Dinner out with Christian, Oliver, Patrick, Rainer and Remo.
There is no translation for Swiss German “Metzgete”, merely an explanation:
[selection of boiled pork, pork sausages etc. from freshly slaughtered pigs with sauerkraut etc.]
The most interesting course I had was so-called “Grik” or “Gstell”, a complex yet harmonious stew of suckling pig’s lung, heart, kidney and trotter – it may not sound appetizing, but turned out to be incredibly yummy. The waiter told me I was only the second guest to order it, and the chef explained he usually ends up eating all of it himself as even his staff will not try it.
Château Pavie St. Emilion 2001
Thanks to Oliver. A blend of 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 24 months in all-new barrique. Shockingly modernistic, as Christian suggested, one may guess this to be Pavie, but if so, by a process of elimination. Virtually opaque garnet-ruby-red. Smoky vanilla/coffee/cocoa/coconut oak with a touch of charcoal and scorched tree bark. Highly concentrated. Blackberry that is half jammy, half dried, exotic red berries, and a touch of gamy prune. Christmas spice box. Lots of toffee. High alcohol. Quality oak, but lots of it and too toasty for our taste – we also got the impression most of the tannin is oak-induced (given the superripeness of the fruit, it is tempting to assume the grapes did not have much tannin left of their own). Faintly rubbery with airing – possibly a touch reductive? Impressive so far as concentration and thorough ripeness are concerned, and yet, I am not convinced this is going to age harmoniously (cannot say it will not, but need proof!). Stylistically similar to Neipperg/Derenoncourt wines – a few of those are evolving nicely, many are not, but more to the point: is anyone able to tell in advance? Rainer finds the combination of acidity, tannin and high alcohol a bit aggressive. On the positive side, this is a thick, fat and flavourful, quite complex and intense modern young wine: no wonder this was a favourite especially with Christian, Oliver and Patrick. Remo, whom I had expected to like it, thought this almost “foamy” (not sure what he meant there), and is unhappy with the stylistic change at Pavie following the 1998/1999 vintages. My feelings about the 2001 were mixed: it seems more concentrated, and is riper and bigger than the 1998 and 1999, yet tastes like a virtual blend of Canon-La Gaffelière, La Mondotte and Pavie Macquin – I cannot help wondering if the greatness and individuality of Pavie’s terroir will ever surface in a modernistic wine like this (in contrast to the 1998 and 1999 that, although already modernistic, seem more safely on the “sane” side of the spectrum in this regard), or if it is going to fall apart long before this happens. I might drink the 2001 in its burly youth if I owned any (scratch that: I would sell it off), but I would also be curious to give it another try in a decade or so (curiosity killed the cat...). Rating: 93+/-?
Henri Bonneau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Marie Beurrier 2001
Thanks to Patrick. Medium ruby-black colour, faint watery orange at the rim. Rather closed in comparison to a bottle in May, with a seemingly more youthful Grenache purity, but almost greater complexity. Blood sausage, soft spice and roasted Provençal herbs, minerals and iron – and that Bonneau touch of hazelnut coffee. Great, medium-hard, blood-orangey and as if “minerally” (as Rainer observed) tannin, with pretty black tea finesse. Gingery-fresh and seemingly light on its feet. Needless to emphasize, a perfect match with Metzgete. Rating: 92+/93
Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée des Cadettes 1998
Thanks to Rainer. A blend of 39% Grenache, 37% Mourvèdre, and 24% Syrah. 50% new barriques. Plummy ruby-black. Fairly modern-styled nose with a touch of sweet marzipan from the oak, more oak on the palate, fruit that is somewhere between Australian and Spanish Grenache, although with some CdP red berry and soft Kirsch Schnaps, and that suggestion of Mourvèdre animal fur. Touch of sweat, soft pepper. Good purity. Finely-grained tannin, still a bit youthfully bitter, not too oak-induced. Perhaps best on the rather long finish. Even though one gets (somewhat more) used to the mismatch with new oak after a few sips, La Nerthe’s terroir (Henri Bonneau once called it the finest of all in Châteauneuf-du-Pape) comes less to the fore in this, the top-of-the-line bottling – and that, to me, does not make sense. The Cadettes is more concentrated and no doubt ageworthier than La Nerthe’s standard CdP, and undeniably an outstanding quality wine in this great, great vintage, but is it going to reveal more typicity with bottle age? I doubt it, but would not mind re-tasting this in a decade from now. Rating: 92+/~93?
