, dried rose petal and gamey (animale) notes. Lighter frame than the others and slightly weaker on the palate (vintage characteristics), but the skill of the winemaker is definitely evident – well balanced acidity and mellow tannin. Very enjoyable with food. Drink now and for next 8 – 10 years. 15.5/20

2003 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Another challenging vintage. This time the heatwave across Europe. Again bravo to Jean-Nicolas, in avoiding the excessive jammy character seen in some less skilfully made wines from this vintage. Dark fruit, just a hint of burnt blackberry preserve, Asian spice, starting to show some gamey notes. Firm ripe tannin balanced by fresh acidity. A bold and structured wine, but very stylish and elegantly crafted. (I also really like his Clos de Vougeot, but Jean-Nicolas said, for him, his Cros Parantoux would be his best wine from this vintage.) 16.5/20

2002 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: A garnet core. An alluring bouquet of farmyard, red cherry, coffee and leather, and plenty of minerality. Beautiful long finish, with a sweet aftertaste. Very typical of vintage. Love the acidity here. Great to drink now, but will continue to evolve over next 10 – 15 years, with a long life ahead. 18/20

2001 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: More evolved than expected. Asian spice, cherry, rose petal, coffee, leather, with the unmistakable farmyard and wet saddle character. Elegant and mellow, but lacking in intensity for me. Drinking beautifully now and for next 10 – 12 years with good cellaring. 17/20

1999 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Slightly reduced at the beginning. Still very closed. Rather austere, still rather wound-up within a tight girdle. All the elements beautifully integrated though and it would turn out to be a gorgeous wine. Drink 2015+. 17.5+/20

1998 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Manure, red cherry, toasty, spicy and mineral. Chewy and broadly structured, succulent, full of energy and tension. Great aromatics and phenomenal equilibrium. The finish goes on and on. Drink now and for next 15 – 20 years. (I like this wine very much!!) 19/20

1996 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Rusty nail at the beginning….on the palate, more red fruit and spice. Weaker middle palate for me….and a drying finish. The tannin still resolving itself…not quite integrated. Drink now and for next 8 - 10 years? 16/20

1995 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: A rich and mature bouquet of farmyard, plum, Asian spice and leather. Stylish, with a lot of poise and character. Great acidity and a remarkably long finish. Drink now and for next 10 – 15 years. 17.5/20

1993 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Show-stopper classic beauty. Savoury, animale, cherry, plum, pot pourri. Perfumed, silky, totally seductive, with just the right amount of nervosity to keep it tasting fresh. This is drinking at peak now and will continue to drink beautifully for another 20+ years. Simply stunning. 19/20

1991 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Coffee, redcurrant, floral, plenty of minerality. Very sophisticated and harmonious, with a very endearing sweet finish. Not quite at peak yet…drink now and for next 20+ years. There is a chance this could eclipse the 1993! 19/20

1990 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: A bit more density, weightier on the palate. I feel that this wine has more concentrated ripe fruit, energy and intensity on the palate, which I like, but perhaps less of the finesse that was seen in the 1991 and 1993. Minerality, dark fruit, savoury and violet. This will continue to evolve for a while….perhaps 5+ years before reaching peak with a long life ahead? Excellent with food. 18.5+/20

1989 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: Gracefully aged beauty, holding together very well in total harmony! Leather, gamey, minerality, rose petal. Slightly drying sensation on palate, but very very long finish. Drink now. 18/20

1988 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: the corked bottle of the flight!

1985 Richebourg, Méo-Camuzet: funky nose, coffee, caramel, something liquorice and herbal like, like that cough candy Ricola. Silky tannin, still nicely structured. May already be well on its path of slow decline. Drink now, with no further improvement. 15/20

All the wines showed tremendously well and it really was hard to score them not within a point or two of each other. I took a vote from some of our friends who were just amateurs like ourselves and the clear favourites were: 1991, 1996, 1995 and 2005. And I happened to favour the dark horses of 1998 and 1990!

Over lunch, we had 5 magnums plus a bottle of 2003 Chambolle Musigny Premier Cru, Comte Georges de Vogüé that was brought to us by Jean-Luc. The 5 magnums were 2005 Bâtard-Montrachet, Ramonet, 2000 Meursault Perrières, Roulot, 1989 Clos de La Roche Cuvée William, Ponsot, 1989 Chambertin, Rousseau and 1988 Chambertin, Rousseau. Sadly I was so behind with the drinking that I didn’t get round to taste the Meursault Perrières that was kindly contributed by Anthony, but I was assured by everyone that it was sensational. There seemed to be an equal number of people who preferred the 1988 to the 1989 Chambertin, to those who preferred the 1989 over the 1988. I liked the energy, power and acidity of the 1989 but I also admired the 1988 for the complexity, finesse and harmony. The 1989 Ponsot seemed a little subdued on this occasion.

Now, it's time to start planning for next year's tasting!

6 Decades of Wine

2011-11-13T14:48:00.001+08:00

13 Nov 2011: We were invited to a dear friend's 60th birthday party last night. Every detail was meticulously considered and organised by our host (I should say hostess, as Anne was the mastermind of the surprise party): the result was a beautifully orchestrated soirée, with a trio of musicians serenading the guests who indulged in the fine cuisine prepared by Jeremy, the chef from The Mirror, the decadent cakes from Sevva and the amazing selection of 6 decades of fine wine, culminating in the enthralling performance by a duo of baritone and tenor.

The baritone performing to an enthralled audience
with the tenor in the background having just delivered an amazing performance

Following are the 6 decades of wine wih my impression - each wine was chosen for the style and for the vintage qualities that best represented the particular decade:

2002 Dom Pérignon - fresh and lively, floral, some tropical fruit, mineral, great acidity; a great champagne in the making, but for my personal preference, I would cellar this for a few more years to build complexity. 18/20

1999 Bâtard Montrachet, Domaine Leflaive (in magnums) - Double decanted about 45 minutes before serving. Rounded, well-textured, showing some maturity in the nose, layered notes of toast, hazelnuts, white peach and floral, with minerality, very endearing and approachable now. Good length. Drink now and over next 10+ years for optimum enjoyment (longer for larger formats). (All 6 magnums came in one original case.) 18.5/20

1982 Château Léoville Poyferré - Double-decanted about 2 hours before serving. Deep ruby colour. Showing no signs of fatigue at all. Still showing a firm but velvety tannin structure, with some acidity, and a dense and concentrated cassis and plums, with liquorice and violet undertones. Brooding, and unrelenting still. This was easily enjoyed last night but could do with further cellaring to mellow out. Drink now and over next 20+ years. 17.5/20

The bottles of 1971 Echezeaux, DRC

1971 Echézeaux, Domaine de la Romanée Conti - Pale garnet core. A wine of immense delicacy and finesse, that still showed lovely intensity and much energy, underneath the delicate appearance. Mature bouquet of rose, spice, leather, game and truffle, with still a hint of red fruit on the palate. Silky texture, effortlessly coating our palate with the most charming sweet flavours and leaving behind a very memorable aftertaste. (Richard said he just couldn't stop himself from drinking it!) All the corks came out very well. Consistent levels of around 4- 4.5 cm for all 12 bottles that came from one original wooden case. Slight bottle variation but on the whole an impressive demonstration of the characteristics of this vintage and the impressive quality of DRC. Drink now and over next 5+ years, depending on cellar conditons. 18.5/20

(And a case of 2003 Clos de Vougeot, Méo-Camuzet, had been slipped in as back-up, and just as well it had been , as it did a fine job keeping up the drinking! Plum, cherry, with plenty of spice and mocha, and some hints of leather and earthy character. Juicy and mouthfilling, with ripe and firm tannin and lively acidity. An elegantly crafted wine for this very challenging hot vintage. Drinking well now and over next 8 - 10 years. 17/20)

1967 Château d'Yquem - Bright and deep amber colour. Plenty of botrytis here: honey, dried fruit (apricot and pineapple) and marmalade. Full-bodied but not overly unctuous, still showing plenty of lively acidity and much intensity on the palate. The sweetness building up on the palate, with a slight dryness at the finish. Lovely to enjoy on its own! 17.5/20

1951 Burmester Colheita Port - Lovely mature bouquet of mocha, prunes, walnuts, figs and fruitcake, with burnt sugar notes on the palate. Tasting very fresh still, with mouthcoating texture and a long sweet finish. (It went beautifully with the chocolate cake, I thought!) 17/20

A beautiful drink from the birth year of our dear friend, and a very appropriate way to mark the end of a very indulgent and generous evening!

