Fantastic LuxuryTrip to South Africa planned for April 2012,

I have been busy organizing a luxury food and wine and cultural trip to South Africa scheduled for next April with a friend of mine Richard 'Dickie' Hilton. See here for details.
Many years ago I met Richard Hilton, a Brit working in the South African wine trade. Richard 'Dickie' Hilton has had great experience originally in Burgundy, as well as selling, blending and making wine in Africa. He owns a small winery and he has expanded in to running top quality wine tours. Similar to www.bellawinetours.com Richard can utilize his many years experience and contacts to manage and put together bespoke trips. Richard and his wife live in the Cape area and his knowledge and passion for wine, food and the Cape culture is outstanding.



This is the 5 star Mount Nelson Hotel(The Nellie) in Cape Town, where we stay for 5 nights.

There are so many wineries to explore in South Africa, but there is also a fantastic heritage and vibrant cultural history. So we will explore ...vineyards, restaurants, Cape Point, the Townships, Robben Island, Table Mountain, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Constantia and many many more places of interest.

The dates are April 13-24 2012.
The price is 43200 ZAR (c £4000) per person for two people sharing. This includes 5 star accommodation for 11 nights as well as most meals, guides, entrance fees, ferries, transport etc etc.

Fete de la Fleur 2011, Chateau Lascombes,

Last week I was fortunate enough to be invited to the grand dinner at Chateau Lascombes in Margaux known as the 'Fête de la Fleur' organised by the Commanderie du Bontemps de Medoc et Graves, Sauternes et Barsac. This was an excellent quality and most fitting ending to a busy week at the bi annual wine show Vinexpo in Bordeaux, which ran from Sunday until Thursday.

La Fête de la Fleur is literally a party to celebrate the flowering of the vines. This normally has taken place in early June and is a good indication for the harvest to come. The pollination and the flowering will have important consequences for the size and health of the grape bunches which will gradually be formed in the coming weeks. This year the weather has been incredibly warm throughout early Spring and the growth on the vines is significantly advanced....some say 3 or 4 weeks earlier than normal. There is a loose rule that harvest takes place approximately 100 days after flowering. If this is the case then some of the Bordeaux Chateau owners might have to shorten their summer holidays!!! Harvest could be very early this year ( possibly the earliest since 1893).
The Fête de la Fleur dinner is organised by 'Les Commandeurs du Bontemps', who are a group of invited dignitaries and 'movers and shakers' in the Medoc, Graves, Sauternes and Barsac area. Each region has this kind of group....La Jurade de Saint Emilion or the Gentilhomme de Fronsac.
Emmanuel Cruse the owner of Chateau d'Issan in Margaux is the 'Grand Master' of the Commanderie du Bontemps. Before the dinner there were 48 people intronised into the Commanderie...they have to swear that they love Bordeaux wines etc etc.!! These people are proposed by Chateaux or negociants or by fellow members of the Commanderie. It is a good way to get a global reach for Bordeaux wines and to make people feel special.

The Fête de la Fleur takes place at a different Chateau each year and although it is a great honor for the Chateau, it can also be very expensive to host. The Chateaux all contribute and each table is paid for either by a Chateau, negociant or broker. The wines consumed at the dinner are also offered by various Chateaux. A figure that I saw recently estimated that this event cost €1.3 million.....for one dinner!
Chateau Lascombes is owned by the American Private Equity company Colony Capital, headed by Tom Barrack. Mr Barrack has invested $45 billion in property and assets around the world. He has owned the Chateau for 10 years and now he wants to sell. There were many rumors at the dinner for various interested parties. Chateau Lascombes has been under performing for a while, but it is still a 2nd Growth Margaux estate. There could be potential! Mr Barrack gave a brief, but eloquent speech, followed by Monsieur Alain Juppe, the active mayor of Bordeaux and the popular French Foreign Minister.
Then we tucked in to an astonishing dinner prepared by Eric Frechon, the 3 star Michelin chef from the Hotel Bristol in Paris.

Caviar d'Aquitaine, Puree de pomme de terre aromatisée au Haddock

Selle d'Agneau en croûte de nori, Gnocchi aux herbes, purée de colrave

Entre le saint nectare fermier et le brie de truffé

Ananas gelée caïpirinha, sorbet banane-passion, petite meringue

The wines were also excellent:

Chateau Haut Brion Blanc 2006 from Magnums....apparently we drank 1/3 of the entire production.

