It has been an exceptional few weeks for FINE+RARE events. From Hong Kong to London, Milan to the Scottish Highlands, this run of extraordinary occasions – each distinct in character – has been united by the thread that runs through everything we do: bringing people closer to the world's most exceptional wines and spirits in settings that do them justice. Tiberio Dinner Table by Sandy Keung, Hong Kong — Wednesday 21 May The run began with one of the most eye-opening evenings of recent weeks, centred on the wines of Tiberio, the Abruzzo estate whose commitment to a no-oak philosophy — for both fermentation and ageing, with the sole exception of Archivio — continues to challenge assumptions about what Italian wine can achieve without the influence of wood. The evening opened with three vintages of Fonte Canale: 2016, 2018 and 2023. The 2023 drew immediate attention — many guests found it hard to believe that a wine of such depth and power had not seen any oak influence whatsoever. Vibrant acidity and a clear capacity for long-term ageing were immediately apparent. The 2016, with more time in bottle, had moved into more evolved territory, displaying nutty and dried fruit notes while retaining impressive freshness. The 2018 proved a wonderful companion to the mixed clam dish, its texture and salinity enhancing the natural sweetness of the seafood. Among the whites, the standout for many was the Quarmari 2023 — exceptionally aromatic, revealing layers of beeswax, jasmine, caramel, lemon cream, basil and sweet spice. It was universally appreciated around the table, with some guests going so far as to compare its quality and presence to Corton-Charlemagne. The reds were equally compelling. Four vintages of Colle Vota — 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2021 — demonstrated remarkable depth and character across the board. Full-bodied and structured, with pronounced notes of dark fruits, liquorice, cedar, cinnamon and spice, the 2018 and 2021 in particular showed great power and concentration, their style subtly reminiscent, for some guests, of Château de Tours from Rayas. Paired with the lamb neck course, these wines were in their element. What surprised many most was that, despite their weight and complexity, not one had been aged in oak — a testament to the intrinsic power and expression of old vines. The inaugural 2014 vintage of Colle Vota was a particularly memorable moment. Despite showing early tertiary notes, it retained excellent fruit, freshness and structure, offering a compelling demonstration of the outstanding ageing potential these old-vine wines possess. It was an evening that left a very strong impression on everyone present, and a powerful reminder that great winemaking is, above all, about the vine and the land. Update by Jonathan Leung, Sales Manager, Hong Kong Castello di Ama — Vigneto Bellavista Vertical Dinner The River Café, London — Thursday 18 June One of the most memorable evenings of the year so far took place at The River Café, where proprietor Lorenza Sebasti guided a remarkable retrospective of Castello di Ama's Bellavista — the estate's defining wine, drawn from one of the highest and most historic sites in Gaiole in Chianti. Presented across nine vintages spanning more than three decades, from 1990 through to the newly released 2022, the dinner offered a rare opportunity to explore both the evolution and the extraordinary consistency of one of Tuscany's great wines. The oldest vintages were deeply impressive. The 1990, 1995, 2004 and 2006 demonstrated that great Chianti Classico belongs among the world's most ageworthy wines, maintaining freshness, detail and vivacity decades after harvest. For many around the table, however, the greatest surprise came from the 2011 — universally praised and the favourite of numerous guests — which has now entered an ideal drinking window, combining maturity, complexity and harmony in a way that rewards the patience Bellavista has always asked of its admirers. Among the younger vintages, the 2018 impressed for its purity and transparency, while the 2021 and 2022 elevated the conversation further. Both displayed remarkable polish, power and refinement alongside the freshness that has become an increasingly important hallmark of the site. It was the 2022 Bellavista that generated the greatest excitement. Awarded a perfect 100-point score by Antonio Galloni, the wine was the subject of considerable discussion throughout the evening, though the consensus was clear: the score tells only a small part of the story. What made the 2022 so fascinating was what it represents — a convergence of decades of technical progress, viticultural understanding and winemaking refinement in a single wine. It possessed concentration and potency, but delivered these with remarkable elegance, precision and energy. More than any previous vintage tasted, it felt like a blueprint for the future of the estate. Throughout the evening, Lorenza and Arturo offered invaluable personal reflections on the evolution of Castello di Ama, transforming the dinner from a vertical tasting into a living history of one of Italy's great estates. The River Café, with its understated elegance and deep connection to Italian cuisine, proved the perfect setting. The main takeaway was a simple truth: Bellavista is one of Italy's great wines, and only growing in stature and completeness. Across more than thirty years, through changing vintages and shifting climates, it has maintained a consistency of purpose and identity that very few wines anywhere in the world can