TNs from Saturday night: Pisoni, Copain, Jacquesson and Rhys

One power of the internet has been to make great friends, mainly through first finding a wine interest that gets people together, then to discover other common ground that moves the friendship ahead, whether it be golf, work relationships, food, etc. Last night, I got to dine with another board member, Arnie Caplan and his wife. The Dr Mrs and I jammed up the 405 and headed to Manhattan Beach to eat at a place that is very similar to me in feel to that of the OC’s cool spot, Playground. http://playgrounddtsa.com/ Where we dined last night was MB Post, in Manhattan Beach. Again, the food experience was fantastic. Here is a link to the restaurant and for the LA folks who ain’t far, this is a 2 thumbs up from me to recommend you go. http://eatmbpost.com/ The variation of dishes and attention is very much like Playground, the quality and execution is at a high level. I only wish we could coax a place like this into the South OC. I really appreciate evenings like this, where the company, food and wine all comes together and I very much appreciate the Caplans. As for the wine below, the Pisoni is a rock star bottle, more in the forward CA camp but enough acidity and length to find a piece of the old world and make it shine. And the Jacquesson, I had forgot about this producer but in a quest to keep adding champagne to my cellar that I enjoy, I was glad to rediscover it. Thanks for reading.

  • 2009 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (7/6/2014)
    This drank really well with really no aeration. What this bottle showed me was balance. Terrific.
  • NV Jacquesson & Fils Champagne Cuvée No. 736 - France, Champagne (7/6/2014)
    Really good. Has the brisk acidity and cut of what I enjoy, also a hint of bread dough and green apple. FWIW, this is dosages at 1.5 and it’s crisp and lively. On the search for some of this now.
  • 2010 Copain Chardonnay Brosseau Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Chalone (7/5/2014)
    Just pulled this from the cellar and yanked the cork to try before dinner. I suspect we’ll finish the bottle over the meal but for a ‘open and enjoy’ note, lots of apple (mainly yellow, lemon pith, touch of grapefruit, mango and pear. This bottle at least right out of the chute) shows better acidity and mineral tone than the previous bottle from 2013. Good lean edges to this and acidity. Hope it stays like this for the evening. Retrying one day later, the mango is a bit more prominent, as is a bitter apple skin/rocky note. I prefer this over the 2009, as the 2010 drinks with more austerity and tension. As for a drink window, I’d say now is fine, through 2017.
  • 2011 Pisoni Pinot Noir Estate - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (7/5/2014)
    So few notes on this wine to date, hard to we don’t have more data points given the vintage and track record of this wine. Forging ahead, I opened this to take to dinner tonight, to join the 2010 Copain Brosseau chard, thematically as both wines have fruit that isn’t far from the other. Very curious to see what Jeff did with 2011, given the house style normally and the leaner year. First impression? Very good. In some vintages of Pisoni, say 2009, I found the wine too rich for where my palate and I have since shed that one from my cellar, yet 2008 was near perfect. What the 2011 seems to be showing right now, reminds me some of the 2012 Fogline Sun Chase I had y/day, with the brighter, snappier side of the cherry/red fruit spectrum. There is a crunchy aspect to this wine, vibrant, and as opposed to the 2009 where the oak and fruit seemed to be too large for me, this 2011 is near perfect for my taste. I don’t intend to decant the wine, only to jam the cork back in and keep it the right temp for dinner serving in about 4 hours…a day later and fresh palate and perfect temp, this has evolved to a real beauty. It has added a spice element, brown in tone and the fruit fattened up some and shows more forward, a mix of black and red with a real depth and intensity. Then the acidity fills into the finish, brightens and lengthens, which for me is the 2011 vintage. When Pisoni is on, and the fruit has that perfect ripe pitch, the wood not overdone and the depth is there, I’d put the wine at the top of the class for CA pinot. This 2011 is right there.

Posted from CellarTracker

I haven’t tried the others, but I am with you in the Jacquesson and Copain. My preference between 2009 and 2010 Brosseau Copain is mood and food dependent, but as time progresses I think I prefer the '10 by a nod. The Jacquesson really is for the acid freaks (I am one). I have served it to some who have thought it was too intense, leaving more for me to finish.

Thanks for the notes.

Frank

Great tn on the Pisoni, these were the wines that got me into lists and while the chards are to buttery for me the pinots are fantastic and im lucky enough to have a six pack of this in my locker.

Would you say drink young or wait though ?

Alan, if you have more than one bottle, take the moment and open one. We finished it today and it was delicious. It’s where a forward style crosses and meets acidity and balance, a great place to drink pinot.

