Category Wine

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Charles Krug 1974 “Burgundy”

Mar 25, ’06 4:09 PM

Tried a really amazing old wine today down at wine storage – the Charles Krug 1974 Napa Valley “Burgundy”, opened by Chuck Miller. The bottle was in perfect shape, and the wine itself amazingly spicy and lush. The term “Burgundy” here doesn’t really mean Pinot Noir, and the label merely says it’s choice “wine grapes,” which could mean it’s a mix of anything – cabernet, zinfandel, petite sirah. The color is fairly brick and orange, but it’s “old wine” spicy and complex. A real treat to taste, even though it’s very “weird” from a modern wine perspective.

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Quilceda Creek vertical tasting (1/21/06)

Jan 27, ’06 10:25 PM

Sorry I haven’t written much lately. Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve had a friend visiting for part of the time and I’ve been super-busy with the new job for the rest of the time. My upcoming post on Fukuyama and stage-schemes of historical progress is coming along slowly — somehow I allowed myself to fall for the oldest excuse in the book: “I’ll just read a couple more references before writing the next section and it’ll be better.”

For now, I’ll have to content myself with writing up our vertical tasting of Quilceda Creek cabernet. Last Saturday, we held a long-planned tasting of these cabernets — the best in Washington State, in my opinion. Between my friend Wayland Wasserman and I, we had QC in the cellar from 1987 through 1997 (except 1994 for some reason), and a bottle of 2000. Harriet Wasserman hosted the event, cooked a terrific dinner of beef braised in port, wild rice, bread pudding, and others brought salads and side dishes. I kicked things off with my first olive tapenade of 2006 and James and Kate brought an extensive cheese selection.

The wines were in great condition. One wine, the 1991, was probably very slightly corked. Not enough to destroy the palate, but enough that you’d occasionally get a whiff of cardboard. The 2000 was simply too young to evaluate, except that it seemed a bit overripe for my tastes. Overall, I don’t think any of these wines are mature yet. Even the 1987 was still fairly “adolescent,” with only a hint of old-wine spice. The 1988 and 1989 were still quite unevolved and tannic, though the 1988 had a hint of tobacco after about half an hour in the glass.

Among the 17 of us at dinner, the 1993 was the unanimous favorite — a dead ringer for an adolescent Graves. Pipe tobacco, herbal notes, graphite, and sweet juicy fruit. For me, the 1990 was next, with incredible balance but still very youthful (the next day, during the Seahawks playoff game, a different group retasted this alongside the 1990 Reserve and there’s no contest — the Reserve is a phenomenal wine and the regular merely very good). Finally, the 1996 and 1995 both terrific wines as well. The 1996 in particular, with its high proportion of cabernet franc, has a very different nose but will be a beautiful wine. Probably the least favorite wine of the night was 1992, which seemed thin and plummy, but without a lot of complexity.

A few of these wines (1991, 1993, the younger ones) I’ll have more chances to taste out of the cellar, but sadly this was the last of my 1980′s vintages. Probably should have held them another 5 years before drinking, which is what I’d recommend for anyone who has well-stored bottles.

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Chave Hermitage 1994 and home-made pizza

Nov 18, ’05 6:54 PM

I had a pretty good day today, and am getting close on my job hunt. By next week I’ll have something to talk about publicly. So I’m having a bottle of Hermitage to celebrate, and making home-made pizza again. Very little cheese, to keep the fat content low, and a good home-made pizza sauce made from simmered chopped tomatoes and garlic, very simple. Tonight’s fare is red onion, red bell pepper, kalamata olive, and oregano, with a mix of low-fat mozzarella and parmesan sprinkled very lightly, with pepperoni only on half.

The wine is Chave’s 1994 Hermitage, which I just opened and needs a bit of time to breathe. Even just after opening, though, it’s sweetly spicy (not sugar sweet but rather, in the form of sweet spices), on top of the black fruit and signature high-toned tart finish. After a bit of air time, it’s pretty clear that the 1994 is good but not profound. 1994 was a tough vintage in the northern Rhone, with rain in September that ruined harvest for many producers. Chave’s Hermitage is sweet on the palate with good body but at 11 years old, is fairly light and lacking in the depth that one sees in the better vintages. My guess is that early drinking is fine with this wine, although there’s nothing about the 1994 that suggests that it won’t age gracefully for awhile longer.

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Vieux Telegraphe 1998 and other recent wines

Nov 13, ’05 5:12 PM

The Vieux Telegraphe 1998 is nowhere near ready, but I’m moving from one cellar space to another, and during the tedious process of inventory I discovered I had an odd number of bottles, so naturally I decided that it was time to check on it. The wine is still brooding and dark, showing little depth the night we opened it but a lot of tannin and some dark juicy fruit. The next evening it was showing the dark leathery rubber core one expects from a “good” year VT as it begins to mature, but without any of the bright red high-toned fruit one also expects. Only on the second evening after opening did the “red” fruit notes come out in the nose, in the form of syrupy cherries from the Grenache, but still with plenty of dark closed potential that just plain needs more time. The wine is going to be phenomenal when more mature, and I’m very very glad I continue to buy and stock Vieux Telegraphe in my cellar, year in and year out. I’ve tried every vintage (except 1987) since 1978, and haven’t been disappointed. Even the “lighter” years like 1984 have been interesting, and although the 1982 and 1984 fade very quickly after opening these days, the 1988 is still giving a lot of pleasure compared to the dark, closed 1989.