match. Update by Dara de Lacy, Senior Sales Manager, UK EAWCO Rarities Selection — Bowmore & Springbank Masterclass FINE+RARE HQ, London A masterclass that set the bar high from the very first pour. We were delighted to welcome Christian Leusder, founder and owner of East Asia Whisky Company, to FINE+RARE headquarters for an evening dedicated to some of the rarest independent bottlings in existence. East Asia Whisky Company has been a longstanding and deeply valued partner of FINE+RARE. An exclusive independent bottler built on principles of understatement, exclusivity and meticulous attention to detail, EAWCO's portfolio spans blue-chip distilleries including Macallan, Bowmore, Springbank, Chichibu and Caroni. They remain the only independent bottler to have released multiple successful Mizunara cask bottlings from these houses — releases that have, remarkably, achieved higher prices than the original distillery bottlings of the same vintages. Christian guided guests through the history of the company before leading a tutored exploration of five extraordinarily rare expressions from Bowmore and Springbank: Bowmore PX Mizunara, 31 Year Old Bowmore Japan Edition, 30 Year Old Springbank Lumen Refill Sherry, 30 Year Old Springbank Yokai Series Asanoha Dragon, 24 Year Old Springbank Yokai Series Yurei (Ghost) Cat, 25 Year Old With a few surprises woven in along the way, the evening was a genuine privilege — one of those rare tastings where every bottle opened carries real weight and significance. For those who were unable to attend, a small number of these bottlings remain available, though given how few exist, they are being offered very selectively. All come very highly recommended. Update by Morgan Richards, Senior Account Manager An Extraordinary Journey Through Bordeaux's Greatest Estates Trattoria de La Trebia, Milan — Tuesday 23 June In Milan, an evening of extraordinary ambition brought together a side-by-side exploration of the 2012 and 2014 vintages through Bordeaux's most celebrated First Growth estates and the legendary Petrus. Far more than a tasting, this was a rare opportunity for guests to compare the expression of each château across two very different vintages — discovering how terroir, philosophy and vintage character shape wines that stand among the finest ever produced. The lineup was nothing short of remarkable. Across both vintages, guests tasted Château Margaux, Château Cheval Blanc, Château Haut-Brion, Petrus, Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Mouton Rothschild and Château La Mission Haut-Brion — fourteen wines in all, representing the very pinnacle of Bordeaux winemaking. The tasting was complemented by an exclusive five-course menu designed by the culinary team at Trattoria de La Trebia, crafted to enhance and showcase each wine served throughout the evening. If one wine captured the room above all others, it was the Château Haut-Brion 2012. Explosive from the first moment, with blackcurrant, smoke and herbs, it simply grew in the glass — every passing minute revealing more power, richness and intensity. Full-bodied, multi-layered and framed by wonderfully chewy tannins, this is a wine of real charm: approachable now yet built to last another twenty years with ease. A blend of 65.5% Merlot, 32.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, it offers extraordinary quality for its level — the kind of Haut-Brion that gives joy from the very first sip. Not to be missed. The Château Margaux 2012 also showed beautifully, drawing considerable admiration from guests throughout the evening. Designed for collectors, enthusiasts and connoisseurs alike, the dinner brought together extraordinary wines, great conversation and a shared passion for excellence — everything a FINE+RARE evening in Italy should be. Update by Jonathan Bruni, Sales Director, Continental Europe Visit to Hazelwood House Speyside, Scotland — Thursday 25 to Friday 26 June The series closed with something truly special: a private, two-day visit to Hazelwood House, the Gordon family home in the Scottish Highlands and the inspiration behind the House of Hazelwood collection — one of the world's greatest inventories of aged and rare Scotch whisky. Over two days, a small group of guests were given rare access to a world that very few ever see: private tours of the Balvenie and Glenfiddich distilleries, a whisky tasting drawn from House of Hazelwood's private reserves, a Gordon family archive session led by archivist Andy Fairgrieve, and an evening of wine, whisky and storytelling over a four-course dinner at the house itself — each course paired with exceptional wines from FINE+RARE alongside whiskies of extraordinary age and provenance. It was the kind of experience that simply cannot be replicated — not just rare access, but a genuine connection to the family, the place and the history from which these remarkable whiskies come. These past few weeks have captured everything we love about what we do at FINE+RARE – connecting people with the world's most remarkable wines and spirits, in the most exceptional settings, surrounded by the stories and the people that bring them to life.  We look forward to sharing what lies ahead for the rest of the year. Interested in joining us at future events? We are pleased to announce that it is now possible to browse, book and purchase event tickets directly through our website, with all tickets viewable in your portfolio. Get in touch with your account manager or visit frw.co.uk/events to see what's coming up — we'd love to see you at the next one.

