Wine Night With Friends at West Wesley in Buckhead

Last night a friend Stephen Swartz invited me to a luscious 6 course dinner with the best wines prepared by Robert Gerstenecker. Robert is a genius and we were treated in Stephen’s home to one of the best meals of the year by far. The king crab flan was an absolute highlight. Light and delicious. The essence of king crab throughout the dish. Amazing.

The folks Stephen invited are all collectors and brought generously from their cellars. A wonderful evening.


With appetizers of fresh spring pea soup, osetra caviar on potato blinis and oysters rockerfeller…
MV Krug - This nose is amazing. Fresh brioche notes and apple type fruits. Very lively and substantial on the palate. Fabulous

Krug 1988- I think this was a little off with TCA. It was my bottle. This destroyed an otherwise amazing bottle of champagne

Krug 1995- More like it. The nose is all freshness. Toasty bread. A substantial and lively palate with more amplitude than the MV. Fabulous!


With King Crab Flan…

2011 Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur- Beautiful crystaline nose. Complex. The palate is young but shows so much future. Luscious and beautifully put together. Delicious!

2014 Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Blanchots- More intensity here. Such a great balance of lively fruit and complex notes. This one explodes on the palate. Shows so much in reserve on the finish. Amazing. Love the 2014 whites.


With Beef Wellington…

1998 Angelus- So beautiful on the nose. Sexy darker fruit and wonderfully balanced and lively on the palate. The finish is wonderful.

1989 La Mission Haut Brion- This is special. The intensity and complexity here is infinite. Dark red fruit. Gently wrapped in the patina of age. Vibrant. Infinite finish. Profound wine of the first order. One of my top 5 bordeauxs ever again. Thanks Stephen.

With Pheasant Roulade…

1996 Anne Gros Richebourg- Beautifully balanced. Darker spicy fruit with soy notes. The palate is complex and shows the finishing acidity of 1996. Focused and wonderful.

1999 Leroy Corton-Renardes - Oh my. The nose. Can’t be put into words. Darker fruit but infintely complex. A total sensory overload with wonderful spice tying it all together. The palate is complex and intense. Terrific finish. Still quite young but absolutely a profound experience of the first order. Thanks Stephen.

With Epoisse and other cheeses…

1998 Hudelot-Noellat RSV - To me the nose reminds me of all the great RSVs from DRC I have smelled. Here the fruit is a little darker due to the ripe year. The balance on the palate and intensity are first rate. Fabulous finish. Thanks Jim!

2011 Hudelot-Noellat RSV (decanted 3 hrs)- The similarity is uncanny. This one is like DRC too! Very pure. More red fruited here. Very spicy and sexy. Fabulous finish. Maybe not yet the complex finish as the 1998 but this is the twin of that wine in many ways. Fabulous! Thanks Johnathan!

I loved these two wines. Even though the two winemakers were very different (Pierre Narwocki and Charles v. C) , there were so many similarities. They are so similar to the pure style of DRC. It reinforces my view that this is the best buy in RSV despite the rocket like increases in pricing.

At this point my buddy Fred wanted to open the following which was absolute delicious despite being consumed after those delicious burgundies.

1995 Angelus- Darker fruit and more body than the 1998. This is starting to completely shed the tannins and really taking off. Rich. Sexy. Delicious! Thank you Fred!

With dessert of pears and olive cake…

1996 d’Yquem- Golden. Already reaching the second stage. Less sweet and more complex and spicy. Caramel and golden fruit abound. DELICIOUS with the olive cake. A perfect match.

Robert’s home made sea salt caramels are my mignardaise of choice at the end. They are so good. I can’t end a dinner of his without them.

A wonderful night. Lots of tall tales and laughter. An amazing host who was most generous and I am glad to say my friend. Thanks Stephen.

Cheers!

Some great notes, Don. Thanks. And that king crab flan sounds very interesting.

Thanks Jerry. Here are a few pictures. Unfortunately not one of the king crab flan. Our friend Joel gets fresh king crab. They all come in at the port in the NW on ice but these are immediately cooked and sent out by plane. A totally different experience. They have a short shelf life but so sweet.
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Here is the king crab flan! This picture doesn’t do it justice. So delicate and delicious.
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Don,

Fantastic notes from an incredible dinner. Very glad to read about that 2011 HN RSV as I managed to pick some up before prices went too crazy.

Dan

Wow! This looks like an incredible dinner with some great friends. HN is one of my favorite producers, but I haven’t gone above village level yet.

Really fine writeup Don. Stephen sent me a copy which I just opened after returning from Europe yesterday. I had strong, clear visuals of his home, dining room and the table as well as strong sensory sensations from your notes that included a nice heartfelt appreciation for Stephen and friends. Such a fine evening.

sensational notes on a special night, Don. I was quite intrigued to see you tried the two RSVs and the Angelus with Epoisses. How did that match turn out?

I love pheasant!

Slainte,

Mike

Burgundy and Epoisses is always a winner! Great match.