The week in pictures

A flight of top Piedmont producers joined UK merchant Liberty Wines for a tasting of their “super” 2010 vintage, which appears to be sparking interest from fine wine lovers frustrated by Bordeaux and Burgundy.

Roederer group CEO Frederic Rouzaud emphasises the value of family management and vineyard ownership during a lunch hosted by the Champagne house at The Square in London.

Roederer also used the lunch to show off the new packaging for its portfolio. 

Team db’s Lauren May enjoyed an evening of bubbles at The Avenue in London on Thursday at a vertical tasting of Le Réve Blanc de Blancs Brut hosted by Eileen Crane, founding winemaker and President of Domaine Carneros in Napa Valley. Guests were treated to six vintages dating back to the 1992 – the first cuveé produced by the winery which is tied to Champagne Taittinger.

A three-course dinner followed which included this delectable fried soft shell corn crab served with avocado, arugula and chipotle mayo. Throughout the dinner guests were able to sample the domaine’s 2012 Pinot Noir Avante-Garde, its 2008 Famous Gate Pinot Noir and its Brut Prestige rosé NV.

Credit: Colin Hampden-White

Leo Scot-Frances of the Whisky Market Ltd tastes the 1969 Glenfarclas Family cask bottling at the newly opened Craigellachie Hotel in Speyside, which is hoping to stock over 1000 whiskies by the end of the summer.

As the Wimbledon Championships gathers pace, Champagne Perrier-Jouët is inviting tennis fans to sample the delights of its outdoor bar in London’s Duke of York Square; the result of a partnership between The Cadogan hotel and grocers, Partridges. Complete with a 14ft screen which will broadcast the Wiimbledon finals live across the square, guests will have the chance to enjoy Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut by bottle and glass and Perrier-Jouët Belle Époque by the bottle. The branded bar is set to become a permanent fixture at the Duke of York Square Fine Food Market every week.

Frederic Grappe of Dynamic Wines and Head Sommelier Devon Pryor from Home House.

Top sommeliers attended a Chateau Le Puy tasting at the private members club Home House in London on 22 June, hosted by Frederic Grappe of Dynamic Wines and Head Sommelier Devon Pryor from Home House. Guests tasted a range of wines including the Chateau Le Puy ‘Emilien’ 2009 and 2006, and the 2009 Chateau Le Puy ‘Barthelemy’ from the Tres Hombres boat and cellar, finishing with a Magnum of 1994 Chateau Le Puy ‘Emilien’.

Scott and Gavin Hastings at the Caledonian Brewery with its MD, Andy Maddock.

Former Scotland and England rugby players Scott and Gavin Hastings stopped by the Caledonian Brewery in Edinburgh this week to help brew its limited edition Commonwealth Gold beer to commemorate the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Both will take part in commentating matches during the Rugby Sevens at the Games. The Caledonian is Edinburgh’s oldest Brewery, established in 1869.

(L-R) João Pires MS, Orsi Szentkiralyi, Dorian Guillon (winner), Piotr Pietras, Charles Metcalfe and Sarah Ahmed

The winners of Wines of Portugal’s first Wine Quest 2014 were announced at The Westbury Hotel in London with Dorian Guillon, assistant head sommelier at Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, taking the top spot, followed by runners up Piotr Pietras, from Maze by Gordon Ramsay and Orsi Szentkiralyi, tasting manager at Wotwine. The competition saw 15 competitors judged on their skills and knowledge of Portuguese wines across a number of categories, including presentation, blind tasting and food and wine matching capabilities.

More than 13,000 whiskies and cocktails were served up over four days at the Isle of Wight Festival this year following the launch of The Whisky Sessions – a new whisky-themed bar and stage organised by the IWSC. Guests sipped up to 240 hand-made cocktails and whiskies every hour while enjoying live performances from more than 25 acts including Starsailor’s James Walsh, The Carnabys, and Hayseed Dixie’s Hippy Joe.

The bar will reappear at Manchester’s Victoria Warehouse with the inaugural two-day Whisky Sessions festival set to take place on 21 and 22 November.

(L-R) Francoise Peretti (Director, Champagne Bureau UK), Tim Hall (UK Champagne Ambassador 2013), Carol Whitehead (UK Champagne Ambassador 2006), Laura Clay (UK Champagne Ambassador 2010), Edwin Dublin (UK Champagne Ambassador 2011), Anthony Stockbridge (UK Champagne Ambassador 2005), Nancy Gilchrist MW (UK Champagne Ambassador 2012), Marie-Pascale Do Dinh Ty (Chargée de communication, Comité Champagne), Tom Forrest (UK Champagne Ambassador 2007)

A celebratory lunch and masterclass marked the 10th anniversary of the Comité Champagne’s pan-European Champagne Ambassador’s Competition on 19 June – the only competition to recognise wine educators in the UK. The Ambassadorial network, comprising previous UK winners and representatives from the Comité Champagne, came together to reflect on 10 years of competition.

db’s Lucy Shaw was lucky enough to start the week in style with centre count tickets to Wimbledon care of Champagne Lanson. Before heading out to watch Murray and co in action, guests were treated to a lunch hosted by managing director of Lanson International, Paul Beavis, and winemaker Hervé Danton, who admitted that it was his first time at Wimbledon. And if lunch wasn’t enough, midway through play we snuck back to the marquee for strawberries and lashings of Lanson Extra Age Rosé.

During a gloriously sunny day on Centre Court, we got to watch Andy Murray make a decisive start to defending his title as Wimbledon champion, thrashing David Goffin in straight sets.

Les Dauphins from the Rhône Valley added a splash of colour to The Taste of London 2014 which drew a crowd of 55,000 food and drinks enthusiasts to Regents Park over five days from 18 to 22 June. Les Dauphins was on hand to give samples of its Côtes du Rhône Réserve, Côtes du Rhône Rosé Réserve and Côtes du Rhône Villages Grande Réserve wines to the festival’’s wine lovers.

db’s Lucy Shaw was lucky enough to stay at Venissa, a guest house focused around an ancient walled vineyard on the island of Mazzorbo owned by the Proscceco producing Bisol family, this week. The trip included a number of boat trips in a series of different vessels, from vintage wooden water taxis to good old fashioned row boats – as modelled here by wine writer James Lawrence (centre), Matteo Bisol (right) and Claire Hennessy of Grassi Partners. 

Our row boat could do little to compete with this might of this pirate ship, Jack Sparrow not included…

While visiting French winemaker Michel Thoulouze on the island of St Erasmus, we caught sight of these adorable freshly hatched chicks. 

No trip to Venice is complete without a Bellini. Luckily, it was peak peach season, resulting in the best db has ever tasted, perhaps made even more magical by the view at the Gritti Palace hotel where we were sat beside “starchitect” David Chipperfield, organiser of the 2012 Venice Biennale.

Back in London, the Prosecco continued to flow – this time from a Frizzenti van parked at a bustling Taste of London festival in Regent’s Park where the peach, strawberry and mango Bellinis were in abundance.

Why the long face? Punters rocking up to The Shed restaurant in Notting Hill on horseback this week were offered complementary veg for their trusty steeds, with head chef Oliver Gladwin gallantly to feed them by hand.

And finally… spotted on the narrow streets of Hong Kong by db‘s man in Asia, Rupert Millar, was this Roller ready for summer. And no, it’s not owned by the city’s resident MW: Debra Meiburg.