Australia’s Royal Mail Hotel chosen to serve Chateau d’Yquem by the glass

For the occasion, the Royal Mail Hotel dipped into its cellars to sample several Chateau d’Yquem vintages (’20, ’19, ‘07 and ’85) as well as the 2019 and 2020 of its dry white, Y (pronounced i grec).

El Khawand says the initiative particularly targets “the younger consumer who doesn’t know Yquem … and has lost the taste for sweet wine”. It helps if the wine, aged in new French oak barrels for two years (it used to be four), is drunk young, when it’s lighter and more delicate. Historically, Chateau d’Yquem was said to be at its best after 50 years and thus something to cellar for its deep aromatics and jammy fruitiness.

The idea is also for lighthouses to show that Château d’Yquem isn’t simply a dessert wine. “The young wine can be paired with many things other than dessert,” argues El Khawand. “We don’t want to eliminate desserts, or foie gras, or any of these clichés, but we want people to drink Yquem as an apéritif, alone or with a single [savoury] ingredient.”

At Italy’s Osteria Francescana, for instance, Massimo Bottura is pairing Château d’Yquem with tortellini in crema di parmigiano. At Spain’s Jondal, it’s wagyu tartare or oyster ceviche; Beijing’s Lu Style offers a soup of wild sea cucumber and it’s Toro tuna at New York’s Sushi Nakazawa.

Royal Mail Hotel’s executive chef Robin Wickens first matched the 2019 vintage with yabby then switched to crayfish. That will be offered at least until Easter. “Crayfish and shellfish have this sweetness that matches well with Sauternes,” he says. “We’ve had people almost break down in tears trying it. It’s working.”

For the 2020 vintage, Wickens is still weighing his options but is entertaining game, such as venison and hare, or perhaps, if he pushes the boundary, snails. “I’m loving the challenge,” he says.

Château d’Yquem is hoping we do, too.