Wines that Attract Women to Drink 吸引女人飲的酒

其實並不是所有葡萄酒都適合放存很久，又或者可陳年的葡萄萄酒其實也有它的賞味期限。所以如果你可以品嚐到放了20年的葡萄酒依然精采盛放，証明那酒莊的葡萄酒非常值得收藏! 人生有幾多個20年？喝到20年的好酒也是一種快樂。 其中一個快樂體驗是參加了法國波爾多Clos L'Eglise 酒莊20年的垂直試酒會。位於波爾多右岸Pomerol區，與Chateau Clinet, Chateau L’Eglise Clinet 及Chateau Trotanoy為鄰居，試了由1997年-2016年每年的變化，1997年絶對感受到陳年的優雅，帶皮革、煙草、可可豆、乾梅、乾紫花等。但只差一年的1998年卻帶來完全不同感受，依然活潑，帶黑莓、紫花、朱古力、礦物等。我還喜歡2001年的平衡、香料及黑果香。而2015年及2016年很澎湃，會令你即時幻想到20年後的變化，就像剛喝過的97、98年一樣，我覺得波爾多右岸的風格好像温柔的貴婦，成熟而優雅。 另一個快樂體驗是試了澳洲Coonawarra Wynns酒莊的垂直試酒會，其中試了Wynns Michael Shiraz 1993年及2014年。2014年非常香氣四溢，帶紫花、黑胡椒、車厘子等，像活潑的少女。而1993年圓潤而優雅，帶草本、甘草、乾紫花、礦物、黑果、朱古力等，像熱情的淑女。跟Wynns第一個女高級釀酒師Sue Hodder會面，同場亦試了John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 2003年，帶紫花、黑莓、草本、香料等，十分有層次，餘韻悠長，Wynns只會於靚年份先出這款酒，而當中只選最好的1%做這支酒，絕對對於值得珍藏。 喝著新舊葡萄酒對比，令我想起陳奕迅的一首舊歌「葡萄成熟時」，如果愛情代表葡萄酒的話，那今時今日還有幾多情侶可將愛釀成20年醇酒? 或許喝一瓶陳年佳釀比較易掌握些。 Not all wines can age gracefully. Besides, wines with aging potential also have their expiry date. If you have tried a 20 year-old wine that is still lovely and vibrant, you should remember the winery’s name and start stocking up its wines for your future consumption. How many 20 years can you spend in your lifetime? It’s really happy to open a nice bottle of 20 year-old vintage wine to enjoy from time to time. I was very happy to attend Clos L’Eglise 20 years’ vertical wine tasting recently. Situated in Pomerol, the right bank of Bordeaux and the neighbours of Chateau Clinet, Chateau L’Eglise Clinet and Chateau Trotanoy, I tried the vintages from 1997-2016. 1997 is very elegant and aged gracefully, with leather, tobacco, cocoa, dried plum and dried floral notes. As for 1998, it’s just one year part, but the notes are so different. It’s vibrant with blackberries, dried violet, chocolate and mineral notes. I also like 2001 a lot, which is balanced with black fruit and spices. 2015 and 2016 are lively and pungent. You can imagine how they will be elevated in 20 years’ time, just like the 1997 and 1998 that I tasted. I find the style of Bordeaux right bank is just like an elegant and sophisticated lady. Another happy vertical wine tasting experience is from Coonawarra Wynns tasting. I tried several wines including Wynns Michael Shiraz 1993 and 2014. 2014 is very aromatic with violet, black pepper and cherry notes. It feels like a lovely young lady to me. As for 1993, it’s more rounded and elegant with herbal, licorice, dried violet, mineral, black fruit and chocolate notes. It feels like a passionate woman to me. I was delighted to meet with Sue Hodder, the senior winemaker and the first women winemaker at Wynns, and tried the John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon 2003, with violet, blackberries, herbaceous and spices notes. It is aromatic, complexed and with long finish. Wynns only produce this wine in good vintages and they only pick the best 1% grape to make this wine, which is a real great gem to collect. While I was sipping and comparing the new and old vintages, my mind kept looping an old song “When Grapes are Ripe” from Eason Chan (HK singer). If love is just like wine, I wonder how many couples can maintain their love relationship for 20 years nowadays? Perhaps it’s easier to grab a bottle of vintage wine to enjoy than finding this long and lasting love.

