Some thought Chenin but didn’t have the sweetness, I was thinking Jura with the cloudiness. A little thin despite the tropical fruit, guessed 2013 for the vintage. Not very Lamy-like.

Incredibly fresh with a brilliant ruby colour. Would have guessed 2015 if not for the 2013 vintage cut-off. Light-footed and elegant, attractive strawberry red fruit but lacked the stuffing I expected of Monprivato.

Bit natty, Grenache-like with candied red fruit at the start. Thankfully it put on weight with air, while retaining the silky and ethereal texture. Brilliant purity of fruit and a saline finish. My first instinct was ‘11/12 Roagna but misunderstood that the person wasn’t going to bring a Roagna. Similar to my previous experiences, the VVs are always a step up and very Burgundian-like. My WOTN.

Shame that this was corked as hell since this was his last traditional vintage apparently.

High VA, powerful dark red fruit which made Cappellano an easy guess. Bit of alcohol heat so went for ‘09 for the vintage. Impressive structure but lacked a little finesse, slightly bitter finish.

Knew the identity of this wine but guesses around the table were at least a decade younger. Tobacco, brooding blackcurrant fruit with integrated oak. Modern but subtle and seamless, thought this was one of the best wines of the night. Drinking at peak.

Guessed 2013 because it was showing so youthfully with structure. Similar to the ‘97 alongside in that it was modern but refined. More elegant but less imposing and mid-palate weight than the ‘97. Still a long way to go for this and another superb Gaja.

Impressively, someone managed to nail this as a Bartolo since this was very different from the post-2010 wines that I have tried. Thought this was rather extracted with stewed pruney fruit. Some Vosne-like five spice notes. Read some wines from this era have been prematurely oxidised so maybe this was another example?

My contribution. Huge monster of a wine - made like a Napa Cab in that era. Extracted, woody and chewy tannins. Not my cup of tea, very much prefer their recent vintages that have a more red-fruited style.

My extra. Youthful with tutti-frutti notes on the nose, most guessed ‘16-18! On the modern spectrum, this was between the Gajas and the Sottimano/A. Conterno. Tight and tannic to begin with but relaxed with air. Slightly sweet but pure blackcurrant fruit. Had some mixed experiences ageing Clerico but this was enjoyable; most preferred this to the Sottimano.

Not quite sure how this made it into the line-up but immediately felt this was outclassed; simple and drank like an entry-level compared to the other wines on the night. Ridiculous mark-up by a Singaporean retailer that I avoid like the plague. Most guessed this to be older, thought it was ‘08 myself. Apparently this is a traditional producer but felt modern with the plummy dried fruit and extracted notes.

Clearly modern and extracted, even more so than the Gajas to the point that it was overdone for me. Showed its pedigree beside the Manzone but not a wine that I could drink more than a glass of. Some mint on the finish that I found distracting.