In my circles, much is being made of 2005 vs. 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape. Robert Parker hailed 2007 as the best vintage in 30 years, while James Molesworth, Josh Raynolds many vigneron side on the 2005 side as superior. Anyway you dice it, 2005 is a great vintage by any standard, so for now, lets move past which vintage is better and see which 2005 is better than the other 2005s. The best place (for me) to accomplish that is at Executive Wine Seminars in New York. On July 14th, about 40 thirsty lovers of the Rhone gathered to taste 13 2005 Chateauneufs in the only method that Bob Millman and Howard Kaplan know how, BLIND. At the end, everyone votes for their top 3 wines, and the numbers are tallied.
Here are some brief notes on the wines...there were 3 flights. I do not SCORE wines, I just review them within each flight, so, if there are 5 wines in a flight, I rank them 1-5. First flight was wines 1-5, second flight 6-9, third flight 10-13.
1) This was a beast, clearly new world style, very dense, very rich. Turned out to be Cuvee Vatican Reserve Sixtine. This finished in 8th place.
2) This had written Beaucastel written all over it. Very bretty, almost rubbert nose. Herbatious in the mouth. I like my Beaucastel with age. Of course it turned out to be Pegau Reservee, and was well liked by the masses...4th place for the night.
3) I very much enjoyed this wine. One of the most accessible wines of the night. Good, clean, rich and creamy...fun to drink, were my notes. Janasse Chaupin...6th place finish
4) For me this was in a bit of a funky stage at first, when it did calm down, a hint of cocoa emerged. I kept wanting more on the finish, though. Considering the price, not too shabby...Milliere VV...11th place
5) For me, this wine was off the hook. The nose of the night! Big, rich, and very young, this was my idea of a great CDP to lay down. Plenty of new oak, but not overwhleming the great chocolatey minty fruit. I was clearly in the minority on this one...Beaurenard Boisrenard...7th place overall (my second place)
6) Wow was what I first jotted down. Big, bruising, masculine wine. Deep rich, cherry nose, this has of the stuffing to be a great wine...Usseglio Deux Freres...2nd place overall (my first place). It did get the most number of first place votes
7) Bleh was my first note. Just tasted awful. Hollow, oaky and smokey is what I wrote down. Domaine Charvin...13th place
8) We originally had an off btl (I pegged it as corked, which others at my table disagreed with, in the end something was definitely wrong, as we had a taste from a better btl). Unfortunately the better wine was not all that much better. I liked it more than the group though. Beaucastel...11th place
9) This was like Strawberry (rhubarb) pie in an absolutely delicious way. Very jammy, soft and feminine, I was a huge fan...Clos des Papes...5th place (my 4th place)
10) This was old school CDP. I actually commented that it may have smelled like burning cannabis. I liked, but not for the reason...Vieux Donjon...3rd place overall
11) Very closed down wine, while most wines were showing their youth, this one may have been the baby of the bunch. There was some good fruit. It had the lightest color of the night...Vieux Telegraphe...9th place
12) This wine was swesome, Big blueberry, very well balanced, and delicious. Very masculine, I could have sucked this down with a straw. Barroche Fiancee...1st place overall, third place for me (Pegau Donjon, and Usseglio all received more first place votes, but this was top 3 for 75% of the room)
13) This wine was practically black, when lined up near VT, you may have thought the VT was a Rose! Possibly some Sulfur issues. Clearly new world, ripe fruit, not good at all. All btls the same. Clos du Caillou Reserve...9th place. Disappointing for me, as I have enjoyed their wines in the past.
As a whole, 2005 CDP is a great vintage. Out of 13 wines here, I would be happy to drink 9 of them, which is a lot, as I tend to be a harsh critic, as blind tasting is always difficult. Barroche Fiancee is a bargain and worth seeking out. The producer makes amazing wines. Usseglio Deux Freres was just so outstanding. Clos des Papes stood its ground and considering its release price, did very well against the competition.
These wines are clearly wines for the cellar, for the most part. Find some 2004 and 2006 bargains, while allowing your 2005s to mature!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
My trip to the North Fork- The Good, the Bad & the Ugly!
My best friend, Ted, surprised his lovely bride, Megan, for her birthday, with a bus trip for family and friends out to the North Fork, to do some wine tasting. I think there were about 35 people in attendance, on a coach bus...4 stops over the course of 4 hours...My overall assessment is that there is some good wine being made out there, unfortunately, it represents some of the worst Quality to Price Ratio around. Chardonnay should not be produced out there, period. I did not taste any Chardonnays from these 4 wineries (small sample set admitted) that merited me taking a second look.
1) Baiting Hollow Winery-Honestly, I would rather not post notes on these wines, as they were all pretty bad. Their Riesling (which received a gold medal recently from some awards competition) was not at al like Riesling. Their Cabernet Franc had strong burnt overtones, and everything in betweem was that much worse. No one really knew much about the wines, they were just pouring alcohol for people to get wasted, it would appear.
2) Next stop...Palmer Vineyards...one of the landmark wineries in LI. This place has been around for over 25 years. Clearly a step up from #1. I tasted the SB, Gewurz and Sparkling white to start. I did not care for the SB or the Gewurz, but I did enjoy the Sparling (100% Chardonnay). The Gewurz lacked any of the nuances of a "typical" Gewurz and the SB was very bland. The Rose Merlot was not very exciting either (this is their first time producing this wine). 2005 Merlot was very good for me, and one of the best "values" of the trip. Good structure, this wine was not old in any way. Well balanced. The Cabernet Franc was uneventful. The next two wines are the "best" at Palmer...the Gallagher's Private Reserve Red (private label for Gallagher's Steakhouse) and the Select Reserve Red. Gallagher's private label is available for sale at the winery, so not much of a private label. The Select Reserve got a slight nod for me. Both are similar blends and similar flavor profiles, but the Select Reserve had a touch more sweetness on the palate for me, which made it more enjoyable to drink now. The woman who did the pouring was reasonably knowledgable on the wines.
