macron xi dinner
The group pose for photos before their private dinner on the French Riviera on 24 March 2019.
(Image credit: JEAN-PAUL PELISSIER / AFP / Getty)

French president Emmanuel Macron and Chinese premier Xi Jinping were served Petrus and Pol Roger’s Sir Winston Churchill Champagne at a private dinner in southern France, according to reports.

China’s president has spent the last three days on a visit to France and, before a state dinner at the Elysée Palace in Paris, enjoyed a private dinner with president Macron in Beaulieu-Sur-Mer on the French Riviera on Sunday evening (24 March).

Three-star Michelin chef Christophe Bacquié, of Hotel du Castellet, oversaw the meal alongside top chefs from the French president’s official residence, who were flown in for the evening at Villa Kérylos.

Macron’s wife, Brigitte, and Xi’s wife, Peng Liyuan, were also present.

According to a report in France’s Le Figaro newspaper, wines served during the meal included Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill 2000 Champagne, Petrus 2002 and Joseph Drouhin’s Marquis de Laguiche Montrachet grand cru from the Burgundy 2011 vintage.

Food included asparagus, crab and fillet of veal, as well as local specialities, the paper reported.

Details of the subsequent state banquet in Paris on Monday night (25 March) had not emerged at the time of writing.

Wines served at official government functions are very much part of the diplomatic scene.

There is a hierarchy employed so that the bottles uncorked match the occasion, although there is often also an element of patriotism involved in the menu choice for wine-producing countries old and young.

At a state dinner for Xi in at Buckingham Palace in the UK in 2015, guests enjoyed Haut-Brion 1989 and English sparkling wine.

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Pol Roger, Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill, Champagne, France, 2000

My wines

95

Although not regarded as a top year, this Churchill is a great succcess. The apple-compote nose is reserved but it has purity of fruit and finesse. The attack is lean, tight, and racy, very youthful and tight, with a wonderful tension and dynamism. It is in its prime but should keep well thanks to its racy acidity, which gives excellent length.

2000

ChampagneFrance

Pol Roger

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Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer

Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.

He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.

Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.

Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.