1997 Beringer Merlot

Dinner at home in Taipei.

1997 Beringer Merlot Private Reserve Howell Mountain - sweet, coffee, toasty and oaky, really smoky tobacco.

Juyondai Black Label and more

Dinner at Shoun RyuGin in Taipei.

1995 Moët et Chandon Cuvée Dom Pérignon Œnothèque - nose was a little strange, maybe some sugarcane notes, with very strong marmalade and nice minerality along as well as a little toast.  Acidity was pretty high.

2010 Louis Michel Chablis Grenouilles - lovely minerals, some flint, and stone fruits.  Decent acidity level was it was not too high.  Some ripeness and fragrance lingered in the mouth for a lovely finish.

1995 Comte de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - lots of leather in the nose.  Still hard with tannins, and turned acidic with aeration, but the tannins were still present.  Later on with further aeration acidity became really high.  Probably just not ready yet...

Kokuryu Daiginjo Ryu (黒龍 大吟醸 龍), 30BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 40%.  Nice flavors of fermented rice.

Sohomare Kimotoshikomi Junmai Ginjo (惣誉 生酛仕込 純米吟醸), 30BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 55%.  Nose showing some fermented rice flavors, with banana notes.  Drier on the palate but with good depth.

Juyondai Black Label, 29BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) is not disclosed for this bottling.  Nose was somewhat fermented, with some fermented rice notes.  Pretty sweet on the palate with a long finish.

2010 Clos Rougeard Saumur Champigny - toasty, minty, leather notes.  Good acidity here.

Vincent Fleith Crémant d'Alsace Brut Nature - flinty with stone fruits on the nose.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC dinner - Hong Kong Room

MNSC dinner at the Hong Kong Club, hosted by Pineapple.

1985 Pol Roger Brut - very toasty, like sourdough, with salty plum and preserved lemon notes.

First pair: opened more than 1 hour prior to serving.

1968 Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva - sweet fruit with a hint of sweet grass.  Clearly an old vintage with acidity on the palate.  A bit of leather, a little stinky and barnyard, but turned into a perfumed nose without much fruit.  92 points.

1968 Beaulieu Vineyards George de Latour Private Reserve - a bit of rubber in the nose, minty, black fruits, much more concentrated.  A hint of sweetness on the attack but turns more acidic.  Pretty sweet and exotic nose, and showed some sweet grass later.  97 points.

Second pair:

1988 Henri Jayer Echezeaux - opened 2 hours prior to serving.  Sweet and floral, elegant, with a bit of leather. 95 points.

1988 Mouton-Rothschild - double decanted 2 hours prior to serving.  Sooooo toasty, espresso toast, almost burnt rubber.  The rubber dissipated to show a love nose of cedar and lots of green capsicum.  96 points.

Third pair: opened 2½ hours prior to serving.

1978 Pichon-Lalande - green capsicum, woodsy, cedar, and fragrant with smoky notes.  95 points.

1978 Paul Jaboulet La Chapelle - smoky, minty, eucalyptus, some sweet fruit.  Later showed savory and black olive notes.  97 points.

Fourth pair:

1998 Beaucastel - double-decanted 3 hours prior to serving.  Sharp alcoholic nose, smells like paint thinner and cherry-flavored cough syrup.

1998 Henri Jayer for Georges Jayer Echezeaux - opened 3 hours prior to serving.  Sharp alcohol, coconut notes, and a bit medicinal.  92 points.

Ardbeg 24 Years Sherry Butt, bottled in 2000 - very peaty.

Full post on dinner is here.

1997 Beringer Merlot

Drinking at home.

1997 Beringer Merlot Private Reserve Howell Mountain - pretty much par for the course, with some fruit, smoky, and oaky notes.

Ponsot, Ornellaia and more

Lunch at Seventh Son.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 166éme édition, ID 117003 - nice toasty nose with notes of honey.

2004 Figeac - really fragrant and lovely, with smoke, ripe and sweet fruit, vanilla, coconut, eucalyptus notes.  Later on a little bit of coffee.

2011 Ponsot Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Clos des Mont Luisants, en magnum - beautiful wine, with lovely, toasty notes.

2000 Ornellaia Archivio Storico - more concentrated, with heavy smoky notes.

2014 Los Astrales Astrales - very ripe and jammy nose, stemmy, potpourri, and a little alcoholic.  Very concentrated on the palate.

Full post on lunch is here.

2015 Bornard Les Gaudrettes

Drinking at home.

2015 Philippe Bornard Les Gaudrettes - a little floral. Very rounded on palate, ripe and alcoholic, but with depth and marmalade notes.  Short mid-palate but with a longish finish.

2011 Vignes du Maynes

Lunch at Seventh Son.

2011 Domaine des Vignes du Maynes Pouilly-Fuissé - ripe and mature.  Definitely showing marmalade on the palate.

Full post on lunch is here.

2009 Dame de Montrose

Dinner at Metropol Restaurant.

2009 Dame de Montrose, en magnum - decanted for 1 hour.  Smoky, leather, and cedar notes.

22K and Grololo

Dinner at Spaghetti House.

Blue Nun 22K Gold Edition - this was slightly sweet on the palate.

Pithon-Paillé Grololo - a little pungent, stemmy, reductive nose, with leather and potpourri notes.

2015 Château de Meursault Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Peuillets - black fruits, pungent, a bit of sulfur, with sweet fruit underneath.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC dinner - Jackson Room

MNSC dinner hosted by Dr. Poon.

1993 Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet - high acidity here but not too sharp.  Mature and very ripe on the nose, with toasty notes.

First flight: opened for 1 hour prior to serving.

1982 DRC Grands Echezeaux - beautiful and floral nose, fruity and elegant, with intense sweetness almost like honeydew.  Slightly less elegant after a few minutes in glass, but still great.  97 points.

1993 DRC Grands Echezeaux - more powerful with a much bigger nose of leather.  Stemmy and almost a bit stinky.  A hint of savory black olives, then a bit of green pepper.  95 points.

Second flight: opened 2 hours prior to serving.

1993 Lafleur - classic and smoky nose, with spicy green peppers.  Dry on the palate.  Very nice.  95 points.

1993 Screaming Eagle - rich and open, sweeter on the nose, with oaky notes and a hint of rubber and eucalyptus.  Sweet and ripe. A bit sharp and alcoholic, and some acidity on the palate.  98 points.

Third flight:

1937 Latour - opened 30 minutes before decanting and serving. 60 minutes after opening, showed a really minty nose, almost medicinal, savory, funky, and almost like fermented shrimp... with a hint of coffee? 93 points.

1949 Latour - opened 2½ hours prior to serving. So beautiful!  So smoky with cedar, oak, and tobacco notes.  Pretty sweet at first and showed a little higher acidity later.  97 points.

1959 Latour - opened 2½ hours prior to serving. Much leaner, greener, grassy, green pepper, smoky.  High acidity on the palate with some tannins.  93 points.

Full post on dinner is here.