TN's: Krug, Cristal, Leflaive... at Marea

Reception

’90 Krug Magnum - If I was the mayor of Champagne I would enact a law that required all producers to bottle only in magnums. They always seem better and this was no exception. Highly effervescent. Apple and yellow fruit. Some spice. A more elegant vintage of Krug. This started out great and stayed at that level for several hours. Staggering



Selection of Crudo

’85 Krug - not my favorite vintage of Krug as it has matured more quickly than it should. Including bottles disgorged in 2003. This bottle started out fresh but faded quickly over just 15-20 minutes. Drink up your 750’s and then start opening the mags. Very Good Plus

’88 Krug - this bottle was just starting to show the mature aroma of honey. Great yellow fruit but I didn’t find the Krug signature green apple. Effervescence has tempered over the past couple of years. Vibrant acidity. One of the great vintages of Krug. Staggering Plus

'96 Krug - will be great to drink this and the '88 side by side over the next few decades. Even more power than the '88 but the acidity keeps it balanced. Spiced green apples with both yellow and red fruit. Staggering Plus

Krug Grande Cuvee 1996 Base - this was surprisingly, especially with regard to the '96, much lighter colored than the other vintages of Krug. Wasn’t the best showing of this wine, but for me it was just slightly below the previous two vintages. I was hoping this would be the Champagne of the flight but it fell just short. Didn’t have the power of the '88 or '96. Excellent Plus



Grilled Langoustines

’89 Cristal - even better showing than the bottle from the night before.

’90 Cristal - unfortunately this was slightly off and had what smelled like VA affecting the Champagne. Still drinkable but not nearly as good as it should be. Good Minus

’99 Cristal - this and the '02 were both very similar to Tuesday’s bottles. Smoky yellow fruit, vibrant acidity another tremendous success for the vintage. For me, only Taittinger CdC is a better Champagne in '99. Staggering

’02 Cristal - Still very youthful, but is a bit forthcoming. A wealth of yellow fruit, some saline and chalk with great acidity. Staggering



Pan Seared Sea Scallop, Crispy Potato, Brown Butter Cabbage, Black Truffle-Apple Jus

While we lingered with the above Champagnes



Risotto w/Lobster, Prosciutto and Crispy Fall Vegetables

’02 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet - pure fruit with racy acidity; my kind of white Burgundy. Floral and lemon flavors. Staggering Plus

’04 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet - a little more reductive than the previous wine with riper fruit. Acidity gives it great structure and balance. Table was split between a favorite between the two Leflaives. Staggering Minus



Dual Pastas
Fusilli Red Wine Braised Octopus and Bone Marrow - Veal Agnolotti Piemontese Ravioli, Pioppini Mushrooms Sweetbreads, Brown Butter and Sage / Pansotti Squid Ink Lobster Ravioli, Coral Bottarga - Orecchiette w/Broccolini, Flagolet Beans, Pine Nuts and Parmigiano - (the latter two for the evolved non-meat eater)

’99 Ponsot Griotte Chambertin - My favorite vintage of Red Burgundy going back to the 70’s. Ponsot is so frustrating due to its hits and then misses. This was a solid showing but the aromatics were a bit restrained especially compared to the following two wines. Good pinot flavors. Excellent

’99 Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes - smoky, spicy aromas of cherries and plums. Denser fruit than the previous wine. Still needs a few years to be at its best. Staggering minus

’99 Dujac Clos St Denis - about as aromatic as a wine can be. Fruits and violets with a scent of confectioner’s sugar. Almost as good on the palate with a lingering finish. Not sure it can/will get better. The only downside is the price of this wine, like many other Dujac wines, has gone into the stratosphere. Killer Minus



Dover Sole Burgundy Reduction and Black Trumpet Mushrooms or
Tagliata Grilled Creekstone 50-day Dry Aged Sirloin, Braised Romaine, Bone Marrow Panzanella

’83 Margaux - Corked

’86 Mouton - back in the early to mid 90’s, this was my favorite Left Bank Bordeaux. It seemed to be the wine of the night every time it was served. It then went into a shell and based on this bottle (purchased on release) the '86 Mouton has just started to emerge. Powerful with concentrated dark ripe fruit. Hopefully it will reach the heights it was 25 years ago but in a more mature version. Staggering

’81 Dunn Howell Mountain - was the best replacement for the Margaux that was on hand. Sweet black and red fruit. Had a touch, in a not off-putting way, of band aid aroma that I often find with Dunn. Wasn’t a fair vintage or placement against the previous wine. Very Good Plus.


Some pics to follow

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Salad and seltzer tonight!

Ha!

Great note on the Dujac. Love that wine, so clean and classy.

Agreed on Ponsot. I find that a lot of the wines from the 90s and early 00s have this funky “trash” smell in the wines at this point. Makes them easy to point out.

And I would rather have the pastas they made for you. They sound easier to take on during quite the meal that you all had.

super notes—fun to read. I have a magnum of that 99 Dujac CSD somewhere in the cellar . . . sounds like anytime is fine to open.

I posted recently on the 99 Ponsot CdlR, similar notes—a big wine.

I’m willing to nominate you for mayor of Champagne.

2004 at Leflaive always felt highly sulphured on release, more so than prior vintages. Glad it showed well and thanks for sharing all the rest of notes. Staggering evening.

My personal wine dinner photographer let me down and missed a few shots.


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Hard to get good help these days. Looks killer to me!

Thanks for the notes - I’ve not had a convincing Leflaive '04 yet, so perhaps they just wanted some time. How many of those darn '83 Margauxs are corked grrrr!

Great report.

IIRC we had the ‘99 Dujac CSD at L’Ami Louis about 15 years ago for about €70. (Marty, you there to verify it was CSD, not CdlR?) Times have changed. But it was great even then as a youngling.

Some additional and better photos (if the were vertical).
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looks like and amazing night of food and wines

I’m here for you on that magnum

Nice night Ray.

Nothing high end eh?

With 5 Krug and 4 Cristal on the table, I`d be happy to linger a bit before moving on.

Shame on the 83 Margaux which I have adored and enjoyed much more than the heralded 82 consistently. A friend just stated the 82` is coming around now.

Wow stupendous night

Great notes on great wines. You missed another downside on the Dujac, though, which is that it was so captivating and seductive in its youth that I don’t have any left to see it at this point in its evolution, though at least I have a little Clos de la Roche remaining.

Also, thanks for the data point on the Mouton, which has defined “shut down” for many years.