Rare wine to be opened at Yorkshire celebration

A rare imperial bottle of Château Talbot Grand Cru Classé 1988 will be opened at a special gourmet food and wine evening in Malton, North Yorkshire.

The six-litre bottle is thought to be the last remaining example of this format from this vintage in the UK, and appropriately, it will be opened at the Talbot Hotel in Malton.

Restaurant manager Dominique Ghislain told the York Press newspaper: “This is a particularly good vintage, probably one of the best in more than 20, and larger bottles always offer a slightly better wine than normal ones.

“However, only a very limited number are bottled to this size so that in itself makes this rather special.”

The wine, which is worth around £2,000, will be served with Gressingham duck during the evening. Other items on the menu include an English truffle risotto, which will be matched with a Château Talbot white and hay-roasted pigeon, served with a red wine.

Chislain added: “I want to keep a few surprises up my sleeve for the wines for the first two courses but I can assure everyone this will be a dinner to remember.”

Château Talbot’s owner and winemaker Jean-Paul Bignon will be the guest of honour for the evening at the hotel, where celebrity chef James Martin is now in charge of the kitchen.

The gourmet evening takes places at the Talbot Hotel in Malton on Tuesday, 26 February.