Wine at the Table

Top ten places to eat in Paris

2010-05-10T00:00:00+00:00

Top ten places to eat in Paris

10 May 2010

I’m often being asked for restaurant recommendations in Paris. Following are the 10 I’d most recommend. Wine cost refers to how much you should expect to pay per bottle for a good experience. You can see by the rest of the site what I call a good experience with respect to wine.

Fine Dining

Best three star restaurant: Pierre Gagnaire

Summary: Superb, intellectual food, impeccable service, sumptuous surroundings.
Style: Nouvelle Cuisine/Molecular Gastronomy
Wine list depth: Top estates/domaines of France but only recent vintages.
Food cost: 100...

The great champagnes of Cedric Bouchard

2009-12-23T00:00:00+00:00

The great champagnes of Cedric Bouchard

23 December 2009

I’ve been a huge fan of Cedric Bouchard’s Wines since their initial release. He makes refined, pure, vinous champagnes that, to my taste, reach for the peak of what champagne can be.

Gen and I joined Ian Westcott (the Australian importer) for a tasting in Cedric’s cellar at Celles-sur-Ource in the Aube, southern Champagne. Cedric is young, enthusiastic, happy to part with information in detail. Unlike many of renowned next-generation vignerons, he doesn’t try and cultivate an aura of mystery or a sense of madness. Rather, he’s a very...

The wines of Maison Alex Gambal

2009-09-20T00:00:00+00:00

The wines of Maison Alex Gambal

20 September 2009

The wines of Maison Alex Gambal, at Beaune, are a favourite chez nous. While they are rarely wines of great emotion, they are almost always pretty and pleasurable.

I’ve tasted several wines from the 2006, 2007 and 2008 vintages I see excellent consistency. Some special wines have emerged.

The Bourgogne Rouge Cuvée des Deux Papis is excellent for the appellation: multi-dimensional, great as an aperitif wine and a wine to have with a meal. The Bourgogne Cuvée des Deux Papis 2007 is an exceptional pretty wine, pure pinot on the...

The Beaujolais New Wave: Roland Pignard

2009-05-31T00:00:00+00:00

The Beaujolais New Wave: Roland Pignard

31 May 2009

Roland and Joëlle Pignard run the newly certified organic Domaine Roland Pignard at Saint Joseph, above Villié Morgon.

The domaine was officially certified organic by Ecocert in 2007, having started the process of certification in 2004. The Pignards are friendly, softly spoken, relaxed and proud of their organic conversion. The domaine is only four hectares, small for Beaujolais. This yields 18,000 bottles, that is 45 hl/ha, also low for Beaujolais. The...

Recent wines from François Mikulski, Meursault

2009-05-30T00:00:00+00:00

Recent wines from François Mikulski, Meursault

30 May 2009

François Mikulski, based in Meursault, is a producer of superb quality Côte de Beaune whites and reds. François himself is a frank, intelligent wine maker. On to his wines. Most wines are from purchased grapes.

These initial wines tasted in February of 2009.

Aligoté Vieilles Vignes 2007 Picked when the skin turns pink/golden (doré/rosé), as is common on this part of the côte....

An exciting find: Aurélien Verdet

2009-05-12T00:00:00+00:00

An exciting find: Aurélien Verdet

12 May 2009

Aurélien Verdet is a young vigneron based at Arcenant in the Hautes Côtes de Nuits. Despite only being in his late 20s, Aurélien makes elegant, sophisticated wines that show, to me, a mature considered approach.

Aurélien is the son of Alain Verdet, a pioneer of organic viticulture in Burgundy. Complementing this background is his work with David Duband. Both have clearly had a strong influence.

Two domaine wines are produced, both from the Hautes...

Domaine des Croix 2007s

2009-05-09T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine des Croix 2007s

09 May 2009

David Croix is a young Beaunois vigneron making a style of wine I really enjoy: elegant, pure, organically focussed and full of character. Impressively, he runs his own boutique domaine, Domaine des Croix, whilst at the same time he is head wine maker at Maison Camille Giroud. This means that while many wine makers produce a few different wines each year, David is making upwards of 25 wines.

Domaine des Croix is young, only caming into being in 2005 when David and some private investors bought Domaine Duchet. The domaine has...

Pierre Overnoy and wild asparagus

2009-05-07T00:00:00+00:00

Pierre Overnoy and wild asparagus

07 April 2009

The wines of Maison Overnoy are nearly unique in many ways. Firstly, they’re amongst the greatest wines being produced in the formerly well known and now near forgotten region of Jura. Secondly, they have inspired a revolution in French natural wine making, particularly in Champagne. Third, they’re very accessible and relatively inexpensive, given their cult status — even if that status only extends as far as French wine makers.

The wines are...

Terres et Vins de Champagne

2009-04-20T00:00:00+00:00

Terres et Vins de Champagne

20 April 2009

Terres et Vins de Champagne was an idea conceived of by Aurelien Laherte and Raphaël Bérèche to show 2008 vins clairs beside current release Champagnes. The focus was on a new generation of wine makers. Most of those present, particularly David Léclapart, Alexandre Chartogne, Pascal Agrapart and Benoît Lahaye, have a strong organic or biodyanamic approach. All seemed to seek to produce a different, more interesting, vinous style of Champagne.

It was...

Biodynamics, terroir and dirt at Vouette et Sorbée

2009-04-19T00:00:00+00:00

Biodynamics, terroir and dirt at Vouette et Sorbée

18 April 2009

Neville and I have been lucky enough today to spend three hours in the company of Bertrand Gautherot, his vines and his wines. Gautherot, a keen convert to biodynamics and one of the increasing number of boutique producers influenced by Anselme Selosse, is just beginning to become known amongst champagne lovers.

He is based at the little known village of Buxières sur Arce in the Aube. This idyllic hamlet is not really a part of the Champagne people know well — the heavily industrialised monoculture of vines...

A great find for Chablis lovers -- Domaine des Chenevières

2009-04-18T00:00:00+00:00

A great find for Chablis lovers — Domaine des Chenevières

18 April 2009

Neville made an excellent discovery in Chablis: the wines of Frédéric Gueguen, Domaine des Chenevières. Frédéric was — and is — a wine maker at Jean-Marc Brocard. He formed his own domaine in 2005. While only a young domaine, from what I have tasted this is one of the best sources for exciting Chablis.

Neville tried the range while I took a nap, naïvely dismissing the domaine after a day of...

The superb 2007s of Domaine Fourrier

2009-04-16T00:00:00+00:00

The superb 2007s of Domaine Fourrier

16 April 2009

Gen, David, Neville spent an extremely interesting afternoon with Jean Marie Fourrier looking at his 2007s.

Jean Marie imparted huge amounts of interesting information while we tasted with him. I couldn’t record all of this and enjoy the wines as well but the general theme was his keenness to find ways of making better wine through...

Lunch at la Ruchotte, Bligny-sur-Ouche

2009-04-12T00:00:00+00:00

Lunch at la Ruchotte, Bligny-sur-Ouche

12 April 2008

Today, David Croix, David Clark and Neville Yates joined us at La Ferme de la Ruchotte near Bligny sur Ouche.

This is a special restaurant, founded by Frédéric and Eva Ménager. Frédéric has worked with some of France’s great chefs, including Pierre Gagnaire. Finding a strong passion for organic and natural products, he and his wife established a farm, mostly specialising in rarely seen species of chicken. The farm also has sheep, pigs, horses, cows and goats.

It’s an isolated and tranquil area, far enough from...

Four Santenays

2009-04-01T00:00:00+00:00

Four Santenays

01 April 2008

I wanted to take a look at a few Santenays as, despite the rise and rise of quality in the region, not much attention is given to the village.

Santenay is a beautiful, prosperous village at the bottom end of the Côte d’Or. The wealth of the town is due more to its history and likely less to its current wine making focus.

Domaine Muzard Vieilles Vignes Santenay 2005
Light colour, bright and transparent, evidently not too much extraction. Spicy, lifted, floral nose, harmonious but not complex. A pleasing palate but I had...

Recent Burgundies

2009-03-17T00:00:00+00:00

Recent Burgundies

17 March 2009

Domaine Jacqueson Rully 1er Cru La Pucelle" blanc 2007
I thought that this might be suffering from being bottled recently but it was delightful. Fine minerally, citrus aromas on the nose. Obviously, very young. The palate is well balanced, crisp mouth-watering acidity and a completeness to the finish that some 2007 whites seem to be lacking. A lightness in the mouth but with length. Really enjoyable and excellent quality for the appellation.

Vincent Dureuil-Janthial Rully 1er Cru Les Cloux 2006
This was surprising, after previous bottles were so tight. I suspect some...

Maison Drouhin, Domaine Doudet-Naudin

2009-03-09T00:00:00+00:00

Maison Drouhin, Domaine Doudet-Naudin

09 March 2009

Maison Drouhin Gevrey-Chambertin 2005 Classic 2005. Excellent for a negociant wine: fresh, very juicy, beautiful acidity. Gen was moaning. Amazing for the appellation.

Domaine Doudet-Naudin Beaune 1er Cru Cents-Vignes 2002 Very acidic. Beginning to show signs of development. Not interesting though.

Marcel Lapierre, François Mikulski, Mongeard-Mugneret

2009-03-03T00:00:00+00:00

Marcel Lapierre, François Mikulski, Mongeard-Mugneret

03 March 2009

A few bottles of Marcel Lapierre Morgon 2007 in the Sun. Winter is over! What I like about this wine is not its concentration, its lush fruit, its power… It has none of these things. What it does have is absolute unblemished purity.

Then a François Mikulski Charmes 1er Cru Meursault 2004 which had seductive honey, candied lemon, lots of minerality. The palate is pretty much painfully youthful at the moment. Needs more than ten years. Will go a whole lot longer.

A most disappointing bottle of Mongeard-Mugneret Les Petits Monts...

Some recent highlights

2009-02-23T00:00:00+00:00

Some recent highlights

23 February 2009

A few excellent bottles of Marcel Lapierre Morgon 2007: bright, pure, beautiful. Delicious drinking. A dense, rich, cherry laden J.F. Mugnier Clos des Fourches 2006. A Nicolas Rossignol Volnay Ronceret 1er Cru 1999 was extremely powerful, lifted, earthy with a touch of brett. Very long in mouth. Needs time.

Selosse in Italy - Feudi di San Gregorio DUBL Greco

2009-02-18T00:00:00+00:00

Selosse in Italy – Feudi di San Gregorio DUBL Greco

18 February 2009

I tracked down a bottle of this on the weekend:

I’ll drink it soon and report.

Foillard Morgon 'Côte de Py' 2007

2009-02-18T00:00:00+00:00

Foillard Morgon ‘Côte de Py’ 2007

18 February 2009

Too much wine over the weekend but a real highlight was a Foillard Morgon “Côte de Py” 2007 in Geneva (at Le Rouge et le Blanc): a little volatile on the nose but very expressive, crisp and refreshing. The volatility of the nose actually makes it extremely flavoursome. Really great:

Just couldn’t bring myself to drink a Müller-Thurgau from Switzerland (even if it came from what must be the most beautiful wine region in the World, at Epesses).

I was served two slightly faulty wines over the...

Héritiers du Comte Lafon Macon-Uchizy 'Les Maranches' 2004

2009-02-09T00:00:00+00:00

Héritiers du Comte Lafon Macon-Uchizy ‘Les Maranches’ 2004

09 February 2009

An uninspiring wine. The nose was quite green — rare for a 2004 white — with asparagus and gooseberry mixed up with pongy sulfur. The palate had a zippy acidity to it but this was a fairly poor showing from a producer I expected to be doing a lot better.

Remoissenet Père et Fils 2007s

2009-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Remoissenet Père et Fils 2007s

07 February 2009

Remoissenet Père et Fils is a medium sized negociant in Beaune. I’ve been lucky enough to taste numerous examples of many of their wines, particularly the Corton-Charlemagne and Montrachet for which they are renowned, thanks to Fred Schilling who imports them in small quantities into Australia.

Remoissenet changed hands a few years ago and the injection of new blood and money has, in my opinion, lifted the standard, particularly in the reds. The wines are long lived and I’ve been lucky enough to drink examples from the 60s, 70s and early...

Domaine de Courcel Grand Clos des Épenots Pommard 1989

2009-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine de Courcel Grand Clos des Épenots Pommard 1989

07 February 2009

Excellent level, about 0.5 cms below the capsule. Surprisingly youthful nose: spicy baked rhubarb, remnants of oak, the smell of cold steel. Leaving it along, after two hours, it finally showed its real potential, with layers of plum, leather, coriander seed, white pepper. The palate remained quite austere. The palate was well structured but left me wanting more fruit sweetness. I chose this this over the Rugiens because it was more adapted to the chicken Gen was roasting for dinner but I think it would be better...

Goisot, David Clark

2009-02-02T00:00:00+00:00

Goisot, David Clark

02 February 2009

Also had a Domaine Goisot Chardonnay Côtes d’Auxerre 2006 which was faulty in my opinion: full of serious sulfur compounds on the nose and the palate was all over the place, hollow, sour. Followed by a Domaine David Clark Passetoutgrains 2006 which was rich, concentrated, showing a degree of interest and complexity never seen on a wine from these level.

Domaine Cathiard-Molinier Vosne-Romanée Les Malconsorts 1979

2009-01-31T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Cathiard-Molinier Vosne-Romanée Les Malconsorts 1979

31 January 2009

Nice way to start the weekend, a Domaine Cathiard-Molinier Vosne-Romanée Les Malconsorts 1979. This wine is what drinking aged red Burgundy is all about. The nose was fresh, clean, absolutely pure blackcurrant juice. If you couldn’t see the wine, you’d swear that this was crème de cassis and water, by the nose alone. The palate was much more vinous: refreshing acid, an inner glow of bright, sweet fruit. Wow. Totally resolved, fruit without tannin. Really special. This vintage has a poor reputation because it hailed at vintage and Vosne was...

Our wines over the weekend

2009-01-26T00:00:00+00:00

Our wines over the weekend

26 January 2009

On Friday with lentils, a Domaine Bart “Les Champs Salomon” Marsannay 2006. Big, worked, chocolaty oak. A little too extracted and a touch of greenness on the palate. Not my style. Poured my last glass into the marinade for dinner the next night.

Last night, a Domaine Stirn Schlossberg Grand Cru Riesling 2006 with chou farci:

Worked well with the chou, particularly the spices I added and the beef reduction.

Then with braised paleron, a Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche 2004. Rich, serious, powerful nose of leather,...

Two interesting wines

2009-01-23T00:00:00+00:00

Two interesting wines

23 January 2009

J.F. Mugnier Clos de la Maréchale 1er Cru Blanc Nuits-Saint-Georges 2006 Hmm… I can’t put my finger on what it is about Côte de Nuits blanc. They’re all weird. This is strictly for the Mugnier loves. Competently made, good acid but this would land for about $200 in AU! What was I thinking?

One interesting one, a Domaine Bonin Meursault “Les Tillets” village 1969. Lots going on, developed but still lively and very interesting. 40 year old village blanc!

Thoughts on Biodynamic Wines

2009-01-21T00:00:00+00:00

Thoughts on Biodynamic Wines

21 January 2009

I look out for people doing things very differently in the vineyard and winery: Selosse, Leclapart, Prévost, Collin, Cedric Bouchard, Vilmart in Champagne; Foillard and Lapierre in Beaujolais; Coche-Dury amongst others in Côte d’Or; Courtois and Joly amongst others in the Loire; Stéphane Tissot in Jura. Some of these people are biodynamic but not all. The first thing about biodynamics is that it necessitates organic viticulture and low yields. After a few years of this in the vineyard, you’re on your way to making good wine. Both organics and biodynamics encourage an...

Henri Delagrange

2009-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

Henri Delagrange

19 January 2009

Henri Delagrange Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes 2005 Lifted aromatics — maybe a little too volatile — of rose, coffee, cranberry juice. The nose seems to suggest it is developing even if the descriptors don’t. The palate is full bodied, long, the tannins fine, intense but not bitter. Some elements of 2005 to be enjoyed but not worth the premium the vintage commands.

Stirn, François Jobard, Mugnier

2009-01-12T00:00:00+00:00

Stirn, François Jobard, Mugnier

12 January 2009

I opened another Domaine Stirn Riesling Schlossberg Grand Cru 2006. A really beautiful wine, amazing for the year. Moderate alcohol, dry, perfect structure and excellent length. Everything you could want in a Riesling.

In interesting contrast via a François Jobard Bourgogne Blanc 2005 which will have to become my house white I think. The quality is far above the level of most Bourgogne blanc (being largely declassified young vine fruit that doesn’t go into the Meursault cuvées). Youthful colour and nose, white peach and a touch of lemon pith, excellent acid in...

Dupont Tisserandot Nuits-Saint-Georges 2006

2008-12-29T00:00:00+00:00

Dupont Tisserandot Nuits-Saint-Georges 2006

29 December 2008

Deliciously fragrant red berry fruit on the nose, what I’ve come to expect from 2006. Supple texture, more approachable than NSG is usually (a good thing). Nice stuff. Will improve over the next two years I think.

Domaine Stirn, Sigolsheim, Alsace

2008-12-28T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Stirn, Sigolsheim, Alsace

28 December 2008

Domaine Stirn is an up and coming producer in Alsace, run by intelligent vigneron and oenologue Fabien Stirn. I’ve already reported extensively on this domaine before, and background information can be found there.

Gen and I went up to Alsace to get a feel for Christmas there — kind of the European equivalent of going to another suburb to ‘see the Christmas lights’. The market at Colmar certainly was a lot more impressive than others I’ve seen, with an emphasis on artisanal products and hand made toys.

Faiveley, Selosse

2008-12-27T00:00:00+00:00

Faiveley, Selosse

27 December 2008

A bunch of wine in Alsace and Beaune but the stand outs:

Faiveley Musigny 1998 (number 110 of 149) Amazingly powerful nose, pine cones, rich blackberry and cranberry jam making aromas, five spice, all framed by top quality oak. The palate is still extremely youthful. Lots of fine tannin — very little of the hardness one associates with Faiveley. Unending finish… my mouth and nose were full of the flavours and aromas of this wine minutes after swallowing. An amazing wine.

Selosse Contraste Brut Blanc de Noirs Masterful! Just as interesting as the Faiveley....

Vieux Télégraphe, Méo-Camuzet, Domaine David Clark

2008-12-22T00:00:00+00:00

Vieux Télégraphe, Méo-Camuzet, Domaine David Clark

22 December 2008

Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape blanc 2007 Extremely lifted upon opening: mandarin, white flowers, lemon. Powerful, long palate. Over a few hours, it closed up a lot and was less enjoyable.

Méo-Camuzet Frères et Soeurs Marsannay 2006 Awesome! Amazing for the appellation. Beautiful, lifted, juicy fruit. Modern style, deft oak handling. A pleasure to drink. Better than the 2005!

Domaine David Clark 2007s Looking very good, excellent acid and balance. 2007 looks like another pretty good year, if you go with good producers. Also took a peak at the 2008s which have...

Roumier, Rapet, Stéphane Tissot

2008-12-17T00:00:00+00:00

Roumier, Rapet, Stéphane Tissot

17 December 2008

Domaine G. Roumier Clos de la Bussière 1er Cru Morey-Saint-Denis 2006 Sweet, oak framed nose. Changing constantly in the glass over a few hours. Palate a little more rustic than the nose with slightly bitter tannins and prickly acidity. This should come together with time. That said, this is more Chambolle than Morey in style and much more modern than previous years.

Rapet Père et Fils Pernand Vergelesses Île-de-Vergelesses 1990 Very youthful colour and nose. Atypical for 1990, soft resolved notes of undergrowth, dried cherry and spice on the nose. Palate beginning...

