Tuesday Betsy made a couple of recipes from a Biba Caggiano book, shrimp with mushrooms along with fried green olives (way better than it sounds!), served with salad and the 2006 Pepiere/Ollivier "Cuvee Eden" Muscadet. Nice friendly style of Muscadet, lemon/apple fruit with balanced acids and some mineral notes. Not as complex to me as say the Briords, but drinking well and quite nice. B+/B
Wednesday was warm, so we pretended it was summer and grilled coffee- rubbed steak and squash, with salad and the 2001 Ch. D'Aiguilhe (Cotes de Castillon). Still showing some oaky notes, coffee and cocoa over the black plum and berry fruit. Moderate tannins, good fruit core, lower acids and quite modern but with a steak that doesn't especially bother me. My only one of these, not pining for more but it filled its purpose. B
Thursday no wine as I had dinner at office before a meeting, but Friday I knew I'd like some wine. I left office to drive Betsy and her mom to JFK to fly to Scotland to visit Dave. As a parting Valentine's gift, Betsy told me she had made chicken and mushrooms in red wine, I'd just need to make a roux and do the sauce. As I was driving back through horrible traffic, Betsy called. I needed to come back and get her mother- who had brought her expired passport from California. Betsy flew off, and her mom came back to Dobbs. Luckily Betsy made a full recipe of the chicken, so there was plenty. The cooking wine had been the 2006 Guion "Cuvee Domaine" Bourgueil. Lovely light little wine, classic Loire Cab Franc with raspberry fruit, good acids, light tannins, and little hints of pine and herbs. Nothing complex, but a very fine value ($9ish I think). B
I opened the 2006 Georges Descombes Brouilly (I hate wax capsules). Surprisingly sweet, bright acids and red fruits. I was actually quite disappointed at this. Tasted on Saturday it was a much fuller wine, showing less sweetness, darker fruit, more PN than Gamay. I'd say C+ on day one and B on day 2, but for me even the second day's showing isn't great for a $20something Beaujolais.
Saturday FedEx came through with the correct passport, and I made another drive to JFK. I like my M-i-L, but was happy that she was on her way. I made a stop on Long Island at Post to pick up some orders, and made my way home. For dinner I braised some cabbage in white wine with some smoked pork chops, and roasted some beets (cleaning out fridge). The cooking wine was a $6 closeout, the 2000 Domaine Emilian Gillet "Quintaine" Macon-Villages. I was prepared for this to be over the hill, but it was actually quite lively. These Thevenet wines are probably the only Macons one could describe as exotic. This came across like the bastard child of a Coche-Dury (though not oaky) and a white Rhone. Intensely sweet fruit, but this is quite dry on finish- don't think there is RS. Honied pears and quince jam, decent acids for the superripe fruit, some mineral notes on finish. So unusual I am quite taken, though not something I would want to have as a dinner wine very often. I should have gotten more than 2, just so I could blind them on people and see what happens. An A as a curiosity, a B for me as a wine. Will be curious how it shows tonight.
For my actual dinner wine, I opened the 2007 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett. This is one of the best '07s I've tried for my palate. Comes across as quite light (8.5 abv), yet there's a real concentration to the fruit core. Classic Mosel apple and slate, amazing length for a light wine, just enough sweetness. Creamy texture enlived by bright acids. I really like this. A-
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.