Sommelier at high altitude: here are the most expensive wines you can taste on board
There are many pleasures we can enjoy when we fly at high altitude: eating as if we were in a restaurant, refreshing [...]
There are many pleasures Which, when we fly at high altitude, we can enjoy: eat As if we were in a restaurant, refresh us in the bathroom, crush a nap or read a good book. One of my favorite treats is to enjoy a good glass of wine aboard, perhaps to conciliate sleep, at the end of my meal.
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Don't get me wrong, I know that at high altitudes the taste buds are a little bit rintontitis by the rarefaction of air and the climate dry, perhaps distinguish a Tavernello 2021 in tetrapaks and a Amarone Valpolicella of 2016 requires more than expected, but this should not intimidate us.
The best bonuses
At the end of the day, a good wine is still a wine good 10,000 meters high or at sea level, which is why I decided to collect the most interesting wine lists which are located at high altitudes, offered by major airlines and which also operate in Italy.
Emirates Wines
Emirates values the satisfaction of the customer, every detail is important to this airline, and the wine list is no different. On the website we find a detailed explanation of the wine selection accompanied by a pomp and circumstance video of the production e supply chain chosen by the Emirates carrier. Obviously, it is the First-class passengers those who can enjoy the full wine cellar.
Here are the wines that can be tasted on board:
- Château La Mission Haut-Brion 2004, aromas of black currants, black cherries, tobacco and shavings. The palate is elegant and medium-bodied, with hints of underbrush and a hint of capsicum on the crisp finish (over €200 per bottle).
- Château Montrose 2005, notes of cedar, graphite and floral tones and has a medium, firm body with hints of dried leaves and grass enriching the fruity counterpart. The finish is long and complex (over €300 per bottle).
- Château Léoville Las Cases 1998, aromas of black raspberry, dried cherry, prune and wood smoke. Medium-bodied and well-structured, its notes of tobacco and dried leaves add complexity to this wine (over €250 per bottle).
- Château Cos d'Estournel 2005, aromas of crème de cassis, black cherry, violets and exotic spices. The palate is full-bodied and rich in concentrated black fruit aromas, with dense, ripe tannins and an extremely long finish (just over 280€ per bottle).
- Château Margaux 2004, pure notes of raspberry, red currant and snuff with a hint of graphite. Medium-bodied and well-balanced, soft tannins are covered by red fruits with a hint of orange peel in the lingering finish (about 600€ per bottle).
- Château Mouton Rothschild 2004, black currant, fruit cake, cedar and toast. Medium-bodied on the palate, with firm tannins and hints of underbrush that complement the spicy fruit aromas (about €700 per bottle).
Finally as champagne Emirates relies on Dom Pérignon 2008, a silky, round and complex champagne with bitter notes and a slight saltiness. The 2008 is one of the best vintages, and bottles have literally skyrocketed in value, today you can't find them for less than 200
Air France and sommelier Paolo Basso
It is of signature Italian the wine list that can be found on board the Air France, in fact, the French flag carrier has decided to focus on the best sommelier in the world 2013, the best sommelier in Europe 2010 and best sommelier in Switzerland 1997, namely the very Italian Paul Bass.
Air France renews its wine list every 2 months, the selection during the year is therefore very various and earned the "Best Airline Wine List Awards" in 2019. Air France is also the only airline to offer a glass of champagne in Economy.
"One of the difficulties in the proper selection of wines to serve aboard aircraft flying at high altitude is that the environment is essentially moisture-free.
This affects not so much the quality of the wine but rather the passenger's perception of taste, as salivation is different and acidity is perceived much more."
Paul Bass
Every year the following are served on board one and a half million bottles of wine And over 800,000 bottles of Champagne. Among the wines and champagnes we can find on an Air France plane:
- Tattinger Comtes de Champagne (€170 to €220 per bottle)
- Blanc de Blancs 2006 (about €170 per bottle)
- Médoc Château Rollan de 2009 (about €40 per bottle)
And wines from Paolo Rosso's winery dedicated to his daughter, namely, Chiara's Red, Chiara's White and Chiara's Bouquet.
Lufthansa by Markus Del Monego and Olivier Poussier
There are two names for Lufthansa to collaborate on the German airline's choice of wines on board, Markus Del Monego e Olivier Poussier.
Lufthansa, together with its two sommeliers, chooses its wines each year based on certain criteria and through a process that we can summarize as follows:
- About 3 contests per month for winemakers who wish to offer their wine
- Analysis of trade magazines, industry fairs, tastings and meetings with experts
- Customer needs and trends in the market
- Choice through tasting by Del Monego and his team.
