TNs from Eclectic Tasting Dinner including 96 Dom

These were served to a group of experienced wine enthusiast friends, including @brigcampbell, at Eddie V’s in Newport Beach. They were all served double blind except for the Dom Perignon, but I was the host, so I knew all of them.

1996 Dom Perignon. I’d had this since release, one of the first expensive bottles I ever bought. Honeyed, with golden apple, pear, pineapple, sweet ginger, a light embrace of caramel and baked apple as it warms in the glass. The bubbles are fine and caressing, imparting a creamy texture. This seemed to marry the best of the freshness and structure of youth with the richness and complexity of maturity. This will certainly be a WOTY candidate for me.

Blind Flight 1 – 2018 Masters of St Aubin

2018 Pierre Yves Colin Morey St Aubin Le Banc. Gun flint and matchstick reduction which gradually retreated with time. Ripe lemon, green apple, white mineral, unsalted butter, high acid. As the wine warms to room temperature, some orange emerges. An impressive and important-feeling wine maybe just at the beginning of its peak window. The only thing that differentiates it from a premier cru level Meursault is perhaps just a little less density and concentration, but is that a bad thing or not really?

2018 Hubert Lamy St Aubin La Princee. This was a cooler, cleaner, less masculine style wine than the PYCM. Bright lemon and lime, cool mineral, white pepper, sea salt, oyster shell, tart pear, a bit of grassiness. A wonderful pairing with a cold shellfish platter. The PYCM was more powerful and impressive, the Lamy was more elegant and cerebral, it’s kind of a tossup which was better.

Blind Flight 2 – 2005 Pinot Noir

2005 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard. Dark cherry, grilled herb, dark spices, bay leaf, some sweet damp earth. The wine felt relaxed and fully integrated, no hard edges. As mature Arcadians often do, this had even the Burgundy experts fooled as being a Burgundy.

2005 Domaine d’Ardhuy Clos Vougeot. This was a little blockier and more stern than the Arcadian. Violet, unripe cranberry and pomegranate, green herbs, talc. A little drying and tannic at the end – I continue to try 1er Cru and Grand Cru Burgs in the 1995-2005 range and experience that drying finish, and I’m never sure whether that means the wine needed more years to mature or whether the fruit is fading and the wine will just dry out. And the answer probably isn’t the same from one to the next, but it’s just something I’ve puzzled out on the last several bottles I’ve experimented on from that rough age range.

Blind Flight 3 – Mature Napa Cabernets

1987 Beringer Cabernet Private Reserve. Red fruited, cedar, warm earth, saddle leather, sandalwood. Fairly high acid. I was served this blind a couple of years ago, and I think this bottle was a little less fresh and perfect than the one I had previously, but this was still very enjoyable bottle of a classic-styled Napa cab.

1999 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Estate. A darker profile than the Beringer, black and purple berry fruit which is fresh but not sweet or heavy, some olive, chalky mineral, anise. This showed the 12 year difference in age plus the cool and structured 1999 vintage in Napa. More cerebral than delicious, probably a bit of room still to improve.

Blind Flight 4 – Mature Argentine Malbec

2009 Achaval Ferrer Finca Mirador. Opaque intense purple color and fruit profile. Graphite, violets, good power and concentration without getting sweet or heavy. Still pretty high acid and medium tannin structure. This is an excellent wine at a great age – maybe the only thing it lacks is a higher degree of complexity and nuance.

2005 Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec Adrianna Vineyard. This was more rich and hedonistic, to the point of being a little sloppy. Big dark fruit, peaches, caramel, coconut, milk chocolate, bananas, a bit of alcohol showing. This might have been better a bit younger? But I think it was a somewhat overdone style. Showy and an interesting experience, but to me, the least enjoyable wine of the evening by a decent margin.

