Hotpot wines

Dinner at a seafood and hotpot restaurant.

Champagne Barons de Rothschild Blanc de Blancs - acidity a little on the high side, which wasn't surprising given it's a blanc de blancs.

Azumaichi Junmai Daiginjo Shizuku Shibori Senbatsushu (東一 純米大吟醸 雫搾り 選抜酒), 14BY - this was AMAZING.  This is made only in exceptional years, and comes from the best tobin (斗瓶) selected by the brewery master for sake competitions - and each tobin can fill exactly 10 isshobins (一升瓶).  So you can see any bottle bearing the extra red sticker must be truly special.

And it was beautiful!  Very fragrant nose, with rich fermented rice notes.  Very sweet on the attack, nice and a little round on the palate.  After warming up a little, this became slightly more dry on the finish.  What an awesome bottle of aged sake!  And why did I only buy one bottle?!

2009 Poggio di Sotto Brunello di Montalcino - smoky and a little fruity.

2013 Flor de Pingus - aired for a little while before I tasted it.  Kinda softened up the tannins, with ripe and sweet fruit.

Caol Ila Old Malt Cask 18 years - cask strength, but I prefer it neat.  Very peaty, and the alcohol is naturally very sharp and torches the hairs in my nose...

Sawanotsuru 1999 Koshujikomi Umeshu (沢の鶴1999年古酒仕込み梅酒) - using koshu (古酒) from 1999 as the base, this was a lovely "marriage" between sake and plum wine.  The flavors of the Nanko plum (南高梅) from Wakayama Prefecture (和歌山県) really shone here, with a nice and savory nose.

Full post on dinner is here.

Another Sine Qua Non night

Dinner at Table.

2004 Sine Qua Non The Rejuvenators - a blend of 56% Roussanne, 24% Viognier, and 20% Chardonnay.  Opened almost an hour before serving, initially showing a little grass and lemon citrus notes.  Opened up more and got better after 80 minutes or so, but never really reached the heights of many other SQN whites.

2007 Sine Qua Non Stripes and Stars - a rosé made with 55% Syrah and 45% Grenache.  Lots of minerals, fruity, with a hint of leather.

2005 Sine Qua Non Over and Out - this Pinot Noir was a little earthy, with sweet fruit and a little leather in the nose.  When it opened up, it showed beautiful floral and violet notes.

2010 Sine Qua Non Five Shooter Grenache - made with 75% Grenache, 16% Syrah, 2.5% Mourvedre, 4.5% Roussanne, and 2% Viognier.  Mint, eucalyptus, and very floral.  Wonderful ripeness and sweetness, with huge concentration.

2005 Sine Qua Non The Naked Truth - 90% Grenache and 10% Syrah.  Fragrant with cedar and mint, along with violet notes.  So ripe and sweet, and so beautiful.

2002 William Selyem Port Mistral Vineyard - sooo rich and sweet.

Full post on dinner is here.

2001 Bordeaux for Altaya

Altaya Group's 15th anniversary dinner at the Hong Kong Club.

2004 Pol Roger Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill - ripe on the palate, drinking beautifully.

2001 Les Forts de Latour, en magnum - classic Pauillac, with smoky, pencil lead, earthy, wonderful ripe fruit, fragrant cedar notes.  Beautiful.

2001 Pontet-Canet - smoky, minty, ripe fruit, a little more concentrated than Les Forts.  Riper and sweeter, but acidity also higher on the palate.  Later on also showed cedar notes.

2001 Haut Bailly - fragrant nose with cedar and smoke.

2001 Smith Haut Lafitte, en magnum - lovely and fragrant nose, with more on the body.  Really nice.

2001 Pichon Baron, en double-magnum - soooo ripe and sweet on the nose, with a little coffee.  Very fragrant and lovely.

2001 Léoville Las Cases - a bit more green on the nose, with exotic spices and dried herbs.  Nose seemed more open with cedar and earthy notes.

2001 Mouton-Rothschild, en magnum - lovely nose with lots of coffee, sweet, smoky, and a little lighter on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

Gagnard Bâtard and Remoissenet Meursault

Dinner at the Amber x Central dinner at Amber.

1985 Hospices de Beaune Meursault 1er Cru Genevrières Cuvée Philippe-le-Bon, par Remoissenet Père et Fils, ex-domaine - released in March 2016.  Very ripe, almost a little sweet on the palate.  Nice and fragrant nose, but seemingly just a little tired.  Later on toasty and buttery corn notes came out.

2008 Jean Noël Gagnard Bâtard-Montrachet - first pour was a little pungent, later on a bit chalky and dirty.  With the new pour this cleared up and became kinda mineral and flinty.  Acidity was on the high side.

Full post on dinner is here.

Markus Molitor x2

Drinks at a friend's home.