Chateau Lascombes 2005 from Imperials and from Magnums....the magnums seemed much more rounded and smooth than the Imperials.

Chateau Leoville Poyferré 2000.....best red of the night. Absolutely delicious. Maybe this would have worked better with the lamb rather than the Lascombes.

Chateau Yquem 2008.....delicious as always, but a slightly strange vintage choice...neither very old and evolved, but neither very young and fresh. No complaints..it was sensational.

Then there was coffee in the grounds to the Chateau and a large bar that served Champagne Pol Roger all night. There was an Opera singer belting out her stuff from the top of the Chateau and a hot air balloon hovering around with a gymnast doing a magnificent performance.
It was very amusing to see the great and the good from Bordeaux throw some shapes on the dance floor in to the wee hours.

One of the most incredible evenings of my life. Great fun, great food and a great time.

Cellar Tracker Bordeaux Trip 2011

Back in January Bella Wine Tours was invited by the Cellar Tracker community to co ordinate a trip to Bordeaux for an interesting group of wine enthusiasts. The initial contact was from the UK and I was under the impression that if we put together an interesting itinerary, then we would get 20-25 people to Bordeaux. I am always sceptical so I presumed 10-15! The clients for Cellar Tracker are mainly American, but they are truly internet fans, so some of the clients were from China, Singapore, Canada and the UK.
Fortunately the Cellar Tracker community is strong and I organized a busy schedule of visits, tastings and lunches and dinners for the 28 people who signed up for the trip. I offered accommodation in the excellent 5 star Hotel Regent as well as the 3 star Hotel de Normandie.
Here are a few pictures of the happy wine enthusiasts who attended the 4 days of fun at the end of May 2011:











Visiting Chateau Lafite Rothschild. We tasted the excellent 1995.








The incredible barrel room at Chateau Lafite Rothschild.











The 28 people were great fun. Some of them knew each other beforehand, but many of them did not know anyone else. Everyone got on extremely well and we had a busy but fun time.
Here is or schedule:
Sunday: Arrive at Hotels and meet for an evening drink.
Monday: Coaches to Chateau Pontet Canet for a visit and tasting of the 2005 and 2010 barrel sample.
Visit and Tasting to Chateau Mouton Rothschild....2010 barrel sample tasted.
Visit and Tasting to Chateau Lynch Bages....2004 and 2010 tasted
Lunch in Pauillac in a riverside restaurant.

Visit and tasting at Chateau Lafite Rothschild...Tasted the 1995
Visit and tasting at Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste...Tasted 2010 and 2005.
Visit and Tasting at Ch. Pichon Longueville...Tasted 2010,2009,1008 and 2003.

Monday was free to explore the restaurants of Bordeaux.







Happy clients in the tasting room at Ch. Pichon Longueville, where we were really treated to some exceptional wines...2010,2009,2008 and 2003.








Tuesday: Coaches to Ch. La Mission Haut Brion...Tasted the 2007 Ch. Haut brion and 2007 Ch. La Mission Haut Brion.
Visit and Tasting at Domaine de Chevalier....Tasted the 2010(Red and White) and 2005(Red)
Lunch and a tasting with Daniel and Florence Cathiard at Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte. A delicious lunch after some lovely aperitifs..Ch. Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc 2008 and Rouge 2007. Lunch with the 1998 and 2006 from Magnums.
In the afternoon we visited the majestic Chateau d'Yquem for a visit and tasting of the incredible 2007.

Tuesday evening was free to explore Bordeaux.







The amazing new egg fermentor at Domaine de Chevalier.









Wednesday: Coaches to Chateau de la Riviere in Fronsac. A full tour of the cellars and the Chateau as well as a tasting of teh 2005 and 2010 and the 2001 Aria.
Lunch free to stroll around Saint Emilion.
Afternoon visit to Ch. La Conseillante in Pomerol, where we tasted the 2010.

I arranged a dinner at Chateau Coutet in Barsac. We tasted some fabulous sweet wines....2010, 1998, 1976, 1989 during a beautiful meal in the Chateau.

Thursday morning we visited Chateau Margaux where we tasted the 2007 Pavillon Rouge and Ch. Margaux.
Last visit was to Ch. Rauzan Segla where we enjoyed the 2010 and the 2006.

