New international hotel brand to launch in New York

A new international hotel brand - Wolseley Hotels - will launch in New York City in early 2027.

The Wolseley Hotel New York will mark the brand’s first hotel worldwide and establish New York as the flagship destination for The Wolseley Hotels, while also bringing one of London’s most celebrated dining institutions to an international stage.

Located steps from Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan, The Wolseley Hotel New York will also introduce The Wolseley restaurant and bar to the United States for the first time, bringing one of London’s most celebrated dining institutions to an international stage.

The hotel will occupy a landmark building at 130 West 44th Street, originally constructed in 1905 as the clubhouse for The Lambs Club, a social club for those involved in the arts. 

The property will aim to blend "British sophistication with New York’s cultural energy and architectural pedigree". 

The new hotel will have 76 guest rooms and suites and deliver "an effortless, contemporary luxury experience".

Complementing the restaurant will be an intimate cellar-level speakeasy bar. 

The New York flagship will see future properties planned for some of the world’s most cosmopolitan cities across Europe, North America, Asia, and the Middle East, owner Minor Hotels says. 

Each destination will be "carefully curated to uphold the brand’s distinctive identity, where culinary excellence, elegant design, and gracious service converge".

For more info see https://www.minorhotels.com/en/brands/the-wolseley-hotels.

* Minor Hotels is based in Bangkok, Thailand, and operates more than 550 hotels in over 55 countries under brands including Anantara Hotels & Resorts, Avani Hotels & Resorts, Elewana Collection, Oaks Hotels, NH Hotels, NH Collection, nhow Hotels, and Tivoli Hotels & Resorts.

Exceptional vintage delivers a stellar flagship for Mr Riggs

 

It takes a special vintage in both McLaren Vale and Coonawarra for Ben Riggs to even consider releasing his flagship red wine Mr Riggs The Chap. 

The Chap is a classic Australian "claret" style - an Alpha blend of McLaren Vale shiraz (68%) and Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon (32%), that it is only made in years that Riggs considers exceptional. 

The 2020 vintage was one of those years - and Riggs has made just 912 bottles in total with 2020 joining 2012-2104 and 2016-2018 releases. 

Make no mistake, this is a big assertive wine with power and length, but it finishes with soft tannins, just as Riggs likes it. It's assertive but also elegant, with oak supporting but not overpowering. 

"This is a wine that can easily be cellared for 1-20 years," Riggs says. "I love the long fine-grained tannins and the powerful structure."

Not a wine for everyday drinking with its $120 price tag, but certainly a wine for a special occasion. 

Everything says "Look at Me". There's a heavy bottle, wax and quality cork. On the plate are rich, blackcurrant plum, spice and earthiness

The fruit is a combo of shiraz from Riggs' own Piebald Gully vineyard in McLaren Vale, and the Weatherall vineyards in Coonawarra. 

See www.mrriggs.com.au for more info.       

Fifth-generation vignerons produce new flagship shiraz

 

For five generations now the Angove family has been making wines to suit all palates and all budgets.

The Angoves are a family that go about their business with a minimum of fuss, but with plenty of attention to detail. 

Now the family has unveiled a new flagship wine: the 2000 Brightlands Shiraz.

Angove Family Winemakers was founded in 1886 by Dr William Thomas Angove after his young family emigrated from Cornwall in England to Tea Tree Gully in the Adelaide foothills.

After establishing his medical practice, Dr Angove soon found himself experimenting with winemaking, at first using what he produced as tonics for his patients.

He quickly found a growing customer base, turning his hobby into a business and increasing his vineyard holdings from four to 40 hectares.

His son "Skipper" Angove 'Skipper' developed a small hobby enterprise to a multi-regional wine business producing a diverse range ofwines for both local and export markets.

Skipper was instrumental in establishing the first-ever winery and distillery in Renmark, in the Riverland, in 1910.

He crafted Angove Family Winemakers into a significant player, producing fine, still, and fortified wines and developing one of Australia's most iconic spirits St Agnes Brandy.

Now in its fifth generation of family leadership, Angove Family Winemakers is "dedicated to embracing evolutionary ideas, with a focus on maintaining relevancy and ensuring sustainability for future generations to come".

The new Brightlands Shiraz ($125) is a blend of the very best single barrel from McLaren Vale vineyards: Angels Rise at Clarendon and Warboys, just south of the township of McLaren Vale.

The family says that combined "they give rise to a remarkable intensity, depth, concentration and ageing potential".

"We are fortunate to be the custodians of two unique vineyards," says fifth generation vigneron Richard Angove. "They are amazing sites on their own but when blended take things to the next level."

Big and dense at first, the wine opens up in the glass to reveal layers of muscularity with fruit intensity and structure. It finishes satisfyingly smooth and impressively balanced. 

I liked it a lot. 

The name Brightlands Shiraz pays homage to the birthplace of Angove Family Winemakers - cellars originally constructed in 1875.

See www.angove.com.au

New-release flagship wines available via expressions of interest

 

Levantine Hill has unveiled details of the second release of its Optume series - and sales will be made via expressions of interest. 

The initial Optume release was the most expensive range of wines ever made in Victoria.

The Yarra Valley winery says the new vintage releases will comprise the inaugural chardonnay release from the 2020 vintage, and the 2018 Optume Shiraz.

The winey told mailing list memebers: "Due to limited quantities made of each wine, we invite you to register your interest in advance of the official release on market."

Registrations of interest will access pre-release pricing, which is only available until February 24.

There are 984 bottles of the shiraz, which has an RRP of $880 a bottle, and 600 bottles of the chardonnay, which has an RRP of $600. 

