Having family dinner with In-Laws and Brother In-law and our young almost legal kids who enjoy tasting with us at home. Was planning on opening a Burgundy from our trip there in December, FIL is a wine lover and spent some post WWII time stationed in Burgundy. BIL is a non-drinker but requested standing rib roast for dinner. These are my first Burgundy’s so most are in the '14-'16 range but I have a '10 I’d like to try:
2010 Pierre André au Château de Corton Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Charmes
Was thinking of opening a '14 Duckhorn 3-Palms Merlot as well since I gave one to FIL last year and we haven’t opened either of ours yet, will make good conversation. Maybe pre-dinner with appetizers, etc. I do have some mid level Cabs I could add to the dinner mix as well as some younger ready-now cabs that are not too tannic (Seavey Caravina, Gorman Bully, ACVV Cab/Eloge). My usual approach at the dinner table is to open a few bottles to see what works and it can lead to some interesting dinner conversation but am wondering if the Burgundy will hold up well enough with the meal? Or might we appreciate it more on its own during dinner prep with apps and have the Merlot and Cab with the meal?
BTW my wife enjoys making fun of how many times I change my mind about what wines we’re going to open up for a dinner
Well, as I said most of what I picked up is fairly young but I did pick up a few NSG, maybe the Chevillon with a longer decant:
2014 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Chaignots
2015 Fabienne Bony Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers
And a Corton which might have the acidity we’re looking for:
2006 Comte Senard Corton-En Charlemagne
I would go with the chevillion and I wouldn’t necessarily decant it, just open the bottle 30-60 minutes before you’re going to serve it and let it warm from cellar temperature about that time; you can see how it evolves in the glass. 13 and 14 chevillions seem pretty accessible right now, at least to me.
Thanks for the advice, appreciate it. We’ll go with the Chevillon.
Total Burg newbie. Only had a few of days there including a tour. Learned a lot, relatively speaking. In general we found we enjoyed NSG quite a bit. Picked up some things we tried without breaking the bank and figured we’d get them home to reevaluate and see where to go from there.
Sounds like a nice tribute to your Father in Law, don’t worry about whether it pairs perfectly. I would serve it before the others, however, as it may get overwhelmed by the Duckhorn.
I would be tempted to serve that over premier cru from 10 or 14. 2010 is still a long way off drinking well and I have found some 2014s have started to shut down.
I would open a Burg or a Duckhorn, but not both. You are right, but it is quite likely the Duckhorn will taste flat and simple after a higher acid and more complex Burg. I don’t the two would mix well together.
Well we opened the '14 Chevillon while making afternoon dinner. Very tasty. Probably early but went down well. Started out light with some tart red berries. Darker fruits as it opened up. Saved about a half bottle for dinner.
Dinner was our first time with a Joule sous vide and the Prime Rib came out perfect, quite incredible in fact. The 3 Palms merlot was amazing, not overpowering, silky smooth. The NSG provided a nice counterpoint and cut through the heavy meat quite well. It couldn’t stand up to the merlot on its own but I found it enjoyable with the meal.
