weekend trip to Hong Kong - which bottles should I bring home?

[trufflequeen]

Hi all

Have arranged a last minute weekend trip into Hong Kong to try out the Singapore Airlines A380 first class suites (I'm a bit of an airline points fanatic, but that's a post for another forum).

Will be travelling light and have the capacity to bring home my limit of 3 x 750 ml bottles in premium wine. This is a very broad question, but does anyone have any recommendations on excellent value wines to buy in HKG at the moment and / or any great wine shops? Will be buying with the intention of cellaring and consuming down the track, not for commercial purposes.

Cheers

[brodie]

Jamie Bahrain lives in HK and is your best bet. Be carrful as HK has a lot of fake wines. To see this, try winesearcher for HK for Meo Camuzet Cros Parantoux
This is one of the rarest red burgs but seems to miraculously to be widely avail in HK!!!!

Brodie

[trufflequeen]

Thanks Brodie, Wine Searcher definitely my best initial tool. Will isolate some bottles I am interested in (mainly looking at barolo / super Tuscans), then check Jamie / others opinion on trust rating of the retailer.

[TiggerK]

Love the flyertalk-type trip reason. What segments are you flying in First? Enjoy the Krug and Dom!

Back to wine, I suppose the other big questions are...

What wines do you like to drink / cellar / share?? Any price points in mind? Edit: Just saw your post.... He'll be the man to ask!!

[Dragzworthy]

I usually go to the Berry Bros in Pacific Place but that's because I'm short on time normally! Jamie may have better ideas.

Not in Singapore at all? I can recommend here.

[trufflequeen]

Hi TiggerK. Flying MEL-SIN-HKG in SQ Suites, then back home to Adelaide in CX A330 J (a decent hard product, so hopefully I'll get some sleep).
When I get back, I will post some notes on the Dom and Krug, as well as the Hennessy Paradis I sampled when I flew EK F across the Tasman just before New Years (even though it's technically not wine).

Back to the wine, price wise, probably looking at anything from $100 up to $300 (so not in the league for Meo Camuzet Cros Parantoux unfortunately). My cellar is 99% Australian wines, and just starting to branch out into the Italians - have tried some amazing (entry level) barolo and amarone, and would be interested in bringing back some good examples for cellaring (and also interested in looking at Sassicaia if can find it at a good price).

[Sigmamupi]

Hi Trufflequeen

If you are staying on the Island (far preferable to Kowloon in my view), some bricks and mortar stores worth a look are Pillariwine, GDV Fine Wine and Ponti Cellars. All have some decent Italian selections that are directly imported and all have websites with stocklists if you want to do a bit of prior research. In particular, you will find barolos and barbarescos from Bruno Giacosa and Giacomo Conterno Cascina Francia barolo at prices significantly below Australia. All should be within your indicated price range. If you buy anything from Ponti, join their VIP Club on the spot for a 8 per cent discount. As it happens my Christmas day red was a 2007 Bruno Giacosa barolo (the standard white label) which I bought from Ponti at the equivalent of $A181 a number of years ago. A lovely wine and in a style that wasn't extracted or oaky - basically a burgundy substitute. I don't know what the more recent wines are like. Happy hunting.

[trufflequeen]

Thanks Sigmamupi, staying in Causeway Bay. Will undertake some research on your barolo tips.

[JamieBahrain]

I don't buy much retail in Hong Kong as the prices 30 to 50% more expensive than buying direct from Europe/UK. Though Cru is emerging as a retail source that the tax free nature of Hong Kong is reflecting. Very good when on sale.

I've offered Cappellano to a number of folks visiting and it hasn't been then up. Madness. Especially those who didn't get the 2010 ! The price in the USA was 2 to 3 times the offer I was getting! Not the same vintages available now but if genuinely interested I can point you toward some back vintages perhaps.

[Mahmoud Ali]

If you are only buying three bottles of wine and are willing to pay up $300 a bottle, then just go into a fine wine store and see what they have and what they recommend. You really don't need to be told exactly which bottle to buy, and with a 99% Australian cellar almost any fine wine from anywhere else will be an improvement. Sorry for being brusque and somewhat cynical.

The most important thing to remember is that you will have to pack your wines in your check-in luggage so don't travel too light. Make sure you carry enough clothes to protect your three bottles. I've been on the A380 (but not first class) so you're in for a treat, especially with Singapore Airlines who are known for their service.

Cheers ...................... Mahmoud.

[trufflequeen]

Jamie, tried messaging you but can't seem to get messages past my outbox. Would definitely be interested in back vintage Cappellano if you can point me in the right direction.

Mahmoud, thanks for the reminder re careful wine packing.

[TiggerK]

Jamie, tried messaging you but can't seem to get messages past my outbox. Would definitely be interested in back vintage Cappellano if you can point me in the right direction.

Mahmoud, thanks for the reminder re careful wine packing.

Trufflequeen, the messages will stay in your outbox until Jamie reads them, that's normal.

[JamieBahrain]

Sorry, been working and mobile dumps my auswine password.

I just checked, all the back vintages are gone bar the 2009 which I wouldn't recommend taking back as a trophy wine. The wines were straight from the winery. Sorry for the false lead but they sat their for ages and I just found out the importer ( friend ) put out a few offers and they were snapped up.

Some New Years sales should not be far off I'd keep perusing Cru.Try Crown Wine cellars as people put up their own cellars though pricing OK and chek historical provenance

[trufflequeen]

Thanks Jamie, will do.