Apr 2018: 2010 Etienne Sauzet Combettes, 2002 Armand Rousseau Cham’ Clos de Beze, 1995/2003 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle, 1990 d’Yquem, 1968 Vega Sicilia Unico…

2002 Penfolds St Henri Shiraz, popped and poured at Wah Lok, 05 Apr 2018. I’ve cellared this bottle for about ten years. Opague purple, proffering an enticing complex of toffee, mocha dark, chocolate and licorice camphor on the effusive nose, matched by a good attack of peppery spicy tones on the palate, full-bodied, structured with well-mannered tannins on a background of delicious dark currants, finishing with emerging notes of ferrous minerals. Excellent.

2007 Delamotte Blanc de Blancs, popped and poured at LF’s birthday bash, Pistacchio Grill, 06 Apr 2018. Imbued with strong minerally and ferrous tones amidst crisp citrus and bitter lemon that imparted some degree of sternness, displaying excellent presence and concentration of fruit with controlled intensity, finishing with sweet tannins. Quite excellent.

2006 Domaine Joseph Roty Charmes-Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of Vic, popped and poured at LF’s birthday bash, Pistacchio Grill, 06 Apr 2018. Displaying some evolution with earthy tones, medium-bodied, proffering gentle notes of raspberries and red fruits underscored by dark undertones with fresh acidity but missing in opulence and charm.

1968 Vega Sicilia Unico, popped and poured at LF’s birthday bash, Pistacchio Grill, 06 Apr 2018. Still remarkably full in colour, opening with distinct characters of earth and iron filings, very open and rounded with the distilled essence of red fruits, still amazingly fresh and layered with inner detail, going on to develop a lovely bloom of rose petals and camphor, finishing with great lift. Perfect for the birthday boy. Outstanding!

2003 Dominus, popped and poured at LF’s birthday bash, Pistacchio Grill, 06 Apr 2018. This wine displays a profound depth of structured red fruits and cherries, richly layered with chiselled detail and concentration, infinitely masculine, filled with glorious abundance, still yet to peak. Excellent.

1996 Domaine Louis Remy Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of Sanjay, popped and poured at LF’s birthday bash, Pistacchio Grill, 06 Apr 2018. Quite well evolved, exuding a powerful earthy pungency matched with delicious notes of camphor, rose petals, complex plums and orangey tangerines, perhaps a tad short.

2010 Domaine Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Les Combettes 1er, courtesy of Sanjay, 07 April 2018 at Sofitel Sentosa. Clear golden hue, exuding a superb complex of dense diesel fumes, earth, concentrated white fruits and clear citrus, highly structured on the stern minerally palate with a hint of bitter lemon. Superbly layered with notes of white flowers in bloom, citrus, cinnamon and cool vanillin icing laced with crisp acidity, already developing some early complexity, finishing with a suggestion of fine white pepper. Simply outstanding.

1995 Domaine Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle, popped and poured at Otto Ristorante, 14 April 2018. Earth, licorice, old leather and mild medicinal tones dominate on the nose, leading to a medium-bodied proposition of cool dark fruits and raspberries before evolving with further notes of camphor, redcurrants, plums and tangerines underscored by stern minerals, becoming more open and fleshy with time. Drinking well.

2015 Maison de Montille Saint Romain, popped and poured over a meal at home, 16 Apr 2018. This unassuming sleeper displays a rich presence of green fruits and melons with chalky undertones supported by understated crème, vanillin and icing, displaying fine acidity and intensity, very well balanced and integrated, finishing with excellent mouthfeel. Superb value.

1970 Coto de Imaz Riserva Privada, courtesy of LF at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Good color. Obviously well-evolved, producing an effusive fragrance of aged mint tinged with earth, orangey tones and plums, still showing good acidity though the fruit is clearly receding. Still drinking well.

1968 Bodegas Marque de Murrieta Cadtillo Ygay Logrono, courtesy of LF at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Sharper than the preceding wine with better definition on both nose and palate, exuding a highly lifted bouquet of camphor, rose petals and grapefruit, still rather rich in fruit quality and acidity, highly supple and seamless, finishing with traces of burnt. Excellent.

2006 Philipponnat Clos des Goisses, courtesy of Sanjay at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Lovely bouquet of sensuous smokiness and yeasty pungency, quite gentle and placid on the palate with graphite minerals that imparted a slightly stern demeanour, quickly developing a dry searing intensity from the tight concentration of dense citrus and melons. Great potential.

