Champagnes for seafood

Dinner at Hokkien House.

2004 Drapper Oenothèque – nice and toasty, also yeasty nose. Good acidity on the palate.

1996 R et L Legras Saint-Vincent, en magnum – nice and mature now, but still got the acidity from chardonnay. Was there some vanilla on the nose? Definitely flinty and mineral with marmalde.

2016 Àguila Albillo Viñas Viejas – the nose was very plastic and polyurethane, which was a real surprise. Also turned nicer with some sweet corn notes.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 173ème Édition, Krug ID 224030 – good acidity on the palate, with some ripeness on the attack but a bit lean on the finish.

2006 Marcassin Pinot Noir Three Sisters Vineyard – started drinking 2½ hours after opening. The sweet fruit here was so nice, with lots of blueberries and almost vanilla-like.

Full post on dinner is here.

2007 la Mordorée

Drinking at home.

2007 la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rouge La Reine des Bois - started drinking 40 minutes after decanting. This was definitely very ripe and sweet on the palate. Initially the nose wasn't showing much, with just a little hint of leather and also plastic. Could still feel the tannins on the tongue. After about 1½ hours in the decanter the nose was more leathery, a little more open. Surprised to find saffron on the nose after the wine opened up.

2020 La Charmotte

Dinner at Torikaze.

2020 Thibault Liger-Belair Nuits-Saint-Georges La Charmotte - nice fruit on the nose, which was not quite floral but almost, and kinda elegant.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC - Caprice

MNSC dinner at Caprice, hosted by me.

1992 Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Française, bouteille N°626 – definitely showing its age, with marmalade on the nose, almost a little oily. The body was fine but not too powerful, which fades quickly to a soft finish that seemed to last for a while. The nose was almost a little like Japanese umeshu.

Flight 1: opened 1 hour before serving.

1986 Lafite-Rothschild – stoppered right after opening and served without decanting. A bit more ripe and advanced, with clear oxidation. Higher acidity on the palate. Certainly savory on the nose. This bottle that I originally took from dad’s office – which did not have a wine fridge - more than 25 years ago is clearly not showing at its best. 92 points.

1986 Mouton-Rothschild – served without decanting. This was very elegant, smoky, woodsy, and exhibiting a classic nose for the region. Also green capsicum. Two hours after opening this was showing some lovely sweet fruit along with coffee. 95 points.

Flight 2: opened about 2 hours before serving without decanting.

1996 Colgin Herb Lamb Vineyard – this was really ripe and sweet, with a hint of metallic nose along with eucalyptus. I love it. My kind of shit. 97 points.

1996 Masseto – this was also ripe and sweet, but a bit more smoky. So lovely now and drinking so well. 96 points.

Flight 3: I had been wanting to do this pairing since 2016, when Foursheets found the bottle of "Château Le Pin" in her neighborhood Wellcome supermarket. Foursheets says it cost around HKD 70, but I thought it would be hilarious to serve it in a blind tasting together with the "real" Le Pin. You should have heard some of the guesses from the boys about what they thought this was...

2014 Le Pin – served without decanting 2 hours 45 minutes after opening. This was showing a beautiful nose, so ripe and sweet but not quite to the level of a Californian. Smoky, leathery, minty, and fragrant eucalyptus. A little young, perhaps. 94 points.

2014 Château Le Pin – served without decanting 1 hour and 15 minutes after opening. This was definitely more lean and rustic. Not very interesting and clearly a couple of steps down. 88 points.

2024 Clos Mao Light (理光) – decanted for more than 30 minutes before serving. Very big and toasty popcorn nose, reductive, flinty, with lovely lemon notes. Nice and round on the palate. 96 points.

2024 Michel Naddef Marsannay Chardonnay – also showing big, toasty nose. Flinty, lean, and slightly reductive. 95 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

2013 L'Evangile

Dinner at Gyu+bar by Miyoshi.

2013 L'Evangile - decanted and poured. Pretty nice nose with sweet, black fruit, smoke, and almost a little coconut. Some vanilla oak here, and the nose got pretty smoky as it opened up. Still concentrated and tannic, but drinking well.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC - Country Club

MNSC dinner at the Grill Room of Hong Kong Country Club.

1996 Salon - more lemon citrus than mature marmalade. This was much fresher, more elegant. The acidity came out strong on the second sip, which was just as expected.

1996 Moët et Chandon Cuvée Dom Pérignon - very nice and toasty nose. Good acidity on the palate together with nice maturity, and this was drinking very nicely. Not surprisingly this was the more forward of the pair.

