TN: Dinner at Ping's (April 21, 2019)

Jeff Grossman

Jeff Grossman
attendees: David L, Gil B, Brett L, Greg K, Cheryl M, Jay, Jeff

Ping's Seafood has a big table in back for us. I am spot on time and the last one to show up. Sigh.

Not the usual bunch of Disorderlies - these are nice, regular people. Still inveterate drunks and self-promoters but you know.

There is Peking Duck but also plates heaped with roast quail. The famous 'live shrimp' saute and a few good fish dishes round out the menu.

Not one of us drank tea. Imagine that.

Pol Roger 2006 Champagne Brut "Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill" - beautiful in a sturdy (manly?) way: taut, fresh, heavily pinot, austere, should only get better with some more age

Nikolaihof 2002 Steinriesler Riesling - transparent, light as a feather, just barely ripe, green grapes and cream and something spice-like, soothing to drink a wine so pleasing

Muller-Catoir 2005 Haardter Burgergarten Riesling Spatlese - 51740791506; sweet and acidy but out of balance: the middle goes all flat and the finish disappears, eh performance

Pinon 2017 Vouvray "Deronnieres" - intense, just barely apricot and a hit of orange oil, a few grains of sugar, crisp and vivid, very young so no wax and wool

Dom. Bernard-Bonin 2014 Meursault VV - a proper Disorderly estate, this is nice enough but I never went back to it, others told me it opened up later

Dom. Pavelot 2009 Savigny-les-Beaunes 1er "La Dominode" - red-fruit and dry earth, quite ripe but nicely judged, a tad low-acid so not as shapely as I'd like

Arcadian 1997 Pinot Noir, "Pisoni Vineyard" - storage death, maderized all to hell

Dom. A. Guyon 2002 Corton GC "Clos du Roy" - mature, robust, and lovely! signature Corton red cherries and mud (and, here, just a few brown leaves), we all agree it is a treat to have mature Corton (because mostly we can't keep our hands off it)

Arrowood 1996 Cabernet Sauvignon - not the Special Reserve; 13.8% and "a minimum of 23 months in French and American oak"; for all that, this is actually rather delicate and nimble

Prieure St Jean de Bebian 2009 Coteaux du Languedoc - rustic, tannic, aggressive but a bit of age has rounded the corners some and buffed the dark-fruited core

Thank you to Jay, who organized, and to everyone for a very pleasant and fun evening.
 
originally posted by Jeff Grossman:

Not one of us drank tea. Imagine that.

Not sure if there is a backstory to this observation, but as I have gotten older my tolerance for caffeine has sharply declined. I lived in Japan when I was 22 and I used to drink tea all day and night. During dinner, after dinner, no problem.

Now, I don't touch the stuff!
 
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