Cave Bienvenu, Mugnier

2008-12-07T00:00:00+00:00

Cave Bienvenu, Mugnier

07 December 2008

Cave Bienvenu Irancy 2006 Pronounced nose of pure Pinot. Palate is almost New World like.

J.F. Mugnier Clos Des Fourches Nuits-Saint-Georges 2006 Wow! Explosive, sweet, seductive nose, replete with raspberry and cassis aromas backed by cedar and spicy oak notes. The palate is superb. Long, luxurious, mouth filling. Amazing for the appellation. I could drink this every day and not tire of it. Amazing effort. Great now and over the next 4 years. I think it would be a shame to drink this without this beautiful primary fruit.

Bouchard, Morot, Rodet

2008-12-05T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard, Morot, Rodet

05 December 2008

Had a Bouchard Père et Fils Volnay 1er Cru 2003. An interesting wine: shows the year on the nose with strawberry (good) but also coffee, chocolate and plum. The palate had a beautiful supple texture, not much tannin and a viscosity one rarely/never sees in Burgundy. Drinking nicely now, a good wine for the vintage but not something I’d like to drink regularly.

Also drunk this week, a Morot Santenay 2000, which looked very youthful at first but then took on an aroma of prune. Then a Rodet Hautes Côtes de Beaune 2005...

Vin bio at Aux Crieurs de Vin

2008-12-03T00:00:00+00:00

Vin bio at Aux Crieurs de Vin

03 December 2008

The weather was shocking in Burgundy, hovering around -4C in Beaune so Gen and I headed North to Troyes in the south of Champagne, where the weather was forecast to be a lot warmer.

Troyes is a beautiful, ancient town near the Aube. It isn’t a wine town but it is renowned for the tripe sausage andouillette. The highly Germanic architecture makes for a better photo though:

This guild emblem by an old wine store opposite the cathedral of Troyes (love the Catholics) was also great:
...

Beaujolais Nouveau

2008-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

Beaujolais Nouveau

24 November 2008

Beaujolais Nouveau at Bar du Square in Beaune.

The Beaujolais Nouveau is made by one of the best producers in the region, Marcel Lapierre. It was soft, fruity, lip smackingly acid, very fresh, like a barrel sample. None of those awful overtones of bubblegum. Very good for what it is.

Moved to something a little more serious with a Pierre Matrot Auxey-Duresses rouge 2004. This started off a little green but after decanting showed spice and complexity that I really enjoyed. A well made, interesting wine.

I was a little more...

Bouchard, Ramonet

2008-11-19T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard, Ramonet

19 November 2008

Domaine Bouchard Père et Fils Le Corton 2000 Took a while to show, but then had a lot to say: powerful, masculine wine with an inner core of sweetness. Needs even more time.

Domaine Ramonet Chassange-Montrachet Boudriotte 1er Cru 2004 Drunk at Le Comptoir des Tontons with superb food, this was a fascinating wine. I wonder how much it would divide people: the nose still shows strong oak influence as well as sulfur, but the material underneath is so impressive. I’m convinced that this will all integrate. The palate was positively tannic. The cork...

A round-up of wines drunk recently

2008-11-09T00:00:00+00:00

A round-up of wines drunk recently

09 November 2008

Catching up on things I’ve had in the last few weeks:

Salon Blanc de Blancs 1988 Beautiful and mature now. Needed 45 minutes to really show itself. Nutty, preserved lemon, cinnamon, great complexity. Beautiful resolution to the palate. A real treat.

Moillard Santenay 2005 Extremely underwhelming. Insipid. How do they stay in business?

Bouchard Père et Fils Bourgogne rouge 2006 Simple and reliable wine. More interesting the second day.

Gabriel Meffre Clos de Cyprès Vacqueyras 2005 Really nice wine for drinking and enjoying over lunch. Extremely affordable.
...

The picture says it all

2008-10-25T00:00:00+00:00

The picture says it all

25 October 2008

Brief notes on a few wines

2008-10-20T00:00:00+00:00

Brief notes on a few wines

20 October 2008

Hoddles Creek Pinot Noir 2007 Very young, took a bit of time to open up. With time you could see its potential, needs 3 years.

Roda I 2001 Simply too young, very tight, very nice structure but far from its peak. Wait a long time.

Gulf Station Yarra Valley Pinot Noir 2007 Fine for what it is. Good value but I’d prefer spending a few more dollars for Hoddles Creek.

Dinner at Bistrode

2008-10-08T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Bistrode

08 October 2008

An impromptu dinner at Bistrode in Surry Hills with Gen, Oli, Cam and recently returned Neville. I was surprised when Neville suggested Bistrode, having heard his repulsion at the idea of andouillette (lamb offal sausage). Bistrode is known for just this kind of food, so I was happy to see Nev progressing beyond prime meat cut. Unfortunately (for him?), it was just that he hadn’t actually looked at the menu!

We started with a very interesting de Sousa Cuvée des Caudalies Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs. This is a very interesting wine, made...

An ordinary weekend for wine

2008-10-07T00:00:00+00:00

An ordinary weekend for wine

07 October 2008

Egly-Ouriet Vieillissement Prolongé (aged 61 months on lees, disgorged June 2006) disappointing, closed and not giving anything at all. I’ve had sensational bottles of this but this bottle wasn’t one.

Lindemans Pyrus 1996 (mag) At a good point right now, but a lot of lumber in there. Good weight though.

Rockford Basket Press 2002 Slightly oxidised, dodgy cork.

So, not a great weekend!

Yet another fabulous lunch at Sojourn

2008-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

Yet another fabulous lunch at Sojourn

26 September 2008

Wow. Sojourn is such a great little restaurant. After my recent trip to Bistro Ortolan which, in my mind, stole a hat from Sojourn I was very keen to compare the two. The fact is, Sojourn is very far ahead no matter how you look at it. If you haven’t been, I cannot recommend more highly that you go.

We started with a Bollinger Grande Année 1995. This bottle didn’t make the year look so great. The wine lacked harmony. I’ve seen this on a few other...

Dinner at Bistro Ortolan

2008-09-24T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Bistro Ortolan

24 September 2008

Bistro Ortolan, in Leichhardt, was recently promoted to two hats. My previous experiences of the restaurant didn’t warrant such a standing so it was time to see what had changed.

Fred wanted us to take a look at a few vintages of Remoissenet, the producer he imports into Australia.

We started with a Champagne Milan Cuvée Symphorine 2002, a blanc de blancs. An easy drinking aperitif style, not for aging. Popular at the table but I didn’t like the peculiar asparagus/green edge — in 2002!

We moved on to...

Domaine de la Janasse Terre d'Argile Côtes du Rhône-Villages 2005

2008-09-19T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine de la Janasse Terre d’Argile Côtes du Rhône-Villages 2005

19 September 2008

A very good wine for the appellation! Rich, concentrated, great power and length. Expensive for the level but not for the quality. Very enjoyable.

Lindemans Limestone coast 1996 magnum

2008-09-18T00:00:00+00:00

Lindemans Limestone coast 1996 magnum

18 September 2008

Lindemans Limestone Coast 1996 magnum Went out for some Hungarian food last night and decided I needed a magnum for my giant veal knuckle. This was a good wine: savoury, beautiful acidity and balance. Sure, not too complex, a little oak, but all up a nice drink. Ready now.

The restaurant was Corner 75.

Tyrrells Vat 1 1999

2008-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

Tyrrells Vat 1 1999

15 September 2008

Finally beginning to show some fruit, this wine. A little honey comb and preserved lemon but with decades ahead of it. Really should be holding off until at least 2020 IMHO.

Dinner with some great wines

2008-09-13T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner with some great wines

13 September 2008

Dinner at Fred’s place in Drummoyne with Gen, Fred and Ian.

We commenced with a M. Grünhäuser Riesling Kabinett 1998 which was a little pongy (sulfur) but had great poise and amazing youthfulness.

The Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 1996 appears to be in an ugly stage, a little dull on the nose, unyielding on the palate. Wait a while.

The Remoissenet Corton-Charlemagne 2001 had a beautiful citrus and mineral character, combined with a resiny pine cone aroma that is integrated nicely. With the crumbed lambs brains, this was superb: the spicy...

Mini Restaurant Crawl

2008-09-05T00:00:00+00:00

Mini Restaurant Crawl

05 September 2008

Offlines at two restaurants last night.

We started at Sakana-ya which continues to provide excellent quality authentic Japanese food. Consider this battera zushi which one rarely sees, even in Japan:

With it we drank a Billecart-Salmon NV which had about 3 years extra cellar age. Lifted toasty brioche aromas, pleasant on the palate but a little too sweet for the food.

We then opened a Hoddles Creek Chardonnay 2005 which was quite oaky with the food. It’s still in good condition, beginning to show a little secondary development.

Sake turned...

Brief notes on a few wines

2008-08-29T00:00:00+00:00

Brief notes on a few wines

29 August 2008

Pol Roger NV (dis 2005) – nice aperitif
Pieropan Calvarino Soave 2006 – pleasant on the nose but not very interesting on the palate
O. Leflaive Meursault-Charmes 1999 – very good for the vintage, rich but poised.
Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre 1990 – shows the glass of Lafon but seen better days.

Faiveley Les St Georges 1er 1986 – typical aged Faiveley: iron fillings and pine cones as either Mark or Danny said. Good.
Isole e Olena Syrah 1995 – terrible
Henri...

Laroche, Guigal, André Brunel

2008-08-21T00:00:00+00:00

Laroche, Guigal, André Brunel

21 August 2008

Domaine Laroche Les Blanchots 2002 At an awkward stage now. Wait.

Guigal Côtes du Rhône 2000 Very interesting, spicy, aged. Nice wine.

André Brunel Côtes du Rhône 2000 Lots of variation across 3 bottles. One impressive, the others mediocre.

In the US right now

2008-08-03T00:00:00+00:00

In the US right now

03 August 2008

I’m in the US at the moment.

Z.D. Vineyards Pinot Noir 2006 Quite New World in style but pretty and pleasant to drink. About $15. Good.

Chalone Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005 Very resiny, reminds me a lot of Calera — which is just down the road. Shows the same heat as it as well. The drought conditions that have affected this area for so many years are really pushing this wine in a direction I don’t like: blood, port, burnt aromas. Obviously well made just not very enjoyable.

Drunk at Betelnut...

A bunch of wines at Atelier

2008-07-24T00:00:00+00:00

A bunch of wines at Atelier

24 July 2008

At Atelier last night with Nicolas, Cam, Mark, Neville, Fred and Gen we took a look at a few bottles.

We started very well with a Vilmart Cœur de Cuvée 1997. This was a fabulous wine of amazing subtlety and charm. The superb structure of the of the wine meant you immediately had to look at it seriously. The wine is in between primary and secondary development, a stage I love, and displays a kind of timelessness. I doubt any but Vilmart enthusiasts could pick this as a ’97.

Things...

Turkey Flat Shiraz 2001

2008-07-23T00:00:00+00:00

Turkey Flat Shiraz 2001

23 July 2008

Starting to look quite good now. I’m not sure why but I got talked into buying a case of this on release and this is the first bottle of 4 that has been… collected and integrated. Still young and seems to come out of a rough patch. I do wish the alcohol was lower though… I stumbled getting off the couch after finishing this.

Heymann Löwenstein, Geantet-Pansiot, Roger Sabon

2008-07-20T00:00:00+00:00

Heymann Löwenstein, Geantet-Pansiot, Roger Sabon

20 July 2008

Heymann Löwenstein Winninger Uhlen Riesling 1999 Very Burgundian like minerality to this wine but not much else. Too old?

Domaine Geantet-Pansiot Charmes-Chambertin 2000 Expressive nose and palate, lots of raspberries and black berry fruit notes, good structure and delicious acid.

Domaine Roger Sabon et Fils “Les Secret des Sabon” 1996 Lifted white pepper and dried beef on the nose, fine texture to the palate but not very exciting. Didn’t show the class or complexity you would expect from a super cuvée.

All wines drunk from appalling glassware (beer glasses in fact)...

Danny's birthday celebrations at Tetsuya's

2008-07-13T00:00:00+00:00

Danny’s birthday celebrations at Tetsuya’s

13 July 2008

As has already been previewed, Danny opened some amazing wines to celebrate his birthday at Tetsuya’s.

We began with a brace of fabulous Champagnes: a Krug 1981 and a Krug 1982:

The 1981 immediately showed a classic Krug character: extremely assertive on the nose and palate, lots of crème brûlée, vanilla, hazelnuts, aged oak, preserved lemon and an indescribable finesse and sophistication despite the innate power. The 1982 was initially quite closed but opened as it warmed. It showed more coffee and chocolate aromas, tied together on the...

Marque reopening

2008-07-11T00:00:00+00:00

Marque reopening

11 July 2008

Marque closed (very) briefly recently to do some renovations (where?) so Neville thought that we had better go and check it out – none of us having been there for a little while.

The restaurant seems the same as before but the food is a notch above what I remember.

We got things underway quickly with a Selosse “Substance” (disg. June 6 2005). The nose was typical of Selosse, with lots of oxidative character, reminiscent of Vin Jaune. The palate took some time to build. I was very surprised by its dryness. With time,...

Les Truffes, I Tartufi

2008-07-06T00:00:00+00:00

Les Truffes, I Tartufi

06 July 2008

Thanks to the Périgord truffles of Tasmania and a friend, Fred Schilling, I came into three good sized truffles fresh from the Tasmanian soil. It was time for some proper cooking, eating and drinking.

On Friday evening we assembled at David and Nicole’s. We commenced with a delicious Max Ferd Richter Estate Riesling 2004. Wow. Superb purity and a weight beyond it’s mere QbA class. Excellent balance of mouth watering acidity and refreshing sugar. As an aperitif wine, hard to beat.

We then took a look at a Vilmart et Cie Cuvée...

The quiet before the storm

2008-07-04T00:00:00+00:00

The quiet before the storm

04 July 2008

Quiet week, didn’t want to over do it before the weekend.

However, last night I took a delivery of freshly dug up Tasmanian truffles with a bottle of Desaunay-Bissey Gevrey-Chambertin 2002 which was a soft, elegant wine, what all entry level pinot should be like. We drank it with green asparagus in butter and truffle sauce, fresh pasta with truffle omlettes and quail stuffed with truffles.

The truffles are looking good, very perfumed. Quality now seems more or less on par with France.

Sydney Fish Market & Restaurant Sojourn

2008-06-28T00:00:00+00:00

Sydney Fish Market & Restaurant Sojourn

28 June 2008

Lunch at the fish markets with a Heymann-Löwenstein Schieferterrassen 2001. Just superb. Very fine nose of linden, preserved lemons and baked apples. The palate had great structure. Very long with a hint of vanilla. Great riesling.

Then a meal at Sojourn in Balmain. Wow. These guys are still on form, even better than I remembered. Superb.

We began with an excellent bottle of Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese 1994. Classic Mosel style, very fine aromatics. Hitting maturity now. The palate long and precise. Great quality.

Then,...

Dinner at Atelier

2008-06-20T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Atelier

20 June 2008

Well, now that my head is clearing, I recall a few wines drunk last night at Atelier with Cam, Chris, Rhiannan, Phil, Neville and Danny.

Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2005 Intense nose of passion fruit, citrus, hay, spice and good quality oak. Poised palate with great acidity. Some heat on the finish but the fruit is all there. Will be great wine.

Dönnhoff Spätlese 2006 (unsure on vineyard). Well, after swearing off Dönnhoff on the weekend, this blew me away. A remarkable finesse and subtlety. A hidden complexity I have literally never...

A lovely set of wines

2008-06-16T00:00:00+00:00

A lovely set of wines

16 June 2008

Michel Gros “Clos des Réas” 1er Cru Vosne-Romanée 1998 Earthy, meaty style. I’ve had this wine a few times before. This bottle didn’t show the Vosne spiciness I usually see but the last bottle was more than a year ago. Still primary, plenty of time left. Good.

Domaine Pousse d’Or “Clos de la Bousse d’Or” 1er Cru Volnay 1993 Took a long time to coax this wine out of its hiding place, but it revealed after an hour some nice undergrowth, prune, spiciness and dried currant aromas. Well balanced palate. Soft...

Shadowfax, Hoddles Creek

2008-06-09T00:00:00+00:00

Shadowfax, Hoddles Creek

09 June 2008

Shadowfax Chardonnay 2004 More in the style I prefer Chardonnay to be, softer and more elegant than most in Australia. Unfortunately, the palate wanted for a little more acidity/structure and the fruit was a little dominated by the high quality oak. If the fruit and structure were there, I could wait for the oak to integrate further but this bottle seemed like an earlier drinker.

Hoddles Creek Pinot Noir 2005 Delicious pinot noir, quite expressive, pretty fruits in the strawberry spectrum. Complete. Drinking nicely now. Really opened up over an hour.

Magnien, d'Yquem, Druet

2008-05-27T00:00:00+00:00

Magnien, d’Yquem, Druet

27 May 2008

J P Magnien Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru 2003 Not a vintage I like but it was time to have another good. Light, almost elegant but a smokiness that points to the vintage. With time, this smokiness takes on a very slight burntness — but nothing compared to what I’ve seen else where. The 2003s have been really weird and I think they’ll continue to be. Acceptable wine but just lacking in complexity.

Chateau d’Yquem 1994 Drunk over two days. First night, ungiving and one dimension. Couldn’t drink it, it was just alcohol. Second night,...

Time to relax after so much work

2008-05-21T00:00:00+00:00

Time to relax after so much work

21 May 2008

Insanely large amount of wine over the last few days after a few busy weeks where I had time for wine.

Thursday night at Racines I had a superb food and wine combination: a vin naturel (no sulfur, very minimal wine making) from Claude Courtois, the father of natural wine making in France. The wine was a blend of three varieties and had been intentionally affected by flor, of the variety used in Sherry. The nose was of rare purity, like the first apples and pears of the season....

Prévost La Closerie Les Béguines Brut Nature

2008-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

Prévost La Closerie Les Béguines Brut Nature

01 May 2008

Jérôme Prévost is a one time student of Anselme Selosse and you can see the effect of his experience chez Selosse in this wine. The wine is produced in painfully small quantities — 4000 to 5000 bottles a year — and this bottle was a 2004 disgorgement. This nose showed the worked oxidative style of Selosse but not as over the top. More like a richer Corton Charlemagne or Meursault. The palate has amazing acidity which demands food but it drops away a little too quickly. Something makes me...

J.F. Coche-Dury Les Caillerets at Les Ambassadeurs

2008-04-28T00:00:00+00:00

J.F. Coche-Dury Les Caillerets at Les Ambassadeurs

28 April 2008

My folks actually treated me to a bottle of J.F. Coche-Dury “Les Caillerets” Meursault 1er Cru 1999 at the two star Les Ambassadeurs. This wine was typically Coche-Dury on the nose but I found it lacking on the palate. I’ve not had it before so I do not know if this was a representative bottle. The convivial nature of meal and the fact that my parents prefer to drink with than analyze it, I saw no reason to discuss it with the sommelier.

The restaurant is superb. Set in...

Bouchard Père et fils Monthelie Clos les Champs Fullot 2005

2008-04-19T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard Père et fils Monthelie Clos les Champs Fullot 2005

19 April 2008

Louis Roederer NV Correct

Bouchard Père et fils Monthelie Clos les Champs Fullot 2005
Awesome, great purity and richness. Just a drop on my tongue was enough. I licked the glass.

Domaine Arretxea Hegoxuri 2005

2008-04-14T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Arretxea Hegoxuri 2005

14 April 2008

Domaine Arretxea “Hegoxuri” 2005 (Irouléguy) The unfamiliar words comprising the name of this wine come from Basque, as does this wine. It is a blend of Gros Manseng (55%), Petite Manseng (35%) and Petit Courbu (10%). For the curious, the names of the grapes in Basque are Izkiriota, Izkiriota Itipia and Xuri Zerratia respectively.

