Jan 2015: 1990 Les Ormes de Pez, 1990 Grand Puy Lacoste, 1989 Petit Village, 2003 Carruades Lafite, 2008 Louis Jadot Corton Charlemagne…

2012 Joseph Faiveley Bourgogne, popped and poured at Porta Porta, 03 Jan 2015. My first bottle of the New Year and it turned out to be a good drop. Living up to the promise of this excellent vintage, this bourgogne offers notes of white flowers, lime and sweet citrus with a delicate balance, light to medium bodied at first, gradually fleshing out over time with greater fullness and body with other notes of crème and nutty flavours creeping in, gaining in intensity and weight. It may gain some complexity with further cellaring. Discounted to SGD36, this is great value.

2012 Louis Jadot Macon Villages, popped and poured over dinner at home, 05 Jan 2015. I know I’m drinking a bottle of these every month but it’s really good, stuffed with an abundance of limey citrus and chalky minerality with just a dash of vanilla and crème, gaining an austere and slightly steely finish over time that seemed most appropriate for a young Burgundy and made easier by the relatively gentle 12.5% alcohol.

1990 Ch Les Ormes de Pez, decanted on-site over lunch at Prive Grill, 8 Jan 2015. Fully evolved, this wine is at its drinking peak, offering an attractive bouquet of kumquat and tangerine allied to darker characters on the palate, namely bramble, ripe wild berries, old leather and cedar, still displaying excellent structure and grip even though its tannins are perceived rather than felt. Already 25 years post-vintage, but not in danger of fading anytime soon. At SGD93 (current retail price), this is excellent.

2008 Louis Jadot Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru (courtesy of KW), popped and drunk over 90 minutes at Glen Arden, 10 Jan 2015. Surprisingly heavy in color for a young Grand Cru, offering lifted aromas of butterscotch and dominant notes of coconut, medium-full and generous in body on the palate with substantial fat, firm in minerality, promising a lot but yet to develop true secondary nuances.

2009 Maison Leroy Bourgogne rouge, aired in bottle for almost two hours prior to tasting at Glen Arden, 10 Jan 2015. The cork was entirely soaked through (I’m told this is usual for Leroy) but, thankfully, the wine is perfectly fine, slightly dark for a bourgogne but already developing secondary notes of cassis and red plums laced with sweet supple tannins, medium-bodied, soft but structured. Possesses an innate attractiveness that invites one to keep sipping the wine. Easily qualifies as village. Very good.

1997 Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva, decanted and drunk over two hours at Glen Arden, 10 Jan 2015. Lively with a good mix of red fruits and blueberries, dominated by the fragrance of camphor and red cherries on the palate, lively, medium-full, structured with unobtrusive tannins. Yet to peak, and could be even better. Excellent.

2004 Ch Latour-a-Pomerol, popped and drunk rather quickly at Glen Arden, 10 Jan 2015. I’ve been going through a case of this for the past two years, and this wine keeps growing in stature and sophistication on each occasion, already developing secondary nuances of cedar and overtones of savoury sweet meat, generously proportioned with ripe berries, supple and delicious. Excellent but now expensive.

2008 Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva, popped and poured at Jade Palace, 14 Jan 2015. Deep purple with an attractive but restrained bouquet of violets and ripe dark berries, while raspberries dominate on the palate with a hint of cedar and sweet meat, well structured and integrated but somewhat lean and dry, leaving behind a puckered mouthfeel. Could do with more fat in the mid-body.

2011 Schlossgut Diel Spatlese Riesling, popped and poured at Jade Palace, 17 Jan 2015. This wine carries exotic notes of tropical fruits, rock melons, apricot and nectarine, all caught up with a quiet but exciting intensity that perfectly balances against the substantial sweetness with some early complexity in the mid-body. Very lovely.

2003 Carruades de Lafite, a bottle that I have cellared since its release in 2006, decanted at Jade Palace, 17 Jan 2015 to celebrate Monster’s success. Displaying a deep dark garnet red, this wine carried notes of ripe dark berries and blackcurrants, better on the palate than nose, with a dash of cedar and raisins that tapered to a dominant graphite character towards its short finish, becoming quite seamless and fragrant over time. Compared with the venerated premier cru, this second wine is rather understated in structure, giving way to a softer, more slender and feminine character that’s entirely consistent with Lafite, just missing in outright opulence and voluptuousness although there’s certainly no lack in concentration of quality fruit. It’s a good drop but not worth the current price.

Billecart-Salmon Rose Brut NV, popped and poured at Bedrock Bar & Grill, 19 Jan 2015. This champagne offers generous notes of red apples and crisp citrus on the nose, broad and deep on the palate with toasty characters and almonds, finishing with a metallic twist that added a touch of sophistication. Acquired greater depth and finish over time, the fizz never getting in the way of the fruit. Probably the best example of rose from this maison.

1989 Ch Petit Village, a bottle given to me by SS Ngoi, decanted and drunk over a tomahawk steak at Bedrock Bar & Grill, 19 Jan 2015. Displaying an evolved red, this Pomerol stayed true to its roots with notes of soy and dark berries with a dash of tar, still quite excellent in concentration and depth, its acidity still holding out although it could not compare with the 1990 Grand-Puy-Lacoste in richness and opulence.

1990 Ch Grand-Puy-Lacoste (courtesy of John), decanted and drunk over a tomahawk steak at Bedrock Bar & Grill, 19 Jan 2015. My second bottle of this wine within six months, with consistent notes. Still displaying a deep garnet red, this outstanding wine overwhelmed the senses right from the first pour with effusive notes of glorious ripe dark berries and blackcurrants, oozing with wonderful voluptuousness and opulence and layered with tertiary notes of cedar, cinnamon, tea leaves and roast meat, still pretty full in body and depth, its fresh acidity suggesting that this wine is still far from reaching its peak. Wonderful to drink now, but do keep some for the next 25 years!

2005 Ch Bernadotte, poured from magnum over 3 hours at CGH Dinner & Dance, Resorts World Sentosa, 24 Jan 2015. This Haut Medoc has developed another notch over the past year, medium to full-bodied with excellent concentration of ripe dark berries and overtones of plum, cedar, toast and sandalwood, balanced and structured with just the right amount of acidity. This is an excellent Bernadotte.

2011 Ch Bourbon La Chapelle, popped and poured at Prive, 29 Jan 2015. Nothing to shout about here. This supermarket wine possesses the requisite dry quality of the Medoc with decent fruit quality, but lacking in body and fullness.

2004 Penley Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, decanted at Porta Porta (Stanley St), 31 Jan 2015. Still very dark in color, this wine opened with dominant medicinal overtones and notes of licorice, full-bodied and tannic. It settled down after 60 minutes, becoming much more open and integrated with further notes of red plums and some red fruits emerging from the depths of dark currants. Very fine, but give it plenty of time.