Brad, try this: AIG. No, not the big insurance employer. Instead, “Acid Is Good”. [basic-smile.gif] [basic-smile.gif]

[drinkers.gif]

mb post is a really good spot, so is the sister restaurant Fishing with Dynamite.

Nice wines Frank. I recently had the 2011 Pisoni Estate and was surprised by how much I liked it.


MB Post is far better than Playground imho. Just much more polished.

+1000000000000000000000000000

Any night in which the Murrays spend time with the Caplans is bound to be good. I’d drive up the road to see Arnie and Lisa any day. They also took me out to dinner a few years ago (forget resto name, sorry) and I can attest to their fine “eye” for good food places.

Agree on the Jacquesson, had that pretty recently myself and liked it for the cut and freshness, just as you did. Interesting indeed to see your impressions of the 11 Pisoni, a wine that in the past has been too full-throttle for me.

Mike

Mike, the 11 Pisoni is a great mix of the two styles, of being forward yet also maintaining balance and inensity. For sure, it’s good.

Ryan/Fu, maybe MB Post is better for locals like Arnie, as they charged us for corks at 15 each. At Playground, those corks would have been zip. That is a notable difference, although I tell you what, the food there again was really strong. The menu has a lot of thought to it and it was hard not to order 15 things, truly.

Pisoni is one of the most exotic, intriguing wines I buy.

First my thoughts on MBP. INCREDIBLE value. We had 8 dishes and 1 dessert for the table and even with the $45 for corkage it was $164 pre-tip for the 4 of us. The quality of food is as good as places costing 2 and 3 times as much. While I wish the corkage was less, it is the beach and the filtered water (still or sparking) is free, so there is a bit of a savings there. Right now MBP is our #1 QPR in Los Angeles.

Onto the important matters…

The Jacquesson was a very pleasant surprise. I had not even heard of them until early June, when my newest MOST EXPENSIVE friend, Steve Nordoff mentioned the producer. Nice bubbles at a nice price point. Very lean, low dosage, perfect acidity on the finish. Rhys Horseshoe is rapidly becoming my favorite Chardonnay vineyard from them. Just sings out of the bottle, lean, but fruit forward. The Copain was well balanced, but, for me, very lean. It’s right in Frank’s wheelhouse and just out of mine, but not enough that I wouldn’t drink it if offered again. [cheers.gif] The Pisoni started out a bit cold, as it warmed up it was KILLER. Rich, lush, great mouthfeel, very round and integrated. I’d snap up a 6 pack in a second if offered.

PRICELESS night, company, food and the wine.

flirtysmile

Frankie and I had that Jacquesson again last night. Great stuff!

thanks for the headsup on MBP. I’ll move it to the top of my list of places to check out.

I was recently impressed (in what sounds like a similar manner) by Abigaile in Hermosa Beach and Hinoki & The Bird in Century City. Although both were louder than I’d prefer, (Hinoki & The Bird actually had music playing at a low volume; Abigaile has a large-ish bar in the dining room (and there’s a club upstairs, although I couldn’t hear it in the dining room)), the food was interesting, very good, and could easily be more expensive than it is.

really enjoy Hinoki. One of my favorite new restaurants in the past couple of years.

Went to Abigaile when it first opened and really didn’t like it. Need to try again. Their other restaurant, Little Sister, across the street from MBP, is really good (French/Vietnamese)

Frank,

This reply has nothing to do with your fine notes, which are always great, but your avatar. I just picked up the complete re-mastered three disc set of the Live at the VV, and have been completely blown away. Like many non jazz types, my only exposure to the genre has been Miles Davis and a little Vince Guaraldi (non Peanuts). I listen to it at least 2 times a week, it fits so many moods and I guess I don’t have the jazz experience to write and wax poetically about it, but it I know quality when I hear it and this incredible music.

Back to wine…

Dale, i dig your post. I’ve had many great wines paired with Bill Evans in the background, or Kenny Burrell, who is my other favorite (still living and playing, someone who I was recently able to see live and bring some great wines to the table while we watched him perform).

Hey, I got a little something for you. Find a real good glass of wine, then open this link and start it at about the 23:23 mark and let it rip. As it builds in, after a minute or so, what you’ll see here is classic Bill Evans Trio live, with an Evans improv piano piece that leaves me pretty speechless, really. At his best.

Report back on how the wine went with it.!

Wine or no wine, that was pretty great. Thanks for the link.

Well, you’ll have to settle with the initial viewing of your link over a real good Venti Iced Americano, but all kidding aside, the song at 23:23 perfectly encapsulates the lure and appeal I have with Bill Evans (I should know this, but what is the name of the song?). Rest assured, a re-viewing will occur with quality juice, and sooner rather than later I would think. Thanks for the link Frank.