We`ve been renting an apartment on a canal in the Centrum of Amsterdam for the past 15+ years. Our immediate neighbourhood is mostly residential with a scattering of restaurants located throughout.
6 years ago, a new restaurant opened up 3 blocks away, one block as the crow flies across the canal. We`ve walked past it numerous times and noticed hey showcased numerous empty fine wine bottles in the front windows strongly suggesting they are wine oriented Upon further investigation, their window menu seemed to be very restrictive for our particular food preferences and we passed on going.
Finally and after all these years, I stopped in during the afternoon prep time for dinner and inquired about menu options and was assured they would gladly oblige our preferences.
Additionally, some folks on a wine blog I frequent had highly recommended this place giving further impetus to giving it a try.
It was truly an amazing dining experience with creative and tasty dishes, a wine list rich in European treasures many of which are not easily found in the US if at all, Riedel and Spiegalau wine glasses, superb individual food and wine service, a beautifully timed 5 course menu and a constant wine discussion with our server who happened to be responsible for the wine list, We found him to be well informed, equally passionate and going out of his way to ensure we had a good experience without the limitation of having to buy an entire bottle to taste through various wines.
Our wines:
2010 RECAREDO TERRERS BRUT NATURE GRAN RESERVA CATALONIA- the first taste of this Cava served as a warning to tread lightly; it was big, rich and luscious and required smaller sips which worked perfectly to enjoy the gifts of the citrus and stone fruit notes embraced by a serious streak of acidity; it was full bodied with a massive mouth filling texture and held on for a long, palate cleansing finish; each sip was better than the one before it; made from 52% Xarello, 44% Macabeo, 4% Parellada; disgorged after 61 months in bottle.
2012 PASCAL MARCHAND & TAWSE BOURGOGNE ROUGE- this was young and spry with serious fruit forwardness showcasing fresh ripe red cherry with hints of underlying cranberry; it was smooth and easy on the palate and finished off with more red cherry/ berry and that hint of cranberry; for us, a small pour was perfect.
2015 CLAUS PREISINGER KALKUNDKIESEL ROTWEIN CUVEE TROKEN AND UNFILTRIERT- trusting our wine savvy waiter, we went with this young, interesting tasting Austrian wine; Im not certain of all the varieties in this , but I believe it contained Blaufrankisch, Zwiegelt and perhaps St. Laurent; nonetheless, it tasted like a blend of Syrah, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel and Nebbiolo; I know Ive never had a taste profile like this previously; generally, there was a gamey wild cherry, wild cranberry and blackberry taste joined by some minerality; it was sort of like the Cava in that the first taste got your attention and you weren’t quire sure what you had on your palate and what to do about it. I drank it.
2014 DOMAINE GILLES ROBIN CUVEE ALBERIC BOUVET CROZE-HERMITAGE- this wine was highly energetic with youthful vibrancy, a full body, lots of depth and a serious flavour profile of pepper and spice laced plum, blueberry and blackberry; it was another wine to sip and enjoy in small tastes; with my preference for more elegant and charming wines, I had to mother through it which i did with pleasure.
It`s always interesting to travel to areas around the world and discover wines not heretofore sampled. It confirms that good wine is being made globally and there is so much more to explore and learn. I love it.
Cheers,
Blake
Please excuse typos and unintended auto-corrects
