97 Solaia and 83 Maximin Grünhäuser

Dinner at The Chairman.

1983 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Abtsberg Riesling Spätlese - very fragrant, with nose of wax, polyurethane, honey, citrus, and white flowers.  A little sweetness on the palate but the acidity was pretty high on the back end.

1997 Solaia - served 45 minutes after opening.  Nice and fragrant nose.  A little minty, pencil lead, a little earthy, and some elegant fruit.

Full post on dinner is here.

97 Gaja mags and friends

Dinner at a private dining facility.

2004 B de Boërl et Kroff, dégorgé en Avril 2016 - very perfumed nose, more elegant than expected.  A little honey and flinty, with some acidity on the palate.  Toasty notes came out later, and the wine continued to be very rounded on the palate.  What a nice surprise!

2004 Henri Giraud Argonne, dégorgé à 9 Juin 2015 - leaner on the palate compared to the B, but turned riper later.  Bigger and punchier nose, with a bit of honey.

2009 Arnaud Ente Meursault La Sève du Clos - plenty of toast on the nose as expected.  After 1½ hours in glass the nose was very beautiful and toasty.

Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva Especial (1994/1996/2000) - opened 4 hours prior to serving.  Very ripe and sweet nose, with eucalyptus, smoke, coconut, and exotic tropical notes.  Classic Unico, and really beautiful.  My wine of the evening.

2014 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Spätlese Alte Reben - floral with a little flint and a little polyurethane.  Good acidity balance here. 

For the pair of 1997 Gaja mags, I had asked advice from a sommelier friend of mine.  He recommended that I double-decant them the night before, but I was worried that I would end up 'over-breathing' the wines.  So I didn't exactly listen to him - but I probably should have! The wines definitely needed more time to open up. I will never doubt my friend again...

1997 Gaja Langhe Costa Russi, from magnum - opened 10 hours prior, double-decanted 3½ hours prior, and poured into decanter 30 minutes prior to serving.  Tannins were still here.  Not bad, but not as opened as I had hoped... although it was also more muted compared to Sorì San Lorenzo even just after opening.  A little smoky nose, and still somewhat sweet on the palate.

1997 Gaja Langhe Sorì San Lorenzo, from magnum - opened 10½ hours prior, double-decanted 4 hours prior, and poured into decanter 1 hour prior to serving.  This was much more open compared to Costa Russi, with fragrant nose with lots of cedar notes.  Also a little sweet on the palate.

Full post on dinner is here.

1989 Maximin Grünhäuser

Lunch at Seventh Son.

1989 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett - nice and flinty, with white flowers and good acidity balance.

Full post on lunch is here.

71 Egon Müller and 2010 Hugel Grossi Laüe

Lunch at Jade Dragon in Macau.

2010 Hugel Pinot Gris Grossi Laüe - very alcoholic and ripe, and kinda burns going down the back of the throat.  Flinty and a little floral on the nose.  A little bitter and tart on the finish.

1971 Egon Müller Scharzhofberger Auslese - great acidity here, with polyurethane, flint, lemon, and white flowers on the nose.  Very elegant.

Full post on lunch is here.

97 Giacosa, 90 Beaufort, 76 Weiβherbst

Dinner at Robuchon au Dôme in Macau.

1990 André Beaufort Ambonnay Brut, dégorgé en Janvier 2012 - very ripe on the palate, nice and mature.  Beautiful, caramelized nose with salty plum notes.

1976 Schloss Reinhartshausen Erbacher Siegelsberg Spätburgunder Weiβherbst Auslese - I had never seen a rosé or blanc de noirs from Germany before, never mind one that was made as an auslese.  Nose was lovely like a Chambertin, with leather and sweet fruit notes.  Palate-wise it was kinda sweet and somewhere between a spätlese and an auslese.  This was soooo interesting!

1997 Bruno Giacosa Le Rocche del Falletto di Serralunga - we needed to pay tribute to the passing of the great man a few days ago.  Served 2 hours after decanting.  At first this was a little warm, showing a little smoky notes.  Delivered minty, eucalyptus, and cassis on the nose.  Lovely.

1937 and 1976 German riesling

Lunch at The 8 in Macau.

1937 Anheuser Schloßböckelheimer Muhlberg Riesling Feinste Auslese - soooo beautiful!  This was nectar-like on the nose, with honey, a little polyurethane, medjool dates, raisins, and wonderful marmalade notes.  So smooth on the palate, with a good acidity balance. What a privilege to have tasted this wine!

1976 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Abtsberg Riesling Beerenauslese - at first a little bitterness on the palate, and the nose initially had some metallic notes.  Polyurethane notes were pretty prominent.  Good acidity on the palate here, with marmalade made from bitter orange.  In fact that bitterness continued to be very prominent on the finish.  Nice, but I had hoped for a little more.  Surprised that this BA was not as sweet as the feinste auslese.

Full post on lunch is here.

Lucien Le Moine and Faiveley

Dinner at Amber.

2013 Lucien Le Moine Meursault 1er Cru Perrières - surprised at the level of ripeness as well as how rounded it was on the palate, with acidity on the back end.  Not as much toast as I had expected in the nose, and actually this was nice and elegant, with buttery notes.  Acidity remained high till the end.

2007 Faiveley Pommard 1er Cru Les Rugiens - nice fruit, with pencil lead, smoky and a little earthy.

Full post on dinner is here.

Hugel tasting

Tasting of Famille Hugel wines organized by Hong Kong Wine Vault.  Winemaker Marc André Hugel in attendance.

