Weekend in the country

A couple of weeks ago, D and I caught the train from Kings Cross to an undisclosed location in middle England where G's parents' house is located. We arrived in the early afternoon feeling quite ravenous but things looked up when G presented us with a glass of excellent, very dry pre-war sherry.

I was then called upon to assist with the double magnum of Rully 1959 which G bought at auction in a moment of madness some time ago.

There was some debate as to whether it was red or white. I believe the auctioneers had described it as red, but looking at the colour, that seemed unlikely. We all tasted it and agreed it was very interesting and then the rest may or may not have been used for cooking.

Fortunately G had put a reserve white aside to accompany our wild smoked salmon for lunch. This in fact belonged to me, as I have a stash in the cellar which is out of sight, out of mind, thereby providing me with the pleasure of rediscovering it from time to time. The white wine in question was a Puligny Montrachet 1er cru Les Perrieres 2011 from Domaine Bzikot, which was bought from the wine shop in Puligny back in the day. This was rich and full and went very well with the food. Pity it was only a bottle and not a double magnum.

After lunch, we went for a walk into the nearby village and then returned to the house where the local felines were circling ready for their evening meal.

It was the first beautiful day of the year, and we sat outside and drank this bottle of Dom Perignon 2002, which was drinking perfectly now and went very nicely with a cheese straw.

With our dinner, an admirable cassoulet made by G's father, we had this bottle of Chapelle-Chambertin 2005 from Bouchard, which apparently I got in a mystery mixed bag from the Wine Society some time ago. Before tasting it, I had my doubts, as I have yet to drink a 2005 red Burgundy which I considered to be ready, but this proved to be the exception. It was muscular and rich and it was actually drinking. Our favourite wine merchant subsequently told us that Bouchard's style is more forward than others, so we shouldn't extrapolate from this.

Alongside the Chapelle-Chambertin, we had this 1934 Mazis-Chambertin Maison Jules Regnier, which G got at auction. This was quite remarkable, really lovely old burgundy, with a glorious nose, lovely texture and long finish. We drank it over about 45 minutes and it showed no sign of fading. Then we drank the dregs too, it was that good.

We rounded off the evening with a glass of  Dow 1963 which was in impeccable condition unlike some G has recently had. It was middleweight and not too sweet. "An old lady, but an attractive one" said G, sounding like a dreadful gold-digger.

On Sunday morning, after a breakfast of bacon sandwiches and coffee, we walked to Hambleton bakery which passed a pleasant hour, although I was gutted that the woman in front of us in the queue snaffled the last sausage roll. If only we'd walked a little faster... One could not however argue with the pricing of the coconut macaroons - 30p each - and they made a very fine accompaniment to a mid-morning glass of madeira.

On our return it was time for an inspection of the cellar...

G still hasn't worked out what to do with this magnum of Kummel! I suggested serving it like aquavit with some smoked salmon. Other suggestions welcome.

For lunch, we had an amazing roast capon which I imagine will feed G's father for the rest of the year, along with this bottle of 1983 Chateau Latour. It was the second bottle of the pair which I bought in December, and this one seemed weightier than the first, although that could be because it was drunk by itself rather than alongside a vibrant young Californian cabernet sauvignon.

The final line-up - spot the odd one out!

All in all, this was a fascinating weekend and we ate and drank very well indeed. Thanks to G's father for hosting, to to D for his congenial company and above all to G for organising everything and sharing these extraordinary wines with us.

SPNS, Mon 9th April

On Monday night, I made my way over to the Savile Club this time accompanied by thumping trance music courtesy of Paul Van Dyk's excellent podcast.

T was sitting with a distinguished-looking bearded gentleman who on closer inspection turned out to be D! Apparently the pair of them had decided seconds earlier that quorum had been reached, and so this bottle of Cuvee Brut 2013 from Hermann J Wiemer brought over by D had just been opened. It was perfect timing.

G and ACC duly showed up and we cracked on. We tried this wine at the winery back in September and were favourably impressed on that occasion. The general consensus was that it was admirable, creamy and smooth, generally a classy drop which might improve with time. It certainly gives many champagnes a run for their money.

We moved to the dining room upstairs where I had this as a starter - trying to remember what it was now! The yellow thing is definitely pasta, and I believe the pink thing is beetroot and there was also some goats cheese involved.

My contribution was this Beaune 2010 Chaume Gaufriot from Henri Audiffred, which has been sparking much joy here at AduV Towers. On this occasion it took a few minutes to open up and seemed less tropical than previously, but was generally considered to be top notch classic white burgundy. I suspect the remaining stocks need to be drunk in the near future though. Quelle horreur!

