Bongwater central

Drinks at La Cabane Bistro.

Brasserie Cantillon Ashanti - lambic with acidity and not bitterness. Lots of floral lavender here.

2017 Marie-Courtin Efflorescence - nose of caramelized apple, along with some nutty notes.

2022 Gramenon Côtes du Rhône L'Emouvante - definitely a Rhône syrah, with some smoke, leather, some fragrant eucalyptus, and black fruits.

2021 Calvez Bobinet Ruben - a bit funky on the nose, and definitely a cab franc.

Peyre Rose and more

Dinner at the Amex Centurion Gala.

Ruinart Blanc de Blancs - decent acidity on the palate, not as bland as I remembered from drinking many bottles. The nose was actually perfumed, and it wasn't even from the room.

2021 Alain Chavy Bourgogne Chardonnay - some elegant toasty notes on the nose, with a bit of lemon. Interesting that it almost smelled like Champagne.

2021 Coudoulet de Beaucastel - initially the nose seemed a little chalky, but this faded and the nose was almost a little floral.

Drinks at Roucou.

2013 Peyre Rose Les Cistes - this was reall fragrant, a little pungent with earthy tones. A little bongwater-like but I loved the sweet and ripe fruit as well as those floral notes. I could still feel the tannins on the palate a little bit. Later on this showed minty and really nice, toasty notes, and something that wasn't quite coffee-like, but this was so nice.

Full post on the evening is here.

Pegau Lône

Drinking at home.

2022 Château Pégau Côtes-du-Rhône Cuvée Lône - pretty ripe on the nose, with ripe peaches, a bit metallic, a bit acetone. Pretty grippy on the palate, especially on the finish.

Bought from HK Wine Vault for HKD 138.

2020 Guigal Côtes-du-Rhône

Drinking at home.

2020 Guigal Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge - pretty fragrant nose with woodsy and dried herb notes, but no toasty oak here, together with pine needles and a little leather. Slightly on the alcoholic side, but thoroughly enjoyable.

Bought from Apita for HKD 149.

Pégau Lône

Drinking at home.

2022 Pégau Cuvée Lône - riper on the nose and on the palate than I remembered. Flinty nose with a little acetone. Still got some acidity here, but not nearly as crisp as I expected.

Bought from HK Wine Vault for HKD 138.

Pégau tasting

Pégau tasting at Hong Kong Wine Vault, hosted by Laurence Feraud.

2022 Château Pégau Côtes-du-Rhône Cuvée Lône - nose was showing a little paint thinner at first, along with some flinty and citrus notes. Easy to drink.

2017 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée A Tempo - a big nose of very toasty oak, very nice. Also showing lemon along with some nice green notes. This was a much more complex wine, and started to be similar to white Burgundian chardonnay with some buttery notes.

2020 Château Pégau Côtes-du-Rhône Cuvée Sétier - big nose with farmy and animal notes, as well as some violet underneath. Very nice.

2020 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée Rouge - this was more elegant, fragrant, and sweeter on the nose.

2019 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Laurence - the nose was initially more muted and subdued, although one could see the elegance. Showing nice, woodsy notes but definitely not on the powerful side. Were there more tannins here?

2020 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Da Capo - definitely showing fragrant woodsy and cedar notes, needs time to develop fully.

2019 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée P.O.L. - HUGE nose with tons of coconut butter, and also desiccated coconut. So rich, so powerful, so amazing. Reminds me of a Sine Qua Non or a young Penfolds Grange.

Riesling and Rhone

Lunch at Luk Yu Tea House.

2021 Rappenhof Riesling E² - a little flinty on the nose with some lemon. Good acidity on the palate.

2004 Pax Venus - nose was very much oxidized but others felt it was simply natural aging. Notes of pineapple, Chinese angelica, and a little metallic rust.

2014 Gramona Corpinnat III Lustros, disgorged July 2022 - really nice on the palate and nicely balanced. A little acidity here but very smooth, without being too sweet or ripe.

2019 Château-Grillet Côtes-du-Rhône Blanc - the nose was very fragrant and floral, with stone fruits and some flint.

2022 Ogier Condrieu La Combe de Malleval - the nose was really floral and fragrant, with tropical fruits.

2016 Gangloff Condrieu - very alcoholic on the nose with notes of acetone.

1990 Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Kabinett - this was really nice, with plenty of lemon and polyurethane on the nose. Good acidity on the palate, almost bordering on being sharp, with a very long finish. The wine was much more viscous on the palate than expected, and just drinking beautifully.

