Past Glory´s - 1990 Barolo Tasting Dinner

In this serie I will recollect some prevoius tasting dinners I have arranged over the years. I simply love planning, arranging and executing these kind of dinners, collecting the wines over, sometimes, severel years (rigth now I have about 5-6 dinners in the planning process...), choosing the right dishes with the separat flight of wines, and planning the order of the flights etc etc.

The first one out is a 1990 Barolo dinner from january this year. It had been a couple of years since the last checkup on these bottles, and I thought the time was ready. The 90 Arborina, Altare and the Sori Ginestra, Conterno-Fantino arrived just two days before the tasting, and had no chance to rest, but both showed spectaculary. The others I have had in the cellar for years.

We started things of with two semi dry Rieslings. To go with them I had made a cake of minced praws with asian spices, served with some balsamic dressing and a sweet chili sauce.

1990 Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese Fuder 23, Karthäuserhof
A finely tuned, mature nose with notes of saffron, petrol. sweet slate, gravel and mineral. A very elegant sweetness. A fine, oily character. Deep and fine.
The taste is fine, mature, semi dry with notes of dried apricots, mature pears and lemons. Dances over the tongue. Lovely maturity. Very enjoyable right now.
93p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Riesling Auslese, von Schubert
The nose on this one is more withdramn, but very elegant, with notes of dry lemoncello, wet rocks and a touch of ginger. Racy and fine.
The taste is tight, cool and elegant with some maturity and a tingly acidity. Notes of dry lemons, apricots and a asian spicy twist. Very, very good.
92p   (tasted 2011/01)



We continued with three dry, different wines. With these bottles we had a selection of dried hams - serrano, pata negra and procsiutto.
1990 Rüdesheim Berg Schlossberg Riesling Spätlese Trocken, Georg Breuer
A dry, mature, somewhat one dimensionell nose with notes of sea shells, lemon peel and slate. Nice enough but it doesn´t have weight or substance.
The taste is fresh, medium long and very dry with notes of lemons, gravel and balsa wood. It is a touch too dry for its own good.
83p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Cuvée Fréderick Émile, Trimbach
CFE is always a favourite of mine, and this one was a stunning examplel. The nose is very open for business with gorgeous aromas of yellow apples, late, grey pears and a cool earthy note. Deep and enticing. Perfectly mature. This is very, very good.
The tasts is elegant, focused and precise with gorgeous fruit flowing over my tongue. The acidity is perfectly cleansing and the finish is almost a minute long. This is lovely to drink now.
95p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 R de Rieussec
The dry wine from Château Riesussec. The nose is big, browsy and a little over the top with sherry infused fruit, and notes of saffron, wet autumn leaves and soap. If the CFE was focused, this isn´t.
The taste is also big with lots of dried fruit, some burned butter and a warm feeling in the finish. Somewhat foursquare. A rather long finish. Its not bad, but it can´t get me going.
80p   (tasted 2011/01)



Well, now it was time for the first flight of the Barolo´s. All Barolo´s were decanted two hours before the first sip.
The first flight was two wines each from Bersano and Marchesi di Barolo. With this flight we had a terrine - pigs meat and sweetbreads mixed with herbs and cream, and then melted together for some time in the owen - pure heaven to these Barolo´s!

1990 Barolo Riserva, Bersano
A mature, rounded, smewhat foursquare nose with notes od dried figs, undergrowth, lingonberries and rosehips. Very traditionally, but on the dry side. Some dry wood. Beetrotsw after a while. Not bad though.
The taste is better with a tight, mature structure and good red fruit althrough the taste. The tannins are still there in the background. A long and dry finish. Not a fruitbomb by any means, but an good, old styled Barolo that is reaching maturity.
88p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Cascina Badarina, Bersano
Badarina is a vineyard in Serralunga, and this is a few notch up the qaulity ladder. The nose opens with a tight, still young nose with fresh, red fruit - a mix of lingonberries, cherries and not so ripe rasberries. An almost meaty character. Very good. Rosehips and licorice after some time in the glass. Very structured.
The taste is big and tight with still young tannins that coats the good red fruit in a fine way. Long and structured with a dry finish. The fruit is somewhat muddled today, but it is there, it just needs another 5-8 years to show itself properly.
90p   (2011/01)

