NEWS: EU border changes delayed again, Which airlines have the best wines? and New lounges at Dublin

Which airlines have the best wines in business and first class?

Business Traveller has revealed the results of its annual airline wine awards. Head judge and co-founder of the International Wine Challenge Charles Metcalfe said: “The standard has been exceptionally high this year with many wines winning by the smallest of margins.”

Both Qantas and Qatar Airways scooped  four gold awards each. Qantas won gold for Best Business Class Wine Cellar, Business Class White, Fortified and First Class Red wines. Qatar Airways picked up the gold for Best First Class Wine Cellar, Best Overall Wine Cellar, Business Class Best Presented Wine List and First Class White Wine.  I can’t say I’m surprised from my experiences with Qatar, although their champagne choices vary wildly!

Other gold medal winners on the night included Singapore Airlines for First Class Sparkling, Korean Air for Business Class Sparkling and Business Class Red, Virgin Atlantic for Business Class Rosé, and British Airways for First Class Rosé. The Best Overall Alliance was awarded to oneworld.
Business Traveller contacted airlines in summer 2024, with the four judges independently scoring the wines over a two-day period involving a blind tasting. BA did not get many mentions in business class but did get two awards in First which is good to see as Tim Jackson, their Master Of Wine is very passionate about his job but I suspect he is very hamstrung by budget in Club!

Here is the full list of winners and shortlisted airlines:

First Class

Best First Class SparklingGold – Singapore Airlines, Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs, 2012, Champagne,
Silver – Cathay Pacific, Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs, 2007, Champagne, France
Bronze – Qatar Airways, Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs, 2013, Champagne
Highly Commended – ANA, Champagne Krug Grande Cuvée, NV, Champagne, France
Highly Commended – Japan Airlines, Billecart-Salmon Cuvée Louis Salmon 2012, VT2012, Champagne, France

Best First Class White
Gold – Qatar Airways, Penfolds Reserve Bin 20A Chardonnay, 2020, Adelaide Hills, Australia
Silver – Qantas, Oakridge 864 Henk Aqueduct Chardonnay 2022, Yarra Valley, Australia
Bronze – British Airways, Jim Barry, The Florita Riesling Cellar Release, 2017, Clare Valley, South Australia
Highly Commended – Delta, Invivo X, SJP, Sarah Jessica Parker Sauvignon Blanc, 2021/2022, Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand
Bronze – Japan Airlines, Henri Bourgeois Sancerre d’Antan, 2016, France

Best First Class Red
Gold – Qantas, Clonakilla Shiraz Viognier 2022, Canberra District, Australia
Silver – Qatar Airways, Elderton Command Shiraz, 2020, Barossa Valley, Australia
Bronze – Lufthansa, Château Tanunda Terroirs of the Barossa Eden Valley Shiraz, 2019, Eden Valley, Barossa, Australia

Best First Class Fortified
Gold – Cathay Pacific, Warre’s Otima Single Year Tawny Colheita Port, 1995, Portugal
Silver – Korean Air, Château Guiraud, 2002, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France
Silver – Singapore Airlines, Graham’s 20 Year Old Tawny Port, Douro Valley, Portugal
Bronze – Qantas, Morris of Rutherglen Old Premium Topaque, NV, Rutherglen, Australia

Best First Class Rosé
Gold – British Airways, Caves d’Esclans, Rock Angel Rosé, 2023, Côtes de Provence, France
Silver – Cathay Pacific, Domaine Fournier Père et Fils MMM Pinot Noir Rosé, 2023, Loire, France
Bronze – American Airlines, Bertani Velante BertaRose, 2023, Verona, Italy

First Class Best-presented Wine List
Gold – Japan Airlines
Silver – Qatar Airways
Bronze – Thai Airways

First Class Cellar
Gold – Qatar Airways
Silver – Qantas
Bronze – Singapore Airlines

Business Class

Best Business Class Sparkling

Gold – Korean Air, Charles Heidsieck Brut Millésimé,2013, Montagne de Reims, Champagne
Silver – EVA Air, Champagne Castelnau Brut Millésimé, 2006, Champagne, France
Bronze – Lufthansa, Taittinger Champagne Brut Millésimé, Vintage 2016, Champagne, France

Best Business White

Gold – Qantas, Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay 2023, Adelaide Hills, Australia
Silver – Korean Air, Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Premier Cru, Mont de Milieu, 2022, Chablis, France
Silver – Qatar Airways, Gerard Bertrand Aigle Royal Chardonnay, 2020, Limoux, Languedoc, France
Bronze – Brussels Airlines, Louis Jadot Domaine Gagey Aligoté Bouzeron, 2022, Côte Chalonnaise, Bourgogne, France