The choice is vast:
- Champagne Pommery 2004 Cuvée Louise, notes of brioche, fruit and slightly mineral (about €120 per bottle)
- Champagne Laurent-Perrier 2004 Grande Cuvée Rosé Alexandra, wild berries and fruit (over €200 per bottle)
- Bockstein Riesling Großes Gewächs, Weingut Nic Weis 2018, classic fruity riesling (a hundred euros a bottle)
- Château Larmande, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé 2010, typical burgundy (about 230€ a bottle)
KLM with Jonnie and Thérèse Boer
The agreement between KLM and the three Michelin-starred chef was renewed in 2016. Jonnie Boer who signed the menu on board the Dutch company, accompanied by his wife Thérèse who instead is an expert sommelier.
The two combined palates to offer a classy meal with pairings designed specifically for business class lunches and dinners on KLM. Wines are sourced from France, Italy and the Netherlands, so you don't want to miss a thing. Here's what we can find on board:
- Boschendal Sauvignon Blanc 2017, white, notes of asparagus and country herbs
- Esterházy Grüner Veltliner 2017, white, fresh, vibrant with fruity notes
- Abbotts & Delaunay Viognier 2017, white, made from Viognier; the rare white grape from the Rhone.
- Masi Frescaripa Bardolino Classico 2017, red, fresh berries and a slightly spicy note on the finish
- Finca Perdriel Merlot 2017, red, combination of laurel, licorice, leather, black fruit and toasted oak
The wines selected are not as expensive as the previous ones, but they are moderately priced, ranging from €9 to €40 per bottle; the selection was made for taste rather than glitz.
Swiss and the 4 cantons
Swiss has decided to focus on territoriality for its in-flight menus, meals are in fact cyclics e Seasonal, each of which represents a different canton.
We can find Quöllfrisch Beer, natural from Canton Appenzell, Mövenpick ice cream, the cheeses Appenzeller, Gruyère and Tête de Moine, the Balik Salmon, the one smoked in the Toggenburg region, the bratwurst, rösti, artisanal Swiss cheeses and chocolates Sprüngli. Each canton has its own specialty and seasonality, and in addition, for intercontinental routes, Swiss is enhanced with a menu in limited edition, exclusive for first class, in which we can find Alba white truffles, seafood or caviar selection.
Here are some wines we can taste on board.
For First:
- Clos du Boux (white)
- Mersyca Grand Réserve (red)
For business:
- Château de Vufflens Grand Cru (white)
- Domaine Grange Volet (red)
Iberia and the Wine Club
Iberia has also decided to reward those on the ground, in addition to the selection of wines on board, in fact it offers a very wide selection of wines in its e-commerce and in addition allows you to earn Avios points for each purchase.
As for the wines on board its planes, Iberia changes the offer according to the seasons and months, the choice is purely local and the selection pushes toward Spanish wines. Here are a few examples of what we can find on board:
- Camino del Peregrino 2020 (white) Do Rias Baixas with vine variety 100% Albariño
- Finca Muños, Collección de la Familia Blanco Sauvignon 2020 (white) IGP Castilla, with 70% Chardonnay and 30% Sauvignon Blanc grapes
- Rolland Galarreta R&G Rioja 2011 (red) D.O.C Rioja, with grapes 100% Tempranillo
- Luis Cañas Reserva Familia 2016 (red) D.O.C. Rioja with Tempranillo grape and 15% Cabernet
- Senda de los Olivos Crianza 2017 (red) D.O.C. Ribera del Duero with grapes 100% Tempranillo
Iberia, like Swiss, offers wines in the affordable range for everyone, relying heavily on local selection.
Which wines to drink on the plane
As we have said, the environment dry and the rarefied air aboard high-altitude aircraft make go haywire our taste buds, tastes change, or rather, the way we perceive the taste. Pressure and conditions on board make food less salty and the sweet ones less so sweets, a very peculiar feeling. We are also particularly sensitive to acidity, such as lemon-flavored foods that might bother us.
As for wines same thing, the wines flavored and citrus are unpleasant, as are tannin-rich wines. What wine to drink then on board? Experts say the best are the Merlot, Pinot e Shiraz, with the joker represented by the Chardonnay And you're on the safe side.
In this guide we have discovered just a few of the wine lists of airlines, mainly those operating in Italy, taking into account that in any case the menus and wines undergo changes depending on seasonality and the arrangements that airlines make with chefs and sommeliers.
Cheers!