Friday we went over to some friends to celebrate their son’s marria ge (to a nice girl he met in basic training). Just a small dinner, but lots of fun
With garlicky shrimp bruschetta, spiced pear with bacon skewers
NV Veuve Clicquot Brut Champagne Medium to full bodied, tastes like fairly high dosage, but nice elegant mou sse and pleasant apple and toast flavors. Not very long. Not my fave big ho use NV, but better than 10-15 year ago versions (though I have good memorie s of VC 25+ years ago). B-
Lamb chops, asparagus, winter squash, and salad (Betsy had brought, an Otto lenghi recipe, spinach with dates, almonds, & pita, spiced with chili and s umac)
2001 Ch. Gloria Red plum, tobacco, leather. Only light tannins remaining. Pleasant claret t hat’s ready to go. B+/B2005 Muga Unfiltered Rioja Reserva Sweet, ripe kirschy fruit and a bit of oak. Most people’s fave. B-/ C+
Saturday we hosted a pair of couples. Started with pumpernickel with sable butter, pork rillettes, chicken liver mousse, and the NV Laherte Ultraditio n. Marked Brut Nature on front, Brut on back. I’d guess the latter. Elegant mousse, pear and apples, a floral note. B+
First course was creamed mushrooms and caramelized onion bruschetta.
2011 Bize “Aux Vergelesses”Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Blanc Full, zesty with snappy acids, pear fruit with hazelnut and a touch of new oak. Pretty young white Burg. A-/B+Main course was cider braised pork shoulder, with broccoli rabe and parsnip /celeriac mash
1978 Lucien Geoffroy “Clos Prieur” Gevrey-Chambertin Never hear of this negoce, but this was alright. Pretty stinky at first, bl ack cherry with merde. Cleans up on nose a bit, black cherry with a little burnt sugar on palate, mushrooms, pasture. B2004 Pavelot “Aux Guettes” Savigny-les-Beaune 1er Opened to investigate if Greenie Meanies were resolving, but this had some definite pine needle meets oregano notes. Focusing on that takes away lots of enjoyment from what is otherwise a good wine- bright red fruits, nice st ructure with both moderate acids and smooth tannins, good finish. On next d ay it showed much less green. Day 1 B-, Day 2 B+
1971 Canon (St Emilion) Tangy and reserved at first, some time in decanter helped a lot. Red plums, cocoa, leather. Plusher mouthfeel, more Pomerol-ish than StE. Mature but n ot fading. B+/A-Sunday I had an all day meeting, came home and Betsy had made a recent NYT riff on chicken tetrazinni (Chicken, mushrooms and spaghetti, but with guaj illo and poblano chiles and Cheddar). I chose the 2014 Vie di Romans Dessi mis Pinot Grigio ,which wasn’t a great match, the spice/heat could have used a little RS. Wine itself is nice in a ripe/round way (but with so me acidic backbone) but I don’t like as much as Vie Di Romans SB, b ut probably not worth the slight price premium over other Friulian PGs for me. B
No wine tonight (Soba and chard in a dashi broth, kohlrabi/pear/arugula sal ad)
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a p arty where it was only choice.Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivi ty, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.