1990 Barolo Coste di Rose, Marchesi di Barolo
A deep, sweet, open nose with notes of sweet lingonberries, dried flowers, rosehips and warm autumn leaves. Very, very good. A lovely sweet fruit. Perfectly mature on the nose. Deep and fine.
The taste is fresh, tight and almost creamy with lovely rosehips- and lingonberries fruit. Long, fine finish with balsamic notes. Lots of licorice in the finish. On its peak now, but will surely stay there for a number of years.
93p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Cannubi, Marchesi di Barolo
A deep, complex, fine nose with notes of pipe tobacco, sweet lingonberries, forest floor and cold coffe. A very fine oak note. The fruit is mature and sweet. Lovely maturity. Very, very good.
The taste is big, round and full of sweet fruit paired with still strappy tannins and more black then red fruit. Very long, structured finish. More outgoing than the previous ones but very, very good on its own merits.
90p   (tasted 2011/01)


With the next flight we had Barolo braised pig cheeks with mashed potatoes with enough cream an butter to cause a coronary...

This flight also consisted of two wines each from two producers - Domenico Clerico and Roberto Voerzio.
1990 Barolo Ciabot Mentin Ginestra, Domenico Clerico
A lovely, deep, complex nose with notes of licorice, sweet red cherries, forest floor and dried summer flowers. Very intense. Just a gorgeous sweetness of the fruit. I would say that this is, on the nose, almost perfectly mature.
The taste is seamsless,, with sweet red fruit and notes of leather, sandel wood, licorice and some smoky notes. A long, long finish with fresh tannins and a dry ending. Just stunning! Still have many years to come.
96p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Pajana, Domenico Clerico
This in an almost perfect bottle of the debut vintage of Pajana. The nose is so pure, so intense, so sweet and so concentrated that it is almost hard to believe. Waves of the sweetest cherries just exploders from the glass, with notes of old balsamic vinegar, rosehips, licorice and saddle leather. Breathtakingly beautiful! Porcini after a while.
The taste is like pouring liqued velvet over the tongue, with perfect sweetness, acidity and melted tannins. A very long, fresh and captivating finish. This is heaven to drink, and perfectly mature right now. I think the CMG still has some evolving to do, this hasn´t.
98p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Brunate, Roberto Voerzio
Íf the Pajana was "almost perfect", belive it or not, but this one is even better! The nose is to die for with oceans of crushed rose petals, cherry heering infused licorice, muscovado sugar, new leather and a perfect autumn walk in a damp forest. I tried to push all of my nose into the glass...
The taste is equally stunning, with tight, explosive, sweet and massive fruit with perfect weight and balance. The finish is over one minute long. The fruit is more structured then the Pajana, and the tannins are younger, but the balance is just awesome in this one. This one still have places to go!
99p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Cerequio, Roberto Voerzio
A big, open, fruity nose with notes of sugared coffe, leather, wet forest and very sweet red currants. A little over the top on the nose, not so balanced as the others. Sandelwood and dried figs after a while. Sweet. Very yummy all the same.
The taste is big and broad with lots of sweet red fruit - red currants, cherries and rasberries, with notes of licorice, milk chocolate and leather. The tannins in the finish are somewhat rugged. A very good wine, but on this night it is outshined by the others in this flight. And I have had better, more coherent bottles.
89p   (tasted 2011/01)


