Last week I wrote about wines that showed their best at specific temperatures and I was asked by e-mail how to confirm this.

I responded by telling of a little handheld device called an Ink Bird Plus, an infrared thermometer. You pull the trigger, and it places a laser dot on an object, and it gives you a reading on anything from a hot outdoor grill to a cold bottle of wine. They should cost less than any bottle that I will mention today.

In May I mentioned fine wines and accompanying foods that we enjoyed as our son, unseen for over three years, came home for a visit. As I write on July 14 we are in the midst of three days of celebration, as yesterday we ticked off another year since we stood in front of a judge and said “I do”.

No home cooking last night as I picked up a selection of Tempura and appetisers in town. Fortunately, a shipment of 2022 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé has just been unloaded and I purchased a bottle and, as we expected, it was a lovely accompaniment. Tempier is one of the rare family-run, winemaking houses from the second half of the 19th century to have completely retained its authenticity. Life on the estate is lived according to the seasons, work on the vines, harvests and so on. It is certified biodynamic and is a jewel of the Bandol appellation.

Young winemaker Jennifer Chabin has beautifully orchestrated a blend of mourvedre, grenache, cinsault and carignan to create this iconic cuvée that gives us red currants and cherry along with spring flowers. Such a treat! $39 (Stock #7076).

We are just finishing the meal and there is a knock on the door. It is our neighbour. She tells us that it is her anniversary the very next day. Of course we have to offer her a glass, and I spot a bottle of 2012 Wild Hogge Moongate on the sideboard. We pour hers, and try a little ourselves to be sociable. Huw and Dale Morris, who lived here for many years, have this to say about their wine that honours our island, and has aged strikingly:

“This wine is a blend of primitivo 75 per cent, cabernet franc 12.5 per cent, and syrah 12.5 per cent, all sourced from neighbouring vineyards. Primitivo, an Italian zinfandel, contributes a unique taste of rich ripe fruit. The cab franc adds a little black pepper, and the spicy syrah balances out the richness of the primitivo. Matured in American oak for two years, the wine exhibits a powerful aroma of earthiness and dark berry fruit. The palate has a rich texture and notes of blackberry jam. 177 cases were produced.” $39.90 (Stock #5967).

Salmon is going to be served tonight, and normally I would be thinking pinot noir in a lighter style, but I am merely the sous chef and the one creating the meal has specified white burgundy. Sadly, the result of inclement weather and world demand has very much limited our allocation of such wines, but I have managed to find 2020 Drouhin Chassagne Montrachet in our shop on Front Street, next to the Supermart. I probably should not even write about it as once their few bottles are gone, that is that for this year.

The Drouhin website tells us that Chassagne Montrachet is one of the villages, together with Meursault and Puligny Montrachet that make up the celebrated Côte des Blancs. The name comes from “cassanos”, a Celtic word for a place where oak trees grow, and “rachet” that means poor, dry, infertile soil (but this does not prevent the richness of the wine). Tonight, I will have the opportunity of tasting this chardonnay that is described this way by Véronique Boss-Drouhin: "A generous and elegant wine. Light golden colour. Intense nose of flower, brioche and candied lemon aromas, evolving towards nuances of grilled hazelnut and spice as the wine matures. It has a long aftertaste where floral and gingerbread notes dominate." $85 (Stock #8192).

I have two bottles on standby for tomorrow and must decide whether to open 2017 Sbragia Home Ranch Merlot or 2012 Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon. The meal will consist of a small chateaubriand on the outdoor grill along with vegetables roasted in a wrap of aluminium foil.

Ed Sbragia has made wine from every great vineyard in Northern California. Sbragia Family Vineyards is a dream Ed has had for many years, a small, family-owned winery making limited lots of wine from blocks of his favourite grapes, including his family's own Dry Creek vineyards. With his son Adam, Ed also focuses on extremely small production wines from spectacular sites. This wine offers red cherries, plums and blueberries along with a gentle touch of oak. $48 (Stock #6802).

The bottle of Shafer is a gift, and it is so difficult to decide whether to open it. I have stood in this vineyard with John Shafer, and we have wined and dined him in our home. Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate explains why our decision is so challenging:

“Shafer’s flagship wine, and one of the world’s greatest cabernet sauvignons, is the Hillside Select, which comes from the rocky, volcanic soils on hillsides above the winery. Vineyard production is small, and the wine an incredible example of cabernet sauvignon. Aged in 100 per cent new oak for 32 months and bottled unfiltered, this can generally be expected to be one of the top dozen or so cabernet sauvignons in virtually any vintage in Napa, and certainly possesses 25 to possibly 50 years of ageing potential.

“The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is a perfect wine. It elicits more than a few 'wows' when you smell the incredible notes of charcoal, graphite and subtle toast, buttressed and dominated by blackcurrant, blackberry and blueberry fruit. The purity of these fruits, the multidimensional mouthfeel, the seamless integration of acid, alcohol, tannin and wood are all flawless. The 2012 signature adds an extravagant opulence and density that is just mind-boggling, and the wine is a total hedonistic and intellectual turn-on already, although it has 30-plus years of life ahead of it. 100/100 points.” What do we do? $323.65 (Stock #6891).

• This column is a paid-for advertorial for Burrows Lightbourn Ltd written by Michael Robinson. He can be contacted at mrobinson@bll.bm. Burrows Lightbourn has stores in Hamilton (Front Street East. 295-1554) and Paget (Harbour Road, 236-0355). A selection of its wines, beers and spirits is available online at www.wineonline.bm