choosethedrew

I recently tried the Alexandra on a trip OSL-BKK and HKT-LGW, it was available on all four sectors.

At risk of a public shaming… I’m not sure it’s all that! Sorry… For the retail price, I was expecting something along the lines of Bollinger La Grande Année or Krug, it was perfectly pleasant but it didn’t leave a lasting impression in the way a $300 champagne should.

seanp7

No shaming ! People have different tastes.

Do you like rosé champagnes ?

I like it, but the temperature needs to right (on the colder side). Had it as a slight below room temp PDB in DOH last week and it didn’t taste right (was thinking it was regular LP rosé) but in the air, chilled properly, it was great.

choosethedrew

I like NV Bollinger rosé and the Grande Année rosé was superb in that you could taste the age. To me Alexandra does not taste vintage in any way, that was my surprise really.

chewy3

Alexandra was not available on a recent DOH-GRU flight in late March. Seems to have similar menu to United States routes.

seanp7

They don't seem to load it to/from US (based on reports on FT). Strange. I had it in J MAD-DOH / F DOH-SYD in Feb, and again in J DOH-ZRH in March. I don't understand their allocation, but it is over $USD300 a bottle these days (maybe that's a factor?)... what does everyone think?

Matt4

I think that QR should sell Alexandra to whomever is ready to pay $300 a bottle and buy Krug instead ;-)

Grantosol

I used to run a wine business and can (modestly) say that I know my wines. My own view is that when a passenger pays a four figure sum for a business class experience on QR that this should include wines that the person would not normally experience. QR's wines have become increasingly patchy over the last 24 months. There are now usually one maybe two humdingers on the list; but the rest can be bought in a wine store for $20-50/bottle. Screw top southern hemisphere Sauvignon Blancs and Chardonnays are fine for everyday drinking, but these - with a few exceptions - are not premium wines and have no place in QR business class. The one wine that is essential to get right is the red Bordeaux offering. It can vary from exceptional to very average and this "hit and miss" experience is very off-putting.

QR Catering Manager - I'm in Doha and available to offer some useful advice if you'd like to DM..

Lonli_Lokli

How many wines can you try during single flight, one, two?

dodgeflyer

I think as thread shows, people “care” about the champagne but not the wine offering as such. Whilst called the wine thread, 90% is about champagne. Sadly, QR doesn’t need to offer “proper” wines, just better than the competition to stand out. By my count, they still do. The wines they serve (red Bordeaux’s) is what we drink at home as everyday wines, so I’m not really willing to pay the premium QR now tries to extract, but we have a bigger budget than most, however I think most would rather have brand name champagne than proper wine.

QR used to offer a premium offering to attract you to what’s essentially a horrendous journey (if European). Except connectivity which many cannot match, I would still prefer a l/h European originating flight than stopping in Doha. I just think they have their allegiance now, revenues to match and as such can start cutting costs where makes sense, such as wine. I mean CX, BA, LH offer $10-15 bottles (retail).

brunos

I do not drink Champagne. But I appreciate very much that QR always serves an excellent red Bordeaux, much better than what you find on other J airlines.