I enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Rue Cler with some very dear friends. It was one of those evenings where all the wines showed really well and the food was first rate.
1996 Vincent Dauvissat Chablis 1er Vaillons
This showed very well, especially given the soaked cork. That didn’t knock the structure out. The fruit had gone a little creamy, but it was still mostly lemon and stones with hints of secondary stuff sneaking in. It was the palate where it really had evolved. If you tried the 1996s when they were young, you remember the face crushing, eye searing intensity of the wines. Frankly, I was worried they wouldn’t evolve in a proper way. This certainly has. This was my last bottle, but I’m not that sad, I caught it at a wonderful time for me. If you have some, they can hold for 5+ easily.
2004 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot
Young and strapping, but not brooding and backwards, which is the beauty of Allemand. The wines can both drink well young and show their potential at the same time. A nice trick if you can pull it off. Still very primary, but if you have a good bit it is not uninteresting to try now. I won’t be getting into mine for at least 5 years.
1995 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard
This more than made up for the crappy 1995 Chaillot from Blackwood’s trip. You can taste the differences between the two wines, even through the difference in age. Really beautifully complex and seamless with dark fruit, earth and animal notes framed nicely by both acidity and balancing tannins. Superb with food. In case you haven’t noticed, I tend to like my wines when they have started to stretch out and show secondary and tertiary aromas and flavors, but haven’t gone all fruitless and still maintain some structure. For that reason, I think that 20 years might be the upper limit of Cornas aging for me, so these will be gone by 2015. You can start drinking any time you want.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Dinner at Red Lotus #3
OK, working my way through the Chinese menu at Red Lotus, this time with my pal Jello4Prez. Experienced the first disappointments thus far: the 5-Layer Pork and an underwhelming, if fresh tasting soup. We finished about 2/3rds of each bottle and sneaked the rest into the movie theater to see the recent Bond. While I’m a bit ambivalent about the story line and the movie in general, I think that Daniel Craig makes a great 007, maybe the best yet.
2002 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
The cork completely disintegrated on this bottle. Right down the middle, it was crazy. Anyway, once we got this sorted out we could get into the wine. Much snappier and prettier than the 2002 Kupfergrube that I had at the same restaurant recently. While the Kupfergrube had gone a little milky, this was still pristine, pure, sappy and joyous. I’ve been pretty clear recently about how my tastes I think do not really run towards aging these wines. Maybe it is just the old-school, low alcohol, high acid Spätlese from the Mosel that can really do it for me? Not sure, but I’m going to go ahead and drink mine where I like them.
1997 Jacques Puffeney Savagnin Arbois
Still had a very good color and the nose was more subtle and mature ff less penetrating. J4P seemed to think the wine was much more complete than when it was younger. It certainly showed pretty well, but I can’t help think it was missing some thrust and verve.
2002 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
The cork completely disintegrated on this bottle. Right down the middle, it was crazy. Anyway, once we got this sorted out we could get into the wine. Much snappier and prettier than the 2002 Kupfergrube that I had at the same restaurant recently. While the Kupfergrube had gone a little milky, this was still pristine, pure, sappy and joyous. I’ve been pretty clear recently about how my tastes I think do not really run towards aging these wines. Maybe it is just the old-school, low alcohol, high acid Spätlese from the Mosel that can really do it for me? Not sure, but I’m going to go ahead and drink mine where I like them.
1997 Jacques Puffeney Savagnin Arbois
Still had a very good color and the nose was more subtle and mature ff less penetrating. J4P seemed to think the wine was much more complete than when it was younger. It certainly showed pretty well, but I can’t help think it was missing some thrust and verve.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Dinner at Red Lotus #2
Another dinner at Red Lotus trying to work my way through the menu. This time, the standout was the braised pork belly with bok-choy. The beef with spicy peppers and dried tofu was also good, but not as good with the wine.
In general, the more I have Montbourgeau wines, the more I like them. This may be becoming my favorite estate in the Jura. I’m curious if others feel similarly.
