Friday Betsy roasted a chicken and some Brussels sprouts, served with a salad and the
2014 Domaine de la Grand'Cour(Dutraive ) Les Clos Vieilles Vignes Fleurie. Long enough name? New producer to me, but this was very good if on the riper/fuller side of Fleurie. Fleshy red fruit but with good acids, smoke, nice length (with a bit of tannin). This could probably benefit from a short cellar spell, but tasty now. B+

Saturday we took a break from dinner prep to go to an open house held by new neighbors. I carried a 1996 Fonterutoli Chianti Classicoas a host gift,but it was popped and poured as soon as we got there. Round, leathery, still some live left. B

Dinner that night was a great collection of old friends. As people arrived we had some smoked salmon appetizers (creme fraiche, capers, &/or horseradish) and I shucked a couple dozen oysters.

NV Andre Jacquart "Experience" Blanc de Blanc Champagne
Crisp, toasty (well-done toasty), slightly coarse mousse, a little shorter than I've had liked, have more of these - oh well .Guests liked. B-/C+

1990 Stony Hill Chardonnay (mag)
More advanced than last big bottle I had (cork was crumbly) some oxidative notes, drinkable but disappointing. Actually seemed to perk up a little at end of night, but not what I wanted. C+/B-

2014 Pepiere "Briords" Muscadet
Classic, stony, crisp and long. A-

We sat, lit the candles, sang the Hanukkah blessing (well, mostly Betsy) and had the first course, latkes with trout roe and creme fraiche

2012 Garnier "Mont de Mileau" Chablis 1er
Nice enough Chardonnay, but round and ripe and to me not too Chablisy. B-

Main course was brisket, served with spinach and roasted carrots

2004 Giovanni Rosso "Storico" Barolo (mag)
Decanted for a few hours. Still a bit of tannin, but approachable for 11 year old Barolo, red fruits, herbs, a little tar. B/B+

1995 Edmunds St John "Durrell" Syrah
Great showing - ripe fruit, tannic structure but easy to drink, red and black fruits and smoked meat. Long finish. A-

1970 Ch. Cos d'Estournel
Good fill, faded/discolored label, cork is totally saturated. Quite stinky and hightoned with a metallic tang. , wasn't sure I'd serve this. But couple hours slow-ox helped a lot, and it was a decent if unexciting mature claret. Tangy red fruits, leather, tobacco, a bit tired and not very long. B-

With the cheese and dessert there was also a beer, Avery Uncle Jacob Stout, but I'm not a good commentator on beer (and especially don't like stout).

Sunday Betsy was leaving for a retreat, I made her an early dinner of littlenecks with linguini and then helped her pack, then headed to friends for a holiday party. Such a warm night it was too hot by firepit, but enjoyed being outdoors in mid-Dec. Cheeses, roe in endive, pate toasts, and other munchies before a hearty beef borscht.

NV Paul Goerg Blanc de Blancs Champagne.(from mag)
Crisp, toast and smoke, easy to like. B

1995 Ch. Montus
I double-decanted before bringing over. I've long been a fan of this (and the 95 Prestige) for a while. I liked this, but really think fruit is beginning to fade. Still some dark berry and plum fruit, tannins remain a little tacky, there's smoke and leather. B/B+

2009 Cosimo Taurino Salice Salentino 'Riserva'
Light, moderate acids, cherries, a little clipped. B-/C+

2010 Ch.Pierre de Montignac (Medoc)
Good acids, some firm tannic, some pencil lead over black plum and a little cassis. Very good for $12 Bdx. B

2014 Domaine de Robert Fleurie
New producer to me. Black plum, round, plenty of fruit, popular. I thought a bit middle of the road, but at $12 not a bad deal. B/B-

No wine Monday (work, Chinese takeout with street board members, meeting, then to city to meet a group of international grad students for rainy relief mission), but Tuesday I was ready to clean out leftovers. Brisket, slaw, carrots, and salad, with the 2010 Rocca di Castagnoli "Poggio a'Frati" Chianti Classico Riserva. Some real stuffing here, but nicely balanced. Black cherry, dried cherry, saddle leather, herb. B+

Wednesday was cod poached in miso soup, brown rice,and sauteed spinach. Wine was the 2014
Patrick Piuze "Terroir de Chichee" Chablis. Piuze has gotten lots of buzz, but I think the cremant is only one I've tried before. This is quite a fine village Chablis. Plenty of pure white fruits but also some oystershell and flint. With time a topnote of citrus zest stands out. Very nice for level. B+

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. 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.