Saint-Émilion: 2016 Canon-la-Gaffelière, 2012 La Confession, 1997 Tertre Roteboeuf, 2000 La Gomerie, 2000 Pavie, 2004 Angelus

Some members of the Jürade de Saint-Émilion du Singapour officially re-convened at Shang Palace on 21 April 2022 after a long hiatus thanks to Covid-19. It was only right that we re-booted with a Saint-Émilion line-up, preceded by a promenade of whites.

2012 Domaine Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières 1er. Luminous golden hue. Early secondary characters of nutmeg, olives and citrus on the nose. Medium-bodied. Softly structured with excellent clarity though highly understated, just a lingering glowing intensity at the side before developing greater density with a sleek high-toned minerally presence.

Champagne Henri Giraud MV15 Ay Grand Cru Brut, courtesy of Russ. Sharp lift of olives, nutmeg and cool fruit. Lovely soft tactile presence with a very fine dry intensity, throwing up more cool ripe fruit whilst remaining rather understated, layered with flint and gunmetal notes.

2017 Aubert UV-SL Vineyard Chardonnay, courtesy of Kieron. Aged in 80% new French oak, this Sonoma Coast chardonnay produces an accentuated lift of refined créme de la créme and chalky tones. Medium-full. Rounded with cool sophistication with a distinct New World trace of sweetness that recalls longans. Highly poised and elegant.

2016 Château Canon-la-Gaffelière, courtesy of Melvin. Bright purple. Well-extracted with a forward presence of raspberries and mulberries on the nose whilst the palate is suitably anointed with a deep velvety presence of ripe black cherries. Richly layered and full, structured with superbly integrated tannins that offer dry inner detail. Superbly balanced and proportioned. Huge potential.

2012 Château La Confession, courtesy of Melvin. Dark in colour. Exudes an elegant lift of cool dark currants and ripe black fruits with an early plummy glow. Medium-bodied, the dominant merlot producing silky smooth tannins with understated intensity amid earthy tones and early cedary characters. Wonderfully balanced with well-defined inner detail. Drinking beautifully. Unexpectedly superb!

1997 Tertre Roteboeuf, courtesy of Marc. Opaque crimson hues, proffering seductive red fruits and sweet currants that exude a distilled delicious essence. Softly contoured with distinct maturity, yet lively and unbelievably fresh and vibrant, its wonderful balance made even more appreciable by tannins that have long melted. Superb.

2004 Château Angelus. Deep purple. Medium-full. Somewhat reductive? Well-extracted and generously proportioned but still relatively tight, imbued with an impressive depth of ripe red fruits, dark plums, blackberries and currants with a sprinkling of graphite minerals. Well balanced. May need another decade or two to ease up with secondary characteristics.

2000 Château Pavie, courtesy of Russ. Still very dark. Eminently darkish in its glow of warm black fruits and black currants. Medium-full. Rounded with a vast palate of  ripe raspberries and mulberries still laced with a dash of vanillin. Remarkably youthful in spite of its twenty-two years, still relatively tight with intense svelte tannins. Unashamedly modern in style but it works for Pavie.

2000 Château La Gomerie, courtesy of Kieron. Deep purple. Medium-bodied. Surprisingly restrained in spite of its ample top-drawer fruit set within rounded contours of sexy lithe tannins that impart open textures. Highly understated yet integral. On par with the legendary 1998.