Jan 2017: 1995 Chateau Cos D’Estournel, 1991 Compania Vinicola del Norte de Espana, 1995 La Rioja Altarnun 890…

2009 Louis Roederer Rose, popped and poured over dimsum lunch at Asia Grand, 02 Jan 2017. Opening with attractive notes of grapefruit, plums and a dash of cherries, this wine turned a tad too tannic and dry after some time.

2008 Senorio de Otazu, popped and poured at Jade Palace, 15 Jan 2017. This blend of predominant tempranillo with some cabernet sauvignon opens with sweet aromas of redcurrants, black fruits, earth and aniseed coupled with accentuated plummy notes on the palate that was somewhat of a disconnect with the supporting stern minerals. It was considerably better after further aeration, more weighty, sweeter and better integrated, gaining some attractive biting intensity. Needs time.

2004 Bonneau du Martray  Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, aired in bottle at dinner hosted by Vic at the Tanglin Club Tavern, 16 Jan 2017. This doyen of Corton displays its usual characters of lacquer, dew, resin and wax, closed at first with only a hint of citrus on the nose though the palate is touched by delicate citrus and lime with very good concentration and focus, glowing with defined intensity that eventually tapered towards a stony minerally finish. Still youthful and yet to peak. Excellent.

2002 Domaine Faiveley Latricieres-Chambertin Grand Cru (courtesy of Vic) aired in bottle at dinner hosted by Vic at the Tanglin Club Tavern, 16 Jan 2017. This wine displayed a fairly deep purple, exuding a delicious fragrance of rose petals and ripe cherries with excellent presence, intensity and acidity, finishing with lovely tones of camphor and soft plums but lacking in structure and a tad short. Still, this is very fine.

2002 Meo Camuzet Corton Clos Rognet Grand Cru (courtesy of Vic), aired in bottle at dinner hosted by Vic at the Tanglin Club Tavern, 16 Jan 2017. Darker and heavier in pinot tint, this wine opens with an earthy pungency amidst sweet ripe berries and dark fruits with fresh acidity and excellent concentration of red fruits on the palate, reasonably well-structured though a bit four-square, opening up well to reveal a delicious rich vein with a complex tangerine core. Quite excellent.

2000 Le Petit Cheval (courtesy of Hsiang Sui), aired in bottle at dinner hosted by Vic at the Tanglin Club Tavern, 16 Jan 2017. This wine is quite plummy on the nose with a hint of chocolates, displaying solid red and dark fruits with chewy tannins and fine acidity, fleshy but not plump, finishing well. Carries the traits of its grand vin without the lushness.

2011 Ch Queyron Lartique, popped and poured at the NUSS Guild House Bukit Timah, 18 Jan 2017. Some floral aromas with a faint fragrance from predominant red fruits, better on the palate it has real weight, depth and  concentration, building up to an intense tannic finish with a strong ferrous note. Not bad at all.

2007 Alonso del Yerro, popped and poured at the NUSS Guild House Bukit Timah, 18 Jan 2017. Scores very well on the nose with dense aromas of dark cherries and redcurrants amidst some lovely earthy pungency and smoky tones, quite plump with excellent concentration and crisp acidity underscored by ferrous minerality, ending in a spicy finish. Very enjoyable.

Louis Roederer Brut NV, at John’s clinic opening party, 21 Jan 2017. Excellent concentration of lime and citrus with a forward balance, very much understated in minerality without much of the usual yeasty tones nor complexity.

2009 Chateau de La Tour Clos Vougeot Grand Cru, at John’s clinic opening party, 21 Jan 2017. Rather dark in color and tone, shut on the nose though undoubtedly substantial in proportion on the palate, imbued with good concentration of dark berries and some tangerine though still rather tannic. An undistinguished grand cru.

2006 Casanova di Nero Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto, at John’s clinic opening party, 21 Jan 2017. A big wine with an abundance of cedar, cinnamon and dark plums, excellent in concentration and acidity, well-structured with supple tannins that tapered towards a peppery finish. Very enjoyable.

2007 Forman, at John’s clinic opening party, 21 Jan 2017. This Californian cabernet was essentially closed, revealing only a hint of cedar on the nose, full-bodied with a forward balance of dark berries  and sweet firm tannins amidst graphite minerals, somewhat uneven.

1995 Ch Cos Estournel, at John’s clinic opening party, 21 Jan 2017. Lifted with a lovely earthy pungency, rather dark in tone with a complex of cedar, cinnamon and leather amidst dryish textures, seamlessly integrated with ripe berries, dark currants, subtle ferrous elements and subtle sweet tannins. Drinking beautifully.

2004 Penley Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, decanted on-site at Osteria Art, 21 Jan 2017. Powerful medicinal and herbal aromas dominate on the nose, matched by licorice, earth, mushrooms and dark berries on the palate, medium-full with good acidity and structured with silky tannins, opening up over time to reveal some red fruits and plums. Excellent.

2000 R Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia (courtesy of LF), at SS’s pre-Lunar New Year party at Glen, 25 Jan 2017. Dense diesel fumes with chalky characters and white flowers, very focused within a narrow spectrum of flavours on the palate with good concentration and a lovely deep vein of fruit laced with crisp acidity. Quite lovely.

2002 Pintia Toro (courtesy of LF), at SS’s pre-Lunar New Year party at Glen, 25 Jan 2017.  Earthy medicinal tones with some cedar on the nose, medium-bodied, rather stern with tertiary nuances on the palate, predominantly of earthy minerals and aged plums.

1995 La Rioja Altarnun S.A. Gran Reserva 890 (courtesy of LF), at SS’s pre-Lunar New Year party at Glen, 25 Jan 2017. Bright, well-evolved with red plums, cedar and cinnamon, fleshy with sublime acidity, highly supple, displaying good linearity all the way to its glowing finish. Excellent.

1991 Compania Vinicola del Norte de Espana Imperial Reserva (courtesy of LF), at SS’s pre-Lunar New Year party at Glen, 25 Jan 2017. Abundance of mature red fruits here. Soft, supple and fleshy with great balance and acidity, structured with well-integrated sweet tannins, finishing with a wonderful burst of flavours. Superb finish

2005 Domaine de Chevalier rouge, popped and poured over lunch at Otto Ristorante, 27 Jan 2017. Deep in color, oozing with gorgeous blackcurrants and dark berries, ripe and succulent, youthful with a forward balance, quite earthy and minerally on the palate with fine ferrous elements, medium-full, rounded and fleshy with fine acidity and subtle tannin structure, yet to put on weight. Delicious but would be a waste to drink now. Keep.

2009 Ch Le Doyenne, popped and poured over the family reunion dinner on the eve of the Lunar New Year, 27 Jan 2017. Deep dark purple, loaded with an abundance of blackcurrants, blueberries and ripe wild berries, forward in fruit character amidst earthy dryish textures with graphite elements held in fine balance with well-integrated acidity and supple tannins. Delicious. Supposedly made for early drinnking but this is so good, still yet to peak.