Full post on dinner is here.
October 31, 2009
2002 Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-du-Milieu
2002 Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-du-Milieu - drank over dinner at Island Tang. This turned out to be a little disappointing. The nose was very muted initially, taking a good hour to open up in the decanter. Hint of caramel and a bit of fruit and game. Reasonable concentration with a slightly acidic finish.
October 30, 2009
Bacio, Troplong and Meursault
1998 Bacio Divino - drank over lunch at L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon. This was pretty fruity and a little earthy. The Sangiovese was immediately apparent. Initially the nose was a little alcoholic, but this faded to reveal smoke, toasted nuts and sweet fruit. The tannins were soft and supple, with good concentration on the palate. A very nice wine to drink.
1996 Troplong Mondot - this was drinking well. Nose of coffee and smoke, and a bit alcoholic at the beginning. Good concentration but very smooth on the palate. Pretty classic Bordeaux.
2002 François et Antoine Jobard Meursault En La Barre - this turned out better than I expected, with ripe nose of sweet corn and butter that was pretty wonderful. Initially the finish was slightly acidic, but then turned into something that reminded me of the classic French candied soft citrus jelly.
Dinner at Fook Lam Moon.
1996 Troplong Mondot - this was drinking well. Nose of coffee and smoke, and a bit alcoholic at the beginning. Good concentration but very smooth on the palate. Pretty classic Bordeaux.
2002 François et Antoine Jobard Meursault En La Barre - this turned out better than I expected, with ripe nose of sweet corn and butter that was pretty wonderful. Initially the finish was slightly acidic, but then turned into something that reminded me of the classic French candied soft citrus jelly.
Full post on lunch and dinner is here.
October 24, 2009
French country wines
Lunch at Caprice.
2004 La Courtade Blanc - this is made on the Ile de Porquerolles just off the Côte d'Azur. The wine is made from a local varietal called Rolle, and showed nose of lemon zest, mineral, flint and a bit of white flowers. Very aromatic and ripe on the nose. Acidity was pretty high mid-palate with a bit of tartness, with a ripe finish.
2005 Mas Amiel - I have always liked this wine in the past, but not today. It was "hot" and high in alcohol, with a bit of citrus notes. Not very sweet today. Short on the finish and quite disappointing.
2004 Pibarnon Rouge - made from Mourvèdre. It was fine to drink and the tannins blended with the cheese, but this time there was no "wow" from the marriage of the wine and cheese.
2004 La Courtade Blanc - this is made on the Ile de Porquerolles just off the Côte d'Azur. The wine is made from a local varietal called Rolle, and showed nose of lemon zest, mineral, flint and a bit of white flowers. Very aromatic and ripe on the nose. Acidity was pretty high mid-palate with a bit of tartness, with a ripe finish.
2005 Mas Amiel - I have always liked this wine in the past, but not today. It was "hot" and high in alcohol, with a bit of citrus notes. Not very sweet today. Short on the finish and quite disappointing.
2004 Pibarnon Rouge - made from Mourvèdre. It was fine to drink and the tannins blended with the cheese, but this time there was no "wow" from the marriage of the wine and cheese.
Full post on lunch is here.
October 20, 2009
1997 Pian delle Vigne
1997 Antinori Pian delle Vigne - drank over dinner at Tuscany by H. This was a bit smoky, with a good fruit core and concentration, and notes of ripe prunes and sous bois. At one point I thought I detected a good amount of perfumed, floral notes but I suspect that the glass was quietly collecting the air freshner used in the restaurant... The wine seemed to have gone downhill about two hours after opening, starting to turn acidic on the palate. This Brunello was a perfectly good wine to drink with the meal. Although it wasn't a knock-out, I wasn't going to complain too much given how little I paid for the wine on release.
Full post on dinner is here.
October 16, 2009
Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 23%
Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 23% (獺祭「純米大吟醸」磨き二割三分) - drank over dinner at Suzufuji (鈴籐) in Taipei. This has always been easy to drink since it's on the sweet side (甘口), but tonight I felt it was lacking a bit of complexity, as there wasn't anything very prominent in the nose other than banana...
Full post on dinner is here.
September 29, 2009
1998 Opus One
1998 Opus One - drank over dinner at Paris 1930 in Taipei. A very nice wine with nose of sweet fruit, mint, vanilla, coffee and a bit of smoke. Opus has always been a solid wine, and while it may not always "wow" me, so far I've never been disappointed by it.
Full post on dinner is here.
September 28, 2009
Mixed bag in Taipei
Dinner at Abu in Taipei.
2004 Château de Fonsalette Côtes du Rhône Blanc - this wine did not disappoint, with a sweet and slightly oxidized nose and notes of pear and apricot. Surprisingly very ripe on the palate with a bit of butter and a slightly bitter finish.
