Sunday lunch, 1st May

Yesterday I ventured south of the river for lunch with G and H at their new house. Also present were ACC and the Baron. I attempted to make a few notes but this will be mostly a review in pictures. 

G gave a tour of the house accompanied by this 2009 Moet and Chandon which was pleasingly mature.

ACC had brought along this intriguing looking white. I was paying insufficient attention when the Baron translated this for us, so have no idea what it is called. 

We were told it was a combination of two grapes from Burgundy, which turned out to be chardonnay and melon de bourgogne. It was certainly unusual, very aromatic with quite a grapey nose, and quite dry on the palate. It went well with the very pungent smoked trout starter. I also approved of the alcohol level. 

I had brought along two bottles of red which needed drinking up with good company. First was this Beaune 1er cru Les Epenottes 2009 from Domaine Parent. It looked beautiful in the glass, lovely and glossy, and was fully mature. I found it quite savoury and it almost reminded me of a claret, with some woody notes which others attributed to new oak. G gave it a solid 9 points. 

This Corton Perrieres grand cru 2009 from La Maison Romane went down even better as far as I was concerned. It had beautiful summer berries on the nose along with a slightly wild quality, and was drinking perfectly now.

Then G produced this 1973 Beaune 1er cru Les Greves from Yves Darviots, a real blast from the past as we used to stay at this domaine back in the day. It had survived remarkably well, especially considering that the vintage isn't well-regarded (for wine at least). It was perfumed, piquant, delicate and delicious, a real treat. In a crowded field, for me this was the top wine of the day. 

We finished off with a half of Suduiraut 2001, which went very nicely with a raspberry and almond tart. 

It was also a pleasure to see Benjy again, settling well into his new home and keeping an eye on things from his chair. 

Thanks to all for a most enjoyable lunch!

Sunday lunch at Hambleton Hall

On Sunday 2nd June, the five of us spurned the delights of the Rutland Show and instead went to Hambleton Hall for Sunday lunch. It was a beautiful day and we were able to sit outside for a pre-lunch snifter and enjoy the view of the gardens with Rutland Water in the distance. Despite HH's proximity to G's childhood home, neither he nor his father had been there before so it was a new experience for all of us.

G chose a magnum of Moet & Chandon 1990 for our aperitif - fantastic mature champagne confirming that champagne really is best en magnum. We received these lovely canapes including what were described as "Parmesan windmills" and some fantastic beetroot macarons with a goats cheese centre, hidden from view behind the "windmills". Our waiter fancied himself as a comedian but soon shut up when G's father told him to put a sock in it, quite rightly.

We went inside to eat lunch and most of us opted for the trad option i.e. roast beef, which was cooked to perfection and served on top of its Yorkshire pudding.

To accompany, we had this Morey St Denis 1er cru Cuvee des Alouettes 1999 from Domaine Ponsot. It wasn't the place to make detailed tasting notes but this went down a treat and we awarded it a 9. I've just had a look on the Premier Cru Project spreadsheet and couldn't find it - eek! - but according to Wikipedia it's part of the Clos des Monts Luisants vineyard, which we haven't had before, so that's very pleasing.

For pudding, I had a strawberry souffle which came with a little sorbet.

Then it was back out to the terrace for coffee and petits fours. 

All in all, a wonderful lunch - great food, wine and company. Thanks G!