Behind the scenes with Singapore Airlines’ champagne buyers

Behind the scenes with Singapore Airways’ wine specialists in Champagne

We had the chance to accompany Singapore Airways’ wine patrons on a visit to Champagne this previous summer season to style by way of what’s being served on board (each in top quality and different cabins), or is perhaps quickly, and to listen to firsthand how the airline approaches its wine choice from two of Singapore Airways’ wine specialists, Grasp of Wine Jeannie Cho Lee and wine author and tv presenter Oz Clarke.

“Once we select wines,” mentioned Clarke as we embarked upon our two-day tasting itinerary, “we attempt to ensure the core taste and stability — the acidity and alcohol — tastes contemporary and stands as much as totally different cuisines and flavors on board.”

“The principle factor for us is to search out wines with sufficient expression that their character would not get misplaced within the air,” mentioned Lee.

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That is a tall order when you think about the desiccated, low-pressure environment of an airplane cabin. However wines with a mix of fruit and getting older notes plus the zing of acidity to maintain the palate enlivened even on an extended flight in such an surroundings had been precisely what we had been on our method to style.

A primary style of first-class Champagnes

Our first cease was on the headquarters of Charles Heidsieck, which was based in 1851 by its namesake, who grew to become referred to as “Champagne Charlie” after a whistle-stop tour by way of the USA in the course of the early 1850s throughout which he popularized the glowing model of wine on this facet of the Atlantic.

We descended 106 steps into the “crayeres,” or cellars carved out of historic chalk pits, which comprise 47 totally different chambers and round 2 1/2 miles of paths. Throughout our tour, we discovered that Singapore Airways’ wine specialists routinely carry out particular person blind tastings of potential Champagnes to serve on board after which evaluate notes to find out which of them make the minimize.

“Charles Heidsieck is at all times a prime choice,” Lee advised us. “The cuvee has an unimaginable depth from the reserve wines and a complexity you do not get from a easy mix.”

We later skilled that complexity firsthand throughout a dinner with winemaker Elise Losfelt, who talked us by way of a tasting of the home’s Blanc de Blancs paired with a tarragon pesto vegetable tartlet, a vertical tasting of its 1995 and 2007 Blanc des Millenaires paired with sea bream and asparagus in creamy burrata and the 1983 Millesime rose accompanying a spring hen with market greens and new potatoes to offer us a way of the home’s historic model and the pairing potentialities.

These on upcoming Singapore Airways flights in top quality ought to discover the 2007 Blanc des Millenaires on board. Made out of Chardonnay grapes grown in a number of the greatest websites alongside the Cote des Blancs, the wine has each a complexity and nuance due to its lengthy getting older, but additionally bursts of freshness and acidity that preserve your palate sharp at excessive altitude, in response to Clarke.

Let’s not overlook about enterprise class

The next day, we rolled into the vineyards of Piper-Heidsieck simply because the early morning mist rolled again from the vines. Piper-Heidsieck’s lead winemaker, Émilien Boutillat, who hails from a household with an extended winemaking previous within the area, talked us by way of a number of the vineyard’s sustainability measures, together with carbon footprint monitoring, biodiversity enhancement and natural composting.

The present launch, which Boutillat described as “a stability of energy and expression with fruitiness, minerality and a freshness from the citrus notes,” is being served in Singapore Airways enterprise class throughout its community (although you may additionally discover Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve on some flights).

“Piper-Heidsieck goes with about 90% of the meals we have now on board,” Lee mentioned throughout a proper tasting later that day on the vineyard, whose structure is gorgeous due to a steel sheath made to appear like the bubbles rising by way of a glass of champagne.

“It may possibly minimize by way of the spices of varied dishes with a midbody weight from the Pinot Noir to face as much as the flavors and offer you that freshness to organize your palate for the subsequent chew,” mentioned Lee.

Krug and Taittinger wines coming to a aircraft close to you

Later that afternoon, we ambled by way of the streets of Reims to the headquarters of Krug for our closing tasting of the day (and sure, we had been nonetheless upright since we had been simply tasting, not consuming!).

Singapore Airways and Krug have had a partnership spanning over 40 years, so first-class flyers can at all times discover the most recent launch on board. After a tour of the cellars, which span over 3 kilometers (almost 2 miles) below the town, we adjourned to the vineyard’s colourful tasting room.

