Christmas Day Lunch

We borrowed the communal kitchen and private dining room on the 41st floor of J-Residence to cook a classic Christmas Day turkey and all the trimmings lunch with views out over downtown Hong Kong and Victoria harbour.

• 2013 Quartz Reef Methode Traditionelle Blanc de Blancs 90 Points

  New Zealand, South Island, Otago, Central Otago

  Light gold colour. Fast dissipating very frivolous initial mousse which leaves loads of streams of persistent and tiny pinprick bubbles. Nose is classic brioche, white shoe cream, lanolin, subtle confit lemon. Palate is really attractive immediate super-pettilante attack followed by very fresh and cleansing clean, bracing acidity and a low dosage character with no pronounced secondary characteristics and nothing tertiary at all. Nicely buzzy inside the head on the finish. Very well made. Still has many years ahead of it. Merry Christmas, Rudi Bauer & team, our great friends at Quartz Reef.

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Served with Angela's 'to die for' duck-fat roasted potatoes and parsnips, home made chestnut stuffing, fresh-pulled garden carrots, steamed brussell sprouts 'on the stem' with pancetta, steamed broccoli, white wine gravy.

• 1996 Château Lafon-Rochet 89 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Saint-Estèphe

  Bought on release. Double-decanted 3 hours before serving over home-prepared Christmas turkey long lunch. Semi opaque deep ruby colour with not even a hint of bricking. Nose is quite distinctly heavy cassis liqueur and new black car tyres, with hints of a freshly extinguished campfire on opening then opens with time in the glass to alluring damp woodland loam and woodsmoke. Palate is tart, still quite tannic but mellows somewhat into a rich, classic Saint Estephe combination of dark black confit cherry, cedar shingles, mountain stone rubble but keeps a tannic backbone. This packs some power and has a reasonably medium-long finale. Has a decade or so to unfurl further, or so I hope. Hard to tell. Actually it lost character with extended time open at the table. At this stage, in its class, I’d opt for the Ch. Talbot ‘96 every time. 89 for now.

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• 2016 Ataraxia Chardonnay Cape Winemakers Guild Under the Gavel 90 Points

  South Africa, Cape South Coast, Walker Bay, Hemel-en-Aarde Valley

  Two remaining bottles from a case of 6 bought at the 2017 Cape Winemakers charity auction, so not much time in the barrel. Somewhat to my surprise, it has retained a light, yellow lemon skin colour. Nose is very citric high piano notes - lightly burned lemon skins drizzled with squeezed fresh lemons juice. Palate is very refreshing and youthful - grated lemon zest acidity, light and tangy mouthfeel compared to the Jordan CWS Chardonnay 2016 drank up yesterday. Some slight bitter almond on the finish, which segues into a heady and long finale which is nicely resonant inside the head. This is excellent winemaking and a pleasant surprise that it has stayed young and fresh after all these years as I assume it was made for early after-auction drinking. Bravo! 90+

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A super afternoon....and evening.