Led by French wines including 2 champagnes and 5 Rosé , followed by Italian producers like Frescobaldi, Banfi, Marchesi di Barolo and Livio Falluga, then Australia and USA, wines were also from Argentina, Chile and New Zealand (Spain and Germany were not represented). A total of 102 wines were poured. Like Draupadi’s sari, the empty bottles were replaced constantly, the moment one finished. There was not a single label which had exhausted, till I left the hotel after completing my mission of tasting all the 102 wines at around 6 pm on my second visit on the last day.
The wines were poured in 2- hour slots. A pass for Rs. 2000 let you choose and taste any 10 wines- including Luce from Frescobaldi, Brunello di Montalcino and Summus from Banfi, Barolo and Barbaresco from Marchesi di Barolo, Promis (Gaja Ca’Marcanda), Bollinger and Louis Roederer champagnes, Cakebread Cellar, Henschke and several other super-premium wines.
All the 100 wines are available at La Cave Delhi which had curated the event in collaboration with The Oberoi Gurgaon which provided 10 snacks-some of them in generous proportion. Says David Mathews, General Manager of The Oberoi, ‘we have selected gourmet food items including the cheeses, fish and the lamb that are available easily in the retail market. The idea is to help out guests to enjoy those gourmet foods in their homes as well.’
Around 300-400 persons were estimated to have attended the event every day. Although I would have liked to see at least twice that number - considering what an extra-ordinary event it was for wine novices and connoisseurs alike, Mathews was pleased with the number. ‘’we have taken pains to create a convivial atmosphere so that people can relax, sit down and make new friends as they are sipping wine. With more people, it would have become crowded. We also would not like people to stand in lines as they walk in’.
After each slot, guests were thanked for coming and were requested to leave. Everything was quite orderly and it was perfect example to note that 10 glasses of tasting shots in 2 hours do not make a person drunk or misbehave, though I hope fervently that they did not take the driver’s seat on the way home.
Madhulika Bhattacharyya Dhall who runs independently La Cave Retail Store owned by the Aman Dhall family worked very hard to make the event happen. She had even managed to rope in Alessandro Vallecchi (export manager Asia, Marchesi di Barolo), Guillaume Blanchard (Export Manager Banfi) and Peter Ferguson (Export Manager, Luce) to come to India for the event. They not only presented their respective wines but also conducted Masterclasses within the campus where wines were being poured.
Kapil Chopra, the wine connoisseur and all-time bindas President of the Oberoi Group spent a fouple of hours tasting and mingling with people and seemed relaxed and very pleased with the way the event had finally taken shape. ‘We had been discussing about having a unique celebratory event for months and came out with this plan. I am happy that the execution has been better than we planned, thanks to my team led by David Mathew.’ When I told him this ought to become an annual feature,’ he was categorical, ‘I would like to have one every quarter! But it must have something new and of our Oberoi standard.’ When I remarked that it might mean losing money, he responded, ‘that is of no consequence. We make Rs. 100 crores from these two hotels. If we have to spend Rs. 20 lakhs, it’s no problem (figures were used in general and meant only to demonstrate the magnitude-editor). In any case, we are not going to lose any money,’ he concluded with confidence.
I also chatted with the affable GM David Mathews who felt it might not be feasible to organise a similar event every quarter. ‘Once a year, is now certain. We need to fine tune this event for future and should make it a bit unique. I think twice a year might be more practical. But we at Oberoi are expected to do every event in style and we do it in our style,’ said Mathews.
Madhulika says, ‘I am very happy the event and the format have been both liked a lot by people. My objective is to have more people connect with wine. I think people enjoyed that part and I hope to continue with this programme. Of course, I want to promote La Cave and am happy that my husband Aman Dhall has been very supportive but I also want to educate people in wine.’
While it is not enough to praise wine service of the staff despite temperature variations, shortage of chillers and decanters- minor irritants, the food was of excellent Oberoi standard. An uplifting feature was a gourmet food presentation by Olive Trading Company and the presence of its Pune owner Suku Shah. He had some incredible high quality olive oil and Modena balsamic vinegar; I start to salivate when I think of his 25-year aged balsamic. It made his young Balsamic look pedestrian. Same with the truffle paste and the truffle salt, though I reserve my judgement on the truffle oil.
Top Picks
Here is my pick of wines scoring 90+ after tasting all the 100 wines (actually 102) over 2 days. While rating the wines prices were not taken into account; obviously the tasting was not blind. (Some vintages were not noted down and are missing)
|
Luce |
94 |
|
Livio Falluga Sharis Chardonnay- Ribolla Gialla 2013 |
93 |
|
Lucente 2013 |
93 |
|
Barbaresco Marchesi di Barolo |
92 |
|
Bepi N Detto Brut docg (Prosecco) NV |
92 |
|
Bollinger Brut NV |
92 |
|
Banfi Brunello di Montalcino 2009 |
92 |
|
Henschke Pinot Noir Giles 2012 |
92 |
|
E Guigal Tavel Rose |
92 |
|
Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 |
92 |
|
Cakebread Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2014 |
91 |
|
Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Vineyard Chardonnay |
91 |
|
D’Arenberg Laughing Magpie 2011 (95% Shiraz, Viognier 5%) |
91 |
|
Louis Roederer Brut NV |
91 |
|
Promis Ca’Marcanda (Gaja) 2014 |
91 |
|
Stags Leap KARIA Chardonnay |
91 |
|
Yalumba Cabernet Sauvignon |
91 |
Three Cheers for La Cave and Oberoi for a phenomenal first-time effort of connecting consumers with different levels of foreign wines- through delicious snacks and condiments. Jai Ho!!
Subhash Arora
Wine List |