Chateau Latour-Martillac

What a fabulous start of lunch by sipping Chateau Latour-Martillac Blanc 2001 from Pessac-Léognan. This 15 year old wine was elegant, fresh with great refinement - a reminder of how a great Bordeaux white wine can develop.

The lunch was hosted by the Chateau’s brand ambassador Edouard Kressmann, a winemaker by training and the fourth generation of the family-owned estate. Originated from Poland, the great great grandfather Edouard moved to Bordeaux in 1858, built a successful negociant business and eventually advised Chateau La-Tour in Martillac to plant white grape varieties. The property was subsequently bought by Alfred, the son of Edouard, who changed the name to Latour-Martillac. The terroir of the estate proofed to be exceptional for both red and white wines. When the Graves wines were classified in 1953 and again in 1959, only six estates had both their reds and whites selected for the classification, and Chateau Latour-Martillac was one of them.

Edouard is proud of the label, designed by his grandfather Jean in 1934. A striking geometric design with black, gold and beige pattern, it was inspired by the Art deco movement. I have to admit that the label does stand out and is probably well-received in China, the market that Edouard is focussing. He moved to Beijing in 2011, visiting various Chinese and Asian cities to promote the brand. Although Pessac-Léognan still lags behind the Medoc in China, Edouard is pleased to see that more and more Chinese consumers are not chasing big names.

Chateau Latour-Martillac was also a pioneer and employed the first female winemaker in the Pessac-Léognan appellation back in 1991. Valérie Vialard has been with the chateau since then. Michel Roland was the winemaking consultant until 2001 and when Valérie took over, she experimented with different ageing and blending techniques. Michel aged wines in barrels according to their quality (best wine in new barrel, second best wine in first year barrel and so on) an
d only blended them later, while Valérie first blends the wine then ages them in new, first and second filled barrels in equal portion. The final wine is more integrated and elegant.

Edouard is the only member in his generation actively involved in the family’s business. Although he misses harvest and working in the winery, he plans to stay here in the east for a while to understand the customers. His stint in China would certainly prepare him to continue the legacy of Chateau Latour-Martillac.

Chateau Latour-Martillac is available from Summergate.

Facelift of Hugel estate - from sons to family

Energetic Etienne Hugel, the face of the Alsatian estate Hugel, visits Asia regularly and often. His first market visit this year was on a high note and he was excited to share the latest changes at the estate.

First of all was the change of name, from ‘Hugel & Fils’ to ‘Famille Hugel’, to officially recognise the other gender in the family. This was followed by the change of the label. While still retaining the trademark ‘Maggi’ yellow colour, the family coat of arms is modernised and the new label looks cleaner and fresher. Last but not least, the family also revamped their range of wine, starting from most popular Gentil, then the dry varietal wine Classic (former Hugel) range predominately from purchased grapes, the Estate (previously Tradition) range which only consisted of Riesling and Gewurztraminer from the selected plots in the family estate, followed by the Gossi Laüe range replacing the Jubilee line where grapes are picked from the best sites in the estate. The limited release Schoelhammer, with 2007 being the first vintage, is a single vineyard Riesling from the heart of the Schonenbourg Grand Cru hillside. Vendage Tardive and Selection de Grains Nobles completed the range.

We tasted and compared four varieties in different ranges: Pinot Noir (2014 Classic and 2010 Gossi Laüe), Riesling (2013 Classic, 2012 Estate and 2010 Gossi Laüe) , Pinot Gris (2012 Classic and 2010 Gossi Laüe) and Gewurztraminer (2013 Classic, 2012 Estate, 2010 Gossi Laüe and 2007 Vendate Tardive). All the wines were well-made and each range has a clear identity that appeals to the target customers and occasion. The Classic range is fresh and accessible, the Estate range has an added complexity and dimension while the Gossi Laüe (equivalent to Grosse Lage or Grand Cru) range is the finest expression of terroir. The Gossi Laüe Pinot Noir was complex and elegant, while its Riesling counterpart, awarded the perfect 20/20 points by Bettane & Desseauve, was dense, precise and with longevity.

I am not a big fan of Gewurztraminer but was impressed by the Hugel Gewurztraminer series. They were aromatic but not excessive, full bodied but not heavy, opulent but not right on your face. The Estate one was harmonious while the Gossi Laüe’s was elegant. I think they would match well with the spicy and slightly sweet Korean cuisine.

However, I can feel that Etienne was most proud of the mass appealing Gentil, a wine blended with all the key Alsatian white varieties: Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Muscat, Pinot Blanc and Sylvaner. The objective is to produce a consistent wine year on year that goes well with a wide range of food. Each grape contributes a layer or aroma but none dominates the wine. Etienne compared it to champagne - a wine that makes people happy but without the bubbles and the price tag. Its 2007 vintage was selected by Decanter as one of the France’s 50 best-value wine. Etienne was also frank about how Gentil was born - not because of some fancy idea of the winemaker but because of the downturn of the economy after the Gulf War in 1992 when the company was forced to develop a value wine. The name Gentil was chosen because it was the term for a blend of wine from noble grapes in the 1920s. The decision proofed to be a sound one and today 400,000 bottles of Gentil are available in all 109 countries that Hugel exports to. The 2013 vintage was even served on the business class of Japanese airline ANA.

