French grand cru for lunch

Lunch at Robuchon au Dôme in Macau.

2000 Krug Clos du Mesnil - nice and mature now, with caramel notes, and good acidity on the palate.

2006 Ramonet Bienvenue Batard-Montrachet - beautiful, toasty nose.  Surprisingly ripe and alcoholic on the palate when warmed up a little. 

1979 Haut-Brion - smoky, leather, still a bit of fruit, with a hint of rust.  Beautiful.  Still some tannins here.

2007 de Fargues - acetone, honey, and orange marmalade.

Full post on lunch is here.

74 Leflaive BBM and Blanc de blancs

Dinner at Amber.

R and L Legras Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru (bottled for the Landmark Mandarin Oriental) - nice and easy to drink.  A little caramelized, yeasty, and later light toasty notes emerged.

1974 Domaine Leflaive Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - pretty toasty and oaky nose, almost nutty and chocolatey.  But this was a mature wine so it was a little softer and not as in-your-face.  Very soft and velvety on the palate, and the finish was a little short.  Still a beautiful wine.

Full post on dinner is here.

Krug, Ramonet and Lafleur

Dinner at André in Singapore.

2000 Krug - very toasty, nutty nose.  Acidity was pretty noticeable despite the very ripe palate.  Really, really didn't work with the mussels.

2004 Ramonet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - ripe on palate, but turned really metallic with caviar.  Initially served in smaller white wine glasses, the nose improved once we changed to larger glasses.

1986 Lafleur - very ripe on the nose, almost a little stewed, with soy sauce, smoky, minty, slightly earthy notes.  Very beautiful.  Soft on the palate, with higher than expected acidity.

Full post on dinner is here.

Louis Jadot dinner

Dinner at Pierre in Hong Kong, featuring wines from Louis Jadot.

2010 Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé Autour de Fuissé - big nose of toasty oak, heavy smoke, revealing sweet core after the smoke fades.  Almost a little floral.  Acidity strong mid-palate, and almost a little bitter.  Long finish. At 13.5%, definitely felt the alcohol burn going down.  Surprisingly excellent to drink.

2008 Jadot Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot Clos de la Chapelle - mineral, a little sweet, tropical coconut.  Served a little too cold initially.  Definitely lots of body weight, and acidity was very prominent.  Later on this grew fatter and more buttery.

2008 Jadot Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - a little ripe, with good acidity balance but slightly acidic on the finish. Toasty, buttery and sweet.  Lovely and elegant.

2001 Jadot Corton-Charlemagne - nose was a little closed at first, with a hint of cheese.  Toasty, and acidic on the finish.

2006 Jadot Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Ursules - a monopole within the 1er Cru Vignes Franches, which was Jadot's very first vineyard holding.  Really ripe fruit, sweet on the nose with a little eucalyptus and some toasty corn much later.  A bit alcoholic.  Light on the front palate but got slightly grippy at the end.

2006 Jadot Clos Vougeot en magnum - meaty, animal, a bit smoky.  A little more tannic.

2004 Jadot Chapelle-Chambertin - more animal, leather, forest.  A bit sharp on the nose.  Acidic on palate.

2001 Jadot Corton-Pougets - a bit more body here.

Full post on dinner is here.

4 French regions + Cali monster

Dinner at The Coterie.

1990 Pol Roger - nose was oxidized and "my kind of shit".  Salty plum (話梅), mineral, honey, preserved orange peel (陳皮), sugar cane, a little toasty and marmalade on the nose.  Acidity still fairly high.

1998 Trimbach Riesling Clos Sainte Hune - classic nose of petrol, a little pungent at first, and a little plasticky.  Opened up nicely to reveal sweetness and white flowers, and then polyurethane.  Still some acidity on the edges in terms of the nose.

1996 Leflaive Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - HUGE toasty nose, gradually fading a little to reveal sweet, buttery corn.  Oily and fat.  What an amazingly beautiful wine!

1998 La Fleur-Pétrus - smoky, sweet, a bit grassy.  A little sharp on the nose.

1999 Palmer - classic nose of smoke, brett and dried herbs.  Sweet and lovely.

1997 Harlan The Maiden - very alcoholic and sharp nose, practically singeing my nose hairs off... and stayed sharp till the end of the evening.  Core of ripe and sweet fruits, showing a little honeydew melon.  Needs another few years.

Full post on dinner is here.