For the last flight of Barolo´s we had an assortment of cheeses, can´t remember which ones now....:-)
1990 Barolo Vigneto Arborina, Elio Altare
The most hedonistic, erotic, sensual nose of the evening! Hard to describe the depth, purity and intensity of the fruit. The sweetest and finest red cherries imaginable, paired with rosehips, violets, licorice and a touch of vanilla oak. This is a nose to kill and die for...
The taste is almost as good as the nose, with multitudes of sweet red and black cherries, leather, sugared coffee and a touch of oak. The reason why this beauty doesn´t get a perfect score, is that the tannins still are on rowdy side, peeping up in the finish and making a touch coarse. But in 5-7 years time, this is going to be perfect, mark my words.
97p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Sori Ginestra, Conterno-Fantino
A deep, mature, sweet nose with notes of sugar coated red cherries, autumn leaves, fresh stables and matchbooks. Very fine, sweet, mature fruit. Round and appealing. Very, very good.
The taste is fine, elegant and mature with lots of creamy red fruit, soft tannins and a long, dry finish. Cool structure. Very long. This is drinking perfectly right now.
93p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo, Bartolo Mascarello
This is so pure and fresh on the nose! Masses of roses, rosehips, dry licorice, autumn leaves and candied orange peels. Very, very elegant. Soooo fresh! A touch of barnyard after a while. Impressive!
The taste is tight, pure and racy, with notes of dry leather, red currants, licorice and blood oranges. A very, very long and tight finish. Still on the young side, this is not yet firing on all cylinders, needs another 3-5 years.
94p   (tasted 2011/01)

1990 Barolo Cascina Francia, Giacomo Conterno
Resistence is futile - just surrender to this extraordinary specimen! The nose is captivating in its purity, density and beaty. The fruit just oozes up from the glass - sweet red currants, rasberries and the most sexy red and black cherries that ever has been picked. Loads of truffels, porcini, undergrowth, leather and spice. Multidimensionell in every sense of the word.
The taste is breathtakingly beautiful, with stunning red and black fruit, still some racy tannins that feels young in the finish. Very, very fresh, you couldn´t sense that you´re drinking a 21 year old wine. Impressive notes of leather, roses, porcini amd fresh stables. Sooo close to perfection, but the tannins have to melt a little more before the three digit score is rewarded, but its gonna get there in 5-8 years time.
99p   (tasted 2011/01)

To end this extraordinay night we slowly chewed on some Cantuccini and sipped this nectar.
1990 Château Rieussec
A deep, mature, dense nose with notes of glue, dried apricots, pineapple juice, and a big dollop of botrytis. Big and sweet, but fresh at the same time. Very, very good.
The taste is mature, intense and very sweet, with great layers of apriocts, tangerines, blood oranges and pineapple. Very long and intense in the finish. Just about mature but surely with a long life ahead.
93p   (tasted 2011/01)

Wines during the weekend

Last week was grim at work and I had to have some nice wine to relaxe with during the weekend. I ended up opening these bottles.

10 Year Old Sercial, Blandy´s
A fresh, pure and moderate nose with notes of salty biscuits, seaweed, sea shells and roasted pine nuts. Very, very good. Very pure. Warm grass and some cleaning fluid (in a positive way) after a while. Just a gorgeous purity.
The taste is so pure, racy and fresh, that it is hard to describe other than - "fill up my glass again". But forced too, notes of salty biscuits, pickled lemons, seaweed and a touch of rubber goes through the flavour. So darn good sipping on throughout the afternoon!
93p   (tasted 2011/12)

2004 Chablis Les Pierres Blanches, William Fevre
A cool, fresh nose with notes of chalk crayons, lemon peel, sea shells, dry fudge and a touch of rubber/plastic. Very good. Somewhat restrained, but in a nice way.
The taste is clean, fresh and dry with notes of lemon and orange peel, cold butter, road dust and lots of sweet minerals. A long and fresh finish. This ís almost mature, and its in a perfect drinking right now.
87p   (tasted 2011/12

2004 Beaune Premier Cru, Louis Jadot
A fine, somewhat mature nose with notes of autumn leaves, red currants, dry licorice and a touch of forest fire. Fine, sturdy but very nice. Lingonberries and dry chocolate.
The taste is mature, fresh and sturdy with notes of dry red fruits, fresh acidity and dry chocolate. Initiallly it is on the dry side but with air it becomes sweeter amd deeper. Very, very good.
89p   (tasted 2011/12)

