Tonight Betsy made a D'Artagnan cookbook recipe of magret breast with cracklings and a sauce made of asparagus tips, walnut oil, vinegar, and mustard. Served over greens and topped with blackberries.When she had said duck breast I had retrieved what may be my last bottle of 1997 Burgundy, the 1997 Michel Lafarge Volnay. The choice was a bit of a mistake- the sauce was rather assertive (not clashing because of the asparagus, just extremely full-flavored) and the blackberries called for something weightier too. Next time a bigger New World PN, or maybe a Syrah.
The wine seems quite mature, warm red fruit surrounded by light notes of earth, mushrooms, and peat moss. The fruit is attractive, but not quite up to the challenge of the sauce and the berries. I enjoy more after the meal than during. Now it's a pleasant round Pinot (can't say it's identifiably Volnay). There's some depth to the fruit, but the relatively low acid and the secondary notes make it seem like it's aged as much as is prudent.I'm going to check whether this is indeed my last '97 Burg, and drink up anything left (I'm basing that on several '97s, and realize it's a big generalization, but I KNOW I don't own any GCs or top aging 1ers from '97, so seems reasonable). This gets a B overall (the match was a C, but the dish was good enough to ask Betsy to put it into the duck rotation).
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