Burgundy and more

Dinner at Softbank Kitchen.

2004 Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne, en magnum - initially kinda closed, with a little mineral, flint, toast, and lemon.  Opened up well after about 40 minutes.  Still alive after 3 hours, with a little Chinese licorice.

2011 Joseph Drouhin Clos des Mouches Blanc, en magnum - very elegant and buttery.

Tesseron X.O. Exception Lot N°29 - pretty nice stuff from 1929...

2011 Arnaud Ente Meursault La Sève du Clos - much bigger and more toasty, with higher acidity.  Showing buttery notes 3½ hours after opening.

1998 Jacques Prieur Musigny - opened for 6 hours prior to serving.  Really sweet with black fruits. elegant, almost a little tea leaves.

1996 Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos Blue Label - nutty, marmalade, dried tangerine peel, honey, sweet on the palate but comes with plenty of acidity, too.

Full post on dinner is here.

Ostertag and more

Dinner at Frantzén's Kitchen.

2016 Ostertag Riesling Muenchberg - a little petrol, flinty, a little tropical stone fruit.  Leaner with higher acidity with a little bitterness mid-palate.  Later on the ripeness came out, and this was almost overripe and alcoholic when warmed up.

2015 Royal Tokaji Tokaji Late Harvest - honey, orange blossom, with a little residual sugar.

2016 Ridge Geyserville - initial whiff smelled like paint thinner with banana notes.  Then lots of coconut butter, very oaky, very sweet, with leather notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

Dagueneau, Leflaive, Selosse

Dinner at Neighborhood.

Jacques Selosse Rosé, dégorgée le 20 Julliet 2015 - lovely and oxidized nose as expected, with marmalade and toasty notes.  Ripe and mature on the palate.

2004 Didier Dagueneau Silex, en magnum - green apple notes.  Very ripe and rounded on the palate.

2008 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon - oxidized nose, with ripe and buttery notes.

2013 Szent Tamás Szamorodni - not as sweet as what I'm used to, but good sugar levels with some acidity.  Lychee and marmalade notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

A very long day

Drinks at a kiddie birthday party.

1988 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin La Grande Dame - very savory nose with lots of salty plum.

1990 Deutz Cuvée William Deutz, en magnum - very soft and caramelized nose.  Drinking very well.

2006 Biserno - lots of vanilla and toasty oak.  Very nice.

1997 Sandrone Le Vigne, from magnum - from decanter.  Very sweet and fruity... almost exotic like jack fruit.  Strangely also a little plastic.

1983 La Mission Haut-Brion - very classic claret nose, with lots of smoke and sweet, green grass, pretty bretty and animal.  Drinking beautifully.

1982 Trotanoy - beautiful nose with smoky and coffee notes.

2001 Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet - beautiful nose, very toasty and flinty.  Mature and rounded on the palate.

Drinks at home with friends.

2012 Dujac Morey-Saint-Denis Blanc - very heavy toast on the nose, almost a little unpleasant in the Zalto Burgundy glass.  But good acidity and nice balance.

Bijoufu Yuzu Liqueur (美丈夫ゆず), from isshobin - always fragrant, with sweetness cut down with crushed ice.

Dinner at Neighborhood.

2000 Chartogne-Taillet - nose was very caramelized and oxidized, with savory minerals.

2012 Lucien Le Moine Corton Blanc - showeing really beautiful toasty nose, with lots of flint.

1985 Guigal Côte-Rôtie Brune et Blonde - nice and mature, showing good amount of sweet fruit, leather, and animal notes.

1997 Jaboulet La Chapelle - nice and smooth now, with good concentration and a bit of leather.

1993 Royal Tokaji Company Tokaji Aszu Essencia - throwing off an unbelievable amount of sediment.  Incredibly unctuous and viscous.  Really rich, with tons of honey and dried tangerine peel, and surprisingly high acidity to balance out the sugars.

Mixed bag final

Dinner at On Lot 10.

Ruinart Brut

2012 Roses de Jeanne Côte de Val Vilaine, dégorgée en Avril 2014 - a little more oaky, mineral, and lively.

2003 Françoises Bedel L'Âme de la Terre - very caramelized, like cotton candy, really ripe on the palate, almost like marmalade.

2003 Domaine Leflaive Puligy-Montrachet Les Combettes - nose was very toasty, very ripe, nice and buttery, with a little sweet grass and lemon.

2002 Oremus Eszencia - nutty and marmalade, honey.  Very rich and viscous, but surprisingly nice acidity to balance it.  Went nicely with the foie gras.

1989 Cos d'Estournel - smoky, a little closed at first, with some woodsy notes.  More concentration here.

1986 Cos d'Estournel - more animal on the nose, meaty.

1995 Clinet - nose of coffee and smoke.  Opened up after a little.

Full post on dinner is here.

Lodovico and Biserno

Dinner at Chiu Tang with Marchese Lodovico Antinori.

2008 Roses de Jeanne Blanc de Noirs Lieu-dit "Les Ursules", dégorgée en Avril 2012 - nice and toasty.  Very fragrant, caramelized and nutty.  Ripe on the palate but also acidic mid-palate.

2011 Ram's Hill - really awesome, showing big nose of muscat grapes, really fragrant and tropical, with lots of lychees and floral notes, a little pear, flinty, a little pungent - perhaps from the sulfur?  Full-bodied, too.  Once again shows me why this is one of my favorite Sauvignon Blancs.

2006 Biserno - still a whiff of alcohol in the nose, with potpourri, dried herbs, a little coconut, exotic, sweet and ripe.  Pretty nice.  Later on showed a slight hint of Chinese medicine, and at the end it fell apart and was a little dusty and chalky.

2007 Biserno - a little minty, potpourri, a little closed, nice and plenty of fruit here, and the structure is there.  Showing better than 3 years ago.

2008 Biserno - a little closed, a little more brett here, and still some tannins.  Later on some ripe fruits came through.

2010 Biserno - showing better than the 2008 tonight.  Tannins are still here but not harsh.  Still pretty young.

2007 Lodovico - very lovely, a little minty but could have had a tad more fruit initially.  Later on some ripeness began to show, and some toasty notes came out.  Showing better than 3 years ago, but somehow still not at the level when it blew me away 4 years ago.

2008 Lodovico - a little plastic and a little oaky.  A hint of pungent sulfur.  Nice overall with minty notes.  Later on the wine opened up more.

2011 Lodovico - lots of potpourri, dried herbs and still a little alcoholic on the nose.  Palate was really beautiful.  Nice and sweet fruits, and a little exotic.

2003 Baron Bornemisza Tokaji Aszu 6 Puttonyos - honey, nutty, very ripe and sweet, slight botrytis.

Full post on dinner is here.