Michael Tabone’s connection with Saint Emilion dates back to 1990, when his father-in-law, Peter Shamash, who was the first ever Chancellor of the Jurade (Great Britain) introduced him to the region. He fell in love with Saint-Émilion and has remained a great enthusiast over the thirty years.
He was intronised as Prud Homme de la Jurade in 1998 and Chancellor for Malta in 2005.
The Jurade Chancellor is in effect the Ambassador for the wines , wine growers and people of Saint Emilion.
The Jurade Chancellor advises Maltese hotels and restaurants to create their card. “Saint-Émilion wines are exceptional because many chateaus are still run by families who look after their vines, sell and promote their wines themselves”, he explains. Through food and wine pairings, he brings this characteristic spirit of the Saint-Émilion wines alive in Malta: elegance and conviviality.
10, 20, 30, 40 and more years on the right sort of wine can mesmerise and enrich the serious wine lover with magical and life lasting memories. Of course as time goes by less and less of these are available but, we still have a few, mostly Bordeaux but also Burgundy
St Émilion is an architectural and historical gem situated on the right bank of the Dordogne river, 40 kms to the east of Bordeaux. Today mostly known for its prestigious wines, in the past it was also famous as a religious centre and for limestone extraction. This magical place was the first ever vineyard landscape to be inscribed in Unesco World Heritage list in 1999. It is also home of the Jurade de Saint Émilion, one of the oldest wine organisations in the world and the only one with a historic link to the region in Bordeaux.
Bordeaux is the Mecca for fine wines. It is the benchmark for long lived reds based on Merlot and Cabernet as indeed the area for the most revered botrytis based sweet wines. Around 110 thousand hectares of vines split into 3 main geographical areas. The left bank incorporated the famous vineyards to the west of the Garonne river. These include Sauternes and Barsac, Graves, Margaux, St Julien, Pauillac and Saint Estephe. The right bank are the vineyards on the north and the eastern slopes of the Dordogne. The most famous of these are of course Saint Émilion and Pomerol but also includes the more and more popular Castillon and Fronsac. All have their own specificities regarding climate, micro climate, exposition and soil variations.
The central bit, known as Entre deux Meres generally produces simpler wines…mostly white from Sauvignon, Semillon and Muscadelle. There are some more complex reds from areas with limestone and/or clay.
The more serious whites come from the Graves are to the south of the city.
The capital city of the region is Bordeaux. Full of history, superb architecture and wonderful restaurants and hotels. Elegant and affluent. Friendly and welcoming.
Here are some of our favourite wines that we stock in various vintages from these areas
Ch Gazin – Ch Latour a Pomerol – Ch Mazeyres – Ch La Pointe – Ch La Conseillante – Ch La Fleur Petrus – Ch Trotanoy – Ch Taillefer – Ch La Fleur de Bouard – Ch Latour – Ch Margaux – Ch Haut Brion – Ch Lafitte – Ch Grand Puy Lacoste – Ch Leoville Barton – Ch D Issan – Ch Haut Bailly – Ch Pape Clement – Ch Rauzan Segla – Ch Brane Cantenac – Ch de Malleret – Ch Tessandey – Ch Nardou – Ch Clos Marsalette – Freynelle – etc…etc…etc
Most of the vineyards of Burgundy are found in a relatively narrow stretch with Lyon at its southernmost and Dijon in the north. The main block incorporates the Cote D Or just south of Dijon, Cotes Challonais, Cotes Maconais and Beaujolais heading south. Chablis is set on its own to the north west of Dijon. The best, finest and most long lived wines come from the Cote D Or..especially the northern part..known as the Cotes de Nuits. All reds are made from Pinot Noir. Whites (inc Chablis) are made from Chardonnay. In Beaujolais and some in Macon use Gamay for their reds.
The French idea and concept of Terroir and a sense of place is best exemplified both in real terms and in administrative/legal aspects here in Burgundy. This is the result of historical , political and geographical facts.
Please visit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_wine
https://www.bourgogne-wines.com/
https://www.mongeard.com/en/
One of the most mesmerising wine moments of my life was on my Father in law’s 80th birthday lunch in London where he served a 1921 Clos de la Roches (Morey St Denis) from the famous Dr Barolet collection. Stupendously stunning. Ahhhh….and that was in 2001.!!!!
Our collection of Burgundies include some mature vintages from the 70s, 80s and 90s. Most of the recent vintages hail from these 3 main Domaines. Mongeard Mugneret, A.F. Gros and Latour Giraud.
A wide range of white wines including Chablis from Louis Michel e Fils, Pouilly Fume from Michel Redde e Fils, Sancerre from Lucien Crochet, St Joseph from Bernard Gripa, Burgundy from AF Gros, Mongeard Mugneret and Latour Giraud. Josmeyer from Alsace, plus a large range of Bordeaux whites including Freynelle, Malleret, Chantegrive and a number of drys from Sauternes.
A wide range of this magical Spirit with vintages going back to the 1940s. From legendary distillers such as Laberdolive and Castex.
France is heaven for cheese lovers with over 300 official cheeses. Around 35 of them are available at Atelier Michael Tabone
A range of Poultry from Mieral in Bresse. World renowned Poulet and Poularde de Bresse, Label Rouge Guineau Fowls and chickens, pigeons, capons and quails.
The Ramajo family are breeders of ducks and geese and producers of top quality, natural foie gras, confit and other related products based in Demu, a tiny village in the Gers.
We love Spain too and besides a few Spanish wines such as the wines from La Rioja Alta we are very proud to offer the Jamon of Manuel Guillen from Guijuelo in Salamanca and the world renowned anchovies of Silvia Angelachu from Santona in northern Spain.
Gillardeau’s iconic oysters are mostly farmed in Marennes Oleron on the atlantic coast of France. They are admired and loved by oyster aficionados all over the work. They are sweeter, meatier and fuller in flavour than any other oyster we know. Very proud to have introduced them to Malta as the sole official representative on the island
Carteau is the flagship estate of the Bertrand family.
It is situated on the south western slopes of the plateau of St Emilion.
These are wines that excel at 5 to 7 years after vintage but don’t be fooled!!!!! They have what it takes to last and improve for many more years……Do you have the patience?……..
All will be served to you in a semi blind format.
Meaning that you will know what the wines are but not which.
The exercise is to discover the various qualities and
terroirs of Saint Emilion and to identify the wines.
You can book your place at any time between 11:30am and 13:00,on your own or a max of 4 people.
The tasting exercise should not take more than 20 minutes.
A tasting sheet and a St Emilion booklet will be provided.
A fee of €15.00 per person will be charged.
To book please email atelier@michaeltabone.com or phone/message +356 79911413
It’s not all serious here… We enjoy life as much as we enjoy our wines.
Mon: Closed
Tue – Wed: 10:00 – 17:00
Thur – Fri: 10:00 – 19:00
Sat: 10:00 – 15:00
Sun: Closed