2016 Hugel Gentil - a blend of traditional grape varietals used in Alsace.  Very floral and tropical, with stone fruits.  Kinda ripe on the nose, flinty with white flowers.  A hint of sweetness on the palate.

2012 Hugel Estate Riesling - nose was much more pungent with lots of polyurethane along with some white flowers.  Higher acidity on the palate.

2010 Hugel Riesling Grossi Laüe - "Grossi Laüe" is the Alsatian equivalent of the German "Großes Gewächs" - or grand cru.  They stopped producing the "Jubilee" cuvée after 2009 and started with this in 2010.  Subtle notes of white flowers, with a little bit of polyurethane.  Very lean with even higher acidity level.  This was definitely more elegant.

2008 Hugel Riesling Schoelhammer - second vintage of this single-vineyard offering. First pour from a new bottle.  LOADS of polyurethane, with honeysuckle on the nose that packs a real wallop.  A really big wine with lots of potential.

2009 Hugel Pinot Gris Jubilee - the last vintage of this wine.  Huge level of ripeness, with a little bit of floral notes and a hint of marmalade.  Very long finish.

2012 Hugel Gewurztraminer Estate - totally lychee on the first whiff, and really ripe and sweet on the nose.  Lots of floral characters with plastic notes. Very distinctively gewurz.  Reasonably sweet on the palate.

2010 Hugel Gewurztraminer Grossi Laüe - floral notes with stone fruits and lychee.  Also very elegant, with honey and marmalade.

2009 Hugel Gewurztraminer Jubilee - the last vintage of this cuvée.  Lovely and elegant, with nice lychee notes.

1999 Hugel Gewurztraminer Sélection de Grains Nobles, en demi-bouteille - sooooo beautiful!  Lots of honey, marmalade, a little nutty, floral, and elegant.  Later on a hint of polyurethane.  So viscous and round on the palate.  Love the sensation of it swirling around the tongue.  There was a slight hint of bitterness on the finish.

05 Petaluma and Monbousquet

Drinks at my cousin's place.

2005 Petaluma Chardonnay Tiers - really, really ripe on the palate, maybe over-ripe...  Nose was initially chalky and toasty, but the chalkiness faded and what remained was buttery and toasty corn.  Maybe going downhill?

2005 Monbousquet - a little smoky, ripe black fruits, coffee, and chocolate notes.  Pretty smooth now, but the palate was kinda flat with a short finish.

85 Bouchard Madeleine Collignon

Drinking in the office.

1985 Hospices de Beaune Mazis-Chambertin Cuvée Madeleine-Collignon par Bouchard - very smooth on the palate.  Nose clearly of stewed fruits, but still somewhat alive.  A hint of savory notes.  Clearly past its prime but still drinkable.

Roederer Brut Nature and Clos St Denis

Lunch at Robuchon au Dôme in Macau.

2006 Louis Roederer Brut Nature - nice and crisp acidity after the initial ripe attack, and pretty long on the finish.

2010 Lucien Le Moine Clos Saint-Denis - lots of dried herbs along with good amount of sweet berries, with leather and slightly smoky notes.  A little stemmy and a little grippy on the palate.  30 minutes after opening the nose showed lots of toasty notes, and was really, really fragrant.

Full post on lunch is here.

Araujo, Clos Erasmus, Von Schubert

Dinner at Seventh Son.

1989 von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett - classic petrol nose, flinty, with good acidity.

1998 Clos Erasmus - decanted 1½ hours prior to serving.  Initially nose of stewed fruits, a little lighter than expected, with smoky meats.  Rather disappointing.

2002 Araujo Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard - decanted just prior to serving.  Very minty, lots of sweet fruit, very ripe.  Pretty fragrant with cedar notes.  Drinking very nicely.

Full post on dinner is here.

2012 Lucien Le Moine Corton Blanc

Dinner at Neighborhood.

2012 Lucien Le Moine Corton Blanc - huge nose of toasty oak and toasty corn.  Delicious.

Full post on dinner is here.

Prieur and Prieuré-Roch

Dinner at a friend's home.

2004 Inflorescence Côte de Béchalin, dégorgée en Avril 2011 - very rounded on the palate and easy to drink.  I could definitely taste the pinot noir as this was a blanc de noirs.

2013 Jacques Prieur Bourgogne Blanc - very ripe and surprisingly soft on the palate.  Curiously almost a little minty as well as flinty.

2004 Prieuré-Roch Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru - love this wine.  Really nice and toasty nose, with lots of strawberries.  Really sweet and beautiful, with floral and leather notes.

25-year Shaoxing - very smooth.  Definitely savory with salty plum notes.

Full post on dinner is here.

Coche, Rougeard, and Dagueneau

Dinner at Caprice Bar.

2014 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly - lovely wine, with a big and explosive, toasty nose. 

1995 Guigal Château d'Ampuis - decanted for 1½ hours prior to serving.  Lovely nose, with minty, eucalyptus, and floral notes.  Higher acidity and leaner than expected, with less sweetness on the palate.  Didn't have the same power and richness I had expected, so slightly disappointing.

2010 Clos Rougeard Brézé - apparently this bottle was opened 4 days ago.  Very fragrant nose, with a little stone fruit, almost a little acetone, and pretty ripe.

2009 Dagueneau Buisson Renard, en magnum - apparently this was opened 5 days ago.  Classic nose of green apple and muscat grapes, and a little pungent.  Someone thought it smelled a little like durian, but nah...  It's lovely and pure sauvignon blanc.

2002 Coche-Dury Meursault - just.beautiful.  Classic big, toasty nose.  A little buttery.

Full post on dinner is here.