2002 Domaine de Montbourgeau L'Etoile Savagnin
Surprisingly open and accessible. Even though I’m not sure that sous voile wines are really terroir wines, I really like them, just as I really like sherry. This had the bitter nut skin on the nose and palate buttressed by stone pit yellow fruit. Waxy and mineral at once that was generous and a bit bracing. Supposedly too young, but I find it delicious now and don’t see any reason not to start drinking it.
In general, the more I have Montbourgeau wines, the more I like them. This may be becoming my favorite estate in the Jura. I’m curious if others feel similarly.
2002 Domaine de Montbourgeau L'Etoile Savagnin
Surprisingly open and accessible. Even though I’m not sure that sous voile wines are really terroir wines, I really like them, just as I really like sherry. This had the bitter nut skin on the nose and palate buttressed by stone pit yellow fruit. Waxy and mineral at once that was generous and a bit bracing. Supposedly too young, but I find it delicious now and don’t see any reason not to start drinking it.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Who knows why?
Sometimes wines that you know are good just don’t show well. Makes you wonder about the whole evaluative enterprise.
2004 Baudry Chinon Blanc La Croix Boissée
And the disappointments keep on coming. I’m gonna chalk this one up to bottle variability because I’ve had too many great bottles of this. I mean, really stunningly good bottles and this was my first disappointment.
2007 Clos du Tue-Boeuf Cheverny Rouillon
Well, this was good, but didn’t show nearly as well as a recent sample in New York. Tue-Boeuf wines are always temperamental so I guess it should be expected. I found the entire range of reds from 2007 both from Thierry Puzelat’s negoce line and Tue-Boeuf to be exceptional, so I’ll try this again in a couple of weeks.
2004 Baudry Chinon Blanc La Croix Boissée
And the disappointments keep on coming. I’m gonna chalk this one up to bottle variability because I’ve had too many great bottles of this. I mean, really stunningly good bottles and this was my first disappointment.
2007 Clos du Tue-Boeuf Cheverny Rouillon
Well, this was good, but didn’t show nearly as well as a recent sample in New York. Tue-Boeuf wines are always temperamental so I guess it should be expected. I found the entire range of reds from 2007 both from Thierry Puzelat’s negoce line and Tue-Boeuf to be exceptional, so I’ll try this again in a couple of weeks.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Thanksgiving Part 3
Part three of my west coast swing brought me down to LA to have Thanksgiving with my oldest friend and his fiancé. She is Croatian and this was her first stab at a Thanksgiving meal. She did a pretty good job too.
This was an interesting couple of days because the folks I saw are not wine geeks at all (unlike in SF), but folks who like wine but don’t pay the obsessive amount of attention to it that I do. It’s always interesting to see what they like and don’t.
2004 Luberri Rioja Seis
I’ve liked the 2005 better than this vintage. It just seems a bit diffuse and ripe, but is a decent enough drop I suppose. No one really complained about it.
2004 Ferrando Carema
This was easily the class of the evening and the universal favorite. It’s funny, but I have long insisted that at the table folks will recognize real wine even in the company of wines that are more mainstream, for lack of a better word. This was a case in point. It showed a level of gentleness I wouldn’t have expected of young Ferrando white label. What is so interesting about this wine is that it gives the red fruits of nebbiolo, but then veers somewhere different from its Barolo cousins, more towards a sprinkling of herbs and flowers with a light and airy nature that makes me think of its Alpine home without loosing drive and maintaining clout. A neat trick.
2005 Seavey Napa Valley cabernet Caravina
This was awful. Couldn’t even finish the bottle even though we only had 3 bottles for 5 people.
The next night a good friend from graduate school and his wife joined us for dinner at restaurant 2117 in Santa Monica. A couple things about this meal. First, it was throwback food from the early 90s. Asian fusion and with that sort of presentation, the décor was on the dim side too. However, the food was top notch in it’s idiom, and I really appreciated the lightness of touch on the dishes. They were all extraordinarily wine friendly, even to subtle wines and priced very fairly. Thanks to Dan Fredman for taking me here the first time.
2000 Blain-Gagnard Chassagne 1er La Boudriotte
I thought this could go either way and was pretty happy that it went very much in the positive direction. A nice dollop of oak spice over the top to crown some nice, racy, Chassagne fruit that seemed to be mid-way through it’s first phase of life. It’s a place I like my white Burgundy, still with some youthful fruit, vigor and cut, but old enough to have developed some complexity.