Familie Hugel is in its 13th generation but the company does not show any sign of tiredness or sleepiness. With the changes outlined by Etienne, I can see the family is adapting to future and engaging the young generation while balancing it with quality and traditional value. The new carton box of the crowd-pleasing Gentil, is a picture of the bottle with kisses, with the question, ‘Why do all the ladies go crazy for him?’ and the answer, ‘Because he is always the perfect Gentil-Man’. Well, traditionalists may find this tacky but so what if the majority likes it. After all, it’s only the carton box, Etienne assured us that the kisses are not on the actual bottles.

Etienne is charming and humorous, with a presentation style not dissimilar to Apple Computer founder Steve Job. He has been actively promoting Riesling with Asian cuisine for the past 20 odd years and even produced a set of chopstick with a Hugel cork holder to hammer the message. I hope his effort and love for Asia will be carried on by the young Hugels in future.

Hugel is available from Summergate.

White pepper Syrah

The intense white pepper from the Craggy Range Syrah that I tasted in their cellar at Gimblett Gravels back in 2008 was so pronounced that I finally understood why Syrah is so often characterised as smelling of white pepper. Since then, I have always kept an eye out for Gimblett Gravels Syrahs and they have not disappointed.

This distinctive aroma can be attributed to the combination of the gravelly soil and the climate—free draining, warm days and cool nights. It is more akin to the Northern Rhone style than the full-bodied, jammy Shiraz from warmer regions. However, being New Zealand, the wine is more vibrant than Hermitage. To me, it is a perfect combination of climate, soil and winemaking technique.

At last year Gimblett Gravels Annual Vintage Selection tasting, Tony Bish, Chairman of  the Gimblett Gravels Winegowers Association, presented 12 wines—eight red blends and four Syrahs independently selected by Andrew Caillard MW—that best represented the vintage and the region. I was particularly impressed by the William Murdoch and Vidal Legacy Series. A couple of attendees remarked "... Gimblett Gravels is a fresh spring for me", and "...it was exciting to taste so many promising Syrahs from the region". I couldn’t agree more.

If anyone is scratching his head about how to identify white pepper in Syrah, get a Gimblett Gravels Syrah and you’ll never forget it. It is my favourite Syrah!

Once dismissed by sheep farmers as useless land, the Gimblett Gravels Wine Growing District is an 800ha vineyard area strictly determined by the gravelly soils laid down by the old Ngaruroro River in the Hawke’s Bay area of of New Zealand’s North Island. Believed to be the first designation for a winegrowing district outside Europe, it is now home to around 30 vineyards and is quickly gaining fame in the wine world.

Not to be outdone by the district's Syrahs are its Bordeaux blends. They have the structure of a cool climate region but again with a New World fruit forwardness that many have described as elegant and sophisticated. Although some of the wines at the tasting were too young to drink, they nevertheless had concentration and ageing potential. Asked if the wines were released too early, Tony agreed but said the wines have been kept for two years and most wineries cannot afford to store them for longer because they need the space and the cash for the new vintage. He hopes consumers can cellar the wines for a while to realise their full potential. Well, I suppose we have to be a little patient.

The wines we tasted were:

Blended reds (Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon dominant):
Babich The Patriarch, available from Watson’s Wine
Craggy Range Te Kahu, available from Montrose
Esk Valley Winemakers Reserve Merlot Malbec Cabernet, available from Summergate
Mills Reef Elspeth Cabernet Merlot, available from Northeast
Newton Forrest Stony Corner, available from Kerry Wines
Sacred Hill Brokenstone, available from Jebsen
Sacred Hill Helmsman, available from Jebsen
Trinity Hill The Gimblett, available from ABS Asia

Syrah:
Squawking Magpie Stoned Crow
Vidal Legacy Series, available from Asia Euro
Villa Maria Reserve, available from Summergate
William Murdoch, available from Vintage International

South Africa - Variety is in our Nature

I have always had a soft spot for South Africa. My first time there was in 1996. After a few weeks on the road driving around the canyons, Kruger and the Garden Route, we finally arrived at Stellenbosch where we spent a week tasting wine every day, duly starting at 9:00am when the cellar doors opened. Since then, I have been back to the Stellenbosch area five times and have had the privilege of doing vintages at Ashanti and Thelema.


Therefore it was great news that Wines of South Africa (WOSA), was finally organising a long overdue South African wine tasting in Hong Kong recently. 29 wines from Cap Classique and Chenin Blanc to Bordeaux blends and Pinotage were presented to packed audiences in two sessions: the trade masterclass with tutored tasting in the afternoon and a consumer walk-around tasting in the evening.

Wine and Art

Most wine tastings are held in hotels or restaurants so it was a welcome change when Summergate had its Life | Wine event in The Space, an art gallery in Hollywood Road, recently. The wines were arranged by country in three separate areas dotted with photographs and various displays. Guests could taste wine from one country then move on to others, or they could, like me, go back and forth tasting one variety first, then a second (I started with Sauvignon Blanc followed by Riesling and Chardonnay then the reds).

I was there for about two hours and, sadly, I didn’t see one person other than me looking at the art around them. I wonder if some of them even noticed the displays at all! Perhaps this was because it was a trade tasting. The event was to switch to a consumer tasting in the evening and I hope the art was more appreciated then. Personally, I think Hong Kong should have more of these ‘lifestyle’ tasting events. Hunter Valley has its wonderful Jazz in the Vines, so why can’t Hong Kong have a Jazz and Wine evening, or an Art and Wine Show?

I would love to see a Travel Photography and Wine Exhibition in the Hong Kong Arts Centre with each country's wine showcased along with photographs of that country. The pictures would speak for the wine, which is itself expressive of the culture of the country. Surely this would be one way to make the meaning of terroir more easily understood by consumers.