First flight: served 1½ hours after opening without decanting.

2001 Georges Roumier Chambolle-Musigny - this was a little dusty but also had the toasty popcorn on the nose. Farmy with some sweetness later. 95 points.

2002 Georges Roumier Chambolle-Musigny - nose of leather, and clearly more rustic. 95 points.

2003 Georges Roumier Chambolle-Musigny - nice sweet red fruits on the nose. Pretty soft. 94 points.

Second Flight: served after 2½ hours in the decanter.

1994 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - this was the more bretty of the two. But surprisingly I preferred it. 96 points.

1995 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - nice and smoky. So classic. 95 points.

Third Flight: served after 3½ hours in the decanter.

1999 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - this was very oxidized and very ripe. 95 points.

2000 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - this was sooo beautiful, with a sweetness that included some grassy notes. Smoky and meaty, too... and then a bit floral about 20 minutes later. 99 points.

2001 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin - the nose had plenty of coconut butter, with good ripe fruit but not quite jammy. A great wine with good concentration. Almost a bit of Chinese medicine and minty. 97 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

2019 La Clarté HB

Dinner at Zhuhai in Shantou.

2019 La Clarté de Haut-Brion - initially this was kinda ripe, but after cooling in an ice bucket for more than 30 minutes this tasted leaner on the palate. On the nose we've got a bit more pipi de chat, with fragrant nose of lemon citrus and a bit of oak and vanilla.

Full post on dinner is here.

Giraud Ennéade and Lafite

Dinner at Xinrongji.

1993 Henri Giraud Fût de Chêne, from Ennéade Collection Case #237 - the age on this was obvious as the wine was just softer on the palate. Nice nose of marmalade with a hint of straw. The acidity on the palate was pretty high, even with all the ripeness. Very nice.

2017 Clemens Busch Marienburg Rothenpfad Riesling Reserve - this was so classic... The nose was so open and fragrant. The wine was pretty soft on the palate, and actually very elegant. The white flower notes on the nose were so nice, and the palate was sooooo soft and supple. About 2 hours after opening, the nose was very caramelized and very sweet.

1975 Lafite-Rothschild - the nose was smoky as expected, but there were also obvious grassy and wet cardboard notes, along with a hint of funky, stinky notes. Oh well. With all the age and sediment of this wine, no one had suggested that we decant the botte... so naturally we got all the sediment in the glass.

Full post on dinner is here.

Magnums and Don PX

Dinner at Caprice.

Henri Giraud Fût de Chêne MV10, en magnum, dégorgée le 18 Novembre 2016 - a light perfume fragrance with lemon notes on the nose. Ater some aging, this was now softer on the palate but still got the acidity.

2011 Ponsot Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos des Monts Luisants Pressée du Centenaire, en magnum n°562 - served 1½ hours after opening. Not too ripe on the palate, and still got a good level of acidity. On the nose one could tell there is some age on the wine, as it showed caramelized sugar along with straw.

2011 Joseph Drouhin Chambertin Clos de Beze, en magnum - served some 2 hours after opening. Very nice and fragrant, with eucalyptus along with black cherries.

2003 Henri Bonneau Cuvée Marie Beurrier, en magnum n°222 - nose was showing nice leather and woodsy notes. Surprisingly savory on the palate, and almost a little bretty. Still kinda tannic.

1946 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento, botella N.534 - the nose was so fragrant and complex. Very sweet on the palate, with honey, prunes, and spices. Really ripe and rich. I absolutely love this wine!

Full post on dinner is here.

RSRV dinner

Dinner at Ta Vie with Champagne RSRV.

2015 Mumm RSRV Blanc de Blancs, dégorgée en Mai 2023 - nice with a little toast on the nose, then we also got a little bit of floral perfume, perhaps from the restaurant's own environmental scent. The acidity on the palate was, naturally, higher.

Mumm RSRV Cuvée 4.5, dégorgée en Septembre 2023 - the nose was bigger, I guess from the pinot noir? Definitely more rounded on the palate compared with the blanc de blancs.

2013 Mumm RSRV Cuvée Lalou, dégorgée en Septembre 2023 - the nose was floral and more elegant. There was more depth on the palate here, with a longer finish.

2018 Mumm RSRV Blanc de Noirs, dégorgée en Mai 2023 - very well balanced despite the relative young age.

Full post on dinner is here.