Passports in hand, they waited patiently. Despite getting there early to avoid the inevitable crowds, the queue quickly grew; the hundreds of like-minded souls buzzing with excitement at their impending world tour.
No, not your typical Saturday morning at Heathrow Terminal 5, but outside The Empire Room at the Landmark London Hotel, where wine lovers attending London’s 28th Decanter Fine Wine Encounter (DFWE) were awaiting entry to the exclusive Cellar Collection 2025.
Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of 21 wines: a highlight from each producer at the Cellar Collection 2025
Both morning and afternoon Cellar Collection sessions were sold out. Credit Ellen Richardson
This year’s Cellar Collection – the fourth edition – offered guests the chance to experience a deep dive into a flagship cuvée from 21 estates.
In a curated mini vertical, each winery poured three back vintages of one iconic wine to demonstrate its evolution, with several bottles more than 25 years old.
Many estates brought up to eight wines – some in magnums and double magnums – to further boost the exclusivity of this experience.
Tickets to the Cellar Collection 2025, which held one three-hour session in the morning and then another in the afternoon, were strictly limited and available to purchase in addition to the Grand Tasting tickets.
And as with last year, the calibre of producers ensured both sessions sold out.
Each guest received a Cellar Collection passport, gaining a stamp at each table visited on their world tour – a memento of meeting the people behind these famous estates and having them introduce three different vintages of an iconic wine in person.
Cellar Collection 2025: a world wine tour
Domaine de Chevalier poured from bottle, magnum and double magnum. Credit: Tina Gellie
When the doors opened, the crowds raced to Italy’s Masottina for its range of Prosecco and to Champagne houses Palmer & Co and Drappier.
Saint Clair from Marlborough in New Zealand, Napa Valley estate Chappellet and Rioja’s Remírez de Ganuza flew the flags for their respective countries as did Lebanon’s Chateau Musar, generously pouring a 1999 vintage of its flagship Bekaa Valley cuvée.
From South America it was Argentina’s Achaval Ferrer and Catena Zapata alongside Chile’s Santa Rita and Seña, with the latter showing five of its eight wines in magnum and the 2020 flagship cuvée in jeroboam.
Left Bank Bordeaux châteaux comprised three of France’s seven stands this year: St-Estèphe third-growth Calon-Ségur, Margaux second-growth Brane-Cantenac and Pessac-Léognan property Domaine de Chevalier.
This cru classé de Graves not only brought double magnums of each vintage of its grand vin red mini vertical (as well as a magnum of its 2015 grand vin white), but the 1995 was the oldest wine in the room.
M Chapoutier took the plaudits for the most diverse stand, showing six Rhône wines – including a trio of his Ermitage La Pavillon cuvée – as well as a Riesling from his Schieferkopf estate in Alsace and a white blend from his Bila-Haut domaine in Roussillon.
Italy was represented by four producers: Marchesi di Barolo from Piedmont, Fontodi from Tuscany and a brace of wineries from Sicily – Donnafugata and Cantine Florio, whose complex, saline 1998 Marsala Vergine Riserva was the second oldest wine in the room.
To finish on a sweet note, our Cellar Collection 2025 visitors clamoured to taste the three vintages of Sauternes from Bordeaux’s Château Suduiraut and the Nyulászó 6 Puttonyos Aszú from Hungary’s Royal Tokaji Co.
See you next year!
Passports out and ready to taste the mini vertical from Marchesi di Barolo. Credit: Ellen Richardson
Passports stamped and memories made, our intrepid travellers disembarked from the Cellar Collection and continued their world wine adventures in the Grand Tasting, with occasional layovers in Masterclasses.
If you already have wine wanderlust we hope to see some of you at the DFWE Singapore on 22 November.
Or, for those based in the US, join us at our DFWE New York on 6 June. Look out for details on our events page.
Until then, read our full event report from London’s DFWE, check out our photo highlights and keep an eye peeled for our Masterclass reports on Decanter Premium soon.
