Last night was eve of my birthday, but as Betsy had an early morning flight today we celebrated then. A half dozen friends joined us (plus a bonus Dachshund). Betsy made a king crab salad with mozzarella, brisket pot roast, glazed carrots and parsnips, braised leeks, and mashed potatoes.
The cooking wines:
2005 Viticcio Chianti Classico
Medium acids, soft finish, cherries and berries. Decent QPR at normal price of $10-12. B-
2008 Urban Uco Torrontes
Bright lemony acids, a floral edge to nose, quite light but a cheerful little wine.. Good value at $9. B-/B
The greeting wines:
NV Pierre Peters Blanc de Blanc "Le Mesnil Grand Cru" Brut Champagne
I thought I'd had this bottle for several years, but it's lot L012007. I assume that's a Jan 07 disgorgement, so 2 years I'd guess. Dry, fairly brawny, apples and chalk. Not a very yeasty style. Mousse a tad coarse, not a Champagne that screams elegant,but very nice. B+/A-
2007 Selbach-Oster "Zeltinger Sonnenuhr" Kabinett
Classic Mosel Riesling, apples and slate, good though not tart acidity, light and refreshing. B+
With the king crab salad
2005 Esprit de Beaucastel Blanc
Creamy, a little oily, modest acidity, mango and peach fruit, somewhat floral. B/B-
2005 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet
Lovely young Burgundy, pears laced with lemon juice and light vanillin oak notes, a sense of earthy minerality. Good to start with and even better revisited an hour later. A-/B+
With the pot roast
2000 Ch. Talbot (St Julien)
I decanted about 2 hours in advance, but I was surprised that it seemed fairly open at opening. By time the meat was served it was strutting, cassis and red fruits with spice, leather,and a little oak. Still some tannins, but plenty of fruit to balance, drinking well now but should hold quite well. Maybe my fave Talbot since '86. A-
1990 Pavie Decesse (St Emilion)
Nice midbodied old style St Emilion, black plums, saddle leather, cigarbox. Fully mature, and not the most concentrated or long wine, but a tasty wine in its prime. B+/B
Somewhere along here I also opened a Burg at Alex's request:
2002 JJ Confuron Chambolle-Musigny
Not sure why I have couple of these, not a producer I usually buy. Nice PN fruit, black cherries and raspberries, with an overlay of oaky tones. Besides the oak, it seems more like a someone muscular NSG or Gevrey than a Chambolle. Not really what I look for in a Chambolle, and others liked more than I. Still, not bad. B/B-
Rachel brought a nice assortment of cheeses, Dave a pear tart, and we opened a dessert wine:
1989 Brisebarre "Grande Reserve" Vouvray Moelleux
This is on the dry side of Moelleux (or the sweet side of demi-sec!), Apples, peach skin, honey. Good acidity, a little waxiness. For an '89 Vouvray not a lot of verve. B-
Not a bad night of wines, and a great night of friends. Knowing I was getting up at 4:15, I didn't do much "post dinner tasting" as I did dishes. But noticed there was about 2 oz of the Leflaive, and poured into my white wine glass. Wow, that's different though kind of tasty- that's when I realized my last use of that glass (and the .5 oz or so that had been in it) was the Vouvray, not the Puligny. Oops!
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. 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.