Jeff Grossman
Jeff Grossman
7/21/11 Seattle, WA (Eva restaurant)
attendees: Brad Liljequist & Mme L, Lee Short & Melissa, Jay Miller, Bruce Schneier, Marc Davis, Jim Diven, James Hondros ("Mr. Eva")
Bruce, Jay, and I are in Seattle on Feroukian business and the local/near-local Disorderlies have kindly arranged a jeebus. They settle on Eva, an artisanal slice of foodie heaven. Take a look at the menu and the wine list!
The crowd is a mix of old and new faces. Lee & Mel used to live in Minneapolis, which is Bruce's home and where I had a long work stint. Jim is a self-proclaimed newb but he keeps it in check pretty well. Brad asks whether Jay and I met through wine geekdom or D&D and we demonstrate the full force of our G&S roots.
Meanwhile, Marc and Brad are razzing James: not only do we bring our own glasses and wine but Lee passes around samples of his home-cured ham. At this rate, soon we'll just pay for the plates and silverware.
Speaking of the food, Bruce and I share the duck liver mousse and the cherry salad to start and then we grab the last two portions of the pork Stroganoff on house-made pappardella. The citrus dressing on the salad acts as an excellent foil to the rich and fatty mousse. The Stroganoff was luxurious and weighty enough for all the wine it was about to receive.
We did not intentionally organize the wine into flights but that was sorta how things ended up.
Fizz and whites went first:
Gimonnet 1996 Champagne "Fleurons" Brut 1er, Blanc de Blancs - lemon and stones, lots of zip, not at all leesy or creamy; the wine doesn't leap up and call attention to itself but it is persistent and restless; I like this
Dom Closel 1990 Savennieres "Cuvee Speciale" - corked
Chidaine 2002 Montlouis "Clos du Breuil" - unctuous, orange and wax and cooked peach, the acidity is subdued but still drinks well
Chidaine 2002 Vouvray "Le Bouchet" - sweeter, fresher, more green grape than peach; this bottle was cooler than the Montlouis and the acidity was firmer
Tribut 1996 Chablis 1er "Beauroy" - really funky when opened; let this sit a good long time; this is the Gimmonet with cream and without fizz; big strong wine, which is not a bad thing
Chandon de Briailles 2002 Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc "Iles des Vergelesses" - elegant, complex, James says there is a saline note that reminds him of fresh sashimi; this wine is outstanding with the duck liver mousse
Huet 2008 Vouvray Demi-Sec "Le Mont" - kick it up a notch: so much acid, so much sugar, dynamic balance and intensity; thoughtfully brought out to go with the duck liver mousse, it was, actually, too much wine for it, running roughshod over the meltingly delicate spread
A sherry moment:
Equipo Navazos La Bota de Fino #24 - who knows?
The Beaujolais and Thereabouts flight:
Jadot 1992 Beaujolais - BJ likes them old and here's proof; orange pith and charcoal and some vague raspberry aromas; the wine is faint and watery but not feeble (there is still some good zip here); I wouldn't serve this with a steak but OK with a piece of bread
Thevenet 2009 Regnie "Grain + Granite" - a whiff of schoolpaste to start but then gets really meaty, the nose is very ripe but it's still built like the Chrysler building in the mouth; definitely need more of this
Clos Roche Blanche 2001 "Cuvee Cot" - OMG, a cool, deep pool of elemental wine; darkest berry flavors like I would associate with a hot weather clime but no roastiness, no thickness, and harmonious acidity
Tete 2010 Beaujolais Villages - (I normally report wines in the order tasted but it makes more sense to describe this now even though we actually had it just before dessert), from the Ten Liters of Goodness (see pic); it's been open for 3 weeks so I might forgive a slight candied note; in fact, it's pretty clean and tasty
