MNSC Dinner - China Tang

MNSC dinner at China Tang, hosted by Juliano.

1983 Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet - caramelized nose, a little sweet on the edges, a little oaky, some Chinese licorie.  Slightly acidic finish.  Later on a little nutty.  About 1½ hours later, showing sugary bubblegum notes.  Nice and rich on the palate.

Flight 1:  opened for 1 hour before serving.

1978 DRC Échézeaux - beautiful nose, really sweet with black cherries.  A little plummy towards the end.  Sweet like candy, with a hint of savory black olives underneath the layer of sweetness.  An absolutely beautiful wine, with floral, rose petal notes.  97 points.

1978 Chave Hermitage - richer and denser on the nose but still light on the body.  More animal notes, slightly meaty, bloody, iron and minerals.  A little smoky but more closed.  92 points.

Flight 2:

1990 Cheval Blanc - opened for 2 hours but decanted for 1 hour and 15 minutes prior to serving.  Minty, smoky, nice and smooth on the palate but not light.  Grassy and green notes, with lead pencil.  95 points.

1990 DRC La Tâche - opened for 2 hours but decanted for 30 minutes prior to serving.  Sweet, a little exotic, coconut butter, plummy.  94 points.

Flight 3: opened 2 hours prior and decanted for an hour

1990 Pichon Baron - sweetish, seeming a little cooked, with green pepper.  A little dusty and dirty.  93 points.

1990 Gruaud Larose - oaky, lead pencil, green pepper, plastic, sharp, a little moldy, stinky, smoky.  A little corked.  90 points.

1990 La Mission Haut-Brion - smoky, savory with tea leaves.  Very nice and classic.  96 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

Thanksgiving mix

Dinner at Seventh Son.

1999 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Abtsberg Riesling Auslese-trocken - mineral, white pepper, petrol, a little floral, big and ripe on the nose, and also ripe on palate but without the sugar.  Not bad at all.

1985 Hospices de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Cuvée Madeleine-Collignon par Bouchard - decanted for 30 minutes prior to serving.  Plummy, stewed fruits.  Not bad but seemingly a little tired.  Nice on the palate, though.

2004 Ponsot Chapelle Chambertin - a little vegetal, un petit bouchonnée.  But still drinkable.

2000 Coche-Dury Meursault - served after opening for 2 hours.  Really lovely nose, big and toasty, with lots of toasty corn and minerals.  This may not be an elegant wine, but it sure got the power!

1996 Guigal Côte-Rôtie Château d'Ampuis - a little minty, pretty sweet.  Nice on the palate, but this can develop a little more.

1996 Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon - a little green, which led me to think that it was also un petit bouchonnée.  This would be the second consecutive bottle of 1996 Chapoutier Ermitage that I've opened this year that was corked.  Otherwise the nose was smoky, lean, savory like black olives, animal and leather.

Full post on dinner is here.

2006 Roederer

Drinks at Le Dôme de Cristal.

2006 Louis Roederer Brut - pretty strong nose of toast.  Nice acidity balance, much better on the palate than the 2006 Cristal.  A lovely wine.

02 Bordeaux and 99 Guigal

Drinks in the office.

1999 Guigal Côte-Rôtie - big, ripe, fruity nose that was slightly alcoholic and sharp.  A little smoky, and later chocolate notes.  Clearly from a big and ripe vintage, and not yet mature.

Dinner at Blue Butcher.

2002 Pontet-Canet - my glass was the last pour from the bottle.  Reasonable concentration, so-so on palate.

2002 L'Evangile en magnum - riper, sweeter with black cherries and a little cedar.  Softer and rounder.

Unknown Prosecco - very peachy, flinty, oaky.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC Dinner - Seventh Son

MNSC dinner at Seventh Son hosted by Lord Rayas.  Theme for the evening was a massiiive vertical of Château Rayas.

1990 Dom Pérignon - very smooth, almost a little light on the palate.  Ripe and mature on the palate, with cane sugar notes on the nose.

