Food Pairings
The Cork Dorks Embark On Their First Mission: France
Thursday, February 4th, 2010 | Food Pairings, Wine Stories, Wine Tasting Notes | No Comments
On a cold, dark, wintry night in January we gathered. Just a few of us, hand-picked by the finest at Bin 100 in Milford, CT to partake in the first, ever, high-end BYOB wine tasting.
First stop: France.
The idea is simple; bring a bottle between $50-$90 from any region of the country selected and drink it!
But on a more ideal note, to be able to find some gems, dust off some bottles in the cellar you forgot about and share a story or two….oh, and to listen to Mr. C sing a tune while he sips away on bubbles.
Bottle #1: 1998 Louis Jadot Chapelle-Chambertin
Verdict: Epic Fail…. the bottle was corked upon opening. (Que sounds of Alek kicking a champagne bucket in the background.) Moving on….
Bottle #2: Pierre Peters Grand Cru Blanc de blancs – NV
Verdict: DELICIOUS. So pristine and smooth, I actually had to take a picture of the single stream of tiny little bubbles making their way to the top to reach me. See image below.
This little number delighted us with aromas of sweet, yeasty bread dough, similar to that of sweet Portugese bread. The flavor exhibited creamy toffee with a rounded mouth-feel and light, delicate bubbles on the tongue. A tone of tasty apple crisp with balanced acidity made this a winner. It was a little multi-dimensional, but the layers didn’t quite meld together. It was still a great champagne for the price.
Bottle #3: 2002 Cuvee Frederic Emile Trimbach Riesling from Alsace
Verdict: A first, there was a thought the bottle might be corked, but later it turned out that the minerality was just very intense. As it opened up, the opinions changed.
The first smell was intense petrol. It then opened up to some pretty sweet apple fruit and minerality of limestone and slate. ‘Great finesse and pleasantly dry’, were the words of one of us. After about an hour, you could get a better grasp of lovely orange blossom, honeysuckle, quince fruit and honey. The consensus was there were many layers being exhibited on this classic-style Riesling, but they never quite married. It was, however, pretty nice to be able to taste them all on their own.
Bottle #4: 1999 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru, Cote D’Or
Verdict: Sensational and traditionally characteristic of this producer of great Burgundies.
Nothing struck me more than the overwhelming aromas of a smoky-sweet, soy-laden, BBQ sauce on this wine. Soy and smoked meats were all over the nose with a touch of brown sugar. (Getting hungry as I write this…. ribs, please!) A bit of char and smoky notes filled my nostrals as I embarked on the first sip. A strong taste of dark cherry fruit and dried plums hit my tongue. It was fantastically gamey and leathery with smooth and supremely food-friendly tannins. I noshed on some pork pate and gruyere as I sipped this bad-boy. This would be the ultimate bbq chicken with sauteed shitake mushrooms to play into the earthy tones. Some pheasant or seared duck breast with fresh blackberry fruit might do, and even Ostrich or Buffalo loin would be ideal.
We all seemed to give this one 90+ points based on sheer brilliance and flavors. It’s definitely ready to drink, but could age another 5-7 years in the bottle.
Bottle #5: (and yes, we still had active taste-buds) 1998 Louis Jadot Clos Vougeot, Grand Cru
Verdict: THE WINNER!
This wine apparently originates from grapes out of a 50-hectares (~123 acres) vineyard, so, relatively small. I think we were all floored when we started smelling and sipping on this beauty. It had such a fruity/floral perfumish aroma, it took me a while to even take the first sip. The wine showed good, deep concentration and color. The aging lines are thin and can only get better, I think. It was drinking perfectly, but the fruit and acidity was still very strong and could continue to age. Ok, but seriously, the nose was showing some nice damp earth and rich soil, like digging in a fresh garden. I picked up on a lot of great mushroom and fungi notes, like oyster and shitake and just a very light truffle note. The wine was still REALLY fresh in terms of acidity, but all earth. Fragrant dirt, floral nose of violets and sweet rose petals with a hint of lavender. I could go on, but it doesn’t do this wine justice.
93+ points – Wonderfully gorgeous and in 5 years will be even MORE amazing!
Bottle #6: 1999 Nuits-St.-George Aux Chaignots, 1er Cru, Faiveley (Cote D’Or)
Verdict: Loved it, but after the Clos Vougeot, nothing quite compared. This wine was still beautiful and drinking great as well. My camera died at this point, so I’ll have to entice with words…
Nice dried cherry nose, bright garnet-ruby red color in the glass. I picked up a bit of a fromage nose, like that of a nice hard cheese rind; something earthy in that regard. Definitely showcasing truffles, damp earth (a theme here…) but not nearly as complex as the previous wine. It was nice and bold with strong tannins. Kind of a sexy wine by my taste…. didn’t let down in flavor or finish and coated the month wonderfully with a chalk dry finish to wrap it up. A bit tight at the end, so some aging will do this one some good. What a catch, though.
And finally….
