Arvind Rao organized an offline to welcome Bill and Jan Johnson as they passed through NYC. A very nice group of 14 brought a very generous selection of Bordeaux. I'm usually an easy grader, but for this report I'm trying to tighten up a little, as it would be a ridiculous procession of A's otherwise. There wasn't a wine that I felt wouldn't have been finished if opened at a dinner party. Some wines I liked better than others, but there was nothing bad or flawed to my palate for the night. So be aware that a B+ from this report is better than my normal B+.
We had a private room at Tout va Bien in the theater district. Nice room, good atmosphere (a little strange with French posters, as well as photos of rappers and the Rat Pack). My first course of a smoked duck salad was just ok, but my garlicky lamb chops were delicious.
After seeing some comments that this was opening up, I brought a 1997 Trimbach Cuvée Frederic Emile, which we had as people arrived. Tight at first, then sweet tropical/citrus fruit, peach blossoms, lots of mineral and a little diesel. B++
Some assorted Charcuterie and cheeses made their rounds, as we went to the first flight, the St-Émilions:
1982 Beausejour-Becot- red berry fruit, some cedar, not the longest finish but a pleasant mature Bordeaux. According to some apparently not from strongest period at this producer, so a pleasant surprise for those that knew it better than I. B+/B
1990 Grand Mayne -earthy, black cherry fruit, nice. B
Then a Margaux Flight
1975 Palmer -slightly "high-toned", but amazing complex and complete wine. Still a touch tannic, but great fruit balancing some apparent acidity, and loads of secondary aromas of leather, tobacco, and more. I recently told someone that to my tastes Palmer is overrated, as even top vintages like 1983 have left me unmoved. Can't say that anymore. My WOTN. A
1978 Ch. Margaux - sweet and pure, forest-floor aromas. A-
1982 Boyd-Cantenac -fresh and surprisingly young, quite a good showing, but a little overwhelmed by its flightmates. B+ Graves
1982 Carbonnieux -volatile nose, sweet red fruit, lots of mineral, acidic for an '82.Drink up. B-
1989 Olivier - solid fruit, slightly one-dimensional compared to others tonight, but nice solid claret. B/B- (some others seemed to like better than me)
Pomerol
1982 La Grave a Pomerol -light, dark fruit and cedary oak, ok, don't run to the shop for more. B/B-
1989 l'Evangile - smooth, easy, not the blockbuster I expected, rather a complete and elegant classic Pomerol. Good fruit with hints of herbs, earth, and saddle leather. My second favorite of the night, group WOTN. A
1990 Bourgneuf-sassy in your face kind of Pomerol, B+
Second Course Older Flight:
1970 Cos d'Estournel (St. Estephe) -decent older Bdx, others liked better than I did. B/B-
1966 Mouton Rothschild (Pauillac)- Matt said this came from a mixed lot where he's had various degrees of success, but this one is showing quite well. Leadpencil, cigarbox, mushroms,autumn leaves, a nice elegant claret. A
Northern Médoc flight:
1989 Leoville Barton (St. Julien)- rich dark fruit, some pencil and tar, tannic and needs time. A-
1996 Leoville Poyferre St. Julien -backward, still a bit hard (had been decanted several hours before dinner). A-/B+
1981 Pichon Lalande (Pauillac)- I can't actually read my notes (I confess I dumped less than I normally do at offlines, which might have something to do with the illegibilty). But from memory and checkmarks, a nice mature Bdx I'd be happy to have on my table. B+
A couple of Barons:
1996 Pichon Baron (Pauillac)-ripe fruit, tannic, leather. In a poll of table this was favored over the '96 Poyferre. I like about the same, and tend to see the Poyferre for a bit less. Anyway, A-/B+
2001 Pichon Baron (Pauillac)- very ripe red fruit, someone says it reminds them of a CalCab. Might end up quite good, but for now a B
At this point I was astonished to realize we had consumed 18 wines w/o a whiff of TCA. Wow, a toast to the Portugese (I usually curse them). On to dessert:
1988 Raymond Lafon - peaches, spicy, very tasty. A-/B+
1990 Rieussec - apricots in honey sauce! Thick, rich, young Sauternes. A-
At this point I had to scurry out, as Betsy was picking me up after a show. Fine night of wines,with very nice people. Thanks to all for their generosity, and especially to Arv for his organizing! A special thanks to Roberto, Mark, Jeff, and everyone else for their heartfelt stories and sentiments about what had happened 3 years before. 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. Dale
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