Jeff Grossman
Jeff Grossman
Cambridge, actually. A visit with friends Bruce and Tammy, no more or less an agenda than that.
FIRST NIGHT
Arrived on a late-ish train so just a couple quick glasses:
Ch. Yvonne 2022 Saumur-Champigny Rouge "La Folie" - not on the list so popped-and-poured for me, fresh and vivid, dark red fruits, some structure and spice, probably not one for the ages but totally drink-me-now
Texier 2010 Cotes-du-Rhone "Brezeme" "Domaine Pergault" - from a half-bottle taken from a full bottle a week ago; deepening fruit, definitely black-ish and brooding, still savory and a little tangy; could be just starting on its way down or maybe just having a moody moment
SECOND NIGHT
Worked remotely during the day. At least, I was sitting at someone else's dining room table and not my own. Whee.
Step out in the evening to a local restaurant, Forage. They have about 45 seats in the basement of a nearby apartment building, so the space is kinda 'hipster ductwork' but never mind. We ordered lots of interesting apps and one main. While their name is Forage, what they really do around here is Ferment. Here's a sample of the plates:
-- "Pickles & Ferments" included five kinds of pickles: garlic scapes, dilled asparagus, two more I don't recall now, and the last... without doubt the most fabulous amazing tropia onion/beach rose/strawberry kimchi!!!
-- "Narragansett Burrata" included several chicories dotted with burrata, almond, and anchovy
-- "Salt Roasted Beets" in a peanut dressing with candied ginger
-- "Smoked Potatoes" come with sauerkraut, labne, and apples
-- a selection of roasted squashes
-- "Icelandic Cod" served with sunchokes, turnips, olives, radish, with a parsnip veloute and spatters of cherry vinegar
Innocently, we started with BTG which ranged from eh to really good, as BTG is wont to do:
Dom. de Pajot 2022 Sauvignon Blanc "4 Cepages" - I have no idea why the wine is labeled both as a blend and as a varietal; it tasted like sauvignon blanc, fairly normal, good grassy cut
Gino Pedrotti 2021 Nosiola - yes, that's the grape, who knew?, mildly aromatic but I'm OK to forget it again
Division Wine Co. 2024 Gamay Noir "Nouveau Nouveau!" - sponty smells come from the glass but this is zippy and crisp and basically a success with any weird food we threw at it, so bravo!
Dom. Guion 2021 Cabernet Franc "Cuvee Candide" - young vines in Bourgueil, yup that's franc
Finca El Molar 2023 Macabeo "Sun Lips" - orange wine, perhaps the best BTG of the night: good zing, clean, only gently oranged, yum
Marzae Wines 2023 Vidal "C. Cornuta" - orange wine, also in the blend are la crescent and seyval, a month of skin contact, 9 months in terracotta under flor, no sulfur at bottling, a Hall of Horrors in a glass
Teague (sp?), who was running things that night, asked if we wanted to try some off-menu pours? It's practically my middle name. Two glasses followed:
-- first, a Bulgarian Melnik (sorry, didn't see the label)... rather like a merlot, plummy and sweet, acidity a little low but not terrible, pleasant enough
-- second, Les Vins de l'Arpette "met les voiles"... another bone-dry, orange, sous-voile wine; at least, there is the satisfaction that only 80 bottles were made
Then Teeg (sp?) asked if we were really up for weird? You betcha, and he delivered:
Cornelian Cherry & Cherry Plum Piquette - made from leftover cherries and some overly-dried plums; this was sharp, unpleasant
Chertok Wine(ish) - mostly Marquette with a bit of some other obscure grapes and a little apple juice to make it ferment; no proof listed; approximately normal but has a cider-ish sense to it (but not fermenty, rather just apple-y); Theage (sp?) said it reminded him of a lambic, Tammy really likes it but can't put her finger on what it reminds her of.
Hardy Kiwi - these are the little ones and they had been just sitting around too long and starting to go off so they decided to ferment them instead; it has been filtered three times and it's still cloudy, it smells slightly sour and grainy like rye bread (but not like caraway), kinda unctuous mouthfeel, 12%, the palate is about the same as the nose, totally fascinating (if perhaps not the world's best drink); I think he said there was 2 liters of this altogether
Niagara and Green Tomato - equal parts, though the Green Tomato wine was raised in a carboy that had something in it before that tastes like habanero but with no heat; 7%, totally excellent: good acidity, great interest, tangy fruit, really good, bottled in 2022 but a ticking time bomb because the tomato starches degrade into sugars and the sugars restart the yeasts; Tiegh (sp?) brought it to the table about half full and announced that it had been completely full just 10 minutes ago...
Twelve glasses.
There were three of us.
THIRD NIGHT
Officially, the party night. My hosts fretted and fussed over a cassoulet for several hours. It came out just fine, and the guests (including Diana and tse wei) filled out the table with starters, sides, and, as you shall see, quite the closers.