3) Macari. I guess Macari is one of the newer wineries to pop up on the scene. I think they may have been one of the first to produce a $100 wine out there. The woman who poured the wines did not know too much, other than she told how much better LI wines are versus the Finger Lakes (which if I really cared, I would have raked her over the coals for). Anyways, my best wine of the day was here...2004 Macari Bergen Road. Great great wine ($43 at the winery). I did enjoy the Katherine's SB as well, but the Estate Chard and the Reserve Chard, you could keep. Most of the Chards I had were completely overoaked, it reminded me of KJ 5 years ago. 2004 Cabernet Franc was true to the varietal. Very earthy nose, lots of spice in the mouth, overall a pleasant wine. 2004 Merlot Reserve was a winner for me. At $36/btl, maybe not that good, but very good wine all around. The Bergen Road Meritage was a dead ringer for a good value Bordeaux or Cali Claret. 25% Malbec, 5% Petit Verdot...this was the kitchen sink, but I enjoyed sipping on this one. Finished with 2005 Block E Chardonnay (ice wine style). The acid was way too low for this wine, more like a sweet, dense, Chardonnay with low alcohol. At $40, easy pass.
4) Last stop was where we had lunch, Osprey's Dominion...another crowded venue with people sucking back a lot of alcohol. I tasted numerous wines here and I could only find one that I "liked." The 2005 Cabernet Franc was decent wine. Very masculine and powerful for CF. At $24, I ain't buying though. Toasty, oaky Chard, Uninteresting SBs, Gewurz was a good $6 summer sipper (@$15). The Merlot was too flabby, the Cab Sauvignon was just awful. The reserve wines showed a lot of oak, too much considering they were 2005 vintage.
Overall, my first trip to LI wineries was exactly what I expected. A few good wines, a lot of bad wines, lots of alcohol being consumed, and very poor QPR. Macari was tops for me, it seems like they know what they are doing there, unfortunately, the prices are out there, but I would drink the wines again...for free...
1) Baiting Hollow Winery-Honestly, I would rather not post notes on these wines, as they were all pretty bad. Their Riesling (which received a gold medal recently from some awards competition) was not at al like Riesling. Their Cabernet Franc had strong burnt overtones, and everything in betweem was that much worse. No one really knew much about the wines, they were just pouring alcohol for people to get wasted, it would appear.
2) Next stop...Palmer Vineyards...one of the landmark wineries in LI. This place has been around for over 25 years. Clearly a step up from #1. I tasted the SB, Gewurz and Sparkling white to start. I did not care for the SB or the Gewurz, but I did enjoy the Sparling (100% Chardonnay). The Gewurz lacked any of the nuances of a "typical" Gewurz and the SB was very bland. The Rose Merlot was not very exciting either (this is their first time producing this wine). 2005 Merlot was very good for me, and one of the best "values" of the trip. Good structure, this wine was not old in any way. Well balanced. The Cabernet Franc was uneventful. The next two wines are the "best" at Palmer...the Gallagher's Private Reserve Red (private label for Gallagher's Steakhouse) and the Select Reserve Red. Gallagher's private label is available for sale at the winery, so not much of a private label. The Select Reserve got a slight nod for me. Both are similar blends and similar flavor profiles, but the Select Reserve had a touch more sweetness on the palate for me, which made it more enjoyable to drink now. The woman who did the pouring was reasonably knowledgable on the wines.
3) Macari. I guess Macari is one of the newer wineries to pop up on the scene. I think they may have been one of the first to produce a $100 wine out there. The woman who poured the wines did not know too much, other than she told how much better LI wines are versus the Finger Lakes (which if I really cared, I would have raked her over the coals for). Anyways, my best wine of the day was here...2004 Macari Bergen Road. Great great wine ($43 at the winery). I did enjoy the Katherine's SB as well, but the Estate Chard and the Reserve Chard, you could keep. Most of the Chards I had were completely overoaked, it reminded me of KJ 5 years ago. 2004 Cabernet Franc was true to the varietal. Very earthy nose, lots of spice in the mouth, overall a pleasant wine. 2004 Merlot Reserve was a winner for me. At $36/btl, maybe not that good, but very good wine all around. The Bergen Road Meritage was a dead ringer for a good value Bordeaux or Cali Claret. 25% Malbec, 5% Petit Verdot...this was the kitchen sink, but I enjoyed sipping on this one. Finished with 2005 Block E Chardonnay (ice wine style). The acid was way too low for this wine, more like a sweet, dense, Chardonnay with low alcohol. At $40, easy pass.
4) Last stop was where we had lunch, Osprey's Dominion...another crowded venue with people sucking back a lot of alcohol. I tasted numerous wines here and I could only find one that I "liked." The 2005 Cabernet Franc was decent wine. Very masculine and powerful for CF. At $24, I ain't buying though. Toasty, oaky Chard, Uninteresting SBs, Gewurz was a good $6 summer sipper (@$15). The Merlot was too flabby, the Cab Sauvignon was just awful. The reserve wines showed a lot of oak, too much considering they were 2005 vintage.
Overall, my first trip to LI wineries was exactly what I expected. A few good wines, a lot of bad wines, lots of alcohol being consumed, and very poor QPR. Macari was tops for me, it seems like they know what they are doing there, unfortunately, the prices are out there, but I would drink the wines again...for free...
