Jeff Grossman
Jeff Grossman
attendees: Ben, Hart, Ira, Jay, Jayson, Jeff, Julie, Marc, Richard... Eileen and Steven walked in as I walked out
Another therapeutic gathering of NYC wine geeks took place at MWC's ooh-la-la digs in the old Tunnel Bar building on Manhattan's far West side. The table was heaped with food, just as in days of yore, only less lamb pastrami and more roast quail. Fair trade.
Pictures courtesy of Jayson:
There was a champagne event yesterday so we started with some leftover bottles (there were more that I did not try):
Marguet 2017 Champagne Rose GC - 80% C / 20% PN, disg March 2022, 12.5%, beautiful nose but kinda old on the palate, Jay loves it, lots of disagreement about this one at the table
Amaury Beaufort NV Champagne Brut Nature "Les Jardin de la Porte de Troyes" "Le Jardinot XVIII" - presumably a base of 2018 wine, 12%, pleasantly chalky, a champagne right down the middle of the lane, something for everybody
Corbon NV Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs - 12%, eh (...I'm disappointed so let's blame this on being a leftover bottle from yesterday...)
--
Ira, ever the playful one, brought three blind wines:
Blind Champagne - disg Nov 2021, lemony acidity, only slight leesy flavors, very pure, kinda good but also kinda blah, reveal: Egly-Ouriet 2017 Champagne Extra-Brut 1er "Les Vignes de Vrigny"; Huh. I usually like pinot meunier-based champagnes but, on the other hand, I've never been excited by Egly-Ouriet. Also, not sure why I have this as a vintage wine as teh intertubez only knows about a multi-vintage blend.
Blind Red - this is truly beautiful, suave, strong, with hints of citrus and deep woods, reveal: Joguet 1990 Chinon, Franc de Pied "Les Varennes du Grand Clos"
Blind White - oxidized, bleh, DNPIM, reveal: Dom. Donatsch 2018 Chardonnay Malans "Unique"
--
And the white bottles just kept coming:
Ch. Cibon 2017 Cotes de Provence Rose, Cru Classe, "Cuvee Hommage a Marius" - 14%, this is 90% tibouren / 10% grenache blanc, long finish, gentle and pleasant oxidation... until I remember that this is young wine!
Dom. de Belliviere 2011 Jasnieres "Caligramme" - corked to Hell and back, several round-trips worth
P. Cotat 2014 VdT Chavignol Rose "Lot 2014" - a Racine bottle; zingy, juicy, complex, wow, Day 2: still fascinating, Day 3: the last glass with the last slice of pumpkin pie, these really go together: the sweetness of the pie does not bother the wine at all, while the floral-acidic flavors of the wine complement the clove and cardamom in the pie
Dom. Aux Moines 2019 Savennieres - "Roche Aux Moines" - 14%, bright and lemony, excellent texture, medium ripeness, very long, great
De Moor 2020 Chablis "Bel-Air et Clardy" - 12.5%, this is great, opulent texture, flavor of green grapes and under-ripe apricot, so juicy, so long!, Day 2: the same, if not better
Dom. la Rogerie 2013 Champagne GC Blanc de Blancs Extra-Brut "Heroine" - disg Sept 2021, dosage 2 g/l, just so ripeness, medium amount of lees showing on the palate, very nice for me
Ch. Yvonne 1998 Saumur Blanc - 12.5%, matchsticky, in good shape after all this time (tip of the stem towards all that sulfur, I guess), resinous on the finish, lots of white peach
--
And the red bottles just kept coming:
Cuchet-Beliando 2000 Cornas - smells terrific, berries and earth, but the palate is void, nothing there, just a little gritty, odd
Jaboulet 1985 Hermitage "La Chapelle" - OMG, rather red-fruit, not delicate at all even at this age, very pretty, a whiff of bacon somewhere in the background, a couple of people think the palate shows some heat damage but I don't taste it
H. Lignier 1983 Morey-Saint-Denis - stinky 'old Burgundy' nose of strawberry and raw bread dough, but the palate is still delicious, if a little faded; later pours showed cork taint
La Porte Saint Jean (Sylvain Dittiere) 2019 Saumur Rouge "Les Pouches" - kinda dirty, someone says he likes the brett expression, meh
Dom. de Vaccelli (Alain Courreges) 2014 Ajaccio "Granit" - sciaccarello from a favored parcel, this is bright and floral with persistent flavors of tangerine and tea, rather like a good Beaujolais in its outline
Bea 2012 IGT "Rosso de Veo" - a Racine bottle; 15.5%(!), another good wine: roses and cranberries and rhubarb, a delicate mist of VA keeps it lighter than its texture might indicate
Ch. Magdelaine 2002 Saint-Emilion Premier GCC - OMG, lovely Bordeaux notes of raspberry and strawberry with a definite lashing of mint, excellent
F. Cotat 2015 VdT Chavignol Rouge - pretty enough that you might think it's pinot noir (well, at least, I did), a great table wine, drink now
Foillard 2018 Morgon "Cuvee 3.14" - this is fortissimo beaujolais, clean, black-fruity, a little too sweet
--
However, the dessert wine bottles - bottle - came alone:
Ch. Climens 1986 Barsac 1er - yeah, it's old and quite sweet but it's still amazing: long and pure, sweet orange, not so sweet as honey but maybe the sweetness of maple syrup, the finish goes on forever
Another therapeutic gathering of NYC wine geeks took place at MWC's ooh-la-la digs in the old Tunnel Bar building on Manhattan's far West side. The table was heaped with food, just as in days of yore, only less lamb pastrami and more roast quail. Fair trade.
