My wife & I celebrated my b-day with dinner at Fraiche in Culver City and then a stop over at Sona for some cheese and surprises.
With dinner, we started with this Rully off the wine list.
2005 J.M. Boillot Rully 1er Cru Les Cloux - France, Burgundy, Côte Chalonnaise, Rully 1er Cru (12/29/2007)
Showed very nicely, with some lively citrus notes. Good balance with plenty of acidity and freshness. The midpalate has good fruit presence. Pretty good length on the finish A delicious wine we enjoyed to start our night off.
I brought this along and couldn't have been happier with the selection.
2000 Domaine du Pégaü Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (12/29/2007)
Not much to add to the choir's praise of these young but delicious wine. We opted to decant just prior to serving. Despite it's youth, it showed sophistication and class. I'm very pleased I chose this wine to open. It got better and better, continuing to add layers of expressive bright fruit with nice leather and garrigue notes. Very little barnyard in this bottle (like night and day compared to first release '99). Suffice it to say this is simply a classy wine that offers incredible pleasure at the moment.
We then headed over to Sona for some cheese and dessert. I always have fun hanging out with Josh, Mark and Noel. Glasses are placed and many times I'm not told what it is.
2005 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru (12/29/2007)
Tasted Blind. Big and lush nose giving off chopped nuts, lemon rind and crush flowers. Concentrated and expansive in the mouth, with plenty of grippy acidity. Excellent length on the finish. I guessed grand cru white burg, but didn't (and couldn't) narrow it further. Once the wine was revealed, I was not surprised. This should be stunning with age as most of these wines are.
2004 La Fenêtre Syrah - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County (12/29/2007)
My friends Josh and Mark (Sona) launched a lable a few years ago. This was their first vintage. The Syrah is all Santa Barbara County fruit (Bien Nacido, Colson Canyon and Black Oak). I have had this wine several times over it's evolution. It really has come together nicely. Slightly reductive nose with dark berries and touch of white pepper. The palate has really settled down and become, dare I say it, elegant. Still with some grippy tannins to resolve, the structure is pretty solid and supportive. This wine should continue to evolve and gain some complexity. A very fine effort and a wine I would be proud of as a winemaker.
2004 Domaine des Baumard Coteaux du Layon Clos de Sainte Catherine - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Coteaux du Layon (12/29/2007)
Unfortunately, this wine suffered as we tasted it along side, and after, the '02 QdC. Basically, tonight this was a watered down version of the '02 QdC. This note really cannot do justice to the wine.
I brought this along to share.
2002 Domaine des Baumard Quarts de Chaume - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Quarts de Chaume (12/29/2007)
From .375ml, this is simply a stunning sweet wine. Luquid spice pears with additional layers of complexity present. An unctious wine with bright acidty and a rediculously long finish. I'm so glad I have a few more to enjoy and can't wait to see what becomes of this wine with age.
A fun night out and somewhat subdued in preparation for NYE debauchery. Happy New Year to all!