Friday, July 3, 2009
Dinner and CDP at Bobo!
On Wednesday evening, I was invited by a client to his tasting group's monthly wine dinner. This one was at Bobo. Bobo is located in the West Village (of Manhattan, for you foreigners). An interesting group of 11 passionate drinkers descended upon the restaurant at 7:30 pm. Unfortunately, I arrived 30 minutes late, but I did not miss too much, just the seating assignments, which left me far away from the women on the other side! They all would have just been a distraction, anyways! The theme was 1990 and 1998 Chateauneufs with a few bonuses thrown in! Most of the wines were supplied by a very nice man that we will call Ed.
The food at Bobo was excellent, we started with tuna sashimi over a warm filo dough like biscuit (bite size). Then we had scallops prepared with bacon, cauliflower, and a spicey sauce. The scallops were probably my favorite dish of the night. They were meaty but charred perfectly. We had duck breast, prepared with a spicey plum sauce, that was the perfect compliment to CDP and we finished with flank steak, served with a caramelized onion sauce. The steak was excellent, but I could have done without the sauce (a bit too sweet for my liking, so I pushed it to the side). Desserts were passed around the table and included a flan and a hazelnut chocolate torte.
First up were the two whites:
Flight 1...
1) 2004 Marc Sorrel Hermitage Blanc: This was a decent wine, an easy sipper. I expected more from the btl. It went down pretty easy, but it lacked the acid that I thought might help this age longer. Drink up!
2) 2005 Ch Beaucastel CDP Blanc: This was an excellent example of this wine. Good balance of fruit and acid. I came late, so it was a touch too warm (all my fault), but nevertheless, I would sit on these for a few years.
There were four flights of red wine and then the dessert wines:
Flight 2...
3) 1989 Domaine Pegau CDP Cuvee Laurence: A huge disappointment for me. This was an old, tired btl for me. I am not sure when it was purchased, but bad storage may have played a role, as the 1998 Laurence is still a baby.
4) 1990 Andre Brunel Les Cailloux CDP: Considering the age of this wine, this was good stuff. For some people, one of the top 3 wines of the night. The fruit was drying out, but I could drink this one again, if I had to.
5) 1990 Domaine du Clos du Caillou CDP: Wow, my first time having this wine at this age, and WOW! Clicking on all cylinders,. I would love to own some of this stuff. My second favorite wine of the night, and my biggest surprise. This was in a perfect drinking window. A great match for the tuna dish!
Flight 3...
6) 1989 Chapoutier Hermitage La Sizeranne: On our side of the table, this was a wine of a little controversy. Go figure, it is Chapoutier. I am never that impressed with Sizeranne, and while this wine was decent to drink, I was not a huge fan. It was a bit rubbery for me. One taster commented that it got better over time. I went back to it, and did not see that.
7)1990 Domaine de Marcoux CDP: As had been discussed on multiple occasions on the Parker board, my old biz partner owned a negoc company that had purchased some land from the Marcoux family and Marcoux made the wine for him. Subsequently, I have tasted a lot of Marcoux in my brief wine career and it usually disappoints me. That being said, this was a very good btl of 1990 Marcoux CDP. I was surprised at the youthfulness it displayed. I would drink this one again, if it was always this tasty.
8) 1995 Rene Rostaing Cote Rotie Cote Blonde: This is another ringer and really unfair comparison. An aboslutely delicious wine that needs another 5-10 years to reach full potential. Loads of black pepper overwhelmed my glass. Lots to love about Cote Blonde!
Flight 4...
9) 1998 Domaine Pegau CDP Reservee: This was an excellent wine. Lots of pepper and still a few years of aging potential left (which still leaves me scratching my head on the 1989 Laurence). My last sip (30 minutes after my first) was not as good as the rest of the glass. The wine had turned a little rubbery and definitely affected my overall feelings on the wine. Nevertheless, I think this can age for a few more years, and had it been the only wine in front of me, I would have never tasted the rubber, anyways.
10) 1998 Vieux Donjon CDP: This was definitely not a favorite of anyone's on our end of the table I enjoyed the earthiness of the nose, but in the mouth, it suffered from being too old (almost a moldy taste, but not flawed), it would appear. This came from a well stored cellar and Mike said he has enjoyed this wine tremendously in the past. A bad btl, perhaps?
11) 1998 Ch Beaucastel CDP: My wine of the night, along with a few other people (quite a diversity of opinions from those attending, which I like to see...NO SHEEP!). This was one of the best btls of Beaucastel I have ever had, almost as impressive as the 1990 I had two years ago. It was extraordinarily delicious. I made sure to finish the btl on this one and none of it went into the dump bucket. WOW!!!! WOW!!!
Flight 5...
12) 2004 Charvin CDP: For me this suffered from being too young. Tighter than a ...you fill in the blank. I like Charvin a lot, but 2004 is not the best example for me. Nevertheless, many others enjoyed it. I would like to check this one out again in 5 years.
13) 2005 Domaine de la Vieille Julienne CDP: I had high hopes for this wine, and they were dashed at first sniffy sniffy (borrowed from Gary V, with permission). This a very new world, blueberry like nose...someone mentioned Jumilla...ding ding...this was the oddball of the night for me. It appears that much manipulation has gone on here, which is unfortunate. Maybe over time, it will mellow out, but if I want blueberry spoof, I can buy $10, 92 pointers from Jay Miller and Spain.
Dessert...