Jean-Paul & Jean-Luc Jamet Côte-Rôtie 1999
Contribution of mine. Needs decanting as it contains quite a bit of sediment. Retains an impressively deep purple colour. Highly concentrated. Bacon fat. Youthful floral essence. Bright and lively violety-racy fruit, complex herbs, incredible freshness and cut. Racy, grapey tannin, still slightly hard, faintly grainy and nicely smoky. Great flinty minerals and iron. Meat and pepper. Noble, soft tobacco. Long and floral on the finish. Good grip. Kept opening up for hours. Rainer’s, Oliver’s and my wine of the night, others like Remo found it underwhelming. A great QPR buy in hindsight, could kick myself for having bought so little at release. Rating: 95+/96
Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage 1999
Thanks to Remo. Fractionally more evolved purple ruby-black than the Jamet’s. Closed and ever so faintly cork-tainted. Great fruit and iron, but there is the tiny bitter note and shorter than usual finish due to the TCA, what a pity! Rating: N/R
Château Mouton Rothschild Pauillac 1996
Thanks to Christian, who thinks this was better two or three years ago. A blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Franc. Opaque lightly purple ruby, faint ruby-red rim. Malty blackcurrant, mild fruit complexity, round and smooth. Soft chocolate and coffee and nutmeg oak. Medium-plus length on the mild finish. “Powdery-satiny”, is how Patrick described it, who thought the wine extremely soft. A bottle that oxidized much less quickly in the decanter than most, probably the best 1996 Mouton I (or Rainer, who sat opposite me) have had. We all agree with Christian that there is more upward potential to the at this stage still youthfully grumpy 1995. As a matter of fact, I doubt there is any upwards potential to the 1996, even though it can clearly be cellared. There is no reason not to pull a cork now and then, however. Rating: 92(+/-?)
Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Rangen de Thann Clos St-Urbain 2001
A half bottle I opened for Rainer late at night, then drank up with Remo the next day. It no longer says “Tokay” on the label – interestingly, since Rangen has volcanic terroir, the Pinot Gris from this site used to be the only ones that at least bore some similarity to the wines from Tokaj, Hungary. “Indice 2”, referring to a wine that is not technically dry, nor tastes sweet. Lightly orange gold. Jasmine tea, bakery spice to pear and aged apple, hazelnut (maybe with a suggestion of peanut), flinty volcanic soil notes, intense and strongly minerally-stony wine. Soft dried mushroom. Precise and fascinating crustacean/shellfish top note. Full body, with the 14% quite well integrated, no doubt due to the combination of concentration and lightly sea salty dry extract. Faintly strawy-peachy grapefruit. Quite strong, “fruity” acidity. Long, sea-salty and quite finesseful finish. Truly superlative terroir expression, a perfect match with Pinot Gris, even if it is neither Rainer’s nor my favourite grape variety. Sweeter the first day. After 12 hours a touch of alcoholic egg liqueur to sweet pear and gun flint/smoky minerals. Remo liked this a great deal and found that to him, only a handful of the finest German Rieslings ever achieve this kind of intensity (such as of, he added, minerality). High-grade TPG such as this can be cellared for a (very) long time, but to me the combination of freshness and focus, intensity of terroir expression, great minerality, still lightly primary fruit and acidity form a balance and overall aromatic and flavour profile that I know from experience is only going to mature into an altogether nuttier (not necessarily duller, although that can happen, too), rarely more, usually less finesseful and detailed overall impression – to put it another way: were I one to cellar off-dry TPG, this would be as likely a candidate as any, as far as my personal taste is concerned, however, it would have to be a late harvest TPG of dessert/meditation wine sweetness (VT, preferably SGN) for me to make such an exception. Rating: 93(+/-?)
Greetings from Switzerland, David.
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„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
