Michael Lewis
Michael Lewis
I have a shot at making it down for this. The Jeebus board lives.
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Southern Jeeb - IS IT TIME TO TRY AGAIN?
- Thread starter VLM
- Start date
kirk wallace
kirk wallace
Rumors are M. D. Lewis might be available this weekend too. If we make it enticing enough.
Michael Lewis
Michael Lewis
Beat you to it by three minutes, W.K.W. Unless you meant some other M.D. Lewis.
Mike Evans
Mike Evans
I think that weekend will work for me, and should know for sure within the next couple of days.
kirk wallace
kirk wallace
originally posted by Michael Lewis:
Beat you to it by three minutes, W.K.W. Unless you meant some other M.D. Lewis.
i should never try to post from my phone; i never can see the new board messages correctly and the posting ends up being very slow.
originally posted by Mike Evans:
I think that weekend will work for me, and should know for sure within the next couple of days.
I sent you a message through here.
kirk wallace
kirk wallace
Amazing weekend! 1 (maybe 2) corked bottles out of 20+.
Highlights night 1 were:
'96 grezeaux. Astounding wine. Clarity and length and personality. I thought the '95 grezeaux we had next to it was great; and then I tasted the '96. '95 was very good, but the '96!! Yikes. Still youthful too.
'02 Rougeard Bourg. Another fantastic wine. Richer than the '96 grezeaux, but not fat in any way. Perfect balance to my way of thinking. Some how we had enough discipline to save about half of this for night #2. And it was every bit as good the 2d night.
'97 Chave hermitage. Ok. Yes. Also pretty much perfect. Maybe more so. Not surprisingly, it kept getting better over the course of the evening.
Not shabby night 1:
'99 Clape -- beautiful and pure; missing the grip of the Chave. And not quite the same level of complexity.
'00 Texier Côte rotie -- beautiful, supple, maybe fully mature?
01 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Spatlese -- ageless and serene. Hard to think of better
01 Donnhoff Hermanshohle Spatlese-- excellent, and had the MC not been next to it, we all would have thought it was perfect.
'11 vatan neore.
2012 Julian Haart Riesling Wintricher Ohligsberg. ( wish I spent more time with those latter two; especially the Haart. )
More about night 2 later.
Highlights night 1 were:
'96 grezeaux. Astounding wine. Clarity and length and personality. I thought the '95 grezeaux we had next to it was great; and then I tasted the '96. '95 was very good, but the '96!! Yikes. Still youthful too.
'02 Rougeard Bourg. Another fantastic wine. Richer than the '96 grezeaux, but not fat in any way. Perfect balance to my way of thinking. Some how we had enough discipline to save about half of this for night #2. And it was every bit as good the 2d night.
'97 Chave hermitage. Ok. Yes. Also pretty much perfect. Maybe more so. Not surprisingly, it kept getting better over the course of the evening.
Not shabby night 1:
'99 Clape -- beautiful and pure; missing the grip of the Chave. And not quite the same level of complexity.
'00 Texier Côte rotie -- beautiful, supple, maybe fully mature?
01 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Spatlese -- ageless and serene. Hard to think of better
01 Donnhoff Hermanshohle Spatlese-- excellent, and had the MC not been next to it, we all would have thought it was perfect.
'11 vatan neore.
2012 Julian Haart Riesling Wintricher Ohligsberg. ( wish I spent more time with those latter two; especially the Haart. )
More about night 2 later.
Sharon Bowman
Sharon Bowman
Sounds great, can't wait to read more. What did you have for food?
It took some planning and smoothing over false starts, but the Southern Jeebus finally happened. Unfortunately, Mike Evans had a work related emergency and couldn’t make the drive from the ATL and John Sprow came down with a spring cold Friday afternoon. They were both missed.
Night 1: at Mateo tapas in Durham. Lots of delicious small plates with a Southern twist on the traditional Spanish versions. On the whole, this was a fantastic night for wine. Everythign showed really well and exactly as it should. The weather was great for wine and we had 0 corked or otherwise flawed bottles. I don’t remember the last time I’ve been in the presence of this many open bottles with no bad wines. Remarkable.
‘01 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Spatlese
Clear and bright with sparkling minerals and airiness of fruit. This was delicious and compelling. I haven’t had Muller-Catoir much in recent times. If the wines are still anything like this, I should remedy that.
‘01 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
This was good, but again the creaminess in the middle of the wine is something that I don’t really like. For me, the Dönnhoff wines are so delicious young that I tend to prefer them before they develop this secondary characteristic. This bottle, while enjoyable, did nothing to change my mind.
