"Simple" Midweek Dinner - (Imperial Treasure, Asia Square)

This was one of the most interesting and varied blind line-ups I have had in some time. Cheers!

• NV Pierre Péters Champagne Brut Rosé for Albane 91 Points

  France, Champagne

  Very pleasant. Disgorged in April 2013, this blend of Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay had a really a unusual dark pink colour in the glass – almost the hue of a watered down red wine. It had a quite a pretty nose, with a bit of floral perfume, sweet scents of strawberries and cherries and a little whiff of yeast and mineral. Rather reminiscent of the nose on the Billecart-Salmon NV Rose that we drink ever so often I thought. The palate had a very different complexion though. There was a little blush of strawberries on the attack that echoed the nose, but it leaned out very quickly into more serious tones of mineral and citrusy lemon pips, all very linear and focused. It was certainly not unfriendly though - this was actually really light, fresh and refined throughout, and drinking quite nicely too, with a fresh balance and fine mousse that carried the wine into a lightly mouthwatering finish. This was quite enjoyable.

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• 2012 I. et S. Bernaudeau Les Nourrissons 92 Points

  France, Vin de France

  A really captivating wine. On the nose, a twang of saline seabreeze wafted around ripe apple fruit and lime zest aromas, with a streak of chalky mineral running behind. With time and as the wine warmed up, riper notes of mango and honey started drifting out as well. A nice and complex bouquet. The palate was full of life, racing through the palate with a laser-like beam of racy acidity speared through lively green apple and lime peel notes. There was a real sense of tension and energy here, with a lovely bright balance stretching all the way from the attack into a long, super minerally finish, chocked full of rocks, chalk and little pinpricks of spice. A wine of real character, this is tasty right now, but it certainly seems to have the bones to age for a long time yet. On present showing, it probably deserves at least 6-8 more years in the cellar, if not more.

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• 2005 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru

  Lovely - this is very solid Corton-Charlemagne indeed. It had such an engaging nose, opening with little roasted nut and cereal accents, then some stony, saline mineral notes and a whiff of gunflint, all floating over a stream of sweet stone fruit and ripe apple aromas with a suggestion of floral sweetness at the sides. Very attractive. That minerally, gunflinty note kept growing with time too. Nice. I really liked this on the palate as well. It was perhaps in an in-between adolescent stage, but still gave a lot of pleasure, with nice flavours of ripe red apples, stone fruit and little kumquat notes wrapped in a nicely creamy, fleshy package. With time and air, this just got plumper and fuller and more honeyed and nutty. It would have been almost a bit fat but for a lovely streak of saline, chalky minerality running through the palate, and a wonderful sense of balance and definition that kept it neat and focused all the way into a long, textured finish, where flecks of cream and butter and honey edged with flinty minerality then pulled away into a powerful end. Beautiful stuff. This will be a pretty early drinking Bonneau du Martray, but even then, I would probably give this quite a few years more in the cellar before popping the next bottle. Try again in 2018-2020.

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• 2000 Tyrrell's Sémillon Single Vineyard Stevens 90 Points

  Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley

  I have always had a soft spot for Hunter Valley Semillions, and Tyrell’s makes some of the best. At 15 years, this was at a rather awkward stage between adolescence and maturity, but it was still a pretty good drink. A touch reductive and matchsticky when first poured, it slowly opened up to show a ripe nose with sweet tropical inflections of green mangoes, pineapples and some sweet floral notes. There was also a little whiff of cream that smelt strangely like sweet oak and, with time, a little whiff of grass and mineral drifted out as well. A complex and quite attractive nose. The palate started out very sweet and fruity, with green mangoes, pineapples and nectarines lined with a little streak of minerality. It certainly was a big wine though, with a bit of an oily, alcohol-fueled depth to it, but nice dose of bright acidity still gave it a nice, clean breeziness. The finish ended with a brighter lick of lemony citrus and grassy notes and an intriguingly salty twang running behind. Again, there were some sweet vanilla notes hanging around the back-palate. A very interesting wine with lots of character. It does seem a little stuck between a citrusy youth and a deeper, creamier maturity though. I would give it 4-5 more years to see where it goes.

