2004 Mordorée CDP

Dinner at La Maison.

2004 Domaine de la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Reine des Bois - lots of leather, animal, a bit of smoke, and cassis. Pretty fragrant on the nose, and sweet on the palate with juicy fruit. Definitely a little rustic on the nose. More than an hour after decanting it became a little more open, and then showed a little bit of farmy notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

40-year old Napa

Dinner at the Fortune Room at the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

2021 Chacra Chardonnay - a little riper on the palate than expected, but there's still decent acidity on the palate and also on the finish.

1984 Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve - plenty of vanilla on the nose, but there was also a hint of dust so not the cleanest. Also got notes of leather, and the fruit seemed lightly stewed. Not bad, but also not so fresh and lively.

1984 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve - this was fresher in terms of condition, with plenty of mint, and also a little green pepper like shishito. More concentration on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

Peyre Rose and more

Dinner at the Amex Centurion Gala.

Ruinart Blanc de Blancs - decent acidity on the palate, not as bland as I remembered from drinking many bottles. The nose was actually perfumed, and it wasn't even from the room.

2021 Alain Chavy Bourgogne Chardonnay - some elegant toasty notes on the nose, with a bit of lemon. Interesting that it almost smelled like Champagne.

2021 Coudoulet de Beaucastel - initially the nose seemed a little chalky, but this faded and the nose was almost a little floral.

Drinks at Roucou.

2013 Peyre Rose Les Cistes - this was reall fragrant, a little pungent with earthy tones. A little bongwater-like but I loved the sweet and ripe fruit as well as those floral notes. I could still feel the tannins on the palate a little bit. Later on this showed minty and really nice, toasty notes, and something that wasn't quite coffee-like, but this was so nice.

Full post on the evening is here.

Muted Cali

Dinner at Hong Kong Cuisine 1983.

2022 Sine Qua Non Distenta IV White - 32.0% Roussanne, 30.0% Gelber Muskateller, 15.0% Chardonnay, 13.0% Petit Manseng and 10.0% Viognier. The nose was really ripe and sweet, with tons of lychees and very floral. Also really ripe on the palate, too. Showed some acetone notes, and about an hour after opening the nose also brought some vanilla and almond notes. Incredibly aromatic wine, but I wasn't expecting this level of ripeness so young.

2004 Kistler Pinot Noir Bodega Headlands Vineyard Cuvée Elizabeth - incredibly disappointing bottle. First problem was that the restaurant staff poured the entire bottle into the decanter - including all the sediment. Well... that pretty much fucking defeats the whole point of decanting a 20-year-old bottle! The wine also was pretty muted on the nose. Yes, there were notes of plum and leather, but it was not singing as I expected it would. There was a little more wood coming out after about an hour, but the wine remained disappointing.

1993 Colgin Herb Lamb Vineyard - decanted about 2 hours after opening, and started drinking after 1½ hours in the decanter. Nose was showing mint, some smoke, and some black fruits. Pretty smooth on palate after more than 30 years, with a good acidity balance. After half an hour this was showing more fragrant, woodsy notes, then the nose turned a little savory and started to veer off course with a hint of brett. Nice, but I had hoped for better.

1998 Dominus - started drinking after 2 hours in the decanter. There was a hint of dust to start, with a bit of smoke, and pencil lead. Yes, there were still cassis and plum on the nose, but the style is surely not the typical Napa cab... but showing cooler fruit instead.

Full post on dinner is here.

Pegau Lône

Drinking at home.

2022 Château Pégau Côtes-du-Rhône Cuvée Lône - pretty ripe on the nose, with ripe peaches, a bit metallic, a bit acetone. Pretty grippy on the palate, especially on the finish.

Henin and Araujo

Lunch at Restaurant Petrus.

2014 Delamotte Blanc de Blancs - initially the nose was rather muted, or perhaps it was actually 'elegant'? With a little minerals. The acidity was really nice on the palate, with good depth and a long finish.

2014 Pascal Henin L'apelle de la Forêt, dégorgée 15 Decembre 2020 - this was very different from the Delamotte. The nose was very open and fragrant, with more woodsy notes, followed by citrus and marmalade. Good dose of acidity on the palate without being too sharp. Very enjoyable.

2002 Araujo Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard - drank about 2 hours after decanting, but really not sure why most of the sediment was poured into the decanter. The wine was soooo fragrant, with mint, pencil lead, and sweet cassis notes. Later on we also got smoky and savory mineral notes on the nose. The wine was riper and sweeter on the palate than expected based on previous experience.

2005 Yquem - classic nose of honey, safron, apricot, acetone, and beeswax.

Drinks at the Lobster Bar.

2019 Penfolds Bin 704 - very ripe nose with lots of cooked fruit, obviously very hot, and pretty minty. Surprising this also got a little more acidity on the palate than expected.

2008 Lynch-Bages - I actually haven't tasted this wine since the en primeur season at the château. Initially the nose was more muted, with some smoke and a hint of sweet grass. Then we got some oak and meaty notes, pencil lead, and was showing a little of the savory profile.

