Paris match

Richard Cree is wonderstruck by the cellars of The Plaza Athénée

The Plaza Athénée, Paris has long entertained the world's elite. It was built in 1911 on the Avenue Montaigne, slap in the heart of the most fashionable district, where the shops are expensive boutiques. When US TV show Sex and the City came to Paris, it featured the Plaza Athénée. Since 2000, the hotel has also been home to super-star chef Alain Ducasse and his signature, three-Michelin star restaurant, Alain Ducasse Haute Cuisine.

With great food comes great wine. And the cellar at the Plaza Athénée is no let-down. It has long stocked some of France's most famous wines and currently holds 35,000 bottles. The good news is that you can now hire the cellar for a private tasting, allowing you to wander at will and examine wines such as Cheval Blanc, Margaux Pétrus and Latour.

The cellar tour starts in the Galerie Colbert, with a "hidden" door emerging out of a section of wall. So far, so very Bond. You are immediately struck by the magical, musty atmosphere unique to wine cellars.  Passing rows of famous wines—whole shelves of Chateau D'Yquem and Puligny Montrachet pass in a blink—I get dizzy, like the proverbial kid in the world's best sweet shop. As with kids, "look don't touch" is the order of the day. 

When we reach the heart of the cellar, some wine crates are transformed as a tasting table descends from the ceiling. Sadly, the power of thought alone isn't enough to prize open a bottle of Pétrus, and we taste some Alsace Rieslings. I start to plan my return. This kid is determined to get the sweets one day.