Bordeaux and wannabes

Dinner at a friend's place.

2004 Louis Roederer Cristal - nose was a little yeasty, surprisingly a little pungent - sulfur?  Mineral.  Good acidity balance, though, and very approachable.  The nose turned a little metallic once the wine warmed up in glass.

1970 BV Georges de Latour in half bottle - my third time drinking this great wine from my vintage.  Nose was a little prune, a little smoky, with brett, dried herbs, tea and a little woody.  Very lovely, and pretty much what I expected of this wine.

1971 Biondi-Santi Riserva - lots of sweet grass and herbs... Would have guessed this was a Bordeaux... perhaps a Saint Julien.  Herbs, a little coffee grinds, and perhaps a hint of soy sauce.  Don't have much experience with old Brunellos so didn't know what to expect.  My surprise contribution.

1990 Troplong Mondot - from a stellar vintage with a near-perfect Parker score.  Expectations were high, thanks to the generosity of BFF who brought it on account of me.  Nose of green peppers, tea, a little smoky, minty.  Definitely pretty alcoholic.  Honestly pretty disappointing...

Full post on dinner is here.

Dassai 50

Dinner at Gyotoike in Taipei.

Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 50 (獺祭 純米大吟醸 50) - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 50%.  Didn't pay much attention to this tonight, but noticed it was a little on the dry side.

Full post on dinner is here.

1997 Corton-Charlemagne

Dinner at Pearl Liang Seafood in Taipei.

1997 Hospices de Beaune Corton-Charlemagne Cuvée François de Salins par Louis Max - nose was extremely oxidized and sweet, with Chinese licorice (甘草), sweet grass, straw and plum (梅子).  Kinda metallic on the palate, especially when drunk with food.

Full post on dinner is here.

2006 Paracombe Shiraz Viognier

Dinner at Azie Grand Cafe in Taipei.

2006 Paracombe Shiraz Viognier - really sweet, minty, a little forest pine, a little violet.  Soapy and not very pleasant on the palate... almost a little bitter.  It's a screwcap, so it couldn't possibly be corked?!

83 La Mouline, Selosse Exquise and more

Dinner at Fan Tang in Hong Kong.

Jacques Selosse Exquise - a bit acidic on the nose, a little fruity.  Definitely a sec and not a brut, very round and voluptuous on the palate.  The finished seemed slightly bitter at first.  Nose of dried straw.  Much better after 15 minutes.  30 minutes after opening, the nose really opened up to show minerals and salty plum (話梅).  I chose this for our lady who prefers Champagnes that are not so "aggressive" and more like wine, and this seemed to have done the trick.

1983 Guigal La Mouline - double decanted at home.  A little brett and medicinal at first, which was surprising.  Slightly mineral.  The second pour after 2.5 hours was very sweet, plummy, a bit smoky, gamey, and a little dirty.  Sweet on palate with very silky tannins.  The finish was a little short.  Black olive and savory.  Pretty disappointing considering this is my favorite vintage of my favorite wine, although perhaps I had allowed it to over-breathe.  Seems that the last bottle I had from my cellar also underperformed...

After dinner drinks at a friend's place.

2003 Lascombes - very sweet and ripe, with coconut butter, smoke, dried herbs, a little woodsy and coffee notes.  Drinking pretty well despite the young age.

Full post on dinner is here.

Faiveley Mercurey and Colombo Condrieu

Lunch at Chez Flottes in Paris.

2006 Faiveley Mercurey Clos des Myglands - some fruit with a little mineral.  Chewy tannins.

Dinner at Le Violon d'Ingres in Paris.

Vranken Cuvée Diamant - honestly, nothing really special...

2010 Jean-Luc Colombo Condrieu Amour de Dieu - floral, fragrant and ripe.  Exactly what I wanted out of a Condrieu.

Full post on lunch and dinner is here.

Wine pairing in Paris

Lunch at Le Grande Café Capucines in Paris.

2006 Louis Latour Chassagne-Montrachet - nose was a little muted, with some minerals.

Dinner at Pur' in Paris.

Jacques Lassaigne Le Cotet - an extra brut blanc de blancs.  This was pretty yeasty and metallic.

2008 de Vénus L'Effrontée - a little mineral, almost no nose.  Definitely no palate except the alcohol...

2008 Georges Jayer Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits - strawberry, jammy, mineral.  Very surprisingly did not clash with the salmon at all... perhaps thanks to the sesame.  Made by Laurent Rouget.

2008 Catena Zapata Malbec - sweet, ripe, mint and forest.  Still very tannic, but thankfully the heavy sauce of the pigeon was able to stand up to it.

2007 Kracher Cuvée Beerenauslese - Alois Kracher died in 2007, so this would have been the first Kracher vintage without him.  Nose of honey, white flowers and orange blossom.  Delicious.  We were supposed to get a glass of Pedro Ximenez with dessert, but the waiter very kindly substituted this one...

Full post on dinner is here.

Mixed lot at Rochat

Lunch at Restaurant de l'Hôtel de Ville in Crissier.

2009 Comtesse Eldegarde Sauvignon Gris - mineral, a little green apple, muscat.  Acidity a little high.  Guess it's kinda similar to Sauvignon Blanc...

2008 Marc Morey Puligny-Montrachet - toasty, sweet, buttery.  Lots of acidity here.

2008 Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - very ripe and sweet, mint, forest. alcoholic.  Nice body with soft and chewy tannins.

2010 La Colombe La Grive - very sharp nose, with mineral, flint, forest and sous bois.  Ripe and sweet both on the nose and the palate.

Full post on lunch is here.

Dinner at Mr. and Mrs. B's.

1999 Léoville-Las Cases - this was smoky, a little chalky, dirty, wet cardboard on top of some sweet fruit.  I can't help but think the bottle was a little corked.