Oct 2023: 2019 Patrick Javillier des Forgets, 2019 Alexandre Parigot Pommard Vignots, 2017 Bruno Clair Chambolle Les Véroilles, 2019 Léon Beyer Pinot Gris

1999 Domaine Dominique Laurent Vosne-Romanée Champs Perdrix, courtesy of Peter (from Penang) at Imperial Treasure Great World, 02 Oct 2023. Mature orangey hues from a fair presence of autumnal fruit that has begun to recede, shifting its focus towards a high-toned acidity matched by a general ferrous austerity.

Ambriel Classic Cuvée Brut NV, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 05 Oct 2023. This English sparkling wine displays a lovely luminosity, evoking lime and yellow citrus on the medium palate, a little forward with lithe intensity, laced with just the right level of acidity. Good balance and unfussy, turning a little bright and shiny before developing a gentle minerally base but it lacks further dimension.

2017 Château Cantermerle, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 05 Oct 2023. Fairly deep garnet. Dark fruits and currants beneath a restrained warmth. More effusive after some coaxing, revealing understated verve from a well-layered medium palate, structured with unobtrusive tannins. Good balance.

2018 Jean-Philippe Fichet Volnay Les Champans 1er, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 05 Oct 2023. Rather dark for pinot. Restrained hues of dark roses. Medium-bodied, imbued with a bit of oily density. Well balanced and proportioned with understated verve. Good finish.

2019 Louis Jadot Mâcon-Villages, at Liang Kee restaurant, 07 Oct 2023. Light golden. Nose of cool icing laced with white tones that carried on to the medium-full palate. Well layered with a hint of early complexity, developing sweetish undertones amidst dominant clear citrus and pomelo.

2019 Patrick Javillier Bourgogne Blanc Cuvée des Forgets, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 12 Oct 2023. Light greenish hue. Effusive in clear citrus and lemon with lifted floral scents. Medium weight. Generously layered with a seamless chamfered quality, proffering glorious fruit with focused presence and excellent definition. Very well proportioned with lithe agility and fine linearity all the way to its finish.

2021 Julie Fevre Chablis Fourchaumes 1er, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 12 Oct 2023. Deep greenish golden hue. Distinct nose of morning dew and wet grassy elements. Medium-full. Fine density of green fruits laced with bitter lemon that stoke the palate with lithe gentle intensity and bright clarity though it finished on a darkish note.

2021 Coldstream Hills Chardonnay. Popped and poured at Eastern House of Seafood, 14 Oct 2023. Crisp, full-bodied chiseled stoniness from a layered palate of floral white tones and nutmeg, displaying excellent precision throughout its length, finishing with a dash of sweetness. Another bottle tasted over 21-22 Oct 2023 proffered a lovely lift of fig, green fruits and floral accents from its light-greenish hue, leading to a full palate of peaches, honeydew and tropical notes supported by a subtle minerally base, beautifully layered with keen definition. James Halliday’s estate over-delivers, as usual. A no-brainer at SGD27 all-in whenever Cold Storage has it on sale.

2016 Laurent Ponsot Chambolle-Musigny Cuvée de la Violette. Popped and poured over lunch at Otto Ristorante, 16 Oct 2023. Purplish hue, caressing the full-bodied palate with a rich luxuriant intensity from the ample depth of ripe dark plums and berries that glitter with occasional red fruit. Structured with lithe tannins. Bright, supple and exuberant, though it developed a bit of austere minerality after some time before restoring order. Good overall sophistication.

2017 Domaine Joseph & Philippe Roty Marsannay Champs Saint-Etienne, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 17 Oct 2023. Good colour. Subtle lift of cherries and red fruits. Good extraction. Rather full with a distinct note of heated gravel, warming the palate with bright tones and rustic intensity.

2020 Domaine Jean Fournier Fixin Les Petits Crais, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 17 Oct 2023. Almost deep garnet! Nose of olives and dried plums. Well-extracted medium presence, displaying good verve and purity with a controlled intensity. Decent length.

2019 Léon Beyer Pinot Gris, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 17 Oct 2023. Dull golden hue. Started off with a distant nose of green fruits, melons and honeysuckle matched by understated acidity and minerality. Gradually blossomed with a pronounced glowing presence of fig and nectarine, displaying fine detail and clarity amid dense floral characters. Excellent example of pinot gris by a great producer.

2017 Domaine Bruno Clair Chambolle-Musigny Les Véroilles, aired in bottle ahead of dinner at GEMMA, 18 Oct 2023. Well extracted. Delicious nose of dark cherries with sweet rosy hues. Medium-full with a velvety tensile presence, taking on a rounded shine before attaining good purity and layered integration with a trace of grilled burnt, structured with a restrained sweet intensity from the ample ripe fruit.

2018 Domaine Jean Fournier Marsannay Clos du Roy Blanc, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 24 Oct 2023. Greenish hue. Fairly effusive in fig, preserved yellow fruit and peaches. Focused medium-weight palate, exuding great verve and delicate intensity with good balance and sublime acidity.

2019 Domaine Alexandre Parigot Pommard Les Vignots, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 24 Oct 2023. Classic pinot tint. Lovely nose, slightly burnished. Fresh plums, dark cherries and mulberries dominate. Beautifully rounded. Medium presence, showing very good balance and concentration with understated verve. Settled down with fine definition amid a distant note of eucalyptus. Subtly layered. Highly integral and elegant. Excellent effort.

2020 Duckhorn Vineyard Merlot, by the glass at 67 Pall Mall, Singapore, 24 Oct 2023. Deep garnet. Brooding nose of dark fruits, black currants and forest floor, slightly reductive. Medium-full. Very fresh and clean on the entry, boasting fine definition with a controlled intensity. Still imbued with subtle splashes of vanillin, developing further overtones of rye.

2008 Mount Mary Quintet, aired for two hours prior to dinner at Yan Ting, St Regis Singapore, 27 Oct 2023. Delicious fragrance of dark cherries and rose petals. Soft, fleshy and highly supple with ample presence of dark plums and mushrooms, displaying a hint of glare initially before gelling into a very well-balanced elegant seamless entity with further notes of mocha and chocolate.

2010 Château Larcis Ducasse, courtesy of Melvin at Yan Ting, St Regis Singapore, 27 Oct 2023. Purplish crimson. Aired in bottle for seven hours prior. Full, big and creamy, imbued with ample depth of dark fruits and currants topped with a distinct note of varnish though it is surprisingly restrained on the nose. Very much like a New World. Still quite primal.

2012 La Chapelle de La Mission Haut-Brion, courtesy of Marc at Yan Ting, St Regis Singapore, 27 Oct 2023. Purplish. Soft distant fragrance of dark berries tinged with a subdued earthiness. Subtly structured with fine tension and definition. Harmonious. Drinking well.

2012 Vieux Château Certan, courtesy of Russ at Yan Ting, St Regis Singapore, 27 Oct 2023. Decanted on-site. Deep crimson. Subdued nose. Velvety darkish notes with early secondary characters tinged with a hint of varnish against dryish textures, finishing with overtones of licorice. Best to lay down further.

2004 Vieux Château Certan, courtesy of Marc at Yan Ting, St Regis Singapore, 27 Oct 2023. Decanted on-site. Deep crimson. Rather restrained on the nose and medium palate, showing signs of early maturity with the cool darkish fruit somewhat recessed. Fleshy and fairly seamless, exuding a subdued glow of mature claret that grew with gradual intensity. Deserves more time to express itself.