2006 Lucien Le Moine Volnay 1er Cru Les Caillerets - from arguably the best plot of land in the appellation, this was a beautiful wine from a vintage that's overshadowed by the great 2005s. Reasonably sweet on the nose with farmy, bacon fat and Asian spice notes. Drinking pretty well now even without much aeration.
1989 Jaboulet La Chapelle - I've been waiting to open this bottle for some time now, and it wasn't bad. Initially a bit grassy and a hint of vegetal notes, it opened up to reveal lots of sweetness with ripe prunes, pine needles and a little "hot" and alcoholic. On the palate it was smooth but still full-bodied, although it faded and by the end the finish was somewhat acidic.
1989 Troplong Mondot - another wine I've been dying to open. Classic Bordeaux with peppery and smoky nose, a reasonable amount of fruit core with a full-blown palate and a long finish. Was this bottle deserving of the 96 points from Parker? Not quite.
2003 Sassicaia - a generous contribution from a fellow diner. The wine is still young but you can see the potential. Nose of sweet fruit, black cherries and smoke. Still a bit alcoholic. The captain actually knocked the bottle to the ground as he was opening another bottle... fortunately it didn't break.
2007 Mollydooker Carnival of Love - I was sure that the wine would be too young, but my friend was pretty set on opening this and sharing it with everyone. We opened the screw top, poured a bit of the wine out into a separate glass, then my friend proceeded to shake the bottle vigorously in an attempt to aerate the wine. Apparently this process - called the Mollydooker Shake - is recommended by Sparky and Sarah Marquis who are the proprietors of the winery. I can certainly understand why. These wines are total fruit bombs and people seem to want to drink them very young, so the only way to make these wines palatable was to be unconventional and shake things up a little! Well, as much as I have a preference for big wines, this was still too much for me. Huge, sweet nose with coffee, toffee, vanilla, caramel, cotton candy, tangerine, iron and mineral notes. Very alcoholic at 16%. I think people should wait a few more years for the edges to wear off a bit...
2004 Château de Fonsalette Côtes du Rhône Blanc - this wine did not disappoint, with a sweet and slightly oxidized nose and notes of pear and apricot. Surprisingly very ripe on the palate with a bit of butter and a slightly bitter finish.
2006 Lucien Le Moine Volnay 1er Cru Les Caillerets - from arguably the best plot of land in the appellation, this was a beautiful wine from a vintage that's overshadowed by the great 2005s. Reasonably sweet on the nose with farmy, bacon fat and Asian spice notes. Drinking pretty well now even without much aeration.
1989 Jaboulet La Chapelle - I've been waiting to open this bottle for some time now, and it wasn't bad. Initially a bit grassy and a hint of vegetal notes, it opened up to reveal lots of sweetness with ripe prunes, pine needles and a little "hot" and alcoholic. On the palate it was smooth but still full-bodied, although it faded and by the end the finish was somewhat acidic.
1989 Troplong Mondot - another wine I've been dying to open. Classic Bordeaux with peppery and smoky nose, a reasonable amount of fruit core with a full-blown palate and a long finish. Was this bottle deserving of the 96 points from Parker? Not quite.
2003 Sassicaia - a generous contribution from a fellow diner. The wine is still young but you can see the potential. Nose of sweet fruit, black cherries and smoke. Still a bit alcoholic. The captain actually knocked the bottle to the ground as he was opening another bottle... fortunately it didn't break.
2007 Mollydooker Carnival of Love - I was sure that the wine would be too young, but my friend was pretty set on opening this and sharing it with everyone. We opened the screw top, poured a bit of the wine out into a separate glass, then my friend proceeded to shake the bottle vigorously in an attempt to aerate the wine. Apparently this process - called the Mollydooker Shake - is recommended by Sparky and Sarah Marquis who are the proprietors of the winery. I can certainly understand why. These wines are total fruit bombs and people seem to want to drink them very young, so the only way to make these wines palatable was to be unconventional and shake things up a little! Well, as much as I have a preference for big wines, this was still too much for me. Huge, sweet nose with coffee, toffee, vanilla, caramel, cotton candy, tangerine, iron and mineral notes. Very alcoholic at 16%. I think people should wait a few more years for the edges to wear off a bit...
Full post on dinner is here.
September 23, 2009
Pinot and Riesling
Dinner at Nino's Cozinha.
2002 Kistler Pinot Noir Kistler Vineyard - smooth on the palate with good concentration.
2002 Kistler Pinot Noir Kistler Vineyard - smooth on the palate with good concentration.
2006 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett - notes of lemon, minerals, a bit of plastic and was a little sweeter than I expected from a Kabinett.
Full post on dinner is here.
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