LANDS OF PLENTY
Master of Wine Tan Ying Hsien gives his picks for the world’s best wine regions.
1 Burgundy
The homeland of pinot noir and chardonnay, Burgundy has produced wine for more than a thousand years. Such a heritage means that there are opportunities to experience the depth of the region’s history and wine culture at every turn. The Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction each November is something for the diary — encompassing a weekend of festivities, it culminates in an exciting charity auction of premium wines that is overseen by famous auction house Christie’s. Part of the festivities include an extravagant dinner hosted by one of the world’s earliest wine fraternities, the Confrerie des Chevaliers du Tastevin, at the historic Chateau de Clos de Vougeot. The Confrerie also holds dinners throughout the year at the chateau.
2 Bordeaux
The largest fine-wineproducing region in the world, this area is a personal highlight, being home to the first wine estate I ever visited, more than 30 years ago — Chateau Batailley. My experience there was the epitome of the hospitality you can expect in the region — warm and welcoming by the owner of the estate, Emile Casteja. His son, Philippe continues the tradition. A port-city, Bordeaux is easy to reach, particularly by plane, and you have ready access to a plethora of world-class wineries, where beautiful wines are produced by the millions of bottles each year. There are numerous properties that can be visited in the Medoc and Graves, where the dominant grape variety is cabernet sauvignon, and on the other side of the river Garonne, where the wines of SaintEmilion, Pomerol and their satellite regions are based on merlot as the predominant grape variety. For those with a sweet tooth, there are the many delights of the wines of Sauternes and Barsac.
3 Champagne
Just a 40-minute train ride from bustling Paris can take you to the doorstep of stunning wine country that is steeped in history. A familiar region to many, thanks to the sparkling wine that bears its name, wine houses in Champagne are wellorganised to receive a constant flow of wine-loving visitors. The two principal towns to visit are Reims and Epernay. Reims is home to the famous cathedral where the kings of France were