The Burgundy flight:
Fourrier 2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er "Cherbaudes" VV - good zing, good balance, very nice to drink even if I get a whiff of diacetyl in the nose (which Jay vigorously and repeatedly denies)
Roumier 1993 Chambolle-Musigny - I think something's wrong with this wine but there's much dissension about it
The Rhone flight:
Allemand 1998 Cornas "Chaillot" - meat (more blood but more mi-cuit than in the Regnie) and blackberries in the expected elegant-rather-than-rustic package; really another OMG wine but Jay thinks it's slightly closed
Jamet 2006 Cote-Rotie - this wine is accompanied by ever so much sniping about the good old days and barrel programs and shark-jumping; meanwhile, the wine is recognizably Cote-Rotie if a bit glossy and a bit low acid (though that last is a vintage hallmark); I'm happy to drink this
Wind Gap 2006 Syrah - presented in a brown paper bag as Myster Wine #1; if I didn't have two Old World exemplars right here I would have said this was Rhone: there was adequate acidity and earthy flavors not buried in jam; and yet it is slightly too simple: it has the right outline but it isn't filled-in properly; I blind-test a couple of people at the table and no one is mistaken
The Nebbiolo flight:
Cantalupo 2000 Ghemme "Collis Breclemae" - (other grapes are allowed but this is 100% nebbiolo); a third OMG wine: uncompromisingly dry, austere, middling tannic; it's true it doesn't have the high-wire tension or complexity of Barolo but like the Cuvee Cot it reminds me of the experience (but not the flavors!) inhaling deeply from a bag of freshly-ground coffee
Sella 1999 Lessona "Omaggio a Quintino" - warmer than the Ghemme, more red-fruited, maybe a whiff of wood (barrel? stems?); for me, more beautiful than thrilling
It's a school night so we don't open any of the other bottles ready to hand, even though there's Overnoy and Monprivato just a few feet away. Twenty seems like enough for now.
Except for one dessert wine:
Huet 1995 Vouvray "Cuvee Constance" - as with the other Huet wine tonight this is flavor and character and grace played fortissimo; the wine shows no hint of anything resembling decay or even maturity but 16 years has modulated the incisive acid edge just a wee bit
I really have to come to Seattle more often if you folks are going to pour like this.
Thank you, one and all, for a warm welcome and a great evening.
(And, Marc, thanks for the eggs!)
attendees: Brad Liljequist & Mme L, Lee Short & Melissa, Jay Miller, Bruce Schneier, Marc Davis, Jim Diven, James Hondros ("Mr. Eva")
Bruce, Jay, and I are in Seattle on Feroukian business and the local/near-local Disorderlies have kindly arranged a jeebus. They settle on Eva, an artisanal slice of foodie heaven. Take a look at the menu and the wine list!
The crowd is a mix of old and new faces. Lee & Mel used to live in Minneapolis, which is Bruce's home and where I had a long work stint. Jim is a self-proclaimed newb but he keeps it in check pretty well. Brad asks whether Jay and I met through wine geekdom or D&D and we demonstrate the full force of our G&S roots.
Meanwhile, Marc and Brad are razzing James: not only do we bring our own glasses and wine but Lee passes around samples of his home-cured ham. At this rate, soon we'll just pay for the plates and silverware.
Speaking of the food, Bruce and I share the duck liver mousse and the cherry salad to start and then we grab the last two portions of the pork Stroganoff on house-made pappardella. The citrus dressing on the salad acts as an excellent foil to the rich and fatty mousse. The Stroganoff was luxurious and weighty enough for all the wine it was about to receive.
We did not intentionally organize the wine into flights but that was sorta how things ended up.
