Montrose and more

Wine tasting at Hong Kong Wine Vault.  Hervé Berland from Château Montrose was in attendance.

2010 Tronquoy-Lalande - oaky, lots of fruit, with plum and cedar.

2010 La Dame de Montrose - minty, fruity, still a little pungent, a little dusty.  Tannic on the palate.

2008 La Dame de Montrose - young and tannic on the palate.  Sweet fruit, smoky, a little forest, and a little pungent.

2005 La Dame de Montrose - more open and opulent, a little smoky, with leather and bacon notes.

2011 Montrose - very sweet, rich, cedar, woody and fragrant.

2010 Montrose - really sweet and ripe, dried herbs, potpourri and toffee.

2008 Montrose - very open and really fragrant, with leather notes.  A little alcoholic, and still a little tannic.

2005 Montrose - still tannic but a lovely wine.  A little alcoholic.

1998 Montrose - very open nose, farmy, smoky, cedar and savory soy sauce.

Drinks at Caprice Bar.

2010 (?) Weinbach Riesling Cuvée Sainte Catherine - flinty, ripe, floral, peachy and sweet.  A fairly big wine but lovely at the same time.

2007 Marcel Deiss Langenberg - really ripe and sweet, perfumed and floral, flinty and mineral.

Brasserie Lebbe L'Amalthée - light and floral, reminds me of a white beer like Hoegaarden, with a hint of citrus flavor.  Texture seemed slightly thicker, though.

Full post on the evening is here.

2000 Plantiers Haut-Brion

Dinner at On Lot 10.

2000 Les Plantiers du Haut-Brion en magnum - oaky, flinty.  Ripe on the palate, with a pretty long finish that seemed a little bitter.  Not bad at all.

Full post on dinner is here.

Chapoutier L'Orée and Valandraud

Dinner and Fish and Meat.

2003 Chapoutier Ermitage L'Orée - should have had this decanted, as it took a long time to open up.  Initially this was muted and just didn't show.  Oxidized, a little copper and metallic, light body and short finish.  With time it gathered more body, with a longer finish as it warmed up.  Also was a little alcoholic at the end.

1996 Valandraud - fruity, a little spicy with the diavola sauce for the chicken.  Smooth on the palate.  A little smoky, grilled meat and earthy.

Drinks at Stockton.

Kill Devil - pretty nice, lots of different flavors here, with absinthe making its mark in addition to the four types of rum.  Also tasted the distinct flavors of ginger beer.  In spite of the name - and the fact it it came with a warning that one could not order more than 2 of these - this was deceptively mild and pleasant on the palate.  No doubt it packed a big punch in a velvet glove.

Full post on the evening is here.

Antoine Moueix wines

Dinner at the Longines Hong Kong Masters.

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Yellow Label

2012 Antoine Moueix Expression Sauvignon Blanc - oaky, vanilla, tropical fruits like peach, a little flinty.

2009 Château Tour de Capet - minty, a little fruity, light-bodied, pretty flat and drank poorly.  Later on the alcohol really showed, and didn't work well with the duck or the passion fruit.

Full post on dinner is here.

04 Ponsot Les Charmes

Dinner at Harlan Goldstein's Comfort.

2004 Ponsot Chambolle Musigny 1er Cru Les Charmes - minty, pretty fruity and nice.  A little bit of forest, mushroom, a little savory black olive, and a little leathery.  Tannins very noticeable especially on the finish, and acidity as well.

Full post on dinner is here.

2004 Valbuena 5°

Dinner at the Tasting Room by Galliot in Macau.

2004 Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5° - fruity, but a little acidic.  Showing signs of oxidation from too much aeration.  A little metallic, mineral and earthy.

Full post on dinner is here.

Daishichi Myouka Rangyoku

Lunch at Seventh Son.

Daishichi Myouka Rangyoku (大七 妙花蘭曲), vintage 2008 - a junmai daiginjo (純米大吟醸) made using the kimoto (生酛) method and collected by letting it drip naturally (雫), with a seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 50% and a total production of 3,376 bottles.  This was really something.  The nose was pretty rich and full, with plenty of starchy, sticky rice at first, along with tropical fruits like banana and peach.  Very elegant and round on the palate at first, then built up to a pretty strong and dry finish.  Very fragrant and lovely.

Full post on lunch is here.

98 Sterimberg and 95 VCC

Dinner at On Lot 10.

1998 Paul Jaboulet Hermitage Blanc Chevalier de Sterimberg en magnum - initially pretty weak on the nose, perhaps because it was too cold.  Showed slight hint of grass, but later displayed oaky notes.  Body was initially also light but developed with aeration, with decent acidity.

1995 Vieux Château Certan en magnum - minty, cedary, earthy and smoky.  Drank pretty well.

Full post on dinner is here.

74 Leflaive BBM and Blanc de blancs

Dinner at Amber.

R and L Legras Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru (bottled for the Landmark Mandarin Oriental) - nice and easy to drink.  A little caramelized, yeasty, and later light toasty notes emerged.

1974 Domaine Leflaive Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - pretty toasty and oaky nose, almost nutty and chocolatey.  But this was a mature wine so it was a little softer and not as in-your-face.  Very soft and velvety on the palate, and the finish was a little short.  Still a beautiful wine.

Full post on dinner is here.