‘11 Vatan Sancerre Clos la Néore
The downside of having so many great bottles is that bottles that might otherwise shine are confined to the back ground. That was the case with this lower key mind and herb interlaced version of Vatan Chavignol. Lovely and well balanced, but overshadowed.
‘12 Julian Haart Wintricher Ohligsberg Riesling
I remember when these wines were first coming onto the scene and they really made one stand up and take notice. This was a wine of substance. I’m not sure what the RS level is, but it can’t be that high. Pristine fruit with real palate weight and cut. Not in the same league as the Muller-Catoir for me, but really, it is a different beast entirely.
‘62 Huet Vouvray Moelleux Clos du Bourg
The SFJoe memorial bottle. On night one, this was old chenin from a middling vintage. Just the kind of wine Joe would tell you to bury for 20-30 years. We corked it up and had it refrigerated. On night 2 it made that metamorphosis into a svelte older dame. Had that brown butter thing these wines get, but sure didn’t seem Moelleux. Had some bright minerals and a slight floral element under the older chenin notes. I can picture that knowing, impish glance because of course he knew this would happen and I miss him.
‘95 Baudry Chinon Grézeaux
Mature but not fully autumnal and tertiary. Some black and blue fruits and the unmistakable Grézeaux signature earth notes. Some leaves and tobacco and a resolved palate. This is a very nice wine at plateau and maybe starting to descend soon. Like several wines, on any other night could have been the star.
‘96 Baudry Chinon Grézeaux
I expected a lot from this bottle. I’ve hoarded my last 1996 Grézeaux since 2007. This wine may be immortal. It is still young and fresh and vibrant. Kaleidoscopic nose, fresh palate with excellent length. The best Grézeaux ever made and one of the best, if not the best, wines from Chinon I’ve ever had. Fool me for not hoarding cases of this. I don’t think there is a counterpart to this vintage among modern iterations. 2002 probably comes the closest, but lacks the zing and zest of 1996. Truly great wine. Wow.
‘02 Clos Rougeard Saumur-Champigny Bourg
What sort of parallel universe is it when we’re all too gaga over Baudry Grézeaux to notice Rougeard Bourg? The 2002s at Rougeard will need a long time to come out of their shell, I think. There is a retraint that hems in the natural boisterousness of this wine. We corked it up and had the remainder of the bottle on night 2. For me, it was better but still showed more or less the same. Frankly, I’m a bit surprised about this since I find that Bourg generally will show some generosity even when young. Based on this showing, I’d hold off for a good while. Another 5 years at least. I’ll drink my 2003, 04, 06, 07 , 08 and maybe even 05 and 09 before this. Don’t be confused by this note: this is a great wine in the making. It just might take a bit (and that’s coming from me).
‘99 Clape Cornas
Another wine that was overshadowed. Dark and brooding where the other Northern Rhône wines were bright, high toned and lively. I finished the last 1/3 rd of the bottle a few days later and it was a round and delicious glass of syrah. Dark fruits, smoke, earth, leather. Clape doesn’t seem to have the wildness or the thrill of Verset or the sheer seductiveness of Allemand,b ut this is very good wine. Too bad about the price these days.
‘97 Chave Hermitage
Holy shit! I’ve had this wine many, many times over the years, but I’ve never had a bottle this good. It was always an approachable, gentle version of Chave Hermitage, or so I thought. This showed a much more rigid structure, in a good way, with precise, finely etched lines. The old saw about peacock’s tails applied to the nose in all of the ways Chave does (although maybe not the darker fruitier new versions). Although I expected this wine to be good, I didn’t expect it to be this good. Clearly stood tall amongst stiff competition.
‘00 Texier Côte-Rôtie Vieilles Vignes
Even better than a bottler a couple of years ago. I know I’m not exactly seen as objective when it comes to Eric’s wines, but it’s because of wines like this, that just drill into some part of my brain. So pretty aromatically and so etched on the palate. I’ll use Coad’s word “gossamer” because that’s what it is to me. Hopefully, the younger vintages form other sources age as gracefully as this has. I may have liked this more than other folks.
With Allen & Sons barbecue for lunch.
‘10 Coudert Fleurie Griffe du Marquis
Started out too cold and clenched. We left it open and drove to get some barbecue at Allen and Sons where Hickory is the wood of choice. It took a while, but finally started opening on the nose. The palate opened slightly, but this is a very young wine. I’d hold off for a few years and drink the 2011 and 2012 which are more open.
Night 2: at Rue Cler.
