Ten Minutes by Tractor Blanc de Blancs

Dinner at home.

2011 Ten Minutes by Tractor Blanc de Blancs - definitely showing some maturity on the palate, good depth with marmalade and some bitterness.

Full post on dinner is here.

2009 Chacra Treinta y Dos

Drinking at home.

2009 Chacra Pinot Noir Treinta y Dos - nose of plum, leather, and a little eucalyptus. Good concentration on the palate. Good balance between the sweetness and acidity, but still a little alcoholic. A little vanilla oak, which got more prominent 40 minutes after opening. This is a pinot noir but definitely not Burgundy. 2½ hours after opening the nose was much more open, with more dried herbs and potpourri. Softer on the palate, too.

Cornelissen Munjebel VA

Drinking at home.

2016 Frank Cornelissen Munjebel VA - kinda sharp on the nose, a little pungent and sulfuric. Still grippy on the palate thanks to the tannins, kinda savory and mineral, maybe thanks to the volcanic soil? Lots of sous bois and forest in the nose, very ripe, like those thick skins of Kyoho grapes with the plastic notes.

Aussie shiraz and chard

Lunner at Écriture.

Between Five Bells Yellow - very toasty, very fragrant, sweet on the nose but the acidity on the palate from the savagnin makes one do a double-take. Buttery from the chardonnay in the blend. Two hours after opening this was fucking awesome, with flinty and mineral notes.

2005 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay - nice and buttery as expected, oaky, very flinty and mineral. Drinking beautifully.

2004 Kilikanoon Shiraz M Reserve - served a little more than 1 hour after decanting. Earthy, leathery, minty, sweet on the palate, with a little ripe prunes. More classic shiraz from McLaren Vale.

2004 Kilikanoon Shiraz Attunga 1865 - served a little more than 1 hour after decanting. An amazing shiraz from vines planted in 1865. A much more elegant and fragrant offering from the cooler Clare Valley, and the cooler fruit was very obvious. Not your typical Aussie shiraz for sure. A slight hint of plastic on the palate later.

1990 Penfolds Magill Estate Shiraz - very ripe and sweet, more smoky. More classic Aussie shiraz.

Full post on lunch is here.

Puchang Rkatsiteli

Drinking at home.

2017 Puchang Rkatsiteli - very aromatic, flinty, mineral, vanilla, tropical stone fruit. Pretty ripe on the palate, sharp and alcoholic on the nose.

2011 Mascot

Drinking at home.

2011 The Mascot - decanted for 1 hour before drinking. Very fragrant with lots of cedar in the nose. Very concentrated, some vanilla from the oak. After 2½ hours in the decanter this was showing really well, much sweeter fruit on the nose, much bigger minty nose, really fragrant and open. Softened on the palate with higher acidity.

Cos and Sassicaia

Lunch at Neighborhood.

2016 Cos d'Estournel Blanc - still needs decanting as the nose was very muted when first opened. Nice with plenty of toasty oak, classic sauvignon blanc with flint. Lean with good acidity.

2008 Sassicaia - very minty, lots of pine needles and forest. Sweet on the palate, and tannins still here. Great concentration and still very young and lively.

Full post on lunch is here.

Bedel L'Âme de la Terre

Drinking at home.

2006 Françoise Bedel L'Âme de la Terre, dégorgée en Janvier 2021 - oxidized and caramelized. Pretty nice.

Cossard Bedeau

Drinking at home.

2019 Frédéric Cossard Bourgogne Bedeau - nose was very jammy and floral, like violet. A little leather. Really fragrant but also pretty soapy. A hint of sharp alcohol on the nose. Drinking very well.

Bongwater for lunch

Lunch at The Chairman x Interval pop-up.

La Bohème Festejar! - high acidity, a little minerality and metallic, fruity flavors almost like guava.

Between Five Bells Yellow - what an interesting mix of aged savagnin from 2008 and chardonnay which has gone through a solera system for 7 years. Very toasty oak on the nose, with some intensely sweet honeydew melon. Definitely showed that buttery voluptuousness coming from the chardonnay, with lots of vanilla sweetness, but then started to show like a Rhône blend of marsanne/roussanne. Fantastic!

2008 Scarpa Barbera d'Asti Superiore La Bogliona - OK, not very special.

2018 Tardis Venerdì Paestum - kinda flat on the palate. Very tropical nose, showing stone fruits and pineapple.

Nida Shizensyu Kimoto Melon 3.33 (にいだしぜんしゅ 生酛めろん3.33), 2020 - nose was very candy-like, actually reminded me of candied winter melon. A little sharp on the nose.

2020 Mikkeller Baghaven Ruud Peesch - pretty acidic, fruity, like a mix of peach juice and pink guava... which made sense, of course, because this was made with red peaches.

Full post on lunch is here.

Reds for red meat

Dinner at Ren Ren Heping.

2009 Clos Floridene Rouge - double-decanted an hour before drinking. A little dry, kinda flat. Drinking OK but lacking some allure.

2003 Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux - double-decanted an hour before drinking. More woodsy and fragrant on the nose, definitely more tannic and grippy on the palate. Two hours after opening this was still more concentrated.

2013 Lignier-Michelot Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Cuvée Jules - higher acidity, much bigger nose with woodsy notes. Much more alluring.

Full post on dinner is here.

Sake and Italian reds

Barbecue lunch at a friend's place.

Hakurakusei Junmai Daiginjo Tojoakitsu Yamadanishiki (伯楽星 純米大吟醸 東条秋津 山田錦) - seimaibuai (精米歩合) of 29%. Starchy nose, a little banana. Sweetish on palate.

Kikuhime Tokugin (菊姫  特吟), 7BY (released 2018), from isshobin - seimaibuai of 50%. Pretty rich, definitely deep flavors and surprisingly not too oxidized. More dry on the palate and also on the finish.

2013 Plozza Terrazze Retiche di Sondrio IGT - lighter than expected.

2011 Quintarelli Valpolicella Classico Superiore - good acidity, more concentration, and even a little vanilla.