Tiberio in Hong Kong, Castello di Ama and rare whiskies in London, First Growth Bordeaux in Milan and a private Scottish estate — a glimpse of our events programme week to week. Plus, you can now purchase event tickets directly through our website.

From a Tiberio dinner in Hong Kong to rare whiskies in Scotland, a look back at recent FINE+RARE tastings, dinners and experiences.

Looking back at our recent events

Group CEO Patrick O’Connor reflects on Bordeaux 2025: a hot, dry and early vintage defined by small yields, precise viticulture, restrained winemaking and a new wave of estates delivering wines of real distinction.

Patrick O’Connor, Group CEO, explores Bordeaux 2025: a hot, dry, early vintage shaped by precision, small yields and standout wines.

Bordeaux 2025 en primeur: vintage overview      

Bordeaux 2025: vintage overview               

The world’s fine wine regions famously exist where the climate is just warm enough for grapes to reach ripeness. The ever-warming climate, however, has greatly increased this likelihood, with good-to-great vintages now convincingly outweighing the poorer ones.  Despite this, vintage variation remains an important factor in fine wine and when contrasting 2016, 2017 and 2018 in Piedmont, you see there are still strong variations in climate. The pitfalls of a vintage could arguably be even greater, in that these regions are no longer only concerned by wet, cooler conditions but also by the perils of excessive heat and drought. While hotter conditions can drastically affect yield and quality, the 2017 vintage in Piedmont seems to show that – despite these risks – vines are better at handling the heat. 
Following on from an almost perfect 2016 growing season in Piedmont, 2017 was always going to play second fiddle. The 2017 and 2018 vintages were certainly not as straightforward and – in fact – the two together offer completely contrasting growing seasons which produced totally different results, with 2017 hot and dry, 2018 cool and wet. Despite initial concerns regarding the heat in 2017, the wines – now in bottle – are surprisingly fresh, yet with richly concentrated fruit. Giuseppe Vaira sums it up best: “2017 is a vintage that defies logic.  It was the driest vintage on record and the earliest picking dates of the last five years. Yet, the wines are surprisingly vivid, fresh and still introverted: the opposite of what you would expect from a warm year.” For Giovanni Angeli at Massolino, the 2017s are similar to the 2015s, but with more “energy and freshness”, a pleasant surprise considering the year’s hot, dry conditions. Visiting Piedmont in early 2018, I remember how concerned winemakers were about the past summer. They were shocked by the extreme conditions, registering as the hottest and driest summer since 2003; yet, as Ferruccio Grimaldi and Giovanni Angeli noted, alcohol levels remained normal – particularly for the Nebbiolo.  Grimaldi believes this is because the vines shut down during the hottest period and stopped producing sugar. More surprising was that acidity remained high, something Grimaldi attributes to low levels of malic acid in the grapes. This might sound counter-intuitive, but it is the tartaric acid in grapes that provides freshness, while malic acidity in fact lessens the sense of freshness. For Grimaldi, low malic acidity signifies two things: the grapes reached an excellent degree of ripening, while also retaining healthy levels of tartaric acidity. Grimaldi also noted that, despite the heat in the day, the nights were cooler than other hot vintages – potentially another factor that helped preserve the acidity and freshness in the wines.  Emanuele Baldi from Prunotto pointed out that another possible saviour of the vintage – albeit to the detriment of the year’s yield – was frost. A mild winter prompted early budbreak, meaning vines were significantly advanced when the region was hit by frost. This led to huge losses particularly for the white varieties Moscato and Arneis, but also for lower-lying plots of Nebbiolo, where frost pockets formed.  The fruit that escaped was all from the higher vineyards, sites which naturally preserved more acidity thanks to their altitude. For Vajra, there were three key factors to 2017’s success: the diurnal temperature swing, the lack of rain (which caused a limited intake of potassium and thus better retention of acidity), and a gentle, fresh September which set the stage for Nebbiolo’s tannins to fully ripen. The biggest threat for the season was the lack of water, the risk being that without adequate water the grapes would become shrivelled and overripe. Massolino tried to counter the drought by not trimming the canopy (providing shade) and breaking off superficial roots, forcing the remaining roots to go deeper in search of water.  “We learned a big lesson from this vintage,” says Angeli. “The vines are much more flexible than we imagined.” Moreover, the season highlighted the region’s marl soils important role as a water regulator. “They are like a big sponge that’s able to catch the water during winter and spring, and release it slowly during the rest of the season avoiding stress to the vines,” explains Angeli. The region was blessed again with welcome rain in late August and September, allowing the vines to find equilibrium, completing the full cycle of vegetative growth while also the fruit to ripen fully (both in terms of sugar and phenolic ripeness). While Nebbiolo production was down by around 15 to 25% for some producers (due to the spring frosts and drought), the grapes that survived were beautifully ripe. The 2017 vintage will be remembered for its early harvest, but the results are excellent. “The 2017 Barolo are rich, fresh and fruity wines,” says Grimaldi, “and more ready to drink now compared to 2016 vintage.” Massolino’s Angeli agrees: “The wines already have soft, smooth tannins with a complex and sweet mid-palate.” For Baldi, the wines have fantastic concentration and, more importantly, they are not flabby.  They may not have the structural prowess of the 2016 and will not age as well, but Baldi believes they will drink beautifully over the next 10 to 15 years. Vaira notes the warmth of the year gave the wines “an extra layer of density and mid-palate richness… but what I love about these wines,” he says, “is the quality of the texture and almost a sappy freshness that keeps everything in balance.” Particularly from Vajra’s cooler sites, Giuseppe believes the top 2017s will have sensational ageing potential, especially in comparison to other similarly warm vintages. The 2017 vintage might have been challenging in terms of heat and drought, but such conditions are likely to be more prevalent in the years to come. The good news is that the vines seem to be adapting to these warmer vintages and vignerons are learning how to cope with them – producing some excellent wines that defy logic, remaining remarkably fresh and age-worthy. 
The vintage in brief: Hot and dry conditions – yet the wines have surprising freshness Yields reduced by frost and drought particularly in lower-lying sites Supple tannins that make the wines approachable already Ripe yet fresh wines that offer good medium-term drinking Browse all Barolo or read more Editorial 

With the release of the 2017 Barolos fast approaching, Gavin Smith spoke to some of the region’s leading producers – Giovanni Angeli from Massolino, Giuseppe Vaira from Vajra, Emanuele Baldi from Prunotto and Ferruccio Grimaldi – about the vintage, its extreme conditions and the surprising results