The wine has a hint of oxidative handling to the nose as well as a little botrytise. That said, he has a very lifted grapey character. The palate is minerally with prickly acidity, likely no malo here. There’s...

Mas de Daumas Gassac rouge 2005

2008-04-12T00:00:00+00:00

Mas de Daumas Gassac rouge 2005

12 April 2008

Snuck a Mas de Daumas Gassac rouge 2005 in. The first growth of the south. A great wine with elegant cassis and mulberry aromas giving way to spice and roast beef. Great balance to the palate. Fine, soft tannins, refreshing acidity. What most Bordeaux should be.

A few wines for the weekend

2008-04-06T00:00:00+00:00

A few wines for the weekend

06 April 2008

Frédéric Magnien Clos de Bèze 1999 A less than perfect cork, a long straight line of seepage up one side. The nose was slightly volatile for it but still showed classic Clos de Bèze asian spice nose and considerable intensity on the palate. A better bottle would go for another 20 years, and more.

Vilmart Coeur de Cuvée 1989 This wine was a disappointment, very sherried on the nose. Maybe a cork problem (came out very easily), more likely poor storage as this didn’t come from the domaine itself. Palate...

Weekend Wines

2008-03-31T00:00:00+00:00

Weekend Wines

31 March 2008

Tasted over the last two weekends, at home and at wine stores in Paris.

Cedric Bouchard “Roses de Jeanne” Blanc de Noirs A very small production Champagne gaining a reputation. The nose shows a kind of restrained ripeness and richness, very Pinot Noir, like a forest fruits sorbet. The palate is well balanced and long but the wine lacks harmony. I think a few years into the cellar would see it improve.

Egly Ouriet Vieillissement Prolongé Grand Cru (Ambonnay, Bouzy, Verzennay) A recent disgorgement (May 2007) after spending 56 months in bottle at Egly....

Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne 1993

2008-03-22T00:00:00+00:00

Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne 1993

22 March 2008

I opened a Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne 1993. The nose of this wine is very forward, lots of honey, marzipan and vanilla with a hint of (gulp) pine apple to it. The palate lacks harmony, there’s an alcoholic feel to it and a lack of freshness. The wine was a very youthful colour, the level superb. This is the first time I’ve had this wine and if this bottle is representative I feel that it is not a very good effort from Bonneau. I actually poured a 1/4 of the bottle...

Weekend in Burgundy with friends

2008-02-27T00:00:00+00:00

Weekend in Burgundy with friends

27 February 2008

Neville, Michel and David made it safe and sound to Burgundy. We were all at home at beautiful gîte in Savigny-Lès-Beaune and ready to get down to the serious business of food and wine.

Michel and I prepared charcuterie and a roast of veal while Neville tried to stay away. I woke him with a glass of Roualet Crochet Brut Millésime 1964, his birth year. As with previous times I’ve opened this wine, the colour and bouquet do not suggest an age of more than 15 years. The dosage is peculiar...

Alsace part III - Stirn, Wach, Faller, Coche-Dury

2008-02-26T00:00:00+00:00

Alsace part III – Stirn, Wach, Faller, Coche-Dury

26 February 2008

The next morning, Fred, Ian and I joined Christian and Christophe as judges at the Riesling du Monde wine show. This is an annual event held in Strasbourg. What better place to hold it, being as it is on the Rhine river, with Alsace to the West and Germany to the East. There were some 500 wines entered in the competition. I was with a team of judges looking at wines submitted in the ‘generique’ category, from 2006. There was myself, and the rest of the table...

A couple of wines to see Fred off

2008-02-20T00:00:00+00:00

A couple of wines to see Fred off

20 February 2008

Fred had to catch a plane so we saw him off with style. We started with a little wine, the Krug 1996. This is a huge wine, very Krug. That distinct clotted cream, preserved lemon and vanilla. In mouth, I found it lacking harmony at the moment, needing time. Natural for a wine just beginning its evolution. The acidity was very 1996. The finish, endless. Pairing it with food was quite a challenge. On foie gras, it was superb. Perhaps the best match. With pâtes, a bit of...

Alsace part II - Krug, DRC, Musigny and really rare wine

2008-02-17T00:00:00+00:00

Alsace part II – Krug, DRC, Musigny and really rare wine

17 February 2008

It was Sunday and we still had a tasting appointment at 10AM — impossible! The tasting was at Domaine Paul Ginglinger in the pretty town of Eguisheim. Sadly, it was gray and overcast on the day we were there but in full bloom it’s so pretty you want to eat it:

For a small town, this place is packed with wine making history: 35 vignerons are located in Eguisheim! Many of them have been making wine for hundreds of years. The...

Bollinger Grande Année 1999

2008-02-16T00:00:00+00:00

Bollinger Grande Année 1999

16 February 2008

I shelled out for a Bollinger Grande Année 1999 after some positive reviews. Beautiful lifted nose of pinot fruit, quite ripe (as you would expect from the year) but with restraint shown that I haven’t seen else where. Very elegant, by Bollinger standards. The palate is rich but poised, very long and sumptuous. The tell tale sign of 1999 is there though, a distinct absence of acidity. Very enjoyable now, surprising since they’ve managed to reign in that ripeness so well, but not a long term wine.

Alsace part 1 - background and Domaine Loew

2008-02-16T00:00:00+00:00

Alsace part 1 – background and Domaine Loew

16 February 2008

Alsace is a very different place to Champagne. It mainly consists of small family producers and co-operatives. It has amazing natural beauty, with the Vosges mountains to the West and the wide open plain and Rhine river to the East. The mountains protect the vineyard area and, facing east, provide a slope on which to grow vines such that they see the full sun of the day.

The hill behind Westhoffen

Westhalten from the frighteningly steep Zinkkoepflé Grand Cru

Champagne part VI - Vilmart, Selosse

2008-02-13T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne part VI – Vilmart, Selosse

13 February 2008

.. and so it was that we came to the final day of tasting in Champagne. We awoke to a very heavy frost and dense fog, with visibility down to maybe 20 meters. Proper weather for Champagne.

Fittingly, our first appointment, in the Montagne de Reims, was actually situated high up the hills around Reims. We were at the beautiful premises of Vilmart in Rilly la Montagne:

Laurent, who owns and runs Vilmart, showed us into the superb tasting room, decorated with stained glass...

Champagne part V - de Sousa, Clouet, Diebolt, Peters

2008-02-12T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne part V – de Sousa, Clouet, Diebolt, Peters

12 February 2008

Thursday was to be a huge day: de Sousa, then Clouet, Diebolt-Vallois, Pierre Peters followed by a huge dinner with the patrons of the last two.

de Sousa

We started very early (for France) at de Sousa in Avize.

We commenced the tasting with the Brut Tradition (50% Ch, 40% P, 10% M), an assemblage of 2002, 2003 and 2004. The nose through up peach, brioche and some toasty lees character. The palate was well balanced, refreshing (a stated goal of the house), with...

A few delicious wines

2008-02-11T00:00:00+00:00

A few delicious wines

11 February 2008

Bouchard P&F Monthelie Clos les Champs Fulliots 1er Cru 2005 I’m genuinely sad that I’ve drank myself through a case or so of this beautiful wine and don’t have any left. I cannot find it any where either. Damn. Really beautiful fruit showing the year perfectly. Tragically, the lowly appellation probably means I’ll never see it again.

Gangloff Barbarine La Barbarine Côte Rotie 2005 Excellent Côte Rotie, peppery, chalky, mulberry nose with just a hint of viognier. Great structure, very fine tannins. Enjoyable now but a little nervous. It shall probably drink...

Champagne part IV - Collin, Laherte

2008-02-08T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne part IV – Collin, Laherte

08 February 2008

Feeling a bit under the weather after some mild food poisoning the day before, I skipped a tasting appointment at Legras and caught up on some sleep.

Domaine Collin

After lunch, it was time to visit a protégé and former apprentice of Anselme Selosse: Olivier Collin at Congy. I’ve met passionate wine makers but Olivier was something else: his piercing blue eyes, big smile… he reminded me of Eric Idle in Life of Brian.

Olivier talking terroir

An expression we saw a...

Champagne part III - la fête de Saint Vincent

2008-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne part III – la fête de Saint Vincent

07 February 2008

Tuesday was Festival of Saint Vincent, well observed in French wine regions since Saint Vincent is the patron saint of “vine growers”. Incidentally, there could be some insight into the French concept of terroir if you consider that there is no word for “wine maker” in French. The word vigneron means vine grower.

We decided to pass the festival at Le Mesnil sur Oger, especially since Ian is an inducted chavalier.

Ian proudly wearing his medal signifying his membership of the confrerie
...

Champagne part II-Salon, Dehours

2008-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne part II-Salon, Dehours

07 February 2008

The next day was a Sunday and we decided to take a rest day before the serious business of the week began. This gave us a great opportunity to take a good walk around the region we were in:

The hills over Chavot

You can see the steepness of the hills around Champagne — and attempt to expose the vines to as much sun light as possible and, it may sound contradictory, also discourage too much vigor.

After the big night at Assiette Champenoise, some of the steep...

Champagne Part 1-Fliniaux, Lehay, Assiette Champenoise

2008-02-06T00:00:00+00:00

Champagne Part 1-Fliniaux, Lehay, Assiette Champenoise

06 February 2008

Genevieve and I joined Fred Schilling, Ian Westcott and Jim Cooper in Champagne for a week or serious testing at some of the leading and up-and-coming producers of Champagne. We had an absolutely amazing week of great wine, food and truly rare insights into the people that make it.

Champagne background

Champagne is the most successful viticultural region in world and yet its many grands crus, sub-regions, vinification techniques and styles of wine are rarely discussed.

When compared to a region like the Côte d’Or, Champagne is a massive, diverse...

Food and Wine around San Francisco

2008-02-03T00:00:00+00:00

Food and Wine around San Francisco

03 February 2008

I was in San Francisco recently and took the opportunity of visiting a few well known restaurants during my stay.

Quince

I should have known we were in trouble when we turned up at this restaurant and the only cars parked in front were well into the unaffordable category. Upon entering, I found a small, tastefully decorated restaurant. Despite only having 20 or so tables, there was considerable chatter, commotion and laughter from all directions.

Despite arriving on time, we had to wait 20 minutes to be seated. The restaurant...

Wines in the Bay Area

2008-01-14T00:00:00+00:00

Wines in the Bay Area

14 January 2008

I’m in the Bay Area at the moment and busily trying to bring some culture to the place when not working.

Lame Delisle Boucard Bourgueil 1976 Typical aged Bourgueil character, lots of saw dust and cassis aroma. Good fine tannins. The locals didn’t like it.

Chateau du Breuil Coteaux du Layon 1964 Before leaving France I noticed this was suffering some ullage and decided I should sacrifice it quickly. It showed some effect of the leaking but was still presentable. Smoky burn grapefruit and vanilla. Well balanced palate. Colleagues were amazed...

J.F. Mugnier Clos de la Maréchale 2004

2008-01-09T00:00:00+00:00

J.F. Mugnier Clos de la Maréchale 2004

09 January 2008

I had a J.F. Mugnier Clos de la Maréchale 2004 somewhere along the way. I found this a challenging wine. I’m very familiar with the 2005 and so my perception is hopelessly compromised. The nose showed green but not off putting fruit. This is the vintage, you cannot criticise it for being what it is. The greenness changed into an aroma of spent coffee grounds and the heady aroma of a candela grade cigar (a cigar made of young leaves). Structurally, the wine was what you would expect.

I...

NYE Champagne

2008-01-02T00:00:00+00:00

NYE Champagne

02 January 2008

Gen and I had a Champagne Gosset Celebris 1998 Extra Brut. This took a fair while to come around. If you are in a cool environment, I recommend opening at least 30 minutes before serving. At first it was one dimensional. After time in the glass, it was rich, nutty, very well balanced but not as compelling as a previous bottle. A good expression of 1998. I continue to enjoy this vintage.

A nice quiet way to celebrate the new year.

Christmas in Paris

2007-12-27T00:00:00+00:00

Christmas in Paris

27 December 2007

Christmas day itself was interesting for us.

We headed off to the Théâtre du Chatelet to see a concert with Woody Allen playing with a New Orleans style jazz band.

We took a walk around Paris before hand. Many people were congregating on Notre Dame:

Paris has a different feel than Sydney at Christmas. Those with parents and family, often living outside Paris, will have headed off to celebrate Christmas with them. Those that remain are able to take advantage of some amusements for children that the Mairie de Paris...

The Christmas drinking begins

2007-12-24T00:00:00+00:00

The Christmas drinking begins

24 December 2007

On Christmas day, Gen and I will be going to a concert with Woody Allen and his band. So, we met up with some friends on the weekend to open bottles and eat heart strangling food.

The day began early enough at the marché at Rue Porcelet to pick up some pig and the like. People were frantically ordering food for Christmas, just the kind of chaos I like.

Customers at the green grocer

Geese, ducks and capons at the butcher

Raymond Boulard Petraea XCVII-MMIV

2007-12-16T00:00:00+00:00

Raymond Boulard Petraea XCVII-MMIV

16 December 2007

Raymond Boulard is a successful grower/producer in Champagne, North of Reims. His wines are quite popular in Australia with lovers of growers Champagne.

The Raymond Boulard Petraea XCVII – MMIV is a multi-vintage Champagne made from wine of each vintage between 1997 and 2004, inclusive. It is made via a solera method, the same used to make sherry. It is the same method Jacques Selosse uses to make the Cuvée Substance.

Despite the advice on the bottle to serve this at 10C, I found this initially too cold...

Christmas tasting at Bosetti

2007-12-10T00:00:00+00:00

Christmas tasting at Bosetti

10 December 2007

I also went to Bosetti in the Marais for a tasting. There was a great lineup for Christmas.

Domaine François Lamarche (Vosne-Romanée)
A special treat, Madame Lamarche was in attendance to poor and talk about wine. A real character, very Burgundian, with a son working in IT in Sydney.

This domaine is an interesting one. They have enviable plots of land in Vosne-Romanée, including La Grande Rue which is right next to Romanée-Conti on one side and La Tâche on the other. It is popular sport to criticise...

Egly-Ouriet Cuvée Vieilles Vignes

2007-12-08T00:00:00+00:00

Egly-Ouriet Cuvée Vieilles Vignes

08 December 2007

I’ve decided to make my Friday night’s entertainment Champagne. This Friday, it was a superb Egly-Ouriet Cuvée Vieilles Vignes Grand Cru Blanc de Noirs (disg. Sept 2001). After pouring, this wine presented a heading aroma of red fruit compote, yeasty richness, smoke and a hint of burnt honey. The colour was gold tinged, almost with a pinkish hue of antique gold jewelry. The palate has a delicious structure, acid tingles over the tongue, the mousse is creamy and fine. Though rich, this remains elegant and sophisticated. A great Champagne. This wine spent...

Le Grand Tasting 2007

2007-12-02T00:00:00+00:00

Le Grand Tasting 2007

02 December 2007

Thierry Desseauve and Michel Bettane are two of the most respected wine critics in France. They used to publish Le Classement for the highly respected Revue du vin de France but have struck out on their own, publishing Le Grande Guide des Vins de France 2008.

The guide has been very well received and it seems to me that many wine lovers have followed Bettane and Desseauve on their new venture. The guide itself is worthy of a quick review. It covers all major regions of France, with maps and background information...

Another great wine from Selosse:Contraste

2007-12-01T00:00:00+00:00

Another great wine from Selosse:Contraste

01 December 2007

I think that Selosse is making the most exciting wine in Champagne. He first makes extraordinary wine and then makes a champagne out of it.

The Jacques Selosse Contraste Blancs de Noirs Grand Cru is no exception. The colour shows a wine which has been very worked, seeing lots of air during its elevage. The colour was that of a Champagne from, say, 1982. At first it was smoking. After two minutes, it built enormously. Aromas of raspberries, cream, cedar, five spice and dried herds explode out of the glass. It...

A couple of Burgundies

2007-11-30T00:00:00+00:00

A couple of Burgundies

30 November 2007

Harmand-Geoffroy Mazi-Chambertin 2001 A nose showing a little too much brett than acceptable on Bourgogne. The brett has made the fruit one dimension. The palate shows a little of the glass of grand cru wine – there’s a warm and sweet core to it which grand cru wine seems to have. But its fleeting. The palate structure is acceptable but not impressive either. A disappointing wine from a producer, it seems, which is struggling to make good wine with the superb holdings they have.

Forey Morey-Saint-Denis 2005 Not everything in 2005 is...

Wine tasting event

2007-11-25T00:00:00+00:00

Wine tasting event

25 November 2007

Went to a tasting in Paris consisting of releases from Louis Roederer’s group of producers. I’ve added the usual retail prices.

Louis Roederer N.V. Pleasant nose, vigorous mousse, well balanced. Left me a little cool and more expensive than most NV in Paris. I doubt I’ll be buying any. 37 euros.

Louis Roederer 2002Citrusy nose, clean and elegant. Good structure with moderate acidity for Champagne. A good wine but not a great one. An early drinker too. 56 euros.

Domaine Ott is a popular producer from Provence. They’re probably chiefly known outside of...

Busy but you still need to eat

2007-11-24T00:00:00+00:00

Busy but you still need to eat

24 November 2007

Not had much lately due to having been working 18 hour days.

Still, managed to fit in two good meals the last two nights:

Thursday night: Pork

Drank a Domaine de Rapatel “Clos Cyril” 2000 with it. Weird DMS notes mixed with raisin-like grenache aromas. Very strange and it wore me out in the end, we didn’t finish the bottle. The pork was awesome though.

Ce soir: Fresh seafood from the market around the corner

I love this time of year,...

Caves Bosetti Tasting event

2007-11-18T00:00:00+00:00

Caves Bosetti Tasting event

18 November 2007

I went to a tasting at Caves Bosetti in the Marais featuring Beaujolais and some wine from the Côte d’Or.

Jadot Beaujolais Village Blanc de Loyse 2005 Gingery nose, reminds me of Mâcon. The palate lacks structure.
Caves Bosetti Beaujolais Nouveau 2007 Typical nose with spritzy acid to the palate, suited to food.
Beaujolais Nouveau Domaine des Nugues More interesting nose with texture to the palate, pretty good.
Jadot Beaujolais Nouveau 2007 Soft and elegant wine, very good for Beaujolais Nouveau

Domaine de la Chamoise Tourraine Gamay Primeur 2007...

Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivée

2007-11-17T00:00:00+00:00

Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivée

17 November 2007

The Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived!

On the third Thursday on November, Beaujolais Nouveau, of the current vintage, can be sold around France and the World. It is one of the best wines available from the harvest, which has finished only a few months before hand.

To render the wine palatable, the producers use carbonic maceration. Using this technique, all the grapes are put in a tank and the tank is sealed air tight. As the grapes begin to ferment naturally, CO2 is produced. This increases the air pressure and the vast...

Bouchard Clos de Champs Fulliot 1er Cru 2005

2007-11-14T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard Clos de Champs Fulliot 1er Cru 2005

14 November 2007

Wow! Tastes like is from Nuits but who cares. Rich and juicy crushed cassis and cherries on the nose, with a fair bit of oak and after about 4 hours, some earth and five spice. The palate is well balanced, rich, mouthfilling, totally unlike Monthelie, almost non-Burgundian. The only thing that really puts it in Burgundy is the sheer classiness of it.

Should go a very long way, but delicious now.

Lunch at Hélène Darozze

2007-11-03T00:00:00+00:00

Lunch at Hélène Darozze

03 November 2007

Gen, Sanjay and I went to the two star restaurant Hélène Darozze for lunch on Thursday. Hélène Darozze is from a family of cooks from the South West of France. This region is renown for rich, hearty food: duck, foie gras, truffles and cassoulet all come from the region. I was looking forward to seeing how these roots would blend with haute cuisine required for obtaining two or more stars.

