DINNER WITH FRIENDS (SALON, SCARECROW, DUCRU, RHYS+) - Pine Lake Trout Club (2/25/2017)
Last night, my wife and I were invited out by new friends for dinner. They are both very much wine geeks. Since it was at a private club of theirs, I brought along some wines that I thought they might enjoy (I know I did) that it can be hard to find the right time top open. It was a relaxed meal over the course of a few hours with great conversation about travel wine, work, family and even intellectual and non-abusive politics. In short, despite the wines being great, they took a back seat to the conversation, which is as it should be!
As for the wines, we did drink a lot I suppose, but with food and stretched over an evening it never seemed excessive or rushed. My notes follow:
Champagne
Sometimes starter bubbly gets lost in the decompressing from the day. Not this one. It demanded attention. First on its own and then with some appetizers, this was my WOTN and it just rocked from the first sip to the last.
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1996 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut - France, Champagne
Wow. This is just wonderful and a real wow wine. Pop and pour, it continued to evolve all night long. Showing some signs of maturity but lots of youth as well, this has a long life ahead (wish I had more). Everyone at the table seemed to have a different feature that they found amazing. Light golden in color with a fair amount of tiny bubbles. The nose has some lemon, slight lemon peel/oil, a bit of apricot, slight nutty note and some chalk and minerals. Complex. On the palate, even better. So precise and at the same time so broad. Great acidity but so smooth one hardly notices. Layers of complexity. Flavors of lemons, lemon curd, slight honey, just a hint of mushroom. A finish that lasts forever. I originally scored this 99, because who scores a Champagne a 100, but I changed it. There was nothing to improve about this except the price. (100 pts.)
A couple of Whites
With appetizers and then salads.
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2010 Clos Nardian Blanc - France, Bordeaux
I never had this before, but I don’t think it was a proper bottle. This is Jonathan Maltus’s (Le Dome) white wine property in Bordeaux. It was a deep gold in color. The nose has some honey and a bit of pineapple. Kurt thought botryitis which could be. It also had a bit of oxidation to it. I am not real sensitive to oxidation, but Y thought a bit like sherry, so there you go. On the palate, the combination of oxidation and sweetness seem to work together, but in the end, we had other options out there, so we moved on. Too bad as the wine seemed to have some underlying qualities. Bad cork? Dumb phase? A bit too old? No idea. NR (flawed) -
2011 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains
My favorite California chard producer. This one was pop and pour and was still opening at nights end. There is some left to re-sample today. Light golden in color. The nose is really crisp and clean and while in the background there is a slight oak/vanilla, for me it is about the minerality along with the lemon tart notes. Great lean but yet full bodied texture. Like an athlete with low body fat. On the palate, some red apple, some lemon, with lots of minerals. Great acidity that worked so well with food. Long finish. This is still young but showing a nice development. I would give it air now (it was a back up bottle, so it was pop and pour), or wait. (95 pts.)
A couple of Cabs
A great contrast in style and age and yet, for me anyway, these were both great.
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1982 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
This bottle was opened at 1:00 and allowed to breathe. A small pour was taken off just before leaving for dinner (luckily it was not corked) and then take to the restaurant and decanted for sediment about 8:30. That seemed to be about the right amount of air IMO. This wine is showing a nice maturity and may be about close to peak but certainly not past or even starting to move in that direction based on this bottle. At age 35, however, all bottles have variation. Of course, Ducru has had a lot of tca and other bad bottles in the 80’s but this one was quite sound.
Purple in color to the rim. The nose is very nice if you like older Bordeaux. My wife immediately gave me hers. 
Cassis, leather, slight funk, hints of a dusty cedar closet. On the palate, it has energy and verve. Bright cassis fruit. Some forest floor. Light tannins. Layers of earth and fruit. Nice finish. Great with food. (96 pts.)
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2005 Scarecrow Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford
This bottle was opened at 1:00 and allowed to breathe until we drove for the restaurant. A quick sip to make sure it was sound and then it was allowed to breathe a bit more until poured at 8:30 or so. Purple in color, shimmering bright and clear at the rim. The nose is great. Cassis, some vanilla and cedar but not that much, a bit of leather and damp earth. On the palate, this is a very elegant wine IMO although still quite young. Medium tannins. Lots of cassis, some dark cherries. Lots of depth as the layers unwind in the glass. Great balance and a long finish. The label says 15.4% alcohol and its from California so I know it can’t last. Oh wait, it is already 12 and still just developing. Drinks great now, but should make age 30 IMO with no trouble. (98 pts.)
A sweet finish.
Along with dessert, this was just for fun.
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2007 Lakeview Cellars Vidal Icewine - Canada, Ontario, Niagara Peninsula, Niagara Peninsula VQA
This was fun. In a 200ml format, this was bought on release at the Duty Free store on the way back from Niagara (trying to use up my Canadian money). It turned out to be a great time top open this as we all had enough wine and it provided a quick taste with dessert. Golden in color. The nose has canned peaches in heavy syrup. Pretty. On the palate, it borders on cloying but has some acidity. A small pour goes a long way. The canned peaches continue. A nice finish. In the end, not cloying and just fine. 200ml for 4 is just about right tonight. (88 pts.)
Thanks to Kurt and Y for a great evening! Good food and wine, and even better conversation is the best way to enjoy wines, at least for me.
Posted from CellarTracker