Apr 2025: 2019 A.-F. Gros Bourgogne Rouge 2017 Bertrand Bachelet Maranges Fussière, 2022 M Bouzereau Meursault Charrons, 2012 G & C Felettig Chambolle 1er Charmes, 1990 Château Léoville Las-Cases

2019 A.-F. Gros Bourgogne Rouge, aired in bottle for two hours prior to dinner at Imperial Treasure Great World, 07 Apr 2025. Good colour. In spite of its “lowly” classification, this wine is quite excellent in every way, opening with a lovely bouquet of savoury sweet meat, red plums and haw, matched by a medium-full tensile palate stuffed with quality raspberries and blackberries that exert exquisite acidity and intensity. Impeccably balanced with unobtrusive tannins, becoming more placid after some time before fleshing out further with greater weight and layering, finishing well. This is easily village quality. It’s really true that the producer matters most for burgundy. A steal at SGD58…from the supermarket!

Champagne Jacquesson 742, courtesy of South Bridge Reserve, 11 Apr 2025. Pale golden. Good presence of citrus, olives and nutmeg underscored by crisp acidity and yeasty undertones, tapering to a tight minerally finish.

2012 Gilbert et Christine Felettig Chambolle-Musigny 1er Les Charmes, courtesy of South Bridge Reserve, 11 Apr 2025. Poured from magnum. Lovely pinot tint. Gentle hues of baked apples and red plums on the nose that belie its racy fullness and exciting intensity. Wonderfully fresh and succulent, imbued with lively acidity that settled with controlled verve. Excellent.

2020 Domaine Morey-Coffinet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Clos Saint-Jean Rouge. Popped and poured at Asia Grand, 15 Apr 2025. Rather darkish for pinot. Very fine density of ripe raspberries and mulberries, structured with assertive tannins and firm acidity that exert focused intensity though somewhat one-dimensional.

Champagne Charles Heidsieck Brut NV, on board SQ318 SIN-LHR, 17 Apr 2025. Clear golden luminosity, proffering creamy overtones of almond, buttery notes and grapefruit matched by a lovely dry chalky intensity on the medium-full palate, tinged with green fruits and crisp yellow citrus without being abrasive. Decent finish of bitter lemon.

2023 Craggy Range Te Muna Sauvignon Blanc, on board SQ318 SIN-LHR, 17 Apr 2025. Displaying a gentle luminosity, this Marlborough white opens with a predominance of diesel, earthy tones and morning dew. Surprisingly lean, though it makes up for its medium weight with a focused concentration of olives and nutmeg that stretched with lithe agility all through to its glowing finish of exotic spices.

2023 Deep Woods Chardonnay, on board SQ318 SIN-LHR, 17 Apr 2025. Pale luminosity. Morning dew, white notes and chalk dominate with enticing presence, the fruit just a tad backward in favour of crisp dryish acidity.

2021 Sons of Eden Marschall Shiraz, on board SQ318 SIN-LHR, 17 Apr 2025. Deep garnet, exuding a classic shiraz warmth laced with vanillin and licorice. Medium-full, imbued with excellent fleshy ripe fruit without being overly dense, boasting lithe vibrancy and refined balance with a supple tensile mouthfeel. A good choice.

2018 Le Château Loudenne, on board SQ318 SIN-LHR, 17 Apr 2025. The first bottle was distinctly corked (my first such encounter at 40,000 feet !!). The second bottle boasts restrained dark berries from its impenetrable deep garnet, displaying remarkable balance between its excellent concentration of fruit and pliant tannin structure, turning more darkly delicious over time with controlled verve. Drinking well.

2022 Domaine Michel Bouzereau et Fils Meursault Les Grands Charrons, courtesy of Mr Thio from the list of UMU, London, 18 Apr 2025. Displaying a clear golden luminosity, this wine exudes delicious cool glacial tones topped with créme de la créme, subtly nuanced with refined precision and understated intensity in spite of its generous proportions. Very lovely.

2002 M Chapoutier Ermitage L’Ermite, courtesy of Mr Thio from the list of UMU, London, 18 Apr 2025. Deep crimson, delivering deep leathery and velvety textures from the copious presence of red fruits well into their secondary development, structured with silky smooth tannins that fleshed out well with refined detail and proportion.

