With steak, acorn squash, and an arugula salad, the 2008 David Duband Gevrey-Chambertin. Middleweight, any oak way in the background (not the case in some earlier Dubands I tried), red fruit with some meat and earth aromas. Not a showstopper, but solid workman-like village Gevrey, and good value at $25. B
As an apertfif and cooking wine over 3 nights, the 2010 Drouhin St. Veran. Seemed mute and dull at first opening, though I didn't detect any reductive aromas I wondered re that, but with some air a nice clean Chardonnay with white fruit, flowers, and minerals. B
There was also a bottle of the 2010 Layer Cake "One Hundred Percent Pure" Pinot Noir. This was a sweet and unnecessary gift from some nice non-wine people. I remember a decent note here on Layer Cake, though maybe not the PN. So I tried with as open a mind as possible. Well, I get the Cake part- sweet and confected. Not sure I understand Layer part- layers to me imply complexity. This should be renamed the Short Cake, because it is short and candied. Vinegar crock needed some imput. Tis the thought that counts. C
Couldn't take the Layer Cake with our pizza quattro stagioni (artichoke, proscuitto, mushroom, olive), opened the 2009 Guion "Cuvee Domaine" Bourgueil. Black fruits, tobacco leaf, green herbs, good acids and some light tannins, nice little bargain wine. B
Saturday was risotto with bay scallops, shrimp, and mushrooms, wine was the 2010 Ambra "Ischia." CSW markets this as Italian counterpart to Muscadet, and that's quite apt. Seashell and saline, lemon fruit, a little hint of effervesence, good acids. B
Sunday we went to a neighbor's open house. She had done a huge spread of food, plus there were many beverages on offer. Mostly Frontera and Vendange and the like (I did take a little sip of the Vendange Chardonnay, about what I expected, oakchippy and canned fruits- pear and fruit salad, edge of sweetness, popular but not with me C-). A bottle of 2007 Bize "Perrieres" Bourgogne Blanc had nice structure but an oxidative apple cider edge, could be premOx, more likely warm storage, this was a recent WineBid restock, luckily just one more, still have a couple from my original purchase. B-/C+ for this unrepresentative bottle.
Dinner that night was duck legs slowcooked in mustard and panko, over mesclun salad with potatoes on side. Wine was the 2005 Marechal Savigny-les-Beaune VV. I was worried might be tight, but it was quite giving. Black cherries, spice, a bit of forest floor. Easy ripe tannins, good acids, fine length. B+
With vegetarian tacos (beans, cheese, guacamole, etc) the 2003 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spatlese. I think this was only
2003 German less than Auslese level that I own. By Zilliken/Saar standards this is low acid, but it's not actually flabby, there's definitely some acid under the apple and tropical fruit, but it's lacking in precision and without that mineral edge that makes this house special to me. B-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.