Upon entering the main salon à manger (there are three dining rooms at the restaurant) I thought all roots may have been...

An unanticipated lunch at Pierre Gagnaire

2007-10-31T00:00:00+00:00

An unanticipated lunch at Pierre Gagnaire

31 October 2007

Gen and I set off to meet Sanjay at the up and coming two star restaurant Hélène Darroze in the 6th. When we arrived, the maître de salon was confused that we had arrived two days early. I told her I’d received a call early Monday morning telling me I must come on Tuesday. She apologised profusely, insisted we sit at the small bar and take an aperitif while she organised our table.

As we sat waiting for Sanjay to arrive, she asked if we knew the person who had...

Sanjay experiences the magic of Burgundy

2007-10-29T00:00:00+00:00

Sanjay experiences the magic of Burgundy

29 October 2007

Sanjay flew in on Friday and we headed directly to Bourgogne for the weekend. We missed our first train due to an annoyance of tourist buses (a collective noun I’ve coined while here in Paris) so we headed straight to Le Train Bleu. We sat in the bar and I had the sommelier bring in the list of Burgundies. We settled on a Bouchard Père et fils Volnay Les Caillerets – Ancienne cuvée carnot 2001. A great way to pass the time, the wine was velvety, pure, ripe and delicious....

Domaine Forey Vosne-Romanée 2005

2007-10-26T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Forey Vosne-Romanée 2005

26 October 2007

Remarkably deep colour. Rich chalky nose, almost as if it were cabernet family. Pleasant palate texture, very juicy and fruit sweet. Impressive by the standards of this producer and for a mere village wine. The density of fruit is just amazing, it’s (seriously) what you’d expect from a grand cru wine. It is not, however, a grand cru wine, as the structure and complexity just isn’t there.

René Engel Échezeaux 2000

2007-10-25T00:00:00+00:00

René Engel Échezeaux 2000

25 October 2007

A fairly New World style wine. Rich, oaky nose with strawberry, raspberry, coffee and rose water. The palate is of medium weight, lots of sweet fruit. An early drinker as the tannins are dropping off and the acid is on the low side.

Sometimes wines remind you of people, and this one reminds me of the person you feel like you know and love straight away but that tells you so much about themselves the first time you meet them there’s no surprise the next time.

Pretty good drinking for a Wednesday...

Tasting at Augé

2007-10-21T00:00:00+00:00

Tasting at Augé

21 October 2007

Tasting at Augé:

Pierre Damoy

Bourgogne Rouge 2005 A little thin and boring. Good for Bourgogne but I’ve had much better from 2005 at this level.

Gevrey “Clos Tamisot” 1er Cru 2005 Rich chalk and cherries I’ve come to associate with 2005. Superb fresh acidity, like that of 1993. Ultra fine delicious tannins. Classic 2005.

Chapelle Chambertin 2005 Kind of closed and hard to taste since the guy next to me was smoking a gauloise. Fabulous tannin and acidity. Great stuff.

Clos de Bèze 2005 This will be a classic in time, spicy,...

Delas Haute-Pierre Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2001

2007-10-20T00:00:00+00:00

Delas Haute-Pierre Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2001

20 October 2007

Decanted for a few hours, beginning to show some development with mostly earthy, leathery, dried flower type aromas. Just a hint of freshly crushed blackcurrants. The palate was fairly dry, just a touch of brett, but well balanced. Lacked density for me and the alcohol showed a little as a result. Still, fairly cheap at $30 AUD a bottle in Paris so you can’t expect too much.

Couly-Dutheil Chinon 1979

2007-10-17T00:00:00+00:00

Couly-Dutheil Chinon 1979

17 October 2007

I love these old Loire reds. This had a deep youthful appearance, rich nose of blood, vine leaves, saw dust and blackberries. The palate has a pleasing structure, still youthful but well balanced now. Great for steak. I prefer the ‘76s but this was good. You’ve got to love well stored bottled.

Restaurants around Beaune, '66 Leroy Echezeaux

2007-10-16T00:00:00+00:00

Restaurants around Beaune, ’66 Leroy Echezeaux

16 October 2007

I had the opportunity to visit a few restaurants around Beaune recently.

Just an aside on Michelin rated restaurants: there is an interesting formula restaurants follow to get stars or to keep them: one star establishments need to do a menu with luxury ingredients such as foie gras, truffle, lobster, caviar (but not all of them), there must be amuse bouche and just general enthusiasm about food from the kitchen. If they’re aspiring, there’s probably stuff in the bathroom, like cologne, good quality towels.

Two star establishments need to be...

Recent Tastings in Burgundy

2007-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Recent Tastings in Burgundy

15 October 2007

I’m happy to report that the 2006s are starting to look a lot better in barrel. Where as before they were dull, now they have a delicious fruit purity and some richness. This vintage will suffer in reputation coming after 2005 but so it goes.

Domaine Michel Lafarge

Michel Lafarge is one of the best producers in Volnay, bio-dynamique since 1997. The 2006s had just been racked so Frédéric preferred to show us some older vintages.

Aligoté Vieilles Vignes 2005
Lifted nose of daisy, lemon peel and mineral....

A great dinner at Troisgros

2007-10-10T00:00:00+00:00

A great dinner at Troisgros

10 October 2007

Alex and Nina joined Gen and I at the three Michelin star restaurant Troisgros for an evening of food and wine. Michel Troisgros comes from a family of great French chefs who have been providing the best of French food, wine and hospitality at Roanne for three generations.

Troisgros is not just a restaurant, not a hotel, but an escape from the noise, problems and mundanity of everyday life.

An example of their hospitality: as the staff bring your bags to the room, a waiter follows with cool...

More notes from London

2007-10-04T00:00:00+00:00

More notes from London

04 October 2007

David, the generous host that he was, opened many a bottle. I am the perfect guest, and drank as much of his wine as possible.

Domaine Potinet Ampeau 1986 Oxidised, too old. My fault.

Louis Latour Chassagne-Montrachet Cailleret 2002 Ripe but otherwise classic Puligny. Well made and drinking now.

Domaine Armand Rousseau Clos de Bèze 1994 A beautiful wine, all finesse and purity. Classic pinot from a discredited vintage. Great producers can work wonders in all vintages and this proves it.

Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva 1978 Oh Man! Surely this is Grange?!?...

Rhône and Burgundy dinner in London

2007-10-04T00:00:00+00:00

Rhône and Burgundy dinner in London

04 October 2007

Gen and I were in London over the weekend. David Jenkins asked if we’d like to go to an offline while there — and, of course, we said yes!

Each of us brought a bottle of wine produced in either the Rhône valley or the Côte d’Or. Remington Norman MW lead us through the wines, imparting anecdotes about the vignerons involved with them and generally adding to our understanding of the people and places of these two great regions. Remington was superb host and we were really quite lucky to...

Lunch at France's oldest restaurant, La Tour d'Argent

2007-10-03T00:00:00+00:00

Lunch at France’s oldest restaurant, La Tour d’Argent

03 October 2007

La Tour d’Argent is a very famous French restaurant on the left bank in Paris. It looks on to the Seine, opposite Ile St. Louis. It’s a beautiful location.

La Tour d’Argent was founded in 1582. It has operated from the same site the entire time. It was once a three star restaurant but has grown unpopular over the last few decades. Nouvelle cuisine has not been uttered inside its kitchens. Things are old fashion and people come there for that reason.

Just take a look at this...

Three interesting bottles

2007-09-28T00:00:00+00:00

Three interesting bottles

28 September 2007

Alex and Nina came over this evening for some producer from our local charcuterie, boulangerie, cremerie and boucherie.

Gen put together an amazing spread of foie gras, a sublime boudin noir, superb rillettes de porc, pâté de compagne, artichaut, poulet rôtie, salade de celeri remoulade, epossies, vieilles mimolette, langres, lots of baguettes and four tartes from the best place in Paris: a tarte au citron, tarte aux fruits des rouges de bois, a chocolate and pear tarte and a strawberry souffle. Superb food.

With this, a Pierre Gimmonnet & fils 1er Cru Blancs...

Dîner à Alain Senderens

2007-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

Dîner à Alain Senderens

26 September 2007

Alex and Nina joined Gen and I for a meal at Alain Senderens. This is a famous restaurant in Paris, once the site of the famous Lucas Carton, at which Alain Senderens was the chef for 20 years. The transformation of Lucas Carton into Alain Senderens saw Alain give gave his coveted 3 Michelin stars, transform the feel of the restaurant, emphasising an art nouveau element to match the nouvelle cuisine Alains is so famous for.

As you approach the restaurant, it just looks like a cool place to eat:

Dinner at Macéo with Alex

2007-09-25T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Macéo with Alex

25 September 2007

Alex arrived in Paris today. Juveniles being totally booked out, we popped around the corner to Macéo, Mark Williamson’s restaurant next to his successful wine bar Willi’s.

Food was good, standard prices for the area, the food was good if not inspired. The wine list could be better, in my opinion. There’s a dearth of older wine (‘do you have any aged cote rotie?’ ‘yes, we have some as old as 1999!’). We had a Claude Cazals NV. Seemed dominated by green fruit/meunier flavours. A strange NV to carry, as it...

Cédric Bouchard Inflorescence

2007-09-21T00:00:00+00:00

Cédric Bouchard Inflorescence

21 September 2007

Inflorescence by Cédric Bouchard is grower’s champagne gaining some prominence. Made in very small quantities (by Champagne standards), only 8900 bottles. Soft, elegant nose, not really showing any of the character of a blanc de noirs, except for being hard to pin down. The palate has good acid, a touch of tannin. It is long and elegant but needs time in bottle to integrate. Well made and should improve.

The packaging is very good, Jacquesson style bottle (kind of glows when light shines through) with a slick subtle label. Nice leavy capsule. A...

Domaine A. et P. de Villaine Bouzeron Aligote 2006

2007-09-16T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine A. et P. de Villaine Bouzeron Aligote 2006

16 September 2007

I had a Domaine A. et P. de Villaine Bouzeron Aligoté 2006 last night with chicken soup. Aligoté is to Chardonnay as Gamay is to Pinot Noir in Bourgogne. Huge amounts of the stuff get consumed in the region, Chardonnay based wines being too expensive for many locals.

This wine is made from private holdings of Aubert de Villaine and his wife. It’s generally considered the best Aligoté one can buy (at 13 euros — remember that many bottles are 3 euros).

The nose of this wine...

German Riesling and a Burgundy

2007-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

German Riesling and a Burgundy

15 September 2007

A few bottles recently.

Domaine Mittnach-Klack Riesling Grand Cru Schoenenbourg 2001 I realised I hadn’t had riesling for about 6 months and I thought this might be a good start. Sadly, no. A little too much sulfur dulled the nose at first. The palate was oily, the oxidative handling clear. There was good acid but just nothing going on. The pintarde (guinea fowl) I served it with deserved something much better.

Philippe Leclerc Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetiers 1er Cru 2003 I was making Côte Boeuf so I needed a...

Drinking in Burgundy

2007-09-14T00:00:00+00:00

Drinking in Burgundy

14 September 2007

We got a hell of a lot of bottles open in Burgundy. Here are those I remember:

Arlaud Clos de la Roche 2001 Very light colour, showing the year. Soft though elegant aromas, still primary. The palate lacks intensity but there’s some good fruit there. A little disappointing.

Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes 2000 Rich nose and palate, the spectrum of pinot aroma: cherries, rhubarb, plums, violets, earth and spice. Elegant though youthful. A good effort.

Rousseau Clos St. Jacques 1988 To me, this was quite volatile on the nose. The...

Quick report from harvest

2007-09-11T00:00:00+00:00

Quick report from harvest

11 September 2007

It’s been a seriously insane week or so. I’ve been in Burgundy picking. I ache all over. I have cuts on my fingers, typing is hard. I’ll make a full report later.

Drinking highlights:

Arlaud Clos de la Roche 2001
Ponsot Clos de la Roche 2000 V.V.
Faiveley Clos de Beze 1989 – simply amazing, silenced any criticism I could make about this estate, I know nothing about wine
Rousseau Clos St Jacques 1988
Heresztyn Clos St Denis 2001

Tasted countless other wines, enough for a life time.
...

Dinner with scribbler in Paris

2007-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner with scribbler in Paris

01 September 2007

Scribbler messaged me a while ago saying he was going to pass through. We’ve not met before but it sounded like the perfect opportunity for an offline.

I organised a bunch of interesting bottles and some food, as follows:

Henriot Champagne millésime 1998 A little disappointing but nonetheless scoffed down very fast.

Domaine Antugnac Limoux Gravas 2005 Quite buttery and yoghurty, probably from being opened a day earlier and then recorked. Usually this wine shows a lot of freshness and it wasn’t here.

William Fevre Valmer Grand Cru Chablis 1999 A...

Bouchard 1999 Volnay Caillerets Ancienne Cuvee Carnot

2007-08-27T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard 1999 Volnay Caillerets Ancienne Cuvee Carnot

27 August 2007

This wine has been a great performer over the last few years. I was keen try it again. It is beginning to show development now, although it is still oaky. The nose is all spice, red berry fruits, wood. The palate is luscious, mouth filling, flavoursome. Certainly a good wine which needs a few more years to resolve. The oak is a little distracting to me but I think when mature it will not be a problem. My only criticism would be the lack of acidity which I like...

Two bottles for Gen's birthday

2007-08-25T00:00:00+00:00

Two bottles for Gen’s birthday

25 August 2007

For Gen’s Birthday last night.

Raveneau Butteaux 1er Cru Chablis 1996 A superb chablis! Upon opening, this was like the pure lemon juice. After an hour breathing, it got more smoky and complex, with a burnt grapefruit, smoke, yogurt and preserved lemon and baking oyster shells. The palate has perfect balance, with a texture akin to milk. With foie gras d’oie, it was perfect.

Hubert de Montille Taillepieds 1er Cru Volnay 1996 Two hours in the decanter turned this wine from coffee grinds into classic Volnay: young cranberries and raspberries explode...

Chateau Lalande-Borie 2002

2007-08-23T00:00:00+00:00

Chateau Lalande-Borie 2002

23 August 2007

Nothing spectacular so far.

Chateau Lalande-Borie 2002 (St Julien) Opened up well, typical left bank cabernet character, a little greenness (showing the year). Very primary, well controlled oak, good weight on the palate.

As it warmed up, it started to show some brett. This got more and more pronounced with air until I didn’t want another glass.

Weekend Bouteilles

2007-08-20T00:00:00+00:00

Weekend Bouteilles

20 August 2007

Domaine des Huards Cour-Cheverny Cuvée Français 1er Vieilles Vignes 2002 Totally out there wine made in Touraine region of the Loire. The grape variety is Romorantin! On the nose it is kind of like an oxidative Alsacian riesling. On the palate, very acidic and tropical, chenin blanc like. Peculiar botrytis flavours. tily texture yet quite acid. Strange. Worth trying… once.

Delas Frères Marquise de la Tourette rouge 1999 Proper wine. Lifted white pepper, leather and earth on the nose. Got chocolaty with a few hours in the decanter. Excellent weight to the palate, dense...

Random wines for the weekend

2007-08-13T00:00:00+00:00

Random wines for the weekend

13 August 2007

C et J-P Grossot Chablis 1er Adroit de Vaucoupin 2002 A big “meh”. Too much oxidative handling has deadened the fruit and replaced it with oak.

Couvent des Jacobins 2005 (St Emilion) My first 2005 Bordeaux. Excellent fruit purity though rather subdued on the nose (hey, it’s young). Ripe though not overdone flavours of cassis, plum and raspberry on the palate. Deliciously fine tannins. Excellent oak handling. Should be excellent in 5 years. Super bon with a whole aged côde boeuf steak which weighed in at about 1.2 kgs! Awesome.

Drouhin-Laroze...

A few recent bottles

2007-08-11T00:00:00+00:00

A few recent bottles

11 August 2007

Sylvie Esmonin Clos St. Jacques 2001 Closed for some time but finally showing rich coffee and chocolate flavours on the palate. Well structured, soft tannins, well balanced but not mind blowing.

Dard et Ribo Crozes-Hermitage 2005 Huge lift of white pepper on the nose mixed with raspberries and violets. A little thin on the palate (yields are stupidly high in Crozes) but a pleasant easy to drink weight.

Chateau Malartic-Lagravière Blanc 1990 Badly oxidised. Damn.

Etienne Sauzet Puligny-Montrachet Les Referts 2001 Dancing with death after one oxidised white but this paid off....

Mini vintage summary

2007-08-06T00:00:00+00:00

Mini vintage summary

06 August 2007

2005 – hyped to death, marked by great pure fruit, soft fine tannins and surprisingly good, balancing acidity. The fruit is so expressive, every wine seems like a Chambolle Musigny.

That said, there could be some problems. Some of the every day producers I visited around Gevrey complained about the longest malos they’d ever seen. Firstly, getting them started was very hard and many inoculated. Secondly, 2005/2006 winter was very cold and malo only started up again deep into 2006. So, lesser producers had problems managing space, bottling, etc. This means, some wines...

Corton and Montrose

2007-08-03T00:00:00+00:00

Corton and Montrose

03 August 2007

Last night was time for a little bit of extravagance. I opened two pretty good wines.

The first was a Domaine Maratray-Dubreuil Corton-Bressandes (rouge) Grand Cru 2001. Classically Burgundian with plums, coffee, paprika, dried herbs. The palate was very dry with firm tannins and soft, mouth-filling fruit. The acid was high, the usual level for Corton. A good wine.

The second bottle was Château Montrose 1999. This was a less than stellar vintage but more approachable than the 2001 — the other option. Upon opening this wine was thin and I thought it...

Maison Andre Paul Limoux Blanc AOC 2005

2007-08-01T00:00:00+00:00

Maison Andre Paul Limoux Blanc AOC 2005

01 August 2007

One wine myth says that sparkling wine was invented at Limoux. This region, in Languedoc, is one of the few places in the south where Chardonnay really produces something great — and so it has in this wine.

Blended with Chenin Blanc and Mauzac, this wine has taken on the very taste and smell of summer. The nose is creamy, spicy, tropical with oats, grassy, mirabelles and grape fruit. The palate is excellently structured, long, well balanced and delicious. Perfect drinking now. This is one of the best...

Le Joyau du Chateau Le Queyroux 2004

2007-07-29T00:00:00+00:00

Le Joyau du Chateau Le Queyroux 2004

29 July 2007

I get bored by Bordeaux pretty quickly. There never seems to be much interesting going on so I went to my local cavist who seems to like finding something a little different. He recommended Le Joyau du Châau Le Queyroux 2004 (Blaye). The wine is Cabernet Franc and Merlot. It is from vines in the premier cô blaye on the right bank in Bordeaux.

The vines are planted at 10000 vines to the hectare, which is very high for Bordeaux. The produce is aiming for low yields and to...

Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape V-V Blanc 2001

2007-07-22T00:00:00+00:00

Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape V-V Blanc 2001

22 July 2007

Chateau de Beaucastel make some legendary wines but most people know the estate for its reds. They make whites too and they are significantly rarer than the reds.

I’ve wanted to drink this wine, the vieilles vignes blanc, for a while. The wine is 100% Roussane. The vines are very old (more than 70 years) and low yielding. Organic vineyard management is employed.

The wine itself sees barriques and larger barrel formats. There’s lots of lees contact. The wine making is ‘traditional’ and oxidative.

This bottle showed smoky oak,...

Chateau Haut-Blanville 2001

2007-07-18T00:00:00+00:00

Chateau Haut-Blanville 2001

18 July 2007

I found a nice little cavist nearby who actually seems to care about wine. He had many expensive bottles he could have pressed upon me but chose a Chateau Haut-Blanville 2001 (Coteaux du Languedoc), telling me that all Bordeaux tasted the same, all Burgundy was over priced and only the south — and Alsace — remained exciting.