14) 1980 Mas Amiel Millesime: My contribution. I bought a lot of this for the store a couple of years ago based upon Pierre Rovani's review (yes I buy wine on scores). Man, I wish I bought more. This wine was off the hook. I butt heads with Pierre often (heck, he called me a moron, when I questioned Jay Miller's 100 point scores, who's laughing now?), but he nailed this wine. I thought this was going to be more like a sherry, but it was really more like a wine. Full bodied, rich and intense, the nose was of plums, and it was very tasty. I wish I brought two btls, as many people seemed to enjoy this one!
15) 1976 Weingut Maximinihof BA: I was looking forward to this one, but this may have been a few years over the hill. The color was an orange brown, and the acidity was gone. All that was left was a very sweet apricot like wine. Many enjoyed it, and it was pretty good. I just need a little more backbone on these wines.
The service at Bobo was excellent, I would highly recommend dining there, based on this meal!
The food at Bobo was excellent, we started with tuna sashimi over a warm filo dough like biscuit (bite size). Then we had scallops prepared with bacon, cauliflower, and a spicey sauce. The scallops were probably my favorite dish of the night. They were meaty but charred perfectly. We had duck breast, prepared with a spicey plum sauce, that was the perfect compliment to CDP and we finished with flank steak, served with a caramelized onion sauce. The steak was excellent, but I could have done without the sauce (a bit too sweet for my liking, so I pushed it to the side). Desserts were passed around the table and included a flan and a hazelnut chocolate torte.
First up were the two whites:
Flight 1...
1) 2004 Marc Sorrel Hermitage Blanc: This was a decent wine, an easy sipper. I expected more from the btl. It went down pretty easy, but it lacked the acid that I thought might help this age longer. Drink up!
2) 2005 Ch Beaucastel CDP Blanc: This was an excellent example of this wine. Good balance of fruit and acid. I came late, so it was a touch too warm (all my fault), but nevertheless, I would sit on these for a few years.
There were four flights of red wine and then the dessert wines:
Flight 2...
3) 1989 Domaine Pegau CDP Cuvee Laurence: A huge disappointment for me. This was an old, tired btl for me. I am not sure when it was purchased, but bad storage may have played a role, as the 1998 Laurence is still a baby.
4) 1990 Andre Brunel Les Cailloux CDP: Considering the age of this wine, this was good stuff. For some people, one of the top 3 wines of the night. The fruit was drying out, but I could drink this one again, if I had to.
5) 1990 Domaine du Clos du Caillou CDP: Wow, my first time having this wine at this age, and WOW! Clicking on all cylinders,. I would love to own some of this stuff. My second favorite wine of the night, and my biggest surprise. This was in a perfect drinking window. A great match for the tuna dish!
Flight 3...
6) 1989 Chapoutier Hermitage La Sizeranne: On our side of the table, this was a wine of a little controversy. Go figure, it is Chapoutier. I am never that impressed with Sizeranne, and while this wine was decent to drink, I was not a huge fan. It was a bit rubbery for me. One taster commented that it got better over time. I went back to it, and did not see that.
7)1990 Domaine de Marcoux CDP: As had been discussed on multiple occasions on the Parker board, my old biz partner owned a negoc company that had purchased some land from the Marcoux family and Marcoux made the wine for him. Subsequently, I have tasted a lot of Marcoux in my brief wine career and it usually disappoints me. That being said, this was a very good btl of 1990 Marcoux CDP. I was surprised at the youthfulness it displayed. I would drink this one again, if it was always this tasty.
8) 1995 Rene Rostaing Cote Rotie Cote Blonde: This is another ringer and really unfair comparison. An aboslutely delicious wine that needs another 5-10 years to reach full potential. Loads of black pepper overwhelmed my glass. Lots to love about Cote Blonde!
Flight 4...
9) 1998 Domaine Pegau CDP Reservee: This was an excellent wine. Lots of pepper and still a few years of aging potential left (which still leaves me scratching my head on the 1989 Laurence). My last sip (30 minutes after my first) was not as good as the rest of the glass. The wine had turned a little rubbery and definitely affected my overall feelings on the wine. Nevertheless, I think this can age for a few more years, and had it been the only wine in front of me, I would have never tasted the rubber, anyways.
10) 1998 Vieux Donjon CDP: This was definitely not a favorite of anyone's on our end of the table I enjoyed the earthiness of the nose, but in the mouth, it suffered from being too old (almost a moldy taste, but not flawed), it would appear. This came from a well stored cellar and Mike said he has enjoyed this wine tremendously in the past. A bad btl, perhaps?
11) 1998 Ch Beaucastel CDP: My wine of the night, along with a few other people (quite a diversity of opinions from those attending, which I like to see...NO SHEEP!). This was one of the best btls of Beaucastel I have ever had, almost as impressive as the 1990 I had two years ago. It was extraordinarily delicious. I made sure to finish the btl on this one and none of it went into the dump bucket. WOW!!!! WOW!!!
Flight 5...
12) 2004 Charvin CDP: For me this suffered from being too young. Tighter than a ...you fill in the blank. I like Charvin a lot, but 2004 is not the best example for me. Nevertheless, many others enjoyed it. I would like to check this one out again in 5 years.
13) 2005 Domaine de la Vieille Julienne CDP: I had high hopes for this wine, and they were dashed at first sniffy sniffy (borrowed from Gary V, with permission). This a very new world, blueberry like nose...someone mentioned Jumilla...ding ding...this was the oddball of the night for me. It appears that much manipulation has gone on here, which is unfortunate. Maybe over time, it will mellow out, but if I want blueberry spoof, I can buy $10, 92 pointers from Jay Miller and Spain.
Dessert...
