Decanter luxe list: Kickstart your 2025 in style
Throw off the January blues with this selection of luxury getaways and events taking place in the most coveted of cellars, vineyards and must-visit destinations across the globe.
Whether you’re looking to fête the start of 2025 in the utmost style or still planning this year’s calendar, we’ve pulled together some of the most decadent ways to celebrate the end of the winter season and beyond – because why should the party stop after New Year’s Eve?
If you’re still trying to find a gift for that family member whose wine collection has it all, we’ve got the perfect collector’s set from Bordeaux.
And what could be a more memorable experience for your gastronomic friends than a trip to Mendoza with legendary South American chef Francis Mallmann?
From cocktail pop-ups in chic ski cabins in Japan, to Champagne-fuelled dinner parties in three Michelin-starred restaurants and a new countryside chic hotel on Burgundy’s wine route, 2025 is gearing up to be a banner year for luxury.
Dine with iconic winemakers during a private tasting experience at three Michelin-starred Mirazur in the French Riviera
Housed in a glass-encased, 1930s rotunda watchtower perched over the Mediterranean on the French Riviera, chef Mauro Colagreco’s three-starred Mirazur is the definition of destination dining.
Surrounded by five hectares of permaculture and biodynamic gardens planted with more than 1,500 varieties – which includes 70 types of tomatoes alone – Mirazur has revived forgotten species while also introducing new ones.
The garden’s produce is the highlight of the plates during the carte blanche menu dubbed Univers, which looks to the movement of the planets and basics of biodynamics to guide the dishes.
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This season, Mirazur wrapped up its first edition of exclusive winemaker dinners hosted in the private La Puerta space, where up to 15 guests dine table d’hôte-style at a communal table alongside the chef de cave or winemaker from lauded wine and Champagne houses.
This year’s standout lineup: Domaine Jacques Selosse, Artémis Domaines’ Bouchard Père et Fils and Domaine d’Eugénie, and Château d’Yquem, to name a few.
Watch Colagreco’s team in the open kitchen as they prep the nine-course tasting menu designed specifically around the latest and most iconic vintages from guest wineries.
The second edition will pop up throughout 2025 (dates yet to be announced).
Join chefs Francis Mallmann and award-winning pitmaster Aaron Franklin for a masterclass in Mendoza, Argentina
If you’re trying to decide what your first international trip of 2025 should be, we have the perfect pick to add to your calendar.
South America’s superstar chef Francis Mallmann is teaming up with award-winning chef Aaron Franklin, of Franklin Barbecue in Austin, Texas, for the five-day Smoke & Fire masterclass, taking place 12-16 February at The Vines Resort & Spa in Mendoza, Argentina.
Argentine asado meets traditional Texas barbecue as you learn the art of grilling and smoking alongside these masters in the Uco Valley.
Franklin, who is building a custom smoker for the special occasion, will cover everything from smoking techniques to perfecting his famous sauces and sides, while Mallmann will guide you through the art of cooking over open flames – with fireside chats, local boutique wines, and tango thrown in between.
The trip (not including airfare or transfers) starts at US$14,690 for members or US$34,020 for guests in a one-bedroom deluxe garden villa (single occupancy).
Indulge in decadent aprés-ski wine pairing dinners during The Little Nell’s Chefs & Somms Series in Aspen
Aspen’s The Little Nell, whose wine programme counts more than 20,000 bottles (led by wine director Chris Dunaway), is kicking off the new year with an impressive lineup of culinary creatives and world-renowned sommeliers during its Chefs & Somms Series, which coincides with ski season.
The mini world tour will bring everyone from Michelin-starred chef Egon Heiss of Castel Fragsburg to Australia’s first Master of Wine, Michael Hill Smith, and chef Mark Lundgaard of two-starred Kong Hans Kælder in Copenhagen, who will helm a special collaboration dinner with Krug x Flower on 15 February.
Journey through a bespoke Champagne tasting at L’Assiette Champenoise
Champagne Rendez-Vous’ Fiona Perrin has curated an immersive Champagne experience of esteemed growers and more under-the-radar gems to pair alongside an eight-course tasting menu at L’Assiette Champenoise near Reims, in the heart of Champagne.
From the six-seat chef’s table, glimpse into the kitchen and watch as three Michelin-starred chef Arnaud Lallement and his team prepare dishes designed around four cuvées from Champagne Rendez-Vous, with Perrin guiding the journey through her selection of exceptional bubbles.
Available for lunch or dinner with a one-night stay at L’Assiette Champenoise (reservations here); 595€ per person.
Step into the newly opened, crystal-draped Ducasse Baccarat in Paris
Celebrated French chef Alain Ducasse – one of only two chefs to hold 21 Michelin stars throughout his career – has joined forces with haute French fine crystal house Baccarat, transforming the historic hôtel particulier in Paris’ well-heeled 16th arrondissement into a combined artist residency, cultural centre and gastronomic culinary experience.
Each element of Maison Baccarat is designed to be immersive. From pieces of Baccarat’s heritage collection on display, to a ‘chapel of light’ installation by stained-glass artist Pierre Tatin, which will guide you to the Jérémie Attali-designed garden, debuting in 2025.
Another highlight: the Tuzla chandelier – composed of 157 lights and 9,000 crystal pendants – illuminating the main staircase (pictured).