2006 Albert Boxler Sommerberg Riesling
This started out seeming a bit sweet and clunky, but breed always shows, and such breed it is. I’ve said before that I think that Boxler’s Sommerberg may be the best wine made in Alsace, and for me, it is hard to think of a wine that I find more stimulating. Seems silly to laundry list the complexity of this wine so if you like wine of depth, character, balance and precision, then this is a wine for you.
2006 Gonon St.-Joseph
This sort of got lost in the shuffle with so many other wines showing so strongly and being surprises. Very clean and defined syrah nose. Not all smoked bacon but a nice blend of an umami meatiness that was mineral inflected and had good lift. I can see why folks like it so much. Something I’ll be seeking out in the future.
1987 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon Bosché Vineyard
Another gamble and another great showing. Old-school Napa cabernet in the best sense in that it only carried 12.8% alcohol and maintained a lovely balance throughout the evening between ripe fruit, tannin and just a hint of snap. It wasn’t the least bit ashamed of showing some herbaceousness, and we were grateful for how that complimented the food. This really scratched an itch for me as I really don’t hate California cabernet sauvignon, it’s just that I don’t recognize it anymore. I guess I’m a Goldwater Republican, I didn’t leave the party, the party left me. It was at its apex now but should hold well for 5 years or more.
This was an interesting couple of days because the folks I saw are not wine geeks at all (unlike in SF), but folks who like wine but don’t pay the obsessive amount of attention to it that I do. It’s always interesting to see what they like and don’t.
2004 Luberri Rioja Seis
I’ve liked the 2005 better than this vintage. It just seems a bit diffuse and ripe, but is a decent enough drop I suppose. No one really complained about it.
2004 Ferrando Carema
This was easily the class of the evening and the universal favorite. It’s funny, but I have long insisted that at the table folks will recognize real wine even in the company of wines that are more mainstream, for lack of a better word. This was a case in point. It showed a level of gentleness I wouldn’t have expected of young Ferrando white label. What is so interesting about this wine is that it gives the red fruits of nebbiolo, but then veers somewhere different from its Barolo cousins, more towards a sprinkling of herbs and flowers with a light and airy nature that makes me think of its Alpine home without loosing drive and maintaining clout. A neat trick.
2005 Seavey Napa Valley cabernet Caravina
This was awful. Couldn’t even finish the bottle even though we only had 3 bottles for 5 people.
The next night a good friend from graduate school and his wife joined us for dinner at restaurant 2117 in Santa Monica. A couple things about this meal. First, it was throwback food from the early 90s. Asian fusion and with that sort of presentation, the décor was on the dim side too. However, the food was top notch in it’s idiom, and I really appreciated the lightness of touch on the dishes. They were all extraordinarily wine friendly, even to subtle wines and priced very fairly. Thanks to Dan Fredman for taking me here the first time.
2000 Blain-Gagnard Chassagne 1er La Boudriotte
I thought this could go either way and was pretty happy that it went very much in the positive direction. A nice dollop of oak spice over the top to crown some nice, racy, Chassagne fruit that seemed to be mid-way through it’s first phase of life. It’s a place I like my white Burgundy, still with some youthful fruit, vigor and cut, but old enough to have developed some complexity.
2006 Albert Boxler Sommerberg Riesling
This started out seeming a bit sweet and clunky, but breed always shows, and such breed it is. I’ve said before that I think that Boxler’s Sommerberg may be the best wine made in Alsace, and for me, it is hard to think of a wine that I find more stimulating. Seems silly to laundry list the complexity of this wine so if you like wine of depth, character, balance and precision, then this is a wine for you.
2006 Gonon St.-Joseph
This sort of got lost in the shuffle with so many other wines showing so strongly and being surprises. Very clean and defined syrah nose. Not all smoked bacon but a nice blend of an umami meatiness that was mineral inflected and had good lift. I can see why folks like it so much. Something I’ll be seeking out in the future.
