TN: SOBER does Burgs, plus Bdx, CalCab, Rhone, MSR
 

(apologies if this is a repost, looks like Google Groups is down)
Last night was our monthly SOBER (Several Oenophiles Being Extremely
Rambunctious) meeting, and I looked forward to it with great anticipation.
These evenings are always great,but when John Gilman (View from the Cellar)
hosts there is an extra guarantee of great wines. This night didn't
disappoint, and I toughened up my grading scale to allow for differentiation
of a bunch of excellent wines.

I was running slightly late, after picking up Drew we were the last to
arrive. There was an apertif wine on the table:

1983 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese GoldkapselToo bad we had limited
time with this beauty. Crystalline pear fruit with a little apricot and
green apple,. honey and ginger, great length. Great definition, delicious.
A-

John had a nice spread of cheeses out: aged manchego, delice de Bourgogne,
St Marcellin, Morbier, Boucheron, and Epoisses. The main wines were in 5
flights, served blind (from decanters, so no bottle hints).

Flight 1
#1 Burst of cherries and flowers on the nose, palate of kirsch and flowers.
A hint of the exotic- sandalwood and spice. Strong acids, moderate tannins.
I like a lot. A-

#2 Nose is very tight. Ripe red cherries, some forest floor, but more seems
to be in waiting than actually out and open. A revisit about an hour later
is more expressive, with espresso and a little herby hint(I put B/B+ as we
were in flight, need for an upgrade later, A-/B+)

Group quickly settled on Cotes de Nuits, but no one got producer (I think
Dan did get Clos St Jacques as vineyard for #1) without some hints from
John. Group preference was for #1 believe.

#1 1996 Armand Rousseau "Clos St. Jacques" Gevrey-Chambertin 1er
#2 1998 Armand Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze

Next up was a flight of whites, served with a delicious dish of shrimp in a
garlic-tarragon- fennelseed sauce with avocados.

Flight 2
#1 Rather inexpressive at first, but opened quickly. I got this rather
distinctive peppermint note, but no one else did. Lemony citrus with a
little pear, good acidity, refreshing, but I thought it paled next to its
flightmate. B+/B

#2 Wow, what a nose. A blast of toasted hazelnuts and a little herb. Palate
is pretty impressive too- countrystyle apple butter and peach flavors, long
finish that just won't quit, full yet elegant. A/A-

No doubts as to white Burgundy here, Dan and Jacques impressively
immediately proclaimed number 2 to be a Coche-Dury (though one likes and one
doesn't). Probably biggest divide of the night for favorites.

#1 2002 Comtes Lafon "Gouttes d'Or" Meursault 1er
#2 1999 Coche-Dury " Enseignères" Puligny-Montrachet

Flight 3
#1 Some oak, sweet red fruit, tar. A little black olive and herb. Some find
it too oaky, I like a lot. There's a creaminess to the texture that appeals.
B+/A-

#2 Structured. Good fruit, tar, smoke, but a little hard around the edges.
Others like more than I. B

The biggest miss of the night. With the tar we immediately all went to
Piedmont, with the opinions basically #1 modern Barolo and #2 older
traditional Barbaresco. Once John said not Nebbiolo the group made its way
to Northern Rhone.

#1 1988 Guigal "Brune et Blonde" Cote-Rotie
#2 1980 Gentaz " Cote Brune" Cote-Rotie

About this time the main course arrived, delicious roast pork with
vegetables.

Flight 4
#1 red fruit, roasted meat aromas, minerally finish. Very tasty. A-/B+

#2 blacker fruit, beefy, a bit tannic. I guess '88 Burg. B+

I'm very surprised when vintage on #2 is revealed, as my limited experience
with '85s have been forward softer wines.

#1 1988 Jacky Truchot Clos de la Roche
#2 1985 Robert Chevillon "Vaucrains" Nuits-St.-Georges 1er

Flight 5
#1 cassis, smoke, mushroom. Some tannins remaining. Gets leathery with more
air. B+

#2 Red fruit, tobacco, a little brambly. Good depth, gravelly earth notes,
tasty. B+/A-

Guesses were initially all Bordeaux, with lots of guesses for #2 as Graves
(Haut-Brion, LMHB, DDC). Off by an ocean and a continent for #2, but Mark
picks #1 as Montrose.

#1 1970 Ch. Montrose (St. Estephe)
#2 1970 Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon(Napa)
An excellent night of wine, food, and company. Thanks John and everyone.

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

-- .