2007 Barolo Zecco Collezione, Terre del Barolo
A young, medium deep, kind-hearted nose with notes of lingonberries, dried flowers, dry red cherries and a touch of dry cookie dough. Pleasent enough, although a touch one dimensionell.
The taste is young, tight and fresh with white peppar powdered red fruit, lingon berries, dry chocolate and some dry tannins, Very food friendly but a tad too dry and liniar on its own.
83p   (tasted 2011/12)

The Perfect Ones - Part 3

I bought this in the middle of the 90´s in London for a bargain price, and didn´t have great expactions on it, although it was impressive with a wine from 1900. Well, in 2000 I arranged a tasting - calling it Old & Rare No III on the invitation card, and since this bottle now was 100 years old and hopefully rare, I included it in the tasting. It was the best wine of the evening...
For the rest of the bottles at the tasting, see below.

1900 Moscatel de Setubal. J.M. da Fonseca
Enourmous scents just explodes from the glass, with notes of sugared coffe, dried apricots, assorted nuts and gingerbread. Very, very complex. Muscovado sugar and white raisins after a while. A depth deeper than the Marianer grave - a hedonists dream!
That taste is just as magnificent with every dried fruit on earth, combined with cold coffee, orange peel, dry licorice and old barrels, in a positive sense. The acidity is pure and fresh and matches the swetness perfectly. The finish just goes on and on and on and on...
100p   (tasted 2000/03)

The other wines at the tasting were:

1988 Comtes de Champagne, Taittinger   (93p)

1986 Côte-Rôtie La Landonne, Guigal   (93p)

1989 Orion Old Vines, Sean Thackrey   (90p)

1981 Grange Hermitage, Penfolds   (95p) 

1981 Côte-Rôtie La Mouline, Guigal   (97p)

1970 Château d´Yquem   (93p)

1953 Château Rieussec   (94p)

1937 Château Suduiraut   (88p)

Tasting dinner

Last weekend, one of the two tasting group that I´m a member of, gathered to one of our semi annual tasting dinner. We take turns what our responsibilites are in creating the dinner. This time, a friend and I had to come up with and created the main course.
As usual it was a great dinner, with lots of tasty dishes, stunning wines, and great atmosphere - thanks all!
All wines tasted blind, except the ones we brought ourself.

With some foie gras with Swedish truffels (can be found on Gotland), truffel omelett and a cheese cream with salmon roe. we had three champagnes.

2000 Gosset
A fine, elegant nose with lots of freshly baked bread, orange ice cream and some cookie dough. Very nice. Dry caramel. But it lost some of its nerve when it got warm. Very good though.
The taste is fresh and fine with a medium sized mousse and notes of grey pears, oyster shells and sweet minerals. More liniar in the mouth. Medium long finish. The taste faired better than the nose when it got warm. Very good.
89p   (tasted 2011/11)

1996 R.L. Legras Cuvée St. Vincent
A cool, elegant nose with notes of  white peaches, lime peel, grapefruit and wet slate. A deep, impressive nose that just kept on going, even when it got warm in the glass. Pistachio and grey pears after a while. Just stunning!
The taste is like drinkink silk, with gorgeously sweet fruit, perfect acidity and tiny, tiny bubbles that flows over my tongue. Mature yellow apples, lime, and a fine buttery note ends the long finish. This is one spectacular Blanc de Blancs. Just about ready but there is no hurry to do the dee.
96p   (tasted 2011/11)

1996 Charles de Cazanove Stradivarius
A deep, fine, steady nose with notes of lemons, summer flowers, pears, wet rocks and oilcloth. Very, very yummy. Doesn´t have the depth or structure as the previous one, but this has a hedonistic feel about it. Very, very good.
The taste is big and broad with some maturity and lovely sweet fruit - red apples, grapefruit and peaches. The finish ends with some chocolaty notes. A lovely champagne for drinking in big mouthfulls...
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

The next course was seared scallops on a cauliflower purée with a sauce made on zucchini - I love scallops in every shape and form!
And the wines that were served - pure heaven!

