Every year my friend Alex and brother-in-law Cal put together a
fundraiser for their church's social action programs (which includes
contributions towards my group). Cal arranges a musical program around
a theme, Alex makes a meal to complement (so when they did Viennese
music, there was schweinelendche and sachertorte). This year musical
theme was fin de siecle France, an easy theme for Alex as he used to
own a restaurant in Paris.

I don't go to the church, but am close to many there, so had
volunteered to contribute a case plus of wine (not counting what I was
bringing for my table). The Bordeaux I decanted in advance. These were
mostly sniffs and tiny pours, so not full notes:

2005 Ch. de Beaumont (1er Cotes du Blaye) (6)- one corked, four with
dark fruit and medium tannins, not especially friendly, but by serving
time a few people said there really loved. When opened the sixth bttle
was seemingly a different wine, red plums with a vegetal note.
Strange.

2005 Ch. Canon (Canon-Fronsac) (2)- stern, tannic at first, opened
nicely with a little decanter time

2005 Puy Guilhem (Fronsac) (3) - big for appellation, tannic, very
good dark berry and plum fruit, nice length.

2006 L'Esprit de Chevalier (Graves)- medium bodied, ripe tannins,
pretty nice for price.

There were also bottles of 2006 Guion "Cuvee Prestige" Bourgueil and
2007 Delas "St Esprit" Cotes du Rhone, but I didn't open those in
advance.

I delivered those in advance, went home and changed, and then back to
church bearing wine. I was at a table with my in-laws and some members
of my local wine group, several of us had brought our own wines:

NV Piper-Heidsieck Brut
Very nice, apples and citrus, a little bread yeast, medium bodied,
good length. A nice surprise. B+

2007 Pascal Cotat "Les Monts Damnes" Sancerre
Firing on all cylinder. Citrus, very full bodied, excellent length.
Bright and brash, delicious. A-

2007 Clos du Tue-Bouef "Le Brin de Chevre" Touraine
Light to medium bodied, herby, good acidity, nice wine. B

First course was a duck terrine with Armagnac, followed by boeuf
Bourguignon with potatoes and fennel. We went through some reds:

1973 Bouchard Pommard
This was a bit of a throwaway, low expectations (but low price). Lots
of gunk, cork starts to slip in when I try ah-so. Use a cork, but it
breaks, we get a bit of crumble in wine. No decanters, so a power pour
gets most out. Dark color, a touch weedy, slightly tired dark berry
fruit. With some time it really surprises, fruit seems to perk up,
there's some smoke and tar. I'd actually never peg this as Burgundy
blind. But a pretty decent mature wine, meaty. B

1995 Jean Chauvenet " Les Vaucrains" Nuits St Georges 1er (from
magnum)
I was counting on this one, and it came through. A little tight at
first, but opened nicely. Light tannins, good acidity, solid black
cherry fruit accented with earth and forest floor. Medium bodied, good
length, showing well. B+

2006 Jaboulet "Parallele 45" Cotes du Rhone
This was the house wine, for tables that didn't BYO. Not bad, lighter
styled, red fruits and a little spice, nothing like the '95 P45 but ok
drink. B-

After dinner everyone moved to sanctuary for concert, Betsy and Cal
did a great job on a movement of a Ravel duo, the Aureole Trio did
Debussy and Ibert, there were some Faure songs, a Massenet piece,and
an ensemble finished with more Debussy. Extraordinary concert, and
then everyone went back to tables for chocolate mousse and more wine.
At this point I bounced between my table, and the room where the
musicians were having dinner:

2005 Baumard "Paon" Coteaux du Layon
Ripe apples, apricot, some citrus zest. Ripe, sweet enough to qualify
as dessert wine, good length. Just a hint of botrytis. Could use a bit
more acidic zip. B

2005 Coturri Chauvet Zinfandel
Well, it wasn't a bacterial minefield! Very ripe approaching pruney,
some residual sweetness apparent, just a hint of funk. I think others
liked this more than I did. C+

1999 Paul Garaudet Volnay
A touch of brett, but not overwhelming. Red fruits, light tannins,
earthy. A bit clunkier than I would have hoped, no real Volnay
elegance. Still, decent Burgundy, and the musicians appreciated my
offering. B/B-

2008 Clos Roche Blanche "Pif" Touraine
Young, fresh, with red and black raspberries, some easy tannins, nice
length. Might could use a little time, but as others have noted with
fake cork I'll err on drinking young. B+/B

Really fun night- great people, great food, great music.

