Spent all day Sunday working (meeting), then came home, walked the dog, did finishing touches on my dish, grabbed wine, and headed to neighbors for a friend's birthday dinner.
They had out radishes with butter, I put out my shrimp/chevre salad in endi ve, and we started with bubbly:
NV Bremont "Cuvee Prestige" Brut Champagne Full, rich, but with crisp acids, white fruit (apple and pear) with baked b read. Nice, long. B+/A-
NV Rimarts Cava Reserva "18" This is quite snappy, fresh, with lemon and anise over green apple fruit. G ood value, wish it has been served before the Bremont. B/B+
Dinner was osso buco, lemon risotto, brussels sprouts, and salad
2001 Marcarini "Brunate" Barolo Double decanted a few hours before dinner, this showed nicely. Red and blac k cherries, tar, some floral topnotes. Tannins are there but rather refined , good acids, no hurry but this was already enjoyable with some air. A-/B+2007 Rivetto "Del Comune Di Serralunga D'Alba" Barolo Not a producer I know, ripe red fruit, a little coffee, pleasant and surpri singly ready. Tasty though not especially Nebbioloish to me, B
2009 Lorenzo Alutto Barbaresco Ripe, some tannin, but youngest wine is the one that seems flat and tired. B-/C+Monday I grilled artic char; served with brown rice, leftover turnip green s and cabbage. Wine was the 2014 Guion Bourgueil rose. Medium bodied, wild strawberry and citrus zest, nice food wine. B
Tuesday was BBQ tofu, broccoli with red peppers and a soy/sesame dressing, and radishleaf pesto potato salad. Wine was the 2014 Roilette (Coudert) Fle urie. Fairly light but with nice flavor profile, bright red fruits with spi ce and smoke. Others think this is to age, I think I'm drinking (and enjoyi ng) these young, Don't doubt it will age, but unlike say '05 not sure this will improve. B+
Wednesday was spicy roast chicken breast with a mint sauce, more potato sal ad, and brussels sprouts. Wine was the 2012 Occhipinti SP68. Red fruit, lot s of spice, a little barnyard edge. Nice wine, but not as compelling as her pure Frappato. B
Thursday we went to friends' home for dinner (and to meet their new cat), t hey served pasta (they're gluten-free . but this Bionaturae GF pasta was be tter than any I've tasted, world's better than brown rice pasts) with a bac on/parsnip/fennel sauce, cabbage, and salad. Wine was the 2014 Weimer Chard onnay. I like some of Weimer's wines, but this was sweet canned pear juice. There was some acid underneath, and no real oak, but I found cloying. C+
But great people, great cat, tasty food, and nice setting.
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.