The wines plus the reserve wine of 2003 Clos de Vougeot, Meo-Camuzet
minus the 2002 Dom Perignon

Hong Kong: City of Wine

2011-11-11T22:56:00.001+08:00

11 Nov 2011: 3 days of 'wining' at the HK Wine and Spirits Fair and 3 days at the Winefuture Conference in HK added up to be quite a heavy toll on my system, not least my teeth, which bore the brunt of the pigment and acidity attack from the seriously staining young reds. However, in the name of wine, it was all very worthwhile. Apart from attending some very well-organised and educational tastings including the well-publicised 2009 Bordeaux Magical 20 Tasting conducted by Robert Parker, I focused my tasting on the lesser known regions and grape varieties....and in most cases, was rather encouraged by what I saw and tasted.

Robert Parker conducted the Magical 20 Tasting of 2009 Bordeaux

I did not exactly take notes during my booth-hopping, but the following made a distinct impression on me: the Tannat from Uruguay, the Blaufränkisch, pinot-noiresque Saint Laurent and fruity and vigorous Zweigelt from Austria (the grassy and minerally Grüner Veltliner relegated to yesterday's story!), the Nero d'Avola and Frappato contributing to Cerasuolo di Vittorio DOCG from Sicily, the waxy Grecanico with a slight pungent nose of herbal and citrus, with bitter almond aftertaste from Sicily (another alternative to Sauvignon Blanc), the blend of Negroamaro and Malvasia Nera making juicy and well-structured Salice Salentino DOC from Puglia, the Öküzgözü and Boğazkere (both black grapes) and Narince (white grape) from Turkey, the Cabernet Franc from the Maule Valley in Argentina (yes - old story, but exciting new expression), the Hungarian Furmint and Hárslevelű both made in a dry style and a medium sweet version made from Zéta, and also Icewine from China.

Chester d'Arenberg Osborn demonstrating new marketing ideas - a world without boundaries

The future of wine is without borders and boundaries.....it will be fascinating to watch how some of these regions rise to realise their full potential in the years to come, and to see how the birthplace of viticulture, the countries around the Black Sea, would once again be resurrected to its former glory! The future of wine is very exciting and HK managed to attract vinous people from all over the world to be cocooned in these concrete monstrosities of exhibition centres, complete with the standard issue of terrible coffee and buffet lunches! HK is now truly the epicentre of wine - at least for now, with at least a wine-related auction taking place almost every other week.....and a formal wine dinner taking place somewhere in HK every other day. There has never been so much interest in wine here, thanks in one part to the elimination of duty, a bold decision taken 6 years ago but in another perhaps bigger part, the attraction of the massive hinterland of China!

I may be wrong with my statistics but I thought there were as many people making a beeline for the better known regions of Bordeaux and Burgundy as there were people experimenting with new regions and varieties at the Wine and Spirits Fair. Bordeaux will always be there - as Robert Parker said, it represents the pinnacle of winemaking and has a very unique wine style and ageing profile, not quite equalled by another wine region at the moment. A lot of Bordeaux-inspired regions and wineries aspire to become the next cult wine, gaining overnight fame and status with a high rating from a worthy critic. I rather admire individual personality in a wine, a wine that speaks of its origin and DNA, a wine that has a personna, a character that puts it in its own class and category, not Bordeaux-inspired, not Burgundy-wannabe and not chasing a certain style to ensure a high rating. These are the wines that deserve our support so that they continue to improve and evolve. I shall always remember how Randall Grahm profoundly talked about the 'chi' of wine - wine as a living organism, the 'chi' giving it energy, the 'chi' connecting it to mother earth! When the wine is harmonious and at peace, we will enjoy it better........

If you haven't yet, I urge you to try Randall Grahm's wines - the reds are Grenache-based, harmoniously structured, very expressive and very elegant, and all within 14.5% alcohol. I particularly liked his new experimentation with maturation in bon-bons. I also liked the Roussanne and Grenache Blanc white blend, refreshing, zingy, great food wine - Randall recommended sushi with fresh wasabi. The vin gris is very interesting as well, with a creamy texture from the malolactic fermentation.....not sure how it got there but it did a great job giving the wine a new level of sophistication, uncommonly found in pink wines!

Randall Grahm on the 'chi' of wine

The Winefuture Conference was enlightening in many ways and I felt that there were many points one could take home to ponder over......the Chinese market remained a magnet to some and an enigma to others. Sparkling wine still struggles to to find a way to woo the Chinese palate (the racy acidity and sometimes too aggressive bubbles don't help - perhaps the much longer-aged prestige cuvée champagnes with more delicate mousse and intensified complexity would find their way to the Chinese hearts??). We are seeing more consumption of white wine in China....hurrah! Finally, the awakening of the Chinese palate.....I find that in general white wine demonstrates more versatility in the matching with a variety of flavours in Chinese cuisine. Red wine still remains the wine of choice but pinot noir is the flavour of the moment and long may this last! This 'deviation' from Bordeaux, however minor, may encourage an accelerated 'normalisation' of crazy Bordeaux prices, which is long overdue so that the playing ground can once more be better levelled for those of us without those thick wallets who have felt much sidelined.

The Promising Wines from Spain

But hey, look what we've found: impressive Argentinian Cabernet Franc, promising Turkish reds and Hungarian dry whites, silky and perfumed well-crafted Austrian pinot noir and plenty of delicious, food-friendly and ageworthy wines from Spain and Italy (if only the alcohol level could be slighty better managed - 14% or below would be ideal!).....we're not without choices! In fact, as the Chinese market opens up, this has just propelled the development of wine in more directions than one and this development has offered all of us better quality wine (at a range of price points) and more diversity, and we the consumers now more so than ever have the opportuity to identify our own style, much less influenced by critics and others.......Like the wine we drink, we too are evolving!

Borrowing the words of Forrest Gump, the world of wine 'is like a box of chocolates'.......how exhilarating! Gan Bei! Yum Sing! Santé! Salute! Cheers!!!

1973 Vega Sicilia Unico

2011-11-11T22:13:00.001+08:00

1973 Vega Sicilia Unico

11 Nov 2011: Last week I had the opportunity to try the 1973 Vega Sicilia Unico. I thought it had a slightly funky nose, reminding me of rusty nails and something savoury, mushroomy and spicy.  There was some fruit character still on the palate, but more towards the lean and ungenerous end of the spectrum, not helped by the high-ish acidity. Perhaps it should have been drunk a while ago? 14.5/20

The 1989 Pichon Baron was the complete opposite, with masses of fruit concentration and ripeness, showing blackberry preserve, cassis, mocha, and tobacco notes. On the palate, it was mouthcoating, with firm but ripe tannin fully integrated into the texture of the wine.  Lingering finish. Still evolving, this bottle was so different, so much more vigorous, chewy and substantial than the other bottles from the same case - the other bottles showed much more of the cedar and forest floor character.   Drinking now but will be a long while before it reaches peak....I would give it another 15+ years before peak would be reached. 18/20

We started the evening with a 2000 Pavillon Blanc du Chateau Margaux. I felt that the wine was rather reticent on this occasion....showing some nutty, honey, acacia, quince and spicy character, but the palate seemed a little one-dimensional, not really engaging us. There was some zingy acidity, but not in abundance. The wine worked rather well with the duck rice, I thought.   It would be interesting to see how and if this vintage would come out of this disinterested phase to blossom into something much more exciting. 15.5/20

First time I went to Nino's Cozinha (Queen's Road East, Wanchai, HK)....I thought the duck rice was a very good dish here - hearty and savoury, as was the suckling pig.....under the crispy skin, the meat was firmer than the version at Olé, that I had recently.  The African chicken was also not to be missed - firey and spicy (not sure if it's authentic but I loved the spice!).  We didn't get the mussels but the clams were just cooked, served in a delicately flavoured broth, with potatoes - yummy!  Highly recommended! Perhaps next time, we'll try some Portuguese wine with it....Vinho Verde and some toothsome and elegantly structured Douro red!

La Rioja Alta Dinner in HK

2011-11-11T21:22:00.001+08:00

The audience regaled by Daniel Pecina Lopez
with his introductory talk on Rioja, as a cultural and historic region.