14) 1980 Mas Amiel Millesime: My contribution. I bought a lot of this for the store a couple of years ago based upon Pierre Rovani's review (yes I buy wine on scores). Man, I wish I bought more. This wine was off the hook. I butt heads with Pierre often (heck, he called me a moron, when I questioned Jay Miller's 100 point scores, who's laughing now?), but he nailed this wine. I thought this was going to be more like a sherry, but it was really more like a wine. Full bodied, rich and intense, the nose was of plums, and it was very tasty. I wish I brought two btls, as many people seemed to enjoy this one!
15) 1976 Weingut Maximinihof BA: I was looking forward to this one, but this may have been a few years over the hill. The color was an orange brown, and the acidity was gone. All that was left was a very sweet apricot like wine. Many enjoyed it, and it was pretty good. I just need a little more backbone on these wines.
The service at Bobo was excellent, I would highly recommend dining there, based on this meal!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Dinner in a client's cellar!
Last night, wifee and I dined with a good client in the dining room of his wine cellar in his home. A pretty amazing room to eat in, as the house is pretty spectacular as well! His wife is a very good cook and she handled everything, with Lamb being the main dish. Appys included some fresh figs stuffed with gorgonzola and wrapped with prosciutto as well as some shrimp in a pretty spicey broth. Everything was consumed that came my way. On to the wines...
1. 1996 Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne- Opened just before we arrived. Our host, Adam swore it was a premox victim, but reserved judgement until we arrived. He poured me a glass. One whiff, and it smelled oxidized. Then I pointed out that Stephen Tanzer urged all of us to give these btls more time in the glass. I went back to it about 30 minutes later. The wine did indeed still smell oxidized, but it tasted a whole lot better. Still not a great btl, as something was clearly overwhelming the fruit there. Oxidized? Last week, I would have said yes, on this night, with Tanzer looking over my shoulder, not so sure
2. 1999 Gaia Rey Chardonnay- Wow, what a wine, 10 years of age, and it was delicious. A very nice pairing for the figs. I think safe to say wifee's favorite wine of the night. This wine is rare, and not cheap, but I have never had a bad btl, in my limited experience.
3. 1977 Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard- I make no secret of the fact that I am a 1977 baby. I am constantly in search of great wines from that year in anticipation of the WORST 40th birthday party ever! Interesting to note, my best friend's wedding last may was chock full of 1977 Bordeaux being poured and many of the wines are plonk. So I recently bought a case of Martha's 1977 to give it a test run and brought a btl to our guests. This took about 20 minutes to open up (we did decant it) and I really enjoyed this wine. I think Adam did as well. This was the essence of old CA Cabernet. Hints of cocoa filled my glass and there was still a lot of fruit to be enjoyed with each sip. I think this one may hold up until 2017 for us! Interesting to note that the case came in the original cardboard carton.
4. 1990 Mont Olivet CDP Cuvee Papet- After touring the house and cellar, Adam (our host) asked me to pick a btl to go with dinner. The selection is endless. Lots and lots of Barolo and Burgundy. My choice: a 1990 Mont Olivet CDP Cuvee Papet. For those that have never tasted this wine, you ar ein for a real treat if you ever do. Extremely rare, and extremely young. I predict that this wine will be better 5 years from now. We decanted it, but it needed some air to come around. Still it was delicious. A bit rustic at first, that blew off. I did not check the alcohol level, but I did feel just a touch of heat on tasting. Did not bother me, though. I would love to own some of this!
5. 1989 Mugnier Musigny - This was preselected by Adam, and we may have gone out of order by having the CDP first, but the CDP was a perfect match for the lamb. This was a good wine. After 20 years, it has held up quite well. It did not mesmerize me like the Papet did, and my opinion of the wine may have suffered due to that. Good fruit, pop and pour. Knowing how inexpensive this wine was just 5-10 years ago, worth every penny!
1. 1996 Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne- Opened just before we arrived. Our host, Adam swore it was a premox victim, but reserved judgement until we arrived. He poured me a glass. One whiff, and it smelled oxidized. Then I pointed out that Stephen Tanzer urged all of us to give these btls more time in the glass. I went back to it about 30 minutes later. The wine did indeed still smell oxidized, but it tasted a whole lot better. Still not a great btl, as something was clearly overwhelming the fruit there. Oxidized? Last week, I would have said yes, on this night, with Tanzer looking over my shoulder, not so sure
2. 1999 Gaia Rey Chardonnay- Wow, what a wine, 10 years of age, and it was delicious. A very nice pairing for the figs. I think safe to say wifee's favorite wine of the night. This wine is rare, and not cheap, but I have never had a bad btl, in my limited experience.
3. 1977 Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard- I make no secret of the fact that I am a 1977 baby. I am constantly in search of great wines from that year in anticipation of the WORST 40th birthday party ever! Interesting to note, my best friend's wedding last may was chock full of 1977 Bordeaux being poured and many of the wines are plonk. So I recently bought a case of Martha's 1977 to give it a test run and brought a btl to our guests. This took about 20 minutes to open up (we did decant it) and I really enjoyed this wine. I think Adam did as well. This was the essence of old CA Cabernet. Hints of cocoa filled my glass and there was still a lot of fruit to be enjoyed with each sip. I think this one may hold up until 2017 for us! Interesting to note that the case came in the original cardboard carton.
4. 1990 Mont Olivet CDP Cuvee Papet- After touring the house and cellar, Adam (our host) asked me to pick a btl to go with dinner. The selection is endless. Lots and lots of Barolo and Burgundy. My choice: a 1990 Mont Olivet CDP Cuvee Papet. For those that have never tasted this wine, you ar ein for a real treat if you ever do. Extremely rare, and extremely young. I predict that this wine will be better 5 years from now. We decanted it, but it needed some air to come around. Still it was delicious. A bit rustic at first, that blew off. I did not check the alcohol level, but I did feel just a touch of heat on tasting. Did not bother me, though. I would love to own some of this!
