and yet were confused. This is it? This? With a trio of smoking chefs on the bench out front, and a workaday clientele tucking into piled-high plates and carafes of wine?
Well, no. Were looking for the next door to the right, a somewhat secretive but highly recommended restaurant that shares a name with its down-market neighbor. (NB: the restaurant has since moved.) Even inside, were greeted by a vestibule rather than the expanse of a restaurant. This is most certainly a place that doesnt embrace accidental dining.
continued here. Notes follow:
Gaillard 1999 Cte-Rtie Rose Pourpre (Rhne) Very aromatic, but its not all the violet-infused terroirits the wood, as well, which is still hovering and expansive, though signs of its eventual integration are apparent. Beef-tinged earth does not detract from an overall elegance, but theres reticence as well, and many veils yet to be penetrated. This has many, many years to go. Its a modern-inflected wine, for sure, but its not wholly New World. Rather, it attempts to straddle the line, and whether or not one responds to it depends, I suppose, on ones tolerance for wood with syrah. (10/06)
Toro Albal 2003 Pedro Ximnez (Montilla-Moriles) Caramel, brown sugar, and motor oil. Very sticky and ungodly sweet, even beyond the wines usual clutch and pander, and almost impossible to clear from ones palate. I mean, its incredibly impressive, and I guess accomplished in the sense that it is unquestionably achieving what it sets out to achieve, but (10/06)
Lepanto Pedro Ximnez Brandy de Jerez Solera Gran Reserva (Jerez) Like a hotter, drier version of the (in)famous wine, a mix of caramels and sugars with a spiced finish churned over stones. Interesting, though I think I prefer my brandies a little less overtly sweet. (10/06)
Carreras Masia Pairal Can Carreras Garnatxa de lEmpord Costa Brava Vi Dol Natural (Catalua) Thin and watery. Burnt brown sugar. Wan as hell. (10/06)