MNSC Dinner - The Pawn

MNSC dinner at the Pawn, hosted by Dr. Poon.  Could not smell a thing, so no tasting notes for most wines.

1964 Dom Pérignon - not a lot of bubbles left.  A little marmalade, and a little hot and ripe on the palate.

First flight: opened and decanted about an hour prior to serving.

1990 La Mission Haut-Brion

1990 Lafite-Rothshild

Second flight:

1988 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Cuvée William

1988 Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque

1988 Domaine Leroy Romanée-St.-Vivant

Third flight:

1989 Rayas

1989 Guigal Côte-Rôtie Hommage à Etienne Guigal

1989 Rousseau Chambertin

Full post on dinner is here.

Day 1 of not smelling

Drinks at Burgundy etc.

2007 Verget Corton-Charlemagne Vieilles Vignes - some lemon citrus notes.

Dinner at Kiangsu Chekiang and Shanghai Residents (Hong Kong) Association Restaurant.

2004 Dom Pérignon - a little warm, ripe and hot on the palate, and a little bland.

Jacques Selosse Initial, dégorgée 30 Avril 2013 - ripe and full-bodied, a little buttery on the nose.  Much, much more complex than the Dom.

2003 Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Pucelles, en magnum - very ripe on the palate, hot finish, very little acidity.

2001 Kistler Chardonnay Vine Hill Vineyard - very ripe on the palate.

2007 Araujo Sauvignon Blanc Eisele Vineyard - some ripeness on the palate.

2000 Rauzan-Ségla

Full post on dinner is here.

70 La Lagune and 04 Bruno Paillard

Dinner at Mandarin Grill + Bar.

2004 Bruno Paillard Blanc de Blancs - really easy to drink. Pretty smooth on the palate, and the acidity was surprisingly not as high as I expected for a blanc de blancs. A little ripe on the palate, with slight bitterness on the finish.

1970 La Lagune - opened for 1 hour without decanting.  Nice acidity and still some tannins here, but otherwise a pretty typical claret.

Full post on dinner is here.

Mumm Chef de Caves launch

Dinner at Bibo hosted by G.H. Mumm.  Chef de Caves Didier Mariotti introduced the new Collection du Chef de Caves.

Cordon Rouge - easy to drink and nothing to write home about.

Mumm Blanc de Blancs Mumm de Cramant - very nice mousse, pretty light, elegant, and rounded on the palate.  A little toasty.  Also a little ripe on the palate but not too much.  "Small" production of around 4 to 5,000 cases annually.  This wine was originally a private cuvée of the house and not released for sale.  The distinctive label harks back to the days when the bottles were only given to friends, along with a business card folded at one corner - to indicate that the wine was delivered in person.

Then comes the main event: the trio of magnums being launched.  Each magnum bears the chef de caves' signature as well as the date of disgorgement.

1996 Mumm Collection du Chef de Caves, en magnum - nice acidity here, which was a little focused but not quite to the point of sharpness.  A very precise wine, with a very nice balance.  A little caramel on the nose.  Slight bitterness on the finish, but otherwise very round on the palate.  Sweetness on the palate came out when paired with the salmon.  What a beautiful wine with tons of potential.

1990 Mumm Collection du Chef de Caves, en magnum - a mature wine, with very little bubbles.  Ripe on the palate, with marmalade notes.  Great depth of flavors here, with a really long finish.  Beautiful!

1985 Mumm Collection du Chef de Caves, en magnum - first whiff of the wine and I said to my neighbor : "This is why I love Champagne!"  A fully-mature Champagne, with classic salty plum (話梅), minerals, and caramelized nose.  Still very much alive and fresh for a Champagne this age, thanks to the recent disgorgement.  An incredibly beautiful wine!

Mumm Le Rose - nose of strawberries.

L'Or de Jean Martell - floral, sweet with caramel notes.  This was much smoother than I expected.  A beautiful Cognac.

Full post on dinner is here.

04 Chambertin and Aussie Chard

Dinner at West Villa Restaurant.

2004 Prieuré-Roch Chambertin Clos de Beze - so fruity as always, with strawberries, nice toasty notes, a little plummy, and later on a little Chinese angelica (當歸).  Very nice and enjoyable.

2004 Ponsot Griotte Chambertin - nose was definitely more closed initially, without decanting or aeration.  A little smoky, animal, leather, with a little violet later.  More acidic.  Not drinking as well as the Prieuré-Roch.

2001 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay Art Series - vanilla and lemon.  Soooo ripe and buttery.  Yum!

Full post on dinner is here.

3-star wine pairing

Dinner at the Hertog Jan pop-up in the Landmark Mandarin Oriental.

R and L Legras Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs

2013 Terre Nere Rosato - a rosé from Mount Etna on Sicily.  Nice and fresh, with honey, peach, a little flint and a little bit of oak in the nose.

2009 Tement Sauvignon Blanc Grassnitzberg - very rich, thick and viscous on the palate.  Nose was a little pungent, with definite notes of polyurethane and plastic, along with a little pipi de chat.  Some lemon and muscat grapes, too.  Very full on the palate, and a pretty nice wine overall.

2011 Joh. Jos. Prüm Riesling Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett - nose was more pungent and in-your-face than expected.  Reasonably sweet on the palate for a kabinett.  Heck, I'll never get tired of drinking German Riesling...

2012 Jean-Marc Pillot Puligny Montrachet Les Noyers Bret - buttery, ripe, and oaky nose.

2011 Leflaive et Associés Monthélie 1er Cru Sur la Velle - very prominent nose of toasty corn, which obscured the fruit a little.  Not bad.

2005 Señorio de San Vicente from magnum - double-decanted 4½ hours prior to serving, and I can definitely see why.  Really ripe and sweet on the nose, with a little pencil lead, vanilla, oak, and later on that exotic coconut butter I love.   Nice and rounded on the palate, very smooth.

Lheraud Pineau des Charentes Collection Perle Rose - wonderful sweet nose, with a little straw and definitely sugarcane.  Minty, too.  Slightly medicinal on the palate, but very sweet and alluring.

Full post on dinner is here.

70 Œnothèque, 71 Schönborn and more

Dinner at Caprice.

1970 Dom Pérignon Œnothèque, dégorgée à Janvier 2014 - sooooo beautiful.  Very fragrant and nutty nose with coffee and toast.  Very smooth on the palate, with mild acidity here.  Wow!  Loved this.

1998 Roulot Meursault Les Vireuils - a little toasty on the nose, very nice and elegant, and took a while to open up.  Very round on the palate.

2001 Dominique Laurent Bonnes-Mares - very nice and fragrant nose, fruity, with some dried herbs.  A little leather and eucalyptus here.

1990 Castello di Ama Vigna L'Apparita - decanted about half an hour prior to serving.  Some medicinal notes here, with mint, dried herbs, some sweet fruit, but definitely a little green and vegetal.  Tannins are still here after 25 years.

1971 Schloss Schönborn Hattenheimer Nußbrunnen Riesling Beerenauslese - really grapey, nutty, sweet, with orange marmalade.  Yum.

Full post on dinner is here.