Fizz and whites went first:
Gimonnet 1996 Champagne "Fleurons" Brut 1er, Blanc de Blancs - lemon and stones, lots of zip, not at all leesy or creamy; the wine doesn't leap up and call attention to itself but it is persistent and restless; I like this
Dom Closel 1990 Savennieres "Cuvee Speciale" - corked
Chidaine 2002 Montlouis "Clos du Breuil" - unctuous, orange and wax and cooked peach, the acidity is subdued but still drinks well
Chidaine 2002 Vouvray "Le Bouchet" - sweeter, fresher, more green grape than peach; this bottle was cooler than the Montlouis and the acidity was firmer
Tribut 1996 Chablis 1er "Beauroy" - really funky when opened; let this sit a good long time; this is the Gimmonet with cream and without fizz; big strong wine, which is not a bad thing
Chandon de Briailles 2002 Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc "Iles des Vergelesses" - elegant, complex, James says there is a saline note that reminds him of fresh sashimi; this wine is outstanding with the duck liver mousse
Huet 2008 Vouvray Demi-Sec "Le Mont" - kick it up a notch: so much acid, so much sugar, dynamic balance and intensity; thoughtfully brought out to go with the duck liver mousse, it was, actually, too much wine for it, running roughshod over the meltingly delicate spread
A sherry moment:
Equipo Navazos La Bota de Fino #24 - who knows?
The Beaujolais and Thereabouts flight:
Jadot 1992 Beaujolais - BJ likes them old and here's proof; orange pith and charcoal and some vague raspberry aromas; the wine is faint and watery but not feeble (there is still some good zip here); I wouldn't serve this with a steak but OK with a piece of bread
Thevenet 2009 Regnie "Grain + Granite" - a whiff of schoolpaste to start but then gets really meaty, the nose is very ripe but it's still built like the Chrysler building in the mouth; definitely need more of this
Clos Roche Blanche 2001 "Cuvee Cot" - OMG, a cool, deep pool of elemental wine; darkest berry flavors like I would associate with a hot weather clime but no roastiness, no thickness, and harmonious acidity
Tete 2010 Beaujolais Villages - (I normally report wines in the order tasted but it makes more sense to describe this now even though we actually had it just before dessert), from the Ten Liters of Goodness (see pic); it's been open for 3 weeks so I might forgive a slight candied note; in fact, it's pretty clean and tasty
The Burgundy flight:
Fourrier 2008 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er "Cherbaudes" VV - good zing, good balance, very nice to drink even if I get a whiff of diacetyl in the nose (which Jay vigorously and repeatedly denies)
Roumier 1993 Chambolle-Musigny - I think something's wrong with this wine but there's much dissension about it
The Rhone flight:
Allemand 1998 Cornas "Chaillot" - meat (more blood but more mi-cuit than in the Regnie) and blackberries in the expected elegant-rather-than-rustic package; really another OMG wine but Jay thinks it's slightly closed
Jamet 2006 Cote-Rotie - this wine is accompanied by ever so much sniping about the good old days and barrel programs and shark-jumping; meanwhile, the wine is recognizably Cote-Rotie if a bit glossy and a bit low acid (though that last is a vintage hallmark); I'm happy to drink this
Wind Gap 2006 Syrah - presented in a brown paper bag as Myster Wine #1; if I didn't have two Old World exemplars right here I would have said this was Rhone: there was adequate acidity and earthy flavors not buried in jam; and yet it is slightly too simple: it has the right outline but it isn't filled-in properly; I blind-test a couple of people at the table and no one is mistaken
The Nebbiolo flight:
Cantalupo 2000 Ghemme "Collis Breclemae" - (other grapes are allowed but this is 100% nebbiolo); a third OMG wine: uncompromisingly dry, austere, middling tannic; it's true it doesn't have the high-wire tension or complexity of Barolo but like the Cuvee Cot it reminds me of the experience (but not the flavors!) inhaling deeply from a bag of freshly-ground coffee
Sella 1999 Lessona "Omaggio a Quintino" - warmer than the Ghemme, more red-fruited, maybe a whiff of wood (barrel? stems?); for me, more beautiful than thrilling
It's a school night so we don't open any of the other bottles ready to hand, even though there's Overnoy and Monprivato just a few feet away. Twenty seems like enough for now.
Except for one dessert wine:
Huet 1995 Vouvray "Cuvee Constance" - as with the other Huet wine tonight this is flavor and character and grace played fortissimo; the wine shows no hint of anything resembling decay or even maturity but 16 years has modulated the incisive acid edge just a wee bit
I really have to come to Seattle more often if you folks are going to pour like this.
Thank you, one and all, for a warm welcome and a great evening.
(And, Marc, thanks for the eggs!)