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.**

On Nov 22, 1:32*pm, DaleW > wrote:
> Every year my friend Alex and brother-in-law Cal put together a
> fundraiser for their church's social action programs (which includes
> contributions towards my group). Cal arranges a musical program around
> a theme, Alex makes a meal to complement (so when they did Viennese
> music, there was schweinelendche and sachertorte). This year musical
> theme was fin de siecle France, an easy theme for Alex as he used to
> own a restaurant in Paris.
>
> I don't go to the church, but am close to many there, so had
> volunteered to contribute a case plus of wine (not counting what I was
> bringing for my table). The Bordeaux I decanted in advance. These were
> mostly sniffs and tiny pours, so not full notes:
>
> 2005 Ch. de Beaumont (1er Cotes du Blaye) (6)- one corked, four with
> dark fruit and medium tannins, not especially friendly, but by serving
> time a few people said there really loved. When opened the sixth bttle
> was seemingly a different wine, red plums with a vegetal note.
> Strange.
>
> 2005 Ch. Canon (Canon-Fronsac) *(2)- stern, tannic at first, opened
> nicely with a little decanter time
>
> 2005 Puy Guilhem (Fronsac) (3) - big for appellation, tannic, very
> good dark berry and plum fruit, nice length.
>
> 2006 L'Esprit de Chevalier (Graves)- medium bodied, ripe tannins,
> pretty nice for price.
>
> There were also bottles of 2006 Guion "Cuvee Prestige" Bourgueil and
> 2007 Delas "St Esprit" Cotes du Rhone, but I didn't open those in
> advance.
>
> I delivered those in advance, went home and changed, and then back to
> church bearing wine. I was at a table with my in-laws and some members
> of my local wine group, several of us had brought our own wines:
>
> NV Piper-Heidsieck Brut
> Very nice, apples and citrus, a little bread yeast, medium bodied,
> good length. A nice surprise. B+
>
> 2007 Pascal Cotat "Les Monts Damnes" Sancerre
> Firing on all cylinder. Citrus, very full bodied, excellent length.
> Bright and brash, delicious. A-
>
> 2007 Clos du Tue-Bouef "Le Brin de Chevre" Touraine
> Light to medium bodied, herby, good acidity, nice wine. B
>
> First course was a duck terrine with Armagnac, followed by boeuf
> Bourguignon with potatoes and fennel. We went through some reds:
>
> 1973 Bouchard Pommard
> This was a bit of a throwaway, low expectations (but low price). Lots
> of gunk, cork starts to slip in when I try ah-so. Use a cork, but it
> breaks, we get a bit of crumble in wine. No decanters, so a power pour
> gets most out. Dark color, a touch weedy, slightly tired dark berry
> fruit. With some time it really surprises, fruit seems to perk up,
> there's some smoke and tar. I'd actually never peg this as Burgundy
> blind. But a pretty decent mature wine, meaty. B
>
> 1995 Jean Chauvenet " Les Vaucrains" Nuits St Georges 1er (from
> magnum)
> I was counting on this one, and it came through. A little tight at
> first, but opened nicely. Light tannins, good acidity, solid black
> cherry fruit accented with earth and forest floor. Medium bodied, good
> length, showing well. B+
>
> 2006 Jaboulet "Parallele 45" Cotes du Rhone
> This was the house wine, for tables that didn't BYO. Not bad, lighter
> styled, red fruits and a little spice, nothing like the '95 P45 but ok
> drink. B-
>
> After dinner everyone moved to sanctuary for concert, Betsy and Cal
> did a great job on a movement of a Ravel *duo, the Aureole Trio did
> Debussy and Ibert, there were some Faure songs, a Massenet piece,and
> an ensemble finished with more Debussy. Extraordinary concert, and
> then everyone went back to tables for chocolate mousse and more wine.
> At this point I bounced between my table, and the room where the
> musicians were having dinner:
>
> 2005 Baumard "Paon" Coteaux du Layon
> Ripe apples, apricot, some citrus zest. Ripe, sweet enough to qualify
> as dessert wine, good length. Just a hint of botrytis. Could use a bit
> more acidic zip. B
>
> 2005 Coturri Chauvet Zinfandel
> Well, it wasn't a bacterial minefield! Very ripe approaching pruney,
> some residual sweetness apparent, just a hint of funk. I think others
> liked this more than I did. C+
>
> 1999 Paul Garaudet Volnay
> A touch of brett, but not overwhelming. Red fruits, light tannins,
> earthy. A bit clunkier than I would have hoped, no real Volnay
> elegance. Still, decent Burgundy, and the musicians appreciated my
> offering. B/B-
>
> 2008 Clos Roche Blanche "Pif" Touraine
> Young, fresh, with red and black raspberries, some easy tannins, nice
> length. Might could use a little time, but as others have noted with
> fake cork I'll err on drinking young. B+/B
>
> Really fun night- great people, great food, great music.
>
> 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.**

correction, Tue-Boeuf was 2005

Ed wrote on Sun, 22 Nov 2009 13:58:09 -0600:

>> On Nov 22, 1:32 pm, DaleW > wrote:
>>> This year musical
>>> theme was fin de siecle France, an easy theme for Alex as he
>>> used to own a restaurant in Paris.
>And I was thinking 19th century...how passe of me! There seems to have
>been a second fin de siecle slipped by.

