2010 Simple Wine Dinner Series No 5 :: Gary's Birthday Dinner (Part 4/4)

Flight 5 ::

The only cult from Washington state? Another pair of monster with long life ahead. The 2003 which rated at WA100pts, is hard to access with mouth coating and palate staining tanninc, structure upfront. The 1991 (alcohol: 13%) still surprisingly young, showing very well compare to its younger brother which has whopping 14.9% alcohol, changing in style or effect of global warming? Hope it is the latter.

Mee Pok with Mince Peking Duck Meat

11. 1991 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, Washington State, USA
Alcohol: 13%
Dark ruby red with brownish rim. Sweet ripe blackcurrant, crème de cassis, the nose is still very reserved with some oak spices. Huge on the palate, succulent and exotic sweet dark fruits, mineral balance by bright acidity and carry all the way through to the very long finish. Good delineation and complexity. Though this is still tannic, the tannins is polish, fine and ripe. Very good. But, this is 91? The nose and palate seems not much developed, how long will this need? Hmm…..

12. 2003 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, Washington State, USA
Alcohol: 14.9%
Very dark purplish opaque color, almost black. Aromas of tightly reserve crème de cassis, dark fruits. Nothing much here but the nose is intense and focus. Huge tannins, oak dominant the palate with no fruits showing. What a monster, mouth coating and palate staining, I can't swallow at all. Need 20years? Only time will tell.

Flight 6 :: The not so sweet and sweet. My first willi schaefer and it is still a baby after few hours of aeration, it did show more balance with good backbone compared to what others comments (drank in the beginning of the dinner) which is oily texture and not so clean. Raymond Lafon is quite good but not great.

Fruits platter

Longeveity Bun & Malay Cake (Ma Laii Gou)

13. 2007 Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Spatlese Goldkapsel, Mosel Saar Ruwer, Germany

Alcohol: 8%

Light golden color with green hue. Light petroleum nose with grapefruits, citrus, mineral and wet stone. Very sweet and slight oily texture at beginning. The piercing acidity and intense mineral kicking in after awhile in the glass to balance with the sweetness for a rounder and intense mouth feel. This is remarkably fresh, concentrated but light on the palate and already showing some level of complexity. Long citrus and slight oily finish with intense grapefruit. I believe this will gain weight and depth after some years in the bottle, and more balance and vibrancy after shed off some fat.

14. 1998 Chateau Raymond Lafon, Sauternes, France
Alcohol: ?
My palate getting tiring when I reached here. Nose of coconut and ripe mangoes. Intense with lots of botrytis spiciness. Thick, viscous, with broad flavor of tropical fruits, long light finish.

Tonight Line Up ^^

2010 Simple Wine Dinner Series No 5 :: Gary's Birthday Dinner (Part 3/4)

Flight 4 ::

Pio Cesare Barolo in 4decades! I have got to know the longevity and age-ability of great Barolo. The 1957 is fully mature, still fresh and very much alive, just a little bit light on the palate. 1964 is an off bottle IMO. 1971 not showing and everyone think it could be an off bottle at first, with some air, it started to show. Personal Preference is the 1982, IMO it has the greatest balance, complex, silky texture, fresh and vigorous.

Sea Cucumber with mushroom and vegetable

Roasted Salted Chicken

The 4decades of great Barolo!

The 4decades of great Barolo - All corks in good condition

1957 Pio Cesare Barolo

1964 Pio Cesare Barolo - This look older and paler than the 1957

1957 Pio Cesare Barolo, Langhe, Piedmont, Italy

Alcohol: 13%
The oldest bottle to date. The wine is still very much alive! Surprisingly the color is darker than the 1964, Orangey with light ruby core. The nose is very very age and old! Dried tea leaf, earth along with bright red fruits, dark cherry and sweaty smell (errr…). This is how a 50s smell like. Some caramelize fruits, slight fizzy and hint of alcohol on the palate along with seaweed flavor. Med finish. Though fully mature but no problem to drink for the next few years thanks to the structure and tannins remain in it.