Bottle #7: 2006 M. Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage ‘Les Meysonniers’, Cotes du Rhone
Verdict: After all that Burgundy drinking, a little change of pace was needed. Nothing quite completes a French tasting like some good ol’ Rhone wines. The old-world Syrah/Grenache blends are just tres beau! This one was 100% Syrah.
This wine exhibits some earth funk: barn-yardy, leather, manure (I think we agreed it was cow) on the nose. I personally found a lot of good earthy mushroom flavor going on overall. The flavor was vibrant and rich. Strong acidity with some smoke, blueberry and sweet blackberry fruit. A touch of floral notes, like sweet rose petal and even chocolate made this wine smooth, elegant and dark. Great on it’s own to drink, or with some balsamic glazed hanger-steak. I wouldn’t have minded a few dark-chocolate covered blueberries either.
And that concludes the first night of riff-raff…er, tasting. 
Next time: ESPANA!!!
Cheers,
Kronick Wino
La Battistina Gavi 2007 - Wine Notes
Friday, January 22nd, 2010 | Food Pairings, Wine Tasting Notes | 1 Comment
Tonight - something different. GAVI.
I’m venturing out. I NEVER hit up the Italian section at the store because much to my dismay, I’m kind of clueless in that area. My love is Spain, but I like to live on the edge, so random Italian wine it is!
I had a list of ‘menu items’ lined up for my dinner, but what white to drink? I made some tapas and wanted something crisp, fun, citrusy and clean. My first choice was going to be a white from Umbria, as I’ve tasted quite a few of those these days and they seem like a nice food-pairing wine. To no avail, my local W&L mart (wine & liquor…) did not carry such a thing. So, GAVI. And, on a gracious suggestion by a good friend who knows his Italian whites, I ended up with la Battistina’s Gavi 2007.
First smell was one of crisp, citrus fruit, like lemon and some pineapple, leading into a little green apple. The taste is crisp, clean, good rounded acidity and a continuation of the aromas. But this little number only gets better with FOOD! (I mean, if you think about it, what do the Italians like to do? MANGIA!)
I made a little roasted garlic bulb, some gambas al ajillo (shrimp in garlic sauce) and used a little of the Gavi for the sauce on that one, good life choice by me! I also roasted some asparagus spears topped with some black truffle butter and shaved pecorino romano, and had a warm pulpo potato salad on the side. All-in-all everyone was a winner. The wine holds up GREAT to the shellfish / octopus, and the asparagus brought out some clean green grass on the wine. Everything else just rounded out the finish!
As I asked myself, what is Gavi?
It’s from the Piedmont region in Italy that uses mainly the grape varietal, Cortese. According to my awesome De Long’s Wine Grape Varietal Table (because I’m an avid wine geek), the Cortese grape is listed as such: “refreshing, melons, grapey, extremely ancient variety” and it sits in the moderate-to-high acidity rating with a light yellow straw color.
My seemingly first experience went well! These are supposedly the most expensive Italian white wines shipped to the U.S., but I still paid under $20 for the bottle! Bottoms up, my friends!
Cheers.
Kronick Wino
‘Este’ de Bodegas Alto Almanzora - 2007 - Almeria, Spain
Friday, December 25th, 2009 | Food Pairings, Wine Tasting Notes | 2 Comments
This is a bottle I’ve had a few times now and love each and every sip! Great food-pairing wine! Something newer on the market are these Spanish table wines, or ‘vino de mesas’. These don’t fall under any particular aging requirements but tend to be little jewels if you know what to look for.
P.S. the label below shows 13.5%, but this bottle I’m reviewing is 14%.
‘Este’ means ‘east’ in Spanish and similarly, that’s where the wine originates from out of the eastern section of Andalucia in the DO of Almeria. I’ve only had a couple of wines from this region and haven’t been disappointed. The flavors are not too complex, but lovely, easy to drink and gentle on the wallet!
This is also a blend of Spain’s most beloved grapes - 60% Monastrell, 10% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha with the balance three other varieties(probably Merlot and Syrah), aged for 6 months in French and American oak.
Let’s get to the nitty gritty…
Nose:
Nice smoke, earthy raspberry and other red berry fruit with a bit of musky leaves. Definitely picking up aromas of the french oak and cedar. It reminds me of a smoky cherry wood fire burning; kind of sweet and smoky.
Flavor:
Lots of fresh berry fruit, some cherry and sharp tannins at the front. Medium-bodied with a touch of slate, black pepper, smoky oak and leather in the finish. A somewhat thin finish, but it lingers. Great pairing with the gaminess of seared lamb chops with a bit of char or a traditional steak au poivre. Even a nice sausage or margarita pizza would do nicely with this wine. It’s not overpowering, but has a solid presence with charcuterie meats and most tapas. I’d like to get this together with some sauteed mushrooms and goat cheese.
Purchase a few bottles or a case at your friendly Mountain Road Wine & Liquors in Seymour, CT!
Cheers,
Kronick Wino