These are notes from a very interesting event coupling right bank wines that
most of us knew little about with Italian cuisine. Some of the members made the
decision not to attend because they didn't know the wines and assumed they
wouldn't be up to their normal standards. This attitude was proven over the
evening to be shortsighted, and their insularity denied them a very nice event.

With Lobster and fennel phyllo purses and foie gras and Port chutney, we had
Veuve Cliquot NV which was just the thing to act as a restorative - I had been
driving all day and was in need of such a pick-me-up.

Then with smoked sablefish:

1998 Ch. Rochemorin - this Pessac Leognan is 90% SB and 10% semillon, with lots
of new oak and 9 months on the lees. It showed a faintly Kiwi fruit nose, had
decent balance and complemented the food.

1999 Clos Floridene - this wine reverses the normal blend, having at least 50%
(and sometimes up to 70%) Semillon. Darker in colour, it started out with more
flavour interest than the Rochemorin, but then it chopped off at the end rather
precipitately.

With pasta with pheasant and black truffle:

1998 Dom. de Viaud - I wasn't able to find out much about this Lalande de
Pomerol. It has a black currant nose, sweet entry and is well balanced. It is
soft, ready to drink, and will not improve. A nice entree to the more serious
members of this flight.

1998 Ch. Quinault L'Enclos - 70% merlot, 15% CF, 10% CS, and some malbec. An
excellent wine with a warm herbal fruit nose with vanilla and spice. Quite
sweet in the mouth and with lots of extract, the wine needs a bit of time to
develop, but the ingredients are all there. I first tasted this garagiste wine
in the 2000 vintage with Bill Blatch, tasted in 2001 from barrel samples and
noted that it was in the top flight, side by side with Fieuzal, Sociando
Mallet, Canon la Gaffeliere, and Le Bon Pasteur.

1998 Grand Corbin Despagne - a St. Emilion with 75% merlot, 25% CF, 2% malbec,
and 3% CS. A rather black wine with excellent nose of smoky currants and
cherries. Big presence in the mouth, with excellent fruit, this one needs even
more time to develop - say 5 years or so. 2 out of 5 bottles were corked.

With rolled venison saddle stuffed with sweetbreads and braised venison
shoulder with juniper berries:

1990 Ch. Gazin - this Pomerol showed a spicy ripe nose with some almost Rhonish
elements in it. There was a fair bit of softening tannins present, and what I
would call adequate but not lavish fruit on plate. I do not believe that this
wine will improve with time, although the tannins will hold it for a long time.
I don't mean to say that it was a less than enjoyable wine but it was somewhat
eclipsed by the following wine.

1990 Ch. L'Evangile - oddly enough, the l'Evangile looked older than the Gazin,
and also showed more development in the nose, which was a mature claret nose
with lots of secondary elements. This complexity carried over to the taste,
with a sweet and interesting presence, high level of concentration, and the
tannin and acidity to carry it for many more years. No rush here.

Finally, with dessert:

1988 Ch. Climens - we had a discussion about which wine was wine of the evening
for us, and only by excluding this excellent Barsac could we clearly award the
l'Evangile the crown. This wine has a slightly hot nose of pineapple and
coconut, lots of botrytis, and is sweet, but with plenty of offsetting acidity.
It is very good indeed!

A very good event, with two strong flights of reds and a finishing wine beyond
reproach.