Dujac Clos de la Roche

Dinner at Yakitori Kyotanba in Tokyo.

2014 Dujac Clos de la Roche - very floral and lovely on the nose, and showing pretty well. I could also taste the floral notes on the palate, which was very nice.

Full post on the evening is here.

Pinot for mushroom

Dinner at Man Ho Chinese Restaurant.

2013 Dom Pérignon - really lovely and toasty nose, so fragrant, and this was so nice on the palate with such a wonderful balance. Quelle surprise!

Devo MV02, disgorged April 7, 2021 - the nose was much more yeasty. This was very fresh and lively, with slightly higher acidity, and not as fat and rounded on the palate. Also showed some pineapple on the nose after some 45 minutes.

2010 Domaine de la Pousse d'Or Clos de la Roche, en magnum - decanted about 15 minutes after opening and served another 15 minutes later. I brought this to pair with mushrooms and we weren't disappointed. This was really fucking awesome with the ganbajun, as the flavors of the fungus just exploded in the mouth after a sip of this wine. The nose showed nice notes of leather and, not surprisingly, mushrooms. More than 1½ hours after opening this was beginning to show some toasty oak on the nose, and the acidity was now getting higher.

Bought from Links for HKD 1,880.

2005 Domaine Serene Pinot Noir Evenstad Reserve, from magnum - this was showing much sweeter fruit on the nose along with some eucalyptus. Definitely fresher and more vibrant compared to the Clos de la Roche, despite being 5 years older.

Full post on dinner is here.

Pinots and chards

Dinner at Ta Vie.

2002 Krug, Krug ID 115009 - nice and floral nose, and this was very seductive and alluring. The acidity was a little high but the palate was also a little ripe now.

2004 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - popped and poured. Nose was showing more leather and animal notes. Still got the fruit here but this was more muscular and rustic, not an elegant wine. Later we also got some toasty notes on the nose.

2010 Domaine Roulot Merusault Luchets - good fragrance on the nose. Ripe on the palate but still got a good level of acidity on the finish. Later on this opened up to show a little buttery nose.

2010 Etienne Sauzet Chevalier-Montrachet - wine was pre-moxed and flawed.

2011 Bachelet Charmes-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes - pretty rustic. A bit rough and animal on the nose. Frankly this was kinda flawed.

2019 Taupenot-Merme Chambolle Musigny - nose of pine needles, potpourri, along with black cherries and blueberries. Young and vibrant.

1989 Trimbach Riesling Clos Sainte Hune Vendages Tardives - served about 3 hours after opening. Good ripeness here but the wine wasn't really sweet on the palate. Acidity was still here, but the wine was just more mature. Classic petrol on the nose. Drinking pretty well.

Full post on dinner is here.

Burgs and old Grange

Dinner at a friend's home.

2014 Nicolas Joly Clos de la Coulée Serrant - nose was pretty typical of this wine, reductive and slightly pungent, with honey and pollen notes. Pretty ripe and rounded on the palate.

1983 Taupenot-Merme Charmes-Chambertin - served 1 hour after decanting. Mushroom, leather, and some eucalyptus on the nose. Nice and mature with good sweetness on the palate.

2004 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Cuvée Vielles Vignes - decanted 40 minutes after opening and served 1½ hours after decanting. Initially very open and fragrant, lots of leather, not too sweet and fruity. Pretty fragrant 2 hours after decanting and got better, showing toasty and woodsy notes.

1981 Penfolds Grange - decanted just before serving almost 2 hours after opening. Tons of exotic coconut, lots of sweet vanilla and mint. Somehow died 30 minutes after decanting, and additional pours were much leaner, more smoky leather and not a lot of fruit. Need to note for future reference that 2½ is the limit for this wine.

French and Cali

Dinner at home.

Chartogne-Taillet Les Barre, dégorgement juin 2020 - very nice and smooth. Loved how rounded it was on the palate.

2000 Trimbach Riesling Clos Ste. Hune - huge nose of petrol, white flowers, very fragrant. Slight hint of bitter lemon. Drinking nicely with some maturity on it. Some honey showed up 30 minutes after opening, and this just got better over the course of the evening. Sooo alluring.

