FIRST WINES AND NOTES OF 5766 - Jonathan and Samantha's (10/4/2005)

Cathryn and I were fortunate enough to be invited (despite our Linnaean status as goyim anglicanus) to join our friends Jonathan and Samantha for their Rosh Hashanah dinner last night. Nice to see Jonathan and Samantha, as well as a few other folks -- old friends and new. Also nice to enjoy the benefits of Samantha's amazing cooking!

I brought wine, which was the least that I could do for several reasons. First, it's a gracious (and joyful) thing to do when one is so kindly invited to join a celebration. Even more important, on Friday night -- while Jonathan, Cathryn, and I were tasting wine at TAC, then enjoying sake and izakaya fare -- Samantha was rendering schmalz for the chopped liver. She deserved a little fun. She likes Champagne, so I brought a couple of bubbly things.

With chopped liver and pita with hummus, spinach dip, and green olive tapenade. And apples and honey, of course.

• N.V. Monmarthe Champagne Coup de Coeur Extra Brut Premier Cru - France, Champagne, Montagne de Reims - Ludes, Champagne
  Nice tight agressive mousse with very small bead. Even with relatively short, broad Venetian flutes, the mousse had good persistence. Color was shaded a bit to the gold end of yellow-gold. Nose had a rich, ripe apple-fig character with a significant sweet leesey element. Lighter notes in the nose included a little toast and brulee. On the palate the wine was quite full and round, with the richness and roundness making the mousse just a pleasant textural prickle. Figs and apples carried through from the nose, along with a little butterscotch, hazelnut, and sweet cream. This cuvee is 50% chard and 50% pinot noir and spends 5 years in bottle before being disgorged. All of this shows very clearly in the wine's body and roundness. This wine had lower apparent acidity than most Champagne, but the bubbles on the front end and the austerity of the long dry finish kept it in balance. Very different Champagne but great with the hors d'oeuvres, especially the chopped liver.

With brisket, ginger-honey carrots, a great green bean dish, kugel, and challah.

• 2000 Bois de Boursan Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Purplish color, just starting to take on lighter rust red elements. Dense but bright in the decanter. As soon as it is decanted, it shows a strong earth and garrigue character supporting dark cherry fruit. With time, a little meatiness and leather come out. The nose is clean and remains very much about earthy fruit throughout the night. On the palate, the tannins are nicely resolved, just barely nipping at the inside of my cheeks from time to time. The cherry and brambley berry fruit is surprisingly dry compared to the last time I tasted this wine. Fruit is enlivened by a little pepper and tarragon, as well as just enough acid to avoid flabbiness. This is absolutely ready to drink. Maybe it will improve a little, but in the last year the whole wine has moved so much from rich fruit and large body to a lighter, earthier, and drier character that I won't be waiting on the rest of my stash. As my friend Jonathan said -- "This just screams of earth and the south of France." And that's a good thing by me.

With a sweet carrot mousse and an apple-frangipane cake.

• N.V. Aimery Sieur d'Arques Blanquette Méthode Ancestrale La Méthode Ancestrale - France, Languedoc Roussillon, Blanquette Méthode Ancestrale
  Rich honeyed yellow. Very clear for the type, but quite viscous. Mousse was restrained and almost seemed to vie with viscosity to make it to the top of the glass. Nose of baked apple custard and floral honey with a little spice as well. On palate, quite sweet -- sweet enough to stand up to a very sweet carrot pudding -- but well balanced by a nice dose of appley acid. Primary fruit of apple with a little lightly candied kumquat. Had an exotic stone and honey combination that was reminiscent of Vouvray moulleux, just with bubbles. Texture was evocative of fresh frothy sweet cream. Very low alcohol made this a nice way to finish up a weeknight celebration.

Great night of people and food. Also a good wine night. Nothing was corked; everything showed well, though the CNdP was a lot more advanced than I expected (and I know it had been stored well).

Posted from CellarTracker

AUSTRALIA V. FRANCE - Tokyo American Club (1/21/2005)

This is an annual event pitting one country's wines against another. This time it was Australia versus France. Five pairs of wines...varietally matched. Group voting determines the winner.

Welcome Wine

• 1995 Laurent-Perrier Champagne Brut Millésimé - France, Champagne
  From Magnum
  
  Bright, light straw yellow. Restrained small mousse. Giving very little on nose...varietal chardonnay aroma, slight wite fruit, pretty unexpressive. Tight, light mouthfeel with acid more evident than mousse. More munier/noir on palate...apple, white plum, a little creaminess in texture. Somehow slightly cloying despite being dry.

Flight One -- Sauv Blanc/Sem

• 2001 Cullen Wines Sémillon Sauvignon Blanc - Australia, Western Australia, Margaret River
  Light, light yellow...very bright...almost white at rim. Aggressive sauvignon character on nose...simple varietal aromas, with bright freshness and generic white fruit. With time, tart greenberry and floral come out on nose. Alcohol and white pepper very evident in finish (in the chimney).
  