G contributed two wines, the first of which was "Queen Charlene's Dry Rose" from Seneca Shore winery in the Finger Lakes. I wrote about this winery here and Charlene is the name of David's wife for those wondering where the name came from. This was a relatively uncomplicated easy-drinking, fruity pink wine.

I can never resist pork belly and scallops when they appear on a menu...

We moved on to two reds. First this Beaujolais Nouveau 2016 from Dominique Piron, provided by ACC who with typical modesty wrote "Amazing!" in the Chronicles. Everyone else agreed that it was punching well above its weight and was fruity and drinkable. Certainly not your average Beaujolais Nouveau.

This A.A. Badenhorst Brak Kuil Barbarossa 2015 provided by T was quite a contrast. It was a big, gutsy, South African red which could really have done with some red meat to go alongside. We doubted it was 13.5% as claimed on the label. G subsequently referred to it as "break skull" as we both found ourselves suffering the next day and this was suspect number one.

Can never resist Welsh Rarebit either...

Finally, we had this La Font Del Bosc Maury 2004 also provided by G. It was described as thick, gooey and sweet by T, which was spot on, and we had no problem dispatching it. Thanks everyone. I can think of worse ways to spend a Monday evening!

Battle of the reds...

I mentioned in my last post that I recently took delivery of a couple of reds, which have been going down a storm at AduV Towers, First is this Coteaux Bourguignon 2016 from Chapuis & Chapuis. We had some of the 2017 at the recent dinner with Romain Chapuis.

G and I drank some of the 2016 the other night with a rack of lamb. G commented that on the nose you immediately think "natural Gamay" as it has a slightly feral quality. For me it was pure and pretty with lovely ripe fruit. It had a sweetness to it but also good acidity, and reminded us of tinned fruit salad, currants and red cherries. We thought I should tuck a bottle away for a year, although I'm not sure I'll manage to do that!

The other red is more my thing than G's - this Gorge Rouge 2014 from Domaine des Josephins. Possibly the name of the domaine may have encouraged a favourable disposition on my part.

This is pinot noir, and again made in a pretty natural way. For me, it is light and succulent with red fruits. At first I thought it was raspberry but then I landed on cranberry due to a certain mouthwatering quality. Definitely a wine with good acidity.

At 12.5%, both these wines are very easy to drink and are giving immediate pleasure. Thanks to ACC for finding them! And in other news, I have finally joined Instagram (here) We'll see how it goes...

Recent drinking round up!

Using the word "recent" in a loose sense here... it's finally time to pull together all the scrappy notes that I've been accumulating over the past few months and record some drinking!

First up, Fratrie Gamay. I bought this in the serious wine shop in Beaune. It was just 12% alcohol but you'd never guess - it packed a punch. It had an amazing fruity nose and was very juicy. It went down real easy, but was definitely one for short-term drinking. There was no vintage on it but the cork said 17.02 so we guessed it was 2016. The guy in the shop told us to serve it cool, which was definitely good advice. A very vibrant, accessible wine.

Then, something a little more serious... Clos-Vougeot 1995 from Chateau de la Tour. This was a dark colour and had a rich, mature and cedary nose. It was elegant and powerful, with notes of chocolate and drinking really well now. Black forest gateau in a glass. It had a beautiful weight and an excellent finish and all in all, was top notch stuff.

One evening, G contributed a bottle of Duhart-Milon 1988 which I am informed is a 4th growth Pauillac. This had the classic cabernet sauvignon nose and was silky and ripe but not fruity. We thought it would probably have been quite unpleasant in its youth. It was almost textbook middleweight Pauillac. G described it as having "slim fetlocks" (he was pleased with that one) and it was precise and congruent but perhaps slightly old school and austere.

Back to Burgundy, a bottle of Beaune Lulune 2010 from Emmanuel Giboulot. We decanted this two hours in advance and put it in the fridge. It was a nose of poached strawberries and was incredibly smooth, vibrant, elegant and feminine. Another low alcohol wine at just 12%. It went really well with our 100 pound, sorry 100 day old chicken. For me it was a definite 10 while G considered it a high 9.