The Barolo 2017 vintage is beyond all expectations. We explore the year that defies logic and the wines are surprisingly vivid, fresh and introverted

Barolo 2017 vintage report 

Barolo 2017: vintage report

Some of Nicolas Champagneux’s earliest memories are of life in the vines – of the hubbub of harvest with his grandparents. It’s not the hard work that he recalls, it’s “des bons moments de famille” he tells me – the convivial spirit that infused the air. He grew up in the heart of Côte-Rôtie, spending weekends and holidays in his family’s vineyard – a swathe of Les Grandes Places, a prized site in the commune of Verenay, where his great-grandfather planted vines at the start of the 20th century.  Les Grandes Places is an extraordinary site – with the most famous producer arguably Jean-Michel Gérin. In the north of the Côte Brune, in a southwest-facing amphitheatre, this steep site has crumbly mica schist soils, which allow the vines’ roots to drive deep into the bedrock. It’s home to some very old vines – such as the centenarian plantings that Champagneux farms – and produces wines that are beautifully elegant yet with dark, fleshy power. Champagneux has almost two hectares here, having the largest holdings. Nicolas’s uncle André took over running the vineyard after his grandparents, while his father Gérard went to work in a factory. There wasn’t enough money for both brothers to join the family business back then, with Côte-Rôtie not nearly as sought-after as it is today. Other than a couple of barrels for personal consumption, the family didn’t make wine, farming the site and selling almost all the fruit to Guigal, one of the Northern Rhône’s most famous names.  Indeed, beyond the family vineyard, Nicolas spent a lot of time at Guigal – after his father Gérard left life on the factory floor to head up their viticulture team. From 16, Nicolas would work there in his holidays to earn some money. When Champagneux turned 18, he needed to find a job: he was determined not to work in an office and loved being outside, so he ended up becoming a high-wire electrician – working with huge currents of 20,000 volts. “You were never in the same place, each day was different, each task was different – so there was no monotony,” he says. He often finished his day early, and – a farmer born and bred, unaccustomed to the concept of relaxing – would go help in the family vineyard.  When his uncle passed away, there was no one else to take over the domaine – so he stepped up to the plate, keen to ensure his family’s heritage was preserved. He decided to start keeping the fruit and making wine under the family name, wanting to see the year’s efforts captured. He knew how to work the vines but had never dreamt of being a winemaker – but, never one to be put off by a challenge, he learnt on the job. That was 2014, and the wines have rapidly earned him a reputation in the region. The family cellar had the essentials, but the first few vintages were made with the bare minimum – with a new cellar built in 2016 (Yves Cuilleron advised on the project).  Almost a decade after he left the world of pylons, transformers and conductors behind, life might follow an annual cycle, but it’s as un-monotonous as it was before. Nicolas works as a one-man band and values the independence that brings – managing his own time and being his own boss. “There is still a lot to do and each year is different,” he tells me. He hopes his son will join him at some point – he was born in 2009, and his uncle put away a stash of wine from the vintage, some of which is set to be released for its 20th anniversary in 2029.   Climate change is at the forefront of his mind, with harvests now early September and even August versus October under his uncle. Where they used to struggle to get 13% potential alcohol, his wines often sit at 14-14.5%. He’s now working with grass cover, deleafing less and using a little whole bunch in warmer years to preserve freshness in the wines. Otherwise, little has changed in the decade since he started – he continues to work as simply as possible, looking to translate the vines he grew up amongst into wine. And that’s just what he does: the wines are elegant expressions of Les Grandes Places, perfumed and suave, with a fine grip of tannins and an underlying savoury salinity, ageing beautifully – as a mini-vertical of the 2015, 2016 and 2017 vintages showed recently.   The Nicolas Champagneux wines  From his four hectares of vines, Nicolas Champagneux makes three wines: an IGP Vin de Pays des Collines Rhodaniennes La Rémise and two Côte-Rôties, Les Grandes Places and La Dédicace, all made with 100% Syrah.   La Dédicace comes from the younger vines in Les Grandes Places, with a “mere” 40-60 years behind them on average. Around 6,000-7,000 bottles are produced of this “baby” Grandes Places.   Les Grandes Places comes from his oldest vines, averaging a little over 100 years in age, with some planted in 1910. Just 1,500 bottles or so are made of this wine each vintage.  Both the Côte-Rôtie wines are made in exactly the same way, mostly de-stemmed with  little whole-bunch added in warmer vintages and fermented with indigenous yeast, reaching a maximum 28-30°C, and spending around three weeks on skins. The wine then spends 20-24 months in old oak before bottling.  Nicolas Champagneux Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: a vertical tasting  2022 Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: This is packed with spicy intensity – clove and cardamom along with a hit of Szechuan pepper. The palate offers a juicy lushness, layered with deep, concentrated dark cherry fruit and a twist of black tapenade, with mouth-coating tannins and all refreshed by a line of vibrant acidity. A baby now, best approached from 2030.  2021 Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: A really impressive 2021, poised and powerful, Champagneux’s Les Grandes Places needs air but gradually reveals pepper spice and more delicate, lifted, violet florals. There is, however, power and weight to the palate – more than you might expect from the pretty nose, with a savoury firmness, supple but structured tannins and juicy acidity. It’s dark and brooding, gothic with its haunting florals, with a long, mouth-watering, saline finish. Approach from 2027.  2017 Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: The 2017 Les Grandes Places combines delicate florals with a bloody, iron note on the nose, leading on to a palate layered with bramble fruit. The tannins are round, supple and soft-textured, with tangy acidity that cuts through the concentrated fruit, while the long finish is scented with white pepper and parma violets.  2016 Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: This 2016 is in a gorgeous place. Heady incense combines with sweet cherry fruit and a touch of smoke on the nose, leading onto a palate that you sink into – the wine soft and supple, with waves of sweet fruit, yet all cut by an intensely saline, savoury edge. Fresh and flawlessly balanced, decant and enjoy now and over a good decade to come.   2015 Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places: The sternest of the trio of 2015, 2016 and 2017, this is a powerful and impressive vintage of Les Grandes Places – with all the best characteristics of the year. The wine is dark and broody, compact and amazingly primary still, with black cherry fruit and blackberry filling the nose. On the palate, however, it has amazing purity and intensity, with a crystalline quality to the fruit, plenty of acidity to complement its concentration and the firm tannins. Smoky, saline notes linger in the mouth, with a dusting of petal florals on the finish. Decant if opening now, but this will be even better if you can resist for another few years.  Explore all current listings from Nicolas Champagneux including a range of back-vintages or read more about the Rhône 