11 Nov 2011: Last night, I attended a wine dinner featuring the wines of La Rioja Alta at Olé Spanish Restaurant in Hong Kong. Rioja Alta is one of 3 regions of Rioja, on the south side of the River Ebro. From its start in 1890, the winery achieved a number of milestones and is now established in 3 different regions: 2 wineries in Rioja, 1 in Rias Baixas and 1 in Ribera del Duero, all with different climates. The evening began with an introduction on some cultural and historic aspects of Rioja, by special guests from the Spanish Trade Commission.

Some of the wines from La Rioja Alta

Despite the modern approaches adopted by various wineries in Rioja, La Rioja Alta has stuck to its traditional winemaking, while making room for some technical advances where appropriate. The Rioja Alta area is still close enough to the Atlantic Ocean to receive a bit of the maritime influence and is well sheltered by the Cantabrian mountains. It was the 1982 Gran Reserva 890 that had all of us unianimously voting it as the wine of the evening. It was the epitome of finesse and elegance, with the complex bouquet of pot pourri, spice, animal, tobacco, savoury, leather with mineral nuances. Silky texture, showing no signs of fatigue at all, instead plenty of vigour and freshness even at almost 30 years old. The resemblance to Burgundy was not lost on the keen wine lovers amongst us. Drinking now at peak and with a long way to go. This blend apparently had some Mazuelo added to it. The more recent vintages would have a blend of 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano. Gran Reserva 890 is really only made in the best years, going through 6 years in cask and 6 years in bottle. The 1995 vintage, which was an excellent one particularly noted for the excellent acidity, structure and aromatic intensity and complexity, was still quite angular and would definitely benefit from quite a few more years in bottle to become better integrated and harmonised. The 1994 vintage was interestingly much more evolved (more of the leather and savoury character) than the 1995 vintage on this occasion. I was convinced that the 1995 would eventually develop to be similar to the 1982 vintage. Both would have a score of 18/20 from me.

Guests busily tucking into the delicious food and wine!

Going backwards, we had 2 vintages of Gran Reserva 904 (1904 being the year La Rioja Alta merged with Bodega Ardanza): 1998 and 1995. 1995 was a clear winner here, being the more perfect vintage and having benefitted from the extra ageing in bottle. Gran Reserva 904 is made from the same blend of 90% Tempranillo and 10% Graciano, but with only 4 years in cask and 4 years in bottle.

Together with this flight, we had the 2001 Viña Ardanza Reserva Especial. This wine is made from 80% Tempranillo and 20% Garnacha. The result of 3 years in American oak has this wine showing a complex bouquet of strawberry, incense, vanilla and smoke. Velvety textured, with plenty of freshness and a lovely finish. Drinking well now, with an hour of decanting, and will continue to drink well for the next 8 - 10 years. This wine is only made as Reserva Especial in the very best vintages and the last time it was made was 1973 and before that 1964.

The first 2 reds were both from the Ribera del Duero: 2006 Aster Crianza and 2004 Aster Reserva. The Crianza was simply delicious, already mouth-filling with 15 - 20 months in oak (mix of French and Amercian, new and old), and rather quaffable with a very approachable nose and palate of wild berries, smoke, chocolate and liquorice. Excellent acidity from this region of extreme day and night temperatures (as much as 20 degrees Celsius diurnal range) and very good sun exposure to ensure phenolic ripeness, while retaining acidity, deepening colour and enhancing aromatic complexity. The 2004 Aster Reserva showed slightly more astringent tannin and perhaps it should have been paired with beef casserole or roast lamb, instead of red pepper stuffed with salt cod, which received a big thumbs up by our Spanish friend as rather authentic!

We began the evening with the 2010 Albariño from Lagar de Cervero. With the help of ageing on fine lees and partial malolactic fermentation, the wine showed a slight creamy texture, with racy acidity and a refreshing nose of grapefruit, lime peel, mineral and yeast. Slight bitter almond on the finish. Lovely as aperitif or with the yummy garlic prawns!

Exquisite seafood paella being served

The restaurant did a great job with the food - the signature Seafood paella, simply grilled baby lamb rack and the succulent suckling pig were all well accompanied by the delicous wines. The only problem was a lack of wine glasses, which caused some chaos and challenge to the pouring, especially with so many different wines and vintages!

Well, perhaps this little bit of chaos just kept everyone on their toes and stayed interested till the very end!!

I have tasted so much Spanish wine recently, at both the HK Wine and Spirits Fair and also at the Winefuture Conference in HK that I was left with no doubt about the future of Spanish wines. There is some way to go and every wine dinner like this one just helps Spanish wines edge forward one step further towards their being recognised as a great wine country setting benchmarks for fabulous indigenous grape varieties such as Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Cariñena and not forgetting the white grapes of Albariño, Verdejo, Viura, Xarel-lo, Parellada and Malvasia. All these grape varieties are increasingly associated with various world class wines!  The future is so very exciting!!!

The 1959 bottles that restored my faith in old burgundies!

2011-11-06T14:06:00.001+08:00

2 Nov 2011: Dinner at Caprice, Four Seasons, HK. The restaurant team of staff did a fantastic job with the food and service and the cheese trolley was certainly not to be missed (they even had Citeaux, one of my favourite cheeses from Burgundy, from the tiny production of just 500 cows and rarely available outside of France). I was a bit nervous about the wines, given how many times we had poured over-the-hill or madeirised burgundies down the sink!  This evening, for a change, we were 'very pleasantly' bowled over by all of them! What a revelation! (To top it up, George presented us with a glass each of both 1998 and the just-launched Krug Clos du Mesnil!)

1992 Chevalier Montrachet, Leflaive: Bright golden colour. On the nose, acacia, ripe pear, quince, butterscotch, hazelnuts, honey, hints of white chocolate, with plenty of liquorice and mineral nuances on the palate. Very ripe, very seductive, round and fleshy, richly mouthcoating, but still showing sufficent acidity to keep it from being flabby or excessively rich. Loved the very minerally, spicy and honeyed finish....it went on for almost a minute! Drink now and over next 6 - 8 years.  17.5/20

1959 Chambertin, The Wine Society: Medium garnet colour. Mature bouquet of red cherry, violet, hoi sin sauce, leather and savoury, further developing in the glass to take on more earthy, sous-bois and incense-like character. Muscular, still showing well the power and concentration, a little austere still. Still tasted very fresh and remarkably lively for its age.  Drink now and for the next 5 - 6 years. 17/20

1959 Vosne-Romanee La Grande Rue

1959 La Grande Rue, Lamarche: Pale garnet colour. A mesmerizingly enchanting and complex perfume of dried rose petals, liquorice, coffee (mocha), toasty, spicy, and minerally.Hint of caramel on the extremely long finish. Silky textured and all elements in total harmony. A very fine expression of the ethereal qualities of Vosne-Romanee, Burgundian finesse, perfume, subtle power and concentration, complexity, and elegance at its apogee. Though a monopole of the Lamarche family covering only 1.65 hectare in area, La Grande Rue only became the 31st Grand Cru of the Cote d'Or in 1992, so on this label, it was still a village level (Vosne-Romanee) appellation. We enjoyed this over 2 hours and it did not show any signs of deterioration. A remarkable effort! Drink now and for next 8 - 10 years. 18.5/20

And look at the corks for the two 1959 bottles......how they held so well despite the age!

Vertical Tasting of Sena vs Bordeaux First Growths

2011-10-30T22:25:00.000+08:00

Eduardo Chadwick presenting Seña

28 Oct 2011: I was one of the 50 or so fortunate few who were invited to this vertical tasting of Seña wines in HK. This extremely well-marketed event also served to achieve a second purpose of comparing Seña wines with the same vintages of Bordeaux first growths. The tasting took place at the Peninsula Hotel and everything worked like clockwork as timekeeping of this tasting was perfectly executed, bravo to the staff at Asian Palate and the Peninsula Hotel.