Best Business Class Red

Gold – Korean Air, Dandelion Vineyards Lionheart of the Barossa Shiraz, 2021, Barossa, South Australia
Silver (joint) – Malaysia Airlines, Kilikanoon The Prophecy Shiraz, 2020, Clare Valley, Australia
Silver (joint) – Virgin Atlantic, Stonehorse Shiraz, Kaesler, Clare Valley, South Australia, 2021, South Australia
Bronze – LATAM, La Piu Belle – Vik Winery, 2021, Millahue, Cachapoal Valley, Chile

Best Business Class Rosé
Gold – Virgin Atlantic, A la Reverie Rosé, AOP Côtes du Rhône, Château de Montfrin, 2023, France
Silver – JetBlue, Scribe Estate Rosé of Pinot Noir, 2022, Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA
Bronze – Lufthansa, Hampton Water Rosé, 2023, AOP Languedoc, France

Best Business Class Fortified/Dessert Wine

Gold – Qantas, Baileys of Glenrowan Founders Series Classic Muscat, NV, Glenrowan, Victoria, Australia
Silver – TAP Air Portugal, Graham’s 10 Years Old Tawny Port, NV, Douro, Portugal
Bronze (joint) – Oman, Château Suau, 2016, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France
Bronze (joint) – Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Aer Lingus, Kopke 10 Year Old Tawny Port, Portugal

Business Class Best-presented Wine List
Gold – Qatar Airways
Silver – Lufthansa
Bronze – Air Canada

Business Class Cellars
Gold – Qantas
Silver – Korean Air
Bronze (joint) – Aer Lingus, Virgin Atlantic

Overall Cellar

Gold – Qatar Airways
Silver – Qantas
Bronze (joint) – Air France, Singapore Airlines

Best Alliance
Gold – oneworld

What is your favorite airline for wine? Let us know in the comments below.

New lounges at Dublin to improve passenger experience

Dublin is still the best value place to fly to the US from Europe and has the advantage of pre-clearance for US customers and immigration. However, until now, its lounges have not been its strong point. The start of plans to improve this situation has yielded the revamped “The Liffey Lounge”.

Located between Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, the Liffey Lounge replaces the former T2 Lounge and offers an ideal pre-flight retreat for passengers departing from both terminals at Dublin Airport. Both BA and Aer Lingus fly from T2, but you can move between the terminal airside. The Aer Lingus lounge looks nice enough, but I find the food offering pretty poor, and it is usually very busy.

The new opening marks the first phase of an extensive revamp of the airport’s lounge offering, which has also seen the East Lounge being rebranded as The Martello Lounge. There will be more lounge improvements too, with work due to start later this year on a complete overhaul and extension of the popular T1 Lounge, which will see the lounge almost double in size, as well as the 51st&Green lounge in Terminal 2. This is the lounge for US departures after pre-clearance.

According to Ronan Fitzsimons, General Manager Commercial at Dublin Airport: “Last year saw our passenger satisfaction scores reach an all-time high and we want to continue that trend in 2025. We’re constantly listening to passengers, and we know there is strong demand for more and better lounge space. Our lounges have never been more popular and are almost constantly sold-out, so this expansion and overhaul will come as music to the ears of our passengers. The opening of the revamped Liffey Lounge marks the first step of our journey and feedback to date has been really positive.”

To celebrate the opening of The Liffey Lounge, Dublin Airport is offering special rates starting from €25 per person. Once in the lounge, passengers can get access to: a complimentary buffet, featuring a variety of snacks, soup, sandwiches, pastries and salads; self-service coffee and tea stations; USB and wireless charging ports; comfortable seating; soft drinks; alcoholic drinks and much more. Showers are also available in the lounge, as well as access to printing and scanning facilities and both shared workspaces and individual private chairs. You can also use Priority Pass and LoungeKey.

More improvements coming in 2025
Dublin Airport is also working on a large number of other additional improvements for passengers this year, including a new and improved Fast Track facility in Terminal 1, a new Drop & Go parking service at Terminal 1, the roll-out of a new Airport Club offering, better and easier way-finding, more hydration stations and more seating in both terminals and additional seating and comfort facilities for public transport users.

The coming months will also see the continued overhaul of Dublin Airport’s food and drink offering, with more than 10 new food and drink outlets set to open before summer, including Pret A Manger, a new Italian food court, new cafes, and the addition of a new Irish bar in Terminal 2.

EU new entry system delayed again

Luckily, it would appear that the EU will yet again delay its new entry system EES until late 2025. The new system is needed before they start the visa program ETIAS for non-European countries. ETIAS was originally approved in 2016 and will cost €7 (£6) and be needed for all UK travellers to the EU. Given how long it has now been, I’m pretty sure the machines will be obsolete before they ever come into use! I can only hope that perhaps the EU will allow something like the US’s Global Entry or some other frequent visitor scheme otherwise it has the potential to turn the often long queues into a nightmare for UK visitors.