2004 Ponsot Chapelle Chambertin - served 1 hour after decanting. Slightly warm at first, with a slight hint of sharpness on the nose. Some black fruits here but definitely leather and smoke, a little green and stemmy. Could it have been slightly corked? About 2 hours after decanting this showed more sweetness, but still green.

2006 Kongsgaard Syrah - pop and poured. Sooooo ripe, soooo jammy, sooo sharp and alcoholic. Like alcoholic Ribena. Lots of overripe honeydew melon. So sweet on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC dinner - Woo Cheong at home

MNSC dinner at a friend's place, hosted by GL.

2009 Comtes Lafon Meursault 1er Cru Perrières - lovely toasty nose, this was soooo buttery and soooo fucking beautiful! Wow!

First flight: served 1 hour and 15 minutes after opening without decanting.

1987 Dominus - very smoky, heavy tobacco, a hint of sweetness on the palate, a little chalky and dirty, very smooth on the palate, and somehow leaner on the nose. 95 points.

1991 Dominus - also smoky but a little more ripe on the nose, definitely more sweet on the palate, but ever so slightly pungent. Really big and smoky on the nose. 96 points.

Second flight: served 2 hours and 45 minutes after opening without decanting.

1990 Pichon Baron - smoky, minty, a little dusty, with cool fruit, oaky and woodsy notes. 95 points.

1990 Vega Sicilia Unico - much more fragrant, woodsy, a hint of burnt rubber, sweet with coconut. Beautiful! 97 points.

1990 Hubert Lignier Clos de la Roche - more ripe and sweet on the nose, and also sweet on the palate. 95 points.

Third flight: served 3 hours and 45 minutes after opening without decanting.

2007 Armand Rousseau Chambertin - pretty nice and a little oaky. Really open and fragrant. 97 points.

2009 Armand Rousseau Chambertin - really fragrant with sweet, lovely fruit. 96 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

NYE2021

Drinking at home.

2007 Olivier Leflaive Meursault Clos du Cromin - toasty with some buttery notes.

1996 Ponsot Clos de la Roche - drank 2 hours after opening. Nose was OK with some leather and some fruits like red currants. Second pour 15 minutes later was more fragrant with some strawberries. More sweetness on the nose later.

2003 Dominus - served 45 minutes after decanting. Sooo smoky at first. After 1 hour and 15 minutes in decanter this showed more pencil lead. Still felt the tannins. Second pour 1½ hours after opening showed lots of tobacco and still plenty of pencil lead, almost Pauillac-like but there was more underlying sweet fruit.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 4th generation, en demi-bouteille - caramelized nose with Chinese licorice and almost desiccated coconut. Not much carbonation now, but lots of marmalade on palate.

09 Ponsot and 95 La Conseillante

Dinner at a private dining facility.

2006 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne - toasty and lovely.

2009 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes, en magnum - minty with eucalyptus. Still kinda tannic.

1995 La Conseillante, en imperial - decanted for about 2 hours. Minty, smoky, tobacco, a little bretty. Savory minerals with some black fruits. Also got that barnyard, gamey and bacon fat.

70 mags and more

Dinner at Yong Fu.

1970 Moët et Chandon Grand Vintage Collection, en magnum, dégorgée novembre 1999 - really fragrant nose, with marmalade, honey, Chinese licorice.  A little savory, and just lovely.  Picked this up from a Sotheby's auction a few years ago when this collection was released from the house.

2002 Moët et Chandon Cuvée Dom Pérignon, en magnum - much more toasty on the nose, yeasty, nutty.  Very lovely.

2007 Arnaud Ente Meursault Les Petits Charrons, en magnum - really beautiful.  Lots of lemon citrus, and enough ripeness on the palate balanced out by good acidity.  Flinty, a little buttery.

2008 Dugat-Py Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot - pretty flinty and mineral, with sugar cane notes.

2007 Hospices de Beaune Clos de la Roche Cuvée Georges Kritter, mis en bouteille par Domaine Ponsot - very fragrant with a little cedar and beautiful fruit.

1970 Ducru-Beaucaillou, en magnum - decanted just before serving.  Nose of cigar smoke, a little green pepper, black tea, and soy sauce.

Full post on dinner is here.