SEKKA Dining has something for someone who has everything – an ¥80,000 half-bottle of 1898 Puig Parahy. Manager Mick Nippard says that for those who can afford it, it’s an experience not to be missed. “For someone who wants to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience of a bottle of wine of that age, this is a one-off,” Mick says. “It’s made from 100 per cent Grenache grapes with neutral spirit added to it – it’s between a vintage port and a tawny port. It’s an incredible flavour of cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, spices, but it’s as thick as treacle. Really intense, the most intense wine you would ever want to drink because it just stays on the tongue forever. Everyone who’s had it just says ‘amazing’.”
Puig Parahy is a small producer in southern France. The wine was barreled in 1898 and bottled in 2001, and Mick says the reason it’s survived is the spirit. He’s carried the bottle for the past three seasons and says it’s proven very popular. Mick reckons this bottle of wine may just put the finishing touches on a perfect day in Niseko. “If someone’s here for the first time and thinking that was the perfect day powder skiing, they can have a perfect night with this wine and a bit of cheese,” he says.