NYE2021

Drinking at home.

2007 Olivier Leflaive Meursault Clos du Cromin - toasty with some buttery notes.

1996 Ponsot Clos de la Roche - drank 2 hours after opening. Nose was OK with some leather and some fruits like red currants. Second pour 15 minutes later was more fragrant with some strawberries. More sweetness on the nose later.

2003 Dominus - served 45 minutes after decanting. Sooo smoky at first. After 1 hour and 15 minutes in decanter this showed more pencil lead. Still felt the tannins. Second pour 1½ hours after opening showed lots of tobacco and still plenty of pencil lead, almost Pauillac-like but there was more underlying sweet fruit.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 4th generation, en demi-bouteille - caramelized nose with Chinese licorice and almost desiccated coconut. Not much carbonation now, but lots of marmalade on palate.

Clos Ste Hune and X-type

Dinner at a friend's home.

Aramasa (新政) No.6 X-type, R20BY - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 45%. definitely rounded and sweet on palate.

2013 Trimbach Clos Sainte Hune - nose of flint and petrol, nice and good acidity.

RunRig and Kongsgaard Syrah

Dinner at Luk Yu Tea House.

1999 Torbreck RunRig - opened around 20 minutes before dinner. Ripe and jammy as expected, with some oaky notes, a little metallic and iron rust. Very nice and fragrant. Still very metallic more than an hour later.

2004 Kongsgaard Syrah - initially very jammy when opened before dinner. Served 1½ hours after opening. Pretty toasty nose, still very sweet, woodsy and fragrant. Reasonably smooth on the palate now but still concentrated. Not quite sharp and alcoholic but still packs a punch.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC dinner - Woo Cheong

MNSC dinner at Woo Cheong Tea House.  Pineapple hosting.

1986 Ponsot Morey-Saint-Denis 1er Cru Monts-Luisants Vieilles Vignes - so toasty, with a little coffee, beautiful and buttery nose. Palate was still dry and acidic.

First flight: served some 2½ hours after opening without decanting.

1976 Robert Chevillon Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru Les Saint-Georges - a bit smoky, acidity was pretty high. 91 points.

1976 Robert Arnoux Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots - a hint of smoke at first. Around 3 hours after opening this started to open up and showed toasty, cedar, and woodsy notes. 95 points.

1976 Bouchard Musigny - much riper, acidity was very high. Almost showing a little coconut butter. 94 points.

Second flight: served 4 hours after opening without decanting.

1976 Ausone - classic claret with a bit of smoke on the nose. 93 points.

1976 Lafite-Rothschild - some exotic spices, sweeter and more ripe. 94 points.

Third flight: served 4½ hours after opening without decanting.

1976 Henri Jayer Richebourg - this was off and the nose was maderized, with savory notes and clear oxidation. What a shame!

1976 Henri Bonneau Réserve des Célestins - pretty open, toasty and very minty. 93 points.

Full post on dinner is here.

Bijofu Yumebakari Time

Lunch at Sushi Saito.

Bijofu Junmai Daiginjo Yumebakari Time (美丈夫 純米大吟醸 夢許 Time), 30BY - seimaibuai of 30%.  Very strong notes of banana, starchy rice.  Much deeper flavors on the palate, more alcoholic, dry and spicy.

Full post on lunch is here.

Christmas Eve 2021

Drinking at home.

2000 Dom Pérignon P2 - still kinda muted when popped. A bit of toast on the nose.

1998 Billecart-Salmon Le Clos Saint-Hilaire - nice and caramelized, with good ripeness but still got the acidity.

2006 Sine Qua Non The Raven Syrah No. 4 - drank 1 hour and 45 minutes after decanting. Really big and powerful, with tons of vanilla oak, really fragrant and woodsy, cedar notes, really nice and exotic. Second pour about 2 hours and 15 minutes after decanting showing metallic notes, really ripe and sweet on the palate.

2006 Arietta H-Block Hudson Vineyards - drank 2 hours after decanting. Smoky grilled meats, more ripe, almost jammy, and slightly metallic.

Full post on dinner is here.

61 Pichon and Burgs

Dinner at Ta Vie.