What distinguishes Krug from many different historic champagne homes is that its releases are kind of like a hybrid of home blends, or cuvees, and vintages. Every year, Krug releases a particular assemblage that includes each older and youthful wines comprised of grapes sourced from vineyards in a number of the most prestigious appellations in Champagne, a few of which have been below contract with Krug since 1876.

“There’s a consistency of imaginative and prescient and high quality,” mentioned Clarke, “however not taste. It tugs at your heartstrings annually, and that’s in all probability why it’s the wine that the majority passengers are loyal to — they at all times wish to be certain it’s on their flight.”

Version 171, as an illustration, which is at present being served in Singapore Airways top quality, is a mix of 131 wines from 12 vintages between 2000-2015. “It is like a high-thread-count linen,” mentioned Lee. “It has numerous layers — it is silky, however substantial.”

We additionally bought a primary style of Version 172, whose base wine was from the 2016 classic, however which includes a whole of 146 wines from 146 totally different plots made in years starting from 2000-2016. Lee famous a bouquet of orange fruits together with apricot, mango and satsuma in addition to white flowers and marzipan. See when you can pick the identical notes if and when the airline begins serving it on board.

Maybe extra essential to first-class passengers than complicated tasting notes, Lee mentioned, Krug makes versatile wines capable of stand as much as the daring flavors of the Singaporean, Chinese language and Indian dishes served aboard the airline, in addition to Western choices.

Our closing day with the Singapore Airways wine crew commenced on the historic Demeure des Comtes within the coronary heart of Reims, whose historical past dates to the thirteenth century (although the present Gothic-style constructing is far newer).

There, at an extended desk illuminated by angular lancet home windows, we tasted three variations of Taittinger’s prime launch, Comtes de Champagne, with the vineyard’s cellar grasp, Alexandre Ponnavoy.

This particular wine, which has been produced since 1952, is barely comprised of single, distinctive vintages with grapes from choose villages and aged in bottle for at least 10 years. We began with the 2012 model, during which Clarke famous hints of inexperienced apple, lemon curd and hay, all balanced with a precision of mixing to supply a freshness and salinity on the tongue that will make it style extra-fresh up within the air.

Even brighter and extra acidic, the 2013 had simply been launched and so won’t seem on board anytime quickly, although we additionally bought to attempt the 2012 rose produced from a handful of grand cru vineyards.

Singapore Airways first-class passengers will discover the predecessor to this explicit wine, the 2009 rose, at present being served on board, and although it is a totally different launch, it ought to nonetheless exhibit comparable aromas of strawberry, blackberry, rose petals and a touch of cigar field. If we needed to guess, although, we suspect you will be seeing the 2012 launch on board someday quickly.

Later that day, we drove to Taittinger’s Chateau de la Marquetterie, an aristocratic mansion initially constructed in 1734 exterior the well-known Champagne-producing metropolis of Epernay, to style by way of much more vintages, together with a mouthwatering 2002, accompanying dishes comparable to langoustine and scallop ceviche in yuzu sauce with rice paper and duck breast with fleur de sel, soy-marinated beets and black garlic jus … all of which had been maybe extra complicated than the dishes Singapore Suites passengers will seemingly encounter in flight, however nonetheless demonstrated the flexibility of champagne’s pairing skills with so many numerous flavors.

Many vacationers would possibly assume that airways with the flashiest first-class cabins merely throw money at their onboard wine choices, selecting Champagnes with the most important identify recognition or highest value tags.

By the top of our two days with Singapore Airways’ wine crew, nevertheless, it was clear simply how way more thought goes into the choices than that. After all, partnering with manufacturers whose names the airline’s highest-paying prospects will acknowledge is essential. However equally essential appeared to be the selection of wines that will style glorious on board in addition to pair effectively with Singapore Airways’ numerous menus, which comprise dishes from many alternative areas.

Tips on how to e-book Singapore Airways top quality utilizing miles

After all, some individuals could also be studying this considering, “All these Champagnes sound nice, however when am I ever going to get the prospect to attempt them?” In spite of everything, a first-class ticket on Singapore Airways can vary as much as almost $20,000.