2000 Criots-Batard-Montrachet, Roger Belland
A medium big, tight nose with notes of forest fire, bakelite, mature red apples and pine apple candy. Some maturity. Very, very good in its own way. Lots of character.
The taste is semi mature with nice, sweet, yellow fruit in form of grapefruit, lemons, mango and papay. Very drinkable at this stage. Long, dry finish. I guess, at top of its game.
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

2000 Montrachet, Domaine Lamy-Pillot
Well, well, its not that often I get to drink Montrachet, and this beaty showed why certains plots of land is different than others...
A big, fat, oily nose with gorgeous scents of melted butter, cookie dough, fudge, dry honey and a touch of rubber, in a positive way. Very deep and intense. Some oak vanilla. And through all the scents there is a pure elegance about it. A stunner!
The taste is as multi layored as the nose with a tight, sweet fruit, a tingling acidity and a long, intense finish, that last for over a minute. There is a touch of maturity, but this have places to go. Lip smacking good!
97p   (tasted 2011/11)

2000 Corton-Charlemagne, Domaine Rapet
This one has a deep and, at first, withdrawn nose with notes of sweet lime, anise, sea shells and para nuts. It evolves nicely in the glass and more exotic fruits emerge - papay, pineapple and mango. A stunning nose, both initially and when it has blossomed. Ver, very deep.
The taste is very, very elegant and precise with a stunning structure and sweet, sweet fruit. Yellow plums, lemons and a touch of wood. The finish is almost as long as the Montrachet. Beautiful! Don´t normally like the wines from Rapet, but this one is the real deal.
95p   (tasted 2011/11)

2000 Corton-Charlemagne, Bertrand Ambroise
A big, powerful nose with lots of oak, coconut oil, melted butter and cookie dough. Opulent. I have a very high tolerande for oak treatment, but this pushes even my tolerance. There is good fruit here, but the oak (almost) overwhelmes it. Very broadshouldered.
The tasete is better, with the fruit and the oak in harmony. Still, it is a big wine, with notes of butter fried nuts, cookie dough, pineapple and a touch of alcohol warmth. Very long. A very good wine, but it could have been better, the raw material is there. I remember the 1990 CC, Ambroise as much better.
90p   (tasted 2011/11)

Time for the main course - we served deer filets with oven potatoes, a chanterelle soufflée and a red wine sauce.
Time to go back in time...

1953 Chambolle-Musigny, A.R. Barriére
A deep, very sweet nose with notes of mucovado sugar, overripe strawberrys, stables and wet earth. Big and brawny. Is this all Pinot? It feels like something darker and meatier have been added...
The taste is big and concentrated with sweet, sturdy red fruit and the same muscovado sugar taste as on the nose. Very much alive. Medium long finish that ends dry and fresh for its age.
85p   (tasted 2011/11)

1953 Chambolle-Musigny, Calvet
A much more withdrawn nose than the previous one. With air fresh rasberries, earth and forest fire emerges. This is very nice in its low keyed way. Very much alive.
The taste is tight, mature and pure with notes of lingonberries, rasberries and a fresh acidity. Medium long finish. Very, very nice, and very drinkable.
88p   (tasted 2011/11)

1976 Chambolle-Musigny, Pierre Julien-Hudelot
A cool, fine nose with notes of lingonberries, sweet spicies, licorice and dried summer flowers. Elegant and nice. Medium deep. Very good.
The taste is tight, fresh and good with lingonberries, rasberries, rosehips and a nice earthy note. Very elegant finish. Perfectly mature. Very, very good.
89p   (tasted 2011/11)

1976 Chambolle-Musigny, Noémie Vernaux
A big, mature, sweet nose with notes of beetroots, licorice, rasberries and wet earth. Complex and fine. Violets and smoke after a while. Just great to sit and sniff on this fine, mature Burgundy!
The taste is velvety, with lots of sweet red fruit, fresh acidity and a long, dry finish. Notes of red cherries, rasberries, licorice and violets. A lovely example of mature Pinot Noir.
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

For dessert there was a mighty chocolate cake with two fortified wines - one of them the wine of the evening...