1987 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon Bosché Vineyard
Another gamble and another great showing. Old-school Napa cabernet in the best sense in that it only carried 12.8% alcohol and maintained a lovely balance throughout the evening between ripe fruit, tannin and just a hint of snap. It wasn’t the least bit ashamed of showing some herbaceousness, and we were grateful for how that complimented the food. This really scratched an itch for me as I really don’t hate California cabernet sauvignon, it’s just that I don’t recognize it anymore. I guess I’m a Goldwater Republican, I didn’t leave the party, the party left me. It was at its apex now but should hold well for 5 years or more.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Thanksgiving Part 2
The middle part of my west coast tour (the first was documented on Wine Disorder) involved two nights and a day in San Francisco, the lovely city that it is. As luck would have it, plenty of friends were around and no visit would be complete without drunkenness at the stinky pig fucking haven down in Soma, Terroir. As always, great to see all my peoples out in the city by the bay. Maybe I'll have to move there some day.
Tuesday evening was fairly quiet. A couple tastes here and there, shooting the shit with Luc and Guilhaume. They still have some 2002 Huet Petillant, which is fucking brilliant.
2005 La Grapperie Coteaux du Loir Adonis
A bit brawny for Pineau d’Aunis after it opened up a while, but that is most likely the vintage speaking. Fragrant, peppery and full of snap and vigor. Very clean and stable for a Jenny and Francois wine. Not a producer I am familiar with, but then again, that’s why I love this place.
Wednesday day was languorous with a late morning and easy stroll and afternoon nap and then off to visit Mark at Slanted Door.
2000 Prager Riesling Smaragd Hollerin
Drinking this while chaos was breaking out in Mumbai, it was difficult to stay too focused. Very lean and linear, in the Bodenstein manner. In a sense, it is a rather expensive Marc Olivier wine, but with added richness. But seriously, the flavors reminded me of Clos des Briords.
Next stop was SFJoe’s crash pad. Joe was up to his usual shenanigans.
1988 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle
This was round, meaty, with a good hit of rubber meeting the road. I think it is drinking pretty well now. Would be great with a savory roast, a wine that seemed to call for wintry food. I don’t think this wine is made in the same style anymore.
1975 Château Magdelaine St. Émilion
I found this wonderful. Kind of everything I am looking for in a merlot. Good, precise structure with enough volume but retains prettiness and a sense of there being calcaire somewhere nearby. If I had it to do over again, I might have started hoarding wines like this years ago when they were cheap.
1991 Pichler Riesling Smaragd Kellerberg
This seemed to be universally liked. I got this peanut thing that threw me off, but it is always interesting to try some older Wachau wines, if only to get a sense where mine are headed. I may like them a bit more youthful, or maybe it is the combination of Pichler and Kellerberg that says that to me.
Wednesday evening was more rambunctious. Started at Terroir early, bought some bottles and went to dinner, returned to drink more. Had some great Vietnamese food at a place that sounds like pogrom or something. Whatever, Scott knows where it is. Dagan helped to pcik the wines for dinner.
2003 Vodopivec Vitovska
Another new wine to me and a killer one. I’m always on the lookout for new orange wines that aren’t bullshit also-rans. This fills the bill. It made a stronger impression than the Zidarich I had the last time I was here. This had really good structure and excellent length. Was simply wonderful with food, which is the great boon of orange wine to me. Probably my favorite wine of the whole trip.
2006 Királyudvar Tokaji Demi-Sec
According to the Terroir website, 70% Furmint and 30% Hárslevelu. Whatever the fuck is in it, it’s fantastic. Seems a bit sweet when it first opens, but then the structure comes out. Really amazingly chenin like, but perhaps more floral and less rustic. I'm definitely a believer, now i just need to find the cash to be a buyer.
2006 Domaine du Coulet (Matthieu Barret) Cornas Billes Noires
This was definitely good as syrah and approached Cornas. Not the semi-carbonic-total-terroir-destruction of Dard & Ribo. Dark, sappy and good to drink. Maybe lacked some seriousness, but it was new to me and I’m glad to have tried it.
Then back at Terroir. I'm missing lots of shit, I'm sure, but here are two that made the memory banks.
