The 2018 Cellars in the Sky Awards

The Business Traveller Cellars in the Sky 2018 Awards, which recognize the best business and first-class wines served by airlines worldwide for 2018, were presented on Monday, February 18 at The Langham, London, by Charles Metcalfe, co-chairman of the International Wine Challenge.

Qantas was the evening’s biggest winner, taking the coveted Gold Medal for Best Overall Cellar, as well as the top spots in the Best First-Class White, Best First Class Sparkling (jointly with Air France and Cathay Pacific), Best First-Class Cellar, Best-Presented First-Class Wine List, and Best Business Class Fortified / Dessert Wine categories.

Cathay Pacific won two Gold Medals for Best First Class Sparkling (jointly with Air France and Qantas) and Best Business Class Red, while Malaysia Airlines took the top spot in the Best First-Class Red category, ANA won the award for Best First Class Fortified / Dessert Wine, and Qatar Airways took the top spot in the Best Business Class Sparkling category.
Oneworld was named Best Airline Alliance, while one of its member carriers British Airways took the Gold Medal for Best Business Class Cellar.

And a special note to US low-cost carrier Jetblue, which won a Gold Medal in the Cellars in the Sky competition for the first time, taking the top spot in the Best Business Class White category.

Business Traveller contacted airlines in summer 2018, and 33 entered.
Blind tastings of 240 bottles took place at London’s Grosvenor Hotel, Victoria, in December, with the four judges independently scoring the wines over the course of two days.

Participating airlines were: Aegean, Aer Lingus, Aeroflot, Aircalin, Air Canada, Air France, Air Italy, Air New Zealand, Air Tahiti Nui, American Airlines, All Nippon Airways, British Airways, Brussels Airlines, Cathay Dragon, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, EVA Air, Finnair, Garuda Indonesia, Iberia, Icelandair, Japan Airlines, Jet Blue, Korean Air, Malaysia Airlines, Oman Air, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, Sri Lankan Airlines, TAP Air Portugal, and Virgin Atlantic.

LIST OF WINNERS AND SHORTLISTED AIRLINES

FIRST CLASS
BEST FIRST-CLASS RED

• Gold Medal: Malaysia Airlines – Joseph Drouhin Côte de Beaune 2015, Burgundy, France

• Silver Medal: American Airlines – Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir Russian River Valley 2016, Sonoma County, US

• Bronze Medal (joint): ANA – Château Léoville Barton 2012, Saint-Julien, Bordeaux, France; Qatar Airways – Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 2009, Saint-Julien, Bordeaux, France

BEST FIRST-CLASS WHITE

• Gold Medal: Qantas – Penfolds Reserve Bin 15A Chardonnay 2015, Adelaide Hills, Australia

• Silver Medal: Qantas – Flametree SRS Wallcliffe Chardonnay 2016, Margaret River, Australia

• Bronze Medal (joint): Cathay Dragon – Lamblin and Fils Chablis 1er Cru Fourchaumes, 2016, France; Malaysia Airlines – Palliser Estate Chardonnay 2016, Martinborough, New Zealand

BEST FIRST-CLASS SPARKLING

• Gold Medal (joint): Air France, Cathay Pacific, Qantas –Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs 2006, Franc

• Silver Medal (joint): ANA, Qatar Airways – Champagne Krug 2004, France; Singapore Airlines – Dom Pérignon 2006, Champagne, France

• Bronze Medal: Oman Air –Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal, Brut, 2009, France

BEST FIRST-CLASS FORTIFIED/DESSERT WINE

• Gold Medal: ANA – Barbeito Madeira Malvasia 20 year old, Portugal

• Silver Medal: Cathay Pacific – Warre’s Otima Single Year Tawny Colheita Port 2006, Portugal

• Bronze Medal: Qantas – Morris of Rutherglen Wines Old Premium Rare Liqueur Muscat, Australia

BEST-PRESENTED FIRST-CLASS WINE LIST

• Gold Medal: Qantas
• Highly Commended: ANA

BEST FIRST-CLASS CELLAR

• Gold Medal: Qantas
• Silver Medal: ANA
• Bronze Medal: Cathay Pacific

BUSINESS CLASS
BEST BUSINESS CLASS RED

• Gold Medal: Cathay Pacific – Elderton Shiraz 2015, Barossa Valley, Australia

• Silver Medal: Air New Zealand – Lowburn Ferry Home Block Pinot Noir 2014, Central Otago, New Zealand

• Bronze Medal: Air Italy – Olianas Perdixi 2016, Gergei, Sardinia, Italy

BEST BUSINESS CLASS WHITE

• Gold Medal: Jetblue – Sandhi Sta. Rita Hills Chardonnay 2015, California, US

• Silver Medal: Aer Lingus – De Bortoli La Bohème Act One Riesling, 2016, Yarra Valley, Australia

• Bronze Medal: Oman Air – Pascal Jolivet Sancerre Montagu 2016, France

BEST BUSINESS CLASS SPARKLING

• Gold Medal: Qatar Airways – Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Blanc de Blancs 2006, France

• Silver Medal: EVA Air – Delamotte Blanc de Blancs 2007, Champagne, France

• Bronze Medal: Malaysia Airlines – Taittinger Comtes de Champagne, Blanc de Blancs 2007, France