1945 Riversaltes, Domaine Sarrat
A fine, low keyed, fairly elegant nose with notes of wild strawberries, sugared water and dried herbs. A tad to low keyed for my liking. But fresh.
The taste is bigger, with lots of pressed rasberries, sweet licorice and milk chocolate. Fine sweetness. But the finish is somewhat short, it ends fairly abruptly. Nice enough though.
85p   (tasted 2011/11)

1968 Bual Reserva, D´Oliveiras
This elixir was bottled 2010. The nose is bottomless deep with hauntingly notes of pan rosted nuts, dark chocolate, band aid, cane sugar and assorted dried fruit. Layer upon layer of greatness. Ginger cake bread, molasses, autumn leaves - the scents just alters with every sniff. Breathtakingly beautiful!
The taste is intense, so powerful, so stunning, that tears comes to my eyes. The concentration is awesome. Notes of roasted nuts, raisins, chocolate and dried apricots dominates the flavour. The acidity is through the roof, but so nicely integrated. Lots of salted biscuits in the finish, that seemingly never ends.
98p   (tasted 2011/11)

And so ends another tasting dinner, already looking forward to the next one...

Two tasting notes...

...of the same wine. Here is the first:

This is a frightfully, lean, austere, ferociously tannic wine that is nearly devoid of fruit and charm. There is some spice and new oak on the nose, but very little flavour and flesh to what is, in essence, a wine of all structure - acidity, alcohol and wood tannin.
76p

And here is the other:

A gentle, fine, mature nose with notes of old tobacco, leather, cool red currants and cherries, and warm rocks. There is a tiny touch of green bell peppar, but not in a disturbing way. Nice maturity.
The taste is cool, mature and soft with some dry tannins but also with a soft, round, red fruit that is still lively. Some red currants, blueberries and cherries. Medium long finish that ends with a nice dry twist. Touch of tobacco. Very nice.
87p

And the wine? It is

As you may have guessed, the first tasting note is from Parker from 1997, and the second is mine from last night. I am sure that Parker was "right" when he tried it in 1997, but I was also "right" when I had it last night. Conclusion - don´t trust tasting note, try for yourself! :-)

A Great New Zealand Pinot!

Haven´t tried anything from Ata Rangi before so I looked forward to uncork, well unscrew the top of this one. And my expectations were met - the best Pinot I have tasted fron New Zealand except for Escarpments Moana and Kupe and one or two Felton Roads.

2009 Ata Rangi Pinot Noir
A deep, fine, warm nose with notes of strawberrys, rasberries, a lovely touch of forest smoke and lots of sweet dark fudge. A lot of sweetness but not overly soo. Very good structure on the nose. And so yummy!
The taste is like drinking velvet, with beautiful sweet red fruit - sweet lingonberries, rasberries and red cherries, cool, sandy tannins and a refreshing acidity that makes the mouth salivating. Long and fresh. This is great stuff!
94p   (tasted 2011/11)

The Perfect Ones - Part 2

This perfect creature was drunk during the summer of 2008. Me and a friend had some wines in all simplicity, and I opened this, expecting a nice, open for business, mature Barolo, but when we put our noses in the glass, we just looked up at each other in pure amazement. You could sense the purity, the complexity, the greatness, from the first smell and sip right through the last one.
I am very glad that I managed to source a couple more bottles!

