Following on from the first instalment on Paul Jaboulet La Chapelle Hermitage in our last edition of the Asian Wine Journal, it is quite possible that I am becoming obsessed with La Chapelle and perhaps suffering from autosuggestion

My deprivation and craving to try the legendary 1990 was more than satisfied on a recent trip to France, in Bordeaux of all places! Well, at least that’s where the story begins. Participating in the 2007 en Primeur tastings, I was a guest of the Frey family, consummate hosts and my lodgings at the impeccably renovated Château La Lagune. Indeed, an auspicious circumstance if not nostalgic, recollecting my early days as a sommelier, Château La Lagune being amongst the first Bordeaux wines I cut my teeth on.

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This incredible Champagne collection spans more than three decades and includes well over a hundred of the best bubblies produced between 1979 and 2002.

Among the many highlights are multiple vintages of Krug and Krug Clos du Mesnil, ten vintages of Dom Perignon, plus a horizontal of the great 1996s from Billecart Salmon!

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Is there another 1961 equivalent in the offering? Cuisine & Wine Asia’s Contributing Wine Editor Curtis Marsh ponders the latest staggering auction result at Christie’s.

In conversation with an enthusiast at a recent wine dinner, the subject turned to the staggering price that a case of 1961 Paul Jaboulet La Chapelle (rouge) fetched in the latest Christie’s Fine and Rare Wine Auction in London, a whopping GBP123,750 (S$342,000) inclusive of taxes and premiums, setting a new European record for the amount paid for a single case of wine.

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The Wandering Palate’s UK correspondent, Alistair Scott considers the gratifyingly tangible aspects of a good old fashion,, family-run local wine merchant.

So, what makes a great wine shop…or off-licence or bottle shop if you prefer? What is it that works best for you as a wine buyer? When the door bell pings and you look inside the store, what excites you and where are the best examples of the species to be found?

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