Both wines are made by Levantine Hill chief winemaker Paul; Bridgeman (above). 

See levantinehill.com.au

Meet the most expensive wines made in Victoria

 

Premium Yarra Valley wine producer Levantine Hill is always prepared to make a statement. 

Owners the Jreissati family and winemaker Paul Bridgeman strive for excellence - and know how to charge for it. 

Now welcome Optume, Levantine Hill Estate’s $800 celebrations of shiraz and cabernet sauvignon from the Yarra - the winery's most premium range yet and launched today. 

The 2017 Levantine Hill Optume Shiraz will have a limited release of 65 cases, and the 2017 Levantine Hill Optume Cabernet Sauvignon will have an even more limited release of 58 dozen bottles.

Levantine Hill winemaker Paul Bridgeman says he has aimed to craft wines expressing the heart and soul of the Yarra Valley. 

The wines use hand-sorted grapes sourced from several selected Yarra Valley sites, which Bridgeman says allows for more nuanced flavours and complexity. 

The bottles have been imported from France (another statement) and locally-crafted presentation boxes will hold each bottle, complete with their own individually numbered key to secure the contents. 

Levantine Hill managing director Samantha Jreissati says the release of the Optume label represents an important milestone in the company’s quest to produce Australia’s very best wines of uncompromising quality. 

“These wines are made from the best parcels of cabernet sauvignon and shiraz that we can find across the Yarra Valley from the 2017 vintage - so it is a true celebration of our entire region,’’ she said.

 “Optume was born following a chance discussion between Levantine Hill Estate’s founder Elias Jreissati and winemaker Paul Bridgeman (pictured above), who had a meeting of minds about what sort of wine could be created in the Yarra Valley if no effort or expense was spared and other premium wine growers were given the opportunity to submit grapes for inclusion in it. 

"Their shared vision is to create the optimum expression of a GI-specific, cool-climate wine - hence the name - from each suitable vintage, without regard to location, effort or cost. 

"We are very proud of the results." 

The $800 price tag is believed to make the Optume wines the most expensive in Victoria. 

“The rarity of these wines is due to the pulling together of the particular strengths as well as expressions of a small number of select single site grapes around Levantine Hill and the broader Yarra Valley, expressly targeted for predicted contributions they will have towards the final blend,’’ said Bridgeman. 

“In the end, the wine’s expression aims to be greater than the sum of all parts, which conveys a synergy and seamless balance across the palate, reflecting broader vintage conditions across the multitude of targeted vineyard sites.’’ 

Levantine Hill Optume is available to purchase online at levantinehill.com.au, or in person at the Levantine Hill Cellar Door, Armadale Cellars in Melbourne and Moncur Cellars in Sydney. 

A sweet symphony of drinking pleasure

Penfolds has Grange. Henschke has Hill of Grace. Yalumba has the much more recent - but equally compelling The Caley - named in honour of a family pioneer. 

Australia’s oldest family-owned winery is today celebrating the global launch of the fifth release of The Caley - the 2016 vintage. 

This unique blend of Coonawarra cabernet and Barossa/Eden Valley shiraz is the Yalumba flagship that celebrates over a century of cabernet/shiraz blends. 

I was fortunate enough to have an advance tasting with winemaker Kevin Glastonbury (below) - and to finish the rest of the bottle that night. 

So what is it like? 

Harmonious is the first word that comes to mind. 

Think Smokey Robinson and the Miracles (stay with me people). Think of the cabernet as Smokey's pure and precise voice and the shiraz as the beautiful, sweet harmonies of the Miracles. Smooth. 

Everything in its place, with 25% new oak soaked up by the quality fruit..

You can drink it now, but cellaring is certainly recommended.

"It's a wine of style and substance that reflects the very best of two regions," says Glastonbury. "In each vintage we are aiming for greatness, but each release will also reflect the year." 

Fifth-generation proprietor Robert Hill-Smith said: “Since its inaugural release in 2017, The Caley has relied on our own provenance, integrity and enthusiasm which we have built over the past 172 years.

"Through consistent narrative and quality, we have recruited a loyal base of connoisseurs across the world, and we are buoyed by the exceptional feedback we receive. 

“Having followed the ferments and the development of the wine since 2016 and worked alongside KG on the final blend, I cannot help but be excited about this release. It was an even ripening season, with clean bunches and exceptional balanced flavours."

This release of The Caley is a blend of 71% Coonawarra cabernet and 29% Barossa shiraz, numbers Glastonbury says will vary from vintage to vintage depending on the season. 

He described 2016 as “a magnificent vintage. It gave us pristine fruit with richness and concentration”.

“The Caley 2016 comes into its own as a very sleek, refined and focused wine. It is a wine that sets us on a clear trajectory which we are very excited about. Aromatic, plush, rich, inviting, with the hallmark palate drive of The Caley.” 

The wine is named in honour of Fred Caley Smith, grandson of Yalumba’s founder Samuel Smith. Fred was a horticulturist who had a profound impact on the development of Yalumba’s orchards and vineyards. 

He is best remembered for a ground-breaking research journey he undertook in 1893 and 1894 to the USA, UK, Europe, the Middle East, Sri Lanka and India. 

His detailed and poignant letters to his father, sent home every few days, were collected and are kept in Yalumba’s archives.

Each release of The Caley celebrates a step in Fred’s journey, and for the 2016 vintage, the spotlight falls on January 1894 and his journey to visit his family in the United Kingdom. 

Yalumba The Caley 2016 is available at yalumba.com and in fine wine retailers from today with an RRP of $365. I'm as sure as I can be that this will be a collectors' item.