2006 Beaucastel Blanc Rousanne Vielles Vignes - too advanced and oxidized.  Nose showed marzipan and acetone, and the palate was a little flat and short.  It wasn't corked, but it has aged far beyond the other bottles in the same case.

2014 Markus Molitor Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Spätlese -very floral nose with lychee notes.  Nice minerality here.

2011 Markus Molitor Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Auslese*** - very sweet.  A little more mineral and plastic, with a little more flint, honey and pineapple.  Very round on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

V.O. and Albino

Dinner at Whitegrass in Singapore.

Jacques Selosse Version Originale, dégorgée le 20 Decembre 2012 - nose was very nice and yeasty, with lots of minerals.  As the wine was a little warm at first, the acidity was a little high, but this improved with further chilling.  I loooove Champagnes with oxidation, as the nose showed some salted plums (話梅).

2001 Sine Qua Non Albino - a blend of 46% Chardonnay, 40% Roussanne, and 14% Viognier.  This had a huge toasty nose, with lots of roasted corn, with a little ripeness and a little sweet grass.  After an hour the nose became very buttery.  This was soooo fragrant and beautiful.

Full post on dinner is here.

Montrachet, shochu, and Vin Santo

Dinner at Spaghetti House.

1997 Remoissenet Montrachet - the second I poured the wine into glass I knew we were in trouble.  The color was simply too dark - hinting at advanced oxidation.  And indeed it was very flat on the palate at first, although it wasn't corked.  Chilling it down and further aeration improved the experience, but it was still over-ripe, with some sweetness and toasty oak on the nose.  Soooo disappointing.

Moriizou (森伊蔵) - sharp alcohol, kinda like paint thinner... I know lots of people love this shochu (焼酎), but I don't think it's my cup of tea...

2003 Felsina Vin Santo - nice and very raisiny nose, a little nutty, very fragrant with honeydew and marmalade notes.  Very sweet on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC Dinner - Hong Kong Club

MNSC dinner at Hong Kong Club, hosted by Lord Rayas.

1996 Tattinger Comte de Champagne - very nutty and toasty, a little ripe on the nose, with a good acidity finish.  Absolutely fragrant and beautiful right now.

First flight: served 30 minutes after opening.

1970 Guigal La Mouline - very fragrant, sweet fruit on the nose.  Slightly dry on the palate.  Later on some coffee and mocha notes.  A really beautiful wine.  97 points.

1970 Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve - a little more savory, slightly more exotic on the nose.  Some fruit, a little leather, slightly oxidized and caramelized.  Very soft and slightly sweeter on the palate.  93 points.

1970 Latour - very fragrant and beautiful, savory, slightly smoky, slightly earthy, with some fruit here.  96 points.

Second flight: served 2½ hours after opening.

1975 Jaboulet La Chapelle - fragrant and clean nose, with ripe fruit, floral, minty, toasty, and cedar notes.  95 points.

1975 L'Evangile - a little smoky, a little toasty.  92 points.

Third flight: served 4 hours after opening.

1982 Guigal La Mouline - sweet, floral and fragrant, slightly restrained nose.  Later a little leather and cedar, with some toasty notes.  Acidity a little high on the palate after a while.  Very nice.  95 points.

1982 Dunn Howell Mountain - a little pencil lead, some burnt rubber, chalky and dusty.  Second pour showed lots of sweet and tropical banana.  Kinda tannic and still concentrated.  92 points.

1982 Mouton-Rothschild - a little green pepper, sweet grass, with a little toast.  Corked.

Full post on dinner is here.

Wines at the Michelin gala dinner

Dinner at Studio City in Macau, organized by the Michelin Guide and Robert Parker Wine Advocate.

Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut - a little sweet on the palate.

Perrier-Jouët Blason Rosé - yeasty with a nice mousse, with more red fruits in the nose.

2013 Rémi Jobard Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières - fragrant, almost floral nose, with very little of the typical toasty notes from a Meursault.  Second glass showed a little more flint and minerals.  Some ripeness on the palate but dry on the finish.  Pairing with the laksa crab really brought out the dry and spicy finish from the alcohol.

2006 Latour à Pomerol - very ripe and minty, slightly earthy nose.  Surprisingly silky on the palate.  Sweet fruit on the nose but not too sweet on the palate.

2006 La Fleur-Pétrus - a bit more earthy, with eucalyptus and a little hint of savory notes.  Also showing some ripe fruit but kinda dry on the palate.

2004 Pol Roger Brut - rich on the palate, kinda sweet with a good acidity balance.

2006 Hosanna - good amount of ripeness here, and showing a little bit of tannins.

2006 Trotanoy - pretty fragrant nose, with a little hint of pencil lead.  More tannic than the other 06s.

1888 Quinta do Vallado ABF Old Tawny Port - very sweet, very concentrated on the palate, with plenty of nutty flavors as well as raisins, along with a little preserved tangerine peel (陳皮).

Full post on dinner is here.