Big bottles for dinner

Dinner at Caprice.

1995 Krug, en magnum - nice and mature, still got a good amount of acidity on the palate. Kinda floral on the nose along with those familiar notes from the House of Krug. A lovely wine.

2008 Peter Michael 'Point Rouge' - HUGE nose, soooo sweet, soooo ripe with lots of vanilla. So big on the palate, really ripe and sweet, and soooo buttery. Such a beautiful wine for lovers of chardonnay.

2001 Sine Qua Non Rien Ne Va Plus, from magnum - so beautiful right off the bat after opening for 30 minutes. Notes of acetone, ripe and sweet on the nose, along with maybe a hint of straw? Just a little hint of toast here. After 3 hours the nose was definitely showing some coffee notes. Drinking very nicely now.

2016 Yann Durieux Tête de Ponts - very much bongwater, very animal and meaty, almost bretty. Does show nice and sweet fruit, though.

2002 Araujo Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard - drank about 1 hour and 45 minutes after decanting. This was soooo beautiful and lovely, showing such elegance! Lovely cool fruit, a little peppery, smoky, and minty. Drinking very, very well at the moment.

2017 Yquem, en Salmanazar - so refreshing with lots of citrus notes like Japanese mikan, so fruity yet not too sweet. Fresh on the palate with some acetone notes on the nose, too.

1955 Toro Albalá Don PX Convento Selección, bottled September 2015, from imperial - lovely notes of citrus, fragrant nose with plenty of exotic spices. Soooo rich and unctuous on the palate, very much like pei pa koa.

Full post on dinner is here.

2007 Lodovico

Lunch at Estro.

ColVento Vermentino di Sardegna Brut - a little flint on the nose.

2007 Lodovico - served about 40 minutes after decanting. So fragrant and beautiful now with woodsy notes. Initially there were also some coconut butter and vanilla, which I really love, in addition to really sweet fruit. Tannins are still here but much smoother now at this age. Love this wine.

Full post on lunch is here.

Daimon Toji and Rihaku

Dinner at Shikon by Yoshitake.

Rihaku Daijinjo Tobingakoi (李白大吟釀斗瓶囲い), 2019, #1686 - very round and soft on the palate, lots of fermented rice lees on the nose but a little more fermented and developed, so starting to turn with a hint of savory profile. A bit dry and spicy on the finish, but just a teeny little bit.

The Toji Series Edition 1 Junmai Daiginjo, 1999 BY02, 01xx/1000 - definitely a lot more savory on the nose, very much fermented and definitely got that koshu profile on the nose. Almost a little smoky. But sooooo smooth and silky on the palate, and actually very sweet on the palate. Seems to deliver the best of both worlds - freshness and sweetness from the younger part, along with the smoothness and fermented nose from the older koshu.

Full post on dinner is here.

Krug and Lucien Le Moine

Lunch at MONO.

Krug Grande Cuvée, 171éme édition, ID 122009 - prominent acidity, not as ripe but also not too lean thanks to the acidity. Lemon citrus on the nose.

2019 Lucien Le Moine Bourgogne Blanc - sooooo buttery and vanilla on the nose, sooooo beautiful! Good acidity, too.

2020 Bættig Pinot Noir Los Parientes - sweet on the palate, sweet fruit but somehow also a little dusty on the nose. Toasty notess.

Full post on dinner is here.

Dofi and La Rogerie

Dinner at Hotpot San.

La Rogerie Lieux de Vie N° 02, dégorgée en janvier 2023 - nose was perhaps a little floral. Decent depth on the palate.

2009 Finca Dofi, from magnum - lots of vanilla and coconut on the nose. Very ripe and sweet. Reasonably smooth now.

2019 Weinbach Riesling Cuvée Théo - slightly sweet on the palate. Pretty floral on the nose.

2012 Cazals

Dinner at The Chairman.

2012 Cazals La Chapelle de Clos, en magnum - good acidity here without being too sharp.

Full post on dinner is here.

Rosés for lunch

"Sustainability champions" lunch at Roganic.

Exton Park Reserve Blend RB23 Rosé - a hint of flinty minerals, some sweet honey on the nose. Good acidity but not too sharp.

Laherte Rosé de Meunier, dégorgée en mars 2022 - so nice and easy to drink. Lots of depth on the palate. Good acidity with a long finish.

Full post on lunch is here.

2020 Nicolas Joly

Lunch at the Sports Club.

2020 Nicolas Joly Clos de la Coulée de Serrant - served nice and cold, so the wine showed some flint on the nose without being overly ripe. A little reductive, with floral and tropical stone fruit notes.

Full post on lunch is here.

2004 Jacquesson

Dinner at Amber.

2004 Jacquesson Aÿ Vazuelle Terme, dégorgée le 13 fevrier 2013 - acidity was definitely on the high side for this. Drinking OK but not as memorable as I would have expected.

Full post on dinner is here.

MNSC Dinner - Country Club

MNSC dinner at the Grill Room of the Hong Kong Country Club, with Ox hosting.

1983 Lanson Brut, en magnum - definitely got a little age on it, and the marmalade notes showed that. This was really nice.

First flight: tasted about 1½ hours after opening without decanting.

1973 Guigal La Mouline - lots of toasty corn on the nose, nice and aged so it's soft on the palate. Lovely fruit here but a little cloudy, not so clean. Got that bacon fat. 95 points.

1973 Vega Sicilia Unico - this was more exotic, plenty of coconut butter, sweet vanilla, so sweet and soooo beautiful on the nose. Just beautiful! Had to be Vega. 97 points.

1973 Heitz Martha's Vineyard - much more juicy fruit here, very rounded and very sexy on the palate. Higher acidity here, more lively. Sweet and almost candy-like on the nose, with so much eucalyptus and mint. 96 points.

Second flight: tasted without decanting almost 3 hours after opening.

1989 Jaboulet La Chapelle - clearly more youthful than the first flight, but this was more muted on the nose. Smooth and nice on the palate. Thirty minutes later this was really fragrant. 95 points.

1989 Henri Jayer Echezeaux - beautiful fruit, pretty pure. Sweet but perhaps a little grassy? And maybe a little vanilla, too. Amazing... so, soooo fucking good! 97 points.

1989 Petrus - a little chalky, more toasty, very minty. Very smoky, a little stinky and gamey with leather notes. 94 points.

Third flight: popped and poured, no decanting.

1973 Chave Hermitage Rouge - the nose was soooo big with grilled meats, nice and toasty, soooo beautiful, sweet and elegant. And also pretty floral. Should have known the combination would mean it's a Chave. 99 points.

1989 Chave Hermitage Rouge - a little stinky in comparison. This wine needed more time to open, which is a shame.

Full post on dinner is here.

Silex and Champagne

Dinner at Neighborhood.

2008 Didier Dagueneau Silex - the nose was definitely oxidized and caramelized, as I had feared, with notes of pineapple jam. The acidity was still strong on the palate, though, and in fact it was pretty grippy. The second pour, after chilling for around half an hour, was leaner on the palate. With the temperature colder, this was drinking pretty niccely now.

Drinks at the Pinnacle.

2014 Agrapart Vénus, dégorgée en Mai 2020 - I know this is a blanc de blancs AND a brut nature but it was still very dry on the palate. Nose was really fragrant with a little woodsy notes.

Chavost Rosé de Saignée - lots of redcurrants and cranberries, but the palate was flat and the finish short. Loved the color.

2002 Bruno Paillard Nec Plus Ultra, dégorgée en Septembre 2014 - lovely nose of minerals with salted plum and marmalade. Nice depth and complexity on the palate. Drinking pretty well.

Full post on the evening is here.