WTN: Two Whites At BayWolf...(short/boring)

I usually schedule lunch at BayWolf w/ SteveEdmunds & OliverMcCrum when I first
hit town. Alas, they were both out of town this time...but went ahead w/ the
lunch plans anyway. Joining me were Chris and Pat from my wine group, who happened
to be in the Bay area, and Pat's son, Jasper. I brought two wines:
1. Teruzzi&Puthod Terre di Tufo DOC: Vernaccia di SanGimignano (12.5%) Fattoria Ponte
a Rondolino 1987: Med.light gold color; slight earthy/dusty rather stoney some floral/
perfumed very fresh nose w/ little complexity; tart/crisp/steely lean stoney/floral/
aromatic very fresh/clean flavor; long crisp/steely/tart light stoney rather floral/
carnations clean/fresh slight complex finish; as clean & fresh as if it were bottled
last week. Amazing stuff.
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2. EdmundsStJohn Shell&Bone PasoRobles WW (14.2%; Viognier/Roussanne/Marsanne) 2004:
Med.yellow/gold color; slight reduced/stinky nose that clears rapidly to quite floral/
perfumed/pear rather minerally/stoney some complex nose; tart/clean/crisp rather minerally/
stoney quite pear/floral/honeysuckle very perfumed some complex flavor; very long/lingering
quite floral/perfumed/pear/peach/honeysuckle rather minerally/stoney/steely textured/rich
some complex finish; has really developed into a lovely wine and should go another 5+ yrs.
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BP:
1. Vernaccia: As I was rummaging in my cellar the night before for some interesting things
to take on my RR'09 trip, I stumbled upon this btl. 20 yr old Vernaccia??? Whoa....this
has gotta be deader than a doornail. But tossed it in anyway so's I could make Steve's
S&B look good (as if that was necessary!!). When it was opened & poured at lunch, I
immediately noted that the color was wrong. It was NOT brown & oxidized at all. The first
whiff told me that this wine was still very much alive. Absolutely unfriggin' unbelieveable.
It was as fresh & clean as if it'd been bottled the week before. Classic Terre di Tufo
character. True...it hadn't developed much complexity over 20 yrs and was still a bit
tight/austere on the palate, but a clear joy to drink on its own merits. No telling how
long this wine'll live. Alas my last and only bottle. Have no idea why I bought it in
the first place.
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2. Shell&Bone: This wine is from the Rozet Vnyd, from which Steve no longer sources fruit.
I believe the only Paso fruit he gets now is the TablasCreek Roussanne. This wine, at
release, was a pretty tight/lean/wirey sort of wine. It has really blossomed over a few yrs
and has wonderful aromatics, plus that underlying minerality. No "low-brow Cotes du Rhone"
Blanc this wine!!
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3. As usual, the lunch at BayWolf was wonderful. A leasurly lunch out in a bright sun on the front patio at BayWolf with great wines and good friends...don't get no better.
Tom

Are you talking about the place on Piedmont in Oakland? My god. It's been decades. I owned a restaurant two blocks from there in the long ago.

Tom
Clearly Vinfanticide on that Vernaccia
Yes I did do a double take when I saw the vintage and the wine in your note.

Sometimes we get a bit caught up on certain wines being cellarworthy and others don't even get considered for ageing. I've had some very pleasant surprises with occasional auction makeweights, wines that should have been drunk years ago, but in reality are still in good shape and sometimes the trade off of freshness vs complexity works far better than expected.

regards

Ian

Sometimes we get a bit caught up on certain wines being cellarworthy and others don't even get considered for ageing. I've had some very pleasant surprises with occasional auction makeweights, wines that should have been drunk years ago, but in reality are still in good shape and sometimes the trade off of freshness vs complexity works far better than expected.
regards
Ian

Yup.....there are a lot of wines, particularly in whites, that can withstand the test of time far better than conventional wisdom tells us. Oz Riesling and Semillon are two very good examples...as you well know. Chablis (as in French) is another one. And Loire CheninBlanc. And Bordeaux/Graves.
Tom

Are you talking about the place on Piedmont in Oakland? My god. It's been decades. I owned a restaurant two blocks from there in the long ago.

Yep, same one. It's a paragon of consistency, too, having gone through any number of chefs (including several friends of mine) during that time and managing to maintain a fairly steady level of excellence. That hole-in-the-wall over on Shattuck near Steve E has also done fairly well, I'm told

Mark Lipton

Apropos of precisely nothing whatosever...

But I've always wanted to open up a place across the street from BayWolf.

It would be named "Grendel".

Are you talking about the place on Piedmont in Oakland? My god. It's been decades. I owned a restaurant two blocks from there in the long ago.

Yep, same one. It's a paragon of consistency, too, having gone through any number of chefs (including several friends of mine) during that time and managing to maintain a fairly steady level of excellence. That hole-in-the-wall over on Shattuck near Steve E has also done fairly well, I'm told

Mark Lipton

It was good back then. I sat on the deck several afternoons. My girlfriend worked at Albert's Frame Shop across the street. As I recollect there was Mexican restaurant and a bar across the street, too.

Apropos of precisely nothing whatosever...

But I've always wanted to open up a place across the street from BayWolf.

It would be named "Grendel".

Where you would no doubt serve Danish pastry.