  My WOTF.



• 2003 Château Carbonnieux Blanc - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
  Slightly deeper in color, but similar to previous. Much more restrained on nose (no greenberry/cat pee), but with a little smokiness. Rounder in mouth with relatively short finish. Flavor impact mostly in front of mouth and waxy. Oak is slightly intrusive, covering any fruit on nose.
  
  Group WOTF.

Flight Two -- Chardonnay

With crab terrine and pan-seared scallop

• 2002 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet
  Bright yellow...solid to rim...clearly viscous. On pouring, nose gives nothing. On first sip, oak immediately evident and dominating fruit. Amazingly long finish, though, that turns to malo/butter and apple. Good acid, full but not heavy body. Oak quickly recedes on palate to reveal the fruit. With a few mintes in glass, mineral and a little toast on nose, along with a tad of fruit trying to come through. A lot there, but tight and closed right now.
  
  Personal WOTF, WhWOTN.



• 2001 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay Art Series - Australia, Western Australia, Margaret River
  Slightly lighter than previous, with a little less viscosity and a little less brilliabce. Much more toast, butter on nose. Rounder, more giving with more tropical fruit character. With time, the oak steps up and starts to dominate the fruit. Maybe better with a few years for the oak to integrate????
  
  Group WOTF.

Flight Three -- Pinot

• 2003 Paringa Estate Pinot Noir Reserve - Australia, Victoria, Mornington Peninsula
  Rich, red ink, young. Spicy fruit aroma -- major toasty oak (American??). Could be syrah if I didn't know better. Oak on palate with big rich red fruits -- plums and such. Good nose, good taste, but it ain't elegant -- a baby shiraz. After an hour, oak is ahead of the fruit.



• 1996 Domaine Daniel Rion et Fils Chambolle-Musigny Les Charmes 1er Cru - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
  Slightly orangey but still relatively young. Just starting to show age. BURGUNDY NOSE -- sous-bois/animalle/leather. Definitely better right now on nose than palate. New oak oversteps the fruit, but good acidity comes through to make it lively -- with bright cherry fruit. Good while to go -- too much iak, but the fruit and acid hold it up. With time (1 hour) gaminess gone from nose -- relatively shut down -- but with great complex, exploding palate.
  
  Personal WOTF; Group WOTF

Flight Four -- Syrah

With lamb chops and mashed potatoes

• 2000 Bernard Chave Hermitage - France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage
  Deep, inky color, absolutely solid to rim. Mild hit of leatheriness (a la Coudelet) turning quickly to a little spice and pepper. Very much closed down I think...but clearly with a lot more to come. Palate is pper and slightly drying tannins and plum and berry. Tannins come out and shut down fruit with more time. This note doesn't read very well but this was really good. Rich fruit hiding behind the tannin and a nose that revolves among leather and a little game and the spice and primary fruit...getting stronger the longer it is open. As palate closes, nose opens. Wait 8-10 years or more...this will be amazing.
  
  Personal WOTF, WOTN.



• 2002 Torbreck The Factor - Australia, South Australia, Barossa Valley
  Deeper, inkier. Absolutely dense looking. Lots of wood on nose, licorice, candied fruit. Very, very primary!! Viscous and sweet and jammy on palate. Chocolate in both feel and flavor. Lots of fun! With food??? Don't know. Way, way young. Rich berry fruit, tannin coming out on finish, but not in any aggressive way. Needs the tannin to cut through the rich sweet fruit.

Flight Five -- Cab, et. al.

• 1999 Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon - Australia, Western Australia, Margaret River
  Young deep purple...solid...surprising reddish color at edge. Cedary, cassis nose. Immediately seems to be the Bordeaux -- nose settles down and becomes restrained after a little time. Fruit is sweet berry. Damn good wine and a tough competitor to its flight opponent.
  
  Group WOTF.



• 1996 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  Young healthy purple -- no age showing. Nose incredibly closed at first...seems like water...with time some slightly dusty cassis comes out, along with the cigar box/ pencil/etc...With a little more time, a nice sweetness on the nose. On the palate, this one is clearly the French one. A little tannic and dry, but with the acid and cherry and breadth on the finish to be the winner.
  
  Personal WOTF.

As inconclusive as can be.

(1) Flight by flight, it was tied at 2 1/2 to 2 1/2 for the group.

(2) On total votes across all wines, Australia won it.

(3) The formal tiebreaker was the WOTN vote. The Chave was group WOTN, but -- interestingly enough -- only tied with the Torbreck within its flight. Go figure!

I was 5 for 5 in picking country of origin, but that was hardly an achievement as this was a pretty easy exercise. The wines were miles apart. Only tough one was the cab pairing -- and the finish made that pair clear.

Posted from CellarTracker