03 Pax Terraces

Drinking at home.

2003 Pax Syrah Alder Springs Vineyard The Terraces - nose showed tons of ripe fruits while decanting, and was sweet and jammy. Drank after 1 hour in decanter. Showed potpourri on the nose, ripe and sweet on the palate, and definitely high levels of alcohol. Ten minutes later the nose was beautiful with fragrant cedar notes. Half an hour after the first pour the wine showed more leather notes.

JM Boillot

Lunch at Chiu Tang.

2014 Jean-Marc Boillot Puligny-Montrachet - riper than expected, more tropical and fruity with pineapple notes.

Full post on lunch is here.

Yattarna and Laherte

Drinking at a friend's home.

2019 Penfolds Yattarna - huge nose of toast, flinty and mineral. Opened up to reveal sweetness and lots of popcorn.

Laherte Rosé de Meunier, dégorgée en juillet 2021 - lots of strawberries and red fruits.

Volnay and Pommard

Drinking at home.

2002 Marquis d'Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Taillepieds - drank about 30 mins after decanting. Showing some leather and animal on the nose, with some plum. Medium high acidity with a little tannins still. Kinda disappointing.

1990 Camille Giroud Pommard 1er Cru Clos Les Epeneaux, en magnum - decanted and poured. A little green pepper, probably lightly corked. Very meaty and animal, a little farmy. Disappointing and definitely over the hill.

Champagne Day

Dinner at Koji Charcoal Grill.

1996 Bollinger Grande Année - very yeasty nose, lots of minerals and marmalade. Lots of acidity, big on the palate. Drinking so nicely with a long finish. Definitely the more elegant of the two Champagnes.

1996 Tarlant Saga, dégorgée en novembre 2004 - very ripe as expected, yeasty with good amount of marmalade. More savory on the palate and definitely more punchy.

2007 Biserno - drank about 1½ hours after double-decanting. Smoky nose with ripe fruit, a little vanilla oak, and almost a little graphite. Very fragrant nose. Sweet on the palate, too. More than 2½ hours after decanting the wine also showed a little green pepper.

2013 Toymaker Tinsoldier - drank about 30 minutes after opening and decanting. Nose was still kinda closed. Some smoke on the nose, and not great on the palate at first. Got a little better with time.

Full post on dinner is here.

Egly Rosé and Monty

Lunch at Amber by Richard Ekkebus.

2002 Fleurot-Larose Montrachet - initially served too cold and the nose was kinda shut. Color was darkish orange, and obviously very ripe. Marmalade with some vanilla on the nose. Much more vanilla about one hour later, and really sweet on the nose after 1½ hours.

Egly-Ouriet Brut Rosé Grand Cru, dégorgée en juillet 2020 - very smooth on the palate, nice and toasty on the nose, with a little bit of yeast.

Full post on lunch is here.

Sake and Burg

Dinner at Sushi Mamoru.

Bijofu Junmai Daiginjo Hina (美丈夫 純米大吟醸 鄙), May 2022 - lots of banana on the nose. Very soft on the palate but after swirling it around the tongue, this ended up with a long and spicy finish.

1996 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet - decanted some 2 hours and 15 minutes after opening, and served 15 minutes after decanting. Lots of marmalade on the nose, with some salty lemon.

Bijofu Yumebakari Time (美丈夫 純米大吟醸 夢許 Time), October 2018 - very, very soft and elegant on the palate. Not as fresh and light as when it was first released, but still very lovely.

Full post on dinner is here.

Salon and friends

Dinner at Neighborhood.

2007 Salon - a little bit of yeast on the nose, not too toasty, very nicely balanced.

2013 Pierre Damoy Chambertin - really fragrant, very fruity with lots of cherries, and very floral. Some leather notes, too. Still got some tannins here on the palate.

2000 Guigal La Mouline - decanted 1 hour and 15 minutes after opening. Apparently fragrant some 1 hour after decanting, but by the time I tasted 2 hours after decanting this was not showing at all. A little better after 3½ hours in the decanter. Still got the tannins, with smoky, grilled meats, and some mint on the nose. Pretty disappointing.

Full post on dinner is here.