‘99 Hirtzberger Honivogl Gruner Veltliner
A rich, layered, broad, intense archetype of grüner-veltliner. So much richness and depth here and compelling in a mouth filling way. Surges at you and slaps you in the face. Although it might surprise people, I really dig this wine. Every good bottle of this I’ve had is like this, it is almost overflowing with grüner-veltliner-ness like a 5 year old that just can’t contain their emotions. It all comes spilling out.
‘99 Hirtzberger Singerriedel Riesling
This wine started a little musty and I was worried that I had inadvertently plagued Kirk with my Hirtzberger curse (I seem to have an inordinate amount of corked bottles from Hirtzberger), but after some time open the mustiness blew off. I’m not sure if what remained was pristine or if the side-by-side with the Honigvogl was overwhelming. Very good wine, to be sure, with an airy quality to it and noteworthy Riesling finesse.
‘91 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Cailles
Corked.
‘91 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Saint Georges
The cork was soaked at least halfway up, but the wine seemed to be in good shape. It’s definitely fully mature to my palate. Sous-bois notes surround the gusts of remaining red fruits that still hold a touch of black. You can sense the kinship with the 1999.
‘99 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Saint Georges
Regal. Another excellent showing slowly meandering on tis trail. Purity, depth of fruit, mouthfeel it is all there. The kinship with the 1991 is remarkable and what makes Burgundy so captivating. While this is delicious now, it isn’t going anywhere soon. The last bottle from my cellar I opened with FlaJim almost 6 years ago, that seems like a reasonable clip for the remaining bottles.
‘98 Clos des Lambrays
I’m in the camp that this bottle was a bit off.
‘97 Giacosa Barbaresco Asili
Upon opening, this was fantastic. Really harmonius and svelte in a warm vintage way. More spice and broader, if muddier, baked red fruit. On the plum end of the spectrum with cherry. With air it got a bit blurrier and looser, but it was a delicious wine.
’98 Giacosa Barbaresco Asili
Much more shy than the 1997, we decanted this and it made all the difference. Not hollow in the way that 1998s can be sometimes. As it opened it showed deep fruit that was much brighter and clearer than the 1997. Eventually, the angular youth of the wine gave way to a rounder, smoother version of itself while maintaining a fresh expression of nebbiolo.
‘95 Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia
Definitively a different beast than the two Barbarescos. Darker earth, leather and balsamic notes (but not in that roasted way I hate). I decanted this and left it in the cabinet about 5 hours before dinner before recanting and it helped in terms of the tannin. Maybe it was just from being on the same table as the elegant Burgundies and Barbarescos but this wine felt blocky. Certainly regal. I finished the rest of this a few nights later and ti was still a blockier affair than the Barbarescos but was of more interest on its own. The concentration in the wine is noteworthy. Very good in its own right and excellent in the context of the vintage.
1998 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Eiswein
My recollection of this is a bit blurry.
In the end, a great couple of days. Sasha was amazed that Kirk and I had never shared more than a brief greeting and I was happy, after 15+ years of circling each other, that we were finally able to share not one but two wonderful evenings. Always a pleasure to see Michael and hopefully I'll see him again soon. The locals also did themselves proud. The South will rise again, despite all the morons and HB2.
Night 1: at Mateo tapas in Durham. Lots of delicious small plates with a Southern twist on the traditional Spanish versions. On the whole, this was a fantastic night for wine. Everythign showed really well and exactly as it should. The weather was great for wine and we had 0 corked or otherwise flawed bottles. I don’t remember the last time I’ve been in the presence of this many open bottles with no bad wines. Remarkable.
‘01 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Spatlese
Clear and bright with sparkling minerals and airiness of fruit. This was delicious and compelling. I haven’t had Muller-Catoir much in recent times. If the wines are still anything like this, I should remedy that.
‘01 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
This was good, but again the creaminess in the middle of the wine is something that I don’t really like. For me, the Dönnhoff wines are so delicious young that I tend to prefer them before they develop this secondary characteristic. This bottle, while enjoyable, did nothing to change my mind.
‘11 Vatan Sancerre Clos la Néore
The downside of having so many great bottles is that bottles that might otherwise shine are confined to the back ground. That was the case with this lower key mind and herb interlaced version of Vatan Chavignol. Lovely and well balanced, but overshadowed.
‘12 Julian Haart Wintricher Ohligsberg Riesling
I remember when these wines were first coming onto the scene and they really made one stand up and take notice. This was a wine of substance. I’m not sure what the RS level is, but it can’t be that high. Pristine fruit with real palate weight and cut. Not in the same league as the Muller-Catoir for me, but really, it is a different beast entirely.