2005 Ch d’Yquem “Y” Ygrec courtesy of Sanjay at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Luminous glow of tropical fruits, peaches and durians (yes!) with creamy textures and overtones of paraffin. Very rich, almost luscious, growing steadily in intensity as it sat in the glass. Still tight.

2014 Charles van Canneyt Charmes Chambertin Grand Cru, courtesy of Dr Ngoi at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Excellent purity of red fruits on the nose and palate, displaying good concentration, layering and depth with early complexity, highly controlled in fruit intensity, very finely balanced with velvety tannins and crisp acidity that produced superb mouthfeel. Excellent.

2002 Domaine Armand Rousseau Chambertin Clos des Beze Grand Cru, courtesy of MH at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Very dark, displaying very tight concentration of dark cherries and raspberries with traces of vanillin on the nose and palate, exuding an air of cool nonchalance with quiet intensity, still remarkably youthful, structured with fleshy silky tannins, superbly integrated, very finely proportioned and balanced, tapering to a minerally finish.  Not overtly opulent nor succulent, yet there is never any doubt that this wine has so much more in reserve, but simple contented to reveal a little at a time. A cool dark beauty, not showy at all. Outstanding.

1990 Ch d’Yquem, courtesy of Sanjay at Yan, 20 Apr 2018. Quite heavily tinted, proffering powerful aromas of aged apricot, nectarine, rye and malt, superb in concentration and intensity that excites the senses with its stunning complexity, leaving behind a stony minerally glow long after it has left the palate. Outstanding.

2001 Ch Lagrange, popped and poured at Otto Ristorante, 25 April 2018. Unexpectedly sullen at the start, rather unyielding with tough graphite tones within narrow confines. It took on a totally different character when it did finally open up after an hour, developing the classic hallowed glow of a maturing claret, fleshy with good depth of redcurrants and dark berries, laced with understated acidity that drew exciting tension across the palate, growing with intensity over time. Very fine.

2015 Domaine Bernard Defaix Chablis 1er, courtesy of host Hsiang Sui at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Delicious buttery and chalky tones topped with creme de la crème, highly generous, with further notes of icing whilst raw nutmeg and exotic spices traipse across the palate with delicate detail, only to lose a bit of focus towards its gentle finish. Very fine.

2013 Domaine Roger Belland Santenay Gravueres 1er, courtesy of host Hsiang Sui at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Dark plums and wild berries dominate on the nose, though somewhat tight and lean on the palate with earthy undertones and understated intensity.

2004 Mount Mary Quintet, popped and poured from magnum at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Lovely aromas of dark cherries and dark plums fill the nose whilst the fleshy palate displays good detail and precision layered with mild saline minerals, ripe wild berries, raspberries and dark currants, gently structured.

2013 Williams Selyem Foss Vineyard Russian River Vineyard, courtesy of LF at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Notes of cool ripe raspberries and dark cherries dominate on the palate with good lift and focused concentration, still primal in tone, yet to develop but it clearly holds great potential.

2010 Silver Oak Alexander Valley, courtesy of Sanjay at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Quite an unique lifted bouquet of heated stones and savoury curry, gentle and open with good concentration and definition of delicious dark currants structured with sublime acidity and supple tannins, gorgeously rich, fleshing out with supreme confidence. Superb.

2013 Sea Smoke Southing Pinot Noir, courtesy of LF at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Good colour, very clear and well-defined in its bouquet of ripe red fruits and dark berries, highly focused, showing very tight intensity and concentration though without the opulence and expanse. Needs further cellaring.

2001 Ch Rieussec, from a half bottle courtesy of host Hsiang Sui at the wedding lunch of Eryn & Seng at Capella, 29 Apr 2018. Effusive notes of apricot, ember, cider and sweet incense dominate in equal measure on the nose and palate, full-bodied and fresh with lovely acidity and beguiling presence. Still not quite ready if you are looking for complexity but it is so delicious now.

2003 Domaine Paul Aine Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle, decanted on-site at Gattopardo, 30 Apr 2018. Deep purple. Generous in aromas of fresh dark cherries, raspberries and blackberries. Highly supple and fleshy on the open palate, rounded with gentle herbal and medicinal overtones topped with balsam and licorice, finishing with a blaze of youthful intensity amidst a cool minty structure without any trace of its 14.5% alcohol.