1982 Barolo Bricco Rocche, Ceretto
A deep, mellow but at the same time intense nose with stunning expressions of sweet red cherries, orange peel, beetroot, dried rose petals, tea bags and sweet pipe tobacco. Layers upon layers of the sweetest fruit imaginable. So perfect mature. This is breathtakingly beautiful!
The taste just oozes over the tongue with an intensity and purity that escapes the spoken word. Perfect fruit, perfect tannins, perfect structure. You don´t want to smallow this elixir. Just marvellous! I imagine that other well stored bottles should continue on this level for at least 6-8 years.
100p   (tasted 2008/06)

Dinner last night & lunch today

Last night I grilled some tender veal filet, matched with a creamy pommes dauphine and a madeira- and thymesauce. With that I thought the new vintage - at least for me - of Allegrinis La Grola would suit nice - and it did!

2007 La Grola, Allegrini
A beautiful perfumed nose, almost erotic in its deep, sensual, multi layered way, with stunning aromas of sweet tobacco, pickled cherries, leather, autumn leaves and touch of cinnamon. Stunning nose!
The taste is much tighter with lots of sweet blueberries, cookie dough and sandy, young tannins. A long, warm finish with good, cleansing acidity. Some chocolate flavours. Very, very good, although very young.
Gonna pick up a few more of this puppy!
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

For lunch today I made a chicken fricassee with mushrooms, onions, autumn apples and mustard. I opened a young generic white Burgundy from Louis Jadot that worked wonders with the apple/mustard/thyme flavours.

2010 Bourgogne, Louis Jadot
A fresh, youthful nose with notes of yellow apples, pears, butter fried nuts and warm grass. A touch warm, in a good way. Melon and sweet minerals appears after a while. Very good, although not that multi-dimensionell.
The taste is young, fresh and pure with notes of apple, melon and lemons. The acidity is fresh and medium high. A very good generic Burgundy.
86p   (tasted 2011/11)

Dinner at Sjömagasinet, Gothenburg

The restaurant Sjömagasinet in Gothenburg is one the best restaurants in Sweden. It had one star in Michelin Rouge up until the spring of 2011 when the prevoius owner sold the restaurant and it lost its star, according to the Michelin rules. But I guess the new owner will get it back. I was there last autumn and the quality was at the same high standard last week when I revisited.

We started things of with some rosé champagne while browsing the meny.

NV Bruno Paillard Premièr Cuvée Rosé
A fine, elegant, earthy nose with notes of fresh raberries, dry licorice and a nice minerality. Very fresh and succulent on the nose.
The taste is equally fresh and elegant with a high, lovely acidity. Very nice notes of red currants and rasberries. Finish pure and salivating.
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

I then ordered the Wagner meny, named after the owner Ulf Wagner. They describe it as classic with tastes that both will surprise and are recognizable.
The amuse was a cold pumpkin soup with crab and lime - so tasty!
The first course was salad on Swedish lobster with roasted pine kernels, pistachio nuts, yellow raisins and a parmesan dressing. The flavours were precise and the lobster was lip smacking good!
The next course was a poached filet of turbot with a brown butter- and oystersauce, a baked egg yolk and a fried anchovy. That turbot was the most perfect fish I have tasted in some time.

With these two first courses we had:
2005 Pouilly-Fuissé Terroir de Vergisson, Verget
I really like the Chardonnays from Verget, and this was no exception. A fine, steely nose with lots of sweet lemons and limes, gun smoke, licorice and a touch of vanilla oak. Very good.
The taste is young, tight and promising with relatively high acidity and sweet yellow fruit. Same note of gun smoke as on the nose. Needs a couple of years to unfold.
89p   (tasted 2011/11)

The third course was a grilled monkfish "Rossini" with madeira sauce, grilled foie gras, mushrooms and truffles. It was a great dish but the turbot outshined it on this night. Since this dish was little heavier, I thought it needed a red Bordeaux.

