Saturday I went to a fundraiser for social action needs at a local church. I'm not a churchgoer, but the minister is my best friend, the chef for the fundraiser is a close friend, the music organizer for the fundraiser is my sister-in-law, and my organization was one of the three beneficiaries of the fundraiser. So rather obligatory, but I had a great time anyway.
This church holds "Table d'Hote" fundraisers monthly, with my friend Alex cooking. Normally they do 45 people, but this time it was 125, with music also. They had some Pinot Noir flowing, but several people at my table also brought wine:
2002 Domaine Laroche "St. Martin" Chablis I brought this to go with the first course (kind of ratatouille in a crepe). Showed quite well- nice rocky minerals, grapefruit and green apple. Good acidic backbone, clean finish. B/B+2004 Arco Nova Vinho Verde Simple, unassuming, clean. B-
As we moved to the beef bourgignon and roasted potatoes, many reds flowed:
2004 Castle Rock Pinot Noir (Monterey) This was the house pour. Nice fruit-forward, cherry and araspberry fruit, not too soft. Good budget choice for a big crowd. B1996 Le Crock (St. Estephe) Marc said he decanted this in the afternoon, but man this was hard. Marc said he's encountered amazing bottle variation. Others liked this better than me, and maybe a big steak would change my mind, but this showed nowhere near enough of the (cassis) fruit to match up to the hard drying tannins. B-/C+
2003 Henry's Drive Shiraz Lots of oaky espresso bean notes, lush blackberry fruit, lots of flavor, just not the flavors that most appeal to me (and not enough acidity for the food). I liked better as a dessert wine later. B-2000 Clos des Lambrays My contribution. Drinking quite well (a couple hours air), mediumbodied, pretty, black cherry fruit with lots of damp earth, good concentration. Not a blockbuster, but nice wine, seems this GC is on the rebound. Another nice early drinking 2000. B+/A-
Fun night. During the meal members of the Met Opera Orchestra and the Manhattan String Quartet serenaded us, then we moved to the sanctuary where a changing roster of string players did a variety of pieces culminating with the Presto movement of the Mendelssohn Octet, followed by some pieces performed by the New York Symphonic Brass. We returned to our tables for some jazz and dessert. I actually kind of liked the Henrys Drive as a Port substitute.
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.