Beluga lentils with sausage and collards, and the 2019 Hirsch Kammern Gruner Veltliner.
Tropical and citrus, quite ripe, dont think Id have picked as GV. B-

For first night of Lunar New Year, Asian cinnamon beef with spinach and udon. Wine was the
1994 Lindemans St. George Cabernet Sauvignon. Man this is sweet. Cassis, blackberry liqueur, vanilla. Not fading, plenty of fruit, not hot, but not my style. Others would rate much higher I think. B-/C+

Day 2, Thai (lemongrass/ginger) mussels, sesame udon, long beans. 2018 Hirsch Gaisberg Riesling. BIg and ripe, but more nervy than the GV a few days before. Lemon, apples, but also some wet rocks. Muscular, but not OTT. B+/B

Sunday(Valentines), oysters with leftover Riesling and GV, then 5 spice duck breast, sesame noodles, green salad with pickled ramp ranch dressing. Wine was the 1999 Chevillon €œLes Roncieres€� Nuits St Georges 1er. Red fruited but msaculine, still a bit of tannin, good acids, quite long. Cherry, black cherry, espresso, soil tones. Drinking very well in a sturdy NSG style. A-

Our Monday Zoom group was doing BYO Mature Chardonnay. We had oysters, roasted scallops and mushrooms (maitake, yellow oyster, pioppini), snow peas, and salad. My wine was the 1993 Kalin LD Chardonnay. Deep color but fresh on palate, honied white fruits, a waxy note, quite floral. Theres plenty of oak but its well integrated. Keeps evolving. Long and delicious., A-

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.

On 2/17/21 12:10 PM, wrote:
> Beluga lentils with sausage and collards, and the 2019 Hirsch Kammern Gruner Veltliner.
> Tropical and citrus, quite ripe, dont think Id have picked as GV. B-
>
> For first night of Lunar New Year, Asian cinnamon beef with spinach and udon. Wine was the
> 1994 Lindemans St. George Cabernet Sauvignon. Man this is sweet. Cassis, blackberry liqueur, vanilla. Not fading, plenty of fruit, not hot, but not my style. Others would rate much higher I think. B-/C+
>

First I've heard of beluga lentils, Dale. Jean just bought some lovely
French lentils which I'm going to prepare with some duck breasts soon.
I'll have to give the beluga lentils a try. Do you think that the
spicing of the beef could have altered your perception of the Cabernet
at all?


> Sunday(Valentines), oysters with leftover Riesling and GV, then 5 spice duck breast, sesame noodles, green salad with pickled ramp ranch dressing. Wine was the 1999 Chevillon €œLes Roncieres€� Nuits St Georges 1er. Red fruited but msaculine, still a bit of tannin, good acids, quite long. Cherry, black cherry, espresso, soil tones. Drinking very well in a sturdy NSG style. A-

Good to hear about the Chevillon. Our '99s are gone now, so no chance
to compare notes.

Happy year of the ox to you and family!
Mark Lipton

On Wednesday, February 17, 2021 at 12:32:00 PM UTC-5, Mark Lipton wrote:
> On 2/17/21 12:10 PM, wrote:
> > Beluga lentils with sausage and collards, and the 2019 Hirsch Kammern Gruner Veltliner.
> > Tropical and citrus, quite ripe, dont think Id have picked as GV. B-
> >
> > For first night of Lunar New Year, Asian cinnamon beef with spinach and udon. Wine was the
> > 1994 Lindemans St. George Cabernet Sauvignon. Man this is sweet. Cassis, blackberry liqueur, vanilla. Not fading, plenty of fruit, not hot, but not my style. Others would rate much higher I think. B-/C+
> >
> First I've heard of beluga lentils, Dale. Jean just bought some lovely
> French lentils which I'm going to prepare with some duck breasts soon.
> I'll have to give the beluga lentils a try. Do you think that the
> spicing of the beef could have altered your perception of the Cabernet
> at all?
> > Sunday(Valentines), oysters with leftover Riesling and GV, then 5 spice duck breast, sesame noodles, green salad with pickled ramp ranch dressing. Wine was the 1999 Chevillon €œLes Roncieres€� Nuits St Georges 1er. Red fruited but msaculine, still a bit of tannin, good acids, quite long. Cherry, black cherry, espresso, soil tones. Drinking very well in a sturdy NSG style. A-
> Good to hear about the Chevillon. Our '99s are gone now, so no chance
> to compare notes.
>
> Happy year of the ox to you and family!
> Mark Lipton

Beluga lentils are small and black, really resemble caviar. Often suggested in long cooked (or in this case pressure cooked) dishes as they don't fall apart like other lentils.
Maybe re food affecting, but I decanted before serving and was taken aback by the sweetness then.