Our Monday Night Blind Wine Dinner Group met for another fun and fabulous evening at Ca Dario Montecito with a theme for 1 sparkling wine, 2 white and 2 red wines individually assigned.
Here’s some notes on the wines:
2008 PIPER-HEIDSIECK CUVEE RARE BRUT- blind; 70% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir with ~10 grams of dosage; following its light yellow color came inviting aromas of brioche laden lemon and orange zest with a yeasty component and a strong hint of bright acidity; once I tasted it, I had a good idea as to what it was as there was a white pepper note that joined grapefruit and yellow peach on the palate that I’ve experienced in P-H Rare; after 15 minutes or so, a nice lemon oil finish left more positive notes; it was creamy with full on richness and reminded me of childhood Spritz sodas I used to love; I could have also guessed the vintage correctly as previous bottles form 2008 were similar in taste and profile, but I called it 2013.
ABOUT RARE CHAMPAGNE “Rare Champagne’s noble origins date back to May 6, 1785, when Florens-Louis Heidsieck met Queen Marie Antoinette for the first time: “I wanted a cuvée worthy of a queen!” He wrote. The legend was born 200 years later with the unveiling of the very first Rare Champagne vintage, Rare Millésime 1976, presented at the Château de Versailles, in 1985. Over the past 40 years, Rare Champagne has only released 14 vintages, all in limited series: 1976, 1979, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013, and Rare Rosé Millésime 2007, 2008, 2012, and 2014.”
2019 JULES DESJOURNEYS les CRAS POUILLY-FUISSE- blind; it had a light yellow color and offered beautifully balanced aromas consisting of flint, minerals and white nectarine that continued on to be joined by spicy yellow apple on the palate; this was a lovely wine that had lots of finesse and charm and yet enough structure and energy to sustain the balance it maintained throughout; I first had it as a white Burgundy, but vacillated and eventually called it a Chateau Montelena Chardonnay from 2000- 2005. How’s that for assuredness?
2014 DOMAINE DES LAMBRAYS CLOS du CAILLERET PULIGNY-MONTRACHET 1er Cru- blind; yellow gold color; mild aromas of caramel, honeysuckle, butterscotch and yellow apple were most evident; the taste profile included more of the same as well as a of brushing of butter and some mineralized pear; it had a super smooth mouthfeel and an overall aura of class and royalty albeit with some advanced notes; it seemed easily identified as white Burgundy but beyond that, I had no idea other than perhaps a victim of premox as opposed to an older wine.
2011 DOMAINE JEAN-LOUIS CHAVE HERMITAGE- blind; following tis dark, vibrant red purple color came super inviting aromas of toasty blackberry, cherry and raspberry with a hint of Brett; on the palate, the primary fruit profile was blueberry with some embellishing accents of tar and roses and Asian spices; at this point, I’m thinking this is a Barolo; it had a soft and smooth texture, lots of depth and complexity and reeked of class; I vacillated between Barolo, Spanish Tempranillo and N. Rhone and finally landed on this being Spanish. None of us got it right, but all of us loved it.
1995 WILLIAMS SELYEM RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR- blind; my bring, decanted 1 hour and recognized; the color was a grainy red raspberry and the nose offered spicy red raspberry and blueberry with a hint of leather and a metallic note that 2 others had as VA; the taste profile was more of the same with more of the raspberry/ blueberry coming through; it was medium bodied, mellow and yet still had some viability as it expressed with similar notes 3 nights later; all had it as new world Pinot Noir and one got the vintage.
Cheers,
Blake
