Michelin 2017 highlights on Wine List Confidential

The news that every ambitious restaurant awaits with bated breath each year has just been announced with the unveiling of the 2017 Michelin Guide.

To mark the occasion, in the pages that follow we look at the top 10 Michelin stories – both good and not so good – among restaurants included on Wine List Confidential.

Wild Honey

Not all Michelin news is good news, and while for some London restaurants the only way is up, for others, the 2017 Michelin Guide has brought humbling news. Wild Honey is one of three restaurants in the capital to have lost its one Michelin star this year.

Nevertheless, here you’ll find finely-tuned list at Will Smith and Anthony Demetre’s second restaurant (following Arbutus). Totalling about 100 bins, the list picks its way through classic regions with care and reverence while keeping an eye on emerging regions such as Turkey and Greece.

There are ‘big dog’ names to salivate over, and choices of Herbert Hall English sparkling by the glass, as well as Gosset Grande Réserve and Gosset Rosé, which mark this out as a list with good breeding with very little padding.

The long dining room, once Marco Pierre White’s Drone’s Club, features carved wooden panels, lipstick-coloured leather banquettes and distinctive photographs.

To view the full Wild Honey Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Launceston Place

It was a bad result for South Kensington venue Launceston Place too. It also lost its precious star. Its wine list, however, covers a very good selection of countries and drills down into regions, even if it’s just a single wine from a specific area.

Head sommelier Piotr Pietras – Polish Sommelier of the Year for 2015 – has a bit of a preference for dry Rieslings so get him on that subject and you’re on to a winner. You’ll also have the chance to sample the best of his wears by the glass thanks to Coravin.

Otherwise there’s a generous showing of Old World classics – Alsace looks particularly appealing – and a good proportion of maturer bottlings. If your drinking alone (sorry about that), there are halves from top producers like Mas de Daumas Gassac, Pieropan and Isole e Olena.

A good move would be to take advantage of D&D London’s ‘Love Wine’ initiative – which aims to encourage diners to try more fine wines by operating on lower margins – through Launceston Place’s tempting selection of cut-price older vintage bottles.

To view the full Launceston Place Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Hibiscus

As reported by the drinks business last month, two Michelin-starred Hibiscus in Mayfair closed on 1 October, which of course means that it drops out of the Michelin Guide for 2017.

Driven by the work of natural wine evangelist Isabelle Legeron MW, Hibiscus picked up the natural wine baton relatively early on the restaurant scene.

By the glass listings were a joy: Henri Milan’s ‘Le Vallon’ from Provence, Château Le Puy St-Emilion, Casino Tajvin’s Barbera d’Asti ‘La Bandita’.

Orange wines were given good representation from Colombaia in Tuscany to Radikon’s thrilling Chardonnay/Friulano blend ‘Slating’. Piedrasassi’s skin contact Sauvignon Blanc from the Central Coast sums up the daring and innovative wines that are in the cellar.

A sad departure from the London restaurant scene.

To view the full Hibiscus Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

The Square

Another two Michelin-star venue, The Square, drops out of the Michelin Guide for 2017 following its sale to Marlon Abela by chef-owner Phil Howard and his business partner Nigel Platts-Martin more than half a year ago.

It remains to be seen in what direction the restaurant will go under new executive chef Yu Sugimoto. For now, it remains one of the top-draw wine experiences in London, with a sommelier team that is at the top of its game.

There is a scintillating vertical of Alois Kracher sweet wines from Austria, while the glass listings are particularly compelling, including lesser seen varieties like Roter Veltliner from Birgit Eichinger in Kamptal, and Fié Gris from the Loire.

To view the full Wine List Confidential entry for The Square, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Céleste at the Lanesborough

Better news at hotel behemoth Céleste, which is awarded a Michelin star for the first time this year.

In wine list terms, expect Bordeaux verticals galore, deep and incisive Burgundy domaines, with plenty of Domaine Leflaive to pile into and shimmering New World listings like Grosset’s Rieslings from the Clare Valley.

Dessert listings are plentiful, with by the glass selections including Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey 2005.

To view the full Céleste Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Le Gavroche

This benchmark for fine dining in the UK unsurprisingly retained its two stars this year. Here you will find an exemplary wine list with service to match.

Unsurprisingly the stalwarts of Bordeaux and Burgundy are given major coverage with plenty of properly mature vintages, if you have the luxury of wading into these.

There are plenty of good value options among the icons on the list, such as vintages of Le Soula Rouge, Pinot Gris from Leon Beyer and Vouvray Sec from Loire growers Catherine and Pierre Breton.

To view the full Le Gavroche Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

The Ledbury

Also retaining its two stars this year is The Ledbury. The wine experience here is one of the finest in London, befitting of one of the UK’s best restaurants. Nigel Platts-Martin is one of the most meticulous restaurateurs around.

Sommeliers are at the top of their game, stemware is perfect, the selection is as deep as it is broad. Wine has been bought religiously over 10 years and stored, allowing them to pull out older vintages across the whole group – as close to perfection as it’s possible to get.

To view the full Ledbury Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Restaurant Gordon Ramsay

A daddy of a list, a daddy of a restaurant. Three Michelin stars are not awarded to restaurants lightly, and the Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road team should take immense credit for retaining all three in the 2017 guide.

Jan Konetski is in charge of proceedings, and 53 pages later, you’ll be wanting to drink a fair whack of this list. Lots of large formats for added decadence.

To view the full Restaurant Gordon Ramsay Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

Trinity

One of the big stories this year was the awarding of a Michelin star to Clapham fine dining venue Trinity. The wine list here runs to around 400 bins, with strong representation from Burgundy and Bordeaux – almost all of it accessibly priced.

Throughout the list you will find wines marked CCW, which stands for ‘Chef’s Cellar Wine’. These are the top drops from the Trinity Cellar, which have been made available at unbeatable value – that is, cost price, plus corkage (£20) and VAT. No further mark-up is added.

If you’re looking to keep things simple, it’s worth checking out Trinity Upstairs, the venue’s newish (2015) first-floor space, for a less formal evening’s dining. Seating is at communal wooden tables and the short menu of 12 small plates is complemented by some great-value wine on tap.

To view the full Trinity Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.

The Ritz

As reported in the drinks business, The Ritz picked up a star for the first time in its illustrious history this year.

With 800 wines to choose from, including a surprisingly strong presence of ‘hipster’ wines thanks to the fresh thinking of head somm Giovanni Ferlito, there’s plenty to pore over in the restaurant’s famous Livre du Vin.

This year Ferlito, who makes wine himself on Etna, added 150 new wines to the list. These include – sign of the times – five orange wines, two of which are available by the glass.

There’s also a strong emphasis on indigenous varieties, with lesser known wines from regions including Jura, Corsica, Etna, Georgia, Slovakia and Santorini providing a nice counterpoint to the impressive verticals of Premier Cru Classé Bordeaux and Grand Cru Burgundy.

So while there’s little hope of a cheap night out, there are sufficient reasons to sup at The Ritz.

To view the full Ritz Wine List Confidential entry, including individual category scores and wine recommendations, click here.

To view from all 350+ Wine List Confidential entries click here.

To view London’s top 10 expert-rated wine lists according to Wine List Confidential experts, click here.