It’s almost a decade since Nicolas Champagneux took over his family’s vines and started making wine under his own name – the first generation to do so. We sat down with the vigneron to find out more about his heritage and the journey so far 

How the talented young vigneron in Cote-Rotie has taken his family’s legacy and created a new domaine that is one of the Rhone’s most exciting 

Nicolas Champagneux – building on his birthright 

Nicolas Champagneux: building on his birthright 

Ch. Belle-Brise is a rather inconspicuous Bordeaux property with a “garden” vineyard of just two hectares and an annual production of just 800 cases. With such small quantities produced and a legion of loyal followers, the wine is little known outside of an exclusive list of top restaurateurs, a few lucky distributors and their clients. Henri-Bruno is the 20th generation of the de Coincy family, famous for their Armagnac production that dates back an incredible 700 years. Despite this impressive lineage, Henri-Bruno's winemaking skills are a much more recent labour of love. Similarly, Ch. Belle-Brise was late to commercial winemaking – an enterprise started by Henri-Bruno when he bought the property in 1991 – despite producing wine since the 18th century. Ch. Belle-Brise is often compared to the Grand Crus of Burgundy and has been referred to as the "Musigny of Pomerol", such is the elegance and weightless power this wine consistently seems to possess. Theories abound about why this is the case. Perhaps it is Henri-Bruno's  Burgundian wife's influence, or the pre-1956 vines, or small-scale operation? For De Coincy, it is all of the above that makes this little wine of Pomerol so unique. The foundations of Ch. Belle-Brise What is really special about the Belle-Brise vineyard is the age of the vines, more than 100 vines are a staggering 120 years old and the average vine age is around 70 years old.   It is rare to find any Pomerol vines that pre-date 1956, as devastating frosts that year destroyed virtually all the region's vineyards. Many vines planted in Pomerol post-1956 were reliable clones but not as good in terms of wine quality. This is not the case at Belle-Brise, where vines either pre-date 1956 or were propagated from the surviving old vines. Outside of Belle-Brise, there are just a few pre-1956 vines dotted around Pomerol and Saint-Emilion – most noticeably at Ch. Lafleur and Ch. Ausone. Old Cabernet Franc and Merlot vines, De Coincy believes, create an overall elegance, finesse and depth of flavour on the palate that is something really special. The Belle-Brise vineyard contains a split of around 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. The soil has gravel on the surface and beneath, a layer of clay, chalk and crasse de fer (iron rich bands of sand that play an important role in the flavour characteristics of many top Pomerol wines). Many believe this is responsible for the truffle aromas commonly found in Pomerol wines. Others believe it provides viticultural benefits, limiting vigour and excessive leaf growth, in turn producing smaller concentrated berries. Natural winemaking at Ch. Belle-Brise Despite being an experienced Brandy producer, De Coincy's project in Pomerol required considerable learning on the job and was faced with a challenging start. His first crop in the 1991 vintage was largely decimated by frost, meaning he had very small quantities to work with and likely not enough to sell. This did, however, mean he was able to experiment with the vintage and trial different approaches. Three very challenging Bordeaux vintages followed as Mother Nature threw everything at De Coincy. It was a steep learning curve. When the more successful 1995 and 1996 vintages arrived, the winemaker was ready to produce Belle-Brise in his style, with confidence. The approach is artisan and natural. There is no electricity on site and everything is made much as it would have been centuries prior. The grapes are grown using biodynamic and organic principles, and De Coincy employs horses to work the vines. The grapes are all harvested within one day allowing pin-point accuracy on picking dates. They are then hand-sorted exclusively by women – something de Coincy is insistent upon. Once picked and sorted, the grapes are then left uncrushed in concrete vats in the winery. De Coincy then closes up the cellar and leaves the grapes for five days, so the natural coolness of the cellar retards the fermentation process. After five days, De Coincy returns to open up the cellar. As the heat of the day enters the cellar, the grapes naturally begin to ferment from natural yeasts. De Coincy tends to pump over the juice twice a day over six to 10 days depending on the vintage and then leaves the wine to settle in-tank prior to the pressing of the skins. This traditional method is not very common in modern winemaking as it can run the risk of contamination. De Coincy, however, believes this method helps extract the delicate aromatics from the wine. After this stage, De Coincy carries out a very slow pressing of the skins using an old manual vertical process, which he believes is another vital element in the process that retains a delicate finesse typically found in Belle-Brise. Many of these methods are not possible in larger estates as they are laborious and manual. The Belle-Brise wines are then matured in large 400-litre barrels (one-third new, one-third one-year-old, one-third two-year-old), eschewing smaller barriques which De Coincy feels has too strong an affectation on the wine. The Ch. Belle-Brise drinking window Ch. Belle-Brise has always been a fairly accessible wine in its youth with its compact but soft tannins already beautifully integrated. For De Coincy, Belle-Brise needs five years maturation in bottle before you can really benefit from the full impact of the wine and then, depending on your tastes, it drinks beautifully over the next decade. De Coincy has often served his wine blind to his restaurateur clients and found it has been mistaken for premium Burgundy. The similarity with Grand Cru Burgundy is difficult to fathom, considering the completely different varieties and different climates, yet Belle-Brise does boast the silkiness, finesse and almost weightless power of Grand Cru Burgundy, with a touch more opulence you expect from Pomerol. Ch. Belle-Brise's rarity With a mere two-hectare walled -garden vineyard, production at Belle-Brise is minuscule, making it one of the rarest wines on today's marketplace. The vast majority of liquid never reaches private clients as it is snapped up by some of France's finest three-Michelin-starred restaurants. In fact, 80% of three-star-Michelin restaurants in France (and 25 other countries) list the wine, including Georges Blanc and Alain Ducasse: Le Louis XV. Beyond these locations,  private clients can only source Belle-Brise through FINE+RARE and Vinfolio. Browse all currently available Ch. Belle-Brise vintages, exclusively available through FINE+RARE & Vinfolio, or read more Editorial