Everyone had a great time. We covered a lot of ground and we met some fantastic characters and personalities. We also got on very well as a group and it was a great pleasure to organise. There are many notes and many better pictures and detailed tasting notes on the Cellar Tracker main website and the forum.

I would be delighted to organise a similar type trip to Bordeaux. via www.bellawinetours.com

Fun times in Bordeaux during Primeurs 2010

Pictures and memories of a busy week of tasting in Bordeaux in early April. I was tasting with a team of buyers, journalists and enthusiasts from all around the World. We were studying and assessing the barrel samples of the much lauded 2010 Bordeaux vintage.




Action shots in the tasting room at Chateau Pavie in Saint Emilion. A suspicious Steve(right), a talkative Chip and Bill(at the back) and poor Ken looks like he has just gobbed in his eye.
These are serious wine pros. The chap called Chris(far left) from the Caribbean is the only one who seems to be tasting!......(later in the week Chris thanked me for tooting at him at the traffic lights. He was unused to traffic lights as most Islands did not have them.)




The magnificent inner courtyard at Chateau Canon, Premier Grand Cru Classe Saint Emilion. The glorious flowering Wisteria seemed to be evident everywhere we went. The growing season was roughly 10 days advanced with warm temperatures. However there is a risk of frost right through until early May. We were lucky with the beautiful sunshine and warm evenings.









The cool and relaxed Alexandre Thienpoint(right) at Vieux Chateau Certan explains his mighty fine merlot that he produced in 2010, whilst the hazy Bill Blatch (in perpetual motion) writes notes, tastes wine and also organizes us lesser mortals.












Although we did not taste at Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte (this time) it is always fun to pop in to the magnificent 5 star Les Sources de Caudalie. Especially on a sunny day with flowers blooming. The 2010 Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte was tasted at another Chateau....the white was absolutely delicious. The red was great too.








Elegant lady at Chateau Phelan Segur in Saint Estephe. We were treated to a mini vertical of this excellent Chateau. We tasted in the galleried ballroom. Yes the 2010 was hearty and rich and dark as a dark thing. But the 2009 was delicious, the 2008 approachable, the 2007 savoury and the 2006 tight.







The solitary tower marking one of the most famous landmarks of the Bordeaux area(picture taken from teh terrace of Chateau Pichon Lalande)....Chateau Latour. We did not taste Chateau Latour during the first week of Primeur tastings, but I managed to make a seperate appointment the following week. The 2010 Chateau Latour was a monster of a wine. This will probably be one of the most long lived wines of the vintage. Immense fruit, incredible dark cassis and blackcurrants and thick, rich tannins. A joyous wine if you are going to be around in 30 years.



This is probably the other iconic view of Bordeaux....the avenue leading up to the magnificent Chateau Margaux. They even opened the gates for me this time!!
It was great to see Paul Pontallier again...he was almost lost for words describing the 2010 after using up all the superlatives for the 2009.
There is always an air of slick professionalism at Chateau Margaux. It is good to see young Aurélien Valance coming through the ranks. The new story at Margaux is that there will be a third wine released from the 2009 vintage. This will be below the current second wine (Pavillon Rouge). The third wine will only be available in the UK, USA and Japan. An interesting initiative. I was amazed when I heard last year that 26% of the crop had been declassified.....but now it all makes sense. It will be very interesting to taste this wine and als0 hear what the new name is.



Dave, Dan, Dean, Chris, Rob and Christina deep in thoughts and concentration in the magnificent tasting room at Chateau Pape Clement.











Another treat was a mini vertical offered by the delightful Berenice Lurton at Chateau Climens.
The 2009 and 2007 are hefty botrytis styles. I adored the 2005 for its weight and balance. The 2006 and 2008 are not far behind either.
A truly amazing place to taste wines from the barrels.





We can all talk about how great Climens, Guiraud, Suduiraut, Coutet or Rayne Vigneau are showing in the 2010 vintage. But for many people Sauternes IS Chateau d'Yquem. I was fortunate enough to taste it twice in a week. Once at Chateau Cheval Blanc (a nice way to frehen up!) and once at Yquem. This wine is very different to the exceptional 2009. It will be interesting to see whether it lasts longer. I would be happy with both in my cellar.