A room full of anxious tasters

We started with a presentation of Seña by Eduardo Chadwick and Jeannie Cho Lee MW. Eduardo talked passionately and eloquently about how the joint venture with Bob Mondavi started, how both families followed the vision with fervour and conviction to create the first iconic wine for Chile, and how he remembered his late mentor and JV partner with much fondness.  The vineyards of Viña Seña are planted along the contours of a rain-sheltered hillside slope in the Aconcagua Valley. Much research worked into landscaping and ecology. Soil is a mix of gravel and loam. The blend is dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon, and supported by Carmenère (for its savoury and spicy complexity when full ripeness is achieved), Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot (the latter for floral and spicy nuances).  Since 2005, the vineyards has been farmed 100% biodynamically. Eduardo believes this is the only way they could produce a great wine true to its terroir.
  All the bottles were opened at the same time, poured at the same time, ie all treated equally.  All the wines were tasted blind. So it was with much anticipation, that all of us eagerly waited for the verdict to be declared by Jeannie!  The top 5 places went to: 2008 Seña, 2001 Seña, 1995 Seña, 2007 Seña and 1997 Seña. The laggers were all Bordeaux first growths.

The overall high ratings (a number of scores above 95) given by the HK group from this vertical tasting of Seña across the vintages of 1995, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2007 and 2008 were testament to the fruit of the years of hardwork, driven by passion and conviction, and enhanced by deep knowledge of the terroir and skilful winemaking of two families (now only one).

To prove that Seña wines were not only impressive on their own, they could even stand shoulder to shoulder (or tower over, in some of these cases) the best of Bordeaux, the 1995 vintage was compared with the 1995 Mouton Rothschild (RP 95), the 2001 vintage with 2001 Margaux (RP 93), 2005 with 2005 Latour (RP 96) and 2007 with 2007 Lafite (RP 94).  While 2007 might not have been one of the best vintages for Bordeaux, the other vintages, especially 2005, have all been labelled with descriptors such as power, concentration, intensity, seductive, charming, elegant, etc.  The 2005 Latour should be a worthy match, with its high Parker rating of 96, but the wine had clearly gone ino its shell....aromatics still prominent, but the palate was a little disappointing. The signs of power, intensity and concentration were absent. Aromatically, the 2001 Margaux and the 2007 Lafite were very attractive, very Bordeaux, but on the palate, both did not quite measure up to the intensity, concentration and length of the Seña wines. Experience would say that these wines, though currently in their subdued state, all probably would need another 10 - 15 years, or longer, to realise the best part of their potential (or to live up to their ratings).

Seña 2008

My top 2 scores went to the 1995 and 1997 vintages of Seña (and my third went to the 2008 vintage). While the Chilean wines demonstrated a lot of power, concentration and intensity in youth, all the time underlined with elegance, I was much more impressed by the complexity of cedar, savoury, tobacco and sweet mocha notes, for the two older vintages with around 15 years of bottle age. I felt that they were drinking near peak, but nowhere near the end of their drinking window, with at least another 6 - 8+ years to go! If there were one thing I took home with me, it was the knowledge that the best Chilean wines were capable of ageing (perhaps not quite like the best of Bordeaux, but a horizon of 20+ years would not be unreasonable). Another thought might be that top Chilean wines would make very worthy components of a wine collection, as they can fill the drinking gaps, while waiting for the Bordeaux wines to emerge from the typical difficult and reticent stage.

Jeannie Cho Lee MW announcig the tasting results

No question a very powerful marketing ploy to compare the wines with the best of Bordeaux! The impact of the results was immediate! We were all surprised by our ratings! I can't help thinking that it might be more fair and interesting to compare the Seña wines with the best of Bordeaux-blends outside of the Bordeaux region (such as Argentina, Chile, California, Tuscan Bordeaux-Blend, etc), that would have similar development/ageing profiles......

Definitely, a very educational experience and I am really glad that I had the opportunity to be a part of this!

1982 and 1985 La Conseillante

2011-10-30T14:15:00.001+08:00

28 Oct 2011: Casual gathering with a few friends at home. We thought it would be fun to try side by side 2 magnums of La Conseillante - 1982 and 1985, together with a 1996 Pol Roger Extra Cuvée de Réserve Chardonnay, 1999 Leflaive Puligny Montrachet Les Pucelles and a 2007 Climens to round off the evening.....perhaps not so casual after all!

1996 Pol Roger Extra Cuvée de Réserve Chardonnay: Bright golden. Mature bouquet of acacia, honey, pear tart (the one with lots of marzipan), toast, nougat and spices (cardamon and ginger). The rich intensity of the flavours and the gorgeously creamy mousse skilfully bolstered by vibrant acidity. Very persistent length. Drink now and for the next 10 - 15 years. 17.5/20

1999 Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles: Lemony colour, bright but not deep. The wine does not seem to have fallen on the ill fate of premature oxidation - what a relief! Hints of floral, beeswax, apricot, and tons of minerality on the nose, after the initial reductive beginning. On the palate, the wine seemed more reserved and slightly taut, and the flavours less intense - perhaps it could do with a bit more time to flesh out and develop further complexity? Firm acidity, lengthy finish. No need to drink this in a hurry but definitely drinking well now. Drink now to 2020. 17/20

1982 La Conseillante (magnum): Decanted for 2 hours. It was impossible not to be impressed by the rich concentration and intensity of this wine. On the palate, the fully integrated tannin was completely melted into a body could only be described as voluptuous. The mouthcoating texture took the sweet flavours of blackberry, tobacco, leather, liquorice, and sweet cocoa round the palate, and left you with a lingering memory of harmony and power. Drink now to 2025+. 18.5/20

1985 La Conseillante (magnum): Decanted for 2 hours. An altogether different style, silky rather than velvety, less concentrated, but rather appreciated for its fine detail and elegance. A nose of raspberry and redcurrant, star anise, earthy and tobacco. Much more acidity than the 1982 vintage, rendering it a cleaner and fresher palate. A gorgeous wine, with a lot of character and potential to develop further. Drink now to 2020+. 18/20

See if you can spot at least 6 differences between the two labels!

2007 Climens: Simply gorgeous, vibrant and mouthfilling and extremely well-balanced with perfectly pitched acidity. Apricot, marmalade, floral, honey and some refreshing citrus character. Finish went on and on. This is drinking now and will continue to evolve over next 30+ years! 18.5+/20

The Misunderstood 1961 Lafite Rothschild

2011-10-30T13:35:00.001+08:00

29 Oct 2011: End of (yet again) another punishing week, we decided to reward ourselves with a quiet supper at home over a bottle of 1961 Lafite Rothschild. Deep ruby-garnet hue. Tasting it about half an hour after opening, there was an unmistakable Pauillac nose but there was also a whiff of something not entirely pleasant. On the palate, there was little fruit, with plenty of acidity and a drying finish. A little disappointing, even for this often misunderstood wine (quite a few bottle variations). So we waited......3 hours later (while we were enjoying a classic interpretation of 'War & Peace' with Audrey Hepburn, Henry Fonda and Mel Ferrer), it finally came alive in the glass! In the background, there was a strong display of blackberry, blueberry and fragrant dried rose petals, but dominated by cedar, lead pencil and nuances of liquorice and cloves. Aromatically enchanting, within an elegantly structured framework of high-ish acidity and firm but not intrusive tannin. Extremely long finish. Notwithstanding the bottle variations with this wine, given this fine example, I would predict it still drinking well in 10+ years to come. 17.5/20 (Richard scored it 18.5/20)

2001 Volnay Clos des Ducs, Marquis d'Angerville

2011-10-24T10:04:00.000+08:00

Richard's version of beef
braised in red wine

24 Oct 2011: Richard made a most delicious beef braised in red wine......based on a recipe by Guy Savoy, with a slight modification from cooking on the stove to cooking in a mild oven.......initially 150 deg C and then 120 deg C for about 2 hours. We opened a half bottle of 2001 Volnay Clos des Ducs, Marquis d'Angerville. Decanted for about an hour. A rather rustic (or 'stinky'!!) bouquet of horse saddle and farmyard hay giving way to red fruit, dried rose petals and mineral notes. Silky texture, with just a little bit of edgy tannin still to be worked out and nicely bolstered by fresh acidity. Great with our beef in red wine! The wine, a little subdued at the beginning, came alive after a short while in the glass, re-energised to flaunt its proper pedigree. Classy Volnay - understated elegance, silky texture and a feminine interpretation, rather like a ballerina dancing across your palate. For this half bottle format, I would recommend drinking now and for next 2 - 3 years. 16.5/20

Greek White from the vineyards of Kinsterna, Peloponnese

2011-10-24T09:21:00.001+08:00

24 Oct 2011: Fiona presented me with this stylishly designed bottle of white wine that she had brought back from the Kinsterna Hotel where she stayed this summer. Kinsterna, named after the ancient cistern on a site that was believed to be the former home of an Ottoman judge, is located in Monemvasia at the southeastern tip of the Peloponnese, Greece. Apart from the cistern, an ancient olive press and grape press found on the hotel site were also of archaeological interest. It was very sweet of Fiona to bring it back for me as she does not drink alcohol herself. After a little bit of research (as the writing on the bottle was all in Greek), I worked out/guessed that the wine was made in the vineyards of the hotel, from the grape varieties of Kydonitsa and Monemvasia, both locally grown in the Peloponnese.

