Marsanne + Pinot

Dinner at Otto e Mezzo.

1991 Chapoutier Ermitage de L'Orée - I always found this to be an underrated wine... This took a little time to really open up. Fragrant and floral, with toasty popcorn notes, sweet and some minerals. The wine was a little short mid-palate but had a long finish that was a little alcoholic. Pretty good stuff.

1985 Louis Remy Latricières-Chambertin - we had talked about drinking mature and good-valued wines from this little-known domaine, and tonight I finally had the opportunity to do it.  A little smoky, with notes of berries, dried strawberries and game meats. A little alcoholic, and acidity was slightly high.

1990 Chapoutier Hermitage Vin de Paille - what a lovely wine! Very nutty and complex nose, very sweet like honeydew melon and Medjool dates, apricot, candied pineapple, botrytis, marmalade and a hint of acetone. The wine was a little viscous, with rich, grapey flavors like eiswein. Such a treat to drink this mature and interesting expression of Marsanne.

Full post on dinner is here.

A Cali trio

Dinner at D-Jen Food (鼎珍坊) in Taipei.

2004 Kistler Chardonnay McCrea Vineyard - classic Kistler Chard with that heavy, toasty oak and vanilla. Rich and buttery.

2001 Kongsgaard Syrah - still fairly fruity and sweet, with prominent cassis notes.

2005 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon - this was nice and young, and typical Californian Cab.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC Dinner - Jockey Club

MNSC Dinner at the Jockey Club, with food from the Derby Room's kitchen. Hosted by Lord Rayas.

I only got to take a couple of sips of the 1990 Krug. The nose was oxidized, with candied pineapple, straw and marmalade notes. Acidity was fairly high.

1971 Cheval Blanc - smoky, minty, a little salty - almost like soy sauce, and a little sweet, with gamey, grilled meats. 92 points.

1971 Voguë Musigny Vieilles Vignes - kinda funky at first, definitely sweet like cherries. Very smooth, light and thin on the body. 94 points.

1978 Vieux Telegraphe - nose was very Rhone-liked, with ripe, almost stewed fruits. Kinda became muted after a while in the glass. 92 points.

1978 DRC Echezeaux - I don't mind wines with oxidation, since I love drinking Madeira and Tawny Ports. But this was way too oxidized for most people's liking. The nose was sweet, nutty and ripe, while the palate was dry. This was purchased off the Jockey Club's wine list, and we asked Leo to waive the charge for this bottle.

1978 Solaia - Lord Rayas ordered this bottle after the DRC was taken back by the Club. Minty, funky, a little chalky with some caramel. 94 points. An enjoyable wine but far from the one I tasted at the Solaia vertical...

1990 La Dominique - I can say that with more than 10 years of wine tasting under my belt, this was the very first red wine where I could smell nothing but lobster bisque. Yes, lobster bisque! And Dayliao concurred with me on this. At first I thought it was soy sauce or tomalley, but then I've been having so much lobster lately that it hit me... There were also some ripe prunes in the nose. 85 points.

1990 Troplong Mondot - very alcoholic, a little salty, and...I don't believe it!...also a hint of lobster bisque. I think my sensory organs must be suffering a complete breakdown... or my neurons just shorted and got completely rewired... 90 points.

1990 Angelus - most certainly the wine of the evening for most of us. Lovely nose of grass, a little potpourri, a bit smoky and some coffee grinds. 96 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

Good value old vintages

Dinner at Robuchon a Galera in Macau.

1989 Trimbach Riesling Clos Ste Hune Vendages Tardives - definitely petrol, and the nose was very ripe, round and sweet. Notes of peaches, botrytis, orange marmalade, a little floral... and some butter in the end. Definitely some residual sugar, something between kabinett and spätlese. A very beautiful wine.

1992 Henri Clerc Bâtard-Montrachet - this took a bit of time, but we had a fine bottle of wine in front of us when it finally opened up. The nose was pretty funky at first, with a hint of straw, wheat and definitely camphor - smelling like some kind of Chinese medicinal tonic that one rubs on oneself to relieve muscle aches... From the second pour, some toast emerged along with ripeness and sweetness, with corn and almost nutty nose. Very perfurmed on the palate as well as the finish. Not bad at all!

1985 Dominique Laurent Latricieres-Chambertin - we pre-ordered this bottle, and the sommelier decided to open it as we were running out of our first bottle of white - without realizing that we would be ordering another bottle. It was a while before we got to taste the bottle, and we were concerned that there would be too much aeration. Nose of mushrooms and grilled meats. Pretty muted at first but developed well after a while. Light and elegant.

Full post on dinner is here.

2004 Pazo Piñero de Lusco Albariño

2004 Pazo Piñero de Lusco Albariño - initially high acidity, ripe, floral, honey, petrol and slightly toasty.

Tasting 82 Lafite

I was invited to join a group of Chinese businessmen for dinner and wine, after I've already had my casual meal. I was dragged along because they were opening a bottle of '82 Lafite...

1975 La Mission Haut-Brion - nose a little sharp and alcoholic, some fruit, kinda fragrant, almost floral, with some prunes.  Understandably smooth on the palate.

1982 Lafite-Rothschild - was this bottle the real deal?  I don't know.  There's got to be a lot of fakes out there.  Nose was ripe, suble and elegant... very woodsy, with a bit of soy sauce, some spices, some smoke and a hint of mint.  I haven't drunk too many bottles of this wine in my time, and in any case my last bottle was back in 2002.

Two Beringers

Dinner at St. George.

2007 Beringer Chardonnay Sbragia Limited Release - I have always preferred this bottling over Beringer's Chardonnay Private Reserve, and it was interesting to see what the newer vintages are like. Very buttery, very sweet and ripe on the nose, with floral, fruity and sugar cane notes. High residual sugar and very sweet on the palate. I definitely felt every bit of that 15.1% alcohol level, as the wine was very "hot" and had a spicy finish.

1988 Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve - the nose was very ripe and sweet. with prunes, Asian spices and smoked game meats. Very silky and smooth on the tongue. After a while a little brett came out. Not bad for a wine from a weak vintage and supposedly 10 years past its prime...

Full post on dinner is here.

A couple of oxidized whites

Dinner at a friend's house.

2007 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay - someone brought this.  Oxidized nose, ripe, maybe even over-ripe.

2005 Kongsgaard VioRus - ripe and sweet nose, with white flowers.  A little tart with a slightly hot finish.

2002 Coche-Dury Meursault

2002 Coche-Dury Meursault - drank over dinner at Tuscany by H. Opened in the office and had it decanted when I arrived at the restaurant. The nose was classic Coche-Dury...I could be blindfolded and still recognize this wine. Loads of toast, popcorn, nutty, a little sweet on the nose, buttery and a little alcoholic. Later on, even a little floral. The acidity balance was perfect - the acidity is there, but not strong enough to bother you. What a wonderful wine to drink tonight!

Full post on dinner is here.