In regards to wine with dinner, we were actually fairly restrained. The unknown cultivars, hybrids, and unripe tomatoes were allowed to sleep soundly in their beds while we imbibed in a more usual style.
First, a compare:
Dom. des Rutissons 2022 IGP Isere Coteaux du Gresivaudan "Verdesse" - 13%, aromatic, slightly herbal, good body, nice wine; this wine was brought as a follow-on to our trip to Savoie in January... Wink arranged for us to visit Dom. Finot but, had that not happened, Dom. des Rutissons was the Plan B (they are the only two vignerons bottling verdesse)
Now we all stand around in the kitchen and consume a big tin of paddlefish roe, cheeses, figs, pickles, homemade foie pate, two beautiful homemade breads, etc etc
Gruet NV Brut - 12%, eh, hasn't been interesting in years
Jacquesson NV Champagne Extra-Brut "Cuvee No. 747" - 13%, 1.5g dosage, kinda funky and eh; others liked this better than I did
Continuing at the table for the big plates:
Fratelli Veglio 1974 Barolo "Vigna Carpegna" - 14%, 72cl, Serralunga, tight and funky when opened, half an hour later there is some sweetness and a memory of fruits past, but it is basically OTH, big clods of sediment at the bottom
Tribouley 2005 VdP Cotes Catalanes "Orchis" - 14.5%, you'd think this was bottled last week!, amazingly youthful, sturdy and steady, certain stemware brings out a plasticky nose but finally something to drink
Tribouley 2007 VdP Cotes Catalanes "Les Bacs" VV NF - 14.5%, ditto but less brash, a little quieter but a little more substantial
F. Magnien 2016 Charmes-Chambertin GC "Aux Charmes" - 13.5%, way too young to open but it's very pretty and just gets better and better as the evening goes on; head and shoulders above the rest
And, as promised, the spectacular desserts: one Tarte Tatin and one Tarte de Chinon, which is a similar sort of thing but baked in, and then bathed in, a Chinon reduction, in this case a bottle of Dom. Filiatreau 2020 Saumur-Champigny "La Grande Vignolle".
Even the cook was surprised how good it was.
FOURTH NIGHT
Ahem.
Trip over.
Back home.
Cavort with only one bottle of wine: Dom. Peillot 2021 Bugey Mondeuse, which is pretty muted so maybe I'll let the others sleep a couple years. I pour a half-cup into the cranberry sauce, anyway.
FIRST NIGHT
Arrived on a late-ish train so just a couple quick glasses:
Ch. Yvonne 2022 Saumur-Champigny Rouge "La Folie" - not on the list so popped-and-poured for me, fresh and vivid, dark red fruits, some structure and spice, probably not one for the ages but totally drink-me-now
Texier 2010 Cotes-du-Rhone "Brezeme" "Domaine Pergault" - from a half-bottle taken from a full bottle a week ago; deepening fruit, definitely black-ish and brooding, still savory and a little tangy; could be just starting on its way down or maybe just having a moody moment
SECOND NIGHT
Worked remotely during the day. At least, I was sitting at someone else's dining room table and not my own. Whee.
Step out in the evening to a local restaurant, Forage. They have about 45 seats in the basement of a nearby apartment building, so the space is kinda 'hipster ductwork' but never mind. We ordered lots of interesting apps and one main. While their name is Forage, what they really do around here is Ferment. Here's a sample of the plates:
-- "Pickles & Ferments" included five kinds of pickles: garlic scapes, dilled asparagus, two more I don't recall now, and the last... without doubt the most fabulous amazing tropia onion/beach rose/strawberry kimchi!!!
-- "Narragansett Burrata" included several chicories dotted with burrata, almond, and anchovy
-- "Salt Roasted Beets" in a peanut dressing with candied ginger
-- "Smoked Potatoes" come with sauerkraut, labne, and apples
-- a selection of roasted squashes
-- "Icelandic Cod" served with sunchokes, turnips, olives, radish, with a parsnip veloute and spatters of cherry vinegar
Innocently, we started with BTG which ranged from eh to really good, as BTG is wont to do:
Dom. de Pajot 2022 Sauvignon Blanc "4 Cepages" - I have no idea why the wine is labeled both as a blend and as a varietal; it tasted like sauvignon blanc, fairly normal, good grassy cut
Gino Pedrotti 2021 Nosiola - yes, that's the grape, who knew?, mildly aromatic but I'm OK to forget it again
Division Wine Co. 2024 Gamay Noir "Nouveau Nouveau!" - sponty smells come from the glass but this is zippy and crisp and basically a success with any weird food we threw at it, so bravo!
