Mar 2024: 2015 Lamy-Pillot Le Montrachet, 2014 Bouchard Meursault Gouttes d’Or 1er, 2019 Montille Saint-Aubin En Remilly 1er, 2015 Domaine Roulot Meursault Luchets, 2017 Maison Leroy Bourgogne Blanc

2008 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs, courtesy of Jim at Otto Ristorante, 05 Mar 2024. Pale. Distant complex of green fruits and almonds with lifted floral scents, leading to rounded tones of fig and dense citrus laced with refreshing crisp acidity, its vigour tempered by slightly darkish undertones. Excellent.

2015 Lamy-Pillot Le Montrachet Grand Cru, courtesy of John at Otto Ristorante, 05 Mar 2024. Pale golden, proffering faint orchard fruit and morning dew amid cool glacial tones whilst apricot, peaches and shavings of orange peel dominate with early complexity with medium presence, very lightly perfumed with refined clarity. Cleanly structured with unobtrusive acidity. Not quite as minerally as one would expect from the Chassagne side of Montrachet. Drinking well.

2008 Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat Richebourg Grand Cru, courtesy of John at Otto Ristorante, 05 Mar 2024. More developed than usual for 2008, opening with a dash of brett on the nose that, thankfully, blew away quite quickly to offer a fine density of dark cherries and black currants, exuding veiled fragrance. The medium-weight palate is open with supple intensity, highly integral and rounded with a tinge of crème and balsamic elements. Not the finest example though, missing the layered verve, power and succulence one would usually expect of Richebourg.

Champagne Devaux Coeur Des Bar Blanc de Noirs NV at Iggy’s, 06 Mar 2024. Pale yellow. Peaches and grapefruit dominate on the nose with a hint of emulsion and sweet incense. The fullish palate shows a lively presence of fresh citrus underpinned by a trace of darkish berries, producing restrained intensity and modest finish. Drinking very well. From 100% pinot noir.

2018 Domaine Bachelet-Monnot Maranges 1er La Fussière, from the list of Galvin La Chapelle, London, on 14 Mar 2024. Deep purple at the core. Fairly aromatic in ripe raspberries and cherries, combining well with the base of ferrous elements to impart a slightly darkish tone to the lively medium-full palate, displaying good balance and fine detail with a cool freshness. Fairly robust but refined enough to handle the tensile tannins, turning a little sweeter and fuller over time.

2019 Domaine de Montille Saint-Aubin 1er En Remilly. Aired for almost three hours ahead of dinner at Crab At Bay, 16 Mar 2024. Pale. Lifted notes of delicate citrus, fig and pomelo, imparting excellent presence and lively acidity with fine clarity and refreshing intensity though it turned more minerally and reductive over time.

2008 Château Maucamps. Aired for two hours ahead of dinner at Beng Thin, 23 Mar 2024. Deep crimson core. Very beautifully integrated, exuding green capsicum, currants and wild berries alongside secondary notes of cedar in a medium-bodied complex with just the right level of acidity and tannins, oozing a trace of sweetness. Classically proportioned. A true Haut-Médoc at its best.

2018 Domaine Roulot Bourgogne Blanc. Aired for two hours ahead of dinner at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Pale. Distant nose of citrus and clear fruits amid a faint floral fragrance. Equally restrained at first on the palate before fleshing out with greater fullness and controlled intensity, displaying good acidity with a dash of sweetness, eventually veering towards a minerally presence without being overtly reductive.

2012 Domaine Joseph Drouhin Puligny-Montrachet Pucelles 1er. Aired for two hours ahead of dinner at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Lovely golden hue, exuding a restrained chalkiness with a hint of apricot and apples. Rather fleeting initially with a teasing quality before fleshing out with more pronounced acidity, displaying fine transparency against a backdrop of subtle saline minerals. Modest finish.

2014 Domaine Bouchard Père et Fils Meursault Gouttes d’Or 1er, courtesy of Kieron at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Luminous. Highly expressive bouquet of brioche and honeysuckle, leading to a medium-full palate of nuanced chalky detail supported by understated minerals, developing a little more pronounced acidity that exert a controlled tensile presence. Good finish.

2017 Domaine Bernard Bonin Meursault Vieilles Vignes, courtesy of LF at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Pale. Highly expressive in white tones underscored by a dash of vanillin. Classic reductive character, displaying precise but lean definition.

2017 Maison Leroy Bourgogne Blanc, courtesy of Sir Bob at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Tasted blind. Luminous gold. Distant hues of white fruits with a chamfered chalkiness, impeccably balanced with sublime acidity that exert a subtle tensile presence, fleshing out with svelte fullness. Highly integral and elegant, shot through with breed and pedigree. Very lovely. I’m glad we’d bought loads just before prices began soaring.

2006 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault-Charmes 1er, courtesy of Sir Bob at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Tasted blind. Heavier tint of gold and clearly of considerable age on the nose. The balance on the medium palate veers towards a minerally presence, the chalkiness somewhat recessed, favouring greater clarity that conferred a distinct feminine stance in spite of some funky overtones of diesel, finishing in a gentle glow. Probably at its best.

2015 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Luchets, courtesy of LF at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Nose of distant crème, lightly floral, though surprisingly full on the palate where distilled clear citrus and ferrous elements dominate in equal measure with a hint of lemon bitters, underscored by refined acidity that added to its excellent balance and delineation throughout its subtle length. Highly successful.

2011 Domaine Henri Boillot Puligny-Montrachet Clos de la Mouchere 1er, courtesy of Barrie at Jade Palace, 24 Mar 2024. Pale golden. Medium-full though the fruit is rather restrained, its predominant white tones marked by a distinct salinity and high-toned acidity. Good balance.

Champagne Moët & Chandon Impérial NV. Popped and poured at Liang Kee, 25 Mar 2024. Displaying a lovely luminosity, this wine is imbued with generous layers of lime and yellow citrus supported by crisp acidity that exert controlled intensity, softened by a considerable level of sweetness along its moderate length. Drinking well.

2021 Domaine Robert Groffier Père et Fils Bourgogne Passetoutgrain. Aired for an hour in bottle prior to dinner at Crab At Bay, 27 Mar 2024. Displaying an opaque purplish core, this blend of 25% gamay and 75% pinot noir is surprisingly good, delivering a medium presence of mulberries and plums at just the right level of ripeness, extraction and acidity, close to being velvety in its refined tannin structure though without the expressive purity of the noble grape. Drinking very well.

2008 Château Maurac, aired in bottle for an hour ahead of lunch at Asia Grand, 29 Mar 2024. Deep garnet, exuding powerful tones of dark plums, licorice and wild berries on the nose and concentrated palate that impart a certain robustness smoothened over by well-managed tannins and lively acidity. Fairly integral. Distinctly firm and masculine. You can throw anything at it.