Just returned from a weekend in Alta, UT, that was just epic. I must have used up 2 years worth of karma in 3 days. Three days of champagne powder, fresh tracks in the morning, road closures that helped us that were staying on the mountain get all the good stuff first, sponging off my travel companions AMEX black card indulgences, flawless flights, rentals, baggage, meals, etc. It was just nuts. So to relay another anecdote about all this karma…
We had reservations for dinner at the Shallow Shaft in Alta. This is by no means a fancy joint, but they are serious about making some good food. When we walk in from across the room I immediately spot four bottles of wine on our neighbor’s table. Not wanting to be too nosy, I simply point out that their 1998 Beaucastel is a great vintage and one of my favorite wines. I barely notice a meursault but didn’t see the other bottles. I wish them a good dinner and return to hand-wringing over whether my 97 whitehall lane reserve will show up on this night not worse for wear. And out of the 3 bottles I’ve had, this one was by far the best. Just singing with plenty of fruit, acid to lift it, structure, and resolved tannins. red and black fruits, cassis, black currant, tobacco leaf and cedar, all with a savory quality that gives you that deep mmmm mmmm good type of satisfaction. A stellar wine and a stellar bargain if you don’t count the two bottles that weren’t so good.
So as I’m sitting there with my smoked trout cakes, my recent wine crush adjacent hands me a glass of the 98 beaucastel and insists I enjoy. Well enjoy I did! Still such a young wine, lots of power left in that bottle. Such an interesting wine to investigate, that gets positively entertaining when you try it with different foods. A bite of trout cake, a sip of wine, a powerful and pleasant taste of celery seed that really compliments the fish. Just fun. And it gets more fun.
Just in time to enjoy my bison tenderloin with blackberry balsamic gastrique and oyster mushrooms, my now blossoming bro-mance returns with a glass of 2000 Chave Hermitage. And I don’t mean a taste, I mean a glass. This wine is brooding with such a lovely nose of smoke, bacon, and berries. It doesn’t like the bison, but absolutely sings with the mushrooms and sauce leaving a newly formed republic in my mouth called flavor country. I’m switching between it and the whitehall, the whitehall loves the bison and potatoes, the Chave loves the mushrooms; it is hedonistic and absurd.
As the meal is winding down my 8 dinner companions are now fully aware of the largesse being exchanged between tables and are making quite a fuss over how “ghetto” and “swill” their Etude cab is. A little ribbing is warranted at this point. Then just to push it completely over the edge yet another glass shows up to accompany my bread pudding. 05 Gros Echeveaux GC. This is my first burgundy and I always had the impression burgundy was fairly delicate but this was an absolute powerhouse that retained balance. I could have easily mistaken it for a very expensive ($100+?) Cal pinot from central/north.
I chatted with the two fellows for a bit before we departed and they were just excited to share the wine. They really enjoy drinking it of course, and get just as much satisfaction from sharing with someone who appreciates it. That pretty much sums it up for me too. And is pretty much a metaphor for the entire trip.
Whilst chatting I noticed the table next to them had trumped with a magnum of cheval blanc, vintage unknown. I made the right friends.