2009 Hospices de Beaune Corton-Vergennes Cuvée Paul Chanson, mis en bouteille par Lucien Le Moine pour El Bulli - big nose of toast, with beautiful grilled corn, very flinty. Rounded on the attack but still with good acidity. Getting grippy on the palate starting mid-palate to finish. About 2 hours after opening this was so, so buttery and beautiful.

1961 Pichon Baron - served 15 minutes after opening. Tons of smoke and grilled meats, minty with a little bit of stewed prunes underneath. Still lively and going strong. After 5-10 minutes in glass started to show tea leaves and soy sauce on the nose, farmy and savory on the palate around 30 minutes after opening. Palate got softer about an hour after opening, and actually grippy tannins on the palate another 15 minutes later. Drinking very well.

2001 DRC Richebourg - served about 1 hour and 15 minutes after opening. Soooo fragrant and floral, sweet fruit on the nose but not much sweetness on the palate, with a bit of acidity. A little stemmy after 15 minutes in glass, and almost a hint of burnt rubber perhaps. With a new pour more than 2 hours after opening, more sweet fruit emerged. Beautiful wine.

Full post on dinner is here.

Bordeaux and Dom

Dinner at Roganic.

2003 Dom Pérignon Plénitude 2 - very toasty but also very floral and fragrant. Really opened up an hour after popping.

2010 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, en magnum - some 2 hours after opening, starting to open up and get buttery and toasty. A little ripe on the palate but still got the acidity. Drinking really well just around 3 hours after opening.

1986 Lafleur - decanted and served 2 hours and 45 minutes after opening. Smoky nose, almost pencil lead, woodsy and fragrant. Drinking wonderfully.

2010 Ausone - decanted for 1 hour and served after another 2 hours in bottle. Big, big nose with lots of mint and smoke, with some ripeness underneath. Alcoholic on the nose. Showing some coconut butter some 5 hours after opening.

2000 Lafon-Rochet - popped and poured. Very fragrant nose with cedar, woodsy notes, smoky, but still have some fruit underneath it all. Pretty nice.

Full post on dinner is here.

8 Sine Qua Non

Dinner at Caprice.

2013 Sine Qua Non Résisté - 45% roussanne, 26% chardonnay, 13.5% petit manseng, 10.5% viognier, 5% marsanne.  This was much more rounded and riper than expected.  Nose was nice and caramelized, and there was sooo much depth on the palate.

2003 Sine Qua Non Omega - 100% pinot noir.  Opened 45 minutes before serving.  Sweet and fruity, definitely ripe but not quite jammy.  A little smoky with some grilled meats.  One hour and 45 minutes after opening this was soooo beautiful and alluring.  Wow!

2007 Sine Qua Non Dangerous Birds Grenache - 88% grenache, 10% syrah, 2% viognier.  Served 3½ hours after opening.  Minty nose and not too in-your-face.  After 4 hours this was more open and aromatic.

2009 Sine Qua Non Turn the Whole Thing Upside Down - 84% grenache, 11% syrah, 5% mourvedre.  Opened about 3 hours and 15 minutes before serving.  More minty and certainly more open, with good concentration.  Seemingly a more "simple" wine compared to Dangerous Birds.

2009 Sine Qua Non The Thrill of Stamp Collecting - 93% syrah, 4.5% grenache, 2.5% viognier. Opened almost 4 hours before serving.  Much more metallic compared to the other two syrahs as it's much younger, a little more sharp on the nose.  More concentrated and very sweet on the palate.

2001 Sine Qua Non Midnight Oil - 96% syrah, 2.5% grenache, 1.5% viognier.  Opened 3 hours before serving.  Much more jammy, smoky, minty, with toasty oak.  Soooo smooth around 4 hours after opening.

1998 Sine Qua Non E-raised - "predominantly syrah, with a spritz of viognier and a dash of grenache".  Opened almost 4 hours before serving.  Notes of leather, smoke, and a little game meats.  This was soooo nice, very smooth and drinking so well.

2000 Sine Qua Non Suey, bottle No. 254, in half bottle - 100% roussanne.  Pop and poured.  Soooo fucking awesome with lots of honeydew melon and honey.  Amazing palate, rich with such depth.

Full post on dinner is here.