When Champagne trumps whisky

One of Scotland's leading resort hotels has unveiled a new drinks partnership, but it is Champagne, rather than whisky, that will grab the spotlight.

The Gleneagles Hotel and Dom Pérignon have announced a new collab that will see the launch of The Cellar x Dom Pérignon, a private dining and tasting experience, news hubs the drinks business reports.

The experience combines a five-course menu created by Gleneagles’ chefs with a selection of Dom Pérignon cuvées.

The Cellar has served as the hotel’s storage and ageing space for rare wines and spirits for more than 100 years and has now been converted into a private dining room that accommodates up to a dozen guests/

It mow features bespoke Champagne cabinets designed to store Dom Pérignon at its optimum ageing and serving temperature.

Design details reference Dom Pérignon’s home at the Abbey of Hautvillers in Épernay.

The signature Dom Pérignon Experience begins with two glasses of Dom Pérignon Vintage 2017 served alongside King’s Golden Oscietra Caviar and accompaniments.

Guests then enjoy a five-course tasting menu, plus an amuse bouche and pre-dessert, with each course paired with a different Dom Pérignon expression, including Dom Pérignon Vintage 2017, Dom Pérignon Rosé 2010 and Dom Pérignon Vintage 2008 Plénitude 2.

The Cellar also houses a library of more than 40 Dom Pérignon rarities. Guests can book bespoke tastings, including vertical tastings and selections from landmark vintages.

Other experiences available include a Dom Pérignon & Canapé Reception featuring two glasses of Dom Pérignon Vintage 2017 and four canapés per person, a Dom Pérignon Tasting with five Dom Pérignon expressions paired with canapés, and The Cellar Experience, which pairs the tasting menu with wines selected from the Gleneagles wine list.

Guests must reserve the full dining experience at least three weeks in advance, while tastings can be booked up to three days ahead. Prices start from £150 per person, rising to £695 per person ($1310 in Aussie dollars) for The Dom Pérignon Experience.

* Gleaneagles Hotel is owned by Ennismore - the group that also owns Mama Shelter, the Hoxton and Mondrian hotels.

Hyatt brand hits Hua Hin with a hint of Sanook

I've been looking for a new Thai destination for a proposed trip later this year. Hua Hin just jumped to the top of the list.

Hyatt Hotels Corporation this week announced the opening of The Barai Hua Hin, marking the debut of The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand in Thailand.

Located on the historic Khao Takiap coastline in Hua Hin, a favourite seaside destination for generations of Thai royalty, the 98-room beachfront resort is designed in the spirit of Sanook (สนุก) - the Thai expression for the joy of living.

Long before the concept of the "wellness retreat" became fashionable, Hua Hin was one. 

The destination has been a seaside escape for Siamese nobility since the early 20th century. 

Drawing on this legacy, The Barai Hua Hin opened as a spa 20 years ago. It has now expanded into a boutique resort. 

“Every stay is designed to unfold at the guest's own rhythm,” says GM Marco Avitabile. 

“Our philosophy is rooted in Sanook, the belief that joy, ease and delight should be part of life’s most meaningful moments. Whether guests come for deep rest, movement, spa rituals, culinary discovery or time by the sea, we invite them to experience renewal in a way that feels personal, memorable and entirely their own.”

Guests can also explore the Kui Buri National Park, Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park, and Phraya Nakhon Cave in the region.

The resort has 27 suites and a pair of two-bedroom penthouses. 

Higher-category suites include butler service, terraces, in-suite rituals and daily massage inclusions. 

At the centre of the resort, The Barai Spa takes its name from ancient barays, reservoirs that once sustained daily life in the ancient empire. 

Wellness extends to the two-story Wellness Hub which includes a 24-hour fitness studio, yoga studio, holistic zone and wellness shop. 

The resort offers two dining destinations led by chef Benn Rowe, whose career spans kitchens across Australia and Thailand. 

I've made a note of this one. Small resort, wellness focus, interesting location. 

See www.thebaraihuahin.com

Tasmania gets a uniquely eclectic new library

From words by William Shakespeare to Hunter S. Thompson and David Bowie, the new library at Tasmania's Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) is decidedly eclectic.

Phrontisterion, a $100 million library housing Mona owner's David Walsh’s collection of nonfiction, novels, rare books and maps, autographs opens to the public at Berriedale, north of Hobart, from 10am on Sunday.

"I was always all-in on books and libraries," Walsh says. "My first library card was the great leveller, the thing that gave impoverished child-me a chance to seek."

Phrontisterion, a word that suggests ‘a thinkery’, takes its name from Aristophanes’ Clouds, in which the author ridicules the self-certainty of the educated.

Walsh says it is a place to explore, be entertained, and research topics as diverse as ancient brewing methods, winter rituals, heavy metal pollution, Antarctic exploration, science fiction, sex, casinos, charcuterie, and the museum collection.

Rare books include Shakespeare’s ‘First Folio’, a second edition of Sir Isaac Newton’s Opticks, and the sixth edition of Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species, the last produced in the author’s lifetime.

There are also books signed by Umberto Eco, J.G. Ballard and Hunter Thompson, and hand-written documents by Balzac, Bowie, Whitman, Flaubert, Einstein, Newton, Marconi and Alexander Graham Bell.

"If you want to know what David is really like, browse his bookshelves," says Mona’s librarian, Mary Lijnzaad.