‘62 Huet Vouvray Moelleux Clos du Bourg
The SFJoe memorial bottle. On night one, this was old chenin from a middling vintage. Just the kind of wine Joe would tell you to bury for 20-30 years. We corked it up and had it refrigerated. On night 2 it made that metamorphosis into a svelte older dame. Had that brown butter thing these wines get, but sure didn’t seem Moelleux. Had some bright minerals and a slight floral element under the older chenin notes. I can picture that knowing, impish glance because of course he knew this would happen and I miss him.
‘95 Baudry Chinon Grézeaux
Mature but not fully autumnal and tertiary. Some black and blue fruits and the unmistakable Grézeaux signature earth notes. Some leaves and tobacco and a resolved palate. This is a very nice wine at plateau and maybe starting to descend soon. Like several wines, on any other night could have been the star.
‘96 Baudry Chinon Grézeaux
I expected a lot from this bottle. I’ve hoarded my last 1996 Grézeaux since 2007. This wine may be immortal. It is still young and fresh and vibrant. Kaleidoscopic nose, fresh palate with excellent length. The best Grézeaux ever made and one of the best, if not the best, wines from Chinon I’ve ever had. Fool me for not hoarding cases of this. I don’t think there is a counterpart to this vintage among modern iterations. 2002 probably comes the closest, but lacks the zing and zest of 1996. Truly great wine. Wow.
‘02 Clos Rougeard Saumur-Champigny Bourg
What sort of parallel universe is it when we’re all too gaga over Baudry Grézeaux to notice Rougeard Bourg? The 2002s at Rougeard will need a long time to come out of their shell, I think. There is a retraint that hems in the natural boisterousness of this wine. We corked it up and had the remainder of the bottle on night 2. For me, it was better but still showed more or less the same. Frankly, I’m a bit surprised about this since I find that Bourg generally will show some generosity even when young. Based on this showing, I’d hold off for a good while. Another 5 years at least. I’ll drink my 2003, 04, 06, 07 , 08 and maybe even 05 and 09 before this. Don’t be confused by this note: this is a great wine in the making. It just might take a bit (and that’s coming from me).
‘99 Clape Cornas
Another wine that was overshadowed. Dark and brooding where the other Northern Rhône wines were bright, high toned and lively. I finished the last 1/3 rd of the bottle a few days later and it was a round and delicious glass of syrah. Dark fruits, smoke, earth, leather. Clape doesn’t seem to have the wildness or the thrill of Verset or the sheer seductiveness of Allemand,b ut this is very good wine. Too bad about the price these days.
‘97 Chave Hermitage
Holy shit! I’ve had this wine many, many times over the years, but I’ve never had a bottle this good. It was always an approachable, gentle version of Chave Hermitage, or so I thought. This showed a much more rigid structure, in a good way, with precise, finely etched lines. The old saw about peacock’s tails applied to the nose in all of the ways Chave does (although maybe not the darker fruitier new versions). Although I expected this wine to be good, I didn’t expect it to be this good. Clearly stood tall amongst stiff competition.
‘00 Texier Côte-Rôtie Vieilles Vignes
Even better than a bottler a couple of years ago. I know I’m not exactly seen as objective when it comes to Eric’s wines, but it’s because of wines like this, that just drill into some part of my brain. So pretty aromatically and so etched on the palate. I’ll use Coad’s word “gossamer” because that’s what it is to me. Hopefully, the younger vintages form other sources age as gracefully as this has. I may have liked this more than other folks.
With Allen & Sons barbecue for lunch.
‘10 Coudert Fleurie Griffe du Marquis
Started out too cold and clenched. We left it open and drove to get some barbecue at Allen and Sons where Hickory is the wood of choice. It took a while, but finally started opening on the nose. The palate opened slightly, but this is a very young wine. I’d hold off for a few years and drink the 2011 and 2012 which are more open.
Night 2: at Rue Cler.
‘99 Hirtzberger Honivogl Gruner Veltliner
A rich, layered, broad, intense archetype of grüner-veltliner. So much richness and depth here and compelling in a mouth filling way. Surges at you and slaps you in the face. Although it might surprise people, I really dig this wine. Every good bottle of this I’ve had is like this, it is almost overflowing with grüner-veltliner-ness like a 5 year old that just can’t contain their emotions. It all comes spilling out.
‘99 Hirtzberger Singerriedel Riesling
This wine started a little musty and I was worried that I had inadvertently plagued Kirk with my Hirtzberger curse (I seem to have an inordinate amount of corked bottles from Hirtzberger), but after some time open the mustiness blew off. I’m not sure if what remained was pristine or if the side-by-side with the Honigvogl was overwhelming. Very good wine, to be sure, with an airy quality to it and noteworthy Riesling finesse.
