Des Houghton: Brisbane stellar wine cellar one of nation’s finest

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One of the most fabulous wine cellars in the country has been unearthed in, of all places, Brisbane.

The Emporium Hotel’s Tony John has unveiled his Reserve Cellar with 2000 wines with a heavy French accent.

The set includes rare grand cru and premier cru wines from Burgundy which James Halliday describes as “the holy of holies” and “the wines they drink in heaven”.

There are names like Domaine Armand Rousseau, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (or simply, DRC to the cognoscenti), La Tâche, Romanée-Saint-Vivant, Richebourg, Grands Echezeaux, Echezeaux and Corton.

Chardonnay treasures include Domaine Leflaive from Puligny-Montrachet in Burgundy.

The collection is the result of John’s “relentless pursuit of excellence” in wine-buying missions stretching back more than three decades, said expert Gary Steel from Domaine Wine Shippers.

“Is it the best? I don’t know,” Steel said.

“Many people have really good collections. However, a lot of the really good collections are predominantly Bordeaux or Australian wine.”

Steel believes the grandest collections are in secretive old-money Melbourne. Many are in the possession of specialist doctors and lawyers whose collections are known only to their closest friends.

Steel, 75, a former Ansett pilot who has a holiday home in Cote de Beaune, was introduced to wine by his grandfather William John Steel, who became fascinated by French wine when he tasted it as a young soldier in France in World War I.

Some wines offered by John were virtually unprocurable, Steel said.

It seems wine buffs knew John had a great collection, but they didn’t know how good. Much is stored in a Fort Knox-style bunker under his hotel.

Astonishingly, the architect turned hotel and property mogul has multiple vintages of the greats. Dare I suggest he hasn’t been trying hard enough to drink them.

The cellar includes every vintage of Armand Rousseau Chambertin from 1996 to 2009, in a set by itself worth more than $1m.

There is a 2005 Romanée-Conti for $40,000 and some fabulous chardonnay including examples from Domaine Leflaive, which owns 4.8ha of ancient grand crus in Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet, Bâtard-Montrachet, Chevalier-Montrachet and Montrachet.

There are bottles from Domaine Comte de Vogüé, which has been making wine since 1450. Other labels bear the names of Chateau d’Yquem, Domaine Dugat-Py Gevrey-Chambertin, Domaine Blain-Gagnard.

Since listing the collection online, wine buffs from around the world – especially Hong Kong and London, are negotiating purchases.

“Burgundy is one of the most sought-after wines in the world and Emporium is fielding inquiries from buyers from South EastAsia and the UK,” John said.

John’s Reserve Cellar has a “library” of Penfolds Grange from 1989 through to the current vintage.

He also has six magnums of the celebrated 2010 Grange vintage that Australia’s Tyson Stelzer and British critic James Suckling had awarded a perfect 100.

“I have a deep love of food and wine,” John said.

John spent $650m building the Emporium at South Bank and its ultra-chic fine-dining restaurant, Signature, was the first in Queensland that I awarded 10 out of 10 for its food when it opened.

John is the son of child prodigy pianist, Eric John, who arrived in Australia from Berlin when he was 15 on the symphony circuit.

Some of John’s treasures are on the phone book-size wine list at Signature, including a magnum of Chateau Petrus 1982 for $60,000.

“I think it would break his heart if someone actually bought it,” said Rob Brady, the food and beverage manager.