BEST BUSINESS CLASS FORTIFIED/ DESSERT WINE

• Gold Medal: Qantas – Baileys of Glenrowan Founder Series Classic Muscat, Victoria, Australia

• Silver Medal: Air New Zealand – Forrest Botrytised Riesling 2016, Wairau Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand

• Bronze Medal (joint): Oman Air – Château Guiraud 1er Grand Cru Classé
en 1855, 2014, Sauternes-Barsac, France; Aeroflot – Grahams 10-Year-Old Tawny Port, NV, Porto Duro, Portugal

BEST BUSINESS CLASS CELLAR

• Gold Medal: British Airways
• Silver Medal: Qatar Airways
• Bronze Medal: Jetblue

BEST-PRESENTED BUSINESS CLASS WINE LIST

• Gold Medal: EVA Air

OVERALL AWARDS
BEST AIRLINE ALLIANCE

• Oneworld

BEST OVERALL CELLAR

• Gold Medal: Qantas
• Silver Medal: Cathay Pacific
• Bronze Medal: ANA, Qatar Airways
• Highly Commended: American Airlines

Champagne is served…. A List of Champagnes Served in First + Business Class

first class champagneIf your 2015 travel plans include flights in First Class or Business Class on the following carriers, be sure to ask for that pre-departure flute of these fine pours:

Air France – Serves Taittinger in First Class and Champagne Deutz Brut Classic NV in Business Class

Aer Lingus – serves Jean Pernet Tradition Brut Champagne in Business Class

American Airlines – Champagne Demilly de Baere Carte d’Or Brut is found in First Class International and Gosset Brut is found in Business International 

British Airways – First Class passengers sip Laurent-Perrier Grand Siècle, Henriot Vintage Brut 2007, and Balfour Brut Rose. Club World passengers receive pours of Taittinger Brut Reserve

Cathay Pacific – Those upfront get to taste Krug Grand Cuvée and Business Class pours Billecart-Salmon Brut

Delta – Jacquart Brut Mosaïque is served up in Business Elite cabin

Emirates – First Class passengers sip Dom Pérignon and Business Class passengers are poured Moët & Chandon

Eva Air – This Taiwanese airline serves up Dom Pérignon to its Royal Laurel or Business Class passengers

Hainan Airlines – This Chinese airline won awards with their G.H. Mumm Brut NV poured in both First Class and Business Class

Japan Airlines – Serves 2002 Salon in First Class

KLM – Serves Heidsieck & Co Monopole Blue Top

LAN – Premium Business enjoys LAN edition Louis Roederer Brut Premier, and occasionally Henriot Brut Reims

Lufthansa – Krug is served in First Class

Qantas – First Class serves up Taittinger Comtes De Champagne Blanc De Blancs and Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill, while Business Class to sip Billecart-Salmon Brut or Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve

Singapore Airlines – First Class has the option of two labels: Dom Pérignon and Krug Grande Cuvée. Business Class enjoys Charles Heidsieck Brut Reserve or Bollinger

Swiss – Serves Duval-Leroy Brut NV in Business Class

United – First Class passengers are served Castelnau Blanc de Blancs and Business First can sip Nicolas Feuillatte Brut Réserve

 

Note: Varies by route or destination

Japan Airlines (JAL) Launches New First Class Wine List Champagnes include: Salon and Dom Perignon

JAL has been renowned for serving up some of its home nation’s best sake, but now the Tokyo Narita-based airline is taking inflight drinking to a whole new level thanks to a new wine list that includes Champagne Salon.

JAL will be the only airline serving Champagne Salon Vintage 1999 in First Class, which will be on the wine list alongside Champagne Dom Perignon’s Vintage 2003, and 17 other fine wines that span the globe from New Zealand’s Martinborough to California.

Fellow expat countryman and winemaker Kenzo Tsujimoto’s Kenzo Estate Rindo, from California, will also be available in First Class on selected flights.

It’s not just First Class passengers that get the best wines, commencing February Executive Class will also find a new list that includes nine new wines and Champagne Joseph Perrier Cuvee Royale Brut.

The Safest Airlines in the World Revealed

A report released yesterday by Air Transport Rating Agency (ATRA) found that the safest carriers in the world were mainly those based in Europe and the US.

While European and US airlines rarely feature in the top 10 rankings for best customer service, airlines from these regions have dominated a new list of the world’s safest carriers.
Air France-KLM, British Airways and Lufthansa are the safest airlines in Europe.

The safest US-based airlines are AMR Corporation, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines and US Airways, while the safest from Asia is Japan Airlines.

To obtain this classification, the first of its kind, ATRA examined publicly available information on 15 criteria, such as the average age of the aircraft used or the homogeneity of the fleet.

Each year, the European Union releases list of banned airlines, often considered to be the world’s most dangerous. The latest list, published in April, can be seen at http://ec.europa.eu/transport/air-ban/list_en.htm. It includes 37 Kazakh carriers and 43 Indonesian airlines.

World’s 10 safest airlines

Air France-KLM
AMR Corporation (American Airlines, American Eagles)
British Airways
Continental Airlines
Delta Airlines
Japan Airlines
Lufthansa
Southwest Airlines
United Airlines
US Airways