2004 Château Belair
I have not tasted a Belair since the 1982, which I have found memorys of. I guessed that this bottle, given the vintage, would be on the lighter side, and complement the fish, not kill it.
A cool, somewhat shy nose with notes of fresh stables, blueberries, dry tobacco and some leather aromas. On the lighter side but with a nice character.
The taste is a little withdrawn with lingonberries, a dusty summer road and dry autumn leaves. Very nice with the fish but a tad dry on its own. Not a wine I will remember but it did good on this night.
84p   (tasted 2011/11)

The dessert was a yummy cremè brulée with a pear sorbet.
I slept well that night...

Just Bought

This beaty just arrived! I have a fondness for the more manly Bordeaux wines :-), aka Latour and its mini cousin Montrose. Have had the fortune to drink lots of great vintages over the years, the 1937, 1949, 1955, 1964, 1970, 1978, and of course the 1990, which is a perfect wine in my book.
But this vintage I haven´t tasted, so I will look forward to doing the deed!

Notes from yesterday

Started dinner with a mushroom soup and a medium dry Madeira - a perfect combination!

10 Year Old Verdelho, Blandy´s
A fine, elegant nose with notes of seashell, lime, orange peel and pickeld ginger. Very deep and complex. After a while some rubbery notes emerge, and a very good minerality note. Very, very good.
The taste is intense, medium big and tight with that extraordinary Madeira acidity, paired with great fruit - lime, oranges and some mango. Long, long finish with a touch of smoke. A great 10 year old!
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

With some fresh crabs, scallops, tiger prawns and shrimps I opened the two Chardonnay in previous post. But, alas, the Sonoma-Cutrer was corked...:-(
But the Verget was on the other hand great!

1997 Corton-Charlemagne, Verget
At first a very tight, mineraly nose with a touch of buttered yeallow fruit, but not much more. Shy at first. But with air it unrevels with the sweetest fruit there is, gun powder scents and a touch of vanilla oak. Very, very deep, and powerful. Just stunning!
The taste is multi layered with gorgeous sweet fruit, perfect acidity and a very, very long finish. Sweet lemons, lime, melon and a touch of pine apple. And wave after wave with pure minerals. Still on the young side! Drop dead gorgeous!
96p   (tasted 2011/11)

We needed a red wine to finish the cheeses and the night of, and I had 2 hours before decanted this beaty:

1999 Barolo Pajana, Domenico Clerico
A deep, fine, smooth nose with notes of sweet black cherries, pipe tobacco, leather and some vanilla oak. There is some notes of maturity. Very, very good. A lovely creamy fruit. Great!
The taste is big, multidimensionell and steady with more tannins than the nose leads you to believe. Very sweet, yummy red/black fruit. In the long finish the tannins are really noticable. This still needs 5-7 years. But it is a great drink today!
92p   (tasted 2011/11)

Quality control

The chef, aka me..., have to check the wine for the mushroom soup that we have for starter, and aaaaaaah Madeira - what a great way to start a dinner, and to keep the spirit going in the chef...

In a couple of hours...

...I will be drinking these, hopefully, great Chardonnays with some fresh shellfish - crab, tiger prawns, shrimps and scallops!
Stay tuned for a report later!

Drinking tonight

With a nice steak, some fried potatoes and a madeira sauce, a classic Bordeaux worked well. Not a blockbuster, not a well known name, not expensive, but very drinkable a friday evening.

2007 Château Reysson, Haut-Medoc
A fine, pure, classic nose with the notes you suppose to find, and longing for - sweet black currants, gravel, leather and some tobacco. Cool and fine, althought it is somewhat reserved. A touch of vanilla oak. Very good.
The taste feels younger than the nose, with more red than black currants, cool tannins and a long, fresh finish. Would benefit from 3-5 years cellaring. The finish is a touch angular. Good though. And it complimated the steak with grace.
85p   (tasted 2011/11)

And tomorrow there will some , hopefully, stunning wines - stay tuned! :-)

Just Bought

Picked up these puppies at the state monopoly today - 2009 vintage. But how long should one wait before doing the deed...? :-)

And now, what to open for dinner...?