TN: SOBER does Burgs, plus Bdx, CalCab, Rhone, MSR
 

On May 17, 8:55 am, "DALE WILLIAMS" >
wrote:
> (apologies if this is a repost, looks like Google Groups is down)
> Last night was our monthly SOBER (Several Oenophiles Being Extremely
> Rambunctious) meeting, and I looked forward to it with great anticipation.
> These evenings are always great,but when John Gilman (View from the Cellar)
> hosts there is an extra guarantee of great wines. This night didn't
> disappoint, and I toughened up my grading scale to allow for differentiation
> of a bunch of excellent wines.
>
> I was running slightly late, after picking up Drew we were the last to
> arrive. There was an apertif wine on the table:
>
> 1983 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese GoldkapselToo bad we had limited
> time with this beauty. Crystalline pear fruit with a little apricot and
> green apple,. honey and ginger, great length. Great definition, delicious.
> A-
>
> John had a nice spread of cheeses out: aged manchego, delice de Bourgogne,
> St Marcellin, Morbier, Boucheron, and Epoisses. The main wines were in 5
> flights, served blind (from decanters, so no bottle hints).
>
> Flight 1
> #1 Burst of cherries and flowers on the nose, palate of kirsch and flowers.
> A hint of the exotic- sandalwood and spice. Strong acids, moderate tannins.
> I like a lot. A-
>
> #2 Nose is very tight. Ripe red cherries, some forest floor, but more seems
> to be in waiting than actually out and open. A revisit about an hour later
> is more expressive, with espresso and a little herby hint(I put B/B+ as we
> were in flight, need for an upgrade later, A-/B+)
>
> Group quickly settled on Cotes de Nuits, but no one got producer (I think
> Dan did get Clos St Jacques as vineyard for #1) without some hints from
> John. Group preference was for #1 believe.
>
> #1 1996 Armand Rousseau "Clos St. Jacques" Gevrey-Chambertin 1er
> #2 1998 Armand Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze
>
> Next up was a flight of whites, served with a delicious dish of shrimp in a
> garlic-tarragon- fennelseed sauce with avocados.
>
> Flight 2
> #1 Rather inexpressive at first, but opened quickly. I got this rather
> distinctive peppermint note, but no one else did. Lemony citrus with a
> little pear, good acidity, refreshing, but I thought it paled next to its
> flightmate. B+/B
>
> #2 Wow, what a nose. A blast of toasted hazelnuts and a little herb. Palate
> is pretty impressive too- countrystyle apple butter and peach flavors, long
> finish that just won't quit, full yet elegant. A/A-
>
> No doubts as to white Burgundy here, Dan and Jacques impressively
> immediately proclaimed number 2 to be a Coche-Dury (though one likes and one
> doesn't). Probably biggest divide of the night for favorites.
>
> #1 2002 Comtes Lafon "Gouttes d'Or" Meursault 1er
> #2 1999 Coche-Dury " Enseignères" Puligny-Montrachet
>
> Flight 3
> #1 Some oak, sweet red fruit, tar. A little black olive and herb. Some find
> it too oaky, I like a lot. There's a creaminess to the texture that appeals.
> B+/A-
>
> #2 Structured. Good fruit, tar, smoke, but a little hard around the edges.
> Others like more than I. B
>
> The biggest miss of the night. With the tar we immediately all went to
> Piedmont, with the opinions basically #1 modern Barolo and #2 older
> traditional Barbaresco. Once John said not Nebbiolo the group made its way
> to Northern Rhone.
>
> #1 1988 Guigal "Brune et Blonde" Cote-Rotie
> #2 1980 Gentaz " Cote Brune" Cote-Rotie
>
> About this time the main course arrived, delicious roast pork with
> vegetables.
>
> Flight 4
> #1 red fruit, roasted meat aromas, minerally finish. Very tasty. A-/B+
>
> #2 blacker fruit, beefy, a bit tannic. I guess '88 Burg. B+
>
> I'm very surprised when vintage on #2 is revealed, as my limited experience
> with '85s have been forward softer wines.
>
> #1 1988 Jacky Truchot Clos de la Roche
> #2 1985 Robert Chevillon "Vaucrains" Nuits-St.-Georges 1er
>
> Flight 5
> #1 cassis, smoke, mushroom. Some tannins remaining. Gets leathery with more
> air. B+
>
> #2 Red fruit, tobacco, a little brambly. Good depth, gravelly earth notes,
> tasty. B+/A-
>
> Guesses were initially all Bordeaux, with lots of guesses for #2 as Graves
> (Haut-Brion, LMHB, DDC). Off by an ocean and a continent for #2, but Mark
> picks #1 as Montrose.
>
> #1 1970 Ch. Montrose (St. Estephe)
> #2 1970 Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon(Napa)
> An excellent night of wine, food, and company. Thanks John and everyone.
>
> 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
>
> -- .

Wow, what a great line-up. Thanks for the notes.