Ric’s 52: 1969 Ch Pétrus, 1989 Suduiraut, 2015 PYCM Meursault Nauvaux, 2006 Salon, 1989 Three Rivers, 1964 Leoville Poyferre, 1988 John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon, 2000 Domaine de Chevalier Rouge…

Venue: Jade Palace, Singapore, on 02 December 2019 with the usual suspects – thank you!!

Wine theme: OLD BUT NEW. Is that young Old World or old New World? Or Old World that’s seldom tried? Or an entirely new experience? Use your imagination!

2011 Champagne Pierre Peters Les Chetillons. Poured from a pair. Pale. Good depth of light toast with yeasty overtones. Well-integrated with crisp acidity on the palate, fleshing out with more weight and juicy citrus amid bright minerally tones, grapefruit and pomelo, finishing in a powerful glowing intensity of white flowers. Drinking well though it doesn’t quite possess the extended depth and complexity of the best vintages.

2017 Château de Chamirey Mercurey La Mission 1er. Poured from a pair. Reticent at first, proffering just distant chalk though its excellence was immediately apparent on the palate, exuding a certain regal elegance with a very Puligny-like rich gleaming tone that imparted superb mouthfeel, displaying great presence and early complexity from the deep layers of chalk and white flowers with overtones of raw nutmeg that culminated in a controlled gentle lift of white pepper at the finish. Outstanding in every way.

2006 Champagne Salon, courtesy of CJ. Pale with restrained notes of delicate clear citrus, displaying cool tones with some early complexity of ash and sweet incense amid some feminine fragrance, cloaked in very fine bubbles that yielded good detail. Excellent potential but best to refrain from popping any of these for another 5-6 years.

2000 Domaine de Chevalier Rouge. Poured from a pair, decanted on-site. Deep ruby. This wine exudes a superb pungent earthiness that can only mean Pessac-Leognan while delicious dark currants, cedar and the hallowed glow of aged plums dominate on the palate with well-defined proportions amid overtones of ash and incense, fleshing out well with highly refined exciting tannins and sublime acidity. Excellent.

2015 Domaine Pierre-Yves Colin Morey Meursault Les Nauvaux, courtesy of LF. Superb bouquet of truffles, complex citrus, earth and floral fragrance. Equally arresting on the palate with a vivacious display of tremendous drive, freshness and superb intensity from a great body of fruit that hinted at pineapples and apricot with some early complexity amidst lovely floral tones, all superbly balanced without being overwhelming. Outstanding.

2013 Kistler Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, courtesy of Sanjay. Deep pinot tint. Intense vibrant nose of raspberries and dark cherries that carry over to the medium-full palate with tremendous verve, deeply layered with sweet ripe fruit that recall longans, unashamedly masculine though very well balanced throughout, structured with sophisticated tannins. Very unique.

2014 Peregrine The Pinnacle, courtesy of MH. Lovely tint. This New Zealand pinot from Central Otago opens with a superb gentle bouquet that led seamlessly to a velvety palate, very well-proportioned and balanced with excellent presence, warmth and depth. Distinctly elegant and feminine without any hint of over-extraction, finishing with a delicious glow of raspberries, currants and mulberries. Would have been very difficult to place had we been blinded. Superb.

1989 Three Rivers Dry Grown Shiraz, courtesy of CHS. Deep purple, exuding a glossy bouquet of varnish and enamel with a great abundance of dark fruits and currants lurking beneath. Still remarkably full and fresh after 30 years, richly imbued with blackberries tinged with licorice, camphor and other tertiary characters that titillate with youthful intensity. Amazing.

1988 Wynns John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon, courtesy of CJ. Displaying a glorious deep purple, this great Coonawarra classic proffers an attractive smoky earthiness on the nose alongside cedary characters and the dark plummy tones of mature dark berries that carried well onto the palate, displaying excellent concentration, density and great acidity with a deep core of tangerines, superbly balanced. Caught at its absolute peak and will hold for many more. Quite outstanding. Along with the Three Rivers above, it looks like these brawny wines really need 30 years to mature!

1964 Ch Leoville Poyferre, courtesy of Vic. This wine exudes a gentle hallowed earthiness on the nose that belies its amazing freshness and verve on the palate. Still astonishingly full with vibrant fruit and lively acidity, imbued with very fine concentration of ripe cherries, raspberries and mulberries that still appears to be far from over the hill. Outstanding.

1969 Ch Pétrus, courtesy of LF. Poured from magnum. Delicious lift of dark cherries and currants with an earthy tertiary glow of soy and dark plums. Still incredibly vibrant and fresh though distinctly mellowed, layered with an evolved complexity along with sublime acidity. Highly elegant and still remarkably youthful. Outstanding.

2010 Alois Kracher N°10 Scheurebe Trockenbeerenauslese Zwischen den Seen, poured from a couple of half bottles that I’d carried over from Salzburg many years ago. Glorious deep golden lustre, exuding a complex bouquet of dense nectarine, honeysuckle, brioche and fig, its sweetness on the palate perfectly balanced with superb acidity, density and purity of fruit that produced a great even tone and structure, finishing with excellent linearity amid persistent traces of smouldering ember and deep earthy minerals.  This is the best example of Kracher I’ve had. Outstanding.

1989 Ch Suduiraut, courtesy of Dr Ngoi, poured from magnum. Deep golden lustre with an equally deep burnished tone. Open with dense diesel and petroleum overtones on the nose whilst layers of apricots, cinnamon, honey and mature peaches dominate on the palate with lovely transparency and wonderful lift, still imbued with fine acidity and intensity as it finished with undertones of ember, fig and traces of earthy detail. Excellent.