Oct 2016: 2009 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling, 2012 Mugnier NSG Clos de la Marechale, 2013 Bouchard Mersault Genevrieres…

2001 Elderton Command Shiraz, popped and poured at the Marriott Hotel, Singapore, 03 Oct 2016. Dark red with a hint of bricking at the rim, this wine exudes a bright bouquet of red and dark plums, licorice, camphor and red cherries, still rather full on the palate in spite of its 15 years although it is more open than before, its layers of rich velvety fruit more discernible now with overtones of earth, cinnamon, bramble and wild berries supported by lively acidity and good tannin structure, leaving a lasting impression on the palate. Subtlety isn’t part of its grand design. Very fine but, still, I think this is a wine principally for aficionados of Australian shiraz.

2005 Ch Haut Marbuzet, popped and poured at Beng Thin Hoon Kee, 07 Oct 2016. This wine is showing much better than previously several months ago from the same case, now considerably more open and delicious, quite succulent with notes of raspberries, blueberries and dark cherries with traces of earth amidst dryish textures of its St-Estephe terroir, fairly robust and full with a hint of rusticity though still a tad congested towards the finish. Requires further cellaring but it is developing very well.

1991 Penley Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, popped and poured at Jade Palace, 09 Oct 2016. This is a bottle sourced directly from the museum collection when I visited Penley in August. Sporting an opaque brownish red, this wine exudes powerful aromas of soy and herbal and medicinal elements, medium-full with excellent concentration and depth of fruit, displaying notes of ripe wild berries, bramble, raspberries and dark plums, laced with fine gritty tannins and acidity that’s still fresh and lively, becoming more earthy with further notes of chocolate, ferrous elements and dried mushrooms over time, growing in intensity as well as it built up a tannic spine. This robust cabernet may not actually have peaked in spite of its 25 years. Worth cellaring further.

2010 Francis Cossy L’Instant Nature champagne (courtesy of John Law), popped and poured at Otto Ristorante, 11 Oct 2016. An abundance of brilliant citrus, quite intense and sweet, well-blended with green apples and chalky minerality, quite full, slightly creamy and not too dry. Drinking well.

2009 Ch Le Doyenne, popped and poured at Otto Ristorante, 11 Oct 2016. This wine offers a truly fabulous and deep bouquet of dark berries and blackcurrants where the fruit is gorgeously ripe with more red fruits emerging over time amidst dryish textures on the palate, succulent and airy enough but somewhat attenuated in breadth with persistent graphite elements all the way to its finish. Still a fabulous drop at less than SGD45 on the shelf.

2011 Bouchard Pere et Fils Pommard Rugiens 1er (courtesy of Chee Wee), after hours at Glen, 12 Oct 2016. Popped and poured. This wine displays a classic pinot tint with characters of rose petals, cinnamon, ash and a dash of earth, medium-bodied and slightly dryish on the palate, rather polite though its tannins are surprisingly robust. Not really memorable, but very decent if you have nothing better to go with dinner.

2013 Bouchard Pere et Fils Mersault Genevrieres 1er (courtesy of Chee Wee), after hours at Glen, 12 Oct 2016. I much prefer Bouchard’s whites, this being a classic example. The bouquet of this wine is lovely, rich in crème, complex minerals and exotic citrus, alluring and persistent, well replicated on the palate where the complexity is even greater with a seamless blend between minerals and fruit with overtones of incense, excellent in concentration and depth with just the right degree of acidity, not exactly lengthy but here is a classic case where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Excellent.

2009 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling, popped and poured over dinner at Ming Kee Live Seafood, 15 Oct 2016. Compared with the 2008 (see last month), this wine is far more open on the palate where the blend of lime, clear citrus and traces of pomelo is excellent in concentration and layering with just the right degree of acidity, combining seamlessly with the flinty minerality and contrasting very well with the dense bouquet of intoxicating diesel fumes. This is a top-notch riesling by any standard.

Billecart Salmon Brut NV, over lunch at Aura, 16 Oct 2016. Notes of morning dew and clear citrus dominate on the nose, missing the usual yeasty tones of champagne, quite gentle on the palate where it was more minerally, finishing well.

2012 Therra Podernuova A Palazzone, over lunch at Aura, 16 Oct 2016. This is a very fine Toscana, opening with notes of enamel and ripe wild berries and dark currants, slightly earthy on the palate, vigorous with excellent concentration and intensity, structured with open gritty tannins that turned sweeter over time, developing further layering. Harmonious and well-balanced, just a tad dry at the finish. Very fine.

2011 Louis Jadot Saint-Aubin Les Murgers des Dents de Chien 1er, popped and poured at Otto Ristorante, 18 Oct 2016. A bottle from the same batch tasted at Garibaldi two days before, this wine offers notes of creme de la creme with a hint of perfumed white flowers, quite attractive but fleeting on the nose, leading to a slim profile on the palate dominated by icy minerality and a slightly sharp concentration of clear citrus, well fleshed out but could do with greater verve and complexity.

2005 Penley Estate Special Select Shiraz, decanted on-site at Otto Ristorante, 18 Oct 2016. This medium-full Coonawarra shiraz is quite open, laden with succulent ripe red fruits and currants, layered with structured sweet tannins, excellent in concentration and depth but never overwhelming, gaining in intensity at the finish. Clearly yet to peak. Very attractive.

2012 Jacques Frederic Mugnier Nuits Saint-Georges Clos de la Marechale 1er, popped and poured after hours at Glen, 20 Oct 2016. Deep gorgeous bouquet of dark cherries and dark roses with a hint of saline minerals and ripe plums. Rich, satiny smooth and layered with structured tannins and understated acidity on the palate, quite open, though it attained a stern and austere demeanour after some time, shrouding the fruit beneath. Good stuff, but needs more time to develop.

2005 Ch Bernadotte, popped and poured from magnum at Marina Bay Sands on the occasion of CGH’s Dinner & Dance, 22 Oct 2016. Retrieved from the cellar where it had been lying for quite a few years, this wine has evolved faster than I anticipated, displaying open and rounded plummy tones, gaining in weight and concentration of red and dark fruits over time with secondary nuances of cinnamon and cedar supported by fine acidity and understated minerality. Very reliable but do start drinking up.

Moet & Chandon Brut NV, served at the Racquet Club of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, 26 Oct 2016. Bone dry with notes of green apples and crisp citrus, quite generous with some yeasty overtones but turning rather steely and metallic with stony minerals towards the finish.

2014 Beringer Chardonnay, served at the Racquet Club of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, 26 Oct 2016. Rather shut initially, gradually revealing some creamy tone with white flowers in bloom. Good concentration on the palate with attractive minerality, developing further notes of melons and morning dew after some time, gaining some mild attractive intensity with a bit of ferrous edge..

2013 Beringer Sauvignon Blanc, served at the Racquet Club of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, 26 Oct 2016. Quite lifted some attractive pungency and abundant citrus with traces of chiku, displaying good concentration with dryish textures, quite open with a certain deftness. Very attractive.

2014 Beringer Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, served at the Racquet Club of the BNP Paribas WTA Finals at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, 26 Oct 2016. Fruit forward with generous concentration of briar, forest floor, dark green elements and dark fruits with sweet tannins. Easy but unmemorable.