Full post on lunch and drinks is here.

Amour and Clos Ste Hune

Dinner at Spring Moon.

2013 Amour de Deutz - this had some nice depth on the palate, and the nose really showed some lovely toasty notes after it opened up.

2009 Lucien Le Moine Volnay 1er Cru Les Caillerets - the nose was very fragrant, elegant, almost floral, with a light hint of leather. On the palate, though, it's got a real meaty flavor.

1990 Trimbach Clos Sainte Hune - the nose was soooo beautiful, with "white truffle" as Jean Trimbach would call it. There was also some wonderful marmalade, but on the palate now it's kinda bitter and tart. Not as "fresh" and lively as some of the other bottles I've had, although it has been a few years since my last one.

Full post on dinner is here.

Lahaye and Diebolt

Lunch at Forum Restaurant.

Diebolt-Vallois Blanc de Blancs, dégorgée en 2022 - very nicely balanced and quite easy on the palate.

Benoît Lahaye Rosé de Macération, dégorgée en Mars 2023 - I loooove rosé Champagne like this. The nose was so fragrant and fruity, full of juicy strawberries.

Full post on lunch is here.

2001 RunRig

Dinner at Chic 1699 in Shenzhen.

2001 Torbreck RunRig - this was decanted but the wine had been lying flat just before dinner, so the sediment got mixed into the wine. That may explain why the nose was showing very plummy and stewed prune notes, and just didn't seem as "clean". Definitely still got the eucalyptus and minty profile, though.

Full post on dinner is here.

Champagne and Kabinett

Ta Vie's 10th anniversary party at Forty-Five.

Mumm RSRV Cuvée 4.5, dégorgée en Septembre 2023 - easy to drink, good depth on the palate.

Dinner at The Bay by Chef Fei in Shenzhen.

2012 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame, dégorgée en Fevrier 2020 - nice nose of marmalade. Very good depth on the palate, with acidity but also savory minerals. After further aeration the nose began to show some toasty notes.

1990 Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett - classic nose of petrol, polyurethane, orange blossom water, and lemon confit. Good acidity but more rounded and mellow on the palate. Drinking pretty nicely.

Full post on dinner is here.

Lucia and Krug

Dinner at Neighborhood.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 168éme édition, ID 319031 - nice and toasty nose as expected. Good acidity balance on the palate, and obviously another couple of years' of aging meant the wine developed some maturity, so the palate got a little softer and rounder.

2010 Lucia, en magnum - started drinking about 1½ hours after double-decanting. Still got the fruit on the nose, along with minty, woodsy, and cedar notes. Drinking well.

Full post on dinner is here.

Champagne night

Dinner at Kyoto Oden Masa.

Pascal Henin Blanc comme Neige, dégorgée 12 Octobre 2022 - this showed a little more complexity than expected, and certainly an improvement on my bottle from 2023. There was some nice minerality and savory notes, along with good depth on the palate.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 3rd genration, en demi bouteille - there was some carbonation released on popping the cork so it wasn't totally flat. The nose was so beautiful, with plenty of marmalade, honey, minerals, flint, with lovely toasty and nutty notes with additional aeration. A tiny bit bitter on the palate at first, but there's good amount of acidity here for balance.

1966 Mumm Cuvée René Lalou - lovely nose of marmalade, honey, Chinese salted plum. Later on the nose got a bit toasty and a little nutty.

1976 Mumm Cuvée René Lalou - the nose was really oxidized, of course, with lots of marmalade. Fresher than the 1966 that's for sure.

1995 Hospices Corton

Drinking at home.

1995 Hospices de Beaune Corton Cuvée Charlotte Dumay, élevé par Dominique Laurent - acidity was very high, and it got pretty grippy on the tongue. Nose was showing woodsy and leather notes. Not as pleasant as the other bottles I've had.

Bought from Christie's for HKD 774.

2020 Guigal Côtes-du-Rhône

Drinking at home.

2020 Guigal Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge - pretty fragrant nose with woodsy and dried herb notes, but no toasty oak here, together with pine needles and a little leather. Slightly on the alcoholic side, but thoroughly enjoyable.

Bought from Apita for HKD 149.

Dom P2 and Italians

Dinner at Estro.

2000 Dom Pérignon P2 - this was definitely corked with that wet cardboard smell. The palate was definitely flat, with some acidity mid-palate, but the finish was definitely bitter and short. Some toast on the nose, but really not enjoyable.

Bought from MHD for HKD 3,120.

2008 Di Meo Greco di Tufo Vittorio Riserva - aged for 12 years in the tanks and then another 24 months in the bottle, the nose showed a little bit of exotic spices, definitely flinty, oxidative, and definitely heavily toasted once the wine is in the mouth.

2017 San Valentino Sangiovese di Romagna Superiore Riserva Terra di Covignano - nice nose with some spices and dried herbs, and fragrant eucalyptus.

Full post on dinner is here.