5. 1989 Mugnier Musigny - This was preselected by Adam, and we may have gone out of order by having the CDP first, but the CDP was a perfect match for the lamb. This was a good wine. After 20 years, it has held up quite well. It did not mesmerize me like the Papet did, and my opinion of the wine may have suffered due to that. Good fruit, pop and pour. Knowing how inexpensive this wine was just 5-10 years ago, worth every penny!
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Lunch with Dr. Vino, Max Marinucci and Mark Franks!
So, Tyler (Dr. Vino) and I put this on the calendar about a month ago. We added Max to the party, since while I had come up to see his beautiful store, he had not yet checked out my more beautiful store. Since Mark Franks does nothing all day, I invited him to tag along. I had never met Dr. Vino before and since we are forever tied together for attempting to overhaul the Monkton Mafia, it was only fitting that we broke bread. And, of course, we had an agenda.
Nola Palomar, frequent poster here, and owner of Veleta, a Bodega in Spain, had sent me some samples of her wines to taste. Tyler had received some samples of Viu Manent Viu 1 (a vertical of 2004-2006). The Veleta was of keen interest to myself as Nola has been very vocal about her inability to get Jay Miller to take note of her wines, since she does not go through a major importer of Spanish wines (which puts her a disadvantage according to Miller). Viu 1 is of interest because, while I have never even heard of these wines, Jay Miller scored the 2004 a 92+, the 2005 a 92 and the 2006 a 62!!!! This is a $60 Chilean wine and we were curious to see if the 2006 sucked as much as DrJ thought.
I invited Max, because, well, I like Max and while his palate sucks, it would be interesting to see what he thought. Mark Franks tagged along to show that we were not cheating to write this report. And I like Mark, so what the heck.
We went to Milonga, a Mediterranean Tapas place that recently opened in North White Plains, not far from Grapes The Wine Co, the greatest wine store on earth. We popped 10 btls of wine for lunch and they charged us $30 to do it. The food is basic, inexpensive but pretty good. I have been 3 times in the past 6 weeks (since theyopened) and have no complaints, although they just raised their food prices, which I find odd.
First flight: Veleta whites and Rose
1) 2008 Veleta Vijirieja: A fun wine for me. Inexpensive and a good summer sipper. Nothing exciting about it, but knowing the pricepoint, a perfectly good value.
2) 2008 Veleta Chardonnay: No one particularly enjoyed this one. I think Max mentioned KJ Chard look alike. Max sells a lot of KJ, so he would know. It was okay, but not for me.
3) 2008 Veleta Rose (Tempranillo): This was 13.5% alcohol, and you could feel like it was a bit more. The alcohol overwhelmed any potential good fruit for me.
4) 2006 Veleta Tempranillo: Mark and I thought that this was slightly corked. I will reserve judgement, as I felt like it could be better
5) 2006 Veleta Noladas: Now we are talking...a blend of Cab, Cab Franc and Tempranillo, this was a wine that I would happily enjoy many times over. Rich and concentrated, this had layers of fruit and a nice finish. A pretty serious wine for the money. Good match for the foods we were enjoying.
6) 2006 Veleta Cabernet Sauvignon: This was a good wine, albeit uninspiring. I kept going back to the Noladas, and considering that they are probably around the same price, this one suffered for me, because of the Noladas.
It should be noted that Josh Raynolds has reviewed these wines and given them all about 87-88 points consistently. They are worth seeking out, considering the low prices, in particular #1 and #5.
Ok, onto Chile...Viu Manent...Tyler poured these vintages blind for us (good idea),
As a whole, these wines were not enjoyed by the group. They were inky, dark, and brooding...
First wine...This was the best of the bunch for me, showed a lot complexity, good fruit, good balance and a wine I would drink again (although not at the price)...it was the 2005 (which was my guess)
Second wine...very similar to the first wine, similar nose but a little more tobacco there. In the mid palate is where I saw a flas as compared to wine#1...there was no fruit there...maybe suffering from age, but not likely. I had a feeling it was 2004, but I saw the quality as a whole suffer here, so I was hoping it was 2006...alas it was 2004
Third wine...the oddball, which made it easy to see the difference when compared to the the other wines, so it has to be 2006, right? Well, it was, but there was no way this was a Jay Miller 62 pointer. In fact, I think we all agreed that it was right up his alley. This was straight out of Barossa style. Clearly, something has changed in the winemaking, but I would have thought, interms of WA review, for the better. I hated this wine. It showed no nuances that the first wine showed, it was way more spoofilated than the others.
Ok, now onto the "extras"
Max brought a delicious btl of 1976 Lopez y Heredia Gran Riserva Bosconia. After a few minutes of funk, this blossomed into a beautiful wine. Showed no oxidated qualities that I have not liked in other Lopez wines. Very fresh, very light in color and very good.
I brought a 1996 Ponsot Clos de la Roche. I know Mark never drinks Burgundy, so I put in a ringer. Mark said it was his favorite wine of lunch. Not sure if, in context, that says much, but the wine was tasty. Not a great wine for me, but very good. It was just missing that next dimension, that I would expect from a 1996 Red Burgundy.
Overall, a great 3 hour meal, with good people, on a Friday. Love this Job!