Bruno Borie is a slightly alternative character in the rather classic and staid Bordeaux. He owns the stunningly beautiful Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou in Saint Julien (the Chateau with masses of flags out the front). He has transformed the tasting room in to a graffiti lined tube train.......but my oh my he produced a stunning 2010 wine. I thought his 2009 slightly optimistic on the hefty price, but if the 2010 is priced the same it will be clearly one of the best wines produced in Bordeaux in the vintage.
Bruno also always fronts up and explains the vintage and is a great communicator. Top man.





Its tough work all this wine tasting!!!

Thank goodness you can not see my teeth. The tannins were very full and strong (as they should be for young Bordeaux).










The hectic week of tasting and travelling ended with a magnificent tasting at Chateau Lafite Rothschild. This Chateau has hit stratospheric price levels in the last 5 years. Even the second wine Carruades is pushing upwards at a staggering rate.

I love tasting wine and I have worked in wine all my life, but I could not feel that I was side tracked and distracted by the money element to the Lafite situation. Undoubtedly the Carruades 2010 and the Lafite 2010 are stunning wines. The Carruades had a soft sheen and plushness, whilst the 'Grand Vin' was the complete wine. Not clumsy, not too tannic. A perfect poise and balance. True defined linear tannins with fantastic deep purple colours rolling with dark blackcurrants and cassis. An incredible experience, but blighted by the darker market forces. Whatever I think about this wine, it will be traded at £1000 per bottle in 6 months time....and probably £1500 in 3 years time. The wine is good.....but it is a wine.

UGC Primeurs week 2011

Today I set off bright and early for one of the most interesting week's work of the year. It is the week of tasting in Bordeaux organized by the Union des Grands Crus as well as various Chateaux and other syndicats and negociants.
The week is an opportunity to taste and evaluate the 2010 harvest in Bordeaux, which was picked 6 months ago. The wines have finished their alcoholic and malo lactic fermentations and will now be aged for another 12-14 months in barrels before bottling. Therefore this week is a good time to get a snapshot of the quality and style of the 2010 vintage. However the wines are mere babies and far from the finished product. So it can be quite difficult (and not always pleasant) trying wines that have high tannins, alcohols and searing acidity.
It is a fun time to be in Bordeaux, as there are many international buyers and journalists. It is a great time to meet new and old friends. Every year there seems to be more interest in these tastings (which are for members of the wine trade). A few years ago there seemed to be hundreds of Russian buyers and more recently there seems to be many Chinese and Far Eastern attendees. It just adds to the wonderful diversity and reach of the Bordeaux wine market.
Many of the Chateaux will receive between 1-2000 people in the next week....mainly with pre planned appointments. So it is a big logistical exercise to accommodate everyone. Certainly the top Chateaux (First Growths) need major planning and appointments from many months ago.
A few years ago I started working alongside Bill Blatch of the negociant Vintex. They have an association with Chateau de la Riviere (with whom I have worked for many years as an agent). Bill is a delightful English man who has lived in Bordeaux for many years. He started his own negociant business in 1982 and he is a great authority on the wines of Sauternes and Barsac as well as most other areas. Bill is a charming chap and widely respected throughout Bordeaux.
Here is my working schedule for the next week:


Sunday: Big Tasting at Vintex...over 200 wines on show from dry whites, reds and sweet whites. A great entry point for immersing oneself in to the style of the vintage. This tasting always shows the good, the bad and the ugly.

Monday: Several Tastings to attend in Saint Emilion and Pomerol. The fantastic Salle des Dominicians in Saint Emilion is a great bright airy venue to taste virtually all the top Saint Emilions. Top wine consultants/oeneologists Michel Rolland and Stephane Derenoncourt also host different tastings, as well as an interesting event in Pomerol.

Tuesday: Chateau 'hopping'...tastings at specific Chateaux..Pavie, L'Arrosee, Larcis Ducasse, Canon, Cheval Blanc, Vieux Chateau Certan, L'Evangile and La Conseillante as well as the large (usually 30-40 wines on show) UGC tastings at Ch. La Couspaude (Saint Emilion), Ch. La Pointe (Pomerol) and then a zoom over to Ch. Malartic Lagraviere to taste a selection of Graves.

