Legends: Australia VS France Seated Tasting TICKET - Friday, Oct. 16, 2026 | 6:30-8PM

14 Wines. Seven Rounds. One Table.
Poured blind. You score the fight.

France has the reputation. Australia is coming for the title.

Join us in La Cave for a one-night-only head-to-head tasting as 14 wines go seven rounds, with one Australian wine and one French wine poured blind in each matchup.

In the Australian corner: Master Sommelier Jonathan Ross, founder of Legend Australia.
In the French corner: Colin Williams of Tryon Distributing.

They’ll take us through seven classic matchups — from vintage bubbles through Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah — but the room decides who wins.

Taste both wines blind. Pick your favorite. Score the round. At the end of the night, we’ll tally the votes and crown Australia or France the winner.

Seven Rounds. Fourteen Wines.

ROUND 1 — BUBBLES

AU: Henskens Rankin Vintage Brut 2015 — $129
FR: Pol Roger Vintage Brut 2018 — $165

ROUND 2 — RIESLING
AU: Stargazer Estate Riesling 2024 — $59
FR: Trimbach Riesling Vieilles Vignes 2022 — $69

ROUND 3 — CHENIN BLANC
AU: Vino Volta Funky & Fearless Chenin Blanc 2024 — $49
FR: Clau de Nell Chenin Blanc 2021 — $99

ROUND 4 — CHARDONNAY
AU: Patrick Sullivan Ada River Chardonnay 2025 — $129
FR: William Fèvre Chablis 1er Cru Vaulorent 2023 — $149

ROUND 5 — PINOT NOIR
AU: William Downie Gippsland Pinot Noir 2025 — $85
FR: Bouvier Marsannay Clos du Roy 2022 — $79

ROUND 6 — GRENACHE
AU: Seppeltsfield Great Terraced Vineyard Grenache 2021 — $85
FR: Famille Brunier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Piedlong 2022 — $99

ROUND 7 — SYRAH / SHIRAZ
AU: Syrahmi 'Introspect' Shiraz 2020 — $79
FR: E. Guigal Saint-Joseph Vignes de l’Hospice 2022 — $160

That’s 14 wines representing $1,435 in combined bottle retail, poured side by side for one night in La Cave.

Pick Your Side.

Each round is poured blind, one Australian wine against one French counterpart.
Taste them without the labels in front of you. Compare the two. Pick the wine you prefer. Then see where your palate actually lands once reputation and expectation are taken out of the equation.

Jonathan and Colin will provide the context — and probably a little friendly trash talk — while you provide the verdict. We’ll tally the votes round by round, and at the end of the night, the room crowns the winner.

Every wine poured will also be available to order that evening, so when you find the bottles you want in your corner, you can take the fight home.

Friday, October 16th
La Cave at Petit Philippe
$75 per guest + tax
1 oz. pours of all 14 wines
Light charcuterie
Only 25 seats

Choose your corner. We’ll see who’s still standing after seven rounds.

Meet Jonathan Ross, MS

We’re especially excited to welcome Jonathan Ross, MS, co-founder of LEGEND Imports, to Petit Philippe for the evening.

Jonathan spent more than five years on the wine team at Eleven Madison Park, including as Head Sommelier, before moving to Australia and serving as Beverage Director for Rockpool Dining Group. He passed the Master Sommelier exam in 2017 and later co-founded LEGEND with his wife, Master Sommelier Jane Lopes, after returning to the U.S. Their focus is entirely Australian wine: bringing a broader, more contemporary picture of the country’s producers and regions to American drinkers. 

Jonathan is also a winemaker behind Micro Wines and, with Lopes, co-authored How to Drink Australian, their comprehensive guide to the country’s modern wine landscape.

For an Australia vs. France tasting built around discovery, comparison, and challenging expectations, it’s hard to imagine a better person to have in the Australian corner.