By Ian Neubauer
The first in a series of monthly lunches focusing on Bordeaux wines will kick off from midday tomorrow at Melbourne’s three hat Bistro Vue.
Hosted by Bordeaux Shippers director John Baker, the event will provide guests with the opportunity to enjoy two courses and cheese with matching Bordeaux wines, commencing with a glass of the Bordeaux aperitif ‘Lillet Blanc’.
Baker, whose company specialises in the import of Bordeaux from the renowned French wine-producing region, will facilitate a brief presentation followed by an interactive discussion about developments in the region. He established Bordeaux Shippers after discovering the Bordeaux wines he was purchasing for his bottle shops in Australian were not in consistently first class condition.
“When I conducted dinners or would occasionally taste these wines, I felt some should be brighter and fresher,” he said. “This motivated me to investigate why. My wine shops were buying Bordeaux from the usual sources in Australia and this was often the problem. The wines that I now source from cold European cellars and fly to Australia are proving to be of much better condition. They really ‘ping’ with freshness.
"Bordeaux represent 65 per cent of the world’s secondary wine market, or wine from vintages pertaining to earlier years. “Bordeaux is about balance,” Baker said. “The fruit is not too big, the wood is not too heavy. It’s about finesse and balance, which is what makes it last a long time.”
Seats at the Bordeaux Masterclass wine lunches at Bistro Vue are now on sale for $150.