1964 Pio Cesare Barolo, Langhe, Piedmont, Italy
Alcohol: 13.5%
Sherry likes nose with alcohol, mineral and slight herbish. The palate has good acidity with caramelized fruits flavors and weird taste like chinese herbal tea / medicine with medium finish. This is the weakest in the flight, off-bottle?

1971 Pio Cesare Barolo, Langhe, Piedmont, Italy
Alcohol: 13.5%
Dark port like color. Slight sweaty fish market smell (blew off after sometime in the glass), dark fruits and earth, this is not showing much at the moment and the palate is acidic. I put this aside and continue with 82, when I re-visit in another 20mins, WOW! Getting better and better in the glass. Intense ripe sweet palate of blackberry, spices, hint of rubber, with slight tannic giving good grip to the palate leads to long lingering finish. This is still very structure with good complexity and has plenty of life ahead.

1982 Pio Cesare Barolo, Langhe, Piedmont, Italy
Alcohol: 13.5%
Bright caramelize port color. Tight nose of blackberries, mineral, mint and earth. This has the best balance of acidity and sweetness amongst the flight, fresh, concentrated, decadent, silky smooth long finish. Complex and firm structure. Drinking very well due to its great balance and silky tannins but has no problem to age! Great! I like this a lot.

2010 Simple Wine Dinner Series No 5 :: Gary's Birthday Dinner (Part 2/4)

Flight 3 :: Domaine Robert Arnoux Vosne Romanee 1er Cru Les Suchots, 3decades, showing off why Arnoux Suchots having the benchmark standard for this plot. Eye opening experienced! The 1978 was soooooo fantastic while I have almost neglected both 1995 & 2001 and my all time favorite Peking Duck

Roasted Peking Duck

4. 1978 Domaine Robert Arnoux Les Suchots, Vosne Romanee 1er Cru, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France
Alcohol: ??
Perfect condition. Showed fully mature age sign of brownish and slight brick red core, almost age Sauternes like. Wow! The nose is to die for, highly aromatic of very ripe dark fruits, earth, floral, spices, fresh and deep. Seductive! U will get suck into it. Dry fig, black berry, tea leave etc. Very complex. The palate is not disappointing either, in fact, better than the nose! Sweet, ripe, spicy, silky smooth mouth feel, multi-faceted, complex, decadent of flavors linger all the way thru to the tremendous finishing with its hall mark intense Vosne spice. This is already my WOTN and what burgundy can show. This is so complete. Still going strong after two hours in the glass, even better on the palate with more acidity kicking in to break thru the ripe dark fruits with very intense mid palate sap to long long lingering spicy finish. Perfect Harmony. Finesse and elegant, classy!

5. 1995 Domaine Robert Arnoux Les Suchots, Vosne Romanee 1er Cru, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France

Alcohol: 13.5%
Very dark ruby core with slight brownish hue. Soft intense nose of dark berry fruits, Vosne spice, mineral and slight barnyard. (this did disappear after sitting in the glass for sometime) Slight rustic palate due to the vintage? Still very tannic with tons of dark ripe fruits such as plum, dark cherry and berry, dried tea leaf, with acidity came at the back to round up the complex flavor. Finished is long and sweet with hint of rubbery tones. While this is good, this is not at the same class as the 78 and 81, also lack of the elegant and pure factor.

6. 2001 Domaine Robert Arnoux Les Suchots, Vosne Romanee 1er Cru, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France

Alcohol: 13.5%

Lovely bright med ruby red with slight yellowish edge. The nose is quite expressive and perfumy violet, roses with earth, dark berry fruit and hint of spices, The palate is still tight, fresh, with round silky mouth feel and very fine silky tannins, with umami, light mineral spices finishing. Good mid palate sap but the finish is not showing what it got at the moment. Lots of upside potential, hope this will gain more depth and complexity in the bottle.

