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In search of something more luxurious than your standard spirits and drinks? New Asia Pacific distribution company Paragon Trading – led by Chairman and CEO Christopher Liang – has amassed a collection of worldwide brands that stock the most prestigious of products.

From hand-harvested New Zealand Pinot Noirs to the smoothest Irish whiskey and gin, and a Fortune Global 500 company-backed futuristic water... we take a closer look.

Premium Wine from Gladstone Vineyard, New Zealand

According to New Zealand Winegrowers, the global demand for wine from the country has remained strong in markets such as the UK and the US – and when you consider the industry's reputation for distinct, premium, and sustainable wines, it's no surprise it's the island-nation's sixth-largest export, reaching over 100 countries.

The Gladstone Vineyard is located in the central sub-region of the Wairarapa valley, home to the first plantings of Pinot Noir in New Zealand dating as far back as the 1880s. Gladstone Vineyard was first planted in 1986, and today has vineyards along the river terraces of the Ruamahanga River – where the optimal ripening conditions have created the Wairarapa's uniquely rich and concentrated grapes.

Some of the standouts from Gladstone Vineyard include the Sauvignon blanc and Pinot noir, which were both awarded 90 points by Cameron Douglas, New Zealand's first and only Master Sommelier, and given four stars by Michael Cooper's Buyer's Guide. And the Gladstone Vineyard Dakins Road Pinot Noir and Blairpatrick Single Vineyard Pinot Noir 2018 are equally distinguished – with gorgeous textures and aromatic flavour profiles.

Gladstone is committed to environmental responsibility – producing healthy, high-quality grapes using organic principles and reducing its carbon impact through measures such as using 80 per cent recycled lightweight wine bottles, reusing packaging, and buying from local and environmentally-friendly suppliers where possible.

The Legendary Silkie Irish Whiskey and An Dúlamán Irish Maritime Gin, distilled at Sliabh Liag Distillers

The Legendary Silkie Irish Whiskey is true to name – a smooth blended Irish whiskey full of flavour. Inspired by folklore and mythical legend, it's carefully distilled at Sliabh Liag Distillers in the mountainous County Donegal of Ireland.

The original whiskey has a rich and layered flavour profile, opening with fruity (including citrusy orange zest and green apple) notes and follows with honey, butter and floral undertones. Then maltiness and even a touch of ginger. The Dark Silkie is smokier, with hints of apple and salted-caramel sweetness developing to dark chocolate, liquorice and oak. And the core collection is completed with the smokiest Midnight Silkie, with four triple distilled single malts and a triple distilled peated single malt at its heart.

Named after an Irish folk song, An Dúlamán Irish Maritime Gin is the first gin distilled in County Donegal. It pays homage to an older time, with each bottle wax-sealed and given a batch number linked to the lunar phases. In order to capture the "Daíocht na Farraige” (the magic of the sea), Sliabh Liag Distillers use five locally harvested varieties of seaweed, as well as six other botanicals to make An Dúlamán – making it as unique as the Donegal coast.

An Dúlamán has a characteristic complexity and softness, evoking the "dry tang of a sea breeze over [the] wild coastline". The seaweeds include Sweet Kombu, Dulse, Pepper Dulse, Dulaman and superfood Carrageen Moss, which bring an authentic and innovative “umami” twist to the gin category. The flavour profile includes a brisk salt, citrus and spice and, of course, the umami taste.

Plastic-free beWater™ Phenomenal, in partnership with Ball Corporation

Partnering with Fortune Global 500 company Ball Corporation – known for its innovative, sustainable aluminium packaging – beWater™ Phenomenal is putting a mission to eliminate single-use plastic bottles by making water better at the heart of its product.

One million plastic bottles are used and consumed every minute, with 91% of them ending up in the oceans or landfills. Aluminium is infinitely recyclable, making beWater™ Phenomenal a stylish environmentally friendly alternative to the plastic-bottled water that is commonly available today.

beWater™ Phenomenal Pure is a still water produced in Vietnam from municipal water sources, and filtered with ISO-certified advanced reverse osmosis and UV light. Using municipal water reduces the impact on the natural water table, especially in one of the fastest sinking areas in the world. The beWater™ Phenomenal Sparkling Mineral Water is similarly purified before being enhanced with natural minerals for a fresh and clean taste. Environmentally friendly, socially sustainable and convenient.

And as the official water of the Vietnam government, beWater™ Phenomenal is supporting initiatives across Southeast Asia and globally to ban single-use plastic – starting in Vietnam, which will eliminate single-use plastic by 2025.

The post Premium Drinks: Fine Wine, Exceptional Whiskey, Gin & ESG-friendly Water by Paragon Trading Asia appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

As 2019 broke the spell of warm, dry vintages, James Suckling finds plenty of top-notch Pinot noirs on the Oregon wine trail, with chardonnays showing increasing diversity of style and character.

We went big in our tastings of Oregon wines this year, uncorking more than 800 bottles in our largest review of the state so far and finding plenty of evidence to substantiate its reputation for making consistently top-notch pinot noir, with a smaller but potentially even more impressive selection of chardonnay.

Antica Terra Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills Antikythera 2018 again tops our ratings, showing an incredible complexity of aromas with a chalky, stony texture and layered, spicy character, and Antica Terra’s 2018 Ceras and 2018 Botanica also makes it into the top five of all the wines we’ve rated this year from Oregon.

“For me, the ’18s were so exciting,” says Maggie Harrison, the owner and winemaker of Antica Terra. She says 2018 was dry and warm, with consistency and a longer harvest, resulting in “much greater diversity of expression on the table” – as can be seen from her array of wines.

