Valentini and La Sirena

Dinner at Caprice.

2014 Valentini Trebbiano d'Abruzzo - very nice and toasty.  Absolutely beautiful.

2000 La Sirena Syrah - opened for 1½ hours without decanting.  Minty, fragrant, sweet fruit, and a hint of coconut butter.  Good acidity on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

Burgundy and more

Dinner at Softbank Kitchen.

2004 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne, en magnum - initially kinda closed, with a little mineral, flint, toast, and lemon.  Opened up well after about 40 minutes.  Still alive after 3 hours, with a little Chinese licorice.

2011 Joseph Drouhin Clos des Mouches Blanc, en magnum - very elegant and buttery.

Tesseron X.O. Exception Lot N°29 - pretty nice stuff from 1929...

2011 Arnaud Ente Meursault La Sève du Clos - much bigger and more toasty, with higher acidity.  Showing buttery notes 3½ hours after opening.

1998 Jacques Prieur Musigny - opened for 6 hours prior to serving.  Really sweet with black fruits. elegant, almost a little tea leaves.

1996 Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos Blue Label - nutty, marmalade, dried tangerine peel, honey, sweet on the palate but comes with plenty of acidity, too.

Full post on dinner is here.

1970 La Lagune

Dinner at Villa 32 in Taipei.

1970 La Lagune, ex-château 2013 - served without decanting.  Earthy, lightly stewed fruit, cedar, and a little smoke.  Thinner on the palate than expected but still got body.

Full post on dinner is here.

1996 Maximin Grünhäuser

Dinner at Man Wah.

1996 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Abstberg Riesling Spätlese-trocken - petrol, flinty, white flowers.  Definitely dry on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

Niellon and Lambrays

Dinner at China Tang.

2015 Michel Niellon Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Maltroie - toasty oak, pretty fragrant, lemon, and almost a little flinty.

2015 Domaine de Lambrays Morey-Saint-Denis Rouge - leather, a little pungent, eucalyptus, dried herbs.  A little leaner than expected.

1970 trio

Dinner at Ta Vie.

2015 Silver Heights Family Reserve Chardonnay - tropical nose like pineapple and coconut butter, definitely heavy on the oak.  Soft and definitely sweeter on the palate.

1970 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì Tildìn - nose of soy sauce and stewed prunes.  Still alive, but definitely in decline.

1970 Mouton-Rothschild - minty, smoky, earthy, fragrant cedar notes.  Classic Pauillac.

1970 Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve - still very much alive.  Eucalyptus, coconut, a little marmalade, and smoke.  Pretty fragrant.  Acidity showed with time in glass.

1988 de Fargues - honey, desiccated coconut, toasty, honeydew melon.  Definitely very sweet with marmalade notes, and a bit of bitterness.

Full account of dinner is here.

Ostertag and more

Dinner at Frantzén's Kitchen.

2016 Ostertag Riesling Muenchberg - a little petrol, flinty, a little tropical stone fruit.  Leaner with higher acidity with a little bitterness mid-palate.  Later on the ripeness came out, and this was almost overripe and alcoholic when warmed up.

2015 Royal Tokaji Tokaji Late Harvest - honey, orange blossom, with a little residual sugar.

2016 Ridge Geyserville - initial whiff smelled like paint thinner with banana notes.  Then lots of coconut butter, very oaky, very sweet, with leather notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

2008 JJ Prüm

Dinner at Dynasty.

2008 Joh.Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese - lots of polyurethane, flinty, white flowers.

Full post on dinner is here.