This is wine is a Syrah, Mourvèe, Carignan blend. It has a distinct aroma of malt and chocolate, mixed with garrigue — the wild herbs which grow in the south and perfume the air there. Clean,...

Domaine Tempier Bandol Rose 2006

2007-07-17T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Tempier Bandol Rose 2006

17 July 2007

Supposedly the best rosé the world, according to many.

Very expensive (twenty euros) for rosé . Bright salmon colour, a little greenness to the nose and palate. A simple, well made but nondescript wine. Finishes with some alcoholic heat which I found surprising. Lacks the refreshing acidity I like in rosé.

Friday wines

2007-07-13T00:00:00+00:00

Friday wines

13 July 2007

Chateau du Beaulieu Côte du Rhone 2005 - correct but boring

Bouchard Beaune Marconnets 1er Cru 2002 – ahhh, Beaune. Beautifully lifted nose of raspberries, pencil shavings/saw dust, anise and a hint of burnt oak. The palate is very austere, with good acid. Long, savory finish. Great wine. The only thing which I worried about was the obvious oak handling, which is becoming more and more apparent on Bouchard’s Beaunes. That said, the fruit is beginning to take over and in a year or two, if this bottle is any indication, I probably wont...

A visit to the Loire

2007-07-10T00:00:00+00:00

A visit to the Loire

10 July 2007

When I was first getting into wine I attended some Loire wine tastings. The wines were strikingly different to anything I’d had before. The wines were minerally, very restrained, obviously in need of food.

Here in Paris, they are very popular — chiefly because they are cheap, well understood and generally sound. There’s also the factor of proximity. The French place the most trust in things which are made close by and the Loire is pretty much the closest serious wine region to Paris. Unlike Champagne, Loire wines are generally very...

A few midweekers

2007-06-28T00:00:00+00:00

A few midweekers

28 June 2007

Rimauresq Cru Classé004 (Cô de Provence) A fairly New World wine, some DMS-like aromas, concentrated. Tight on the palate and fairly ungiving. Simply okay.

Vignerons Augis de pè et fils rouge reservé2003 (Touraine) 2003 rouge in the Loire was praised by critics because the cab franc, in their opinion, had for once reached ripeness. I was surprised, when I opened this wine, a how green it was: all tomato leave and tobacco. After a few hours, some primary red fruit aromas built and the line was quite enjoyable. The palate had raspy...

A weeks worth

2007-06-25T00:00:00+00:00

A weeks worth

25 June 2007

Rimauresq Cru Classélanc 2006 (Cotes de Provence) I wanted to drink something different. I was hoping this was going to be different from all the other awful Provence Blanc I’ve had. It was but not enough. The nose was lifted, grassy, floral. The smell of summer (in Provence). But on the palate, it was flat, lifeless and hard going. Suitable as an aperitif wine but not made for food. I’ll have to try the Rouge.

Henriot 1996 Beautiful champagne showing some development. Sherbet, honey spectrum of Champagne, suggesting lots of Chardonnay. Piercing acidity...

Nicolas Potel Nuits-Saint-George 1er Cru

2007-06-16T00:00:00+00:00

Nicolas Potel Nuits-Saint-George 1er Cru

16 June 2007

Nicolas Potel Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru “Les Poulettes” 2000 This was a really good NSG. Pure, fresh, lively on the nose, very lifted, nearly pungent. Juicy pinot fruit, red berries, a bit of undergrowth. The palate, superb. Fine tannins, acid present but not in your face, very long and delicious. Better than the ’93 Baby Jesus consumed recently.

In the tiny cave where we bought it, the owner had asked what crus and domains of Burgundy I liked. He seems surprised that I knew my way around. He asked Gen what...

Bouchard l'Enfant Jesus 1993

2007-06-13T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard l’Enfant Jesus 1993

13 June 2007

Opened a few hours before consuming and quickly cooled before serving, as it was warm last night.

Developed appearance with bricking at the rim. Soft, elegant nose with spice, cedar, chocolate, leather and red berry confiture. The palate is resolved with soft tannins giving structure, a cleansing acidity, very long leathery, chocolatey finish. Delicious.

A fine wine, drinking well now.

~~

I should have noted this earlier. The recent releases will be better than this. I can’t wait to taste them with age!

It’s really remarkable what a turn around Bouchard has...

Janasse Cote du Rhone 2006

2007-06-09T00:00:00+00:00

Janasse Cote du Rhone 2006

09 June 2007

The problem with Parisien bottle shops is that only the good (read, overpriced) ones carry back vintages. I dropped into a store a few blocks away looking for something interesting for a fresh bit of Munster and couldn’t find anything sweet which would hold up to it. I decided to buy a Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone 2006. I do not usually like young wine, even Cotes du Rhone and this wine was relatively expensive (at 8.5 euros) for the Cotes du Rhone market. But I figured that this...

Some Burgs-Chambolle, Vosne and Morey

2007-05-23T00:00:00+00:00

Some Burgs-Chambolle, Vosne and Morey

23 May 2007

I went to Phil’s last night to farewell the MW tasting group I’ve met with every few weeks for some years now. A few students are sitting soon so I wished them luck and goodbye by presenting a few fairly good Burgs.

All the wines had been opened for a few hours before hand. One was terribly corked, resulting in a mad rush at peak out for a replacement.

Sigaut Chambolle-Musigny 2002 Classic Chambolle character with fresh aromas of raspberry and strawberry. Underneath, I smelt coffee and graphite. Pretty good for...

Sunday night by the harbour with amazing wines\!

2007-05-21T00:00:00+00:00

Sunday night by the harbour with amazing wines\!

21 May 2007

Yet another night of amazing bottles and great fun. This time, we were at the Harbour Kitchen at the Hyatt. A perfect place to say goodbye to Sydney, being as it is on Circular Quay with an amazing view of the Opera House.

The food was of a very good standard. The chef had organised the food for us on his day off and put the sous chef in charge of our meal. Outstanding to this this kind of concern in Australia and they really delivered as well.
...

Dinner at Bistro Stock

2007-05-20T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Bistro Stock

20 May 2007

Michel joined Neville, Fred, Firoz (long time Sydney-based friend of Sanjay), Gen and myself at Bistro Stock in Balmain. The food was of reasonable quality but better can be found at these prices. Service was unprofessional and… slightly confrontational.

The wines were very good and we forgot about the churlishness of the waitresses.

Louis Sipp Alsace Grand Cru Riesling 1998 Clean, mosel like nose. The palate was off dry to my taste, with hints of oxidative wine making. I should have picked this as Alsace but I didn’t. Pretty good.

J.M. Boillot...

Burgundy at Sojourn

2007-05-13T00:00:00+00:00

Burgundy at Sojourn

13 May 2007

Nine of us gathered at Sojourn for what was, for some of us, a third night of extravagance. The food, as always, simply stunningly good by Sydney standards. Presentation is superb.

The wines were of a very good standard.

Pol Roger 1998 Smokey nose, good mousse. The dosage seems to stand out a little on this vintage. That said, cleansing and refreshing wine.

2002 Gérd Chavy & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatiès Corked.

2002 Bouchard P&F Meursault “Goutte d’Or” 1er cru A staggeringly well-made white wine. This wine is just about...

1955 Wynns Michael, 64 Wynns, 76 Grange etc

2007-05-12T00:00:00+00:00

1955 Wynns Michael, 64 Wynns, 76 Grange etc

12 May 2007

Brief impressions are all that I can muster I am afraid. Still feeling a little ‘worn out’.

Dom Ruinart BdB NV: Sour with what seems like a fairly high dosage.

1996 Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill: Superb wine. All subtlety and finish. A companion to the superb ’96 Comte. I had a glass sitting there for about 2 hours and when I tasted it, there was a remarkably complex flavour of hay, mazipan, lemon rind and rose petal. So elegant too.

1988 Taittinger Comtes Blanc de Blanc: Beginning...

Thursday Night Warmup

2007-05-11T00:00:00+00:00

Thursday Night Warmup

11 May 2007

So, I was meant to spend Thursday night preparing food for Friday night when I got a message from Alex which said: ‘I need someone to play with… I have wine!’ Works for me, I said.

I quickly put together a few ‘mid-week’ dishes: Foie gras and truffle pies, marron grilled with a fish veloute, a tiny bit of cheese and an apple and pear mille-feuille.

I also had at a hand (also for tomorrow night) a bottle of ’95 Pol (given to me by Christian Pol Roger!). Looking fairly developed, lots of...

A night of Dom Perignon

2007-05-06T00:00:00+00:00

A night of Dom Perignon

06 May 2007

I’m sitting here at a table surrounded by glasses, plates, empty bottles. Pink Floyd is playing. I’m sipping Leroy, Coutet and water alternatively. We’ve just consumed a bunch of extraordinary wines with a focus on Dom Perignon. All is right in the World.

Dom Perignon 1999
Served with Coffin Bay oysters.

Very tight and ungiving on the nose. A hint of apple and a smokey quality you’d expect from Dom. The palate is tight as well. The texture is creamy. The dosage seems fairly high. Probably needs time to settle...

A few Germans & Burgundies

2007-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

A few Germans & Burgundies

29 April 2007

Alex, Phil and Oli came over on Friday night. What was meant to be a quiet catch up turned into something bigger, when Alex and Phil called and said they were looking for an excuse to drink. The official excuse was that I had 2.5 Kgs of pork to eat.

We started with a few sweet aperitifs again. These work so great when it gets cold. I think I’ve decided that German sweet wine works best now and not in summer.

Muller-Catoir Scheurebe Spatlese 2003 Unctuous with, brilliant for the year....

Dinner at Balzac

2007-04-25T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Balzac

25 April 2007

I had dinner last night at Balzac with a bunch of friends. We ate amuse bouche of mussel custard / grilled marlin with courgette flowers / sauted scallops with sweetbreads of calf / ballotine of confit pork belly / roasted venison with horse radish gnocchi / cheese / chocolate fondant. The scallop/sweet breads and the pork belly were sensational, the venison very succulent and well executed. The amuse bouche didn’t work, the marlin was a little powdery and over cooked.

Service was good, especially considering we were 13 people, all very fussy with...

Nice when friends drop by

2007-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Nice when friends drop by

22 April 2007

Met up with Alex today to welcome her to Sydney. Opened a Chateau Palmer 1981 after she said she’d never had the wines of this producer before. Unfortunately, oxidised enough that it was unpleasant to drink. So, I opened a bottle of Chateau d’Yquem 1983. Wow. What a wine! Beautiful complexity and subtlety on the nose. The palate is long, with restraint and a dryness to the finish which Yquem is known for. The flavour persists in the mouth for minutes. When three people can sit for 2 hours and talk...

Wines for TheHawks Birthday

2007-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Wines for TheHawks Birthday

22 April 2007

Cam, Anjuli, Mark, Ingrid, Genevieve and I joined other friends of David’s to wish him a happy birthday (and eat all his food, drink all his wine and generally make a mess).

We’d brought a few special bottles along to share with David, one of which was close to being one of the best dry whites I’ve ever had.

J.J. Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 1993 Very petrolly/smokey nose. A little disappointing. Might have improved with a decant but we drained it in 3 seconds flat! The palate is that perfect refreshing Mosel...

A Lunch at Sojourn

2007-04-13T00:00:00+00:00

A Lunch at Sojourn

13 April 2007

Just came back from a great lunch at Sojourn — my new favourite restaurant. The calibre of food and wine was impressive.

We began with a delicious refreshing German aulese from Maximin Grunhauser Abtsberg number 219, 1998. This had a pure smell of linden on the nose at first. It got a little more honeyed with time. The palate was soft, long and delicious. The kind of wine you could drink all day long. Superb.

We really stepped up a notch with the next bottle, a Maison Drouhin Marquis de Laguiche Le...

A great night with truly great wines

2007-04-06T00:00:00+00:00

A great night with truly great wines

06 April 2007

I’d organised a small dinner at Sojourn in east Balmain last night as an excuse to drink Cam’s bottle of Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Francaises 1989.

As people began to find out about it, it turned into a more significant event. By 7:30pm last night, there were eight of us: myself, Gen, Neville, Danny, Cam, Mark AS, dy123 and Fred.

I’d asked Neville to field an aperitif champagne to warm us up before the Bollinger. He selected well: a Dampierre Family Reserve 1996. This was a very light, approachable wine....

Chardonnay Tasting

2007-04-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chardonnay Tasting

01 April 2007

All the wines were tasted blind and tasters were asked to guess the wines and place them in either the Australian category or French.

My notes were as follows (actual wine in brackets):

Funky, yeasty and reductive. Better palate, quite a creamy texture but short. Must be faulty. (2000 Mount Mary)

Huge lift of apricot and tropical fruit aromas. Oaky and oily palate feel. Poor structure and finish. Bannockburn? (2002 Eileen Hardy)

Simple nose, quite sweet. Couldn’t be French. Palate lacks acidity/structure. Could be any of the Aussies. (2002 Penfolds Yattarna)
...

Spectacular Wines at Claudes

2007-03-31T00:00:00+00:00

Spectacular Wines at Claudes

31 March 2007

Sanjay came up to Sydney last night and was looking for someone to drink with. It just so happened that Alex was opening a bottle of Domaine de la Romanee Conti Richebourg 1998 at Claude’s, so he snuck in (along with Neville and Danny, who came bearing gifts).

Claude’s. What can I say? This once great restaurant is no more. The food was awkward, the staff clumsy, confused and inexperienced. Tim, come back, Claude’s needs you!

Still, we had some spectacular wines to drink. To start with, we had a Phillipponnat Clos...

A few Bordeaux

2007-03-28T00:00:00+00:00

A few Bordeaux

28 March 2007

I was lucky enough to taste a few recent Bordeaux tonight. Wines were served blind.

Clos du Clocher 2000 (Pomerol)

Deep red with rich rhubarb, plumb and jam on the nose. Really ripe. After a little while, some smoke and really dusty oak coming through. The palate is puzzling: very little tannin, smooth and juicy. Gluggable. Must be the influence of M. Rolland. Who cares, tastes great. Take a look if you have a few bottles. Not sure where it’s going but I’d drink it now for the fruit.

Cadet Piola 1995 (St....

Some great wines at Tetsuya

2007-03-25T00:00:00+00:00

Some great wines at Tetsuya

25 March 2007

I had a great dinner at Tetsuya’s last night. I cannot add anything to all the great things that have been said about that restaurant, so I wont.

I drank some really great wines.

Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque 1973

Unfortunately, this was totally dead and maderised. Undrinkable. The only disappointment of the evening.

Bollinger R.D. 1973

I’ve been lucky to have this beautiful wine twice in only a few months. A rich nose with hazelnut, sherry, vanilla and savory chocolate and coconut aromas. The palate was fresh, clean and long. Exceptional...

Highlights from Options Night at deVine

2007-03-21T00:00:00+00:00

Highlights from Options Night at deVine

21 March 2007

Mario from Vintage Cellars puts on an options night once a year. There were a few new faces this year and, unfortunately, the newbies took it out: Phil, Alex and Alison way out in front with a record score.

Highlights included:

Krug 1981 en magnum

Very good nose with hazelnut, aged oak, toast, hints of chocolate and vanilla. Thought it was Bollinger. The finish had a displeasing iodic/metallic character which I thought suggested this particular bottle wouldn’t have improved. I’ve had a better bottle.

Guigal La Landonne 1986

Lifted, very...

Marks Birthday Dinner

2007-03-18T00:00:00+00:00

Marks Birthday Dinner

18 March 2007

Mark AS organised a dinner to celebrate his birthday (and the imminent birthday of thehawk) at La Goulue in Crows Nest.

Mark generously brought along 10 ’77s for us to try. We began with Krug vintage 1995. This was a very youthful wine, very powerful on the nose with lots of lemon. With time, I thought the house style showed through, with more sherbet and vanilla. The palate was confronting: very sharp acidity, even by 1995 standards. Danny and I wondered if this will resolve. I trust the skill of the house and...

Dinner at Sojourn, Balmain

2007-03-16T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Sojourn, Balmain

16 March 2007

Last night Genevieve and I went to Sojourn in east Balmain or Darling St.

It’s been there about 6 or 9 months. The reviews have been good but I was turned off when I asked if they did BYO: ‘under no circumstances’. After looking at their rather boring list, I suggested they consider a creative corkage fee. ‘Never’.

After seeing the place empty many many times, I was not surprised to see that they now offer BYO Tuesday through Thursday for $10 per bottle. It was time to check the...

Sunday Night Wine

2007-03-04T00:00:00+00:00

Sunday Night Wine

04 March 2007

Tonight, a few wines with Neville and Gen. Fontaine-Gagnard Chassagne Montrachet 2002 was well made, good drinking but poor value for money. The Jadot Pommard Epenots 2001 was a little dull and awkward, not much tannin which is surprising. Then, a Chateau d’Yquem 1983, because I was feeling a little in need of a great bottle. Starting to look developed, soft acetone notes, sweet smelling botrytis nose. Excellent balance to the palate and just amazing length. I can taste it still, hours later. Really an excellent wine.

Australian Wine Dinner at Bistro Ortolan

2007-03-02T00:00:00+00:00

Australian Wine Dinner at Bistro Ortolan

02 March 2007

A few of us got together last night with some Norwegians who wanted to look at a few local wines while in town. In attendance was: myself, Gen, Mark, Fred, Cam, Christo, Riannan and the Norwegian crowd.

Rothbury Estate semillon 1979 Amazing freshness on the nose, a very good bottle. Grapefruit, hints of sesame seed, mandarine. The palate is a little short but well balanced. A great experience!

Lindemans Hunter White Burgundy 1974 More oxidised than the above with sherry-like character to the nose, hints of ginger and orange peel....

Penfolds Bin 04A Chardonnay 2004

2007-02-28T00:00:00+00:00

Penfolds Bin 04A Chardonnay 2004

28 February 2007

I tasted this wine blind last night. I found it to be quite good. When revealed as a Penfolds white I was surprised. I thought I’d share some impressions.

The thing that impressed me about this wine was its completeness. I’ve read some other notes from people who had it 6 months ago or so and commented on its oakiness. This seems to have settled down a little.

The fruit is pure, the palate long. It is not nearly as acid as I like Chardonnay but as you drink it, you...

A busy work weeks worth

2007-02-14T00:00:00+00:00

A busy work weeks worth

14 February 2007

Been busy, not too much of interest over the last few weeks — especially after the great truffle rest.

While in the US, a few bottles. Woodlands Margaret 2004, fine wine but didn’t see what all the fuss was about. Wish more cheap Aussie wine was like this. Then, a White Rocks Napa “Claret” 2001, Merlot dominant and showing a lot of American oak. Boring with some hard tannin. Then, a Sterling 1985 Bordeaux blend. Enjoyable, at its peak, excellent varietal character. Good fun.

Upon return to Australia, an Antonin Rodet...

A final Truffle Dinner

2007-02-11T00:00:00+00:00

A final Truffle Dinner

11 February 2007

I’ve been in the US over the last week. Food options were known in advance: take out hamburger, take out pizza or some variation on that theme. I needed one last meal to steel my soul against this machine made crap — and to finish off the truffles I’d been using.

Usual menu, with the omlette and pasta a stand out.

This time, only those friends who had missed earlier get togethers attended.

Rebecca and James.

We started off with two Champagnes. First,...

Even More Truffles Dinner

2007-01-30T00:00:00+00:00

Even More Truffles Dinner

30 January 2007

Quite. Drunk. Right. Now.

Highlights: Bollinger R.D. 1973: gorgeous, built in the glass, amazing; Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne 1986: Brilliant white burgundy, remarkable elegance and yet weight/persistance to the palate, so good; Haut Brion 1996: explosive, drinking well, lots of gravel, ink, clay, plum, cassis… amazing power… I love Haut Brion. Drinking really well.