Happiness is a big reason why I enjoy wine so much! When I sip a nice wine that I like, I’d smile from my heart. When I see a very good vintage wine from an outstanding chateau, my eyes will look like the heart-shaped emoji icon. Not every wine will make me happy, just like not every guy will make your heart beats faster. One of the wines that most people will be happy to sip is Krug champagne. I’m also very delighted to meet with Maggie Henriquez, the President and CEO of Krug, again. She introduced the newly launched Krug 2004 to Hong Kong market. Krug 2004 has been aged for at least 13 years, with a combination of 39% Chardonnay, 37% Pinot Noir and 24 % Pinot Meunier. This is the third vintage after 1981 and 1998 that has more Chardonnay than Pinot Noir. The weather was better than 2003 and Chardonnay was outstanding in 2004. It is very fresh and lively with white flowers, green apple, kumquat, mineral, honey and candied spices notes. The acidity is high with great potential. If you drink Krug, you should know that they have a Krug App, where you can scan the Krug ID to get more detailed information about the champagne, as well as a music pairing song recommendation for you. So which song is a good pairing with Krug 2004? Krug has invited Lianne La Havas, the British singer-songwriter to be the musician for Krug 2004. We paired the champagne with her song Unstoppable. I asked Maggie when they would invite musicians to do the music pairing for Krug. She said that when the chef de caves thinks that it’s about the right time to release the champagne, they would recork the bottle to settle for another year and invite the musicians to do the pairing. How do I feel about the music pairing? It does taste better under a more relaxed and happy mood with more fruitiness coming out from the pairing. I’m also so blessed that I tried my first bottle of Chateau Latour 1947 at a gathering! I’m so happy and it feels like I’ve won Mark Six! I still keep smiling whenever I think about it. 1947 was a good vintage in Bordeaux. How does this 1st growth grand cru classe taste like? It has forest, toasty, dried mushroom, leather, old oak, dried raspberries, dried roses and dried tea leaves notes. It has more dried prune and toffee notes after breathing. It's amazing and still very lively at 70 years old! There is really a kind of happiness that you can only get from wine! 我喜愛葡萄酒的其中一個重大原因是快樂！喝到佳釀時真的會從心底笑出來，見到超級大莊的好年份葡萄酒會即時心心眼！當然不是每支酒都會令我心心眼，就等如不是每個男人也會令你心動一樣。其中一個肯定人見人愛的快樂來源是Krug香檳！很高興又與Krug香檳總裁兼CEO Maggie Henriquez 會面，今次她帶來全新Krug 2004年到港為亞洲發佈會的首站。全新Krug 2004年最少陳年了13年，包括39% Chardonnay、37% Pinot Noir 及24% Pinot Meunier。 這支2004年是繼1981及1998年後第三支會以Chardonnay比重多於Pinot Noir的Krug香檳， 因為這年天氣比2003年好，而Chardonnay亦特別出色。此香檳味道非常清新活潑，帶白花、青蘋果、柑橘、礦物、蜜糖、糖衣香料等味，酸度高，非常有potential。如果你有飲開Krug，應該知道佢有自己的Krug App，只要數一數Krug ID便知這支酒的詳細資料，最獨特的是Krug特別為不同Krug香檳提供配對的音樂pairing。那2004年配那首歌？Krug邀請了英國歌手兼作曲家Lianne La Havas 為這年份的代言人，並一起邊喝邊聽她作曲及演繹的Unstoppable。我問Maggie她們何時邀請音樂家為香檳作音樂配對。她說當釀酒師認為支酒可以差不多出世時，她們會將酒從新裝新酒塞再放一年，然後邀請音樂家來試酒並創作。聽著音樂pairing喝Krug2004年真係好飲點，心情更愉快開懷，果香更跳脫！ 近日更有幸喝了人生第一支Chateau Latour 1947年！簡直開心到有如中了六合彩！現在回想都仲笑咪咪！1947年係波爾多的好年份，到底這支波爾多一級莊的葡萄酒是什麼味的呢？希望在此與大家分享。此酒帶乾菇、烤烘、舊橡木、森林、皮革、乾紅莓、乾玫瑰及乾茶葉味，以七十之齡仍然很活潑，唞氣後乾梅子及單寧開放了，亦帶點拖肥的餘韻，好棒啊！有種快樂是葡萄酒才能給你的呀！

