Summer 2018 Blog

With summer finally rolling around, I thought it might be fun to do one long thread as a sort of summertime 2018 blog. Looking out at the next few months, I’m hoping to drink some good wine, travel a bit, and enjoy some downtime with family and friends. I’m not normally one to keep detailed notes or compile lists of what I’ve tasted, so I’m excited to actually track at least a season’s worth of wine and food experiences in one place. I’ll try to share a bit of the places I go and report real notes on most everything I drink, from big dinners to casual wines at the beach.

Here’s hoping it’s a worthwhile read and happy summer everybody!!

Well, let’s get this blog kickstarted. ​Perhaps this is cheating, but I’m going to throw in a couple dinners from this past week, even if they technically predate the start of summer. They also predate my decision to undertake keeping this blog, so apologies for the lack of pictures. I will get some good shots of bottles and the accompanying food going forward!

Dinner at Mia Kitchen & Bar, Boca Raton, Florida

A big thank you to chef and owner Blake Malatesta and his wife for hosting us. This was a great meal, with an incredibly positive, welcoming atmosphere. The service was simply A+. The staff here would do anything at all in their powers to make sure their guests enjoyed their meals, and that kind of attitude makes for such a positive experience. I highly recommend eating here if you are in the area. The focus is on local and extremely high quality ingredients, and the cooking is serious.

Wines:

  • 1969 Dom Perignon Champagne P3

What a beautiful bottle! Having only tasted this before at Dom Perignon, I have to confess I was a bit anxious about weather an example in the wild could reach the same heights as at the Abbaye. A friend’s first reaction was that it had perhaps fewer bubbles than he had been hoping, but I thought the level of effervescence was more than passable for the age, and the palate was to die for. So many notes in the family of vanilla, cocoa, and dark chocolate. And those were balanced out by an incredible crisp lemon flavor. A wonderful combination and a wine that just kept getting better and better throughout the evening.

  • 2001 Domaine Truchot-Martin Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Sentiers

What can you say? When you have the chance to drink Truchot, you are in for a lot of joy and few disappointments. This was superb. Perfectly at the midpoint between dark and light red fruit, this was both deep and rich but also bright and focused. Delicious.

  • 1959 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

This was a great bottle of this wine. It packed more density of flavor than a few other bottles I’ve tasted. Mature, resolved, and drinking beautifully. For me, density or concentration of the fruit is what sets the best examples of old bordeaux apart from the rest, and this was very strong in that area. Bravo.

Looking forward to reading about your adventures. Should be epic.

Thanks for posting this here! What did you eat at MIA? I have only been there once and it was amazing!

There were a number of good things on the menu. A tagliatelle with crab and a wagyu style steak were the two standouts for me.

Dinner at Pasquale Jones, NYC NY

Last one here before the pictures start–a small dinner with some family friends a few nights ago. Great pizza as always and good to see the folks at PJ.

  • 2004 Bollinger Champagne La Grande Année (Mag)

In general I think Bollinger gets a little bit overlooked. I’m not saying I think it’s in the very top tier of champagnes, but I really enjoy it, and with the release prices being pretty affordable, I always think it’s nice to pick up some bottles. When it came out, I felt the 2004 vintage particularly suited Bollinger’s style, so I bought a good amount. I figured why not start opening a few and see if my original impression was correct.

This wine has a distinct green apple note; nice acidity and a bright, fresh palate. We drank this first then left the last few glasses for dessert, and it did evolve a good bit over the course of dinner, showing a deeper, richer quality at the end of the night. I’m quite happy with this wine–a very solid citizen.

  • 1982 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Vigna Cicala

I will confess I am often disappointed with older Barolo, and it’s rare that I venture to this age of my own accord. I find the frequent maderization off putting. But this was a lovely wine. Floral, elegant, perfumed, and really clean. No maderization to speak of. Light, but still more than enough fruit to be delicious.

Dinner at Les Trois Couronnes, Vevey, Switzerland

A lovely couple days at a fabulous hotel. A great restaurant with an elegant space:
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And a beautiful room with a great view of the lake:
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Dinner featured some delicious raviolis with all different kinds of vegetables from olives to roast eggplant—one of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time:
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And grilled veal was also terrific:
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On to the wines:

2013 Domaine de la Vougeraie Vougeot 1er Cru Clos Blanc de Vougeot

Nose is great; really jumping out of the glass. The palate isn’t quite reaching the level of the nose at first, but it’s light and fresh. Very pale color. Clean and good; promising. No hint of rapid agent or anything.

2014 Domaine de Vaudijon Pinot Noir Vaudijon

Light but balanced. Hard to go toe to toe with Roumier. Fruit is limited, but I don’t mean that in a bad way. The nose is a bit gamey and almost savory. Lots of grip and some slightly drying tannins on the palate. Tasty.