Kydonitsa was widely grown in ancient Byzantine times, but viticulture was forbidden by the Ottomans during their rule of Greece from the late 15th Century to early 19th Century.  This grape was recently rediscovered in ancient vineyards and revived. Typical nose for Kydonitsa includes quince, pear and lemon.

Monemvasia (Malvasia) was once a highly popular wine in the early 13th Century, highly prized for its quality and character, often supplied to imperial dining at Constantinople. Production spread further afield, as far as Crete where local winemakers would mix with indigenous varieties, causing much confusion to the style and quality of the wine. Recent research has resulted in the re-cultivation of original Monemvasian clones. A late-ish ripener, typically harvested a couple of weeks after Kydonitsa. Extreme care must be taken during vinification to prevent premature oxidation of the must. Extended fermentation at low temperatures. Typical Malvasia would show low acidity and high alcoholic level, with character of apricot, pear, citrus, honey and floral.

We enjoyed this wine over some Kalamata olives and a platter of cheese.  Straw colour.  A very attractive nose of lemon, pear, quince, beeswax and frangipane. Medium body, showing some viscosity, just balanced by acidity. Refreshing, with some floral and fruit complexity, and well-managed alcohol level (13% abv), the medium length accompanied by a bitter almond aftertaste. A wine best enjoyed in its youth, within the first 2 years. Very good effort, and excellent accompaniment to local savoury and seafood dishes.

Thank you very much, Fiona! What a great discovery!

1988 Cote Rotie La Turque, Guigal

2011-10-17T19:51:00.001+08:00

16 Oct 2011: Ruby-garnet. A very engaging perfume of blackberry, plum, mocha, leather, tobacco, camphor, hoi sin sauce, gamey and savoury, if marred by a whiff of volatility. On the palate, the volatile acidity was a little more evident causing a slight off-balance to the taste and finish. However, there was still more than a mere remnant of the majestic wine that merited the 100-point rating. Behind the silky texture and mesmerizing perfume, it wasnn't too hard to find a vestige of the density, concentration and power that were once there. Hugely disappointed, as I was so looking forward to trying this wine and it would have made the perfect accompaniment to Richard's slow-roasted shoulder of Welsh lamb and caramelised turnips! Hopefully, this was just one slightly out-of-condition bottle.......while well-preserved bottles would still have some drinking window left! 17/20

Côte Rôtie La Turque is made largely with Syrah grapes from the south-facing Côte Brune with some addition of Viognier (around 93% Syrah and 7% Viognier). The finesse and the strength of the wine is typically attributed to the mix of shale and iron oxide enriched clay soils on these sun-exposed slopes. The wine would spend 42 months in new oak before release.

1995 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone Riserva

2011-10-16T17:39:00.000+08:00

16 Oct 2011: Earlier this month, we were treated to a very special dinner, where a double-magnum (3-litre) of 1995 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva was served - such a treat! (I think the wine was decanted a couple of hours before it was served.) This was a wine of heroic proportions in every aspect: concentration and quality of fruit, intensity and complexity of aromas and flavours, density and weight on the palate, the lingering finish that would last as long as the time it took for the next sip. Aromatically, the complex bouquet showed dark chocolate, blackberry compote, dried fruit and raisins, leather, liquorice, toffee, pungent tobacco and slightly medicinal. The finish went on and on, with a lingering sweet-bitter taste. A sensational wine, that although drinking now, I suspect would be even more impressive in 8 - 10 years' time.

We also had on the same evening a 2001 Gaia & Rey Chardonnay, which impressed by its freshness balancing a very rich, rounded character. White peach, herbal, slightly spicy, with minerality. Quite rich and viscous, rather high in alcohol.....I personally found the alcohol level a little disturbing. Drink now and for next 3 - 4 year (?).

The 2001 Barolo Riserva Gran Bussia, Poderi Aldo Conterno delighted us with its bright red cherry fruit, earthy/minerally and rose petal pot pourri notes. Not a blockbuster wine, but entirely refreshing and focused, very approachable and drinking beautifully now. Drink now and for next 4 - 5 years.

The 2001 Tua Rita Syrah in magnum reminded me of a Barossa Shiraz. Blackberry jam, chocolate, spicy and quite a bit of sweet coconut and vanilla. Big fruit, velvety texture, spicy finish. Drink now and for next 4 -5 years.

It was a very special evening and a big thank you to our generous hosts for sharing with us the 1995 Quintarelli which was definitely a highlight and an eye-opener for me!

Corton Charlemagne and Romanee Saint Vivant

2011-10-16T14:38:00.002+08:00

15 Oct 2011: Casual supper at home with a few friends. Rummaging through the cellar at home, we thought we would do a horizontal of 2000 Corton Charlemagne and a vertical of Romanée Saint Vivant (by different winemakers). Might I just begin by saying how disappointing it was to realise that the probability of finding a bottle that wasn't out of of condition, was less than 50%, more like 2 out of 5! Two bottles by Faiveley were affected by cork taint and the bottle by Bruno Clair was madeirised. Of the two that were ok, I liked the de la Vougeraie, just a touch more than the Simon Bize.

2000 Corton-Charlemagne, de La Vougeraie: the wine needed a little time to open up to reveal its green apple, citrus, mineral nose, with a hint of dried blossoms and faint toasty character. Pure and precise, lovely minerality, mid-weight, nicely rounded with mouth-coating texture, but not fatty.  Nice stylish finish. 16.5/20

2000 Corton-Charlemagne, Simon Bize: Much tighter and racier than the Vougeraie's version, showing much more steely character, overlaid with citrus and green apple. Tasting a little mean and austere still, but nicely structured with the light-handed use of oak and very minerally. Persistent finish.  This wine should benefit from further cellaring. 16/20

Then we had a vertical of Romanée-Saint-Vivants (by different winemakers):
1985 Romanée-Saint-Vivant, Alain Hudelot-Noëllat: Beautiful mature bouquet of savoury, mushroom, violet. Silky texture, with just enough acidity and softened tannin holding up the structure and freshness. Tasting now, it's a beauty, classy and reminded us of what Romanée-Saint-Vivant was about: silky elegance, classy beauty, understated power (relative to Richebourg), with a mesmerizingly perfumed bouquet. This 1985 beauty in its state now totally epitomised this description. Lovely sweet and lingering finish, a little drying. I would drink this wine now and for next 2 - 3 years to enjoy at peak. 17.5/20

1989 Romanée-Saint-Vivant, Michel Voarick (in magnum): a little funky and gamey, featuring Asian spice and some floral character, and a faint bretty note. Well-made, still tasting fresh, but did not quite have the poise, elegance, class nor bouquet to endear us. A touch simple. Drink now. 15.5/20

2000 Romanée-Saint-Vivant, de l'Arlot: An attractive nose of black fruit and spice, some floral. On the palate, lacks the body, intensity or complexity of the 2002 Confuron RSV. Velvety-textured, demure and well-crafted, but perhaps a little simple and lacking in character. Drink now and for next 5 - 6 years. 16/20

2002 Romanée-Saint Vivant, Jean-Jacques Confuron: Aromatically very enticing and powerful: spicy, floral and just beginning to show animal character. Packed with ripe pinot fruit and fine and beautifully integrated tannin, giving the wine a velvety texture and a weighty palate. Full of balanced richness, purity, elegance and class. Drink now and for next 10+ years. Eric said it would be like the 1985 Hudelot-Noellat RSV then! 17.5/20

We actually preceded these RSV's with a bottle of 1989 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape, which was simply fabulous: sweet spicy black cherry fruit, tobacco, leather, and liquorice. Lovely concentrated fruit, showing intensity, complexity, harmony and a very long finish.   Drink now and for the next 10+ years!  18/20 (Easily the red of the evening, thank you Eric!)

