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The autumn wine dinner season in London is in sight. Below are details of four particularly appetising prospects: an Armand Rousseau burgundy dinner at the delciously Michelin-starred Chez Bruce and a series of wine dinners at Rowley Leigh’s Cafe Anglais, recently voted Newcomer of the Year and Restaurant of the Year at the London Restaurant Awards. Leigh is particularly close to Liberty Wines, which is why there is a strong correlation between the themes of his wine dinners and the Liberty portfolio.
Armand Rousseau dinner
Sebastian Thomas of Howard Ripley writes:Domaine Rousseau is one of the leading domaines in Burgundy, with a long and illustrious history.Boasting large holdings in the best grands crus of Gevrey-Chambertin, its flagship wines, the Chambertin, Chambertin Clos de Bèze and premier cru Clos St Jacques have been famously consistent over the years. The grand old man of Gevrey, Charles Rousseau, son of the founder Armand, still mans his office by the gate, but effective stewardship of the domaine has passed to his son Eric, who is rapidly raising the standards of the domaine’s other wines to realise their full potential.
Eric Rousseau has never hosted a wine dinner in the UK, and we are very proud to offer our customers the opportunity to taste the domaine’s wines at one of London’s hottest restaurants.A cursory internet search will show that the market value of Rousseau’s wines has gone stratospheric in the last couple of years, and older vintages are very hard to come by. We are therefore delighted to present the following lineup at a fantastic price:
1999 Louis Roederer (magnum); four vintages of Gevrey-Chambertin premier cru, Clos St Jacques (2000, 1999, 1993 [magnum] and 1988); three vintages of Chambertin (2003, 1999 & 1990) and three vintages of Chambertin Clos de Bèze (2001, 1996 and the legendary1985), 2006 Westhofener Kirchspiel Auslese***, Weingut Keller.
Place: Chez Bruce, 2 Bellevue Road, London SW17 7EG
Price of ticket: £565
Date: 1 Dec 2008
Time: 6:45pm for 7:15pm Carriages [aka Wandsworth Common station 2 mins away – JR] 10:45pm
We advise booking early as places are limited. Please advise us of any special dietary requirements. sebastian.thomas@howardripley.com
Cafe Anglais wine dinners
Rowley Leigh (very obviously) writes: Our first wine dinner with Giovanni Manetti of Fontodi has proved to be a sell out but we do have three more scintillating wine dinners before the end of the year. The second will be Monday 6 Oct with Paolo De Marchi, the renowned and charming owner of Isole e Olena, one of the best Chianti estates. The dinner will feature three vintages of Cepparello, one of the most balanced, elegant and long lived ‘Supertuscans’ and an old favourite of ours, as well as two vintages of his majestic Cabernet Sauvignon. Coupled with a rich autumnal Tuscan-inspired menu, the dinner is extremely fairly priced at £85.Jaboulet and will demonstrate the great strides that have been made in restoring the fortunes of one of the greatest French wine producers. Two recent and one mature vintage of the iconic Hermitage la Chapelle will prove the highlight of the evening but not before a lengthy perusal of the Northern Rhône and not without the ingestion of a menu of classical French cooking. This dinner is again very reasonably priced at £100.
2004 Barolo which has been heralded as a miraculous vintage. Starting with some ‘lighter’ wines we will sample three different producers (Vajra, Massolino and Aldo Conterno) of 2004 Barolo and follow with a 2001 Riserva from Massolino.November and Piedmont means white truffles and the menu will not lack funghal enhancement of a high order. David Gleave MW has kindly consented to chair what should be a memorable evening which, although not inexpensive, represents excellent value at £150.