1997 Beringer Bancroft

Drinking at home.

1997 Beringer Merlot Private Reserve Howell Mountain - ripe fruit, stewed prunes, cassis, smoky, grilled meats, and cedar notes.

2005 Pax The Terraces

Drinking at home.

2005 Pax Syrah Alder Springs Vineyard The Terraces - first pour 25 minutes after decanting. Initially pretty alcoholic, very ripe, but surprisingly high in acidity and not too sweet on the palate. Showing smoke, wood, and a little perfumed. More than 1 hour after decanting this was more floral and almost soapy, and the palate was deteriorating. Two hours after decanting the nose got a more fragrant with cedar notes. Palate was OK, improved a little.

2004 Turley Old Vines

Drinking at home.

2004 Turley Zinfandel Old Vines - initially the nose was full of sweet and ripe fruit while decanting, showing blackberries, fragrant herbs and potpourri, with eucalyptus. Surprised at the acidity on the palate. After 20 minutes in the glass the palate was stewed prunes. Much more woodsy on the nose after 30 minutes. Second pour was much sweeter on the nose, with more vanilla oak and black cherries. Still relatively high acidity.

Whites for oysters

Lunch at Open Oyster.

2019 Billaud-Simon Chablis 1er Cru Les Vaillons - still very ripe on the palate like a few months ago, with flinty notes.

2020 Henri Bourgeois Sancerre Les Baronnes - very floral nose with tropical stone fruits, lots of toasty oak. A little lean on the palate.

2 bubblies

Dinner at Mian.

2009 Louis Roederer Brut Nature, dégorgée en mai 2016 - pretty oxidized and caramelized nose, toasty. Still got the acidity on the palate.

Ruinart Brut - very toasty nose with surprising depth on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

2014 Puchang Beichun

Drinking at home.

2014 Puchang Beichun - initially not so interesting. Some toast and a little bit of black fruits, a little smoke. More than 1 hour later a little more sweetness on the nose. Very smooth on the palate, but not very interesting. No complexity.

2003 Pax Keltie

Drinking at home.

2003 Pax Cuvée Keltie - lots of eucalyptus on the nose. Initially served a little warm, so it was very alcoholic on the palate and burned a little going down. Very floral nose with ripe and sweet fruit, but not quite jammy. After chilling for 45 minutes this was more fragrant on the nose, with more leather notes but still a little sharp on the nose. Around 1½ hours after decanting it was a little savory on the palate. Almost 3 hours after decanting this was still going strong and sweet on the nose, although the floral notes faded a little.

Whites and rosé

Dinner at Hoi Wan Restaurant.

Henri Giraud MV15, dégorgée le 12 novembre 2020 - nice and yeasty, with some toast on the nose but not overpowering. A little floral and marmalade. Wonderful balance on the palate.

Henri Giraud MV Rosé, dégorgée le 2 juin 2021 - more red fruit notes. Lovely.

1994 Laville Haut-Brion, en magnum - served 45 minutes after opening. Very fragrant, ripe on the palate but still got the acidity. Drinking very well right now.

2003 Sine Qua Non Sublime Isolation - 44% chardonnay, 37% roussanne, 19% viognier. Served 1 hour after opening. Fragrant and buttery, and that's the chardonnay. A little metallic, ripe and alcoholic with some vanilla. It's too bad we didn't give the wine enough time.

Full post on dinner is here.