We caught up with Ch. Belle-Brise's owner and winemaker Henri-Bruno de Coincy to find out the secret behind this idiosyncratic Pomerol estate  

Ch. Belle-Brise's owner and winemaker Henri-Bruno de Coincy on the secret behind this idiosyncratic Pomerol estate  

Ch. Belle-Brise idiosyncratic Pomerol wines

Ch. Belle-Brise: talking to Henri-Bruno de Coincy

Making Champagne is different. More than any other wine, it’s a long-term game. The region’s cellar masters don’t see the fruits of their labour for years, even decades, depending on the wine; their work closer to that of a master distiller rather than most winemakers.  “It humbles you – you are not the superstar. The superstar is definitely the Champagne,” Elise Losfelt – who took over as Cellar Master at Champagne Charles Heidsieck earlier this year – tells me. She has just done her first blends for the prestigious House, with wines selected by her predecessor, Cyril Brun – and those blends won’t be tasted by the rest of the world for as long as eight years, when it comes to the vintage wine.   With three young children (aged three, four and six), Losfelt’s home life is very much about the here and now, but the world of Champagne gives her the chance to slow down; “Putting myself in a timeline – not just in today,” she explains. Losfelt has big shoes to fill, following in the footsteps of Brun, who arrived at Charles Heidsieck in 2015 and helped steer the House into a new, more prosperous era, including the re-introduction of the property’s Champagne Charlie cuvée. He has since caused a stir in the world of sparkling wine by being the first Champenois ex-pat to move to Italy, taking on a new role at Ferrari (one of the top names in Trento DOC).  Similarly to Brun (who came from Veuve Clicquot), Losfelt arrives from one of the Moët Hennessy properties, Moët & Chandon. Also like Brun, wine runs in her blood – she’s the seventh generation to make wine, with her mother at the helm of the family estate, Ch. de l’Engarran in the Languedoc.   Losfelt spent over a decade at Moët & Chandon, a business which became “a place that feels like family”; but when the phone rang and it was a job offer from Charles Heidsieck… “I had to grab it,” she tells me. Not only has she always loved the Charles Heidsieck Champagnes, but it was over a glass of 1995 Blanc des Millénaires that she and her husband first connected, back in 2014.  For the majority of her time at Moët & Chandon she was the Head of Vinfication, preparing the wines for the cellar master, responsible for much of the winemaking – almost everything but the final blend. It was the scientific side of winemaking that had attracted her originally, but the lure of this unexplored artistic side of the job, combined with her emotional tie to the wines, made the opportunity impossible to resist. It was, as she told me, time to leave her “first family” to take on a new challenge.   For her, Charles Heidsieck stands apart from others for its endless complexity. “It’s a Champagne that doesn’t offer you just one facet, doesn’t offer you just one aroma, or just one characteristic of aromas… it’s everything together,” she explains. While the brief for something like Moët Impérial is to craft a consistent and fresh, vibrant wine, her brief at Charles Heidsieck is for “profoundness”. Even at the non-vintage level, she is looking for wine that would meet many Houses’ vintage standards; the aim is to consistently exceed quality expectations.  Talking about trends in the region today, I enquired whether there were any plans for Charles Heidsieck to follow in the footsteps of Louis Roederer, Krug or Jacquesson – creating numbered non-vintage releases, highlighting the base vintage and variation between years, rather than the consistency historically seen as desirable. There are no plans for imminent changes, but the House has – since the 1990s, under Chef de Cave Daniel Thibaut – had the “mis en cave” date, the year in which the bottle was laid down in the cellar for secondary fermentation to get underway. As for adding tirage or disgorgement dates: “This is a question for me in five years,” Losfelt says, with an unrushed shrug.  For this new Chef de Cave, it is only the beginning – with much to learn, test and try before any changes are made. Losfelt’s job is a little like the now-famous Patek Philippe advert, she tells me; she’s just keeping the seat warm for the next generation, inheriting the work of her predecessors and creating the tools for those that will follow her. As she tells me, “Every step of the way, one choice makes a difference.”  As we await the first releases bearing her fingerprint, there’s no doubt she’ll be working tirelessly to preserve and further Charles Heidsieck’s legacy. “Until it’s tasted, and it's good, I will not rest,” she says, a clear sense of responsibility for the weight on her shoulders. We, like Losfelt, will just have to wait and see.   Explore all current Charles Heidsieck listings, or read more about Champagne

