At The Peak, we always think there’s time for fine wine, regardless of how hectic things get. While travel might be curtailed at this time, here are a few places to keep in mind when you’re looking for a drop of the finest vintage.
VistaJet’s Signature Wine List is personally curated by Thomas Flohr, the company’s founder and chairman.
The first and only global business aviation company’s The VistaJet Wine Program is the most expansive and engaging experience of wine, and is designed to enhance the exploration of the world of wine on its aircraft and at world destinations.
Among the offerings is the Signature Wine List, sourced from some of the world’s most iconic vineyards and personally handpicked by Thomas Flohr, the Founder and Chairman of VistaJet. The list is filled with wines that take advantage of the effects of flying to perform best in the sky, and features great classics such as the elegant, pure and aromatic Ruinart Champagne; the dense, smooth and ripe Château Pape Clément, Pessac Léognan with its lifted notes of raspberries; and the Gaja, Rossj Bass Chardonnay, presenting a definite character and good acidity with a fresh and lingering finish.
Through its global coverage, VistaJet also provides bespoke access and personal introductions to the world’s best winemakers and wine clubs through the VistaJet Chairman’s Office. With these global VistaJet Wine Tours, members can request round-the-world wine itineraries and personal tours of the finest vineyards and wine regions, as well as access to wine auctions and events with fine wine traders and collectors. It also includes a three-day experience hosted by Marchesi Antinori, with a dinner with the family at Palazzo Antinori, tasting wines from their private collections, before visiting their historical vineyards in Tuscany and Umbria by helicopter and staying in the family estates’ exclusive guest houses.
Christopher Delalonde leads the tastings at The Dorchester’s Wine Vault.
When you’re next in London, do make time for the exceptional oenology experiences at the two Dorchester Collection properties in the city. At the iconic The Dorchester overlooking Hyde Park, you’ll find its hidden sommelier’s cellar, the Wine Vault, a modern and intimate space for wine tastings for up to 12 guests. The experience is led by The Dorchester’s head of wines, Christopher Delalonde MS, one of only 269 professionals around the world to have received the coveted Master Sommelier title, the highest distinction in wine and beverage service. Each session sees Delalonde weaving insightful storytelling into each individual journey through some of the hotel’s most exceptional wines from the almost 1,000 bottles that make up the carefully curated collection of wines in the Wine Vault.
The Dorchester Collection’s contemporary Mayfair hotel, 45 Park Lane, meanwhile, is a series of wine dinners led by director of wines, Frederic Marti. Welcoming wineries from Argentina, California and Bordeaux, the monthly wine evenings at CUT at 45 Park Lane and the private Media Room explore these prestigious wine cellars from some of the world’s best wine regions. An evening with Napa Valley based Opus One kicked off the series last month, taking dinner guests on a journey through the vineyard’s 1988, 2007, 2012 & 2016 vintages. As the only restaurant in the world to have a vertical line-up of Chateau Mouton Rothschild vintages dating from 1970 to 2015, CUT at 45 Park Lane will see representatives from the estate to guide guests through a unique dining experience with a four-course menu paired with some of these extraordinary vintages on 6 May. Other dinners through the rest of the year include California wineries Orin Swift and Sine Qua Non on 1 July 1 and 2 September, respectively; family-owned Argentinian winery Catena Zapata on 7 October; and Spanish winery Vega Sicilia on 4 November.
Closer to home is the Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, where The Krug Room, created in partnership with the prestigious champagne maker, offers Executive Chef Robin Zavou’s creative cuisine paired with some of the most Krug champagnes like the Krug Grande Cuvée 167 eme Edition, Krug Clos Du Mesnil 2004 and Krug 2006.
Over at the Mandarin Oriental’s other Hong Kong property, The Landmark, SOMM’s Weekend Sommelier’s Lunch Menu that offers a curated selection of more than 1,600 champagnes, wines and sake served with a menu that pays homage to the season.
In Chile, the Mandarin Oriental, Santiago has partnered with Franco-Chilean vineyard Lapostolle Chile in Colchagua Valley to produce two signature and exclusive wines for the hotel, the MO Carmenere and MO Blanc. The hotel also offers Chilean Wine & Culture packages, which includes a visit to the Santa Rita Winery for a wine pairing with local cheese as well as a three-course meal at the winery’s Restaurant Dona Paula.
