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 Imagine if you will, a bottle of Champagne being sold at Rs.3000 a bottle in a 5-star hotel! You can order one at the Blue Bar at the Taj Palace every Wednesday evening. What’s more, you may order the Laurent Perrier Brut at Rs. 600 a glass! That’s not all. There are a total of 10 Champagnes available by the glass-it’s just that LP Brut is the best choice- very decent champagne priced the lowest in Delhi, India and if I stick my neck out, at $48 I’d say most competitive in any restaurant in the world- but available only from 7-11 pm at the Wednesday Wine Social.
There are 99 wines available by the glass at special prices with a discount of 50-60% on their regular price. With a Sula Dindori Red and Fratelli Chardonnay at Rs.250 a glass to several Premium wines like a Chassagne-Montrachet Ier cru Morgeot louis jadot 2000 at Rs. 950, the evenings let you experiment with a range of wines that would keep you coming for one year.
Already into its 6th Wednesday, the event is a brainchild of Taljinder Singh, the GM of Taj Palace, says Rahul Sharma, the Bar Manager. Ashutosh Manager, the Asst. F & B Manager says they are constantly improvising to change the ambience so that people may enjoy the visits every week. Not surprising then, that out of the average 80 visitors many are repeat customers and the expats who know how to sniff their wines and the good deals, constitute 60% of the clientele. 80 people, you say! I feel it should be 800. An opportunity like this is rare-whether it’s a business meeting, a romantic date or a casual get-together with friends, THIS is the place to be every Wednesday.
These days the ambience outside the Blue Bar is simply dream-like with comfortable sofas lined up on the boardwalk and the manicured lawns with the swimming pool lit up with blue lights giving a rather romantic look. ‘Barring one Wednesday when it rained, we have had no problem outside,’ says Ashutosh who is well prepared to adjust every week.
Munchies are complimentary but one can order a cheese platter with the choice of , Cheddar, Manchego, Stilton, Monterey Jack, Comte and Provolone (sadly missing is Parmigiano Reggiano) for Rs.750 ++ for 50 gms, prepared by the Chef in front of your eyes. A sausage platter is another option at Rs.1250. Perhaps, they could offer a small bowl of their delicious home-spiced olives with their compliments to make it a complete wine experience.
From the point of view of promoting wine culture, the idea gets 10/10 and one may not say anymore that the hotels are not doing their bit -even if this is a glaring example of an exception.
 My Recommendations: Although every wine has been well discounted, I have picked a list of 12 whites and 12 reds along with one Champagne, one Prosecco and one Sauternes that I would like to order on a normal visit to the bar but would find it too expensive. For a Wednesday Wine Social the prices make it attractive; keeping this in view, I have not recommended a Rosé.
Those with sweet tooth will find the Sauternes Mouton Cadet Reserve Baron Philippe de Rothschild a great bargain for 150mL glass at Rs.600. I would order it only if there were a minimum of 3 people-otherwise it is not feasible to finish it (unless you are fan of Stilton cheese). I would have the size of the pour reduced to 75mL (based on half bottle as the international standard) and charge Rs. 300 a glass of 75mL on Wednesday Socials. Otherwise, the List is professional enough to clearly mention the standard measure as 150mL. Here are the wines (starting with the code number to help you order-the price on the right is per glass of 150mL-five glasses to a bottle:
Sparkling
117 Laurent Perrier brut 600
153 Carpene malvolti prosecco Italy 400
White
3414 Pouilly Fuisse louis jadot maconnais 2010 500
207 Chablis louis latour 2012 400
276 Chassagne-Montrachet Ier cru "Morgeot" louis jadot 2000 950
302 Sancerre henri bourgeois 2012 500
3416 Riesling QbA, St. Urban-Hof 2012 500
3417 Chardonnay Pinot Grigio "le rime" Castello Banfi tuscany 2012 300
710 Marimar Torres don miguel estate russian river valley 2000 400
902 Sauvignon Blanc saint clair marlborough 2012 400
1080 Gruner Vetliner federspiel johann donnabaum waghau 2008 400
952 Sauvignon Blanc Fairview charles back 2011 300
1004 Chardonnay cono sur central valley 2011 300
1106 Chardonnay Fratelli 2013 250
Red
 1755 Côte du rhone saint cosme 2011 400
1807 Chianti castiglioni frescobaldi 2011 400
1812 Santa Cristina marchesi antinori 2011 300
2057 Gran Sangre De Toro torres reserva catalunya 2008 300
3054 Merlot Shafer vineyards napa 2010 950
3215 Cabernet Sauvignon Penfolds bin 407 2010 600
3206 Shiraz "Reserve" jacob's creek barossa valley 2010 300
3253 Pinot Noir saint clair , marlborough 2012 400
3303 Pinotage fairview charles back 2012 400
3333 Cordillera miguel torres curico valley 2009 400
3428 Malbec Reserve Bodegas Norton, Lujan de Cuyo 2011 400
3376 Cabernet Shiraz " Dindori Reserve" sula vineyards 2012 250
Dessert
1175 Sauternes Mouton Cadet reserve baron philippe de rothschild France 2010 600
Cheers to the Wednesday Wine Social evenings at the Blue Bar where you may shake off the mid-week blues.
Subhash Arora |