A few of us got together for a belated (one week belated) birthday gathering for Bryan. Also bittersweet as he moves to New York at the end of next week.
The location of the gathering was the famous Mr. Chow restaurant in Beverly Hills. A frequent haunt of celebrities and the wealthy who like to think they are eating “authentic” Chinese food. As I pulled up to the valet, a lambo was right in front of me. I was excited as I hoped to see a celebrity come out of it… unfortunately it was just another fake tanned older couple with significant silicone additions (on the female). I did wave to the TMZ bus as it stopped in front of the restaurant. Have to give the adoring public a hello.
I’ve never actually been inside this restaurant before. Cause… I’m Chinese and… I didn’t want to dishonor my family name by eating here. I ragged on Goldman most of the night as the restaurant is on the rotation for his family dinners, but I’ll cut him some slack. People from Bel Air rarely venture into East LA for anything 
. I did see another Asian there, but she was youthful arm candy for an older gentleman. So at least someone paid for her meal.
Suffice to say, my fears were realized. The food was not good. Came out to $140 a person after $30/btl corkage. They have a “Squab with lettuce cup” on the menu that says “diced chicken” right below it. Change the name to Chicken with lettuce cup? Pretty sure it was just baby food
If you want to eat “expensive” chinese food, I highly recommend WP24 in the Ritz in DTLA. You’re paying $100+ dollars but the service is fantastic and the food is filled with high quality ingredients with a high end twist. Not just regular chinese food I find at a regular chinese restaurant but priced 4x more -_-
On the plus side, the company was great and the wine was awesome! But next time we eat Chinese food Goldman, we’re coming to my hood and it’ll be $90 cheaper a person 
.
Every wine (other than the Roulot) was just singing. Highly recommend drinking any of the wines now.
Until next time!
-
1988 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut - France, Champagne (6/22/2014)
boom shakalaka this bottle was on fire. Probably the most balanced version I’ve had of this wine. The nose was a bit oxidized and nutty but the palate was just filled with such complexity and power. While the 96 salon next to it was about being bright this krug was about brooding power. Just all this mushroom, dark ripe fruit, brioche, the yeasty flavors just covers your palate. Punch in the mouth awesome going on right here -
1996 Salon Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs - France, Champagne, Le Mesnil Sur Oger, Champagne (6/22/2014)
what more needs to be said about this wine? Fantastic. Another great youthful bottle. In the beginning it has mouth coating acidity and citrus but it toned down with some time in bottle. Just clear cut precise citrus fruit, saline that expands and coats your mouth with bright flavors. My favorite 96 from the big houses hands down -
2000 Domaine Dujac Echezeaux - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Echezeaux Grand Cru (6/22/2014)
I think Dujac absolutely knocked it out of the park in 2000. I’m not a huge fan of their charmes/combettes in general but they killed it in 2000. Then you talk about the wines I do love like the Echezeaux and it’s just banging sexy hot. The wine is in a great place right now with a perfumed intoxicating nose of spice, herbs, and dusty fruit. The palate is just this lush earthy mouthful that really tantalizes with all types of different flavors of meatiness, sweet red fruit, earth and all wrapped up in this brutish forward structure that frames everything really well. -
2002 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru (6/22/2014)
Last bottle I had was slightly oxidized, but this bottle was BANGING. It was youthful on the pop and pour but with about 30 minutes in the glass it just expands. Not in the same richness and concentration of the 04 batard from Boillot but it just had this incredible balance. Everything was in the right place. You could sense that it still needed a few years to really strut it’s stuff as it was just yearning to break free with that classic big boillot batard flavor. But right now, the acid was in a perfect spot, the precision of fruit was there and the mouthfeel was just silky smooth.
Delish. Boillot is definitely up there as one of my favorite batard (if not my favorite) producer
-
2007 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru (6/22/2014)
I had this almost exactly a year ago and I think it’s closing up a little. It still has that wonderful soft texture on the palate and there was this delicious meatiness and spice and cooling acidity, but the oak was getting really pronounced with air. I’d hold off on opening any. It definitely has more flavor and complexity than a lot of 07’s in the same class, so I think it’s gonna be a fantastic wine… just needs time! -
2010 Jean-Marc Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Clos des Bouchères - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru (6/22/2014)
Really moldy and funky, very reductive on the nose. Stark contrast to the awesome clear precise bottle I had the weekend before. The wine started to shed the reduction at the end of the night, but it never had the opportunity to really blossom to that pure rich fruit that roulot is so well known for. Probably could have used a nice long decant.
![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