Nola Palomar, frequent poster here, and owner of Veleta, a Bodega in Spain, had sent me some samples of her wines to taste. Tyler had received some samples of Viu Manent Viu 1 (a vertical of 2004-2006). The Veleta was of keen interest to myself as Nola has been very vocal about her inability to get Jay Miller to take note of her wines, since she does not go through a major importer of Spanish wines (which puts her a disadvantage according to Miller). Viu 1 is of interest because, while I have never even heard of these wines, Jay Miller scored the 2004 a 92+, the 2005 a 92 and the 2006 a 62!!!! This is a $60 Chilean wine and we were curious to see if the 2006 sucked as much as DrJ thought.
I invited Max, because, well, I like Max and while his palate sucks, it would be interesting to see what he thought. Mark Franks tagged along to show that we were not cheating to write this report. And I like Mark, so what the heck.
We went to Milonga, a Mediterranean Tapas place that recently opened in North White Plains, not far from Grapes The Wine Co, the greatest wine store on earth. We popped 10 btls of wine for lunch and they charged us $30 to do it. The food is basic, inexpensive but pretty good. I have been 3 times in the past 6 weeks (since theyopened) and have no complaints, although they just raised their food prices, which I find odd.
First flight: Veleta whites and Rose
1) 2008 Veleta Vijirieja: A fun wine for me. Inexpensive and a good summer sipper. Nothing exciting about it, but knowing the pricepoint, a perfectly good value.
2) 2008 Veleta Chardonnay: No one particularly enjoyed this one. I think Max mentioned KJ Chard look alike. Max sells a lot of KJ, so he would know. It was okay, but not for me.
3) 2008 Veleta Rose (Tempranillo): This was 13.5% alcohol, and you could feel like it was a bit more. The alcohol overwhelmed any potential good fruit for me.
4) 2006 Veleta Tempranillo: Mark and I thought that this was slightly corked. I will reserve judgement, as I felt like it could be better
5) 2006 Veleta Noladas: Now we are talking...a blend of Cab, Cab Franc and Tempranillo, this was a wine that I would happily enjoy many times over. Rich and concentrated, this had layers of fruit and a nice finish. A pretty serious wine for the money. Good match for the foods we were enjoying.
6) 2006 Veleta Cabernet Sauvignon: This was a good wine, albeit uninspiring. I kept going back to the Noladas, and considering that they are probably around the same price, this one suffered for me, because of the Noladas.
It should be noted that Josh Raynolds has reviewed these wines and given them all about 87-88 points consistently. They are worth seeking out, considering the low prices, in particular #1 and #5.
Ok, onto Chile...Viu Manent...Tyler poured these vintages blind for us (good idea),
As a whole, these wines were not enjoyed by the group. They were inky, dark, and brooding...
First wine...This was the best of the bunch for me, showed a lot complexity, good fruit, good balance and a wine I would drink again (although not at the price)...it was the 2005 (which was my guess)
Second wine...very similar to the first wine, similar nose but a little more tobacco there. In the mid palate is where I saw a flas as compared to wine#1...there was no fruit there...maybe suffering from age, but not likely. I had a feeling it was 2004, but I saw the quality as a whole suffer here, so I was hoping it was 2006...alas it was 2004
Third wine...the oddball, which made it easy to see the difference when compared to the the other wines, so it has to be 2006, right? Well, it was, but there was no way this was a Jay Miller 62 pointer. In fact, I think we all agreed that it was right up his alley. This was straight out of Barossa style. Clearly, something has changed in the winemaking, but I would have thought, interms of WA review, for the better. I hated this wine. It showed no nuances that the first wine showed, it was way more spoofilated than the others.
Ok, now onto the "extras"
Max brought a delicious btl of 1976 Lopez y Heredia Gran Riserva Bosconia. After a few minutes of funk, this blossomed into a beautiful wine. Showed no oxidated qualities that I have not liked in other Lopez wines. Very fresh, very light in color and very good.
I brought a 1996 Ponsot Clos de la Roche. I know Mark never drinks Burgundy, so I put in a ringer. Mark said it was his favorite wine of lunch. Not sure if, in context, that says much, but the wine was tasty. Not a great wine for me, but very good. It was just missing that next dimension, that I would expect from a 1996 Red Burgundy.
Overall, a great 3 hour meal, with good people, on a Friday. Love this Job!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Wine with Lawyers!
Last night, I conducted a "seminar" for the summer associates at a major Manhattan Law Firm. The theme was comparing the same grape varietal from different wine regions of the world.
3 Chards, 2 Syrah and a 1989 Suduiraut just for fun.
1998 Billecart Brut Blanc de Blancs: Our first Chardonnay...most of the grapes for this one come from Le Mesnil. This was big hit and why not? It was not as bone dry as I like many of my 100% Chard Bubblys to be, but this was pretty spot on for quality. Definitely more fuller bodied and meaty that I expected, great pairing for some food.
2004 Billaud Simon Chablis Blanchots: This is what I am talking about. I love 2004 Chablis and this showed why. Double decanted it and let it sit for an hour more, which seemed to do the trick. This was flinty and fresh. Very popular popular amongst the future lawyers. I believe this had a touch of oak on it, but I have not verified that yet.
2005 Ramey Chardonnay Ritchie Vyd: For me, this is Ramey's best wine. Amongst the lawyers, they were split between this and the Chablis. but those that liked the Ramey, kept coming back for more. For me, it is a great wine, but I still prefer Peay, Eric Kent, and Dutton Goldfield in a similar price range. Nevertheless, excellent juice, not to be confused with a white Burgundy, though.
