Wine Tasting at Club Millésime Sofitel Manila
When in Manila, whether for business, pleasure, or just a break from your usual routine, why not stay at Sofitel Manila? Stylishly comfortable rooms coupled with great service is surely a guarantee. For an even better experience, get one of the rooms that has access to the hotel’s Club Millésime which has their own reception area, library lounge, wine cellars and intimate meeting spaces where guests can spend time hanging out for business or pleasure while enjoying the fantastic view of the city.
The Club Millésime Lounge
The Club Millésime Lounge area (top), The Club Millésime marble counter and chiller (bottom)
The good people of Sofitel invited us over for a wine tasting that happens at Club Millésime every 4 to 6 pm. Every now and then the wines change but at the time that we were there, they featured Chilean wines. I was delighted when we were led to the club lounge, on to a marble counter with displays of spread of cheeses and pastries either with cheese or made out of cheese. Imagine my delight because if you have read previously about my feature on Spiral’s cheese room, you would know how much I love cheese and how Sofitel knows their cheeses well.
Concha y Toro Trio 2010 red wines
Food spread for pairing
On to the wines that Sofitel Manila had us sampled. We were provided with three different types of wine: a red, a white and a sparkling, all from Concha y Toro Winery which is recognized as “The Most Admired Wine Brand in the World” by Drinks International in 2012.
Trio 2010 (red), Casillero del Diablo 2011 (white) and Casillero del Diablo 2010 (sparkling)
Chile is mostly known in producing Cabernet Sauvignon, but they have also ventured into blending different varieties of grapes such as the red wine called Trio. 2010 vintage from the Rapel Valley, Trio is a mixture of Merlot, Carmanere and Cabernet Sauvignon, but mostly Merlot. Medium bodied with red violet color, it smelled of what normally are found in red wines which were blackberries, plums, and other dark fruits with a hint of nicotine. As for the taste, it was fruity, with ripe dark berry flavours and silky tannins.
Trio 2010 by Concha Y Toro
Light to medium body with translucent pale yellow colors, the next wine we tasted was a Chardonnay called Casillero del Diablo 2011 vintage. Its aroma started with a citrusy smell, specifically of lemon, peach and pineapple. As for the taste, the high acidity of the wine was immediately tasted given also by the citrus flavor like lemon. Also, there was some herbal notes and peach given by the oak barrel.
Casillero del Diablo 2011 by Concha Y Toro
Lastly, we were given a sparkling wine also by the famous Concha y Toro, called Brut Reserva of Casillero del Diablo 2010 vintage. It was produced using Chardonnay as its variety hailing from Limari Valley. It was light bodied and bubbly. Its aroma was composed of citric notes like green apple and orange zest. As for the taste, it was very refreshing with mainly lime and a hint of apple.
Casillero del Diablo Brut Reserva 2010 by Concha y Toro
We mixed and matched these wines with the different cheeses in the spread such as the manchego, brie with dried fruits on them, roquefort, goat cheese which was covered by some sort of herbs that very much made for the really good earthy taste, cheesecake with whipped cream and berry on top, and a whole array of bread from soft to hard to french, well, you get the idea.
Cheeses, grapes and dried fruits
As we were munching on the food and drinking our wines, we were having quite a grand time winding down from a long day’s work. Soon enough we were buzzed and surprisingly full from all the eating and drinking. But after which, how can we not give in to a dinner at Spiral? But that’s another topic altogether, make sure to read up When in Manila’s review on that.
The sparkling, the white and the red provided by Sofitel Manila
Wine after wine after wine in the chiller
Count how many glasses are those?! 
Mildly buzzed with my friend Brian.
What the wines came down to a few minutes after. Haha.
So When in Manila, make sure to check out Sofitel Manila’s Club Millésime rooms to experience the fantastic wines and spread during cocktail hours for either relaxation or business meetings. You may give them a call or better yet, go to their website to reserve (contacts found below). See you there? Thanks so much to the ever accommodating people of Sofitel for having us over, we had an amazing time!
Spiral dinner ending with friends Teresa and Brian. Thanks so much Jane!
Club Millésime
Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila
(632) 551-5555
H6308@sofitel.com
https://twitter.com/SofitelManila
https://www.facebook.com/SofitelManila
www.sofitelmanila.com/en/club-lounge.html
Wine Tasting at Club Millésime Sofitel Manila
