Alinea wine pairing

Dinner at Alinea.

R.H. Coutier Brut - nice bubbles and mousse, very ripe, nice and full-bodied, woody and oaky.

2011 Georg Breuer Terra Montosa Riesling - very heavy petrol in the nose, smoky, white flowers, steely and flinty, with plasticky notes which were rounder and richer than most other German Rieslings.  This was actually slightly sweet and ripe on the palate, not bone dry as Andrew the sommelier described.

2010 Domaine de l'Octavin Pamina - this Chardonnay from Arbois matched the rice crispies really well, with its very heavy toasty corn nose that was raw, pungent, and just a little overpowering.  From the looks of it this was probably not filtered nor fined.

2011 Domaine du Viking Vouvray Tendre - aged in chestnut casks.  Definitely fragrant nose with an off-dry palate.

Sato no Homare Junmai Ginjoshu "Pride of the Village" (郷の誉 純米吟醸酒) - an unfiltered sake from one of my favorite breweries, with a seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 48%.  This was pretty sweet, rich in body, with fermented rice, pineapple and banana notes.

2013 A Tribute to Grace Rose of Grenache - My Beloved Cousin would call this lolly water, and I'd have to agree with her.  Besides the obvious sweetness, my first thought was "bubblegum"... and Mo' Unni also thought it was just so Bubblicious... Also a little banana, and slightly ripe on the palate.

2012 Jamsheed Beechworth Shiraz - I was eager to try out this wine, which Andrew the sommelier had described as an "Australian Syrah" instead of a Shiraz.  Well, he was right.  While it had plenty of ripeness, it was cool fruit instead of the usual fruit bomb, along with lots of potpourri, pine needles and mint.  We both agreed that it reminded us of a Northern Rhône like Saint-Joseph.  Delicious.

2009 Marion Valpolicella Superiore - forest and potpourri notes.

2013 Jorge Ordonez No. 2 Victoria - definitely a lot like Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise, although the lychee was a little dialed down.  Sweetness was there, but slightly pungent with perhaps some sulfur.  Still young and raw.

2009 Maculan Torcolato - nutty with orange blossom, peach and blood orange notes.

Full post on dinner is here.