The French Cellar featured in the wine blog The Local Nose (Donna Daritan)

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Jan 01, 2018

The French Cellar – French Wines You Can Trust

If you haven’t heard of The French Cellar, the fastest growing wine subscription business in Singapore and Hong Kong, you should by now. They have been featured in many publications from The Sunday Times, The Edge, Singapore Tatler and many more. Click here for the complete list. Just today they are featured in The Business Times for securing a 7-figure investment by ESW Manage, a private equity firm focused on investment opportunities especially in Asia.

The story of this company is pretty close to my heart. I knew the founder personally even before The French Cellar came into existence. How did we meet? Though TheLocalNose wine tasting event. Isn’t that amazing? When Vincent Morello told me about his new venture, I was truly excited for him. He approached me as I represent TheLocalNose but he then also approached another company that I am linked to – Business Angel Network (SEA) Ltd without knowing the same person was behind the scene. We met up at Holland Village only to realize he stayed in the same building as me. Too many coincidences. So, what is The French Cellar? Just remember their short and sweet tagline – “Your sommelier at home”. How does this work? Basically, you can subscribe to their packages online: Vineyard Gems, Tasting Voyage, and Grands Crus; which starts from $99/month then you simply sit back, relax and wait for 2 bottles of wine to be delivered to your home together with the wine tasting guide which makes your tasting not only enjoyable but educational. These wines are thoughtfully selected by Mr. Nicolas Rebut, who was a Chef Sommelier of the 3-Star Michelin restaurants: Le Meurice in Paris and Louis XV (Alain Ducasse) in Monaco. Yes, he has solid credentials and years of experience but the reason why you should trust in his choice is because his heart and passion is in every single bottle he chose for you. He was born for this. Under the guidance of his winemaker grandfather and a grandmother who loves to cook, his palate was well prepared for his journey ahead. Pairing food and wine also comes naturally for him. His gruelling professional training came when he was working in the fine dining industry. It was difficult, strict and one needed to adhere to many rules. However, the advantage of working in world renowned restaurants, Nicolas broadened his wine knowledge by tasting really rare and old wines such as Yquem 1886, Petrus of 1945, etc. In order to share his knowledge and passion outside the restaurant he was working for, he set up his own consultancy business and managed to outreach to Hong Kong and Shanghai market. Now, Singapore has the privilege of his expertise too. Through The French Cellar, Nicolas will personally choose 6 new winemakers each month that produces not only wines of great quality, but also the best representation of the regions they come from. So, I put it to the test by bringing a Pommard to #SgWine blind tasting event. To the knowledgeable drinkers (not me yet), they immediately knew this is a Pinot Noir from Côte de Beaune. I was truly impressed. If I have to pick one personal favourite (which is tough), I love their Cairanne from Domaine Marcel Richaud. This is one powerful wine that will dazzle your palate. Truly memorable with its 15% alcohol content and regular price at only $58. If you are a subscriber, you will be entitled to 15% discount which means this wine will cost less than $50! Geez, what a bargain! At the end of my interview with Nicolas, I asked what his advice is for newbie who wants to learn more about wine; he said the best way to learn about is to taste it. Go to tasting events and take the time to try the wine and learn about the estate, the grape variety, the eye, the nose, the taste, etc. Guess what, The French Cellar provides all that under one roof. If you can’t decide which package to subscribe, come and check them out at their next tasting event through their blog. Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun! All the best, The French Cellar! So far, you have literally rocked the 2 industries I’m working for! Keep it up!

Thanks, Nicolas for the advice!

Donna Daritan