2004 Chave Hermitage: Dbl decanted and left to sit for about 2 hours. This was the most consumed wine of the night. I guess lawyers have good taste. About 80% preferred this to the Shiraz. I loved it as well, and the only wine I had two glasses of. This was rich dense and pure. The finish, while not overwhelmingly big (a la 2003 Chave) still carried in my mouth for a nearly a minute. I would love to see how this would develop over a day as it kept getting better.
2005 Greenock Creek Shiraz Apricot Block; Sadly, this wine receives a better rating in the Wine Advocate than the 2004 Chave. About 20% of the audience enjoyed this over the Chave. Those that loved it, enjoyed the jamminess of the wine. It was rich, saturated and completely over the top. Listed at 16.5% alcohol, it had to be closer to 18.5% and for me, it showed. I do not enjoy these types of wines, and it appeared that the lawyers did not either. Except for one lawyer in Monkton. The first few btls were dbl decanted and poured about 2.5 hours later. I had to open another one (along with more Chave). When I poured one female a glass from the new btl, she asked if the wine would benefit from more air time. I gave her a glass from the older btls and she said, "nope, same crap."
1989 Ch Suduiraut: Good way to finish. 20 year old Semillon from Sauternes. Served slightly chilled and opened one hour in advance of pouring. No decanting. The funk blew off almost immediately and this was a very pleasant glass of dessert. Not overpaying in any way and I would have loved some chocolate cake with it (although the chocolate dipped strawberries were adequate). I managed to polish this one off before I left. As usually is the case these days, many shied away from this one, calling it too sweet. And we wonder why Riesling is such a hard sell?
3 Chards, 2 Syrah and a 1989 Suduiraut just for fun.
1998 Billecart Brut Blanc de Blancs: Our first Chardonnay...most of the grapes for this one come from Le Mesnil. This was big hit and why not? It was not as bone dry as I like many of my 100% Chard Bubblys to be, but this was pretty spot on for quality. Definitely more fuller bodied and meaty that I expected, great pairing for some food.
2004 Billaud Simon Chablis Blanchots: This is what I am talking about. I love 2004 Chablis and this showed why. Double decanted it and let it sit for an hour more, which seemed to do the trick. This was flinty and fresh. Very popular popular amongst the future lawyers. I believe this had a touch of oak on it, but I have not verified that yet.
2005 Ramey Chardonnay Ritchie Vyd: For me, this is Ramey's best wine. Amongst the lawyers, they were split between this and the Chablis. but those that liked the Ramey, kept coming back for more. For me, it is a great wine, but I still prefer Peay, Eric Kent, and Dutton Goldfield in a similar price range. Nevertheless, excellent juice, not to be confused with a white Burgundy, though.
2004 Chave Hermitage: Dbl decanted and left to sit for about 2 hours. This was the most consumed wine of the night. I guess lawyers have good taste. About 80% preferred this to the Shiraz. I loved it as well, and the only wine I had two glasses of. This was rich dense and pure. The finish, while not overwhelmingly big (a la 2003 Chave) still carried in my mouth for a nearly a minute. I would love to see how this would develop over a day as it kept getting better.
2005 Greenock Creek Shiraz Apricot Block; Sadly, this wine receives a better rating in the Wine Advocate than the 2004 Chave. About 20% of the audience enjoyed this over the Chave. Those that loved it, enjoyed the jamminess of the wine. It was rich, saturated and completely over the top. Listed at 16.5% alcohol, it had to be closer to 18.5% and for me, it showed. I do not enjoy these types of wines, and it appeared that the lawyers did not either. Except for one lawyer in Monkton. The first few btls were dbl decanted and poured about 2.5 hours later. I had to open another one (along with more Chave). When I poured one female a glass from the new btl, she asked if the wine would benefit from more air time. I gave her a glass from the older btls and she said, "nope, same crap."
1989 Ch Suduiraut: Good way to finish. 20 year old Semillon from Sauternes. Served slightly chilled and opened one hour in advance of pouring. No decanting. The funk blew off almost immediately and this was a very pleasant glass of dessert. Not overpaying in any way and I would have loved some chocolate cake with it (although the chocolate dipped strawberries were adequate). I managed to polish this one off before I left. As usually is the case these days, many shied away from this one, calling it too sweet. And we wonder why Riesling is such a hard sell?
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Lunch at the Kittle House yesterday!
Went up to the Kittle House for lunch yesterday...if you have never been or not recently, you are missing out. The new chef is very good. Lunch is $22 for a 3 course prix fixe, which had a choice of salmon or short ribs yesterday as the main. A bargain...anyways, we drank a 2003 Tardieu Laurent hermitage Blanc that was good, not great, for me. I had ordered the 2000, which they were out of, so we had the 2003. If you see any 2001 of this wine, for cheap, BUY IT.
The wine list at KH is still a treasure trove of bargains. Not be missed. Rhone and Burgundy still contain many RIDICULOUS deals that merit some serious attention. I love being so close to something this special.
For dessert, I noticed a half btl of 1993 Chappellet LH Chenin Blanc for $45 on the list. The first one was corked (RATS) but the second one was pretty spectacular stuff. 16 year old btl that did not reveal its true age. It was rich and sweet, but def not overpowering. I enjoyed it immensely. Never had even seen a btl.
Do they still make this stuff?
The wine list at KH is still a treasure trove of bargains. Not be missed. Rhone and Burgundy still contain many RIDICULOUS deals that merit some serious attention. I love being so close to something this special.
For dessert, I noticed a half btl of 1993 Chappellet LH Chenin Blanc for $45 on the list. The first one was corked (RATS) but the second one was pretty spectacular stuff. 16 year old btl that did not reveal its true age. It was rich and sweet, but def not overpowering. I enjoyed it immensely. Never had even seen a btl.
Do they still make this stuff?
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