1996 Kalin Livermore Valley Semillon
Brought by VLM-TR lackey slaton. At first, it seemed like it might be fucked, but an hour or so later, it started to unfold. Not in the same league as the 1997 recently, but very good and unique wine. There was some concern about heat damage.
NV (2005) Peyra Côtes d'Auvergne SG
I didn’t even know this existed thinking 2004 was the last vintage. As always the boys come up trumps. These wines are not for everyone, but they strike a certain chord with me. They make me think of the wind-swept desolation of the Auvergne.
Tuesday evening was fairly quiet. A couple tastes here and there, shooting the shit with Luc and Guilhaume. They still have some 2002 Huet Petillant, which is fucking brilliant.
2005 La Grapperie Coteaux du Loir Adonis
A bit brawny for Pineau d’Aunis after it opened up a while, but that is most likely the vintage speaking. Fragrant, peppery and full of snap and vigor. Very clean and stable for a Jenny and Francois wine. Not a producer I am familiar with, but then again, that’s why I love this place.
Wednesday day was languorous with a late morning and easy stroll and afternoon nap and then off to visit Mark at Slanted Door.
2000 Prager Riesling Smaragd Hollerin
Drinking this while chaos was breaking out in Mumbai, it was difficult to stay too focused. Very lean and linear, in the Bodenstein manner. In a sense, it is a rather expensive Marc Olivier wine, but with added richness. But seriously, the flavors reminded me of Clos des Briords.
Next stop was SFJoe’s crash pad. Joe was up to his usual shenanigans.
1988 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle
This was round, meaty, with a good hit of rubber meeting the road. I think it is drinking pretty well now. Would be great with a savory roast, a wine that seemed to call for wintry food. I don’t think this wine is made in the same style anymore.
1975 Château Magdelaine St. Émilion
I found this wonderful. Kind of everything I am looking for in a merlot. Good, precise structure with enough volume but retains prettiness and a sense of there being calcaire somewhere nearby. If I had it to do over again, I might have started hoarding wines like this years ago when they were cheap.
1991 Pichler Riesling Smaragd Kellerberg
This seemed to be universally liked. I got this peanut thing that threw me off, but it is always interesting to try some older Wachau wines, if only to get a sense where mine are headed. I may like them a bit more youthful, or maybe it is the combination of Pichler and Kellerberg that says that to me.
Wednesday evening was more rambunctious. Started at Terroir early, bought some bottles and went to dinner, returned to drink more. Had some great Vietnamese food at a place that sounds like pogrom or something. Whatever, Scott knows where it is. Dagan helped to pcik the wines for dinner.
2003 Vodopivec Vitovska
Another new wine to me and a killer one. I’m always on the lookout for new orange wines that aren’t bullshit also-rans. This fills the bill. It made a stronger impression than the Zidarich I had the last time I was here. This had really good structure and excellent length. Was simply wonderful with food, which is the great boon of orange wine to me. Probably my favorite wine of the whole trip.
2006 Királyudvar Tokaji Demi-Sec
According to the Terroir website, 70% Furmint and 30% Hárslevelu. Whatever the fuck is in it, it’s fantastic. Seems a bit sweet when it first opens, but then the structure comes out. Really amazingly chenin like, but perhaps more floral and less rustic. I'm definitely a believer, now i just need to find the cash to be a buyer.
2006 Domaine du Coulet (Matthieu Barret) Cornas Billes Noires
This was definitely good as syrah and approached Cornas. Not the semi-carbonic-total-terroir-destruction of Dard & Ribo. Dark, sappy and good to drink. Maybe lacked some seriousness, but it was new to me and I’m glad to have tried it.
Then back at Terroir. I'm missing lots of shit, I'm sure, but here are two that made the memory banks.
1996 Kalin Livermore Valley Semillon
Brought by VLM-TR lackey slaton. At first, it seemed like it might be fucked, but an hour or so later, it started to unfold. Not in the same league as the 1997 recently, but very good and unique wine. There was some concern about heat damage.
NV (2005) Peyra Côtes d'Auvergne SG
I didn’t even know this existed thinking 2004 was the last vintage. As always the boys come up trumps. These wines are not for everyone, but they strike a certain chord with me. They make me think of the wind-swept desolation of the Auvergne.
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