I did a few new dishes with varying success, including a carpaccio and veal dish. Heaps of other bottles including a Rapet Corton Charlemagne, Rousseau Charmes, Ramonet 1er and more.

Another Truffle Dinner

2007-01-28T00:00:00+00:00

Another Truffle Dinner

28 January 2007

A bunch of people came over last night for some truffled food. On the menu:

Fresh bread and truffle butter
Foie gras, slice of truffle
Mushrooms with truffle
Omlette with truffled eggs
Risotto of truffles
Home made fettucini with truffled eggs, mushroom and truffles
Wagyu beef with perigueux sauce
Duck and Chicken with truffle under the skin
Salads
Cheese plate: two truffle infused bries and a hard pecorino.
Chocolate mousse… with truffled eggs and a little bit of truffle as well.

For such...

Truffle Dinner

2007-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

Truffle Dinner

25 January 2007

I thought I’d try and make people a little jealous. I had some truffles delivered from France yesterday. I decided to try them out tonight in preparation for a big dinner Saturday night. They’re looking very good. Classic earthy, olive, kero aroma of the perigold. I decided to make the classic omlette and truffles.

I put the eggs in with the truffles in the fridge last night. The eggs take on the flavour of the truffle. It’s amazing. It makes me want to eat truffles every day.

Here’s the omlette:

...

Dinner with Oli, Nev and Gen

2007-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner with Oli, Nev and Gen

19 January 2007

Well… I’ve had my ‘ass’ in a sling so it was time to get some bottles open with some proper food.

Egly Brut Tradition

Something wrong here, totally scalped .

Dauvissat Les Preuses Grand Cru Chablis 2001

Very sulphurous. What a dissappointment. More expensive than Raveneau!

Steingarten Riesling 2003

Initially good, with classic nettly kero. Started to come apart. Lacks structure.

Bouree Charmes Chambertin 1992

Delicious aged Burg character with mushroom, pimento, earth and lots of character. Really enjoyed it. At its peak, very good for...

To finish the year

2006-12-30T00:00:00+00:00

To finish the year

30 December 2006

Opened a bottle of Latour-a-Pomerol 1981 for Gen’s return to Sydney — and because the bottle of Claude Cazals Clos Cazals 1997 Champagne was corked. Luckily it was drinkable, the next in line was an ’89 Gaja, could have been an expensive night!

The Bordeaux was, frankly, past its best. The nose was clean and claret like upon opening, with cedar, tobacco and dried red berry aromas. I decanted it for the table and it took on a strong aroma of white pepper. The palate had some of the bitterness I’ve come...

Another end of year do with lots of bottles

2006-12-23T00:00:00+00:00

Another end of year do with lots of bottles

23 December 2006

Well, I haven’t felt this ordinary for a while! Danny, Mark, Cam and Phil came over and we opened a bunch of different things.

Cattier NV

Great value for money, well made but no really complexity.

Seppelts Salinger 1994

Still holding in there (just) with almond and some sherry like oxidative character on the nose. Palate is pleasant but with only the slightest of mousse.

Krug Grande Cuvee (disg. M421)

Seems to be a little overdeveloped. Far from the best bottle I’ve had, unfortunately.

Jean Vesselle "Oeil...

Godolphin 2005

2006-12-20T00:00:00+00:00

Godolphin 2005

20 December 2006

Gen kindly brought this home from work for me. On the nose, it is clean and rich with pure cassis, cherry and raspberry aromas. In the background there is musky oak. The palate is very good, better than the Amon-Ra. The tannins are very fine, lending structure to the wine. It is juicy but not over done. It has a clean long finish which reveals, again, a musk like character. There is some hardness from alcohol but it is not a problem.

Extremely approachable now. Why wait?

I think I prefer this to the...

End of year get together

2006-12-16T00:00:00+00:00

End of year get together

16 December 2006

One of my tasting groups had its end of year get together last night at Phil’s place in Woolloomooloo. Some late cancellations saw Danny and Mark join the starting line up.

Most of the attendees are serious wine and food nerds so this was always going to be a great night. For the eleven of us, the food served was:

Oysters with salmon tartare
German riesling and scallop soup — an amazingly good soup
Salad of endive, sauted duck, cranberries, raspberries and pistachio
Whole roast pig!
Braised...

Weekend Wines

2006-12-10T00:00:00+00:00

Weekend Wines

10 December 2006

Vosne Romanee “Clos des Reas” M. Gros 1998

The most subdued bottle of this I’ve had. Well structured but without the spice I usually enjoy.

Eric Rodez Grand Cru Ambonnay Blanc de Noirs NV

Quite aldehydic on the nose. Must be a lot of older material in this NV. A very interesting baked rhubarb on the finish which I really like.

Beaucastel 1994

The cleanest of four bottles I’ve opened. Dried roses, dried cranberries and jamon. A child of the vintage, drinking at its best. A little hard on the finish but better with...

A few Wednesday night bottles

2006-12-07T00:00:00+00:00

A few Wednesday night bottles

07 December 2006

A fellow Burgundy lover came over last night to pick up a bottle of a ’78 Le Montrachet of Remoissenet. He brought with him a bottle of Remoissenet Corton-Charlemagne 2001. So, we opened a few bottles.

Remoissenet Corton-Charlemagne 2001

Opened up a little sulphury but cleaned up. Soft, delicate style of CC with green apples, lemons and a touch of earthy oak in the background. The palate is delightful with natural acid, excellent structure and length. Nothing overpowering and nothing out of place. Drank well over 6 hours.

Mount Pleasant “Elizabeth”...

A gathering of wine lovers

2006-11-28T00:00:00+00:00

A gathering of wine lovers

28 November 2006

Thanks for bringing some great wines over guys. My impressions.

Bruno Michel "Cuvee Rebelle" Extra Brut NV

(Champagne, France)

Found this a little subdued. I was cooking though.

Weinkellerei Der Pfarrkirche Alsheimer Rheinblick Riesling Auslese 1976

(Rheinhessen, Germany – AP 4 372 082 75 79)

Christo thanks for bringing this! I loved the rich, integrated aroma of old baked apples, earth, even an aroma of well seasoned wood. Well integrated on the palate with the sugar having disappeared from view. Certainly, past its best but...

Prince de Merode Corton Les Renardes Grand Cru 1998

2006-11-26T00:00:00+00:00

Prince de Merode Corton Les Renardes Grand Cru 1998

26 November 2006

This is a style of Burgundy I am fond of at the moment. As I said of the La Tache 1985, it is a challenging wine.

The prince de Merode, I am told, is the largest land owner in Bourgogne. The domaine is based at the Serrigny castle — which has a mout! I was talking to Ross Duke about the domaine a few weeks ago. He said that he once dined there and that it was the most convincing set for the Hound of the Baskervilles...

Huge Wine Dinner at Claude's

2006-11-19T00:00:00+00:00

Huge Wine Dinner at Claude’s

19 November 2006

Twelve of us gathered at Claude’s last night to open some special bottles. In attendance: Cam, TheHawk, Neville, Mark AS, Danny, Wizz, DLo, Gazza, Alex and Caterina, Genevieve and myself.

Negotiations with Claude’s had resembled a G8 summit on the Kyoto protocol. We were all fairly high strung, worried about the potential of the night. As it turned out, the wines showed very well and all attendees had, I’m sure, some amazing experiences.

Dom Perignon Rose 1992

Pretty pink salmon appearance. Nose of red berry fruits with subtle oak, vanilla, rhubarb...

Wine and Food in the Napa Valley

2006-11-12T00:00:00+00:00

Wine and Food in the Napa Valley

12 November 2006

I’m in the USA at the moment and had some spare time to taste and drink a few bottles in the Napa Valley.

Ridge Paso Robles Zinfandel 2003

Fairly typical Zin nose of cocoa and bitter chocolate and cherry reduction. The palate is numbingly alcoholic with very soft tannins.

Ridge Jimsomare Ranch Zinfandel 2004

Very sweet nose. Palate over worked and very alcoholic at around 15%. Not to my liking at all. The person I was tasting with was good friends with the vineyard owner. He was full...

Vertigo III: Mt Mary and 707 Cabernets

2006-11-05T00:00:00+00:00

Vertigo III: Mt Mary and 707 Cabernets

05 November 2006

What a fun night! Lots of loud discussion — on topics other than wine for a change. We even needed air conditioning, such was the quantity of hot air being generated.

The wines:

Pol Roger NV

Cellared for three years after release, this was looking fantastic. Superb balance, great length and poise. I am continually rewarded by Pol Roger.

St Johns Rd Eden Valley riesling 2005

I couldn’t get past the sulphurous nose but the palate was well structured.

Blain Gagnard Chassagne Montrachet Caillerets 2000
...

Favourite Wine Related Photos of the Moment

2006-11-04T00:00:00+00:00

Favourite Wine Related Photos of the Moment

04 November 2006

So, I’m bored at work. Thought I’d share a few photos that make things feel better:

This is Romanee Conti Grand Cru… being tilled manually. Unbelievable! We had a little picnic sitting right next to the vineyard. The guy with the horse wanted a chat while he was working but I was worried take his eye off the till and rip 30 vines out of the ground. I’d rather not be known as the person who ruined Romanee...

Impressions of the wines of Lucien Le Moine at Becasse

2006-10-24T00:00:00+00:00

Impressions of the wines of Lucien Le Moine at Becasse

24 October 2006

Lucien Le Moine is a small negociant house in Burgundy. Lebanese born Mounir Saouma runs the house with his wife Rotem Brakir. Saouma was apparently studying to be a monk when he got interested in wine — hence the name of the house Lucien the monk. I think it’s fair to say that Christianity’s loss is our gain.

Ultimo Wine Centre put on a dinner at Becasse to introduce the 2004s. Danny, Neville, Gen, Phil and I — as well as other Ultimo Wine Centre customers...

Billecart Salmon and Domaine Jacques Cacheux et Fils

2006-10-23T00:00:00+00:00

Billecart Salmon and Domaine Jacques Cacheux et Fils

23 October 2006

Billecart Salmon NV

Poor bottle. Not overtly faulty, but short on the palate and boring. Might have been cooked…?

Domaine Jacques Cacheux et Fils Vosne-Romané"La Croix Rameau" 1er 1999

Opened and let it breathe for two hours with excellent results. Explosive nose of cherry, cranberry, oak and spice. More Chambolle than Vosne on the nose. The palate is very austere with a lot of very fine drying tannin. Really needs food. Excellent quality. Very primary still and needs 5 years to mature to my tastes. However, excellent pinot...

BBQ and lots of bottles

2006-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

BBQ and lots of bottles

15 October 2006

I put on a BBQ on the 14th of October with Neville, Cam, Anjuli, Mark AS and Phil. The hot conditions had me concerned all day: maybe I should just go and buy a case of beer? Maybe that La Landonne would drink better with fruit in it, as a sangria?

Anyway, the temperature dipped at about 8pm and we all got stuck into some food and wine — some of which I am bound to have forgotten.

First we opened a Bruno Michel “Cuvee Rebelle” NV (Champagne). This...

A disappointing Dalwhinnie

2006-10-12T00:00:00+00:00

A disappointing Dalwhinnie

12 October 2006

Had the Dalwhinnie Moonambel Cabernet 2004. What’s going on here? This wine was all at sea: no classic Cabernet character and none of the big juicy character Dalwhinnie usually has. Frankly, a boring wine. What am I getting for my $50?

No tannic structure at all. No complexity. I had the 2000 the other day and really liked it.

13.8% alcohol. Weird.

Wine Dinner at Aria

2006-10-04T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Dinner at Aria

04 October 2006

About four weeks ago, Neville started hinting to Danny, thehawk and I that a quiet dinner of good bottles was to be put together for the 3rd of October. Sanjay was to be coming up from Melbourne and had an evening free.

Neville began negotiating with Aria and eventually a table for 8 was found. At the same time, there was much discussion among attendees as to what the suitable line up of wines should be.

By 8pm last night, all was settled, attendees were seated and wines were revealed. In attendence...

In celebration of birthdays

2006-10-02T00:00:00+00:00

In celebration of birthdays

02 October 2006

A great afternoon of wine, food and conversation. Happy birthday Neville: thank you and others for their wonderful generousity. Impressions follow:

Paul Bara Brut Reserve Grand Cru NV

Would have arrived in time for this I hadn’t have had to run back into the flat 4 times before leaving

L. Bernard Pitois Reserve Premier Cru NV

Earthy meunier fruit, to my taste. Found the structure to be quite good.

Pol Roger 1976

Excellent aged character – Manzanilla and roasted hazelnut in particular. Palate was a little short but beautifully rounded.

Bollinger RD...

Blind Wine Tasting

2006-09-28T00:00:00+00:00

Blind Wine Tasting

28 September 2006

Tasted blind.

Eugene Collavini Pinot Grigio IGT Collio 2004

Very pale with a straw/pink tinge. Very soft nose, hints of linden, peach. Could be a very early picked Australia riesling. Round texture to the palate with a peculiar earthiness. Very delicate flavour. Frankly, neutral. Drink now.

Cave de Turckheim Pinot Gris AC Alsace 2004

The colour should be the give away here: it’s pink. Obvious had a lot of skin contact which suggests one of a handful of grapes. Very light aromas of peach, rose petal. Sweet smelling. Palate is simple, almost...

Wine Society Tasmania Pinot Noir 2005

2006-09-26T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Society Tasmania Pinot Noir 2005

26 September 2006

A gave this a try. My partner, Genevieve, works at the wine society.

Well made, good balance, length and intensity. The texture on the palate is pleasant — none of those bitter New World tannins. I think part of the texture has to do with a hint of residual sugar. It’s by no means off dry but it’s not austere either.

Compared to other sub $20 New World Pinot, there’s a fair bit more going on here. In absolute terms, however, it’s a fairly simple wine and frankly I was...

Bollinger, Two Hands and a few Burgundies

2006-09-18T00:00:00+00:00

Bollinger, Two Hands and a few Burgundies

18 September 2006

1979 Bollinger Grande AnnéChampagne

Very big on the nose but the palate was superb. At its peak.

2002 Domaine Laroche Chablis Premier Cru Vieilles Vignes Les Fourchaumes

I thought this was very good. Excellent purity and structure. Approachable now but will improve.

1999 Maison Louis Latour Cote de Beaune-Villages

Nothing very interesting going on here. Awkwardness on the palate seems to suggest poor handling.

2000 Domain Alain Burguet Gevrey-Chambertin En Reniard

Good for village level. Enjoyed the earthy Gervey character. Drink now.

2000 Domaine Fourrier Gevey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos...

Too hot for wine

2006-09-14T00:00:00+00:00

Too hot for wine

14 September 2006

Tyrrells Vat 6 Pinot 2000

Corked

Gachet-Monot Bourgogne 2002

Deliciously pure pinot fruit. Great for Bourgogne level. Eaten with Tyrolean venison stew. Yum.

Elderton “Friends Vineyard” Eden Valley Riesling 2006

Quite pronounced on the nose but pure structure to the palate.

With this warm weather, I’m switching to pastis for a while!

Wines over the last week

2006-09-10T00:00:00+00:00

Wines over the last week

10 September 2006

I had the opportunity to taste a fair bit of wine over the last week. Here are some impressions:

Tyrrells Vat 1 1989

Golden colour. Sweet smelling grapefruit, nuts, honeycomb, smoke and pineapply botrytis notes. Rich lemon and grape fruit on the palate, taking on a smokey maturity. Finishes with the same botrytis character as the nose. An enjoyable wine but no show winner.

Tyrrells Vat 1 1994

Burnt lemon on the first whiff. Wow. Very complex. Vanilla and sweet tropical fruit aromas… maybe even something like duran! Rich with crisp...

Dinner at Il Piave

2006-09-06T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Il Piave

06 September 2006

Neville, Danny, Gen and I had a quiet little get together last night at Il Piave. Food was good but they had no cheese plate. ‘Chef doesn’t like cheese.’ Take that hat off them I say.

Raveneau Butteaux 1er Cru 2002

Color indicated some development. Soft, pure, Chablis character to the nose: minerally iodine and warm floral and peach aromas. Palate has superb structure and length. Drinking well now and will improve over the next 3 years.

Chateau Montrose 1982

An absolutely fabulous nose with enticing aromas of jasmine, aniseed, spice and...

To start September off

2006-09-04T00:00:00+00:00

To start September off

04 September 2006

Charles Melton Rose of Virginia 2002

Hmm. Only rose I had at hand. Plummy, strawberry aromas. Palate has lost its freshness. Sourness to the finish is off putting.

Sottimano “Cotta” Barbaresco 2003

Like biting into an unripe persimmon. Very chalky drying tannins. At first, hard to get along with. Revealed some coffee, floral and spicy notes with vigorous swirling. Will be a good wine in ten years or so.

Yalumba Cabernet Shiraz Coonawarra/Barossa 2004

Ripe, jube fruit. Blind, I would have picked this as 100% Barossa shiraz. Palate is flabby and poorly...

Birthday Celebration Wines

2006-08-27T00:00:00+00:00

Birthday Celebration Wines

27 August 2006

A few bottles for Gen’s birthday today.

Pol Roger 1996

Excellent colour, showing some development. Softer nose than previous bottles with hazelnut, bakery aromas and lemon peel. Palate has excellent balance and length. Looking forward to seeing this one with 5 more years on it. I think the structure lengths itself to age.

Donnhoff Riesling (QbA) 2002

Only QbA but a fantastic quality wine. I believe it’s QbA because it is a blend of multiple vineyards. Pure apple puree, cinnamon and whiffs of kerosene on the nose. It actually smells sweet. Palate has...

For Len Evans

2006-08-19T00:00:00+00:00

For Len Evans

19 August 2006

I got together with a bunch of people on Friday night to, amongst other things, raise a glass to Len Evans. It wouldn’t be appropriate if we drank ordinary plonk so, this is what we opened:

Pol Roger “Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill” 1995

Strong aroma of hazelnuts, earth and manzanilla. I thought this was much older wine. Excellent structure to the palate but on this showing, maybe earlier dranking than Winston usually is.

Krug Grande Cuvee

Deliciously rich on nose and palate. Drank fabulously over a four hour period. What a great wine.
...

Vintage Cellars Double Bay 2003 Bordeaux Tasting

2006-08-16T00:00:00+00:00

Vintage Cellars Double Bay 2003 Bordeaux Tasting

16 August 2006

Tour de Mirambeau Bordeaux Blanc 2005

Simple and boring.

Carruades de Lafite 2003

Ripe mulberry, oak, cherry and chalk on the nose. Palate is round with soft tannins, lots of oak and juicy fruit. Very approachable but I found it one dimensional.

Lynch Bages 2003

A distinct smell of tiramasu! Underneath, oak, a hint of gravel and, surprisingly, a hint a greenness! When did they pick? The palate has noticeable alcohol which, combined with the other, masks a lot of the fruit. Very drying tannins on the finish. A...

A Boozy Sunday

2006-08-14T00:00:00+00:00

A Boozy Sunday

14 August 2006

A big boozy Sunday at my place. I like to get a little carried with these kinds of things. As it turns out, this lunch would have made even the most hardline slow food advocate weep with joy.

The menu was long, meaty, fatty and rich:
Smoked trout in bechemel and watercress sauce on toasted sourdough
Homemade rillettes de porc (kind of like a pork belly terrine)
Boudin noir en croute (black pudding in pastry)
Veal wrapped in pancetta with asparagus and mushroom sauce
Roasted beetroot, cherve and...

Cullen and Moss Wood Dinner at Angelo's

2006-08-12T00:00:00+00:00

Cullen and Moss Wood Dinner at Angelo’s

12 August 2006

A very enjoyable night at Angelo’s on the Bay at Cabarita. In attendance were: myself, Neville, Christo and his better half, Mark AS and his better … two thirds, Cam, Danny, Muscat Mike and Phil (a friend of mine).