Champagne Laurent Perrier Brut NV, courtesy of Mr Thio at Claridge’s, London, 19 Apr 2025. Pale luminosity. Very cleanly focused and refreshing with incisive cutting acidity amid distant orchard fruit. Fanned out well.

2019 Domaine Pascale Martrot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Combettes, courtesy of Mr Thio at Claridge’s, London, 19 Apr 2025. Pale with a rounded elegance. A little restrained initially, proffering just a hint of pineapples before opening up with more effusive chromatic tones whilst the usual chalkiness is reined in with lovely subtlety, blossoming into a classic Puligny. Drinking beautifully.

2017 Domaine Bertrand Bachelet Maranges 1er La Fussière, courtesy of Mr Thio at Claridge’s, London, 19 Apr 2025. Good colour. Rounded with subtle shades of top-notch raspberries and dark plums dressed in smooth tannins. Darkly delicious at just the right level of extraction with understated intensity and cool ripeness. An absolute gem for the discerning connoisseur.

2021 Domaine Dureuil-Janthial Rully, courtesy of Mr Thio at Canton Blue, The Peninsula London, 20 Apr 2025. Luminous gold, opening with a restrained chalkiness tinged with saline minerals that carried well onto the palate with refreshing crispness, displaying controlled verve and intensity, veering towards a reductive precision as its distinct salinity took hold of the palate.

2020 Domaine Pierre-Yvés Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin 1er Les Champiots, courtesy of Mr Thio at Canton Blue, The Peninsula London, 20 Apr 2025. Pale luminosity. There is a very slight reductive pungency amid cool glacial notes that blew off to reveal restrained layers of saline minerals within its fullish rounded elegance, fleshing out eventually with gleaming tones.

2022 Thomas Morey Chassagne-Montrachet, courtesy of Mr Thio at Scott’s Mayfair, London, 21 Apr 2025. Displaying luminous golden hues, this wine opens with some restraint amid stony overtones tinged with a dash of salinity. The creamy smooth palate boasts an almost luxuriant feel where every element of fruit, acidity and minerals is precisely in place, stretching out with understated glowing intensity.

2023 Tamellini Soave Veneto at The Vault, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, 21 Apr 2025. Pale luminosity. Sharp lift of flint and crisp citrus. Quite engaging on the medium-full palate. Refreshing and lively.

Champagne Moët Chandon Imperial Brut NV at The Vault, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, 21 Apr 2025. Pale. Full presence of lime and citrus fruit that cut through with incisive acidity and brazen intensity.

2015 Hattingley Valley Blanc de Blancs at The Vault, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, 21 Apr 2025. Pale. This Hampshire sparkling wine is full-bodied, a little forward in lime and clear citrus but well balanced with good refinement, traversing the palate with even intensity.

2022 Monteleccio Castello di Argiano Sesti at The Vault, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, 21 Apr 2025. Good colour. Predominance of supple red fruits within sweetish smooth tannins, proffering chamfered detail with subdued intensity. Evenly proportioned. Drinking well.

2020 Peller Estate Vidal Blanc Icewine at The Vault, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, 21 Apr 2025. Deep golden. Effusive fragrance of apricot cinnamon and honey. Good acidity and intensity though offering much in terms of potential complexity. Canadian.

2019 Domaine de Montille Saint-Aubin 1er En Remilly. Aired for two hours ahead of dinner at home, 28 Apr 2025. Pale greenish. Fairly effusive in white flowers and orchard fruit. Still rather tight on the medium-full palate, turning more reductive and minerally over time, yielding some inner detail of green fruits and icing.

1990 Château Léoville Las-Cases. Aired in bottle ahead of dinner at Otto Ristorante, 30 Apr 2025. Deep purple. Accentuated lift of red roses, dark cherries, blueberries and earthy balsamic elements. Medium-full. Still amazingly fresh and lively, boasting slick acidity and structured tannins smoothened through the passage of time. Slightly velvety with a tinge of exotic spice, developing the classic Saint-Julien glow of dry cassis and iron filings throughout its moderate length. Far from drying out. Excellent.