French Producers To Know From Tastin’ France Kuala Lumpur

Business France brought Tastin’ France back to Kuala Lumpur recently, one of about 30 professional tastings it is staging this year across more than 50 cities. Eleven producers and merchants poured around 150 wines and spirits from iconic French winemaking regions of Champagne, Alsace, Burgundy, the Rhône Valley, Provence, Languedoc, Bordeaux, and Charentes. It was a rare chance to taste a smorgasbord of labels yet to settle into Malaysian cellars and restaurant lists. In a field this wide, a few tables stood out for their exclusivity and creativity.

Maison Ori

The busiest booth in the room—owned by Maison Ori—featured a table that looked more like a ceramic display than a spot for wine tasting.

Based in Orgnac-l’Aven in the southern Ardèche, Maison Ori draws on ancient amphorae and the marine fossils of its chalky terroir. Its wines arrive in a work of art of their own: 1.5-litre magnum flacons crafted from French porcelain.

Founder Clément Demarquet, who started this family winery with his wife Sophie, came to wine from motorsport, and it seems he brought that precision and spirit of experiment to the cellar. For their Océan collection, this unconventional vessel features a coral-and-wave relief from Marseille’s Atelier Carlès & Demarquet, run by Clément’s brother.

We were pleasantly surprised, first by these sophisticated handcrafted vessels, and then by what was inside. The 2024 Océan Collection displayed a distinct saline minerality and structure, signalling remarkable promise for a young boutique producer. Limited to 3,000 flacons per vintage, their bottles are likely posed to become collectibles due to highly exclusive allocations.

Cognac Jean Fillioux

Drawing guests back throughout the event, Maison Jean Fillioux showcased the depth of an independent, five-generation family estate. Making high-quality Grande Champagne cognac at Domaine de la Pouyade since 1894, the 25ha estate sits in Juillac-le-Coq, in the heart of Grande Champagne’s golden triangle with Angeac-Champagne and Verrières.

Cooperage, distillation, and blending are all done in-house, with knowledge passed down for more than 130 years. The house aims for distinct complexity without harshness and a long finish. It was evident in our tasting of the Réserve Familiale, drawn from 50-year-old reserves, and the velvety 25-year-old Très Vieux, a 2020 World Cognac Awards gold medalist.