An Introduction to Our Exceptional Wines
Liber Pater - only a few thousand bottles produced each year
The Golden Vines® would be nothing without an exceptional wine list, and 2024 is no exception. Each year months of planning goes into making the perfect selection so our guests can be sure they’re enjoying ‘the best of the best’, whether it’s prestigious vineyards with rich, storied legacies, or vibrant up-and-coming producers. What’s important is that each bottle must be of a uniquely extraordinary quality. After all, our guests know their stuff! There can be a degree of pressure when it comes to curating a list for such a discerning audience, as well as paying homage to our incredible host countries, both of which are united by their incredible knowledge and experience when it comes to exceptional food and drink. Luckily, our team is more than up to the task.
Wines are selected by Clement Robert MS, former Wine Buyer at Caprice Holdings, who has decades of experience when it comes to selecting a fantastic bottle.
Clement Robert MS
“Every year, we strive to surpass the previous year's lineup, continuously expanding and enhancing our partnerships. It is safe to say that this year we have curated the most exquisite and impressive selection of wines for the Golden Vines editions.
We are deeply honoured and privileged to enjoy the support of the world's greatest wine estates.
This year, our showcase includes wines from 46 different wineries spanning 19 regions across 9 countries, with a significant focus on local icons such as Vega Sicilia, Equipo Navazos, González Byass, Comando G, Clos Mogador, Épicure Wines, Marques de Murrieta and Abadia Retuerta
Many of the wines served and sampled are available only in extremely limited quantities on restricted allocations. For instance, wines like Liber Pater, Boerl & Kroff, and Barca Velha produce only a few thousand bottles per year. We are also proud to have long-standing and continuous support from some of the most iconic and established estates such as Krug, Dom Perignon, Chateau Cheval Blanc, Chateau d'Yquem, Taylor's Port while we are also welcoming Ornellaia as a new partner in Italy.
While having this unique list of wines is a great honour, an even greater privilege is the presence of the winemakers themselves—often the founders or owners of these estates—who attend and host our events. Many of these vignerons are not just partners but cherished friends.” - Clement Robert
Below are a few of the highlights you can expect across the course of the weekend:
Krug - notably among the best in the world
The Golden Vines® Gala, Friday 25th October
For the Golden Vines® Gala on Friday we have an incredible selection to start the weekend in style, and what better way to open proceedings than with Champagne, and Krug is notably among the best in the world. The Krug Grande Cuvée 162ème is a blend of 142 wines from eleven vintages: the oldest being 1990 and the youngest 2006. Reserve wines lend structure and depth to the base vintage wines, which seemed to be somewhat too homogenous. In the warm 2006 vintage, Krug's many plots in the villages of Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger and Villers-Marmery provided shine and minerality to the blend. We also have the Krug Vintage 2003. Created to embody the spirit of the year, ‘s been nicknamed ‘Vivacious Radiance’ to relay the unexpected story of a hot and surprising year with beautiful fruit expression, freshness, balance, vivacity and finesse. Both wines are served in very rare 3L (Jeroboam) format
We couldn’t come to Spain without highlighting the brilliance of sherry, and Equipo Navazos Manzanilla Pasada is an outstanding example. A captivating sherry that offers deep, savoury aromas of roasted nuts and a hint of dried citrus peel. Lewis Chester, our founder and Clement Robert MS, our wine director, have chosen this unique wine by tasting more than 40 different barrels. This wine will be bottled specifically for our Friday Gala dinner under the name of La Bota 129. On the palate, it displays remarkable complexity and power, balanced by a lingering freshness and elegant notes of oxidation.
Remaining in Spain we move onto Vega Sicilia Único 2004, unquestionably Spain's most iconic producer, which began its journey in 1864, etching its story deep within Ribera del Duero, Spain. The Único probably goes through the world's longest ageing period of a red wine, almost 10 years between oak and bottle, before it’s transferred to the bottle to continue the ageing process. The Único remains true to a clear and well-defined style, with an inimitable character and style; elegance, strength, ageing capacity: unique and timeless taste that has elevated it to one of the great classic wines.
Our next wine comes from Portugal, and the menu calls for a big, rich and robust red. Barca Velha 1999 (in Magnum), a wine produced from the centuries old Casa Ferreirinha only 21 times is deep and intense, with a concentrated fruit attack on the palate and some notes of darker fruit such as plum, combined with earthy aromas. Velvety in texture, it shows grace and complexity, and improves with ageing. Unquestionably one of the highest quality Douro wines.
Our relationship with Taylor’s Port is a long and fruitful one, and we’re honoured and delighted to be serving the 50 year-old Tawny in 5L format as we round out the evening. It’s a producer that represents a superior heritage, with skills and expertise passed down through generations over three centuries to create something very special indeed, a quintessential expression of port from one of the world’s oldest houses. Blended from rare wood-aged ports matured for five decades in oak casks, Taylor’s Golden Age is a special collector’s edition port released in very limited quantities, and so is definitely a glass to be savoured.
We finish Friday with the Camus XO, Golden Vines® 2024 Edition. Camus, A long-running, family-owned Cognac house, founded in 1863, is now in the hands of the fifth generation of the Camus family. The exquisite XO Decanter beholds old eaux-de-vie made from Ugni Blanc grapes, aged in French oak casks for at least 10 years.
