TN: 10/9/10 Lunch at Jay's

Jeff Grossman

Jeff Grossman
Attendees: Chris and Lisa, Christine, Eden and Scott and Pierce, Jeff and Jim, Michel and Veronica, Suzanne.

It is Fall and a young man's fancy turns towards... wine shipments. Scads of bottles are going to arrive any day now. They cannot be delayed, held, or avoided any longer. It has become imperative to host a large party, invite lots of guests, and open as many bottles on-hand as possible.

Thus, we arrive at Jay's Meat Emporium: thinly-sliced prosciutto, silky smoked duck breast, an entire torchon of duck foie gras, broiled spring lamb chops from Down Under, roasted quail sauced in lime and molasses, and beef short ribs 60 hours in the sous-vide.

Sure there was some starch (gougeres, bread, crackers, potato, cake) but they mostly served as vectors for animal protein and fat.

And there was wine:

Agrapart 2002 Champagne Blanc de blancs Extra Brut "Mineral" - not very expressive but some little bit of waxiness and minerality; my experience with the Sept Crus has been much happier

Muller-Catoir 2001 Haardter Burgergarten Riesling Kabinett Halbtrocken - tangy, minerally, unripe apricots, very moreish

Prince Poniatowski 1997 Vouvray "Clos de l'Avenir" - ripe and a bit of rs but musty

Cos 2009 IGT "Rami" - waxy, spicy, tactile, caramelly but absolutely dry

Ch. Filhot 1971 Sauternes - wow, earthy and gently sweet, the acidity is just barely enough to hold it together

Chermette 2009 Fleurie "Poncie" - lightweight, a bit candied, good enough

Cos 2007 Cerasuolo de Vittoria DOCG "Pithos" - amphora wine; tastes of clay, resin, and musky cherries; better with food than by itself

Dom. Savoye 1997 Morgon a la Cote du Py, Cuvee VV - delicate texture, brandied cherries, I like this

Radikon 1998 Merlot "Collio" - funny to have this right after Robert talked about it at Orange II; perfectly nice fruit but nothing special

Dom. de Chevalier 1979 Graves - very tobacco, black currant, classic old Bordeaux, excellent

Ch. Leoville-Las-Cases 1985 St-Julien - suave, more red-fruit than the Chevalier, a bit lighter, also a pleasure

Mt. Eden Vineyards 1991 Pinot Noir - I find this kinda floral but kinda muted, others at the lunch like this much better than I do

Dom. Lafouge 2008 Auxey-Duresses 1er "La Chapelle" - bright, dusty cherries, slightly astringent (compared to the older wines I've just been drinking)

Gouges 1999 Nuits-St-Georges 1er "Les Pruliers" - wow, deep and dark, black cherry, still a bit tight (even after several hours in the decanter), I want to own this and drink it again

Donnhoff 2005 Oberhauser Leistenberg Riesling Kabinett - 77530100406, kumquats and lime, the M-C is more pleasurable today

Renaissance 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon, Sierra Foothills, North Yuha - a nice clean cab but nothing special

Michel 1985 Cornas - mild, kinda red-fruit rather than the usual syrah blue-fruit, maybe it's just coming apart?

Foreau 1996 Vouvray Moelleux - pretty (...that's all the note says)

Equipos Navazos La Bota de P. X. #11 - sweet (...duh)
 
originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
Radikon 1998 Merlot "Collio" - funny to have this right after Robert talked about it at Orange II; perfectly nice fruit but nothing special

I agree with you on the 1998 and it is extremely overpriced. The 1990 was a stunning wine a few years ago.
 
Cos 2007 Cerasuolo de Vittoria DOCG "Pithos" - amphora wine; tastes of clay, resin, and musky cherries; better with food than by itself
Yes. I had to make that mistake a few times before I realized how I was damaging the wine. Despite a surprising lightness given that it's Sicilian, I now know to order this mid-meal, in a restaurant setting, not as a first wine.
 
young?

I think I liked the Rami more than anyone else. That whole unctuous dry cinnamonny caramelly thing was a delight.

Many thanks to the Bixlers for the '97 Savoye - it was greatly enjoyed.

I'm one of the people who really liked the Mt. Eden.

And thank you for posting notes.
 
originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
77530100406, kumquats and lime...

OK, I know the joke is not funny when you have to explain it. But what's going on? That's the whole AP number?
 
Cliff, there was a time back in the WLDG days o'yore when German wines were occasionally noted by only their AP numbers to satisfy a "AP number please!" poster who used to haunt German wine notes. I'm not sure the aversion therapy worked, but it was fun (for certain values of "fun").
 
Wine Style rating:

Bb - balance
Ff - force (concentration)
Dd - delicacy (finesse)
Ii - interest
Tt - typicity; how well the wine expresses the expected qualities of the appellation

upper case - outstanding
lower case - adequate
omitted - poor
parens - uncertain or questionable

Example: "b(f)dit"
 
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