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• 2006 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Saumur Blanc Brézé 93 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Saumur

  I was really taken by this, a rare wine that combined hedonistic deliciousness with a serious intellectual bent even at its relatively young age. It opened up in the glass with a really nice nose of yellow fruit, kumquat and apple peel aromas alongside wafts of cream and brown buttery scents, all laced with a wonderfully flinty, salty mineral character. Really attractive. The palate was lovely too. Here, the ripe yellow fruit and creamy buttery notes picked up on the nose were sweetened with shades of caramel and honey and then pierced by a great beam of minerality and grippy extract that drove the wine into a long finish kissed with peppercorn and spice. I loved the balance and precision this had and its brilliant mineral tones. In spite of the creamy, caramel flavours and sweet fruit, it was at its core a really serious wine. I was intrigued by this – while drinking decently well now, it has the backbone and balance to age effortlessly for a long, long time to come. I would love to try this in 10, 15 even 20 years from now.

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• 2008 By Farr Pinot Noir Tout Près 92 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Geelong

  Clearly new world, but this was a pretty good Pinot Noir. The nose showed sweet drifts of red cherries and slightly candied strawberries touched by earth, herb and a touch of brambly eucalyptus notes. Very new worldly, but very pleasant indeed. The palate was still really youthful, with bright primary flavours of red cherries and berries spiked with citrusy acidity and fresh, stalky flower notes. This had the depth and presence of a good 1er Cru Burg, if not quite the complexity and grace. There was a nice balance and sense of shape and proportion to it as well. The finish started just a touch too herbal and brambly first, but got better and better with time, taking on a nice red fruited character. There was also a bit of heat hanging around, but that too dissipated sightly with time. This was a nice wine with good raw material, but I thought it needed a good 6-8 years more to integrate and develop in the bottle.

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• 1981 C.V.N.E. (Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España) Rioja Vina Real Crianza 4 Ano 92 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  A bit too funky, but there was a lot to like about this if you could get past its stinkier aspects. The funk started on the nose. It was almost smelly at first, with layers of cheese and muddy sous bois and barnyard aromas that took quite a bit of time and air to start dissipating. It always retained a touch of that stink throughout the evening, but the greater part of it thankfully lifted off to show more classic Rioja aromas of dried cherries and plums spiced with some cloves and nutmeg and a little drift of cigarette smoke. Nice, if you can get through the funk. The palate had lovely, soft, velvety feel, with silken tannins and lovely fresh acidity caressing fine flavours of dried cherries and wild berries. These were again touched with earthy soil and meat notes, but it was nowhere near as funky as on the nose. It kept getting better all the time as well, with little whiffs of smoky spice coming out as the wine tapered into a gentle finish. For a Crianza, this actually felt very complete; very nice indeed but for all that funkiness..Time to drink up though – I do not think this will improve much in the bottle. NB: Make sure to decant it for a short while or pop it a couple of hours before serving to allow bottle funk to blow-off.

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• 1988 Domaine Vaquer Côtes Catalanes Cuvée Fernand Vaquer 92 Points

  France, Languedoc Roussillon, Roussillon, Côtes Catalanes

  The freshest and best of the bottles of this wine that I have had so far, this was pretty nice. It had a nice, lively nose of dark cherries, blackberries and plums seasoned with bits of spice, earth and a touch of slatey minerality. With time, a little background note of violet flowers and wild herbs started drifting out as well. This was certainly the freshest, most funk-free nose of the bottles that I have. In keeping with the nose, the palate was very fresh and lively, showing clear flavours of dark cherries and blackberries with a nice depth to them, then a dusting of brush herbs and lifted spice notes and just an edge of tannins and a twist of earth in the mid-lengthed finish. With time, more sweet cherry notes started coming out along with a touch of stony minerality on the backpalate. A charming wine.

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• 2003 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée 94 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Really good – it bore some of the marks of the hot 2003 vintage, but somehow still came across as a very enjoyable, well-balanced CDP. Decanted for 2 hours before serving, this started with a sunny nose of ripe cherries and blueberries sprinkled with bits spice and bramble and garrigue, then notes of dried earth, stone and little nutty accents. A nicely complex nose. The palate was rich, thick and very textured, with fine, powdery tannins framing gorgeous flavours of ripe red cherries and berries along with more savoury tones of meat and earth. dried herbs and garrigue. Lovely – this had tons of complexity and character in the midst of its ripe 2003 fruit. It was beautifully balanced too, with deeply integrated acidity keeping the wine nicely poised. The vintage character showed up again in the slightly drying finish, but even then, it opened up nicely on the backpalate in time to show mouthcoating notes of sweet red fruit, nicely seasoned with herbs and spices. This still has a long future ahead of it, but it was already showing quite nicely with some time in the decanter. This would be interesting to try again in 3-4 years’ time.

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