First flight:  aired for 1 hour in bottle prior to serving.

1969 Rayas - first whiff showed a little plastic, but underneath the nose seemed to be lovely.  A little plummy and sweet.  Smooth with a light body.  93 points.

1971 Rayas - lightest color of all three wines, definitely kinda old.  Showing a little plastic in the nose, with floral notes underneath.  Fuller body compared to the '69.  93 points.

1978 Rayas - a little smoky, farmy and earthy, but not showing much in the nose.  Still medium to light bodied.  91 points.

Second flight:

1979 Rayas - nice and sweet fruit, farmy, smoky with grilled meats.  Showing much better than the first flight.  95 points.

1983 Rayas - a little metallic, reminds me of iron in the blood, which was distracting.  Very sweet on the palate, full-bodied with a long finish.  93 points.

1990 Rayas - plummy, clearly very ripe on the nose, almost a little stewed fruits.  Smoky.  96 points.

Third flight:  aired for 3 hours in bottle prior to serving.

1989 Rayas - grassy, dried herbs, a little plastic. More concentrated on the palate.  93 points.

1993 Rayas - smoky, ripe, a tiny bit alcoholic on the nose.  Also forest and pine needle notes.  95 points.

1998 Rayas - very ripe and very sweet, with forest and potpourri notes.  Beautiful nose.  Exotic with a hint of lychees.  Unmistakably Rayas.  97 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

A fantastic birthday lineup

Dinner at Seventh Son.

First flight:  a trio of blanc de noirs Champagne

1996 Billecart-Salmon Le Clos Saint-Hilaire - nice and ripe.  Sweet on the nose, with a little cane sugar.  Later on the acidity became more obvious on the finish.  Very enjoyable.

1998 Krug Clos d'Ambonnay - a little more toasty, fresher, more vibrant, and yet more elegant.  Pretty sweet, full-bodied on the palate, with a long finish.  Later on the nose got to be a little more pungent.  The best of the trio by a hair.

1980 Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises - initial nose was coffee.  Pretty oxidized by now, very ripe, with big nose of cane sugar.  Full-bodied on the palate with slightly high acidity on the finish.  Also a little bitter on the finish.

Second flight: a pair of Montrachet.  Breathed for a little more than 2 hours.

2000 Domaine Leflaive Montrachet - initially the nose was more muted thanks to over-chilling, then toasty corn came out, which was lovely and not in-your-face.  A little bit grassy and straw notes, which led some of us to wonder if it was un petit bouchonée.  Soft and buttery on the palate.  Such an open and beautiful wine now.

1992 Joseph Drouhin Montrachet Marquis de Laguiche - nose was a little more muted, flatter, more flinty.

Third flight: Burgundian twins

2007 Hospices de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Cuvée Madeleine Collignon, élevé par Faiveley - minty, forest notes, very classic.  Seemed to be from cool fruits.  Lovely.

2007 Hospices de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Cuvée Madeleine Collignon, élevé par Pierre André - a little sweeter, still good concentration on the palate, but somehow less interesting.

Fourth flight: a pair of 1980 Musigny with a backup bottle thrown in

1980 Comte de Vogüé Musigny - grassy, vegetal, oxidized, a little over the hill and kinda off.  A little acidic on the palate.

1980 Maison Leroy Musigny - soft and smooth on the palate.

1980 Bouchard La Romanée - a little smoky.  Soft on the palate.  Not bad.

Fifth flight: a pair of 89 Pomerol

1989 Lafleur - minty, some ripe fruit, a little smoky, a little savory, mineral and tea leaves.

1989 Le Pin - so sweet on the nose, like Cantonese sugar cane water (竹蔗茅根), and a little coconut.  Classic Le Pin.

Finally there was the dessert wine...

1980 Yquem - nose of plastic, polyurethane, a little toasty.  Not too sweet and nice acidity balance.

Full post on dinner is here.