What wines will you choose for boat trips in summer? I just want to sip chilled wines on the yacht and enjoy sea breeze! It's so chilled to sip new vintage fruity wines under a hot sunny day. I start to understand why guys always like to hang out with young ladies, as they are simple & refreshing, just like my feeling of sipping white or rose wine on a boat trip, it feels so good! I joined Bernard Magrez's boat trip recently for tasting its new Bleu de Mer wines from Languedoc-Rousillon in Southern France, including red, white and rose wines. It's not a Pape Clement tasting this time. The Bleu de Mer wines are more for daily drinking. You can tell by its label with blue and white stripes that feels so summer! I like the Bleu de Mer Rose 2016 (Grenache and Cinsault based) with raspberries, cherries and mineral notes. It's refreshing and fruity, which feels like a sweet sixteen lady! Bleu de Mer White 2016 (Sauvignon Blanc based) is unlike the new world style with strong green bell pepper notes. It has lime, green apple, subtle green bell pepper, herbaceous and mineral notes. It's elegant and crispy, just like a twenty-ish lady who starts to show her feminine elegance. I also like to bring Riesling to boat trips, as I feel so romantic to sip a floral wine at sea. I attended Domaines Schlumberger's tasting lately and met with the winery owner Alain Schlumberger. I tasted 7 wines with him and I liked Schlumberger Riesling Grand Cru Saering 2014 very much. It's rounded and complex, with white floral, mineral, lime and pear notes. It's an elegant wine to bring to boat trips. I also like the Clemens Bursch Marienburg Trocken GG VDP Grosse Lage Fahrlay 2014 Riesling wine that I tasted at Wine High Club portfolio tasting. It's rounded, bone dry with high acidity. It has white floral, mineral, herbal and lime notes. It's very crispy! If you don't like bone dry wine, then I'd recommend you to try Paul Jaboulet Aine Domaine Mule Blanche Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2015 that I tasted at Rhone Valley Vineyards grand tasting, which is made of Rousanne and Marsanne, with floral, mineral, brioche, green apple and creamy notes. It's crispy and elegant! Come on guys, it's time to plan your next boat trip! Enjoy! 夏天出海你會想飲酒什麼葡萄酒？吹著海風，烈日當空下只想輕鬆愉快的大口大口喝著新鮮的果香，我會選擇新年份的冰凍葡萄酒，超爽！我開始明白點解無論什麼年齡層的男士都喜歡年輕的女生，因為她盛放著青春，簡單而活潑，就像我在遊艇上喝著白酒或Rose酒的感覺一樣，正！ 參加了Bernard Magrez酒莊的遊艇活動，今次並不是試Pape Clement，而是試了它旗下位於法國南部Languedoc-Roussillon的Bleu de Mer系列的紅、白及Rose葡萄酒，主打輕快可即開即飲的葡萄酒。一看它酒標的藍白色間條便有出海的感覺。我比較喜歡它的Bleu de Mer Rose 2016 年葡萄酒，以Grenache及Cinsault葡萄釀造，帶紅莓、車厘子及礦物等味，清爽而充滿果香，簡單直接，就像16歳的美少女一樣。而Bleu de Mer White2016 年葡萄酒，以Sauvignon Blanc葡萄釀造，沒有新世界Sauvignon Blanc的鮮明青椒味，帶青檸、青蘋果、含蓄的靑椒、草本及礦物味等，比較優雅而清爽，像二十頭的青春女生，開始滲出優雅！ 另外我會揀帶Riesling白葡萄酒出海，看著海喝著帶花香的Riesling，感覺很浪漫。早陣子跟Domaines Schlumberger的莊主Alain Schlumberger 試了他的7款酒，我喜歡來自法國Alsace的Schlumberger Riesling Grand Cru Saering 2014年，圓潤而有層，帶白花、礦物、青檸及香梨等，出海喝很優雅。另外我亦係Wine High Club 的年度試酒會試了我很喜歡的德國Mosel 的Clemens Bursch Marienburg Trocken GG VDP Grosse Lage Fahrlay 2014年Riesling葡萄酒，酒體圓潤、非常乾身而酸度高，帶白花、礦物、草本、青檸等，很清爽！如果不喜歡太酸的，我會推介在Rhone Valley Vineyards 試酒會中試了的Paul Jaboulet Aine Domaine Mule Blanche Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2015年，以Roussanne及 Marsanne葡萄釀造，帶白花、礦物、牛油麵包、青蘋果等及帶奶油香，同樣清爽優雅！快點襯夏天計劃一下你的出海派對啦！