The theme was Cullen Diane Madeline vs. Moss Wood Cabernet. Wines from each producer of each year were presented in the following order: 1999, 1998, 1996, 1995, 1994, 1991.

All wines were double decanted a few hours before tasting and then presented decanted to the tasters. Two backup bottles had...

Tasted Blind

2006-08-11T00:00:00+00:00

Tasted Blind

11 August 2006

A few bottles this week (tasted blind/label unseen):

Chateau Carbonnieux 1997

Dull ruby colour, bricking. Dusty chalk, rhubarb aromas, perhaps a bit green. Light to medium body, quite dilute, clearly a Bordeaux of a poor year. No real length or intensity to speak of. Drink now.

Casillero del Diablo 2002 (Maipo Valley)

Dark opaque core. Unclean aromas of onion peel, baked oranges, then coffee and undergrowth. With air, a distinct smell of baking rabbit! Dry, oaky palate, with the same pecular notes. Finish is very drying and perhaps a bit bretty. Barely presentable. (The...

A few wines at Restaurant06

2006-08-08T00:00:00+00:00

A few wines at Restaurant06

08 August 2006

Restaurant06 was a restaurant industry expo held over the weekend. There were a pretty good number of wine producers there and I checked some of them out.

Vinoptima reserve Gewurztraminer 2004

Wow! What a beautiful nose. Rich, spicy with hints of mandarin, lemon, earth and more. I’d never pick this as being frm New Zealand. Palate has good intensity and length but the alcohol is a bit hard going (14.5%). Regardless, the best New World Gewurztraminer I’ve had. Check it out: www.vinoptima.co.nz

On to the Champagne Masterclass hosted by Huon...

Vega Sicilia Lunch

2006-07-30T00:00:00+00:00

Vega Sicilia Lunch

30 July 2006

A fabulous lunch at the world-class Tetsuya’s with a range of wines from the Vega Sicilia Group. Sixteen people attended, including 6 Vega Sicilia representatives. These included Pablo Alvarez (Director and owner) and his quiet son; Xavier Ausas Lopez de Castro (head winemaker and oenologist); Enrique Macias Gomez (vineyard manager); Christopher Cannan (Europvin) and a lucky Spanish wine journalist.

Xavier was very generous with his time and was happy to provide as much information about Vega’s wines as was desired. There’s a lot to know: the Vega group now has operations in Ribera...

This weekends wines

2006-07-24T00:00:00+00:00

This weekends wines

24 July 2006

Chateau de Beaucastel 1999

Had better bottles, nose was very stinky but palate had superb structure.

Henschke Julius Riesling 1990

Best bottle I’ve had. Classic aged Australian riesling character with honeycomb, smoke, vanilla – very complex. Palate tasted a bit adjusted and lacked length but this last bottle was enjoyable.

Saddlers Creek Hunter Single Vineyard Shiraz 1999

American oak on the nose with a hint of mulberry jam. With time, the VA came through and it seemed a bit bretty. Palate was short and falling apart. What a shame I found a case...

Wine Australia Winestar Dinner at Atelier

2006-07-17T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Australia Winestar Dinner at Atelier

17 July 2006

Lots of bottles opened at Atelier by 20 forumites and their partners. Thanks especially to Bert for organisation.

These are the wines I can remember.

Billecart Salmon Rose

I usually like this wine but found nothing going on with this bottle.

Launois Blanc de Blanc

Didn’t get a pour of this one.

Egly-Ouriet Brut Tradition Grand Cru

Good complexity but not as intense as the bottle I’d had the night before. Same disgorgement.

Rothbury Estate Semillion 1991

Corked

Burge Olive Grove Hill Semillon 2002

Worked Bordeaux Blanc style. An...

Wine Australia Dinner at Golden Century

2006-07-17T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Australia Dinner at Golden Century

17 July 2006

A lot of bottles opened at Golden Century on Sunday night. I’m still laughing about a bunch of things that happened.

These are the wines I remember.

Laurent Perrier Rose 1996

Seemed one dimensional. Probably glassware.

Krug Grande Cuvee

A bottle I brought back from the US. Fantastic wine. Beautiful intensity and balance.

Richmond Grove Watervale Riesling (under cork and screwcap) 1998

The screw cap bottle seemed a little more developed, surprisingly. There also seemed a lot of dissolved SO2 in the screw capped wine.

Tyrrells ‘Vat 1’ 1997

Lots...

A few bottles while travelling

2006-07-14T00:00:00+00:00

A few bottles while travelling

14 July 2006

I had to work in Manhattan and Toronto for a few weeks. When ever I could, I took the opportunity to get a few bottles open.

Krug Grande Cuvee Great Champagne Superb value for money in the North American market.

Chateau Suduiraut 2002 Looking very smart but for early drinking. The acid just isn’t there to allow it to last. Delicious now.

Roda I 2001

Had better bottles. Good complexity on the nose but hard on the palate. I’d asked it to be decanted but the sommelier was a moron and...

Wine in Manhattan

2006-07-05T00:00:00+00:00

Wine in Manhattan

05 July 2006

Krug Grande Cuvee (disgorgement 441)

Delicious, youthful, balanced. An excellent Champagne. This wine always impresses me and it was particularly refreshing on a stinking hot Manhattan day.

Chateau Suduiraut 2002

Delightly expressive nose: nougat, marmalade, orange and lemon peel, oxidative handling evident. Palate is medium sweet with soft acidity. Good texture but needs more acid. Don’t leave this one too long in the cellar, it’s not made for it. Still, early drinking Sauternes are a nice relief after 2001.

Gaja Dinner

2006-06-30T00:00:00+00:00

Gaja Dinner

30 June 2006

A fantastic dinner at Lo Studio in Surry Hills with Angelo Gaja — and 100 other devotees.

Angelo Gaja is a charming, charismatic man. A born salesman, full of useful, plainly put information. For example, TheHawk asked him what he thought of the widely discredited 2002 vintage. Angelo replied ‘I made a mistake. My staff told me we should pick but I wanted to leave the grapes a week or two longer to increase ripeness. After 10 days, it started to ran. I sold the entire red wine crop to local negociants at potato...

Bouchard "Vigne de l'Enfant Jesus" 2002

2006-06-22T00:00:00+00:00

Bouchard “Vigne de l’Enfant Jesus” 2002

22 June 2006

Wow! What a great wine. Bright ruby colour, really glowing in the glass. Explosive sweet raspberry, cherry and oak aromas on the nose. Hints of oak and spice. Really enticing and pure. The palate has very fine, elegant tannins and refreshing acidity. This is pure pinor noir: sweet raspberry, cherry, a hint of cranberry and a suggestion of beetroot juice. On the very long finish there is more earthy, oaky complexity.

The palate is very primary at the moment. It is so juicy that it is almost difficult to drink....

Inaugural meeting of the Sydney Label Drinkers Society

2006-06-18T00:00:00+00:00

Inaugural meeting of the Sydney Label Drinkers Society

18 June 2006

An excellent evening to kick of the inaugural meeting of the SLDS (Sydney Label Drinkers Society) at the abode of Mark AS and wife Ingrid. Thanks to all labelistes for their fine labels, name dropping and general pretentiousness.

This event commemorates the birth years (and years of conception) of our honourable founding members. Long live the labelistes!

Krug 1979

Mid amber in colour, still with a slight bubble. Enticing almond, manzanilla, smoke and burnt preserved lemon on the nose. The palate is rich and surprisingly creamy. Very...

If only all weekends were like these

2006-06-13T00:00:00+00:00

If only all weekends were like these

13 June 2006

I got a few wines open on the weekend. Some notes follow.

Dom Perignon 1996

As with other bottles, youthful, rich, excellent acid and length. This bottle was showing some development with hints of nougat and spice. Delicious with beetroot salad and game terrine.

Bouchard Pere et Fils Corton Charlemagne 2002

Pale lemon in colour with a rich yoghurt, butterscotch and almond nougat on the nose. Unbelievable intense and complex. The palate is equally impressive. Explosive nougat, lemon, almond and butterscotch — weighty and yet very refined. Fabulous balance,...

Dinner at our place

2006-06-04T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at our place

04 June 2006

Quiet one at our place with Neville and Cam.

I didn’t take notes because I was tired, but impressions follow.

Leo Buring Leonay DWU13 Watervale Riesling 1991

Rich grapefruity nose. Good aged character. Wants for a little more acid and length on the palate. Enjoyable. As Len Evans says “I don’t cellar it but I’m glad someone does.”

Curlewis Chardonnay 2002

Meursault-like oaky richness on the nose. I found the structure of the palate poor, with acid a little hard and alcohol noticeable. General lack of integration. Should resolve itself with time,...

Quiet get together in Leichhardt

2006-05-30T00:00:00+00:00

Quiet get together in Leichhardt

30 May 2006

Quiet offline in Leichhardt last night.

Eric Rodez Blanc de Noirs Grand Cru Ambonnay

More advanced than other bottles I’ve had. Rich nose and palate, very fine bead, good acid structure. I liked it, others didn’t.

Dopff and Irion Grand Cru Alsacian Riesling 1997

Served ice cold and it wasn’t yielding much but kero and smoke. With time, some spicy Alsacian riesling character.

Blain-Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet 2002

This improved with air also. At first, too much banana peel but with time a fine wine, excellent structure and good oak integration. Probably the...

A strange weekend

2006-05-29T00:00:00+00:00

A strange weekend

29 May 2006

A funny weekend for me.

Friday night I was a wreck after a having worked 80 odd hours in the last 5 days. So, had 3 pints of guiness and half a jug of sangria before passing out in the cab at 8pm.

Saturday was a cellar stocktake. Pulled out a bottle of Ravenswood Lane Reunion Shiraz 1998. Looking okay, well balanced, Adelaide Hills fruit. Tannins fading but will look better in 3-5 years.

Last night decided to crack a Turkey Flat Shiraz 2001. This won the Shiraz challenge from memory but there’s...

Dinner at L'Unico, Balmain

2006-05-29T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at L’Unico, Balmain

29 May 2006

Grosset Polish Hill 1996

Pale amber in colour. Nose has good aged Australian riesling character: honey comb, hints of white peach, a bit of spice and smokey complexity. No real kerosene to speak of. Great nose.

The moderate to high acidity lends good structure to the palate. Light to medium bodied with complex honey comb, stone fruit and citrus. All in balance. Much better than the bottle at Atelier. A slight woodiness on the finish, no doubt impacted from the cork. Drinking well now.

Giaconda Pinot Noir 2000

Very youthful ruby in...

Pio Cesare and Moillard-Grivot

2006-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

Pio Cesare and Moillard-Grivot

25 May 2006

Pio Cesare Nebbiolo d’Alba

Funky and porty. Poor bottle.

Moillard-Grivot Monthelie 1999

Picked this up at the local bottle shop. Was surprised to see it, since the store is 99.9% aussie. It was alright, fine cherry pinot character with good structure. No claim to fame but a solid wine which would probably drink better than all the overpriced ‘cool climate’ new world gear next to it.

Wines drunk this week

2006-05-22T00:00:00+00:00

Wines drunk this week

22 May 2006

Consumed over the last week.

Bollinger Grande Annee 1996

Much more advanced than that last bottle I had.

Rich oaky nose, earthy with a hint of stone fruit. Crisp acid on the palate, full mouthfilling style. Needs food.

Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault “Les Narvaux” 1999

In excellent shape. Rich almond and butter nose. Spicy and complex. Palate has great structure and length. Outstanding considering that this is a village wine. Drink now but will hold for a year.

Thierry Allemand “Reynard” Cornas 1994

Pale ruby colour, showing age. Chalk, cherry, sweet and complex....

Starve Dog Lane Cabernet 1998

2006-05-18T00:00:00+00:00

Starve Dog Lane Cabernet 1998

18 May 2006

Looking pretty good. Still youthful. Straight forward fruit but with a great structure. Give it a good decant though. At first, it had an overpowering peppermint smell which, by itself, I dislike. With time, though, it became more chocolatey and interesting.

Will look good for another 5-7 years, I think.

Options Night at De'Vine

2006-05-17T00:00:00+00:00

Options Night at De’Vine

17 May 2006

Mario from VC Double Bay organised a great little options night last night.

Pommery Cuvee Louise 1995

Lacking complexity and intensity. Pretty short. Must retaste.

Dr. Loosen Urziger Wurzgarten Spatlese 2004

Looking pretty smart, if you like the residual sugar style.

Tyrrells “vat 1” 1994

Different to other bottles I’ve had recently. A bit short and more mature.

Haut Brion Blanc 1997

Very complex, layered, spicy and rich. Not my style, especially at the price, but you can see why people enjoy it.

Stonyridge “Larose” 1998 (NZ)

Weedy and unripe. Could be...

Wines of the Weekend

2006-05-14T00:00:00+00:00

Wines of the Weekend

14 May 2006

Lanson Gold Label Brut 1996

Acid and lacking ripeness. Okay apperitif style but not going anywhere.

Trimbach “Cuvee des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre” Gewurztraminer 1983

Rich floral, earthy nose and palate. Oily texture wanting for acid. Long finish.Not showing its considerable age.

Albert Mann Grand Cru Schlossberg 1996

Aged Alsatian Riesling character. Minerally, smokey stone fruit and spice. In some ways, seemed older than the Trimbach. Drink up.

Rene Lequin-Colin Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru 2001

Very floral and shuberty. Didn’t like it at all.

Tyrrells “Vat 1” 1996

Nose and palate showing some grapefruit...

Fevre 2004 Chablis Tasting

2006-05-07T00:00:00+00:00

Fevre 2004 Chablis Tasting

07 May 2006

A goood event put on by Five Ways Cellars.

William Fevre Petit Chablis 2004

Simple stone and pear fruit. A little upfront on this nose – by which I mean, lacking minerality and smokiness. Well structured palate but a bit short. Good for what it is but there’s better value else where.

William Fevre Chablis 2004

By ‘better value else where’ I mean… here. Much more complex with shoal, earth, peach and other unripe stone fruit aromas. Palate is very well structured with elegant green apple and stone fruit. Very refreshing. Excellent...

Alkoomi Frankland River Riesling

2006-05-06T00:00:00+00:00

Alkoomi Frankland River Riesling

06 May 2006

Alkoomi Frankland River Riesling 2005 Nose of light citrus and unripe green apple. Palate light to medium weight, good do with a little more acid. Frankly, boring. Well suited to sauced seafood dishes.

Midweek Tasting Group

2006-05-04T00:00:00+00:00

Midweek Tasting Group

04 May 2006

Notes from a regular tasting group session.

Beurdin Pere et Fils 2003 (Reuilly)

Pale straw/lemon colour. Nettles, grass and gooseberry nose — simple and inoffensive. Dry palate with a hint of citrusy acid — but only a hint. Nettles, grass and gooseberries. Long fruity finish. Very typical of the vintage.

Xanadu Semillon Savignon Blanc 2003
Pale straw colour. Sweet oak nose, grapefruit, pear and a hint of grass, tomato leaf and chilli bush! Complex but offputting. Palate has good acid structure but is oaky and lacking in fruit depth. An unpleasant wine....

A Gunderlock and a Salomon

2006-05-01T00:00:00+00:00

A Gunderlock and a Salomon

01 May 2006

Gunderlock Nackenheim Rothenberg Riesling Auslese 2002

Some seepage.

Pale lemon colour. Quite closed on the nose at first but revealing some smokey, sweet honeydew and burnt/preserved lemon aromas. Palate is medium sweet, great natural fruit acidity. Lemon peel, stewed apple, more floral than the nose. Good structure, weight and finish.

Every bottle I’ve had of this has been different. All have had seepage and are maturing at different rates. Depressing because of the excellent underlying structure. I’d recommend checking your stock if you have some.

Salomon Undhof Kogl Riesling 2004 (glass...

Wine Tastings- Ultimo and Five Ways

2006-04-23T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Tastings- Ultimo and Five Ways

23 April 2006

Domaine Remi Jobard “Les Vignes Rondes” Monthelie 2003 (rouge)

Bright ruby in colour. Nose is fairly simple: raspberry and some plummy stalkiness. Palate is fairly well structured but lacks fruit complexity. Could be New World. Alcohol stands out on the finish. Drink over the next year or two.

Geantet-Pansiot Marsannay “Champs Perdrix” 2003

Youthful ruby colour. Nose is earthy barnyard with a hint of cherry. Good tannic structure and cleansing acid. Alcohol sticks out. Fruit has good complexity. Worth checking out if sensibly priced. Will improve over the next two...

Dinner at Elio with some Great Wines

2006-04-22T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Elio with some Great Wines

22 April 2006

A fun night had by all. Some poor wines but some enjoyable drinking too.

Dr Loosen Urziger Wurzgarten Spatlese Riesling 1999

Pale lemony/straw colour. Soft flinty nose with a mint of grape and pear. Just a hint of petrol about it. Very soft nose. Palate is much the same. Medium dry, wants for acid. Good fruit purity. Drink now.

Rippon Gewurztraminer 1999

Palate lemon colour. Offputting floral, sherbet, lolly water and coconut nose. Palate much the same, but seriously lacking in structure. No detectable acid, very short and fat....

This week's wines

2006-04-16T00:00:00+00:00

This week’s wines

16 April 2006

Franck Bonville Blanc de Blanc Grand Cru NV

Golden straw colour with large lazy bubbles. Lightly honied nose, creamy apricot and a hint of spicy oak. Rich palate well balanced by noticeable acidity. Pleasant fine mousse but lacking fruit complexity. Good value.

Zind Humbrecht Riesling 2003

Pale golden straw colour. Very vinous, alcoholic nose. Tasted blind, I thought it might be a big Rhone Marsanne, such was its lack of fruit definition. A hint of apricot and almonds came through with time. Palate was dry and felt very warm — despite being only...

Italian Midweekers

2006-04-14T00:00:00+00:00

Italian Midweekers

14 April 2006

Rizieri Dolcetto di Diano d’Alba 2002

Ruby coloured, pale rim. Bitter cherry on the nose, a bit porty. Earthy with some spiciness. A hint of VA. Dry wine with fairly hard, bitter tannins. Rich cherry and earth flavours, medium to full bodied. Alcohol quite obvious on the finished. Nonetheless, a good dolcetto from a poor year. Drink now.

Zenato Valpolicella Classico Superiore 2002

Deep opaque, beetroot coloured wine. Purple at the rim. Very stalky, green, confected nose. Ripe, earthy cherry/mulberry. Quite offputting.

Palate is off-dry to my taste. Very sweet tasting, confected red berry...

Dinner at Atelier, Glebe, Sydney

2006-04-09T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at Atelier, Glebe, Sydney

9 April 2006

Thanks to all for an enjoyable night at Atelier in Glebe. Some interesting wines and discussion.

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 1996

Deep straw in colour. Burnt grapefruit and citrus, some honied complexity. Minerallly, citrusy palate. Some earthy spice and honey. Acid sticks out a bit, tastes adjusted. Not the best example. A good wine but not great.

Tyrrells “Vat 1” Semillon 1994

Pale straw/gold. Complex, minerally grapefruit and a kind of burnt/oxidative stone fruit flavour, as one would expect. Excellent integration and depth. Palate is well integrated too. Good depth of...

Midweek Wines

2006-03-31T00:00:00+00:00

Midweek Wines

31 March 2006

Claude Cazals 1997 Blanc de Blanc

Floral, stone fruit, hint of yeastiness. Superb, cleansing acid on the palate. Fine mousse. Well structured, good fruit, nice finish. A good wine.

Gaston Chiquet Brut Tradition NV

A peculiar wine. A bit sulphury on the nose. Green apple is very predominant, a bit bready. Palate has the same green apple with an earthiness. Mousse is very soft — it’s almost still. Dud bottle?

