CH’NG Poh Tiong
It is a wine list with range, depth, and crazy prices!
I don’t mean insanely exorbitant but crazy affordable!!
For the average price of a bottle of Champagne Brut in a Singapore or Hong Kong (around €120) restaurant, you can greedily order three bottles of wine at LA BANDEIRA. I came across the list when judging a competition.
A Michelin 1-star restaurant, La Bandeira also scores a green Michelin star for its dedication to sustainability. They have a herb and vegetable garden.
Third-generation Alessio and Mattia Spadone follow in the footsteps of their grandmother who founded La Bandeira in the late 1970s. Their parents Bruna and Marcello then transformed it into the famous restaurant it is today.
La Bandeira is situated in the inland mountain town of Civitella Casanova in Pescara Province. The city of the same name is just 40 km to the east. Pescara – the most populated city (about 120,000 inhabitants) in Abruzzo – is famous for its beaches on the Adriatic Sea.
La Bandeira lists its wines by region and I have pulled out some star buys below. These are by no means exhaustive as the list is 169 pages!!
EXCEPTIONAL VALUE
La Bandeira lists Gaja Barbaresco 2013 at €430 for a magnum! At Hong Kong’s Otto e Mezzo BOMBANA, the slightly better 2016 vintage of the same producer will set you back HK$4,380 or €510. In Hong Kong, that’s not a magnum but a single 750 ml bottle.
A more straightforward comparison is Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 2007. At La Bandeira, it is €200. At Otto e Mezzo BOMBANA, it’s HK$3,680 or €430, more than twice the price!!
Even more surreal is BERTANI Valpolicella Classico Superiore 2005 which checks in at HK$3,480 or €400 in Otto e Mezzo BOMBANA. At La Bandeira, Bertani Recioto Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Superiore 1971 clocks in at €200. Not only is this a considerably older vintage, it’s also a recioto, at half the price!!
A SMALL SAMPLING FROM LA BANDEIRA’S 169-PAGE WINE LIST
ABRUZZO
Di Sipio Terre di Chieti Pinot Nero IGT 2016 €30
Marchesi de Cordano Chardonnay Santagiusta Terre Aquilane IGT 2012 €35
San Lorenzo Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Colline Teramane Riserva Oinos 2013 €35
Tiberio Pecorino 2010 €55
PIEMONTE
Ascheri Barolo 1989 €100
Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis 2013 €110
Elio Altare Langhe Rosso La Villa 1995 €90
Gaja Barbaresco 2013 €430 (magnum)
Michele Chiarlo Barbera d’Asti Superiore Nizza La Court 2001 €40
Prunotto Barolo Bussia 1998 €90
Vigneti Massa Timorasso Costa del Vento Derthona 2016 €60
LOMBARDIA
Ca’ del Bosco Sebino Rosso Maurizio Zanella 1999 €90
TRENTINO
Foradori Granato 2009 €125
VENETO
Allegrini Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2000 €150
Allegrini La Poja 1993 €80
Bertani Recioto Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Superiore 1971 €200
TOSCANA
Argiano Brunello di Montalcino 1995 €110 (magnum)
Barone Ricasoli Castello di Brolio Casalferro 1997 €60
Biondi Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Il Greppo 1975 €1,150
Brancais Il Blu 1995 €50
Caparzo Cà del Pazzo 1994 €35
Capraia Chianti Classico 1998 €40
Castello di Ama Chianti Classico San Lorenzo Gran Selezione 2016 €75
Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Vigneto La Casuccia 1995 €320
Castello di Verrazzano Bottiglia Particolare 1997 €90
Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragon Ateo 2001 €35
Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragon Brunello di Montalcino Pianrosso 1998 €95
Felsina Chianti Classico Riserva Berardenga Rancia 1995 €110 (magnum)
Frescobaldi Castello di Nipozzano Chianti Rùfina Montesodi 1997 €60
Frescobaldi Castello di Nipozzano Mormoreto 1991 €55
Frescobaldi Tenuta di Castelgiocondo Lamaione 1996 €50
Isole e Olena Chianti Classico 2014 €40
Marchesi Antinori Brunello di Montalcino Pian delle Vigne 2015 €75
Marchesi Antinori Brunello di Montalcino Pian delle Vigne 2000 €270 (magnum)
Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 2012 €160
Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 2007 €200
Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 1997 €250
Mazzei Castello di Fonterutoli Siepi 1999 €95
Ruffino Cabreo Il Borgo 1996 €35
Ruffino Romitorio di Santedame 1995 €60
San Felice Chianti Classico Riserva Poggio Rosso 1996 €90 (magnum)
UMBRIA
CASTELLO DELLA SALA Cervaro della Sala 2013 €90
MARCHE
Belisario Verdicchio di Matelica Cinque Annate al Duemila 1996 €45
Ca’ Liptra Verdicchio Classico Kypra Superiore 2018 €35
CAMPANIA
Le Terre Diverse Greco di Tufo Bacio a Scannisi 2021 €35
Marisa Cuomo Costa d’Amalfi Furore Bianco 2019 €35
Zampaglione Fiano Don Chisciotte 2019 €35
PUGLIA
Feudi Salentini Primitivo di Manduria Dolce Naturale Philia 2004 €30
Leone de Castris Salice Salentino Donna Lisa Riserva 1995 €55
MM Scavia Marco Maci Bella Mojgan 1997 €30
Racemi Zinfandel Sinfarosa 1999 €30
SICILIA
Cantine Florio Marsala Vergine Baglio Florio 1998 €70 (500 ml)
Cantine Florio Marsala Vergine Terre Arse 1998 €50 (500 ml)
Consorzio Cooperative Interregionale Ora da Re Botte 2 1932 €300 (375 ml)
Cusumano Benuara 2004 €30
Girolamo Russo Etna Rosso San Lorenzo 2012 €50
Palari Faro 2010 €55
Palari Rosso del Soprano 2012 €35
Passopisciaro Passorosso 2012 €70
Tasca d’Almerita Tenuta Regaleali Cabernet Sauvignon 1996 €50
Tenuta di Budonetto Saia Grande 2002 €25
SARDEGNA
Argiolas Cannonau di Sardegna Costera 2006 €30
