Bipin Desai is the famous collector and old wines specialist who makes extensive verticals of great wines. He comes to France two or three times a year. When it is in December, he has many meals in various places, and he asks me to organise what is called “the dinner of Bipin’s friends”. This is the 7th time that I organise such a dinner, and we will have the attendance of the “crème de la crème” of wine in France. I will make a report on this dinner to come with a great pleasure.
When I met Alexandre de Lur Saluces by the “Grand Tasting” in Paris, he told me : “I will receive Bipin for a dinner two days before the dinner you organise. Would you like to come to Fargues?”. I immediately said yes.
The dinner is held in the private home of Alexandre, touching Chateau de Fargues. We are seven, Anne and Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier, Bipin and one of his friends, great collector whom I have met several times with Bipin and a young student who had organised some time ago a conference in “Ecole Normale Supérieure”, where the two speakers were Alexandre and me. He is now preparing a doctorate in oenology.
In the very cosy main room of Alexandre we drink champagne Bollinger NV served very cool, which is good for it. It is very strong, with a deep taste, but has an airiness which is pleasant. We talk in English with some deviations as Bipin understands French.
The dinner will give me some surprises concerning the choice of the courses and the choice of the wines. Alexandre smiled about the curious choices that he made.
We begin with Château de Fargues 1995 which is served with scallops, lobster and truffle. This is a perfect combination, mainly with the sauce of the lobster. The Fargues has a slightly brown colour and its nose is very direct. In mouth it is already mature, more than what could be expected. I feel dry grapes in it, and it reminds me Yquem 1988. When I say so, Bipin disagrees, and Alexandre joins him, but I still continue to think that the deepness of the Fargues has similarities with the Yquem 1988. I see a very long future for this wine, but it is very drinkable right now.
As Alexandre had forgotten a soup to clear the mouth after the strong sauternes, he lets serve a Côte Rôtie Cordeloux domaine Bénétière 2003 which is completely not convenient. This wine could be very agreeable in a different dinner. But there, it was inaccurate and played very strangely its role of mouth-cleaner.
The guinea fowl with foie gras and morels has a sauce very sweet which could be combined with a Fargues. But we have a Château Lafite-Rothschild 1945 which fits very well. When I was invited by Alexandre some years ago with my wife we had also drunk the same wine, and I find this one largely better. It is a very racy, noble, elegant wine. Alexandre had asked me if it should be opened earlier as he was afraid of a possibly declining wine after some minutes, but he opened it as soon as I arrived, before Bipin (who opens always at the last minute), which helped to have a very round and performing wine. What I like is the very rational structure in this wine, very pure, long in mouth and highly expressive. Everybody mocked me because I drank the sediment, which is for me the concentration of the excellence of a wine.
Each of us, we had a menu printed at our place, so we could read that there would be cheese and a dessert with strawberries. And the two wines to come, in this order, were Chateau de Fargues 1951 and Vin Jaune Chateau d’Arlay 1999. To put a vin jaune after a Fargues is particularly strange, and a dessert with strawberry will not work either with a sauternes (red fruits are enemy) or with a vin jaune as the effect is repulsive. I was wondering what was the purpose of this and Alexandre, who is the most delicate and sensitive person said that he wondered why he had decided such experiments !
As there was Comté and bleu d’Auvergne, I asked the man who served, whom I know for a long time, to serve the two wines together to enjoy each wine with the proper cheese. I had had already Bipin and Olivier attending one of my dinners and I knew that Olivier does not like oxidative wines. It will be difficult to teach him the finesse of Jura wines. This one is much too young to create really emotion.
The interest is largely more raised by the Fargues and even more when one knows that 1951 Yquem was not made. This Fargues is absolutely delicious. Already brown, with a discrete nose, it has lost a part of its sugar, and shows a high personality. It is delicate and has a great length. It is for me a subtle wine which will not please everyone as it is not a flashy wine. I like such an expression.
We finished passionate discussions with “cannelés”, coffee and a Hennessy cognac. It was a very friendly dinner.