Pictures courtesy of Jayson:
There was a champagne event yesterday so we started with some leftover bottles (there were more that I did not try):
Marguet 2017 Champagne Rose GC - 80% C / 20% PN, disg March 2022, 12.5%, beautiful nose but kinda old on the palate, Jay loves it, lots of disagreement about this one at the table
Amaury Beaufort NV Champagne Brut Nature "Les Jardin de la Porte de Troyes" "Le Jardinot XVIII" - presumably a base of 2018 wine, 12%, pleasantly chalky, a champagne right down the middle of the lane, something for everybody
Corbon NV Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs - 12%, eh (...I'm disappointed so let's blame this on being a leftover bottle from yesterday...)
--
Ira, ever the playful one, brought three blind wines:
Blind Champagne - disg Nov 2021, lemony acidity, only slight leesy flavors, very pure, kinda good but also kinda blah, reveal: Egly-Ouriet 2017 Champagne Extra-Brut 1er "Les Vignes de Vrigny"; Huh. I usually like pinot meunier-based champagnes but, on the other hand, I've never been excited by Egly-Ouriet. Also, not sure why I have this as a vintage wine as teh intertubez only knows about a multi-vintage blend.
Blind Red - this is truly beautiful, suave, strong, with hints of citrus and deep woods, reveal: Joguet 1990 Chinon, Franc de Pied "Les Varennes du Grand Clos"
Blind White - oxidized, bleh, DNPIM, reveal: Dom. Donatsch 2018 Chardonnay Malans "Unique"
--
And the white bottles just kept coming:
Ch. Cibon 2017 Cotes de Provence Rose, Cru Classe, "Cuvee Hommage a Marius" - 14%, this is 90% tibouren / 10% grenache blanc, long finish, gentle and pleasant oxidation... until I remember that this is young wine!
Dom. de Belliviere 2011 Jasnieres "Caligramme" - corked to Hell and back, several round-trips worth
P. Cotat 2014 VdT Chavignol Rose "Lot 2014" - a Racine bottle; zingy, juicy, complex, wow, Day 2: still fascinating, Day 3: the last glass with the last slice of pumpkin pie, these really go together: the sweetness of the pie does not bother the wine at all, while the floral-acidic flavors of the wine complement the clove and cardamom in the pie
Dom. Aux Moines 2019 Savennieres - "Roche Aux Moines" - 14%, bright and lemony, excellent texture, medium ripeness, very long, great
De Moor 2020 Chablis "Bel-Air et Clardy" - 12.5%, this is great, opulent texture, flavor of green grapes and under-ripe apricot, so juicy, so long!, Day 2: the same, if not better
Dom. la Rogerie 2013 Champagne GC Blanc de Blancs Extra-Brut "Heroine" - disg Sept 2021, dosage 2 g/l, just so ripeness, medium amount of lees showing on the palate, very nice for me
Ch. Yvonne 1998 Saumur Blanc - 12.5%, matchsticky, in good shape after all this time (tip of the stem towards all that sulfur, I guess), resinous on the finish, lots of white peach
--
And the red bottles just kept coming:
Cuchet-Beliando 2000 Cornas - smells terrific, berries and earth, but the palate is void, nothing there, just a little gritty, odd
Jaboulet 1985 Hermitage "La Chapelle" - OMG, rather red-fruit, not delicate at all even at this age, very pretty, a whiff of bacon somewhere in the background, a couple of people think the palate shows some heat damage but I don't taste it
H. Lignier 1983 Morey-Saint-Denis - stinky 'old Burgundy' nose of strawberry and raw bread dough, but the palate is still delicious, if a little faded; later pours showed cork taint
La Porte Saint Jean (Sylvain Dittiere) 2019 Saumur Rouge "Les Pouches" - kinda dirty, someone says he likes the brett expression, meh
Dom. de Vaccelli (Alain Courreges) 2014 Ajaccio "Granit" - sciaccarello from a favored parcel, this is bright and floral with persistent flavors of tangerine and tea, rather like a good Beaujolais in its outline
Bea 2012 IGT "Rosso de Veo" - a Racine bottle; 15.5%(!), another good wine: roses and cranberries and rhubarb, a delicate mist of VA keeps it lighter than its texture might indicate
Ch. Magdelaine 2002 Saint-Emilion Premier GCC - OMG, lovely Bordeaux notes of raspberry and strawberry with a definite lashing of mint, excellent
F. Cotat 2015 VdT Chavignol Rouge - pretty enough that you might think it's pinot noir (well, at least, I did), a great table wine, drink now
Foillard 2018 Morgon "Cuvee 3.14" - this is fortissimo beaujolais, clean, black-fruity, a little too sweet
--
However, the dessert wine bottles - bottle - came alone:
Ch. Climens 1986 Barsac 1er - yeah, it's old and quite sweet but it's still amazing: long and pure, sweet orange, not so sweet as honey but maybe the sweetness of maple syrup, the finish goes on forever