Another 2010 was a white this time, Beaune Chaume Gaufriots from Domaine Audiffred. G and I had the first bottle of this with fish fingers, and I had another one with the boys a couple of weeks ago. I honestly think this is the best white Beaune I've had since the good old days of Yves Darviot. It was particularly good in the first half hour, with a lot of tropical fruit - passion fruit, mango, pineapple. An exuberant wine, with a sort of line of acidity down the middle. My notes contain the phrase "died and went to heaven". Over time, it became more classically lemony. I believe I still have 4 bottles left - don't think they'll be hanging around for long!

In early February, G and I drank this Hosmer Cabernet France 2009 which we brought back from the Finger Lakes. This had a lovely fruity nose with rich berries and plums, and reminded us of fruit compote. It was silky, succulent and congruent, with a freshness that gave it a mouthwatering quality, and a good finish. We had it with a lamb tagine and couscous, which worked very well. It was juicy, glossy and accomplished, and not at all green. Surprisingly serious stuff and very attractive. I continue to rate this winery highly and would definitely buy this wine again.

Another evening in early Feb, G showed up with this sercial from Cossart Gordon. He thought it had spent 30 years in cask and the bottling was postwar, possibly from the 1950s. It smelled like sercial, but was sweeter than expected on the palate, and we thought it probably had a rum base. I was moved to use one of my Irish granny's phrases: "No harm in that!" It had caramelised nuts, a slightly herbaceous edge to it, and a great finish. Really lovely stuff.

On the same evening, we cracked this bottle of Beaune Greves 1er cru 2008 from Chateau de Meursault. This had been hanging around in my wardrobe for some time, in a huge and somewhat ostentatious bottle. The wine itself looked glossy and was pretty and typique, with a nice weight and the classic red Beaune perfume, and was drinking very well now. All in all, a decent 8 on the premier cru scale.

And finally, in late February, we had a bottle of Kylix Cuvee 2007 from Seneca Shore, also in the Finger Lakes. This was a dark purple colour and had amazing legs. It had a very cabernet franc nose, with menthol and blackcurrant, and was a lovely weight. G said it was frontal, a term which always makes me laugh, but I wasn't sure I agreed. The finish actually reminded me of mouthwash it was so minty. Somehow this bottle seemed lighter than previous bottles, so we wondered if it was getting to the end of its life. When we had it with food, however, in this case a beef stew, it seemed to gain weight. A pity they're not making it any more.

That brings us reasonably up to date and this week I took delivery of a couple of reds which have been in storage so will be writing about them soon...

Dinner with Romain Chapuis, 1st March

On Thursday night, I braved the Beast from the East and made it through the slush to the ICA on the Mall, where Rochelle have taken over the restaurant. I've been a couple of times and it has established itself as a firm favourite, not least because of the pies!

We were there for a wine-tasting dinner with Romain Chapuis, hosted by ACC of the Burgundy Portfolio. I'm a big fan of Romain's wines and attended a dinner he did previously, two or three years ago (strangely I don't appear to have blogged about it) so was very excited to get one more chance to try them again.

I arrived expecting the tasting to be upstairs in the restaurant, but then I heard familiar voices coming from the left and discovered what one might call an inner sanctum, a little alcove, where a number of people were already gathered and were drinking 2016 Orange Blossom aligote en magnum. After a couple of minutes opening up in the glass this turned out to be a very enjoyable, refreshing aperitif and I was lucky enough to get a couple of refills.

Then we moved upstairs for dinner where I sat with G and the Baron, so our end of the table could certainly not be accused of being boring. We tasted a number of bottles which had been shown to the restaurant earlier in the day. Of the whites, we tried the 2016 Bourgogne Blanc which had a lively acidity and notes of lime, while the Rully 2016 was well-balanced with good grip, and very drinkable. I'd already tasted this back in January and placed an order so was glad to confirm my own opinion.

I managed not to get a photo of my favourite red, the 2017 Coteaux Bourguignons "sans soufre" which is a Gamay, and reminds me of those lovely Beaujolais which I love - Foillard etc. It had a beautiful nose and was light and fruity and very glou-glou. At least nine out of ten. I bought some of the 2016 last year and am really looking forward to drinking it soon if spring ever appears.

I also very much enjoyed this 2016 Cotes de Nuits Villages "Les Chaillots" which was richer, with black fruits.

Two other highlights were this 2015 Maranges which I see I bought last year - this is turning into a very self-congratulatory blog post I'm afraid - and the 2013 Pernand-Vergelesses "Les Belles Filles". I appear to have given up making notes when we got to the Maranges but for me it has an enjoyably rustic quality. Call me old fashioned but I think it would go well with sausages, and is good value for a village red, while the Pernand was more elegant and fruity.

