Saturday Betsy made the Esca fish tacos (fried flounder, cabbage, salsa, chipotle mayo/sauce), not an easy wine match (next time sparkling!) but the 2004 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Kabinett Riesling did ok. Only ok as a match, but seriously good as a wine. Bright and sassy but with a creamy textural underbase, lovely balance of acidity and sweetness. Limesicle laced with slate and flint, with time some peach flower topnotes. Long, precise finish. A-
Sunday we had a small dinner party. In high school David started working part-time at counter at a top local bakery, for his senior internship he learned to bake there. He worked summers after freshman year at St Andrews, when he decided to take year off to work on a literary journal he has worked there full-time. In my opinion it's been a very valuable experience for him, so I was happy we were having the couple who own it for dinner (Betsy had met them while I hadn't, though I had seen Kay on the Food Network). I think Dave was a little nervous- bosses meet parents- but we had a lovely dinner.
Starters were a Georgian bean/walnut dip, then we sat down to morel-madeira soup with fromage blanc and roe. Wine was the 1998 Charles Ellner " Cuvee Prestige" Champagne Brut. Full yeasty style, creme brulee meets apple betty, big with good acidity.. Maybe a tad unfocused. B
Main course was duck legs over greens, with a warm root vegetable (celeriac, parsnips, beets, carrot) salad. Three reds made an appearance:
1988 Pierre Bouree "Clos de la Justice" Gevrey-Chambertin
Uh oh, a bit before dinner I remove capsule to find damp soft soggy cork. With some care I remove intact, into the decanter -the color is not encouraging -definite browning. Nose of earth, meat, and cherries, but some age/oxidative notes of prunes and brown sugar. I think this has seen some less than optimum storage (think I got in last few years). OK, so I open the backup (Volnay). I have low hopes for the Gevrey, but by time we had tried other reds it made a comeback. Color seems better, fruit a bit fresher. Earthy, fruit is not classic but certainly drinkable. At its peak a B-, I wouldn't mind trying a pristine bottle.
1993 Darviot-Perrin "la Gigotte" Volnay 1er
Fresh, high acids, long finish. Floral, red fruits, sandalwood, just a hint of merde. I quite like, better than a previous (satisfactory) bottle. B++
1996 Ca Rome "Rapet" Barolo
Medium bodied, fine tannins, good acidity. A hint of tar, pine resin. Drinking fairly well already. Not a bad Barolo at all, but maybe a slight disappointment in the context of 96 Piedmont. B
Kay had brought a "strawberry pizza" (pecan shortbread with cinnamon, topped with berries and mascarpone) that delighted the dessert eater, I made do with cheeses (Vt 3 yr cheddar, mimolette-like cheese called pave du Nord, Epoisses, petit basque). Fun night with new friends.
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.