Earlier this year, Champagne Charles Heidsieck announced that Elise Losfelt would be replacing Cyril Brun as Chef de Cave. We sat down with her to talk about her journey and why patience is most certainly a virtue when it comes to crafting fine Champagne

We spoke to Elise Losfelt, the newly crowned Chef de Cave for Champagne Charles Heidsieck, about why patience is a virtue when it comes to making Champagne

Talking to Charles Heidsieck’s Elise Losfelt

A waiting game: Champagne Charles Heidsieck

Class act: Saint-Emilion Top of the list this year was our investigation of rifts and rivalry in Saint-Emilion. Although the region produces some of the world’s finest wines, recently the region’s name has become associated with lawsuits and scandal, the ranking of its leading estates dogged by controversy. We spoke to Saint-Emilion’s leading figures about a classification in crisis, and what the future holds for its class of 2022. Read more Burgundy 2020: an exceptional year Second up is our overview of Burgundy 2020. Talking and tasting with top producers up and down the Côte d’Or, it’s clear 2020 was an extraordinary vintage. For many, it was their earliest harvest – with pickers amongst the vines in mid-August. But the wines produced belie the year’s warm conditions. We dig into the unique growing season, the wines – and the reasons behind the vintage’s surprising success. Read more Barolo 2017 Coming in third was a look at Barolo 2017. Italy as a whole has been earning more attention from fine wine lovers – and deservedly so. As the 2017 Barolos started to be released, we spoke to Vajra, Prunotto, Mussolino and Grimaldi about the vintage – one that suffers from following the superb 2016. Read more Neal Martin: striking a chord Fourth in 2021’s final five was our interview with Neal Martin. He doesn’t fit the mould of most wine writers. Nor does he want to. While the Essex-born critic was Robert Parker’s protégé, he has always been determined to hit the right note with his writing – one that will resonate with a wider audience. We caught up with the Vinous author to find out how he preserves both his independence and irreverence. Read more Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW on the evolution of Bordeaux Last, but far from least, is another critic – this time Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW. Last week, the critic left her post as Editor of the Wine Advocate, after 13 years at the publication. We spoke to her in May about the styles, and trends, that have shaped Bordeaux over two decades. Read more Explore more Editorial

Over the past 12 months, we published almost 100 articles. We covered everything from fine tea and truffles to the latest advances in viticulture, interviewing leading figures across the wine and spirits industry. Here are the five that proved most popular

The five most popular features we published in 2021, from interviews with leading critics to in-depth vintage reports

