Betsy got back Wednesday, and in short order got her version of comfort food
(beef stroganoff) on the dinner table. I served the 2002 Sylvie Esmonin Cote de
Nuits-Villages . Big ripe kirsch fruit, a touch of earth and some light
vanilla. Quite tasty, if not forcefully Burgundian. The next night I had a
glass after coming in from a late meeting, a bit of a mushroom/damp earth note
rounded out the package nicely, showing a bit better than before. B/B+

Friday I had a speech at a synagogue, came home for a late dinner. Duck breast
and pasta with peppers and a bechamel sauce. The wine was the 2000 Domaine
Bachelet Cote de Nuits-Villages. Much lighter in body than the '02 Esmonin, but
a graceful wine with lively acidity, clear cherry fruit, and a nice finish.
Clean and pretty, but just a tad lacking in concentration. B

Both nice wines. As far as matches, if I had to do it over again, I would have
served the lighter 2000 with the stroganoff, and the more robust 2002 with the
duck.

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a
good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where
it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy,
and certainly not of consistency.**
Dale

Dale Williams
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amnspam (Dale Williams) wrote:

Betsy got back Wednesday, and in short order got her version of comfort food
(beef stroganoff) on the dinner table. I served the 2002 Sylvie Esmonin Cote de
Nuits-Villages . Big ripe kirsch fruit, a touch of earth and some light
vanilla. Quite tasty, if not forcefully Burgundian.

Have you tried good white burgundy with stroganoff - its a revelation about
the normally alleged 'rules' about red and white wines?

Only an idea but I had my prejudices shattered a few years ago when drinking
Ch. Dassault 1989 with lobster braised in the same wine.

Anyway what does it matter what you are drinking (almost) when your wife
comes back from a few days away? OT are there are one or two things in life
even more important than wine or is that just the influence of February 14th
getting a bit close?

Timothy Hartley

Well Tim, maybe it is just to heighten the "Vorfreude", but I would
like to mention a similar situation I had. I had to be away from my
partner for a year or so. Everytime we would be coming together, I used
to think long and hard about which wine would be drunk together. Partly
because of the reunion and partly because of the most careful choice of
the wines, I recall every single bottle even after several years.

Cheers

Timothy,
I actually have tried white Burgundy with stroganoff, and liked it.
White Burgundy (or any non-flabby Chardonnay) works well with most
dishes with a creamy sauce. In this case, I went with a red Burg
because (1) Betsy makes 2 different stroganoff recipes, this one is
heavy on the mushrooms & (2) I asked her if she felt like red or white,
she preferred red. But the ripe Esmonin '02 was a bit much for the
dish, the lighter '00 would have been better.

There are indeed more important things in life than wine or food. But
the care that Betsy puts into every meal is one of the things I love
about her, and I strive hard to come up with wines that deserve to
share the table with her meals. I also do the dishes

"DaleW" wrote in message
oups.com...
There are indeed more important things in life than wine or food. But
the care that Betsy puts into every meal is one of the things I love
about her, and I strive hard to come up with wines that deserve to
share the table with her meals. I also do the dishes

Sounds to me like you're _both_ getting the better end of that arrangement!
:^)

Tom S

Wow, you must have gotten something "long and Hard"
"TB" wrote in message
ups.com...
Well Tim, maybe it is just to heighten the "Vorfreude", but I would
like to mention a similar situation I had. I had to be away from my
partner for a year or so. Everytime we would be coming together, I used
to think long and hard about which wine would be drunk together. Partly
because of the reunion and partly because of the most careful choice of
the wines, I recall every single bottle even after several years.

Cheers

Wow, you must have gotten something "long and Hard"
"TB" wrote in message
ups.com...
Well Tim, maybe it is just to heighten the "Vorfreude", but I would
like to mention a similar situation I had. I had to be away from my
partner for a year or so. Everytime we would be coming together, I used
to think long and hard about which wine would be drunk together. Partly
because of the reunion and partly because of the most careful choice of
the wines, I recall every single bottle even after several years.

Cheers