Fuck Him and Napa reds

Dinner at Andō.

2019 L.A.S Vino Chenin Blanc Fuck Him - first whiff was a little pungent and mineral, with some banana tropical notes like pineapple and stone fruit.  Reasonably high acidity on the palate.  Not a bad drink at all.

2002 Arietta Variation One - served 45 minutes after decanting.  Nice and fragrant, a little minty, cool, with woodsy notes.  Tannins are still here.

1997 Joseph Phelps Insignia - served 50 minutes after decanting.  Definitely showed more green pepper, there was still sweet fruit underneath.  Very smooth and elegant now, pretty ripe on the palate but not quite stewed prunes.  Definitely lots of sweetness on the palate.  Opened up really nicely 2 hours later.

Full post on dinner is here.

Côte-Rôtie for game

Dinner at Caprice.

Juyondai Hizoushu (十四代 秘蔵酒), bottled July 2010 - this is a junmai daiginjo (純米大吟醸) koshu (古酒) with at least 3 years' aging, using Aiyama (愛山) rice milled down to a seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 40%.  I bought this bottle in 2010 and it's been aging in my cellar since then.  Nose was now much more intense, with sharper alcohol, much more fermented notes but somehow not fermented rice, with a lot less of the tropical peach I expected, but later on still some banana.

1999 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie - really nice and fragrant right off the bat, with sweet fruit, a little eucalyptus, leather, and bacon fat notes.  Nice and ripe but somehow also a little cool, more mineral.

1995 Guigal La Mouline - served 2 hours and 45 minutes after decanting.  Classic La Mouline, which meant it was much more floral than the Jamet.  Very opulent with violet notes, a little black pepper, a little monkfruit.  So, so beautiful after 3½ hours, with lots of potpourri notes and bacon fat.

1955 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento Selección, from imperial - really intense on the palate, sooo raisiny, lots of minty herbs.  Very sweet as expected, like syrup.

1929 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento Selección, from imperial - not as fresh and fruity like the 1955, perhaps because it was the last pour from the bottle.  More meaty notes, a lot more complex, almost a bit spicy and a hint of smoke.  Much more viscous in terms of texture.

Full post on dinner is here.

Burgs and the Judge

Dinner at Le Bec Fin.

2006 Kongsgaard Chardonnay The Judge - definitely too ripe, but improved significantly with chilling down to a lower serving temperature.  Showed a good amount of mineral and flint, with a big toasty nose.  Still ripe on the palate and the finish was kinda short, with a little bitterness.

2005 Pascal Lachaux Clos-Saint-Denis - served 45 minutes after opening.  Fragrant nose with sweet fruit like strawberries, with dried herbs and meaty notes underneath.  Two hours later showed more black fruits.

2017 Comte Ligair-Belair Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Clos des Grandes Vignes - really fragrant, definitely red fruits, and also black cherries.  Nice toasty notes, too.

Full post on dinner is here.

La Spinetta and bongwater

Dinner at Otto e Mezzo Bombana.

2015 Dettori Bianco - nose of fragrant spices, almost anise-like, and reminds me of chartreuse.  Pretty short finish.  Not enjoyable.

2007 La Spinetta Barbaresco Vürsù Vigneto Gallina - decanted for 1 hour prior to serving.  Nose had opened up and was so fragrant, ripe and jammy, with lovely potpourri, almost sweet like bubblegum, and minty.  Still got tannins here, but drinking well now.

2006 La Spinetta Barolo Vürsù Vigneto Campè - decanted for 2 hours prior to serving.  A little more mellow but still fragrant and minty.  Damn, the tannins were so in-your-face!

Full post on dinner is here.

2012 Dujac MSD

Drinking at home.

2012 Dujac Morey-Saint-Denis Blanc - huge nose of toast, like a bowl of slightly burnt popcorn.  Good lemon citrus underneath that toast.  Really ripe on the palate but still got good acidity.  

2005 Binder Hubris

Drinking at home.

2005 Rolf Binder Hubris - nice and fragrant wood notes, sweet fruit, roast meats, lots of ripeness, exotic spices, and almost some cinnamon. 

Another 1970 trio

Lunch at Hidden.

Yamanokotobuki Furufuru (山の寿  フルフル) - this is an umeshu (梅酒) made with two types of mango - Alphonso and Irwin - as well as passion fruit.  I loooove mango, so it was a no-brainer.  Interesting that there was a hint of bitterness here. 

1970 Mouton-Rothschild - double-decanted 45 minutes before serving.  Smoky nose, not as sweet in terms of fruit.  Some acidity on the palate, with a hint of savory notes.  

1970 Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve - smoky and sweet fruit in the nose.  Still going strong and the wine tastes younger.  Acidity was higher, but the tannins are still around. 

1970 Baron Gaston Legrand Bas-Armagnac - lovely nose with honey, caramel, and medjool dates.  Very smooth, actually.

Full post on lunch is here.

2014 Ganevat

Lunch at Sushi Saito. 

2014 Ganevat Les Gryphées Vieilles Vignes - lots of flint and lemon notes, and almost a little honey.  Lean on the palate with good acidity with some roundness.

Full post on lunch here.