I was rather tempted to ask how much you regret the 19th century? :-)



--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

On Nov 22, 1:32�pm, DaleW > wrote:
> Every year my friend Alex and brother-in-law Cal put together a
> fundraiser for their church's social action programs (which includes
> contributions towards my group). Cal arranges a musical program around
> a theme, Alex makes a meal to complement (so when they did Viennese
> music, there was schweinelendche and sachertorte). This year musical
> theme was fin de siecle France, an easy theme for Alex as he used to
> own a restaurant in Paris.
>
> I don't go to the church, but am close to many there, so had
> volunteered to contribute a case plus of wine (not counting what I was
> bringing for my table). The Bordeaux I decanted in advance. These were
> mostly sniffs and tiny pours, so not full notes:
>
> 2005 Ch. de Beaumont (1er Cotes du Blaye) (6)- one corked, four with
> dark fruit and medium tannins, not especially friendly, but by serving
> time a few people said there really loved. When opened the sixth bttle
> was seemingly a different wine, red plums with a vegetal note.
> Strange.
>
> 2005 Ch. Canon (Canon-Fronsac) �(2)- stern, tannic at first, opened
> nicely with a little decanter time
>
> 2005 Puy Guilhem (Fronsac) (3) - big for appellation, tannic, very
> good dark berry and plum fruit, nice length.
>
> 2006 L'Esprit de Chevalier (Graves)- medium bodied, ripe tannins,
> pretty nice for price.
>
> There were also bottles of 2006 Guion "Cuvee Prestige" Bourgueil and
> 2007 Delas "St Esprit" Cotes du Rhone, but I didn't open those in
> advance.
>
> I delivered those in advance, went home and changed, and then back to
> church bearing wine. I was at a table with my in-laws and some members
> of my local wine group, several of us had brought our own wines:
>
> NV Piper-Heidsieck Brut
> Very nice, apples and citrus, a little bread yeast, medium bodied,
> good length. A nice surprise. B+
>
> 2007 Pascal Cotat "Les Monts Damnes" Sancerre
> Firing on all cylinder. Citrus, very full bodied, excellent length.
> Bright and brash, delicious. A-
>
> 2007 Clos du Tue-Bouef "Le Brin de Chevre" Touraine
> Light to medium bodied, herby, good acidity, nice wine. B
>
> First course was a duck terrine with Armagnac, followed by boeuf
> Bourguignon with potatoes and fennel. We went through some reds:
>
> 1973 Bouchard Pommard
> This was a bit of a throwaway, low expectations (but low price). Lots
> of gunk, cork starts to slip in when I try ah-so. Use a cork, but it
> breaks, we get a bit of crumble in wine. No decanters, so a power pour
> gets most out. Dark color, a touch weedy, slightly tired dark berry
> fruit. With some time it really surprises, fruit seems to perk up,
> there's some smoke and tar. I'd actually never peg this as Burgundy
> blind. But a pretty decent mature wine, meaty. B
>
> 1995 Jean Chauvenet " Les Vaucrains" Nuits St Georges 1er (from
> magnum)
> I was counting on this one, and it came through. A little tight at
> first, but opened nicely. Light tannins, good acidity, solid black
> cherry fruit accented with earth and forest floor. Medium bodied, good
> length, showing well. B+
>
> 2006 Jaboulet "Parallele 45" Cotes du Rhone
> This was the house wine, for tables that didn't BYO. Not bad, lighter
> styled, red fruits and a little spice, nothing like the '95 P45 but ok
> drink. B-
>
> After dinner everyone moved to sanctuary for concert, Betsy and Cal
> did a great job on a movement of a Ravel �duo, the Aureole Trio did
> Debussy and Ibert, there were some Faure songs, a Massenet piece,and
> an ensemble finished with more Debussy. Extraordinary concert, and
> then everyone went back to tables for chocolate mousse and more wine.
> At this point I bounced between my table, and the room where the
> musicians were having dinner:
>
> 2005 Baumard "Paon" Coteaux du Layon
> Ripe apples, apricot, some citrus zest. Ripe, sweet enough to qualify
> as dessert wine, good length. Just a hint of botrytis. Could use a bit
> more acidic zip. B
>
> 2005 Coturri Chauvet Zinfandel
> Well, it wasn't a bacterial minefield! Very ripe approaching pruney,
> some residual sweetness apparent, just a hint of funk. I think others
> liked this more than I did. C+
>
> 1999 Paul Garaudet Volnay
> A touch of brett, but not overwhelming. Red fruits, light tannins,
> earthy. A bit clunkier than I would have hoped, no real Volnay
> elegance. Still, decent Burgundy, and the musicians appreciated my
> offering. B/B-
>
> 2008 Clos Roche Blanche "Pif" Touraine
> Young, fresh, with red and black raspberries, some easy tannins, nice
> length. Might could use a little time, but as others have noted with
> fake cork I'll err on drinking young. B+/B
>
> Really fun night- great people, great food, great music.
>
> 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.��

I think of Coturri Chauvet as being a dessert wine it so sweet and
ripe and funky. I haven't bought it in years. Tony sent me a case of
very old Coturri wines a number of years ago and, for the most part
they were still OK in a Coturri kind of way. ;-)