Cristal, Clos Ste Hune

Drinking at a friend's home.

2005 Louis Roederer Cristal - floral nose.  Easy to drink, but otherwise unremarkable.

Dinner at The Naked Finn in Singapore.

1996 Trimbach Riesling Clos Ste. Hune - such a classic dry riesling, with petrol, flint, and lemon notes.  Very good depth of flavor here.  Beautiful!

2013 Peter Michael Chardonnay 'Mon Plaisir' - very sweet nose, with plenty of tropical stone fruits and vanilla.  So buttery and fragrant.

Full post on dinner is here.

2004 Ganevat Les Vignes de Mon Père

Drinking at Le Bon Funk in Singapore.

2004 Ganevat Les Vignes de Mon Père - a little flinty, dusty, and a little pungent at first.  After 20 minutes in decanter, a hint of honey emerged on top of citrus.  More than an hour later, toasty notes started to come out.

Full post on the evening is here.

2011 Ram's Hill

Drinking at home.

2011 Ram's Hill - very ripe and caramelized nose, with honey and straw notes.  Surprisingly the palate wasn't overripe, and still had the acidity going, with a little bitterness, hot, and alcoholic.

Selbach, Monbousquet, Boekenhoutskloof

Drinking at home.

2006 Selbach Riesling Kabinett "Fish" - big nose of petrol and polyurethane, white flowers, and flint.  Aged quite nicely.

2005 Boekenhoutskloof Semillon - initially nice and caramelized nose, a little marzipan.  But ultimately overripe, hot and alcoholic on the palate.  Not enjoyable.

2005 Monbousquet - ripe and sweet fruit, fragrant, lovely nose.  Smoky, plenty of cedar wood, and eventually coffee notes.  A beautiful wine.

Penfolds and Astralis

Dinner at Stellar House.

1997 Clarendon Hills Astralis - served 1 hour after opening.  Smoky, stewed fruit, with some sweetness in the nose.  Some acidity here.  After 1½ hours the nose became more Aussie, with more sweet fruit and tropical notes.

1999 Penfolds Bin 389 - very coconut and sweet nose, classic Aussie.

Full post on dinner is here.

French wines with Frenchies

Dinner at Neighborhood.

1990 Fleury - very ripe and caramelized, yeasty, lovely.  Mature with good depth on the palate.

2010 Lucien Le Moine Corton Blanc - pretty ripe and caramelized, with a little marzipan and lemon.  Good acidity balance.

1999 Rayas Blanc - initially very tight and alcoholic.  Took a while to open up in the decanter.  Damn ripe on the palate, with acetone and a little polyurethane.

2002 Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds - good acidity balance, still some tannins there, but not very open.

2010 Rayas La Pialade - I would have pegged it as a Prieuré-Roch.  Incredibly beautiful and fragrant nose, with plenty of rose and floral notes, almost lychee, leather, and a little smoke.  

Full post on dinner is here.

Yoshinosugi

Dinner at Yardbird.

Yoshinosugi no Tarusake (吉杉野の樽酒) - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 70% and Sake Meter Value of 0.  The nose showed fermented flavors, and actually delivered strong notes of lychees.  Slightly dry on the attack, but softened mid-palate to become mild and elegant.

Full post on dinner is here.

Coche and Grange

Dinner at Petrus.

1997 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots - popped and poured.  Beautiful right off the bat, with a big, toasty nose.  Attack slightly on the acidic side, but very smooth and elegant on the palate.  Lemon citrus notes.  Never dipped from the plateau the whole time.

1981 Penfolds Grange - served about 2 hours after opening without decanting.  Nose very minty, sweet, lots of coconut, tropical spices, and fragrant woodsy notes.  Even after nearly 40 years, the alcohol is still apparently in the nose... with a hint of sharpness.  Overall, though, a beautiful wine... and exactly what you would want from an old Grange... which is to say that the tannins and alcohol have softened with age, but the wine was still youthful and lively.

2001 Sassicaia - pretty smoky, fragrant, with cedar notes. Still alcoholic with some fruit, and still pretty tannic. Later on this fell apart in the glass, and there was nothing but smoke.

Full post on dinner is here.