Apart from the 1989 Beaucastel which was tasted blind and served by Eric, all the other bottles were plonked on the table and self-serviced. Perhaps thinking that the 1985 should be the superior wine of the pair from the 80's and the 2002 the superior of the pair from the last decade, I tasted in this order: 1985, 1989, 2002, 2000. As a result, my scoring could have been a little unfair to the 1989 and 2000. I could only justify by saying that the superior wines rather set the benchmark for what great burgundies (indeed a Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru) could achieve, in terms of complexity, concentration, density and in the case of the 1985 the ageing potential (a very well-preserved 26-year-old!). I thought all the wines demonstrated very well the vintage characteristics and the better wines this evening were classic examples of the vineyard characteristics. I love these rather educational evenings!

1973 Robert Ampeau Meursault Perrrieres

2011-10-02T22:49:00.000+08:00

1 Oct 2011: Paul and Julie hosted a most delicious dinner at their home. We started with a 2000 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne. Ripe apple, citrus, white blossom, some toasty note, and with a taut minerality. Precise, pure and balanced. Mid-weight, creamy mousse, and a very long finish. Still very youthful but drinking very well now...Perfect aperitif!

Paul very meticulously arranged an interesting tasting of red and white for us.  First up, side by side two wines by Michel Niellon, 2004 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Chaumées 'Clos de La Truffière' and 2004 Chassagne-Montrachet Les Champs Gain.   Apparently the first bottle of Les Chaumées was madeirised. While waiting for us to arrive (so sorry, Paul and Julie), the second bottle had already taken on some weight in the glass, showing a lovely rounded character, a complex bouqet of ripe peach, nutty, floral, lime and smokey, and firm acidity. Whereas the Champs Gain (mid slope) was not so attractive by the time I got to it - it seemed a little out of condition. I didn't get the typical broad and plump character with this wine. Normally the Chaumées (higher up the slope and near to Saint Aubin) would be the more delicate and racy one....

Then two bottles of 2008 Vosne-Romanée Malconsorts, one by Dujac and the other Sylvain Cathiard. We had them semi-blindtasted. From one decanter, the bouquet was bright fruit of raspberry and redcurrant, herbal and spicy, with some earthy character, and slowly emerging some lovely floral character. Excellent backbone of vibrant acidity. Very stylish and plenty of freshness, poise and purity. The firm but fine tannin giving the wine an excellent texture.  Lovely mid palate and long finish. From the other decanter, the wine seemed a little more evolved, revealing some warm scents of undergrowth and truffle, underneath the red cherry and Asian spicy notes. Nicely perfumed. Very harmonious.  Perhaps slightly more rustic in style? Medium weight and plenty of acidity and firm ripe tannin to help it age gracefully.  Both benefitted from decanting time. Probably try again in 3 - 4 years time to let the various elements? I am still debating with Richard which was which.....one of us definitely switched our glasses the wrong way round!

The 1978 Leroy Vosne-Romanée was practically pronouned 'dead on arrival'.  A garnet-brown colour did not bode well and very soon, signs of madeirisation became very evident. Lovely Sercial nose.

The 1990 Seghesio Vigneto La Villa was an interesting discovery.  Big and muscular, from the Monforte commune. Spicy, mushroom, smokey and leather.  I decided to give it more time to develop and settle down. Alas, I got rather captivated by the next wine.

The wine of the evening for me was the 1973 Robert Ampeau Meursault Perrières.  Deep golden colour. Gorgeous nose of ripe pear, apricot, honeysuckle, white chocolate, butterscotch, macadamia, with smokey and spicy nuances.  The minerality was still very much evident. Totally harmonious and integrated, flaunting extremely vibrant acidity, in an age-defying demonstration.  The finish went on for a very long time, with a spicy kick at the end.  Truly impressive! I could have just drunk this all night, on its own or even better with some Epoisses and Maroilles! Yummy! This was our last bottle but for those who still have some, there is no hurry to drink it.....it will hold up quite well for a few years at this peak condition! I would score this wine 19/20!

I must mention Paul's "70-garlic cloves" gigot d'agneau.....served with Julie's mashed cauliflower and a zesty quinoa salad.....fabulous dish and it did its job remarkably accompanying the wines of the evening! Thank you Paul and Julie!

Some English Wines

2011-10-01T17:00:00.000+08:00

1 Oct 2011: Tried some English wines recently......tasting better than just 'interesting'!

2006 Gusbourne Brut Reserve: Newcomer in this competitve space from Appledore, Kent. 46% Chardonnay, 41% Pinot Noir and 13% Pinot Meunier from gentle south-facing slopes on soils of clay and sandy loam, only 6 miles from the Kentish coast. Deep straw colour. Ripe apple, brioche, honey, nutty, and some spicy note. Fine bubbles, creamy and lively mousse. Very well-made and well-developed. Good finish. 16.5/20

2010 Chapel Down Bacchus: Also from Kent. Bacchus is the British Sauvignon Blanc. German crossing, adapted well to the British climate and soils, ripens well and does not suffer from its inherent lack of acidity when grown in the UK (where most grapes have too much acidity!). Refreshing, lively and rather quaffable. A great aperitif on a hot English summer day! Citrus, herbal and chalky. 14.5/20

2010: Pheasants Ridge Bacchus Dry: From Hambleden, Henley-on-Thames. Thought this had a slight edge over the Chapel Down....slightly more complex, with something reminiscent of elderflower, on top of the citrus, herbal and chalky character. A bit more body as well. Lovely acidity. Excellent with a plate of salted almonds or a few English oysters! 15/20

I've still got a few more to try! Will report again!

1999 Leflaive Puligny Montrachet Les Pucelles

2011-10-01T16:19:00.001+08:00

29 Sep 2011: Bright golden hue. A ripe and mature bouquet of dried apricots, honeysuckle, roasted macadamia, butterscotch, peanut brittle and intensely smokey, with just a hint of that ginger-like spicy note. Rather weighty, with a creamy texture, that is finely balanced by firm acidity. Lengthy finish. Offers much more than a premier cru....superb quality and elegantly presented. Rather evolved now, recommend drinking within next 8 - 10 years to enjoy this wine at its peak (if kept well). 17/20

Palmer Dinner

2011-10-01T14:55:00.002+08:00

30 Sep 2011: Last night, we attended the Château Palmer dinner at the Conrad Hotel organised by the Commanderie de Bordeaux HK Chapter. It was very encouraging to see a bulgingly full house attendance at this dinner, to the point that the air conditioning in the room could not quite cope with the amount of carbon dioxide and body heat generated by the enthusiastic Palmer lovers and the doors had to be left wide open to let in fresh air.

First wine was the Alter Ego 2006, which showed plenty of scrummy black cherry fruit, and spicy notes of liquorice. After a short while in the glass, a lovely floral perfume started to emerge. Very well-balanced and tasting rather fresh. Good finish. We were told later that in this vintage, rather unusually some Petit Verdot had been included in the blend for the Alter Ego. The name says it all - it is not exactly a second wine, but a wine with its own character and sense of being. Very approachable. An excellent effort. Drink now and will develop further over next 3 - 4 years. (Drinking window recommended by the château around 10+ years.) 15.5/20

Then we had 4 vintages of the grand vin: 2004, 1998, 1996 and 1986. (Unfortunately, our 1986 was mildly corked.) 2004 showed a very complex and opulent wine, despite the challenges of the vintage. 47% Merlot, 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot. It showed concentration and elegance. Sweet ripe blackberries, violet, truffle, and spices. Great texture. Already delicious now. Enjoy over next 15+ years. 17.5+/20

I found the 1998 rather unBordeaux like, a bit more tar and liquorice, chocolatey, with plenty of rich black fruit. The Merlot did very well in 1998 and there was a significant portion in this blend. I found it sumptuous but lacked the elegance that I expected from a Margaux (appellation). Drink now and for next 15+ years. 16+/20

The 1996 took us back to a more classic and reserved cool climate style (more Cabernet Sauvignon with some Cabernet Franc: 40% Merlot, 55% Cabernet Franc, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot). Now with 15 years of age behind it, it's now taken on complexities of tobacco, truffle and cedar, behind the sweet fruit entry. Elegantly textured, well-integrated tannin. Medium body. A wine to be enjoyed in a quiet place. Drink now and for the 10+ years. 17/20

The lamb was a very fitting match with the 1998 and 1996 Palmer, but I wasn't sure how the red pepper soup with clams fitted into the food and wine matching......

