100-point TCA

Dinner at Caprice.

Egly-Ouriet Brut Rosé Grand Cru, dégorgée en Novembre 2009 - toasty, flinty with strawberries.

2004 Roulot Meursault Les Narvaux - flinty with a smoky finish.  Nice acidity balance.  Softer and not overpowering.

1996 Chapoutier Ermitage L'Ermite - il était un petit bouchonnée… pine needle and forest in the nose, but no finish to speak of.

2003 Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée La Colombière - pretty alcoholic on the nose.  Very sweet nose with black cherries.

Full post on dinner is here.

Perrières and Catherine

Dinner at Tenku RyuGin.

1990 Nicolas Potel Meursault 1er Cru Perrières - initially too cold so the nose was somewhat muted.  Some toast and good, round fruit in the nose.  Medium acidity but the finish was rather short and disappointing... other than the obvious alcohol.  Later on as the wine opened up the sweetness became more apparent in the nose.  I had slightly higher expectations but this was a more elegant expression.

1997 Kistler Pinot Noir Cuvée Catherine - sweet, a little sharp alcohol, black cherries in the nose.  After 17 years this has finally softened somewhat, and has become drinkable, but you can still feel the tannins there.  After a while there was a little bit of forest and sous bois.  An enjoyable wine, but like the Potel I had expected slightly more.

Full post on dinner is here.

2006 Kongsgaard VioRus

Dinner at Tenku RyuGin.

2006 Kongsgaard VioRus - no surprise that there were no floral notes left, as the wine has gone through aging.  Very ripe, kinda alcoholic, with a pretty short finish… other than the alcohol.  Toasty nose and a little sweet.  Meh.

Full post on dinner is here.

Bordeaux varietals

Dinner at Bistronomique.

2005 Agrapart Minéral Blanc de Blancs Extra-Brut - a much bigger nose than I expected, very toasty, alcoholic.  Ripe and acidic on the palate at the same time.  Nice.

1992 Bryant Family - double-decanted 2 hours before drinking.  Initially the nose wasn't Californian at all, showing medicinal notes along with black olives.  There was still fruit here underneath the smoky nose.  Gradually the sweetness emerged, but the wine was no longer tasting very vibrant and fresh, but rather showing a little age.  A little disappointed.

1997 Dominus - coming from a better vintage, this was sweeter and riper than the Bryant Family.  There was also brett and medicinal notes, with higher alcohol on the palate.  The bottle I tasted just last month seemed a little better.

2002 Masseto - decanted for more than 2 hours before drinking.  Initially the nose was very smoky and Bordeaux-like, but then became a little more exotic, with green pepper notes.  Nose became sweeter with time.  Pretty concentrated on the palate.

1990 Vieux Château Certan - first whiff showed piment d'espelette, strangely enough… Then green pepper and tobacco smoke.  Acidity was higher than I expected.  Slightly disappointed in this bottle…

Full post on dinner is here.

The Judge and the Ox

Lunch at Amber.

2004 Kongsgaard Chardonnay The Judge - I was late in getting to the office by about half an hour, so the wine was only opened and decanted 45 minutes before I got to the restaurant.  As it turned out this wine really needed more close to 1½ hours of decanting time, as I had been doing before.  Without sufficient aeration the alcohol was too sharp in the nose, much like paint thinner.  This faded gradually. Very sweet and caramelized on the nose, a little like cotton candy, with lemon, straw and finally toasty notes after 2 hours.  Drank reasonably well but slightly disappointed.

1999 Sine Qua Non Pinot Noir The Ox - this wine surprised on the upside.  Didn't taste like a Californian Pinot at all… Very classic Burgundian, like a cool climate wine.  Mushroom and black cherry notes, and pretty sweet on the nose while not very sweet on the palate.  Quite elegant.  Very sad that this was my last bottle.

Full post on lunch is here.

MNSC Dinner - the Principal

MNSC dinner at the Principal, hosted by Curry.

1999 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Perrières - VERY toasty, some lemon citrus on the nose.  Acidity was rather high but very ripe on the palate at the same time.  What a totally awesome wine!

First pair:

1984 Henri Jayer Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Brulées - opened for 1 hour prior to serving.  Very sweet nose, with strawberry jam and a hint of lychees.  Clearly an oldie as the palate was a little light, with slightly high acidity.  Delicious and very enjoyable.  94 points.

1987 Henri Jayer Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Brulées - opened for 1 hour prior to serving.  Very dusty, musty, stinky, animal notes, savory like black olives, minerals and metallic nose.  Second pour was better than the first.  90 points.

Second pair:

1985 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes - opened for 1½ hours prior to serving.  Really sweet and ripe strawberries and tangerine.  Awesome and beautiful.  My kind of wine.  So surprised that this was a Ponsot.  96 points.

1985 DRC La Tâche - opened for 1 hour prior to serving.  More muted nose, with minerals, mint and a bit of forest.  Why did this not show like the Ponsot?!  Can't believe this wine underperformed...  94 points.

Third pair:

1985 Roumier Bonnes-Mares - opened for 1 hour prior to serving.  Forest, floral, minty.  Really sweet and beautiful.  94 points.

1990 Roumier Bonnes-Mares - opened for 1½ hours prior to serving.  Stronger notes of forest, leather and animal.  As enjoyable as the '85 but in a different way.  94 points.

Fourth pair:

1989 Rayas - decanted for 2½ hours prior to serving.  Burnt rubber nose, stinky.  I never got much else out of this wine... not very enjoyable at all.  88 points... and that's being generous.

1989 Henri Bonneau Réserve des Célestins - decanted for 2½ hours prior to serving.  Forest, resin, dates, with some sweetness in the nose.  92 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

04 Clos St Jacques and Selosse

Dinner at Island Tang.

Jacques Selosse Substance, dégorgée à 20 Novembre 2007 - I brought this for my friend who loves Champagne, as he loved the same wine I brought to an earlier dinner.  This was another beautiful bottle, showing a lovely, aged nose thanks to the solera system of blending back to 1986.  So much honey, caramelized sugar, Chinese licorice, sugar cane and desiccated coconut in the nose.  Very complex.

2004 Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St Jacques Vieille Vigne - very clean and pure.  Lots of strawberries and raspberries, a little bit of sous bois?   It smelled as if I was walking in strawberry fields.  What a lovely surprise!  Not decanted nor breathed prior to drinking.

2004 Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St Jacques - more intense and concentrated, with animal and leather notes on top of the fruit, along with mineral and savory notes that are almost like black olives.  Also very sweet and delicious.

Full post on dinner is here.

Selosse V.O. and Pontet-Canet

Dinner at Kushiyaki Beco.

Jacques Selosse V.O. (dégorgée le 28 Avril 2009) - ripe and mellow, with toasty nose and straw, marmalade and caramelized sugar.

2002 Pontet-Canet - ripe and fruity, smoky, grilled meats.

Full post on dinner is here.