What did you drink tonight?

originally posted by Rahsaan:
Speaking of Mr. Edmunds, I ordered a 2005 ESJ Bassetti tonight to show some UK friends what your wines could do. Still evolving but the glory was there and they were convinced. More exciting than the 2012 Donnhoff Leistenberg Kabinett or the 2012 Cornelissen Munjabel Rosso 9, both of which were very convincing in their own right.
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Yes to this. A recent physical inventory turned up 2 bottles of Bassetti. I am quite pleased.
 
Baudry-Dutour 2005 Chinon "Coteau des Chenanceaux" - Yes, spelled with an 'a' in the middle. If I understand it arights this Baudry is the first cousin of Mathieu and he runs one of the larger wineries in Chinon. Ira, whom some of you may know, poured this in the cave today. He said it was a purchase from Garagiste. The wine was inky and dark, its color would not suggest it was 9 years old. The nose lacks any beauty. The palate reminds me of standing at a blackboard... you can smell the stony surface, inhale the chalk dust, and feel a slight bitter tang. If it was just closed, it did not open up in 30 minutes, which was all the time I had to give it. I suggested to Ira that he buy a young fruity Chinon and mix the two. (Nod of the hat to Yixin.)
 
2002 Rollin Pernand-Vergelesses Ile de Vergelesses: Pungent leather aroma, clarifying, high-toned acidity, fine-grained tannins, appreciable intensity and a touch of earth. Very clear and well-defined. A fine bottle, very Pernand, though pairing with grilled NY strip steak was sub-optimal. Probably better with chicken or, maybe, veal. Uncorked several hours before drinking.

2002 Leitz Magdelenenkreutz Spaetlese: Has shed some of its sugary sweetness, more earth and mineral apparent, more body shows than in youth. A good, middle-weight Rheingau. I think I would like these wines drier, relative to MSR renditions, fwiw.
 
Ian, my all time favorite pairing with Burgundy of the red-fruited sort has been with game birds (!= duck). Squab is da bomb and I'd guess that grouse would be sublime.

VLM- what you said. And, as our lunch amply demonstrated beer and mezcal can stand in in a pinch.

Mark Lipton
 
originally posted by MLipton:
Ian, my all time favorite pairing with Burgundy of the red-fruited sort has been with game birds (!= duck). Squab is da bomb and I'd guess that grouse would be sublime.

VLM- what you said. And, as our lunch amply demonstrated beer and mezcal can stand in in a pinch.

Mark Lipton
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quail too is great with red burg.
 
Thanks, Mark and Bill. I'm such a bumpkin, I have hardly any - correction, no - experience with game birds, save some passing encounters with said duck. Probably high time I rectified this situation.

I have a couple of bottles of the Rollin still; if you pass within striking distance of Culpeper some time, perhaps we can work out a trial.
 
originally posted by VLM:
originally posted by Steve Edmunds:
drinking a 1998 Cotes-du-Rhone-Villages from Domaine Sainte-Anne, and am humbled at the sense that I'd nearly forgotten how lovely this wine is. Largely Grenache with a little Mourvedre and Syrah, and a very small amount of Cinsault. Though far beyond the charms it offered in its primary, youthful state around the early '00s, it has not lost a bit of freshness, and it's wonderfully beguiling in its more mature state. Plenty of grip, and intensity to match the ripeness of '98, with impeccable balance, and grace. Fabulous with a roasted chicken and salad, on a warm night in March, in drought-stricken California.
Must have cost all of $10 or $11 at retail, on release.
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Yes. Those wines are a memory now, but a fond one.
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Anyone tasted the more recent releases in a while? Compelling still? Not the deal they once were, but looks like RWC is importing currently.
 
originally posted by Brian C:
originally posted by VLM:
originally posted by Steve Edmunds:
drinking a 1998 Cotes-du-Rhone-Villages from Domaine Sainte-Anne, and am humbled at the sense that I'd nearly forgotten how lovely this wine is. Largely Grenache with a little Mourvedre and Syrah, and a very small amount of Cinsault. Though far beyond the charms it offered in its primary, youthful state around the early '00s, it has not lost a bit of freshness, and it's wonderfully beguiling in its more mature state. Plenty of grip, and intensity to match the ripeness of '98, with impeccable balance, and grace. Fabulous with a roasted chicken and salad, on a warm night in March, in drought-stricken California.
Must have cost all of $10 or $11 at retail, on release.
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Yes. Those wines are a memory now, but a fond one.
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Anyone tasted the more recent releases in a while? Compelling still? Not the deal they once were, but looks like RWC is importing currently.
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I've had the '06 and '09,(both the St. Gervais cuvée) both good, needing time.
 
