Cellars in the Sky: Results 2008
Business class
Business class sparkling
1. Charles Heidsieck (Mis en Bouteille 2008), Champagne, France. Joint winners: KLM, SIA
2. Henriot Souverain NV, Champagne, France. Joint: Emirates, LAN
3. Charles Heidsieck (Mis en Bouteille 2007), Champagne, France. Joint: Asiana, British Airways, Qantas
4. Piper-Hiedsieck NV, Champagne, France, Korean Air
5. Dom Pérignon 2000, Champagne, France, Jet Airways
Business class red
1. Palliser Estate Martinborough Pinot Noir 2005, Wellington, New Zealand, Cathay Pacific
2. Cline Cellars Cool Climate Syrah 2005, Sonoma Coast, California, British Airways
3. Luis Canas Reserva 2002, Rioja, Spain, Iberia
4. Corbières Gerard Bertrand 2006, Languedoc, France, Lufthansa
5. Casa Silva Los Lingues Gran Reserva Carmenère 2005, Colchagua, Chile, KLM
Business class white
1. Bernkasteler Doctor Riesling Kabinett 2005, Mosel, Germany, Qatar Airways
3. Highfield Sauvignon Blanc 2007, Marlborough, New Zealand, Air New Zealand
4. Bernhard Ott Fass 4 Gruner Veltliner 2007, Wagram, Austria, Austrian Airlines
5. Anakena Ona 2007, Alto Cachapoal, Chile, LAN
Business class fortified
1. Forrest Estate Botrytised Riesling 2007, Marlborough, New Zealand, Air New Zealand
2. Niepoort Late Bottled Vintage Port 2004, Douro, Portugal, Lufthansa
3. Baileys of Glenrowan Founder Series Liqueur Muscat NV, Glenrowan, Australia, Qantas
4. Taylor’s 20-year-old Tawny Port NV, Douro, Portugal, Qatar Airways
5. Jurancon Prestige Cave de Gran Jurancon NV, Jurancon, France, Delta
Best business class cellar
1. KLM
2. Qantas
3. Air New Zealand
4. LAN
5. Qatar Airways
First class
First class sparkling
1. Piper Heidsieck Cuvée Rare NV, Champagne, France, Lufthansa
2. Krug Grande Cuvée, Champagne, France. Joint: ANA, Jet3. Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 1998, Champagne, France. Joint: LAN, Asiana
4. Charles Heidsieck 1995, Champagne, France, Qantas
5. Salon Blanc de Blancs 1997, Champagne, France, JAL
First class red
1. Morton Estate Pinot Noir 2005, Marlborough, New Zealand, Qatar Airways
3. Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2005, Rhône, France, Air France
4. Mungo Park Shiraz 2008, Barossa, Australia, Emirates
5. Pyrenees Ridge Reserve Shiraz 2005, Victoria, Australia, ANA
First class white
1. Wente Riva Ranch Chardonnay 2005, Monterey, California, Lufthansa
2. Coldstream Hills Reserve Chardonnay 2006, Yarra Valley, Australia, Qantas3. Spy Valley Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2006, Marlborough, New Zealand, American Airlines
4. Joint winners: Selbach-Oster Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett 2004, Mosel, Germany, TAM; Wegeler Bernkasteler Doctor Riesling Spatlese 2005, Mosel, Germany, American Airlines
5. Manz Riesling Auslese Trocken 2005, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany, Korean Air
First class fortified
1. Morris of Rutherglen Old Premium Liqueur Tokay Muscat, NV, Rutherglen, Australia, Qantas
2. Graham’s Late Bottled Vintage Port 2003, Douro, Portugal, SIA3. Weingut Neef-Emmich Bacchus Beerenauslese 2007, Rheinhessen, Germany, Lufthansa
4. Tio Pepe Fino Sherry, NV, Andalusia, Spain, Korean Air
5. Ramos Pinto Quinta da Ervamoira Porto Ten Anos NV, Porto, Portugal, Cathay Pacific
Best first class cellar
1. Lufthansa
2. Qantas
3. TAM
4. Emirates
5. Qatar
Overall
Most informative wine list
1. Air New Zealand
2. Qantas
3. Qatar
4. JAL
Consistency of wines across business and first class
1. Lufthansa
2. Qantas
3. Qatar
4. ANA
5. TAM
Best alliance
1. Star Alliance
2. Oneworld
3. Skyteam
The judging
Over the course of two days in November, blind tastings of more than 200 bottles were held at the Park Plaza County Hall in London. There were four judges: Charles Metcalfe, well known as a TV wine presenter and wine critic, and co-chairman of the International Wine Challenge; Tim Atkin, Master of Wine, wine columnist for The Observer, co-chairman of the International Wine Challenge (IWC) and co-founder of The Wine Gang (thewinegang.com); Joanna Simon, wine columnist for The Sunday Times, co-founder of The Wine Gang and author of several books on wine; and Derek Smedley, Master of Wine for more than 40 years, co-chairman of the International Wine Challenge, and consultant to many organisations particularly in the City of London.
A total of 64 carriers were invited to enter the wines they serve in first and business class in the following categories: red, white, champagne and fortified/sweet. This year, 29 airlines entered. Two wines could be submitted from each class for the red and white category, as well as one champagne and one fortified/sweet from first and business – a maximum of 12 entries in total. In addition, we asked the airlines to send two spare bottles of every wine entered in case one was broken or corked, meaning we received up to 36 bottles from each carrier.
The wines entered by the airlines had to be widely available on their networks and we also asked them to send wine menus so our judges could rate which was the most informative and give them a better idea of what else was on offer, thereby helping them to judge the best business class and best first class cellar categories. The scoring was marked out of 20, with anything less than ten being “undrinkable”. The four judges could not confer while tasting and the final results were an average of their marks.