As for the signature Alain Ducasse Baccarat restaurant, start with a cocktail by Margot Lecarpentier (the mastermind behind one of Paris’ top cocktail bars, Combat) at Bar Midi-Minuit, which is paired with four bites created by the restaurant’s gastronomic trio of chefs: Alain Ducasse, Christophe Saintagne and Robin Schroeder.
Then, make your way to the restaurant swathed in raw oak screens by sculptor Jean-Guillaume Mathiaut and Baccarat artisan-crafted blown crystal drops hanging from the fresco-painted ceiling.
The collection of impressive artwork extends to the upstairs tasting cellar, where you can sip wines selected by Groupe Ducasse’s head sommelier, Bernard Neveu, while admiring a canopy illustration by painter Gérard Garouste that expresses the four elements essential to the alchemy of crystal: water, earth, air and fire.
Sip craft cocktails at Niseko Confidential’s alpine-chic cabin in the Japanese ski village of Hirafu
Award-winning cocktail bar Tokyo Confidential is bringing a taste of the Japanese capital to the slopes this season with a winter pop-up dubbed Niseko Confidential, taking over an alpine cabin in the heart of Hirafu.
Tokyo Confidential’s eclectic art collection like retro Godzilla posters and a giant inflatable maneki-neko (the Japanese ‘fortune cat’) will brighten the traditional rustic interiors.
You can warm up with après-ski-inspired cocktails like the Gingerbread Old Fashioned (pictured), a blend of bourbon, gingerbread and bitters, or the Pumpkin Spiced Latte for Grown-Ups, a mix of autumn spiced tea, Cognac and cream.
Menus start at $261; reservations here.
Spend the night at Burgundy’s newest address, the plush Bellevigne
The first of Les Hôtels (Très) Particuliers’ properties to debut on the French wine routes, 37-room Bellevigne Bourgogne sits at the foot of a church tower in the wine village of Chambolle-Musigny in the Côte de Nuits, halfway between Beaune and Dijon.
Wine-inspired décor and antique furniture are scattered across the old manor home, where terraces perch over the garden, original wooden beams extend across high ceilings, and the design elegantly embraces countryside chic with canopied beds and claw-foot standing tubs.
In the tasting room and centuries-old vaulted cellars, you’ll find more than 1,000 wine references, including exclusive allocations and lesser-known producers.
A private lounge features a fresco highlighting Burgundy’s climates; terroir-themed fare is served in the oenophile library and out on the patio.
And the Tannin Spa offers everything from an outdoor pool, sauna and hammam to treatments featuring French organic line Absolution.
Visit Maison Ruinart’s experiential 4 Rue des Crayères in Reims
Champagne is known for its reservation-only policy when it comes to visits and tastings, but Maison Ruinart’s latest project, 4 Rue des Crayères, offers a first-of-its-kind sensory experience in Reims.
Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, interior designer Gwenaël Nicolas and landscape artist Christophe Gautrand spent the past three years transforming the centuries-old Champagne house’s estate.
A sculpture garden championing local biodiversity encases the new stone-and-glass Nicolas Ruinart Pavilion, designed from natural, bio-sourced materials and constructed with the help of local artisans and skilled stonemasons.
‘Shape is important and the maison is very symmetrical, so I wanted to bring some kind of positive imperfection,’ said Fujimoto during the debut this fall.
‘The beautiful curvature creates a nice harmony and contrast with the existing maison’s [19th-century facades].’
At 4 Rue des Crayères, you can dine and drink at the Bar by Ruinart, which serves a selection of champagne cocktails designed by Maison Cravan, like the Royal Shiso with Ruinart Blanc de Blancs and green shiso leaves, as well as a selection of Ruinart cuvées.
On the opposite side of the expansive, light-drenched space, pick up a bottle (or a few) at the boutique, which also features gorgeous housewares like candle holders made from vine cuttings.
‘The building, when you see it, is like a projection of Ruinart in the future—we’re creating a new history for Ruinart,’ said Nicolas.
‘We took elements like a carafe and created a sculpture of upside down bottles as a metaphor of how champagne comes from the past. Everyone was surprised, expecting to see a château, and instead you see a sculpture.’
Join We Are ONA’s new pop-up series for 2025
After a pop-up in a train station during Art Basel Paris, creative culinary studio We Are ONA returned last month in partnership with multidisciplinary artist, artistic director, architect and designer Alexandre de Betak.
Taking over a Haussmannian apartment under construction on the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, overlooking the Tuileries Garden, the week-long pop-up (running from 10-16 December) offered a peek of what’s to come in the scaffolding-filled space.
At the helm of the cuisine for this edition: Alexis Bijaoui (pictured below), who cut his teeth at now-closed Relæ in Copenhagen and L’Arpège in Paris before co-founding L’Auberge de La Roche in the village of Valdeblore, in France’s Mercantour National Park.
Culinary pop-ups will continue throughout 2025 (dates yet to be announced).
Look out for future reservations here
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Lane Nieset is a freelance writer from Miami who has lived in France for the past 10 years. From her current base in Paris, she covers food, wine, and travel for a variety of publications, including Food & Wine, Travel + Leisure, Vogue.com, National Geographic Travel, and Robb Report UK.