Half bottle problem

2011-09-25T19:19:00.002+08:00

25 Sep 2011: Today, we opened 4 half bottles of white burgundy and 3 were madeirised. The ones that were madeirised included 1 half bottle of 1999 Chassagne Montrachet Les Chaumées, Ramonet and 2 half bottles of 2002 Chablis Vaillons, William Fèvre. The only one that turned out ok was the 2004 Meursault Perrières, Bouchard. This has been more or less our average hit rate with half bottles of white burgundy: around 25% would turn out alright if we're lucky. We have been luckier with those from more recent vintages. Not sure if we can draw any conclusion from our experience, whether it's to do with the vintages in question....from 1995/6 to 2002 or it's to do with the bottle format or it's to do with particular winemakers.....I wonder if half bottles would be better off being sealed with screw caps to minimise the risk of premature oxidation??? We have so far not experienced this problem with Sauternes and Barsac, and half bottles are very popular formats with these two appellations. Something to do with the higher sugar and sulphur content?

In love with the Right Bank.....

2011-09-25T11:43:00.002+08:00

24 Sep 2011: Tasted quite a few Right Bank wines this week. Some of the more impressive ones that I tasted this week included:

2001 Gazin: Rich and complex nose of plum, chocolate, coffee, tobacco, and liquorice, showing some hints of leather and truffle. Very elegant and stylish, still lush, balanced by fresh acidity. Firm fine-textured tannin. A drying sensation on the long finish. Full of character. A very fine effort. Drinking well now and will continue to drink well for the next 6 - 8 years. (There was a bit of bottle variation - we had 2 bottles opened (from same case) and one tasted much leaner and less generous than the other bottle - almost as if they were from different vintages.) 16/20

2000 Troplong Mondot: Initially a little tight, needed time in the glass to open up to reveal its glorious bouquet of black and blue berries, plum, chocolate and eucalyptus. Velvety texture, a rich but fresh-tasting palate, with ripe well-integrated tannin giving an overall impression of a very harmonious and balanced wine with much depth and concentration of flavours and a very long finish. Still extremely youthful. Though drinking now, can benefit from some bottle age before trying again. A very long life ahead! Drink over next 15+ years. 18/20

2001 Troplong Mondot: Very deep ruby. An intense nose of cassis, blueberry, blackberrry, chocolate, espresso, cola and liquorice. Made in a big, bold and concentrated style, perhaps lacking the elegance and persistence of the 2000 vintage on the palate. Youthful and vivacious.  Drinking now and will benefit from a few more years in bottle before trying again. 17/20

1985 La Conseillante (magnum): Ruby-garnet. A captivating perfume of tobacco, truffle, cloves, mocha, cedar and violet. Velvety tannin and still tasting rather fresh and concentrated, with the hallmark seductively lush character of Pomerol.  Deliciously long and sweet (almost like caramel) finish.  A wine with plenty of sex appeal, that makes you yearn for more and more. Drinking now and for the next 5 - 6 years. 18.5/20

1982 Figeac: Rose petal, violet, cedar, dried blueberry, star anise, mint and eucalyptus. Harmonious and well-integrated. Medium bodied. Tasted still very fresh but a little delicate and lean on the palate....I would have preferred a bit more generosity to give it a slightly more substantial mouthfeel.  Today, I didn't like the somewhat (to me anyway) excessive cedar character on the nose and palate which will no doubt take on other complexities in the next 6 - 8 years. 16.5/20

The next 2 wines were enjoyed side by side and what a treat it was! Both decanted for 2 hours, while we enjoyed the lovely 1997 Salon that Patrick brought. Initially very tight and somewhat austere, the nose was mineral, floral, citrus and apple. The rounded character was evident but needed time to build up. The wine continued to develop after opening and 2 hours later, it flaunted all its richness and complexity which reminded me of a freshly baked pear tart, with a rich layer fo marzipan and the pear slices slightly burnt and caramelised. Absolutely delicious! 19/20
2000 Chapelle d'Ausone: Deep ruby. Graphite, blueberry, black cherry, violet and eucalyptus, some savoury and tobacco character coming through.  Purity of fruit, delicious and ripe, balanced, beautifully textured with fine but firm tannin.  Lengthy finish. A marvellous effort for a second wine sharing some of the qualities of the grand vin, though less concentrated. Drinking magnificently now and showing all the characteristics of an extremely well-made wine in its own right, pure, balanced, elegant and seductive. Drink now and for the next 8+ years. 17/20

2000 Ausone: A deeper hue than the Chapelle.  An altogether more dense and concentrated wine, very rich and powerful. Black fruit, blueberry, liquorice, violet, spicy and fragrant, and some very intense minerality/graphite character.   The wine took much longer to open up and 4 hours later, it finally revealed the unmistakable Bordeaux character. A very serious wine, totally reserved now, will benefit from further bottle age. Suggest trying this wine from 2014....and a very long life ahead. 19.5/20

Gimonnet Champagne Dinner at Rokkaku

2011-09-22T11:46:00.001+08:00

The most delicious salmon sushi!!

21 Sep 2011: Gimonnet, a grower champagne name from the Côtes des Blancs of the Champagne region, long admired over the generations for the finesse, purity, precision and consistency of their 100% chardonnay champagne. It was therefore very appropriate to have these qualities matched with the purity, precision and dedication to detail and quality of Japanese cuisine at the restaurant Rokkaku (Kwong Ming Street, near Star Street HK). Chef Wong did an amazing job turning out some extraordinary dishes of sashimi, sushi, tempura and robatayaki dishes that totally wooed the crowd, in particular the lightly seared salmon belly sushi, which received calls of 'encore' from a most enthusiastic audience! Fresh salmon roe just came into season and we were treated to it, served with some light radish shaving. Absolutely divine when paired with the champagne!

4 cuvées from the range of Gimonnet champagnes were tried and paired with the food (and with some very satisfactory results!):

Gimonnet Cuis 1er Cru Non-Vintage: as an aperitif and also to go with the amuse bouche of edamame, cold tomato salad and cod crisps, it tasted young, refreshing and lively, with some gentle notes of citrus, green apple and a hint of peach. Very expertly made (typically from a blend of 4 vintages), with just the right balance of freshness and roundness, and a great way to kick off the evening. 15.5/20

Gimonnet Gastronome 2006: a young vintage wine with around 50% contribution from the grand cru of Chouilly, less than 40% from Cuis, enriched by the addition of wine from some very old vines from Cramant. It's a great cuvée offering complexity and richness, while offering youthful freshness. It served very well accompanying the selection of sashimi and sushi that the chef prepared. Fine-textured bubbles and a creamy mousse giving this wine a very elegant definition. Lovely nose of white peach, pear, acacia, honey and underlined with a hint of toasty character. A very approachable 'coupe de champagne'! 16/20

Gimonnet Extra-Brut Oenophile 2004: A dry style non-dosée champage, crisp, complex and characterful, with a well-balanced richness. A very distinct mineral and savoury character dominates here, making it very stylish. Finish is long and very neat.....a very impressive wine! I thought this went so well with the salmon roe! 17/20

Gimonnet Fleuron 2005: A vintage champagne made only in the best years, with selections from the best vineyards that are most representative for the particular vintage, and with ageing on lees in excess of 4 years before disgorging. An absolute great equation for price and quality. Brioche, floral, pear, apple and mineral. Rounded texture, creamy mousse, perked up by the house-style acidity. A great effort and it had sufficient complexity and texture to be paired with the bacon-wrapped grilled oyster, grilled ox tongue and grilled chicken dishes! 17/20

We finished the evening with a warming bowl of udon in soup, which probably served well to soak up the alcohol and a touch of sweetness at the end (some Tokaji got sneaked in to round off the evening and it went down rather well too!)

2006 Clinet

2011-09-18T22:06:00.003+08:00

18 Sep 2011: Very deep colour. A masculine nose of plum, blackberry, black cherry, chocolate, liquorice and a hint of cedar. Fleshy, rich, robust structure bolstered by refreshing acidity, irm but not aggressive tannin, all framed in a medium body. Very enjoyable now, but will definitely benefit from further development in bottle over next 6 - 8 years, with a longer life ahead! 17/20

Napa Valley's Liquid Gold

2011-09-18T19:48:00.003+08:00

17 Sep 2011: Dinner chez Martin and Tayma. Martin cooked a sumptuous feast! We started with oysters and 1990 Krug. Toasty, brioche, grilled hazelnuts. Very mature. Drinking at peak now.