Bought from Mayfair as part of a mixed lot for HKD 316.

2018 Keller Westhofen Kirchspiel Riesling Großes Gewächs - very big nose of polyurethane. Good amount of acidity on the palate.

2020 Ogier Syrah La Rosine - drunk much too young. Notes of blueberries as well as metallic nose.

2011 Ogier Côte-Rôtie Lancement - this was pretty elegant, very smooth on the palate, with notes of leather on the nose.

Full post on lunch is here.

Emmanuel Reynaud wines

Dinner at Caprice, featuring the wines of Emmanuel Reynaud.

All wines were opened at the same time and served without decanting.

2019 Domaine des Tours Vaucluse Blanc - served a little more than 7 hours after opening. Really ripe and really fragrant nose, with tropical stone fruits and acetone notes. The sweetness was not exactly like honey but something similar, and in any case this was really nice.

2017 Les Tours Vaucluse Blanc - served more than 7½ hours after opening. This was much sweeter on the nose compared to the 2019, with lovely honeysuckle, along with some acetone. Very exotic and fragrant nose. This was also bigger on the palate, very, very ripe and butter, with a bitter finish.

2017 Château des Tours Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge - served more than 8 hours after opening. Really lovely fruity nose, very fragrant, with a little bit of leather, lots of potpourri and dried herbs. Sooo lovely, actually, but in comparison to the 2014 Grande Réserve this was more closed, with more concentration.

2014 Château des Tours Côtes-du-Rhône Grande Réserve Rouge - served more than 8 hours after opening. Nose was showing cooler fruit for sure. This wine was so elegant, more floral with lavender notes... Is this really a Côtes-du-Rhône?! No fucking way! This was too fucking beautiful! Showing animal and leather notes, too. About 10 hours after opening this was so sweet like the honey dripping from a honeycomb, as I could smell the beeswax, too. My wine of the evening.

2009 Domaine des Tours Vaucluse Merlot-Syrah - served more than 8½ hours after opening. Nose was very minty and pretty fragrant. A little more tannic on the palate. After more than 10 hours the nose became a little grassy.

2005 Domaine des Tours Vaucluse Merlot - served more than 8½ hours after opening. Frankly the nose wasn't showing as well as the 2009 Merlot-Syrah, and felt a little dusty and not clean. Later one this seemed more ripe with some stewed prunes.

2011 Château Pignan - served more than 9 hours after opening. The nose was really floral and beautiful. So elegant now, with lovely strawberry notes one would expect from this wine. My second favorite wine of the evening. A very close second.

2011 Château de Fonsalette Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge - served more than 9 hours after opening. Certainly more concentrated than the Pignan, more meaty, but also pretty fragrant.

2012 Rayas Rouge - served almost 10 hours after opening. Showing notes of leahter and animal, but along with floral notes which made it very fragrant and elegant. A beautiful wine for sure, but tonight this was outshone but two of its stable mates.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC Dinner - MIAN

MNSC dinner at Mian, hosted by Dr. Poon.

First flight: served around 2 hours after opening without decanting.

1982 Mouton-Rothschild - nice, smoky nose with good fruit. Nice and cedar wood nose, also minty. Second pour showed more elegance along with more coconut butter. Really, really beautiful. 100 points.

1986 Mouton-Rothschild - initially more opulent than the '82, with sweet fruit. Good acidity. Then got heavier with more weight, more smoky, more concentration, with a little ripe fruit on the edges. 96 points.

Second flight: served around 1 hour and 15 minutes after decanting.

2000 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - really, really sweet, soooo fragrant, kinda sugary on the nose. Sooo sweet and jammy, almost like muscovado. Love it. More than 2 hours in the decanter and this showed some burnt rubber.

2000 Henri Bonneau Réserve des Célestins - very savory nose, gamey, more oxidized. Got better and showed a sweeter nose, and a little exotic.

2000 Fonsalette Rouge - a little dusty and chalky, showing strong notes of American ginseng and Chinese angelica as well as leather. Nose cleared up with the second pour and was pretty clean, and was a bit ripe. Unfortunately with more aeration the Chinese medicine notes came back, and was almost bitter on the palate.

1999 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères - popped and poured. Soooo beautiful. Nice with orange marmalade, sweet notes of straw, nice and toasty. Very elegant, lovely buttery nose, and a little metallic.

Full post on dinner is here.