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Back Ready to Drink Bordeaux, Burgundy, Italian and California All For Mom

Published on 9 May, 2020

A very happy early Mother’s Day to all the Mom’s out there! This week’s list of New Arrivals is filled with ready to drink wines from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Italy and California. And, we’ve also received in current vintages of Egon Müller from Germany and Burn Cottage from New Zealand. Here is a list of picks from our New Arrivals list this week for the special Mom you are celebrating tomorrow:

1.  1990 Château Lafite-Rothschild in Imperial (6L)
This big bottle will certainly show Mom you love her. It’s from what many consider to be the elite estate in Bordeaux, representing wine at the pinnacle of appreciation. This 1990 Lafite expresses not only the signature style of Lafite, but it also showcases the qualities found in the 1990 vintage. So, if 1990 is a special year for your Mom, or you want to indulge her in a spectacular wine, this Imperial is a very fine choice. And with this 6-litre format, Mom will have lots of wine to share with her family and friends.

2.  1989 Château Pétrus
Perhaps, your Mom likes Bordeaux, but Merlot or something from the Right Bank of Bordeaux better suits her taste. Then, for special wine worthy of celebrating Mom, 1989 Château Pétrus will offer just the right expression. We hosted a dinner in late September 2019 at Legacy House at the Rosewood featuring the 1989 Bordeaux vintage with Linden guiding everyone through the wines. As Linden noted in his review of this dinner: “[the vintage] saw high praise from both sides of the Atlantic, Michael Broadbent MW describing it as ‘unquestionably a great vintage’, and James Suckling (in Feb. 2000) as ‘the greatest Bordeaux vintage since 1961.’ The other contender was its sibling, 1990, which Michael noted mirrored ‘the earlier twins, 1899 and 1900.’” Click here to read Linden’s full report on our 1989 Bordeaux Dinner in Hong Kong.

3.  2009 Domaine Armand Rousseau Chambertin-Clos de Bèze
I find the essence of Burgundy in a glass of Armand Rousseau. Perhaps it’s because I first fell in love with Burgundy drinking a bottle of Gevrey-Chambertin. While Chambertin tends to garner all the attention and votes when comparing Chambertin versus Chambertin-Clos de Bèze, in the talented hands at Domaine Armand Rousseau, I frequently find myself more enamoured with the Chambertin-Clos de Bèze especially in vintages such as 1991, 2002, 2007 and 2009. If your Mom prefers elegance in her red Burgundy then go for this grand cru from Rousseau. But, I would hold onto this bottle of 2009 for a while longer to fully appreciate all it has to offer; those secondary aromas and added textural complexity will be worth the wait.

4.  2000 Domaine Dujac Clos St. Denis
During our Clos de la Roche versus Clos St. Denis dinner as part of TFWE’s 2018 Burghound Symposium, tasting these vineyards side by side crystalized for me my preference for the feminine and delicate qualities I find in the fruit and expression of Clos St. Denis. It’s the smaller of the two vineyards with just 6.62 hectares in comparison to Clos de la Roche at 16.9 hectares. And at Domaine Dujac (they own 1.47 hectares of Clos St. Denis and 1.95 hectares of Clos de la Roche) they bring out the strength of these grands crus like no one else as we’ve seen reflected in the rise of prices for older vintages of this wine. They may be pricey, but they are also hard to come by and worth it if you can acquire them. The 2000 vintage is drinking beautifully now and one that wine critics weren’t so impressed by upon release. However, drinking them now proves many wrong about how 2000s from top producers would age and develop. If the special Mom in your life enjoys red Burgundy with developing notes, purchase this bottle, share it with her and watch the smile.

5.  2018 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Spätlese
Egon Müller owns 8.3 hectares of the 28 hectares of the famous Scharzhofberger vineyard located in the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. Many consider Egon Müller Scharzhofberger the “Romanée- Conti” of Riesling. The TBAs from this vineyard are frequently among the highest garnering wines at auction. Their Spätlese from Scharzhofberger is also much more expensive than Spätlese from the other highly regarded producers of German Riesling. There are good reasons why.