As always, the food at Rochelle was excellent and I particularly enjoyed the rillettes and the chicken, leek and tarragon pie which I remembered to take a photo of before I guzzled it all. Happiness ensued.

Some readers may have noticed a few song references clumsily inserted into this blog post.* The Baron became agitated half way through dinner and clearly wished to communicate something but wasn't being sufficient vocal for me to hear, so he had to scribble it down on his menu. It turned out that Neil Tennant had just sat down at the table next to us. As we're huge Pet Shop Boys fans this was very exciting and I had to resist the temptation not to keep staring at Neil as he was reading his book. Two glasses of champagne had been poured and I was on tenterhooks wondering who was going to join him for dinner; it turned out to be none other than Janet Street Porter! I was delighted to see that they both had pies too.

All in all, a super evening. Thanks ACC and Romain!

*Eight altogether.

Dinner at Hawksmoor, 30th December

A lot of unexpected things happened at the end of 2017 all of which were pretty damned good, and one of them was becoming friends with J who lives across the pond. She was in London at the end of December and we were able to meet up a couple of times. We have a shared interest in wine so this was a great opportunity to do a Clash of the Titans (Titans Will Clash) contest between old world and new...

With Get The Party Started playing on my ipod, I lurked around outside the Hawksmoor admiring the Christmas lights on Regent St. Then J showed up and it was game on.

First things first, a negroni to get us in the mood. I've been drinking far too many of these lately, but I'm too lazy to do the thing with the orange, so it was nice to have one made properly by someone else for a change.

We handed our bottles over to the sommelier who seemed impressed even though I say so myself, although there was much checking throughout the evening as to whether these two "ladies" were going to drink both bottles all by themselves... positively shocking!

The sommelier did know his stuff though, as he advised us to begin with my contribution, the Latour 1983. J had never had Chateau Latour so I felt it necessary to introduce her to the civilised world and had spent a couple of months frantically looking at auction lists to find something suitable.

I went through my Latour phase a couple of years ago but that was mainly wines from the 1960s so I was excited about trying the 1983, although G had warned me that it might be relatively light, which it was. But I won't go so far as to describe it as luncheon claret. It had those classic cedar and cigar box things going on, and we also detected cocoa and maybe even leather. I've subsequently been informed that this wine can be found on a Las Vegas wine list for, wait for it, $16,000. Still rolling about laughing about that.

Then it was on to the bottle J had brought over with her, this Insignia 2004 from Joseph Phelps in the Napa Valley. What can I say? This was quite a contrast! It was big, approachable, fruity and generally crowd-pleasing. The terms blowsy and hedonistic sprang to mind, or perhaps opulent is a better way of putting it.

There was no clear winner as this was like comparing apples and pears, but it was fascinating to compare the different styles and both bottles were very enjoyable, as was the company. Thanks J for a fantastic evening!

Dinner at mine, 15th Nov

Yes, I realise this dinner happened over 3 months ago... things have been busy lately (in a good way) but I'm hoping to get caught up over the next few weeks.

On this occasion, P joined me and G for dinner at my place.

We kicked off with this Seneca Shore "non vintage" riesling (we suspect it did have a vintage, but they don't bother putting it on the label there). It came in at 12.5% and was light and refreshing, served very cold. It was in the German style rather than the Alsatian and made a very pleasant aperitif with some marcona almonds, especially at $15. There's a reference in my notes to drinking it on the deck, which definitely didn't happen given that it was late November and I don't actually have a deck!

Then we moved on to some fun bottles brought by P, who got them at auction, including two old champagnes. The Victor Cliquot was an amazing amber colour and had a nose of beeswax and honey. P said it reminded him of mead. It claimed to be extra dry which amused us as it was nothing of the sort. I got brioche and pain au raisin. The Charles de Cazanove was drier but it had the same waxy quality. G thought it came from the 1980s as the label was relatively modern.

Finally, we had a mystery wine, in the bottle on the left in the photo further up. The bottle was missing its label and there was nothing on the cork to tell us what it was, but the bottle had a big punt indicating that this was a serious wine. It had a golden colour and a nose of botrytis, but didn't seem all that sweet, with restrained fruit and a hint of apricot jam. G thought it was one of the lighter sauternes, possibly Chateau Nairac, again probably from the 1980s. My notes say "won't go with cheese" only immediately to contradict themselves by saying that it went well with the Epoisses and Cornish gouda... Thanks very much to P for sharing them with us!