Nobody would have really been expected to guess the variety, country and age of these last two wines, and it’s no surprise that the group was confused but defaulted into them being cult style Napa cabs. My conclusion from trying these was that these offer much of the style and power of premiere modern Napa cabs, but a little less complexity and class. Kind of in the same way you observe at lower price levels – a good $25 Malbec will stand in pretty well for a good $60 Napa cab, but maybe it’s just a little simpler?

Thanks for reading.

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Nice notes on an Interesting lineup.
Arcadian still occasionally showing up and doing what it does. Joe always did good work with Pisoni.
We have a little Arcadian tasting coming soon. Hopefully.
Cheers.

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Did you get the 96 dom at the Tustin Costco? I bought a ton of that wine there for ridiculously low prices.

I don’t remember, but that’s pretty likely now that you mention it.

What passed for ridiculously low back then?

$100 is the number in my head, but that’s just a guess. If I even bought it at Costco.

Thanks, Chris, for a really interesting set of notes on a very interesting lineup.

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They closed out the 96 and 2000 at $60-80. I bought almost all they had, about a palette total.

I was the guest at the table with Chris’s long time tasting group. I had met a few of them about 10 years ago and was impressed with their blind tasting abilities. I was blown away this time, some of these guys were like magicians.

Really fun evening and super educational for me.

  • 1987 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I was all over the map on this one but ultimately thought it was a brunello.

    Dark plum and sandalwood with an oaky cherry finish. Shocking how useful this wine is.
  • 1996 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon - France, Champagne (4/3/2023)
    There was some concern about this specific bottle and whether it had survived storage. Watching this bottle being opened was interesting. First of all the foil capsule was literally disintegrating as it was peeled off like dust. And then the cork was basically a wood plug, extremely dense, but I've seen this before with other Dom bottles and upon removal it barely made a whisper.

    Very light mousse and a fairly obvious hay or dried straw aroma. A pleasant golden apple flavor with a hint of caramel on the attack. It's backed up with a little bit of pineapple and a rounded out mouth feel.

    Really nice bottle of wine and glad it represented the 1996 vintage so well.
  • 1997 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I thought this was a brunello along with the behringer. It's dark food in a hint of sweetness very fine tannins with a nice acid base for a very balanced wine. The color is shockingly dark for the age. Excellent wine.
  • 2005 Arcadian Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I thought this was Pinot noir, Rhy and with age, like 2009.

    Little bougie on the nose and a touch of brett. Red Apple and a lot of dried cherries on the attack. Mid palate was straight up red berry flavors and there was a drying note at the finish
  • 2005 Domaine d'Ardhuy Clos Vougeot - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I guessed this was Pinot Noir and French from Burgundy but that was it. Nice sandalwood and oak with cranberry and pomegranate flavors. Seems like it came from a cool vintage and I thought it was at least 10 years old. There was a slight bitter note at the finish.
  • 2018 Hubert Lamy Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Les Frionnes Blanc - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Saint-Aubin 1er Cru (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I thought this might be a Chenin Blanc.

    Nose was muted. There's very good salinity and lemon and lime with a strong rind note at the finish. There's a hint of honey which let me to believe that it was a very slightly off dry wine. Wrong wrong.
  • 2018 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin Le Banc Blanc - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Saint-Aubin (4/3/2023)
    Blind. I guess white burgundy but I don't know anything about specific areas and producers so I'll take partial credit.

    The flint, charred wood, and matchstick explode out of the glass. Reduction at its finest and I love it. Most of it blows off after 10 minutes but they're still enough remaining to entertain myself. It's lemon-driven and there's a cream note wrapped around that, almost like a lemon curd. Mid palate is a little thin compared to the start. Medium finish. I really enjoyed this wine.

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Back then didn’t they make an NV Dom? I seem to recall that was like $70 or so.

Bomb note on the DP, brother! Glad it showed so well for you.

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I had a '96 DP at the end of 2022 and it was just as glorious as your notes here! Just everything I wanted in an aged Champagne.

Make sure to post notes or impressions.

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