New on Wine List Confidential: Dinner by Heston

Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental (also open for lunch!) reopened in June of last year, following a refurbishment of the hotel, with a wine list in tune with the historical dishes refined by partners in the sublime, Ashley Palmer-Watts and Heston Blumenthal.

While these span circa 600 years of astutely researched British culinary history, wine has been savoured far longer, notes Austrian sommelier and wine buyer, Stefan Neumann MS, with the oldest-known winery dating from 4,100 BC. ‘Every wine on the list has a story,’ he says, cradling the document, sensuously bound by British luxury leather goods company, Globe-Trotter. This confers the feel of a fine tome. ‘And if it’s good book, you’ll read it again…’

Neumann began at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, not as sommelier but breakfast waiter. ‘There was no other position,’ he recalls. ‘I rose at 4:45am to serve one of the best breakfasts in the UK.’ He soon segued to The Fat Duck, staying three years despite the ceiling being ‘so low.’ There he met his fiancé. Indeed, aided by his paramour, Neumann earned the coveted title, Master Sommelier. ‘For three months from 1-3am, we would blind taste after work.’ Neumann, who believes sommeliers are a breed apart, ‘like wolves’, reveals that Terry Kandylis, head sommelier of 67 Pall Mall, will be his best man.

At Dinner, Neumann has worked on filing a library of stock, currently at 850 bins with more in bond, ‘despite the fact every London restaurant struggles with space. But it’s important to leave something behind.’

Appreciating how long it takes chefs to realise a dish, Neumann is meticulous in finding harmonious pairings. ‘I’m a balance, not sledgehammer guy,’ he says. Partnerships may include Sauternes (Catelanau de Suiduiraut) with the convincing meat fruit (c. 1500) ‘from when food was more about trickery and entertainment’ replete with Ruscus leaves and garlic-rubbed, Josper toast, while the definition of umami, sherried scallop tartare (c. 1970) with grilled shiitake and sherry mushroom broth dovetails with Petite Arvine (Thierry Constantin). Squab pigeon (c. 1780) with onions, artichokes and Redchurch ale (Bethnal Green) finds favour with vital Grenache, ‘The Absconder’, which is not unlike a supercharged Pinot Noir, reaped from a 1920s vineyard in Wirra Wirra. Of its minty, floral aromas, Neumann states, ‘wine should speak through its perfume to get your attention.’ And the exceptional Sambocade (c. 1390), an unbaked goats milk cheesecake, is delightful with Spinetta’s 4.5% lacey Quaglia Moscato d’Asti.

An entertaining sommelier, Neumann rarely resorts to technical jargon, realising wine is for about fun for the majority of guests, ‘which is why we as somms sign up for the job… And wine tastes better when you’re happy.’

Featuring, helpfully, a contents page, here is a list rich in history. Given Churchill stayed in the property during the war, Neumann includes a quote: ‘I like wine, both red and white and especially Champagne; and on very special occasions I could even drink a small glass of brandy.’ On Austrian wines, Neumann writes, ‘Vienna (Wien in Austrian) is as a matter of fact named after wine.’ And of Burgundy, ‘The Burgundians, Scandinavians by origin founded a kingdom in the Rhône in 456 which included Lyon and Dijon. Wine was already well established here before their arrival.’ There is also mention of UFOs. ‘In 1954, the council of Châteauneuf-du-Pape was apprehensive flying saucers or ‘flying cigars’ might damage their vineyards so passed an ordinance prohibiting their landing. This is yet to be repealed as it has been entirely successful.’

Classic regions are amply represented, with Neumann’s sense of curiosity shining through when it comes to other territories, be it Turkish Sauvignon Blanc, Leyda Sauvignon Gris or Ningxia Cabernet Sauvignon by fellow Austrian, Lenz Moser at Changyu Moser, by the glass.

Also note, the well equipped spirits trolley, laden with Austrian Schnapps alongside Louis XIII, and, on request, a 4.5 litre turquoise Leviathan of ‘The Classic Laddie’ available as a ‘wee dram’ or ‘dram’. Attention has also been lavished on the coffee selection, in collaboration with roasters, Workshop.

Wine List Confidential, brought to you by the drinks business, is the first platform to rank London’s restaurants on the strength of their wine list alone, providing a comprehensive guide to the best restaurants in the capital for wine lovers.

Restaurants are graded on a 100-point scale based on five criteria: size, value, service, range and originality. For a full guide to London’s best wine lists visit winelistconfidential.com