On Dec 26, 4:54*pm, DaleW > wrote:
> Christmas Eve we had a subdued Feast of the One Fish. David and
> Betsy's parents joined us for lemon sole, bok choy, and rice. I was
> driving a van into city after a late church service, so only had one
> glass. Wine was the 2007 Domaine and Selection "Les Blanchots" Chablis
> GC. Lemony, crisp, medium bodied, a nice Chardonnay, enough chalky/
> flinty notes to be a nice Chablis, maybe lacking in Grand Cru
> distinction, but since it was priced like a village wine, I'm not
> upset it doesn't scream Blanchots. B
>
> Only a couple hours sleep, then off to office to set up things for
> Christmas Eve, then home to prepare for a small crowd - Betsy's
> parents, Dave's paternal grandparents, some other local friends, and a
> retired colleague of Betsy's from city. Only one person other than
> myself really interested in wine, but I took the opportunity to just
> open whatever I thought was interesting, no trophy wines, things that
> might or might not be good.
>
> Betsy made some really tasty sardine/anchovy/whitebean toasts, Nancy
> had brought along some artisanal salume, and we started with 2
> bubblies
>
> NV Chidaine Montlouis Brut
> Very appley, light bodied, some earth, fully petillant. B
>
> NV Gosset "Excellence" Champagne Brut
> Totally different style, very full, apple and creamsicle wirh a bit of
> yeast, good acdity, nice length. B+
>
> Main course was a huge (24 rib) crown pork roast, with an apple/pecan
> stuffing (we did a separate casserole for the vegetarian, the one with
> the meat juices killed it in competition), with a wild mushroom
> lasagna for those not having meat (and a side for those that were).
> Plus roasted kale, golden beets and celeriac with goat butter,
> assorted breads, etc.
>
> 1988 Bricco del Drago (Vino de Tavola, Piedmont)
> Dave always enjoys birthyear wines, so I decided to give this Dolcetto/
> Nebbiolo blend a shot. Good cork, good color. Cherry fruit, a little
> barnyard, still a little hint of tannin. *I'd have bet 3:1 this was
> dead, but it's got plenty of fruit. It's low acid and a little
> plodding. It's certainly survived (and couple people quite liked), but
> for me it's a surprisingly youthful version of a wine that I don't
> especially like. C+/B-
>
> 1976 Jadot Gevrey Chambertin
> Saturated cork, but came out cleanly with AhSo. Another wine that
> should be dead, when I opened seemed well on the way, with more forest
> floor, leather, and ashtray than fruit. But each time I retried I
> liked better, and by time cheese was out it was showing quite nicely
> indeed. The forest floor, mushroom, smoke was still there, but the
> ashtray had faded, and some solid black cherry fruit was providing
> underpinning. Tangy acids, fairly light, but a satisfying fully mature
> village wine that by all rights should have been dead. B+
>
> 1979 Ch. du Tertre (Margaux)
> ok, somehow I thought I had set up a '79 DDC (labels look nothing
> alike). I got ready to decant and realized mistake, but decided to go
> with bottle that had been upright for couple days. Showing a bit more
> advanced than some bottles, but drinking nicely. Cassis and dark
> berries, resolved tannins, cedar, and leather. Classic mature Margaux.
> B+
>
> 2005 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Kabinett
> I thought Riesling was a more classic match with pork/apple, but since
> most folks were red drinkers, this was only one I opened (had an
> Austrian and CFE ready, but decided not to go trocken as one person
> always prefers some sugar), Young, plenty sweet, but with really zippy
> acidity. Electric, white fruits with a little lime and cherry, long
> finish. Quite nice, B+/A-
>
> Finished with cheeses (Ossau Iraty, a Chalet du Jura), two
> Linzertortes (who'd have guessed), and a tarte tatin. Food was great,
> wines were good, but main thing as always was spending time with good
> folks.
>
> 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.*

Wines sound interesting especially the 1976 Burg. Goat butter??