Wednesday: early start at 8am tasting Ch. Calon Segur followed by Phelan Segur, Montrose, Cos Labory, Cos d'Estournel, Mouton Rothschild, Grand Puy Lacoste, lunch at Pontet Canet, then afternoon at Pichon Lalande, Leoville Lascases, Ducru Beaucaillou followed by large tastings at Branaire Ducru (Saint Juliens) and then a monster tasting of Cru Bourgeois at Ch. d'Agassac....with finally a tasting at Ch. Citran

Thursday: another early start at 8.30am tasting La Lagune, then Giscours/du Tertre, d'Issan, Brane Cantenac, Margaux and Lascombes followed by more Margaux wines at the UGC tasting and a quick visit to Lafite in the afternoon.

Friday: tasting Haut Brion at 8am! then Pape Clement, Domaine de Chevalier, Climens, Yquem and Suduiraut...then home to a cup of tea and a lie down.
An interesting, fun and challenging week ahead.

Chinese buying Bordeaux vineyards

What started as a trickle might turn in to a full on flow! In the past 12 months at least 3 Chateaux in Bordeaux have changed hands to Chinese buyers.
The emphasis seems to be that it is better to control the production at source rather than just buying through the established trade.
This is excellent for the Bordeaux region as any inward investors should be welcome. The Irish, Scottish, Americans and English have very strong links with Bordeaux and have either owned or currently own many top Chateaux.

My only slight hesitation is that this latest purchase of Chateau Laulan Ducos by Richard Shen Donjun (a Chinese diamond tycoon) has revealed that Mr Shen plans to stop selling the estate's wines in all markets and solely supply wine to China. This would not be great for established markets and is a worrying trend if we suddenly see Cru Bourgeois wines or Cru Classe wines disappear.
This was reported in the Sunday Telegraph today but more extensively written about on Alex Hall's excellent website Vineyard Intelligence a while ago. This proves the world of blogs and tweets is some way ahead of the old style newspapers!
The question is who will sell next to the Chinese? Will a more well known Cru Classe estate entertain the wealthy people from the East? We shall see.

Bella Wines 12,000 page views. Good or bad?

I have been writing this occasional blog for a couple of years now. The focus is clearly on wine and wine tourism. This is a good window to see what is happening with Bella Wines and also Bella Wine Tours or for me to communicate future events. However I need and value a bit of feedback from time to time. What do you think?
Do you have suggestions for what you want to see or read?

Bella Wines Ltd www.bellawines.co.uk is a UK registered company that I started over 13 years ago. We have worked closely with wineries from Australia, South Africa, Bordeaux, Rhone and the Languedoc Roussillon in order to introduce exciting wines to markets. We sell wine in the UK, Ireland, USA, Singapore and China. We normally work with regional wholesalers and retailers and occasionally we supply multiple retailers or supermarkets. But that depends on the wines and the size of the winery. Sometimes there is no point linking a small winery to a large distributor, as someone inevitably suffers.
We are currently working with a select group of growers in the Languedoc Roussillon, Rhone Valley and Bordeaux. We have ceased working with Australia and South Africa, as we feel that there are some greater wines still to explore in France at better value. Languedoc and the Rhone are still undiscovered in so many ways, whilst Bordeaux has some pure class.
If you own a wine business, a shop, wholesale, or internet business we would be very happy to send you our latest wine list.

In the last couple of years I have gradually developed the wine tourism side of our business www.bellawinetours.com. This has essentially come from demand from our customers as well as a willingness to share some of the excitement involved in the wine trade. During the last 22 years working in the wine trade in Europe I have met some fantastic people. On many of the wine tours to Bordeaux and the Languedoc we meet some of these characters. A real mixed bag ....journalists, artists, wine makers, millionaire Chateau owners, shop owners, restaurateurs, Masters of Wine, Hotel owners, tractor drivers, musicians, negociants, agents, dreamers and lovers! We can not promise all of them, however we always deliver something fun, interesting and unique.
We currently have wine tours organized in April, May, June, August and September. We would be very happy to arrange a trip to Bordeaux or the south of France and see what is really 'behind the scenes'.

But we would really appreciate some feedback! Please feel free to contribute to this blog on the comments section. Likes or dislikes are always worth voicing.
I have some exciting new plans for this blog and our websites, twitter and Facebook accounts. So please keep following, 'friending' or simply being there. We value your interest. Thank you.