For Oregon winemakers, how to deal with warming temperatures has become a common theme. “Each year, I think we’re getting a little bit better at handling the heat,” says Tom Gerrie, owner and winemaker of Cristom. Cristom Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Jessie Vineyard 2018 is another wine in our top five of the report.

While it’s tempting to draw a parallel with Burgundy’s regional variations, such as Côte de Beaune vs Côte de Nuits, there are fewer general differences among the 10 Willamette Valley AVAs. But as a varietal sensitive to both terroir and winemaking, pinot noir expresses a unique personality based on a combination of differences in soil, elevation and microclimate, as well as clone, rootstock and vine age.

Gerrie says that from his perspective, the unique personalities of pinot noir derive more from the soil than from the other geographical elements of each individual AVA.

“Our deep volcanic soils are extremely bright and red-fruited, very high-toned, very floral,” he explains, with vines planted in the shallow, rocky soils under more stress, resulting in fruit that “can be dark and brooding, almost blue-fruited”. Fewer producers in Oregon focus on chardonnay, but those that do, such as 00 Wines, are making incredible whites. Its Chardonnay Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Freya Hermann Cuvee 2018, which was among our top five wines, shows impressive texture and structure thanks to a focus on phenolic extraction, alongside an exquisite purity of fruit, with flinty and spicy elements.

"It was really never anyone’s focal point, because, of course, pinot noir has been the big story in Oregon since the very beginning,” Chris Hermann, the co-founder of 00 Wines, says of carving out a niche for chardonnay in the state’s wine scene.

Chardonnay comprised only 17 percent of our tastings, compared with two-thirds pinot noir, but out of our top 30 wines, 11 are chardonnay – more than double the average proportion. They show more diversity in style and character, with all of them expressing a sharp backbone of acidity thanks to the high diurnal temperature range across the state.

We also tasted some fresh whites from pinot gris, once Oregon’s signature white, but these failed to impress at just under 90 points on average. We tasted some zesty rieslings, too, at an average of just under 91 points, but saw more potential and consistency in Oregon’s sparkling wines. With their bright acidity, wines such as Domaine Serene Dundee Hills Evenstad Reserve Brut NV show more freshness, minerality and refinement compared with Californian equivalents.

The region is still young, with producers gradually discovering the land and making more deliberate decisions regarding where best to plant vines, factoring in elevation and soil type. With most vines still in an early stage, there’s room to improve, and we hope that more Oregon producers can eventually unlock the potential for great chardonnay.

The Top 10 Oregon Wine Bottles

JamesSuckling.com ranks 10 top wines from the Pacific Northwest.

ANTICA TERRA PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS ANTIKYTHERA 2018

Score: 99

Wow. Aromas of blackberry, ripe strawberry, spice and smoke follow through to a full body with firm, minerally tannins that have a chalky, stony texture that gives it firmness and complexity. Very long and driven.

DOMAINE DROUHIN PINOT NOIR EOLAAMITY HILLS ROSEROCK ZÉPHIRINE 2019

Score: 97

Redcurrant, sour cherry and smoke on the nose. Layered and balanced, with a long, savoury finish. Very vertical and deep.

00 WINES CHARDONNAY WILLAMETTE VALLEY EOLA-AMITY HILLS FREYA HERMANN CUVÉE 2018

Score: 98

Striking aromas of sliced nectarine and white peach with flinty and spicy elements. Mouthwatering. The palate is impressively rich and pithy with good extract. Drink or hold.

ANTICA TERRA PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY BOTANICA 2018

Score: 98

This pinot proffers detail and textural nuance, as well as aromatic complexity and fresh flavour. Fresh yet ripe with fully resolved tannin maturity and seamless resolve. Drink or hold.

ANTICA TERRA PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY CERAS 2018

Score: 98

The palate is so smooth and so layered with a long arc of deep blue-fruit flavours holding seamlessly long. An exceptional Ceras. So long and seamless. Drink or hold.

00 WINES CHARDONNAY CHEHALEM MOUNTAINS KATHRYN HERMANN CUVÉE 2018

Score: 97

The palate is striking for the concentration and fleshy build, as well as the way it maintains focus and holds the finish. A great chardonnay, every way you look at it. Drink or hold.

DOMAINE SERENE CHARDONNAY DUNDEE HILLS RÉCOLTE GRAND CRU 2017

Score: 97

The pinnacle of chardonnay for this producer, it outguns the rest of the stable for sheer concentration and power. Complex and vibrant all at once.

CRISTOM PINOT NOIR WILLAMETTE VALLEY EOLA-AMITY HILLS JESSIE VINEYARD 2018

Score: 99

This dramatically steep site delivers a wine of real personality and distinctiveness. The star of 2018 at Cristom and, indeed, for Willamette Valley pinot per see.

BERGSTRÖM PINOT NOIR EOLA-AMITY HILLS TEMPERANCE HILL VINEYARD 2019

Score: 97

A very spicy expression of pinot, this has so much to say on the nose. Fascinating pinot.

SOTER PINOT NOIR YAMHILL-CARLTON MINERAL SPRINGS RANCH 2018

Score: 97

This has such ripe redcherry pinot fruit aromas, as well as forest wood and a swathe of deep-set spices. The palate carries such plush red and darkcherry flavours in a long, fresh and energetic mode. Commanding pinot with such impressive poise. Drink or hold.

For more wine reports and ratings, you can visit JamesSuckling.com

The post Pacific Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays: The Best Oregon Wines appeared first on Prestige Online - Hong Kong.

People used to turn their noses up at English wine; now, English winemakers turn up at awards ceremonies to scoop up the plaudits.  There are over 500 vineyards in the UK.  Wine production has increased from 3 million bottles in 2009 to over 13 million. Look for EQSW (English Quality Sparkling Wine for the best […]

The post The Best English Wines and Wineries appeared first on Upscale Living Magazine.