The way Phrontisterion organises books is as idiosyncratic as the collection itself. It uses novel technology to treat books as curatable objects rather than conforming to the Dewey Decimal System, used by libraries around the world.

Phrontisterion is connected to Mona’s existing buildings via tunnels in the sandstone. It’s located in the space beneath the inverted-ziggurat levels of Elektra (top image), Anselm Kiefer’s monumental concrete amphitheatre.

See phrontisterion.net.au 

Famous Brisbane watering hole returns with a new/old name

Generations of thirsty Queenslanders knew it as The Fox Hotel but the South Brisbane landmark reopens this weekend as Hotel Terminus. 

The heritage-listed building has been re-born as a four-level dining, entertainment and events destination.

The precinct brings together three distinct venues under one roof: a premium all-day gastropub (Terminus), the vibrant Fox Rooftop, and Vixen Room, an intimate late-night cocktail lounge, alongside function and event spaces

Behind a fully restored façade, the redevelopment includes an 18-metre atrium and a new entrance opening onto Fish Lane, with the developers boasting "a bigger, bolder and distinctly Brisbane hospitality destination".

The transformation has been led by Ghanem Group Hospitality, the team behind a portfolio of some Brisbane’s best-known venues, including Blackbird Brisbane, Byblós, Donna Chang and Iris Rooftop.

A public vote gave the community a say in the venue's new identity and the verdict was clear: restore the original name, Hotel Terminus. The Fox, however, lives on as the rooftop bar’s name.

"Hotel Terminus is a revived venue that’s firmly rooted in where it came from," Ghanem Group Hospitality managing director Nehme Ghanem says. 

"This building has been a favourite gathering spot for Brisbane since it first opened its doors in 1927.

That weight of history is something we have kept front of mind throughout this project.

“The team has done justice to what the venue represents to this city and the entire group is incredibly
proud to be the ones bringing Hotel Terminus back."

The menu is overseen by head chef Lyndon Tyers alongside group executive chef Jake Nicolson. 

So think Moreton Bay bug rolls with coriander labneh and curry sauce, or a classic steak tartare; slow-
cooked stout-braised sticky beef ribs and a tandoori chicken pie with creamed leek and green 
peppercorn jus. 

"The food at Terminus is about doing the classics properly, not reinventing them, just executing them to
a level that surprises people," Tyers said.

"We source the best produce we can and make sure every single plate that leaves the kitchen is held to
the standard Ghanem Group Hospitality is known and loved for."

See https://www.ghanemgroup.com.au/venues/hotel-terminus

Riesling Challenge winds up after 26 years

 

One of Australia's most respected wine competitions is no more. 

The Committee of the Canberra International Riesling Challenge has made the difficult decision to wind up the event after over a quarter of a century. 

The Riesling Challenge was founded in 2000, and between 2000 and 2025 a total of 24 Challenges were held. 

The peak number of entries in any year was 567 (2018) and the peak number of countries entering was nine countries (2019). 

It was, at its peak, the largest single variety wine show in the southern hemisphere. 

“Regrettably the increase in international airfreight and challenging economic conditions in the international and Australian wine industries post-Covid have significantly impacted entry levels, and despite our best efforts we have been unable to return to operating a revenue positive event," said James Service, the event chairman. 

"Accordingly, the committee has agreed that ending the Challenge is the only appropriate course available. 

“From the outset, the Challenge has benefited from well qualified and skilled judges, a strong and enthusiastic steward cohort, a professional management team, the support of the diplomatic community and generous and steadfast sponsors.

“With the support of the entrant wineries we have been highly successful in our stated aim of improving the quality of riesling available to consumers, and increasing consumer’s appreciation and understanding of riesling.” 

All you need to know about Moldova - and its wines

Serious wine lovers may be aware that Moldova produces world-class sparkling wines, crafted using Méthode Traditionnelle and matured in limestone cellars. Others may be surprised.

The country is also home to Mileștii Mici, the world's largest wine cellar, which stores close to 2 million bottles (below). The cellars extend for 200 kilometres underground, of which only 55km are in current use.

I tried some Moldovan wine in Moscow a long time ago and was impressed by the quality. 

Should you be tempted to visit, The Republic of Moldova has just launched a new official website www.moldova.md, which it describes as a new tool for presenting the country.

The website reveals that Moldova is a small country, 135th in the world in terms of size, but among the top 20 global exporters of plums, walnuts, cherries, apricots, rape seed, apples, and grapes.

And its ranks in the top 20 global exporters of wine.

The Invest Moldova Agency says the new website is a "a modern identity card for the country, the platform provides a structured, easy-to-navigate presentation of the Republic of Moldova for international audiences and for citizens at home and abroad".

The content is presented to provide a quick and accurate understanding of Moldova. Available in English, its is specifically tailored to international audiences.

An key element of the launch is the placement of a dedicated www.moldova.md banner at Chișinău International Airport, in the passport control area, so arrivals can immediately access it.

“A strong country image is built through consistency and through an identity that is presented coherently across all international platforms," says Irina Tolstousov, deputy director, Invest Moldova Agency.

"We aim to provide the Republic of Moldova with a modern presentation framework, developed based on the experience and standards applied by countries that have been implementing nation branding strategies for many years. 

"At the same time, we placed a strong emphasis on usability and accessibility, ensuring that these tools can be used easily and effectively by institutions, partners, and communities that promote Moldova.”