To celebrate Jean's birthday today (discretion forbids me from mentioning years), I cooked her a dinner of smoked duck, cold borscht, sweet corn and orzo with a light salad.
As an aperitif and with the soup and corn:
2008 St. Urbans Hof Mosel Riesling QbA ($15.49) nose: flowers and citrus palate: light, lithe, zesty lime, off dry
Our first exposure to the '08 vintage in the Mosel was a good experience. Having had this wine in previous vintages ('05 and '06 IIRC), this year's version has more zip and is lighter on its feet. If a QbA can be this fun, I can't wait for the lower Prädikat QmPs.
With the duck, etc.
2004 J. L Chave St. Joseph nose: stones, bright, juicy, red berry fruit, a hint of meatiness palate: medium weight, bright, juicy, some complexity
Jean had asked for a Crozes with the duck, but our only Crozes at the moment is an '06 Graillot that is nowehere near ready. In truth, this wine was nowhere near ready, too, but still quite pleasant to drink. Jean complained of the simpleness and a lack of depth, but I suspect that another 5-10 years will produce a much more interesting wine than the one we had tonight. A decent match with smoked duck, though. Half the bottle retained for subsequent evaluation.
Mark Lipton