Dom Pérignon - A champagne only produced in exceptional years
The Golden Vines®, Saturday 26th October
On Saturday we have the awards themselves, an evening where excitement and anticipation are high and the celebrations are already in full swing. The sound of champagne corks popping will mean only one thing: a glass of Dom Pérignon is on its way to help get the party started in style. A champagne only produced in exceptional years, we feel it’s a fitting way to salute the best of the best. The 2008, marks the historical handover of an extraordinary wine-making legacy. Richard Geoffroy, the legendary Chef de Cave of Dom Pérignon for nearly 30 years, is to hand over the creative reigns of the illustrious Dom Pérignon maison to Vincent Chaperon; and to mark the occasion a special signed bottle is available in limited quantities.
We will also be sampling the Dom Pérignon P2 2006. Only the very best vintage of Dom Pérignon are selected to go through a second life and after 15 years of ageing in the dark and historical cellars of the Maison, we are honoured to present the latest expression of P2 2006 Plénitude 2 reveals a soft, warm and reassuring sweet bouquet, rich in subtle nuances. Its aromatic profile boasts a remarkable finesse with floral and mineral tones.
Le Petit Cheval Blanc 2020 is the white wine of the iconic St-Émilion property Cheval Blanc. One of only four wines to be ranked Premier Grand Cru Classé A in the classification of St-Émilion wine, the estate has three main soil types; clay, gravel and sand. Made from Sauvignon blanc and Semillon Le Petit Cheval is the fruit of an adventure and a challenge that Château Cheval Blanc embarked on more than 10 years ago: to produce a very great white wine on a terroir that is historically renowned for its red wines. Although the initial idea was to produce a wine exclusively for family and friends, the idea of producing a fine wine very quickly became evident. Le Petit Cheval Blanc is the essence of the Cheval Blanc identity and stems from a plot of land entirely dedicated to its production. This 6.6-hectare vineyard was formerly the Tour du Pin vineyard. Benefiting from its own vinification and ageing facilities, Le Petit Cheval Blanc
Ornellaia 2006 is the pioneer Tenuta in the region of Bolgheri to plant Bordeaux varietal. Today Ornellaia is an icon in Italy, a wine synonymous with excellence. Each vintage of Ornellaia has been given a name by the winemaking team and 2006 was named “L’ESUBERANZA”; the exuberance. Here is a powerful, concentrated wine whose intensity is immediately obvious. Its complex, rich bouquet is complemented by sweet, dense-packed tannins and a lively acidity, and all of its components are in admirable harmony creating a very elegant wine
Hot on its heels we have the Marqués de Murrieta Ygay 1980, a true collector's dream of a wine from one of oldest estates in Rioja founded in 1852. This is a wine characterised by elegance and complexity, with silky tannins enveloping hints of plum, sweet spices, dried fig and cedar.
Our next wine comes from one of our own award-winners, the indomitable Château d’Yquem. The 1983 is a 1er Grand Cru Classé Sauternes from the banks of the Garonne, with notes of dried and candied fruits, honey and nuts, and widely considered to be among the greatest vintages of Yquem. It’s a refined yet rich dessert wine with which to round off the evening.
When in Spain, one must close off the evening with a Xeres, and the Gonzalez Byass Palo Cortado “The Golden Vines Edition” is exceptional. Barrel selected by The Golden Vines® wine team, this wine ages for 12 years before bottling to give a lightly sweet and nutty wine that not only pairs beautifully with dessert but also pays a final homage to our incredible host country.
As ever, the Golden Vines® are all about celebrating excellence. We look for the very best so we can provide you with a superior, elevated and undeniably luxurious experience, in which even those well versed in the world of wine can come away having experienced something very special indeed, and maybe even having discovered something new. We look forward to raising a glass with you in October.
The Golden Vines® take place from 25-27 October 2024 in Madrid. Tickets can be purchased here at £10,000 per person, and entitle you to the full weekend of activities. If you have any queries please email tickets@liquidicons.com.
The Golden Vines® Gala, Friday 25th
Krug Grande Cuvée 162ème (en Jeroboam)
Krug Vintage 2003 (en Jeroboam)
Equipo Navazos Manzanilla Pasada (Golden Vines Barrel Select)
Vega Sicilia Unico 2004
Barca-Velha 1999 (en Magnum)
Taylor’s Port 50 year-old Tawny (en 500cl)
Camus XO (Golden Vines® 2024 Edition)
The Golden Vines® Awards Gala, Saturday 26th
Dom Pérignon Rosé 2008 (en magnum)
Dom Pérignon P2 2006
Le Petit Cheval Blanc 2020 (en Magnum)
Ornellaia 2006 (en Magnum)
Marqués de Murrieta 1980 (en Magnum)
Château d’Yquem 1983
Gonzalez Byass Palo Cortado (Golden Vines® Barrel Select)
Our Full Showcase
Krug, Salon, Dom Pérignon, Rare Champagne, Jacques Selosse
Ruinart, Boërl & Kroff, Egon Müller, Trimbach, Vega Sicilia
Ornellaia, Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia
Montevertine, Casanova di Neri, Biondi-Santi, Il Marroneto
Ferrari Trento, Tenuta Sette Ponti, Giacomo Borgogno & Figli, Roagna
Liber Pater, Château d'Yquem, Château Cheval Blanc, Georges Noëllat
Domaine Bonneau du Martray, Domaine Vincent Dancer
Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux, Domaine Fourrier, Domaine Bizot
IWA Sake, Harlan Estate, BOND Estates, Ridge Vineyards
Opus One, Vérité, Penfolds, Bodega Catena Zapata, Equipo Navazos
González Byass, Comando G, Clos Mogador, Épicure Wines
Abadia Retuerta and Barca Velha