2010 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos de La Bussière

Tough competition. Surprisingly restrained for its age. Notes of dried lemongrass and cherry on the nose with a little vanilla as well. Really finding its way as it breathes a little bit. Very enjoyable.
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A great day in Switzerland:

Domaine Louis Bovard and dinner at Hotel de Ville de Crissier

I am by no means an expert on Swiss wines, so it was a treat to pay a quick visit to Louis Bovard. It’s not certain I’ve ever even tasted Chasselas before, but what a great education. Overall, I preferred the Calamin to the Dezaley—distinctively creamier and more to my taste. But some old bottles of Dezaley were really interesting too—an 05 and an 07 were both deep, earthy, and rich (and delightful with all the great local cheeses).

2008 Henri Gouges NSG Les Saint Georges

This took a little time to settle in, but by the second glass it opened up and was quite good. Sour cherry, high toned flavors of bright red fruit. Not a profound wine but totally enjoyable.

1982 Chateau Palmer

Nice bottle. Deep mocha and chocolate flavors. Mild tannins. Quite resolved. Fresher bottles may be possible, and might have a brighter future, but there’s nothing lost in enjoyment today.
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Clam ceviche with a lovely curry flavor:
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Fois gras with orange
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Asparagus
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Local fish (Perch Pike I think)
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Lobster and Caviar
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Dinner at Pere Bise

Talloires is a gorgeous place. It doesn’t take much to imagine a whole summer sliding lazily by in this beautiful lakeside town. And it doesn’t get much better than sitting on the patio at Pere Bise drinking Burgundy. The restaurant has had a long time relationship with Rougmier, and it shows on the list. Despite an awful tragedy earlier this year where hundreds of bottles were stolen from the cellar, the list is still very impressive, and we availed ourselves of the bounty it contains

2005 Rougmier Amoureusses:

Quite close to the top of the mountain. Everything you could want in a red Burgundy of this age. Cool, restrained, impeccable, but still powerful. Perfectly structured. It’s like a perfectly cut diamond that is flawless from any angle. From nose to finish, just no weak spots. The nose soars out of the glass with a little bit of dry cherry, spice, and tea. Others registered a bit of bacon. On the palate tannins are mild and silky. This is positively juicy—wow!

61 Chateau Margaux

Eucalyptus dominates the nose, which is not shy. Incredible density of fruit on the palate. Fully resolved with no edges. Damn near perfect. More mocha and chocolate in the subsequent glasses as the wine continues to evolve, getting a little richer. What a joy to drink.

The food was outstanding. The highlight for me was a steak almost “steamed” in a pot with lots of herbs that imparted a Smokey fagerent flavor. Incredible.


Photos:

The lake…
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The steak…
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The wines…
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Fabulous!

Have fun and keep it coming!

Dinner at Troisgros

If there is one restaurant that embodies everything which conspires to make France’s food and wine culture so wonderful—the tradition, the culinary techniques, the longstanding relationships with the winemakers— it must be Troisgros. And if one is looking to enjoy a leisurely summer in Europe eating and drinking as best he can, skipping Troisgros would be a grave mistake indeed.

The new space is beautiful. The hotel is well done, in the modern French style, and the dining room is excellent—luxuriuos, welcoming, dignified. Hallowed gastronomic ground for sure, and I felt it was only appropriate to drink wines worthy of the circumstance.


The dining room:
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The food:

Outstanding overall. A couple of the dishes that were very memorablee were an apple and avocado amuse bouche and a sole with tarragon:
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The wines:
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1999 Mugnier Amoureusses

More delicate than the 05 Roumier Amoureusses from a few nights earlier, More floral. The nose is dancing back and forth between hinting at a creamier wine or a brighter, crisper one. Both dried fruit and also richer fruit. The palate is supple and mild but so well balanced.

2008 Coche Genevrieres

A big nose of yellow peach, with spice and some oak on the palate. Tropical, creamy, long finish with some mineralogy.

1999 Meo Brulees

Soft but rich on the nose. Tannic, with tea and smoke. Light in the mouth, with sour cherry. A little closed but opened up nicely over an hour or so.

1999 Lefarge Clos de Chenes
Nose of tobacco and mint—fresh and sweet and herbal. Clean palate. Still young. Mild but persistent tannins.

1999 Roumier Bonnes Mares
Lots of mineralogy. Explosive red fruit on the palate. Darker than the other wines. Crisp tannins with a bit of tea. A little earthy, but in a nice way. This really settled in over time. It was a bit awkward at first, but was an absolute force by the end of the evening.

1995 Jayer Beaux Monts
Sweet on the palate. Balanced acid and tannins with a little oak showing. Slightly stewed fruit notes. Tight, long finish. An honor to taste.

Thanks Patrick; enjoyed your trip vicariously