2010 Simple Wine Dinner Series No 5 :: Gary's Birthday Dinner (Part 1/4)

Venue :: Jade Palace Seafood Restaurant @ The Forum Shopping Mall, Orchard

Date :: 11-June-2010

Theme:: Same wine in different decades with below grape varieties

Flight 1 :: Champagne

Flight 2 :: Chardonny

Flight 3 :: Pinot Noir

Robert Arnoux Vosne Romanee Les Suchots 2001

Robert Arnoux Vosne Romanee Les Suchots 1995

Robert Arnoux Vosne Romanee Les Suchots 1978

Flight 4 :: Cabernet-Merlot blends

Flight 5 :: Syrah or Syrah-Grenache blends (changed to 'something else')

Flight 6 :: Sweets

This theme is tough! It is easy to source for same region, different decade, or same region, different producer etc etc. To source same maker, same wine, different decade is not an easy job. However, the outcome was great!

I was stuck at work so I was late for the dinner. When I reached there, the gang was enjoying the fame Jacque Selosse Contraste and Raveau, and eying for my portion of crispy roast pork, fried oyster and deep fried salted Alaskan Crab! LOL

Here is the line up::

Flight 1 :: The rare and great Jacque Selosse Contraste!
Flight 2 :: The fame Chablis maker - Raveneau 00,02
Flight 3 :: The benchmark Vosne Romanee 1er Cru Les Suchots - Robert Arnoux in 3 decades - 78,95,01

Flight 4 :: The long lived Barolo in 4 decades - Pio Cesare Barolo 57,64,71,82
Flight 5 :: The 1 Washington State Cult - Quilceda Creeks 91, 00
Flight 6 :: Rising star of Mosel - Willi Schaefer Spat GDR GK 07
Flight 7 :: Sauternes - Raymond Lafon 98

Flight 1 :: A very rare champagne from Selosse which annual production is 2500bottles. 100% Pinot Noir from Ay and Ambonnay, from vintages 2002 & 2003. Served together with crispy roasted pork & Fried Oyster (wasn't able to shoot photo as too hungry, when I realized for photo shooting....... they were in my stomach.....)

1. NV Jacques Selosse Contraste Brut Champagne

Alcohol: 12.5%
Bright light golden. Broad and deeply intense nose of slight oxidize, honey, honeysuckle, yellow florals, with underlying citrus note. Precise! WOW! The palate is tightly knit, mouth coating intensity, great depth with crystalline acidity giving great transparency along with lemon, citrus, grapefruits, adding extra layer with its huge minerality which giving great complexity and very long persistent finishing, with pear, citrus stone fruits and spicy undertones keep lingering! A perfect marriage with fried oyster, YUM! Sheer class, very very young.

Flight 2 :: The fame Chablis producer - Francois Raveneau with his best 1er Cru, Montée de Tonnerre, paired with Steamed egg white and alaskan crab. Yum.

Steamed egg white and alaskan crab

2000 & 2002 Francois Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru, Montée de Tonnerre

2000 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre, Chablis, Burgundy, France
Alcohol: 13%
Light golden. Very special cold fresh nose of cold herbs, steel, mint, wet stone, some white flower. Steely on the palate, light but concentrated, however, the long lingering oaky finishing is kind of disjointed from the mid palate. Advanced and Smoky with some alcohol, showing sign of pre-mox. Argh!

2002 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre, Chablis, Burgundy, France

Alcohol: 13%

This is bigger and riper than 2000. The nose is still very tight, didn’t get much of the fruits flavor, cold steely but not overly so, in fact, seductive. Intense and deep! Huge extract and very musculine. Fresh, more intense and riper stone citrus fruits than the 2000 and balance very well with its bright acidity. A very firm wine and great structure. The finishing is long and linger with spicy ginger notes. This is still so young to kill now and need a lot of time!