As Dr. Katharina Prüm explained in our online live wine tasting session last Wednesday, 29th April, Spätlese means “late harvest”, but at Egon Müller for these wines, he selects the superior ripe grapes or overripe grapes to produce the wine; it’s not just a matter of picking the grapes later, but it’s about selecting the ripest grapes which are often from the best parcels. This attention to detail and focus on consistency and following the traditional methods are what results in these extraordinarily ageworthy wines being produced at even the Spätlese level.

6.  1968 Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva
For the reason to buy this wine for Mom, you need only read Linden’s tasting note from our Biondi-Santi Riserva vertical dinner at Otto e Mezzo on 28th November 2018:

Full evolved tawny, limpid; a fine nose, complex, lively, showing good freshness and clarity – really inviting; rich on the attack and really palate-filling extract, with a bright core of acidity running through it, almost dry white Burgundy-like in mouthfeel save for the gentle caress of resolved tannin. One of the more creamy and full Riservas tonight, yet still on the elegant side. From the nose through to the finish you feel the understated grandness of the wine. A real treat and undoubtedly one of the most special vintages of Biondi-Santi. 94 - 6 votes for wine of the night – 2nd place. Click here to read Linden’s full report on this dinner. (Don’t forget to join our Biondi-Santi Online Live Tasting this Thursday, 14th May at 6 p.m. on Facebook Live)

7.  1990 Giuseppe Mascarello Barolo ‘Monprivato’
When Mauro Mascarello took over from his father Giuseppe in the 1960s, likely the best change he made at this traditional Barolo estate was the production of a single vineyard Barolo in 1970 – ‘Monprivato’. This proved to be a good change as the 7 hectare southwest-facing vineyard in Castiglione Falletto delivers incredibly deep, expressive and ageworthy wines from its chalky marl soils. If you joined our Piemonte Fine Wine Dinner With White Truffles in November of last year, then you drank the 2004 and experienced firsthand why this single vineyard in Barolo is worth bottling separately rather than blending it as is the traditional practice in Barolo. The vintage 1990 is an outstanding one for Barolo, so if Mom enjoys aromas of crushed dried roses, fresh and dried cherries and truffles combined with silky and integrated tannins with a lingering finish then this wine is a good choice.

8.  1990 Dominus
Dominus is Christian Moueix’s (of Château Pétrus fame) vision of high calibre wine produced in Napa. After attending graduate studies in viticulture and oenology at U.C. Davis and being exposed to the terrain, climate and grape quality in Napa, Christian longed to return and to have his own winery there. In 1982, that dream became a reality when he formed a partnership to produce Dominus from the historic Napanook Vineyard in Yountville. He takes a French approach in the vineyard using practices like dry farming and focusing his efforts on producing top quality fruit. Then, for the winemaking there is little intervention as he believes the wine is made in the vineyard. The result is the ripeness of Napa encased in elegance and restraint. Give Mom this 1990 Dominus if she enjoys both Bordeaux and Napa in her glass. You find a bit of both in Dominus.

9.  2017 Burn Cottage Riesling/ Grüner Veltliner
Perhaps, your Mom is like mine, and she doesn’t drink much wine. And when she does she prefers something bright and refreshing. Then, buy her the 2017 Burn Cottage Riesling/ Grüner Veltliner. It’s a small production wine where they only make about 117 cases a year. The 2017 is a blend of 67% Riesling and 33% Grüner Veltliner. It’s a perfect complement for pan seared Hokkaido with vanilla butter as we saw during our Burn Cottage Wine dinner with Andy Crozier of Burn Cottage in late August last year. Or also a delicious drink on its own on a hot summer Hong Kong afternoon sitting on the beach with Mom. 

10.  1983 Château d’Yquem
For the Mom who enjoys something sweet, 1983 Château d’Yquem will impress her. This vintage is drinking well now, and it’s all you need at the end of a meal – no dessert, no cheese, just a glass of this and the evening is complete. Chat away with Mom over a glass or two.

These are my recommendations for the special Mom in your life. If you find yourself with questions, would like advice on which wines to choose, or would like photos, be sure to reach out. Happy Mother’s Day to all the Moms, and show your appreciation to her with a nice bottle of wine!