I just tried a half bottle of 2001 Tempier “classique” (or “regular”), found while moving cellar spaces. The wine is deep purple-black, as expected, but mellowing a bit from the vibrant tart raciness that characterizes this wine just after bottling (the Tempier regulars in general, I mean). There are hints of tree bark earthiness starting to show, but not much in the way of leather or rubber yet. Still, the tannins are silky and not obtrusive, and it’s very pleasant to drink.

While moving, I discovered a cache of the 1995 Charbonniere Chateauneuf, a Kermit Lynch wine that was very reasonable (low 20′s) back in the 1997-time frame when I bought it. I never really considered it part of my “core” set of Chateauneufs to age, so I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of bottles. Opening one tonight as I simmer a pasta sauce, I find it reminds me of Les Cailloux: kirsch-like cherry fruit, with salty herbal aromas and a beef au-jus note on the palate. Surprisingly good, actually. Not quite mature, but I’m not sure what I think about aging it longer, since I have no experience with older examples of this wine (except for one, a long time ago, which was dried out and not at its best). But the other three bottles aren’t destined to last much longer anyhow, since this is tasty now!

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What’s the story of this cocktail recipe?

Sep 10, ’05 7:43 PM

OK.  I’m hoping somebody out there knows the provenance and origins of this drink.  A gin martini, with equal parts of Grand Marnier, splash of vermouth (of course), and a twist of lemon.  A superb drink, it’s not sweet like many of the "fancy" martinis out there, so it appeals to me when I’m in the mood for something besides a classic martini (which requires a 4-5 : 1 ratio of gin to dry French vermouth, instead of this "wave the vermouth over the glass" crap.  Harrumph).

The drink in question came from numerous samplings at the Gallery Bar in the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, over the last decade.  It’s apparently a cocktail of some antiquity, maintained at the Biltmore less for its crowd-pleasing characteristics for but its historic significance, as I vaguely recall from discussions with the bartender.  I travel to Los Angeles less than I prefer nowadays, so my opportunities to pursue the story are limited.  Does anyone out there know the story of this martini variant? 

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Recent Wines in August

Aug 25, ’05 10:26 AM

Back towards the beginning of the month, we had some fairly notable wines:

  • Raveneau Montee de Tonnere 1997 Chablis (this was terrific, with great acidity and an almost licorice concentration)
  • Leroy 1978 Meursault AOC (fascinating and well-stored but more interesting than terrific)
  • Raveneau Montmains 1995 Chablis (superb, still very youthful but drinking very well)
  • Domaine de Chevalier Blanc 2001 (many of us thought it was Loire sav blanc, were fooled. Is on the crisper, rather than lusher, end of white Bordeaux. Excellent wine)
  • Georges Deleger 1996 Chevalier-Montrachet (superb, spicy, terrific body)
  • D’Armilhac/Mouton Baronne 1982 (superb bottle, well extracted, sweet and juicy but a nice maturity)
  • Palmer 1982 (not nearly as good as the D’Armilhac but a good bottle of mature Bordeaux)
  • Gouges 2000 Clos de Porrets St. Georges (excellent Pinot, fairly subtle but forward and lush)
  • Jaboulet 1995 Les Cedres Chateauneuf (my contribution – spicy, sweet, peppery, not ready but coming along nicely)
  • Prum 1990 GK Auslese (incredible bottle of Prum – honeyed bruised apples, hint of petrol, plenty of acid)
  • Renou 1997 Cuvee Anne Bonnezeaux (not my style – this seemed weird and funky, not clean, but I’m told this is what the Renou is supposed to be like. Glad I focused on Pierre-Bise and Baumard)
  • Schloss Johannisberg 1976 Auslese “blue cap” (gorgeous Riesling, definitely 1970′s but youthful. Thick “bruised apple” sweetness, great acid)
  • Gouges 1971 Vaucrains (Chuck pulled this out after the desserts while we were playing pool. Spicy, very much alive, but at the edge. Not much body left)

There were a couple of other wines there, but not as notable, including my Kunstler 2001 Hoch Reich Kabinett — good but not noteworthy.

Tuesday night I had dinner at Cafe Campagne with the usual suspects — Bryan Loufbourrow was in town so we had a good excuse. We began with a decent but forgettable Tavel (Aqueria 2003), while we waited for everyone to arrive. Wines included:

  • Colin Deleger Chassagne Vergers 1996 (creamy and excellent, improved greatly with air)
  • Jadot 1996 Gevrey Clos St. Jacques (superb, still very youthful but great fruit and depth)
  • Dujac 1998 Gevrey Combottes (amazingly extracted with too much new oak for my tastes right now, but I think it’ll integrate later)
  • Dom. de Lambrays 2003 Clos de Lambrays (herbal, great concentration, light sweet oak. Nice.)
  • Tempier 1992 Cabassaou (bottle was very slightly off, the smells were right but muted. Oh well. Might have been my only 92 Cab)
  • Beaucastel 1981 (wine of the night — this was a terrific bottle of the 1981, with no drying out. Parker is still right about this wine — “Mourvedre cotton candy” describes it beautifully)
  • J.B. Becker 1989 Wallufer Walkenberg TBA (holy shit – intense peach/apricot, great acid. Wow.)
  • Ridge Zinfandel 1993 “Essence” (intense blackberry pie, with some brown sugar. A “discussion” ensued about maturity in this wine, but it’s safe to say it’s maybe no less than 1/2 way to full maturity. Amazing stuff)

I suspect that’s probably it for wines in August, it’s a busy month.

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