2002 W. Fevre Grand Cru Chablis Bougros, Lovely nose of sherry. There has never been an explanation of that period of white burgs. But as a retailer it's been more than a pain in the ass.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
"That period" is now, Lou.
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The sale of white burgs has fallen in our store the last few years, no doubt to how the wines are perceived by the public. Still waiting for an explanation, hard to believe that nobody knows why.
 
2002 Roumier Chambolle - in a very nice place right on the cusp of mature with good fruit showing, balanced and quite tasty with Le Diplomate's roast chicken.
 
Pinot Noir Willamette Vlly Yamhill-Carlton Estate 2009, Belle Pente: medium light garnet color with a pale rim; complex aroma of ripe cherry-grenadine fruit with woodsy-cola-spice notes; medium body, ripe roast cherry-pomegranate fruit with a brown sugar tone, mellow in middle, but dry pithy-woodsy tannins creep up in long finish. By the next day it had mellowed, matured in a good way with velvety texture and the bitter-stemmy-cola woodsiness becoming more truffly-forest floor. Good stuff; the warmth of the vintage shows up in the roast-cherry brown sugar edged fruit, but by no means is this overripe or alcoholic.
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
2002 Rollin Pernand-Vergelesses Ile de Vergelesses: Pungent leather aroma, clarifying, high-toned acidity, fine-grained tannins, appreciable intensity and a touch of earth. Very clear and well-defined. A fine bottle, very Pernand, though pairing with grilled NY strip steak was sub-optimal. Probably better with chicken or, maybe, veal. Uncorked several hours before drinking.
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love what the guy did in 02, but based on other Cru

picked his '10 charlemagne off a list in beaune last night - vintage amplifies just enough for some glorious young GC juice consumption (see lou & sfjoe exchange above)
 
originally posted by .sasha:


picked his '10 charlemagne off a list in beaune last night - vintage amplifies just enough for some glorious young GC juice consumption (see lou & sfjoe exchange above)
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Where are you tasting and dining? I am headed there in may!
 
It was more like what did I drink this weekend...

Sat. night was a friend's 70th birthday dinner. Since there were 12 of us, we brought magnums (and a few 750s).

From Magnum:
(2011) Les Capriades "Pepin a Bulles": 100% Chardonnay from Touraine. Imported by those guys at Selection Massale. Zippy with a slight fresh herbs component. Really nice.

1998 Domaine Drouhine "Laurene" Pinot Noir: This had some acidity which gave the wine a nice freshness. Very easy to drink.

2008 Beaux Freres "Beaux Freres" Vineyard: The fruit quality was good, but too much oak

1974 Sterling Reserve Cab Sauv: Just freaking incredible. Everything one could want from old school Napa Valley Cab. The friend who brought this had completely forgotten he had it until he looked in his magnum cases last month. Buried treasure!

The 750 of note was 1974 Mount Eden Cab Sauv. Last bottle from the cellar with the Sterling mag. Fill down into the bottle. I bet there were 2-3 ounces missing. We thought it would be a science experiment. Wrong. After 5 min. in the glass, it just blossomed. It tasted younger than the Sterling, but not quite as complex.

Yesterday was the Ridge 2013 Montebello Components and First Assemblage tasting. That is going to be a great vintage for Montebello. A lot of folks I know bring picnic provisions and all manner of older Ridge wines. I took the "group" photo of 20 of them, but there were probably closer to 25.

* by the more interesting wines (not that the others were bad) No corked or over-the-hill bottles!

'70 Occidental Zin * I had this late last year. This bottle was just as good.
'72 Coast Range Zin *
'76 York Creek Zin *
'76 Cab/Merlot Montebello *
'78 Montebello Zin
'79 Shenendoah Zin *
'80 Langtry Road Claret *
'81 Mendocino Cab
'83 Howell Mtn Cab *
'89 Montebello
'92 York Creek Petite Sirah *
'95 Montebello * (still way too young)
'95 Jimsomare Cab *
'97 Dynamite Hill Petite Sirah
'99 Geyserville *
'02 Pato Mataro
'02 Lytton Estate Petite Sirah
'04 Geyserville *
'04 Nervo Zin *
'05 CA Syrah/Grenache
'06 SCM Chardonnay
'07 Pagani Ranch Zin
'12 Estate Chardonnay
 
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