The delicious platter of lobster with marie-rose sauce, avocado and fresh crab meat, tomato with tarragon and salad was brilliantly accompanied by the2002 Batard Montrachet, Pernot. Lemon, quince, fig, almonds, honey and jasmine. Good acidity. Weighty, well-structured and balanced. Still very youthful, but already very enjoyable. Very high quality.

Main course was a very succulent and tender piece of beef, seared before slow-cooked in the oven for 9 minute, served with a rich truffled sauce (and bearnaise sauce). This was served with a 1982 Leoville Las Cases in magnum. Mature bouquet of violet, cloves, cinnamon, leather and tobacco. Silky, with a lengthy finish. Very more-ish but not as generous as we would have expected.

The 1983 Hermitage Chave slowly opened up to offer a bouquet of chocolate, cinnamon, spices and vanilla. I just love mature Syrah, somewhat exotic, with a romantic undertone! Drinking very well now, and for the next 6 - 8 years, I expect.

Still rather thirsty, we returned to Bordeaux with 1998 Haut Bailly. Very deep hued. Rather rich and concentrated, with a rounded character, showing ripe but well-textured tannins and good acidity. Plum, blackberry, liquorice and spicy oak. An under-valued estate that delivers on harmony and consistency.

Before wrapping up the evening, Martin introduced us to Dolce, a late harvest wine from Napa. It's made in the style of Sauternes, with a blend of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc, affected by noble rot. Harvest would take place over 6 weeks, and only picked by hand and carefully sorted. Fermentation in oak barrels is a very slow event, usually taking up to 6 months. Maturation in 100% new French oak, for up to 3 years. The final blend is decided during the 3rd year. I did not see the vintage for this Dolce, but it was full-bodied, balanced by mouthwatering acidity, with the unmistakable nose of dried apricot, orange peel, ripe peach and honey. Very easy to please with its intense fruitiness and nectar-like quality, but this wine could also benefit from additional bottle age to take on some tertiary complexity and maturity.

Thank you Martin and Tayma for a most delicious evening!

Mrs. Burghound and Friends' Hong Kong Paulée

2011-09-18T17:22:00.001+08:00

16 Sep 2011: I was rather annoyed with myself for arriving late at this much-anticipated event in Hong Kong - a special dinner (Paulée) with Erica Meadows aka Mrs. Burghound and other burgundy lovers! Not only for the reason that I completely missed Erica's speech, but also for the more important reason that I had missed the 1988 and 1990 Salon that were supposed to be served during cocktails! Luckily for me, the champagne that James and Melissa brought had not yet been opened - an Egly Ouriet (cannot remember the vintage!) which was absolutely delicious on its own, but even better with food, I could imagine!

Dinner took place at Amuse Bouche and Kent and his team did a fantastic job producing dish after dish of top quality fine cuisine and looking after the guests with first-rate professionalism. The dishes we had were:

Red tuna tartar with Katsubushi jelly, Oscietra caviar, wasabi soya dressing
Boston lobster wrapped in spinach with red wine sauce and seasonal vegetables
Roasted smoked duck foie gras with black pepper and turnip confit, fig and Port wine reduction
Sea urchin risotto with crustacean foam or Black truffles risotto with parmesan cheese flake, veal jus
Slow cooked free-range yellow chicken from Landes, morels, asparagus with Arbois yellow wine sauce or
Roasted milk-fed Sisteron lamb duet in wild mushrooms crusted with a natural jus, broad bean, tomato confit and boulgour
Truffled Brie de Meaux with quince paste, cherry jam
Crispy Granny Smith apple tart, vanilla ice cream

There was only one word to describe the culinary experience: perfection!

There were around 20 of us, I think, and everyone was supposed to bring 1 bottle of wine, true to the Paulée custom. There were however some deviations from the Paulée customs, whereby each bottle would be poured directly by the individual who brought it and there would be no changing of glasses.  At this HK version, the wine was mostly poured into our glasses by the waiting staff and our glasses were frequently refreshed.  I was pretty good at remembering the first few wines that were poured, but after a while, wine started appearing from different places and I was not quick enough to spot the label nor did I have enough time to ask what was being poured, that I had little idea what I was drinking most of the time!

Of the wines that I had memory of tasting, they were 1990 Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne, 1989 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet, 1990 Dujac Charmes Chambertin, 1990 Denis Bachelet Charmes Chambertin, 1997 Dominique Laurent Ruchotte Chambertin, 1971 Robert Arnoux Clos de Vougeot, 1995 Rousseau Gevrey Chambertin Clos St Jacques, 1995 Hubert Lignier Clos de La Roche and 1972 Volnay Caillerets, de la Pousse d'Or. My brief notes as follows:

1990 Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne seemed to have evolved very little since birth! It still tasted quite tight, giving away very little in the nose and the palate. The nose was distinctly citrus and mineral. The palate clearly needed time to develop and take on more weight and complexity. Sadly, there was no time for this development to be witnessed. Drink now and will conntinue to develop over the next 8 - 10+ years. 17.5/20

The 1989 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet was richly flamboyant, flaunting notes of grilled hazelnuts, brioche, toast, fig, acacia and nuances of creme caramel, a medium-full body, bolstered by very lively acidity, tasting so fresh and yet so enriching. A terrific wine and totally at the top of its game....Drink now and for next 10+ years. 19.5/20

The 1990 Dujac Charmes Chambertin presented a very endearing bouquet of red fruit, floral and sweet farmyard hay. Totally silky in texture, gently caressing one's palate, and with just the right amount of acidity to keep it fresh. A very fine example of Charmes Chambertin: charm, elegance and lots of finesse, with a very fine structure. A lengthy and sweet finish. This for me is drinking at peak now, and will continue to give perfect enjoyment for the next 5 - 6 years.  18/20

By comparison, the 1990 Denis Bachelet Charmes Chambertin showed a rather reductive nose and it did not quite live up to expectations.

There was plenty of good fruit in the still youthful and fresh tasting 1997 Dominique Laurent Ruchotte Chambertin, starting to show some savoury, animal character. Good acidity keeping the structure in place, with the tannin very much mellowed out. Lighter in style, but very representative of the vintage. Drink now and for the next 4 - 5 years. 16/20

The 1971 Robert Arnoux Clos de Vougeot was an absolute eye-opener. Absolutely delicious. Burgundy at its best! Velvety and lush, with beautiful tertiary character of tobacco, truffle, leather, rose petal pot pourri, with just a hint of cloves, all wrapped in a neatly structured frame, still with plenty of poise and dignity. Simply stunning. "A Point!" 19/20

The 1995 Rousseau Gevery Chamertin St Jacques was slightly more linear and austere than the 1996 version that we had about 4 weeks ago. The 1995 showed much more of the minerality, and less of the floral character that we found in the 1996. Drink now - could possibly benefit from a bit more time in bottle 16.5/20

The 1995 Hubert Lignier Clos de La Roche also showed quite a bit of austerity. I wish we had more time to understand and appreciate this wine! Must try again on another occasion.

The 1972 de la Pousse d'Or Volnay Caillerets was a difficult guess. It was served to us blind and we had to guess the vintage and the commune. Eric did very well. What I can remember now was a very elegant presentation, with soft red fruit, and still tasted very fresh, without any signs of intrusive acidity! If kept in the right cellaring conditions, this wine could easily have a life of another 10+ years! 17/20

What a fabulous evening and as if we hadn't had enough to drink, Richard ordered a magnum of 2007 Hospices de Beaune Beaune Cuvée Nicolas Rolin to refresh our palate - not a bad idea! A lovely example of this vintage, early-drinking, easy to like, beautiful red fruit and floral character, with a good background note of minerality. Not a wine for the long haul, but definitely a charmer in the first 8 years of its life!

It really was a treat to be invited to join this very exclusive dinner and I was so happy to have this opportunity to meet Erica, having corresponded with her on a couple of occasions.  Unquestionably, the perfect ambassador for "Burghound Corporation"! I look forward to the next Mrs. Burghound event in HK or in France!