Dom. Guion 2021 Cabernet Franc "Cuvee Candide" - young vines in Bourgueil, yup that's franc
Finca El Molar 2023 Macabeo "Sun Lips" - orange wine, perhaps the best BTG of the night: good zing, clean, only gently oranged, yum
Marzae Wines 2023 Vidal "C. Cornuta" - orange wine, also in the blend are la crescent and seyval, a month of skin contact, 9 months in terracotta under flor, no sulfur at bottling, a Hall of Horrors in a glass
Teague (sp?), who was running things that night, asked if we wanted to try some off-menu pours? It's practically my middle name. Two glasses followed:
-- first, a Bulgarian Melnik (sorry, didn't see the label)... rather like a merlot, plummy and sweet, acidity a little low but not terrible, pleasant enough
-- second, Les Vins de l'Arpette "met les voiles"... another bone-dry, orange, sous-voile wine; at least, there is the satisfaction that only 80 bottles were made
Then Teeg (sp?) asked if we were really up for weird? You betcha, and he delivered:
Cornelian Cherry & Cherry Plum Piquette - made from leftover cherries and some overly-dried plums; this was sharp, unpleasant
Chertok Wine(ish) - mostly Marquette with a bit of some other obscure grapes and a little apple juice to make it ferment; no proof listed; approximately normal but has a cider-ish sense to it (but not fermenty, rather just apple-y); Theage (sp?) said it reminded him of a lambic, Tammy really likes it but can't put her finger on what it reminds her of.
Hardy Kiwi - these are the little ones and they had been just sitting around too long and starting to go off so they decided to ferment them instead; it has been filtered three times and it's still cloudy, it smells slightly sour and grainy like rye bread (but not like caraway), kinda unctuous mouthfeel, 12%, the palate is about the same as the nose, totally fascinating (if perhaps not the world's best drink); I think he said there was 2 liters of this altogether
Niagara and Green Tomato - equal parts, though the Green Tomato wine was raised in a carboy that had something in it before that tastes like habanero but with no heat; 7%, totally excellent: good acidity, great interest, tangy fruit, really good, bottled in 2022 but a ticking time bomb because the tomato starches degrade into sugars and the sugars restart the yeasts; Tiegh (sp?) brought it to the table about half full and announced that it had been completely full just 10 minutes ago...
Twelve glasses.
There were three of us.
THIRD NIGHT
Officially, the party night. My hosts fretted and fussed over a cassoulet for several hours. It came out just fine, and the guests (including Diana and tse wei) filled out the table with starters, sides, and, as you shall see, quite the closers.
In regards to wine with dinner, we were actually fairly restrained. The unknown cultivars, hybrids, and unripe tomatoes were allowed to sleep soundly in their beds while we imbibed in a more usual style.
First, a compare:
Dom. des Rutissons 2022 IGP Isere Coteaux du Gresivaudan "Verdesse" - 13%, aromatic, slightly herbal, good body, nice wine; this wine was brought as a follow-on to our trip to Savoie in January... Wink arranged for us to visit Dom. Finot but, had that not happened, Dom. des Rutissons was the Plan B (they are the only two vignerons bottling verdesse)
Now we all stand around in the kitchen and consume a big tin of paddlefish roe, cheeses, figs, pickles, homemade foie pate, two beautiful homemade breads, etc etc
Gruet NV Brut - 12%, eh, hasn't been interesting in years
Jacquesson NV Champagne Extra-Brut "Cuvee No. 747" - 13%, 1.5g dosage, kinda funky and eh; others liked this better than I did
Continuing at the table for the big plates:
Fratelli Veglio 1974 Barolo "Vigna Carpegna" - 14%, 72cl, Serralunga, tight and funky when opened, half an hour later there is some sweetness and a memory of fruits past, but it is basically OTH, big clods of sediment at the bottom
Tribouley 2005 VdP Cotes Catalanes "Orchis" - 14.5%, you'd think this was bottled last week!, amazingly youthful, sturdy and steady, certain stemware brings out a plasticky nose but finally something to drink
Tribouley 2007 VdP Cotes Catalanes "Les Bacs" VV NF - 14.5%, ditto but less brash, a little quieter but a little more substantial
F. Magnien 2016 Charmes-Chambertin GC "Aux Charmes" - 13.5%, way too young to open but it's very pretty and just gets better and better as the evening goes on; head and shoulders above the rest
And, as promised, the spectacular desserts: one Tarte Tatin and one Tarte de Chinon, which is a similar sort of thing but baked in, and then bathed in, a Chinon reduction, in this case a bottle of Dom. Filiatreau 2020 Saumur-Champigny "La Grande Vignolle".
Even the cook was surprised how good it was.
FOURTH NIGHT
Ahem.
Trip over.
Back home.
Cavort with only one bottle of wine: Dom. Peillot 2021 Bugey Mondeuse, which is pretty muted so maybe I'll let the others sleep a couple years. I pour a half-cup into the cranberry sauce, anyway.