Plantagenet 1992 Riesling

Pale golden straw in colour, the nose is typically Australian, with burnt citrus fruit, grapefruit, a little spice and kerosene. Palate...

New release Torbreck wines with David Powell

2006-03-31T00:00:00+00:00

New release Torbreck wines with David Powell

31 March 2006

Brief notes below.

Woodcutter’s Semillon 2004

Yuk. All alcohol and oak.

Marsanne Rousanne 2004

Floral and almondy on the nose. High alcohol. Uninteresting.

CuvéJuveniles 2004

Jammy mulberry, earthy gibier nose. Palate lacks structure. Pass.

The Steading 2003

More refined in style. Good complexity on nose and mouth. Tannins a little hard but better structure than the Juveniles. Drink over the next 5 years.

Woodcutter’s Shiraz 2005

Peppery, ripe red berry fruit but a bit burnt and stewy. Lacking complexity on the palate. Good value on the night.

The Struie...

Monday Night Wines

2006-03-27T00:00:00+00:00

Monday Night Wines

27 March 2006

Sandalford Cabernet Sauvignon 1999

Deep purple core. Lots of mint and jammy cassis on the nose, some earth. Tannins are disappearing on the palate. A heavy weight palate, noticeable alcohol (14.5%). Out of balance. It doesn’t have the structure to last the 5 or so more years it will take for the fruit to settle down to something drinkable.

Claude Casals Blanc de Blanc NV

Pale golden straw. A fine bead. Complex nose with smoky stone fruit, citrus and some yeastiness. Rich palate, good mousse, citrus, stone fruit and smoky flavours. Cleansing acid....

Just a few wines tonight

2006-03-16T00:00:00+00:00

Just a few wines tonight

16 March 2006

Wine Society Tasmanian Riesling 2005

Very pale with a green hue. Green apple, lime, minerally and youthful nose. Dry palate with green apple, lemon, lime and very sour acid. Characteristic Australian character. A bit unripe and lacking definition. Reminded some tasters of Muscadet which is a good description. Drink now.

Salomon Kremser Kogl Riesling Auslese (Austria)

Straw with golden notes. Green apple, floral notes, honey dew, some kerosene. Really fresh and still quite youthful. Medium dry with refreshing acidity. I would have liked the acidity to be a little more crisp...

A Champagne, a Bordeaux and a Riesling walk into a bar...

2006-03-12T00:00:00+00:00

A Champagne, a Bordeaux and a Riesling walk into a bar…

12 March 2006

Jokes aside, let’s get to it!

Bruno Michel Cuvee Repelle NV Champagne

A growers Champagne. A few lazy bubbles. Pleasant nose, light and floral with a smoky undertone. Light mousse – surprisingly so – good cleansing acid, slate and floral notes. Lacks richness. Hope the other bottles are better.

Lynch Bages 1985

Light mahogany, brick red rim. Nose is classic Pauillac/LB. Dusty cedar, cassis jam, violets, leather, earth and gravel/smoke. Very pronounced nose. You could smell it across the room.

Palate also good. Some fine...

A few older wines

2006-03-05T00:00:00+00:00

A few older wines

5 March 2006

Marc Bredif Vouvray 1986

Golden straw in colour, the nose is classic Vouvray: burnt/candied pineapple, pawpaw, white peach, minerally with gun smoke. Showing signs of age but not of fatigue.

The palate has noticeable but cleansing acidity. There’s a touch of sugar there, it’s not just fruit sweetness I think – off dry to my taste. Nonetheless, a pleasantly rich palate of smoky, candied pineapple and other tropical fruits, unripe stone fruit and burnt lemon peal. It has that amazing Vouvray vitality which belies its age. A long finish of minerally fruit...

Farewell Dinner for Oli

2006-03-04T00:00:00+00:00

Farewell Dinner for Oli

4 March 2006

A farewell dinner for Oli before she heads off today – with a head ache.

We started off with some crazy stuff by the glass, the details of which I cannot remember.

Then moved to:

Dom Perignon 1998

Initially a bit pongy but this blew off to reveal a very yeasty, toasty, burnt apple and cinnamon. Not the kind of spectrum of aromas you expect from Dom but this comes down to the year. The palate has excellent structure: fine mousse, rich yeasty, bready, nutty, earthy flavours drawn tightly together by some...

Dinner with Various Wines

2006-02-26T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner with Various Wines

26 February 2006

Raymond Boulard Rose Champagne

Pale ruby red – a brillant colour. Very few bubbles. Nose of strawberries and cream. Palate a bit simple, not the best bottle I’ve had.

Beronia Rioja Gran Reserva 1985

Very pale ambery ruby in colour. Nose a bit simple. Very coconutty, jammy cherry/raspberry, a hint of dried herbs and cured meat. Palate starting to come apart. No tannins, coconut and raspberry jam. Short. Still, a pleasant aged character well suited to food and the heat. Past it’s best.

Wolf Blass Black Label 2000 Cabernet

Opaque in colour....

A few Wine Society wines

2006-02-24T00:00:00+00:00

A few Wine Society wines

24 February 2006

Been a busy week so not much drinking. My partner works for the Wine Society so I thought I’d have a quick look at a few.

Wine Society Tasmanian Riesling 2004

Nice Alsatian nose with stone fruit, sherbert, rose petal. Palate not as rich but well balanced. Excellent value for money (it is less than $13 I think).

Wine Society Botrytis Semillon 2002

Good nose with lots of botrytisy burnt pineapple, marmalade and oxidative character. Palate is sweet and cloying, out of balance to my taste. Needs acid. I found it...

Chateau Les Hauts-Conseillants 2000

2006-02-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chateau Les Hauts-Conseillants 2000

19 February 2006

A cheapy from Lalande de Pomerol. Good ruby colour, watery rim. Clean nose, savoury cedar, fruit cake. Developing but a few years yet. Surprisingly, lots of good tannin on the palate but acid a little high. Fruit of cassis, cedar/oak, fruit cake but still a bit simple. Good length and structure. Great midweek drinking at $30.

Clos de Lambrays 1998, tasted recently

2006-02-16T00:00:00+00:00

Clos de Lambrays 1998, tasted recently

p(meta) 16 February 2006

Dark garnet in colour, not yet showing signs of age. Reaking of oak on the nose. Very surprising. Some earthy, raspberry notes underneath but quite off putting. Palate had a lot of fine tannin. Good structure but again, very oaky. The last time I tasted a Burgundy of this level with so much oakiness, it was in barrel! There is fruit underneath this, raspberry, a certain meatiness… It will be interesting to see this in 5 to 10 years but now, it is not suitable for drinking.

A Quick Trip to Manchester

2006-02-12T00:00:00+00:00

A Quick Trip to Manchester

12 February 2006

So, what does one do when it’s -3 outside Manchester? Drink wine, of course.

Bollinger Grande Anne 1996

Fittingly, left over from a wedding and opened to celebrate the arrival of a baby girl. Colour is the golden side of straw with some fine lazy bubbles. Nose is rich, honied and complex but not bready. Rather, spicy, with little fruitcake and citrusiness (the blend, incidentally, is 25% Chardonnay, rest being Pinot Noir).

Palate is very good. Excellent integration and structure. A fine mousse, noticeable but pleasant acidity, complex honied citrus and...

More wines in London

2006-02-11T00:00:00+00:00

More wines in London

11 February 2006

Had dinner with David in London again tonight.

Krug Grande Cuvee

Fine mousse with golden hue. Rich, clean, phenolic, spicy, yeasty nose with lemon zest on the nose. Fresh yet with maturity.

Great balance and weight on the palate. Noticeable, cleansing acidity, it is spicy and yet has a refreshing lemony citrus flavour. Weighty Pinot feel underneath. Excellent structure and length. A very good Champagne. Suitable for immediate drinking or extended aging, to taste.

William Fevre Fourchaume 1er Cru 2002

We both felt that this was a particularly bad example of this...

More Random Wines from London Trip

2006-02-10T00:00:00+00:00

More Random Wines from London Trip

10 February 2006

Last night, another bottle of Krug Grande Cuvee. Same as the note as the bottle I had with David. Then a bottle of Guigal Cote Rotie Blonde et Brune 2001. The best quality red I could find in the local Waitrose. Still very young. A confusing bitter cherry/confected flavour like Dolcetto. It could be youth, but something wasn’t quite right here.

I also had a huge South African Cabernet, served blind. I thought it was Noon, it was that big. In fact, it was so powerful I didn’t even get...

Random Wines in London

2006-02-08T00:00:00+00:00

Random Wines in London

08 February 2006

It was time to have a drink in London. I met up with David Jenkins who took me to a great little restaurant in Soho where we consumed:

Domaine Chavy 1er Cru Folatiès Puligny-Montrachet 2001

Straw with golden notes. Reserved nose of peach and apricot aromas wrapped in yoghurt. Good minerality. Palate well balanced with cleansing acidity. Good structure with clean stone fruit flavours as on nose, with an underlying oakiness which is not overdone. A great quality wine for drinking now.

Haut Brion 1996

Opaque core with a dark blackberry juice...

Some Wines Drunk while in Paris

2006-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

Some Wines Drunk while in Paris

7 February 2006

A lot of no name stuff in bistros in Paris. I was with French colleagues and it was enjoyable to drink ordinary wine and not think about it. That said, I also had:

Domaine Clape Cornas 1995 en magnum

Deep mahogany, opaque. Complex nose: jammy mulberry, licorice, leather, spice, dried thyme, truffles, olives, chocolate, ferrous notes – everything. Dry with a lot of fine tannin. Full bodied and yet some how refined. Excellent structure, despite noticeable acidity and weight. Balanced, in the sense of Brunello not Burgundy or claret. A...

Orlando St. Helga's 2005 Eden Valley Riesling

2006-01-28T00:00:00+00:00

Orlando St. Helga’s 2005 Eden Valley Riesling

28 January 2006

Star bright in colour with small bubbles clinging to the glass, this young wine has classic Eden Valley aromas of lemon/citrus, melon and an underlying floral and peach note.

The palate has crisp refreshing acidity. It is medium bodied with a cirtus, floral, melon and white stone fruit flavours. Alcohol stands out a bit, particularly on the finish, despite being only 12.5%. This wine probably has the best complexity I’ve seen out of the 2005 Rieslings so far.

The dissolved SO2 and/or CO2 is interesting. There isn’t the spritz...

Domaine Herve Sigaut Chambolle-Musigny village 2002

2006-01-27T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine Herve Sigaut Chambolle-Musigny village 2002

27 January 2006

What a delightful wine! A pale ruby/garnet, as if from the Côde Beaune. A nose of sweet raspberry and plum with a hint of oaky spice. The kind of purity of aroma you see in German riesling. Soft, feminine.

The palate is much the same. Dry with moderate acidity. Soft, light-to-medium weight body – you barely notice it there. Juicy and yet delicate, the flavours on the palate match the nose: pure raspberry and plum. A pleasant finish. Everything you want out of a village Burgundy, including superb value for...

Trimbach Frederic Emile 1999

2006-01-26T00:00:00+00:00

Trimbach Frederic Emile 1999

26 January 2006

Pale straw, lemon colour. At first, a little sulphurous. Given an hour this blows off to reveal a minerally nose with honied lemon and orange and stewed green apple. A characteristic oxidative undertone. It has some botrytis-like notes but I think I will put this down to bottle age rather than to the fruit itself.

The palate has noticeable, refreshing acidity which tightens up the oily Alsatian undertone. Rich and yet fine, the melony, stewed green apple and spicy notes linger on the palate for a long time. Despite not being the...

Tyrrells Vat 6 1985 (Pinot Noir)

2006-01-26T00:00:00+00:00

Tyrrells Vat 6 1985 (Pinot Noir)

p(meta) 26 January 2006

A colour of pale mahogany shot through with amber, the soft nose of this wine exhibits secondary and tertiary aromas of earth, spicee, dried herbs and just a hint of jammy forest fruit.

The palate is dry with only the slightest hint of tannin. Low to moderate acidity, it is light in the mouth with a subtle vanillin, earthy, jammy berry flavour. It is still very well structured and pleasant to drink, but time and a poor cork have robbed it of fruit and energy. Drink now.

Pio Cesare Dolcetto d'Alba 2001

2006-01-25T00:00:00+00:00

Pio Cesare Dolcetto d’Alba 2001

25 January 2006

Mahogany red with a watery rim. Vinous on the nose with a hint of sweet cherry and plum. Dry with noticable acidity. Still quite tannin, greener than I remember. Bitter cherry and spice, a candied undertone. Drying on the finish. Made for food. Drink now.

Monday Wine Musings

2006-01-23T00:00:00+00:00

Monday Wine Musings

23 January 2006

Eric Rodez Blanc de Noir Grand Cru Ambonnay

Lemony straw coloured wine, fine bead. Clean, closed nose with earthy, strawberry, bisculty notes. Very fine mousse with balanced acidity. Earthy, creamy with a strawberry/cherry undertone of moderate intensity. Long, creamy finish. Good quality, would have been better with a bit more acid but great value for money.

Charles Melton Rose of Virginia 2002

Still deep purple. Ripe, plummy fruit on the nose. Fruity ripe red berry fruit but lacking acid. Better in it’s day, this one was lost in the back of the cellar.
...

Tyrrell's Vat 9 Dry Red 1991

2006-01-21T00:00:00+00:00

Tyrrell’s Vat 9 Dry Red 1991

21 January 2006

A dark mahogany core but brick red at the rim. Leathery, brambly. Typical aged Hunter nose.

Dry with only the softest of tannin noticable. Little acid but the kind of palate we expect from aged Vat 9: burnt fig, leather, smoke, mint and eucalypt of moderate intensity. Well balanced Australian style. Will go on for another 10 years but well worth looking at now.

That said, this wine is a matter of taste. My partner disliked it. She complained of the “extreme” mintiness and general “stink” of the wine. I...

Tyrrell's Vat 47 1991

2006-01-20T00:00:00+00:00

Tyrrell’s Vat 47 1991

20 January 2006

Deep amber and gold colour. Pronounced burnt butter, roasted nuts, smoke. Showing a lot of age. Crisp citrusy acid. Good, phenolic weight. Nutty, buttery, burnt citrus flavours. Well balanced with good acidity. Not much underlying complexity but still has some nice aged Chardonnay character in the Meursault style. Something of a matter of taste.

It will not improve but will probably hold for a few years.

Domaine A. F. Gros Hautes Cotes de Nuits 2002

2006-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

Domaine A. F. Gros Hautes Cotes de Nuits 2002

19 January 2006

Last night I opened a Domaine A. F. Gros Hautes Cotes de Nuits 2002. A beautiful pale ruby colour with a watery rim. A clean nose with a hint of bitter cherry and something like rhubarb and sweet beetroot. A vinuous quality to the nose indicates it’s entry level quality.

The palate has very soft tannins with prickly acid and greenness reminiscent of Australian style pinot. Bitter cherry, earthy, stemmy with a surprising licorice hint. Overall, not well balanced and without the fruit complexity or intensity for...

Wine Books in that I've read: The Good & The Bad

2006-01-17T00:00:00+00:00

Wine Books in that I’ve read: The Good & The Bad

17 January 2006

I’ve read a lot of books on wine and thought I’d share some information on them in case people are considering buying such books.

Important reference books

Cote d’Or, Clive Coates

One of the essential English language texts on Burgundy. The most recent edition is about 10 or 11 years old now but this still has essential background information. Excellent notes on back vintages and superb vineyard maps. A must for any Burgundry lover.

Burgundy, Anthony Hanson

Another great reference which complements Cote d’Or. Also...

Grand-Puy Ducasse 1996

2006-01-16T00:00:00+00:00

Grand-Puy Ducasse 1996

16 January 2006

Mahogany core with a dark red brick rim, this wine has a peculiar nose: typical ferrous/gravel Pauillac aroma with a hint of jammy cassis, cedar and spice but at the same time a little stalky/leafy.

The palate has a lot of fine tannin and slightly noticeable acid – did they pick a little early? Strong minerally, steely backbone with something sweeter than blackberry, like ripe plum, and yet still quite savoury. Concentrated and yet of moderate intensity. That is, an unsettling disharmony about the fruit, a bit too gravelly. The acid is more...

Sunday Night Dinner

2006-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Sunday Night Dinner

15 January 2006

I had a friend come over to Saturday night as an excuse to open some Rieslings and other wines blind.

Veuve Clicquot 1996

A golden hue, with large lazy bubbles. Lemony, honied, spicy and slightly bisculty nose. Quite pronounced.

Crisp acid on the palate with a fine, refreshing mousse. Mouthfilling, not the tight, fine structure of other wines of the vintage. Pleasant, but has tasted better. Perhaps a slightly cooked bottle?

Stringy Brae Clare Valley Riesling 2005

Very pale, starbright. Lemon, lime of classic Clare Riesling. An intriguing note of rose petal and...

Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault "Les Tillets" 1996

2006-01-13T00:00:00+00:00

Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault “Les Tillets” 1996

13 January 2006

I opened a Yves Boyer-Martenot Meursault “Les Tillets” 1996 about 1.5 hours ago. It is a deep golden colour, as we would expect of a Meursault of this age, with a watery rim. The nose is clean, with burnt butter, roasted hazelnut, gun smoke and that curddling cream aroma so common to Meursault. The nose is pronounced and is showing signs of advanced age.

The palate is a let down. There is none of the intensity of the nose. The acid is sour and though the palate has some pleasant...

Trimbach Riesling Reserve 2001

2006-01-09T00:00:00+00:00

Trimbach Riesling Reserve 2001

9 January 2006

Surprisingly pale. Green apple, spice, smoke, oxidative notes, sweet fruit aromas. Some kerosene. Quite intense.

Crisp acidity, like an unripe green apple. Really takes your breath away. Spicy green apple and with glyceral sweetness, quite weighty. Acid dominates the finish, which doesn’t hold up. Out of balance.

Saturday Wines

2006-01-07T00:00:00+00:00

Saturday Wines

7 January 2006

Tasted upon opening at Ultimo Wine Centre , so my notes may be a little harsh. Unfortunately, I was low on time.

Wynns Cabernet Sauvignon 1998

Still opaque. Ripe juicy cassis, oak and a herbaceous, spicy note. Full palate, fine tannins, oak and blackberry. Some cedar and chocolate notes coming through. Will develop for another 10 years.

Wynns John Riddoch 1996

Ripe mulberry, oak and a phenolic, capsicumy, earthy aroma. A lot of fine tannin, well structured but with subdued licorice, mulberry fruit. In a bit of a hole at the moment, I...

Chateau Palmer Dinner at Bilsons Restaurant

2006-01-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chateau Palmer Dinner at Bilsons Restaurant

5 January 2006

All wines, except the 2000, sourced from the chateau. The 66 and 61 had been recorked in 1998, if memory serves correctly. Both those bottles also carried the Mahler-Besse logo on the neck and under the Palmer label (Mahler-Besse was a part owner of Palmer and the ownership is still shared between his heirs and those of Allan Sichel).

Chateau Palmer 2000

Opaque to the rim. Ripe, violets, cassis, oak and hints of cedar and smokiness on the nose already. Lots of very good tannin. Great structure. Juicy cassis and...

Dinner at L'Unico, Balmain

2006-01-04T00:00:00+00:00

Dinner at L’Unico, Balmain

4 January 2006

Louis Roederer 1999

Citrus, honey and a slightly biscuity nose. Fine bead. Already quite golden in appearance (perhaps the lighting). Very light in the mouth, fine mousse but only moderate acidity (for Champagne). A little more bready on the palate but lacking complexity. An enjoyable wine from an average vintage. Will not improve.

Penfolds Reserve Bin Riesling (Eden Valley) 2005

Citrus with a hint of minerality on the nose. Unfortunately, none of that minerality on the palate. Alcohol (13%) noticeable. Pleasant lemon/lime notes with a hint of minerality but wanting for acidity....