Premier Napa Valley and friends

Dinner at Softbank Kitchen.

2003 Françoise Bedel L'Âme de la Terre, dégorgée en Août 2012 - ripe nose with sugarcane notes.  Good depth on the palate.

2016 Sonoma County Barrel Auction Gary Farrell Vineyards Pinot Noir Rochioli Vineyard - nice and fragrant nose, showing tea leaves and eucalyptus.  Served a little too warm.  Still very young.

2015 Premiere Napa Valley Gemstone Cabernet Sauvignon Winemaker's Special Selection - so very young.  Minty and ripe.

1996 Bruno Paillard Nec Plus Ultra, dégorgée en Janvier 2009 - nice and ripe, with straw notes.

1991 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Spätlese - nice minerality, almost a little muscat, a little petrol.  Good sugar levels with acidity balance.

2000 Pierre Bourée Charmes-Chambertin - very lovely nose.  A little floral.

2016 Premiere Napa Valley Dakota Shy Cabernet Sauvignon Next Chapter - very ripe. Very rich.  Very jammy.  Lots of forest and very minty.   Still way too young, but more enjoyable than the Gemstone.

2001 Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva - decanted for 2 hours prior to serving.  Nose still kinda muted, with high acidity on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

Selosse Le Bout de Clos

Drinking at home.

Jacques Selosse Le Bout de Clos, dégorgée le 13 Mars 2013 - nice and sweet nose with prominent notes of Chinese licorice, coconut milk, savory minerals.  Nice and yeasty, with great depth on the palate.  Not a light and easy wine at all.

Ganevat De Toute Beauté

Drinking at home.

2016 Anne et Jean-François Ganevat De Toute Beauté - a little pungent, not quite smoky, leather, grilled meats.  Some floral notes underneath and some potpourri.

Dom, Van Berg, and Ganevat

Dinner at Tasting Court.

2008 Moët et Chandon Cuvée Dom Pérignon Chef de Cave Legacy Edition - pretty easy to drink, with a nice finish that carried more depth.  Not much of a nose.

Roses de Jeanne Côte de Val Vilaine, dégorgée en Avril 2018 - yeasty and toasty.  Good acidity on the palate with some ripeness, but still reasonably stiff.

2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex, en magnum - high acidity as expected, but still pretty rich on the palate.  Lemon citrus nose with a little bit of pipi de chat.

2009 Bernard Van Berg La Rose Réserve -
nice and fragrant, fruity and floral, with leather notes.  Reminiscent of Prieuré Roch but the nose was not as sweet.  Very enjoyable.

2014 Jean-François Ganevat Cuvée de l'Enfant Terrible - nice, sweet fruit, with leather notes.  Stemmy and a little pungent.

Full post on dinner is here.

1943 Sisqueille

Drinking at home.

1943 Sisqueille - lovely fragrant nose of dates, botrytis, bee pollen, nutty.  Clearly oxidized and not too sweet on the palate.

Lynch Bages, Kokuryu and more

Dinner at Nikushou.

2015 Jobard-Morey Meursault Les Narvaux - pretty toasty nose, with a nice dose of acidity and some ripeness on the palate.

1996 Lynch-Bages, en magnum - served 1 hour and 45 minutes after decanting.  Breathed a little too much so that the sweet fruit that was present after opening was gone.  Just smoky, with a hint of earthiness, and green peppers.  A bit too flat on the palate, but the nose was pretty fragrant.

Gikyo Junmai Ginjo Genshu 60% (義俠 純米吟醸原酒), 30BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 60%. Sweet on the attack but turned pretty dry and spicy.  Later on much drier on the palate.

Kamonishiki Junmai Daiginjo Namazume Genshu Version 7.5  (加茂錦 純米大吟醸 生詰原酒 Ver 7.5), BY29 - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 50%.  Much stronger fermented rice nose, with lots of banana.  Really sweet on the palate, with some dryness and spiciness on the finish.

Kokuryu Shizuku (黒龍しずく), 29BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 35%.  Really sweet nose with some fermented rice notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

2009 Stigler

Drinking at home.

2009 Stigler Ihringen Winklerberg Backöfele Spätburgunder Großes Gewächs - sweet nose with more red fruits than black fruits.

De Villaine La Digoine

Drinking at home.

2008 A. et P. de Villaine Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise La Digoine - nose of dried herbs, some black cherries, nice sweetness on the nose.  Still a little grippy on the palate and the nose was better than the palate.