The biggest stories published in 2021

The biggest stories of 2021

Since Bruno-Eugène Borie took over Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou in 2003, the estate has become one of the best-known and most-loved properties in Bordeaux. The 2023 vintage will be his 20th at the helm – during which time the estate, and the region, have been transformed.  “Everything has changed, and nothing has changed,” Borie says, laughing. “Go all the way back to 1720. Even then, Ducru was trying to improve and adapt to current market conditions.” While he insists that Ducru’s quest to produce the best wine possible dates back centuries, facilitating that motivation has not always been easy. Bordeaux thrived throughout much of the 18th and 19th centuries, prior to the arrival of phylloxera in 1875. The economic turmoil in Europe during the first half of the 20th century was even more challenging, and the recovery slow. It’s only really in the 21st century that many of the top Bordeaux estates have regained the resources and clawed back their premiership. Borie took over Ducru at a key turning point for the region – with both the climate and markets rapidly changing. Economic reform in China led to a huge influx of new customers for the fine wine market, and Bordeaux in particular. “China represents 30-40% of the Bordeaux sales today,” says Borie. “It changed everything.” For Borie, this sudden and huge expansion of the market began to lure investors from all over the world. As investment flooded into the region, new wineries, new equipment, new viticulture and new technology began to pop up everywhere. “More investors meant more managers, and more managers hired innovators,” says Borie. It facilitated a whole qualitative movement that, he believes, is behind so much innovation in the region. But the investment in Bordeaux was not the only factor behind the big changes at Ducru. Borie’s decision to slash production had a huge impact on the estate. Before he took over, the property made around 15,000-20,000 cases of the Grand Vin. Today, it’s closer to 7,500 to 8000. Few estate owners can attest to such a dramatic drop in yield for the sake of quality. Such a bold move was certainly helped by Ducru’s independence – it is one of the few Classed Growths that is still 100% family-owned. And the risk has paid off, with Ducru regularly competing for wine of the vintage in the Médoc. Climate also brought about big changes at the property. Borie’s first year in charge – 2003 – was the hottest on record. Soaring temperatures were causing havoc all over France and not just in the vineyards. “People were dying on the streets of Paris,” recalls Borie. He remembers his viticulturist at the time came to him in June, suggesting they start leaf-thinning the vines (removing leaves, opening up the canopy and bring more sunshine to aid ripening). With the vintage’s blazing sun, Borie thought it was madness. “People did it because it’s what they always did,” says Borie. But he resisted. He quickly realised it would be the weather – rather than tradition – that dictated work in the vineyard going forward. As harvest dates crept forward, the days of an August off at the beach were disappearing. Everything was changing. While the investment and innovation in these early years coincided with rapid change in the region, it is over the last 10 years that Borie has witnessed the most impactful changes in Bordeaux. In the vineyard, these changes have not arisen from flashy new machinery, but in the strategic employment of companion planting and cover crops. These agricultural techniques have been used through the ages, but, Borie believes, never as dynamically and rigorously as today. “We plant a certain type of radish in the vineyard where we find compaction, this opens the soil and creates more oxygen. We plant alfalfa at the beginning of spring where needed, bringing nitrogen to the soil at the right time,” he explains. The control of organic matter, Borie believes, is the key to healthy soils, healthy vines and, most importantly, the quality of the grapes. But, Borie is quick to emphasise, this is not simply a revived practice from the days before chemical farming. For Borie, the science behind which and what cover and companion crops to use is much more advanced. Practices are no longer habitual, but much more scientific. “The companion planting of crops between the rows is very new,” says Borie. “Each plot has different requirements.” It doesn’t always work. Borie recounts how the planting of sorghum to encourage the root development of the vines resulted in a nematode infestation (a pest similar to phylloxera) – and the sorghum was quickly replaced. They’re still learning, admits Borie, but he’s convinced the vineyards have never been in better shape. Over the last 10 years, there have also been technological developments in the winery too. Borie is very proud of his “smart” tanks – which analyse the must and wine throughout fermentation, 24 hours a day. It’s a game changer for Borie who has been experimenting with them since 2019. In recent vintages, the Grand Vin has been made exclusively in these tanks. The information these tanks provide is perfect for monitoring temperatures and maceration levels – allowing Ducru to get the best out of the tannins without over-extracting. With live updates on what’s going on inside the tank (and no need to manually take a reading), they can adapt their processes instantly. Ducru has always been family-owned – giving Borie a sense of responsibility and duty. He still lives at the estate, making it one of the very few inhabited châteaux in the Médoc. Borie resides in one of its famous towers, while his mother (95 years old) lives in the other (and still enjoys two glasses of wine for lunch and one for dinner).  As custodians of the estate, Borie – and his mother – have witnessed many changes. And as Borie has grown accustomed to greater precision in the vineyard and winery, he has returned to consider older vintages in the estate’s cellars. He and his team set about checking every mature bottling, re-corking only those in perfect condition and destroying the rest. These bottles are more than history, they represent his family – and his sense of duty to their reputation has been the driver behind many similarly costly projects over his 20-year tenure. Having the opportunity to taste the entire range from Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou from the magnificent 2019 vintage (now all in bottle) was a wonderful experience. Across the range, it is the textural quality of the wines that really stands out. The clarity of fruit – which Ducru has become renowned for – is also apparent. The quality of the Grand Vin, however, is so impressive – the depth and concentration, the layering of abundant tannins while never losing its finesse. Even at such a young age, its drinkability is a perfect example of contemporary Bordeaux with that extra level of precision. Tasting the 2005 alongside proved how well the wines at Ducru age. Still youthful with plenty of fruit, the first hints of midlife tertiary development bring so much complexity to the palate. It was only Borie’s third vintage, but the lower yields produced a wine of incredible concentration and balance.  The fortunes of history and the new wealth in Bordeaux has benefitted practically every property in the region but few have been so effective at capitalizing on it than Ducru. The transformation of this Saint-Julien property, both in the vineyard and winery, is impressive but there is, Borie believes, still room for improvement. His latest investment is a state-of-the-art winery planned for completion in 2024. With Borie in the driving seat and committed to championing the Super Second’s – and his family’s – reputation, Ducru-Beaucaillou is in a safe pair of hands. Browse all Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou listings or read more Editorial

Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou had been transformed under Bruno-Eugène Borie. On the eve of his 20th vintage at the helm, Gavin Smith sat down to talk to the winemaker and owner about the changes, family – and why there is still more he can do at this Saint-Julien Super Second

On the eve of Bruno Borie’s 20th anniversary in charge of Ducru-Beaucaillou, he identifies his key motivations behind transforming this Bordeaux Super Second

Bruno Borie on 20 years at Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou

Duty of service: Bruno-Eugène Borie on two decades at Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou

Bruna Grimaldi

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