Gregory dal Piaz hosted our blind tasting group for a tinfoil-covered lineup from his cellar at Braeburn restaurant in downtown Manhattan. A few rambles before the notes:
- Braeburn is terrific. The quail apps were wonderful, the toasted cauliflower side dish was perhaps my favourite item of the night (and a dish I must learn to try and replicate!), and the main dish (chicken for me) and desserts were also lovely. Fantastic food and not overly pricey (especially with a nice corkage deal).
- Blind tasting is really eye-opening, humbling and lots of fun. Though it was amazing to see how Leo absolutely nailed one of the wines on the last red flight, saying he'd literally stop drinking if it wasn't an '82 Barolo. (It was.)
- Old Californian wines - umm, wow. I've had very limited experience with them, just an 81 Montelena and a 76 Ridge York Creek Petite Sirah that were both superb - and some of the wines poured tonight were revelations, particularly the Caymus and the 84 Zin - the first Zin I've really been wowed by. Both very polished and elegant with a sense of lightness and none of the alcohol or massive ripeness/density I've found in so many more modern wines. Sigh, why aren't they making wines like these any more?
Thanks again for putting together an amazing tasting Greg!
1979 Caymus Pinot Noir Special Selection (Napa Valley)
Clear ruby colour, bricking at the rim - and what a *gorgeous* aroma; bright red fruits, truffles, herbs and touches of baking spices and chocolate combined into a single amazing scent. Really elegant, seamless and silken-textured in the mouth with amazing depth of flavour but barely any weight. Stunning.
1979 Burgess Pinot Noir (Napa Valley)
Darker in colour and its flavour profile than the Caymus; the fruit's more plummy here and accented by leather, spices and tarry notes with bright acids giving it a sense of freshness. Very nice, though there's a faint bitter note at the back end that detracts a touch.
1984 Lytton Springs Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley)
Stunning aromatics again; sweet fragrances of cookie dough, baking spices and floral elements mingled with bright cherry and plum fruit. Starts out feeling a heavy in the mouth where the fruit initially feels very ripe and a little jammy, but with some air it freshens up really nicely to show bright black cherries and berries with touches of spice and earth.
1985 Lytton Springs Zinfandel (Dry Creek Valley)
Corked. Damnit.
[I'll also add that until this point, my guesses on the first four wines poured had all been old-world, leaning towards Rioja. Nothing at all in those wines that I could connect with my reference points from modern Cali wines.]
1988 Guy de Barjac Cornas
Wild, sauvage stuff from the first taste with leather, red fruits and warm earth accented by meaty and barnyard notes (most likely some brett here, though it seemed to add to the wine). The rusticity only goes as far as the flavours though, this has a very polished, silky texture that makes it very easy to drink - really enjoyed this, even if it wasn't for everyone.
1988 Arroyo Seco Petite Sirah
Not sure if that's the full name as the label was tattered and faded, but really interesting stuff with earth, touches of oak and green herbal notes around a core of cassis and dark fruited flavours. Plenty of structure here as well with bright acids and still-grainy tannins on the back end. I think Greg said this had 11.8% alcohol! (Was guessing Cabernet Franc on this)
1990 Podere il Palazzino Chianti Classico Grosso Sanese
Still rather youthful with fresh blackberry and plum fruit accented by cedar and earthy flavours, finishing slightly bitter though.
1990 ??? Another Italian Sangiovese with a missing label, where I didn't even come close to getting the name
Lighter in colour than the Palazzino, but more boring and monotonic with plummy dark fruit and noticeable oak.
1983 Château Gruaud Larose
My favourite of the night. Superb aromatics and a flavour profile with layers of leather, sandalwood, cedar, tobacco/herbal notes and still-bright red fruits, such finesse and balance with a polished, silky texture, tannins feel resolved and integrated and the savoury, leathery finish just stays with you.
1983 Château Lynch-Bages
Much darker in its flavour profile than the Gruaud Larose; dark fruits and cassis here with graphite and herbal touches, but what sets this apart (and not in a good way) is the sensation of oak and tarry notes - and the texture's also nowhere near as polished, feeling much more tannic and abrasive.
1982 Cordero di Montezemolo Barolo Vigna Enrico VI
And hats off to Leo again for nailing this blind as an 82 Barolo - tarry red fruits over notes of underbrush and faint medicinal elements that emerged with air, still felt quite young and tannic.
1982 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo
Incredible aromatics; was happy to keep smelling this for a while and enjoying the range of flavours here from developed tarry, earthy and mushroom notes to bright red fruits, dried rose petals and touches of raisins/dried fruits that made it come across almost Amarone-like. Very ripe in the mouth with plenty of richness and weight to the fruit flavours, lots of complexity with layers of mushroom, tar and herbal elements beneath - really lovely.
1997 Gini Recioto di Soave Renobilis
Very Sauternes-like in its colour and profile, golden-amber orange and full of honey-drenched apricot, peaches, spices and floral elements. Quite viscous in texture, very rich and dense with the acidity barely felt underneath the weight of the sweet fruit and honey, finishing very long.