A fabulous dinner with really good food, and what turned out to be some really amazing wines. I have never given any wine 100pts before, but was really pretty tempted with the ’78 Rayas. The ’85 and ’90 were also pretty spectacular…
Champagne Starter:
Hervey Bay Scallops & White Gazpacho
2002 Dom Perignon:
Fresh, bright, fine, very young, creamy and toasty with a nice acid spine. A really lovely starter…
92++pts.
Flight 1: 2003, 2004, 2005 Rayas Reserve:
Hare Royal, Chestnut, Poached Pear & Roast Onions
2003 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Sweeter and much riper than the other two wines, and really (for mine) almost over ripe. A bit port like, even though it is still really middleweight, and with loads of ripe, dense dark fruits. A wine that looks a perhaps bit atypical for the style, but that’s really just the vintage…The only sound wine here tonight I didn’t like all that much given the context of the other wines, although I’d probably enjoy it somewhat more on it’s own.
87pts.
2004 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
The lightest of the three wines, and a very fine looking minerally wine indeed. Pure raspberry fruit with a twist of peppery greenness, a long silky finish, bright and perfumed, and just a lovely wine of balance, precision and focus. This wine literally dances on your palate. My favorite wine of the flight for the first hour or so, where the more complex, deeper ’05 then came up making this wine look just a touch more straightforward in comparison. Still, really lovely drinking, and I wish I had a case of this in the cellar…
93/4+pts.
2005 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
This initially didn’t show as much as the ’04, and really took some time to open. Black fruits with kirsch/raspberries notes, and an hint of spicy smoke. Initially closed, but when it opened it seemed to fill out, and fill the glass. Silky finish, complex and layered fruit with a touch of licorice, and with a voluptuousness to it that was immensely appealing. A slightly bigger scaled wine than the ‘04, though still in balance. This needs time, and will end up several points higher at least in time…
94/5++pts.
Flight 2: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994 Rayas Reserve, 1990 Pignan:
Western Plains Suckling Pig, Chicory, Pine Nuts & Dark Ale
1994 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Wow, did this totally smash the two notes we were provided with on it (Parker 90pts, Spectator 88pts). Bright, balanced and totally beautiful, with a perfumed nose of spice and dried flowers. Lovely red/black fruits on a silky midweight palate that was both complex and layered, yet still light and dancing. Finished with a touch of licorice and hints of old leather. Fantastic drinking, and a very beautiful wine.
95pts.
1993 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Another wine that showed much better than it’s reputation might have suggested. Quite floral/perfumed nose with just a hint of decayed foresty notes. Peppery, berry fruit, with just a hint of strawberries and cream on the finish. This looks quite burgundian really, and with the slight hint of spice/greenness/gamey foresty development and a silky midweight palate was really very appealing. Perhaps not quite as complex or deep as some of the wines here, but really very attractive none the less.
92/3pts.
1990 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Took it’s time to open up, initially looking just a bit varnishy on the nose. Notes of smoke and ripe dark fruits, and a deeper, more serious palate. Quite bright, with lots of black fruits with just glimpses of red, quite ripe yet such a deep, structured wine. Threads of licorice run through the wine, and some smokey/meaty nuances finish with more deep fruit. Again quite silky and fine, I kept thinking how this reminds me of some ’90 Burgs I had drunk recently. The more it opened, the better it got, and the finish seemed to dance more after about half an hour as the wine gained in weight and complexity. Truly, a fabulous wine.
96pts.
1990 Chateau Rayas Domaine de Pignan CNDP:
In contrast to the other wines, this was the darkest wine here. Fresh, young looking with a slightly hot and short finish (compared to the others). Simpler, coarser and a bit more straightforward, somewhat blocky looking with lots of stuffing, but little magic. A more honest, workmanlike drink. This will still drink well for a long time yet, and on it’s own is pretty good, but not perhaps next to the other wines…
89pts.
1989 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
A bit of a different sort of wine here. Tannic and grippy, quite red fruited and not as big as the ’90, this wine really needs more time yet. A bit lean on the finish, with slight roasted fruit and tobacco notes, and a drying finish. Not as pleasant a drink as the other wines, yet still a wine of undeniable class. Not one of my favourites here tonight as far as drinkability goes, but still very much a Rayas.
91/2pts.
1988 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Oxidized. A shame.
N/R.
Now on to the main attraction!!
Flight 3: 1978, 1983, 1985 Rayas Reserve, 1985 Pignan:
Glenroth Pheasant, Braised Savoy Cabbage & Slippery Jack Mushrooms
I was pretty excited to drink the’78, as this had been a wine on my “Must Drink” list for quite a long time. Happily, it didn’t let me down…
1978 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Wow.
Quite dark and deep, with a spicy perfumed nose. On the palate, simply amazing! So complex, with multi faceted layers of dark fruits, spice, and a touch of that Hoisin that makes great old La Tache so distinctively fabulous. Lots of dark fruit, but not sweet, really in a more savory way, very silky and sexy looking that just kept coming up in the glass. Amazingly complex, defined yet balanced, hard to believe there is so much going on in such harmony. I kept mine right to the end, and it really was singing by then. This was a fabulous condition bottle from a cold cellar, and had been there a long time without moving, and really showed, as the wine had a real timeless sort of quality that suggests it will go on forever. A complete, sexy, stunning wine that is (well for me at least) as close to perfection as it gets!
99pts.
1983 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Oxidized. A shame.
N/R.
1985 Chateau Rayas Reserve CNDP:
Big fruits, with just a very slightly roasted quality to it, but the depth of fruit here is stunning. Darker fruits with some raspberry, good energy and a really silky finish on the palate, this bottle was still really quite young and fresh looking. Complex and deep, rich and ripe, but still very well balanced. An opulent wine of great pleasure, this continued to open out and was really superb drinking. I think bottles like this will still look good in 15-20 more years…
96pts.
1985 Chateau Rayas Domaine de Pignan CNDP:
Fresher and darker than the ’85 Reserve, this was very good, but again a bit more simplistic and straightforward. Loaded with sweet dark fruits, a hint of pepper, this looked nice, if a bit blocky, without that fine, silky finish. Still, very good drinking indeed.
90pts.
VP Finish:
Herve Mons Comte Gruyere
1994 Grahams Vintage Port:
Really young and fresh, layered with tons of sweet ripe dark fruit. This was nice drinking, but really needs another 10+ (20+) years to fully show it significant promise…
93++pts.
A great night with some amazing wines that, dare I say it, looked quite Burgundian, in that they were silky with great mouth feel, and with lovely perfumed, pure fruit. An excellent and for me eye opening dinner showcasing how great Rayas can be, and the stunning ’78 will live with me forever.