The Aether Journal

Before it became one of the Rhône Valley’s great wine names, Châteauneuf-du-Pape was shaped by popes, a medieval château and a group of growers who helped define French wine as we know it today.

From Burgundy to Champagne and the Rhône, a look at some of the women behind the estates in the Aether cellar. When we started putting this story together, it wasn't because we had deliberately built a collection of wines made by women. In fact, it was almost the opposite. Looking through our portfolio recently, we realised just how many of the domaines we work with have women playing an important role behind the wines. Some are winemakers, some run their family estates, some work alongside another generation. Their stories are all quite different. It felt worth looking at them together....

The accidental tradition that became motorsport’s most famous celebration A Formula 1 driver wins a Grand Prix. He steps onto the podium, lifts the trophy, takes an oversized bottle of Champagne and proceeds to spray most of it into the air. It is one of the most recognisable celebrations in sport and, when you think about it, also one of the strangest. Why do Formula 1 drivers spray Champagne instead of simply drinking it? As Singapore prepares for another weekend of racing under the lights, the answer takes us back more than 75 years, to the early days of Formula...

Mala and wine might not sound like an obvious match. One is fiery, numbing, oily and intensely aromatic. The other is still too often associated with cheese boards, steaks and leisurely European dinners. But choose the right bottle and wine can be surprisingly good with mala, Sichuan hotpot and many of the spicy dishes we eat regularly in Singapore.