‘91 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Cailles
Corked.
‘91 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Saint Georges
The cork was soaked at least halfway up, but the wine seemed to be in good shape. It’s definitely fully mature to my palate. Sous-bois notes surround the gusts of remaining red fruits that still hold a touch of black. You can sense the kinship with the 1999.
‘99 Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Les Saint Georges
Regal. Another excellent showing slowly meandering on tis trail. Purity, depth of fruit, mouthfeel it is all there. The kinship with the 1991 is remarkable and what makes Burgundy so captivating. While this is delicious now, it isn’t going anywhere soon. The last bottle from my cellar I opened with FlaJim almost 6 years ago, that seems like a reasonable clip for the remaining bottles.
‘98 Clos des Lambrays
I’m in the camp that this bottle was a bit off.
‘97 Giacosa Barbaresco Asili
Upon opening, this was fantastic. Really harmonius and svelte in a warm vintage way. More spice and broader, if muddier, baked red fruit. On the plum end of the spectrum with cherry. With air it got a bit blurrier and looser, but it was a delicious wine.
’98 Giacosa Barbaresco Asili
Much more shy than the 1997, we decanted this and it made all the difference. Not hollow in the way that 1998s can be sometimes. As it opened it showed deep fruit that was much brighter and clearer than the 1997. Eventually, the angular youth of the wine gave way to a rounder, smoother version of itself while maintaining a fresh expression of nebbiolo.
‘95 Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia
Definitively a different beast than the two Barbarescos. Darker earth, leather and balsamic notes (but not in that roasted way I hate). I decanted this and left it in the cabinet about 5 hours before dinner before recanting and it helped in terms of the tannin. Maybe it was just from being on the same table as the elegant Burgundies and Barbarescos but this wine felt blocky. Certainly regal. I finished the rest of this a few nights later and ti was still a blockier affair than the Barbarescos but was of more interest on its own. The concentration in the wine is noteworthy. Very good in its own right and excellent in the context of the vintage.
1998 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Eiswein
My recollection of this is a bit blurry.
In the end, a great couple of days. Sasha was amazed that Kirk and I had never shared more than a brief greeting and I was happy, after 15+ years of circling each other, that we were finally able to share not one but two wonderful evenings. Always a pleasure to see Michael and hopefully I'll see him again soon. The locals also did themselves proud. The South will rise again, despite all the morons and HB2.
Michael Lewis
Michael Lewis
No notes on the 1:30am beers on night one or the midnight Calvados on night two? Slacker. Actually, considering that I did not see you write down even a single word, those are some impressive notes and I largely agree with them. Thanks to you and Noel for hosting such a fun weekend. What a lineup we had the chance to work through! Kirk, great to see you as always. Thanks for the wonderful wines.
Wow, what a lineup of foods and wines (not to mention people). So sorry that I couldn't make the scene with y'all, but familial responsibilities were such that it was impossible. Was Sasha there, or was that just a reference to an earlier conversation?
Thanks for the notes, VLM.
Mark Lipton
Thanks for the notes, VLM.
Mark Lipton
originally posted by MLipton:
Fuck me!Wow, what a lineup of foods and wines (not to mention people). So sorry that I couldn't make the scene with y'all, but familial responsibilities were such that it was impossible. Was Sasha there, or was that just a reference to an earlier conversation?
Thanks for the notes, VLM.
Mark Lipton
I wish Sasha were also present, but no, it was just referencing a previous conversation.
You are welcome anytime.
originally posted by Michael Lewis:
No notes on the 1:30am beers on night one or the midnight Calvados on night two? Slacker. Actually, considering that I did not see you write down even a single word, those are some impressive notes and I largely agree with them. Thanks to you and Noel for hosting such a fun weekend. What a lineup we had the chance to work through! Kirk, great to see you as always. Thanks for the wonderful wines.
Mind like a steel trap.
Jay Miller
Jay Miller
It's Haardter and no, sad to say that while the MC wines are still good they are not at the level they were under HGS (2001 was his last vintage).
kirk wallace
kirk wallace
originally posted by VLM:
1998 Muller-Catoir Haardrer Burgergarten Eiswein
My recollection of this is a bit blurry.
Thanks again Nathan for the great hospitality and logistical efforts. A tremendously fun (and instructive) weekend.
BTW, the Eiswein was Mußbacher Eselshaut; it was pretty f**'g kaleidoscopic and electric; I don't know if have any more left, but i'd love to visit it again in 5 years and then in 5 years more.
And for you all out there playing at home, Rue Cler is definitely worth a visit if you find yourself in the RDU area.