A good friend who has become the party hosting animal of the last decade put on another stellar one, this time on New Years Eve. Thirteen of us shared in a coordinated pot luck dinner with our gracious host contributing a magnificent rack of lamb, fantastic appetizers and lots more to accompany the individual brings from the guests who also brought copious amounts of wines. We ate and drank well and celebrated the entry into the new decade righteously with all of the tools and tricks for a grand NYE celebration.
Here’s a few notes on some of the wines:
2006 CHARLES HEIDSIECK MILLESIME BRUT ROSE in magnum- Ive had quite a few of the 750 version of this and found the magnum to be very similar with sweet aromas of rose petals, red cherry/ berry which continued on and was joined by cranberry and red plum with accents of clove and spice in the taste profile; for me, it borders on being too sweet but the numerous raves I heard about it were at least confirming it was enjoyed by most; as with all other champagnes, the bottle was empty by the time the evening was over. Hey, it’s New Years Eve!
2002 GASTON CHIQUET BLANC de BLANC dAY GRAND CRU in magnum- 100% Chardonnay as BdB implies; from my favorite vintage since 96, this was superb being extremely rich and harmonious with bright acidity and lemon and lime fruit most prevalent among the citrus notes; it had great feel and a long lasting finish; great bubbly and this comes from a commune that is Pinot Noir centric.
2014 PIERRE PETERS L`ESPRIT MILLESIME BLANC de BLANC- dosage 4.5% gpl; disgorged 12/18; as usual, it’s a blend of Le Mesnil, Oger, Avize and Cramant, dominated by Le Mesnil; the good chill on this supported it to be crisp and refreshing along with the fine acidity; the taste profile included lemon, apple and kiwi with a streak of minerals and chalk intertwined throughout; it had a nice feel good mousse and finished on an impressive upbeat.
NV LAUNOIS VEUVE CLEMENCE LMESNIL-SUR-OGER GRAND CRU- this is loaded with expressive stone fruit notes delivered in a creamy texture that carries all of the goodness to the back end; its full bodied, very rich and stately.
2002 TAITTINGER COMTES de CHAMPAGNE BLANC de BLANC in magnum- anther stellar CdC bubbly that checks all of the boxes from the nose through the tail; it’s still very youthful and vibrant with inviting spicy orchard fruit aromas; on the palate comes spicy pear, lemon, apple, almond butter and guava; it’s creamy and rich and powerful and yet has lots of finesse; this was in perfect balance and definitely was our champagne of the night although there was an 95` Dom that never got opened for some reason.
NV CHAMPAGNE LES MESNIL BLANC de BLANC GRAND CRU- I’ve long been a fan of this champagne and this bottle held up to past experiences with its usual elegance and charm; nice fresh citrus fruit is prevalent throughout and its soft and lush texture is a hallmark; it’s just so steady and consistently pleases.
2014 PIERRE-YVES COLIN-MOREY LES CHAMPLOTS SAINT-AUBIN 1er cru- this was really good with floral and citrus aromas wafting out of the glass well ahead of putting my nose into it; mineral infused lemon, apple, pear and pineapple dance over the palate all the way to the back end while being delivered in a smooth and oily texture; it has bright acidity which ensures it’s going to be around for awhile and continue to please.
2009 VINCENT GIRADIN CORTON-CHARLEMAGNE CRAND CRU- another gem from this fine producer; this was in nice balance and loaded with serious citrus notes with lemon and lime most obvious; it was full bodied, had nice depth and complexity and a great, creamy rich mouthfeel.
2009 MORNING DEW RANCH JANS CUVEE ANDERSON VALLEY PINOT NOIR- 13.6% abv; this is the 2nd and last vintage of Burt Williams MDR Pinots and is the only wine named after his first wife who passed after it had been labeled but before it was released; 12 of the 40 areas of the ranch were planted to cuttings from the Rochioli Vineyard, “DRC” suitcase selections from adjacent vineyards, clone 23 (a clone Burt’s deceased son Fred favored), and Dijon clones 115, 777 and 828; it was made in Burt`s classic style for Pinot Noir: 5-day cold soak, ferment with 15-30 percent whole clusters using Williams Selyem’s proprietary yeast strain (isolated from the Martinelli Vineyard in 1984); punch downs are performed every six hours once fermentation starts; the wine is pressed off the skins gently and aged in new and used Francois Fréres oak barrels before being bottled unfiltered.
I`ve drunk about half of the 3 cases I bought from Burt and can say this is a very unique Pinot, unlike any other he made IMHO; most of the SVDs had a fruit profile that represented either the lighter red fruit inclusion of strawberry and red raspberry or the mid range red cherry fruit; this covers the 3rd tier, black cherry and blackberry and does so in spades.
My notes: the color was a youthful rich and vibrant dark red purple; the nose offered a huge invitation with violets and black cherry most evident; the taste profile had generous amounts of blackberry, black cherry and black raspberry with accents of spice and fennel; it’s very complex and has layers upon layers unfolding throughout; this is serious stuff and again, IMHO, the “biggest” wine Burt made and yet it has so much finesse and charm to balance it out; this bottle was as good as any I’ve had of the stash and was absolutely fabulous. Decanted 2+ hours.
1999 CHATEAU MONTELENA CABERNET SAUVIGNON NAPA- this was mature and ready to give up its treasures with nice cedar and leather laced dried black currant fruit early on and thereafter; it had a little mustiness and lots of finesse while being seamless and layered; loved the dance the was going on to sustain its momentum throughout and it held up nicely.
2004 STAGS LEAP WINE CELLARS CASK 23 CABERNET SAUVIGNON NAPA- a great bottle with all of the expectations being fulfilled; it was full bodied, had depth and complexity and was round and seamless with nice texture; dark fruit dominated the taste profile along with licorice and cigar box accents.
There were a few other fine wines including a couple of dessert, but I kept going back to champagne and my water glass. The champagne got more hits.
Cheers,
Blake
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