WTN: Christmas Wines

With smoked salmon:
Heidsiek Goldtop NV Champagne -
This is a surprisingly good moderate priced champagne. Nice bead, nice yeasty nose, medium weight and density, good finish. This is a very pleasant champagne and one I prefer to most other NV champagnes. Given its cost of about £15 about a year ago, it's a terrific value. Excellent

Dom Perignon 1990
Over the hill and somewhat oxidized. Given that this had nigh perfect storage, this bottle suggests that one not hold back on drinking this if you still have it.

Billecart-Salmon Blanc de Blancs 1990
As good as the previous bottle was disappointing. Light golden color, good bead, lovely nose, excellent balance, nice finish. Just that bit more refined than the Heidsick. Like most Billecart, not the most aggressively flavoured champagne but rather a lesson in balance. Excellent+, bordering on Outstanding

With dry-brined bronze turkey and savory side dishes:
J F Mugnier Le Musigny 1997
Surprising subdued. There was not much wrong with this but it was all pretty medium and I was expecting a LOT MORE OF EVERYTHING. Given how outstanding Freddy Mugnier's Musigny is in vintages like 98, 99, I was expecting the 97 to really sing and this was more like a mature village wine. Very Good

D Laurent Echezeaux 1997
Spectacularly good. Big nose, layers of fruit and some emerging secondary leather and spice on the palate. BIG, BIG mouth full of wine, this got everybody's attention and temporarily stopped conversation. Outstanding. I just wish I had loaded up on the 97s and Domenick Laurent certainly nailed it in 1997.

D Laurent Mazis-Chambertin 1996
Lovely nose, if anything more beguiling than the 97. On the palate, nice flavours but a rather prominent underlying acidity that detracted from the experience. An "almost" wine; if that acidity ever fades, this will be Outstanding but, as is, I am struggling to give it Excellent.

D Laurent Nuit St Georges Premier Cru Les Argillieres 1996
I decided to pull another Laurent 96 to see if it showed the same flaw of excess acidity and I am sorry to say that the experience is almost identical. Lovely nose, lovely core of fruit complemented by evolving secondary tastes, pretty terrific in the mouth but turning acidic in the stomach. Very Good +

I am reluctantly coming to the conclusion that 1996 red burgundies may never evolve to the point that the acidity is not obtrusive. I would be curious if anyone has strong views.

Merry Christmas to all,

Robert

I forgot the dessert wine:

Huet Vouvrey Clos de Bourg Moelleux 1er Trie 1990
Sherry coloured. Strong botrytis on the nose and the palate. This continues to evolve at a rapid pace for a Vouvrey; this looks more like a wine from the 40s than a 1990. Having said that, this remains exquisite on the palate with lots of power and enough acidity to balance the extreme sweetness. Not as etherial as the 89, the 90 remains an exercise in power and mouth-coating flavours. Worked extremely well with a pecan pie. Outstanding.

Robert

Sounds like a nice selection of wines. I do not have much experience with Laurent or Mugnier's wines but you are providing more evidence for those who say that Laurent's wines swallow their oak well with a bit of age.

What is 'bronze' turkey?

Wikipedia: "Bronze turkeys are the product of crossing domestic turkeys brought from Europe by colonists (which had been exported to Europe years before) with the Wild Turkey. These matings produced a bird that was larger and more robust than the European turkeys, and tamer than wild turkeys. Though the Bronze turkey type was created in the 18th century, the actual name was not used until the 1830s, when a strain developed in the U.S. state of Rhode Island was named the Point Judith Bronze. The name later spread to be used in reference to the breed as a whole, and was in the process simplified to just "Bronze".[2] In the British Isles, the Bronze was associated with Cambridge, and was called the Cambridge Bronze, but again this name has been simplified to just "Bronze".

"The Bronze was first admitted in to the American Poultry Association's Standard of Perfection in 1874. Later, beginning in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, some Bronze turkeys were selected for larger size.[3] These much bigger birds became known as the Broad Breasted Bronze, to differentiate them from the original type of bird which was bred to the breeds' Standard of Perfection, and so was called the Standard (or Unimproved) Bronze.

"Apart from the difference in size, the plumage of the Standard Bronze is usually lighter and more lustrous than that of the Broad Breasted. Both have a brown color which is highlighted by shades of copper and blue-green, and the plumage overall is very similar to that of the Wild Turkey.

"The Broad Breasted Bronze went on to dominate the commercial turkey industry for twenty years after its development, until the Broad Breasted White became the breed of choice. Due to their size, they have lost the ability to mate naturally, and Broad Breasted Bronzes in existence today are maintained entirely by artificial insemination. Having retained the ability to reproduce naturally (among other traits), the Standard Bronze is considered to be a variety of heritage turkey."

Probably more information than you wanted.

Here in the UK, some turkey growers found a flock of (standard?) bronze turkeys that were essentially unchanged from the 19th century and re-introduced them into the market about 20 years ago. These "bronze" turkeys seem to produce a bird with more flavour than standard birds. Certainly most of the birds we bought in the US taste like cardboard in comparison.

Laurent's wines do wear their oak well with some age.

Regards,

Robert

Probably more information than you wanted.

Indeed! Especially as I don't eat meat. But sounds interesting. I thought the 'bronze' might refer to a cooking method but I have indeed heard of all these 'heritage' birds. Something worth keeping.