1990’s No. Rhone Reds (plus a California syrah)
La Fonda del Sol, NYC
12/07/10
Cold. Winter. Northeast. December. Yep, perfect for some good old hefty, robust, food-friendly reds. So, 6 wine geeks gathered at a modern Spanish restaurant in midtown NYC to drink some 1990s Northern Rhones and chow on some good Spanish foods. We had good all-around service at the restaurant and the hearty dishes that accompanied our wines started with a delicious amuse amuse bouche of sliced squid and chorizo, followed by a shared plate of chef-selected sliced meats of chorizo, lomo, and jamon that I thought was just right in prepping us up for the wines and the other dishes to come. I opted for a superb appetizer of octopus a-la-plancha, braised with morcilla sausage and chickpeas. My entrée of Creekstone Duck breast with fresh quince was one very tasty dish and paired well with our wines. This was a fun dinner with a small and very enjoyable company, plus a good selection of wines.
The wines:
2004 JL Chave Hermitage Blanc
Not in line with the vintage theme, but it’s still Rhone. This was a big and thick wine. I sensed mixed reactions to the bottle. “Oaky” was a prevalent among the comments, but I also found wax notes with some honey, butterscotch, and fig. The bouquet evolved over time, from woody notes to sweet citrus and finally added confection stuff near the end of the dinner. Will keep my fingers crossed on this as this was my first of a 3-bottle purchase. B
1st Flight
1994 Thierry Allemand “Reynard” Cornas
Wonderful smell with leafy notes mixed in with confection spice. Very soft in the mouth, a fine level of acidity, cherries, silky and finesse. I wish this wine was easily available. B+
Group: 3rd Place WOTN (6-of-36 votes)
1995 Edmunds-St.-John Syrah “Durell Vineyards”
Another off theme bottle, but Jay had asked in advance to include this as a wine to compare with. This and the ensuing mystery bottle definitely added to the fun factor. High in acidity, raspberries, noticeably higher in alcohol than the others in the same flight, The ripeness and sweet fruit became greater and more evident with time in the glass. With one staunch dissenting opinion, the general thinking was that this was a worthy Cali QPR. Thanks Jay. B
1998 E Guigal Cote-Rotie Chateau d’Ampuis (mystery bottle)
Matt brought this bottle wrapped in white paper. Guesses included Spanish Rioja and California. I began to like this wine with more time in the glass. Very alluring and evolving nose with wood, dry earth, fresh meat that I just can’t stop sniffing at. Showed very ripe black fruit with well-delineated layers of sweet cherries and blueberries on the palate. Sweet but controlled balance, with a pleasant smooth mouth feel. Thanks to Matt for adding this to the mix. B+
2nd Flight
1991 Rene Rostaing Cote-Rotie “Cote Blonde”Expressive bouquet with confection spice, sulfur, wet earth and ripe fruit. Elegant with sufficient muscles and compact structure, but showed to be more feminine, smoother and delicate than the Gentaz. Quite forward with the red fruit. Some comments about being modern, relatively, but retaining old world qualities. Excellent. A-
2nd Place WOTN (12-of-36 votes)
1991 Gentaz-Dervieux Cote-Rotie Brune
Even as the bottle showed to be just slightly advanced, the bouquet easily reminded me of what a very good classic Cote-Rotie should be with earthy, some bacon fat, sulfur and fresh-baked croissant. Red fruit and a lot of acidity, it was easy to somehow discern how traditional this wine was crafted to be. I’d loved to have had the opportunity to taste this when it was slightly younger. B+/B
Flight 3
1995 Paul Jaboulet-Aine Hermitage “La Chappele”
A constantly evolving nose from wood, savory meat, to flowers, this wine showed slight harshness amidst ripe blue and black fruit. A wine needing hearty food and, imho, this will need more cellar time to really stuff to strut its stuff. B
1994 JL Chave Hermitage Rouge
Finesse and silky. The nose is what I’d always thought good classic Chave would be with dry earth, fruit, fresh meat and baking spice. This wine was regal with its all-around pleasantness and food-friendliness. Showed depth in complexity and showcased a very well balanced fruit, acidity and very slight meat and vegetal notes. Notes of cherry pie and subdued fine liquor. A stunning showing. A-/A
Groups 1st Place WOTN (15-of-36 votes)
1997 JL Chave Hermitage Rouge
The bouquet was just slightly subdued than the 1994, but differed by being slightly earthier and less fruity. Lots of acidity, leaner in texture and fruit-content than the 1994, also came across as a little more brutish, but still showed why Chave can be good regardless of generalized so-called lower expert opinion on the vintage. With time, showed more baking spice, wet leaves, and some ripe red fruit on the nose. A young wine requiring more cellar time. Lingering finish. B+
Dessert
2007 Weegmuller Haardter Mandelring Scheurebe Auslese
Jay generously provided the auslese. The wine was soft, lemony, honeyed but had that taste of Key Lime pie filling that I would easily finish off in one TV-watching session. A fine light semi-sticky wine to finish off with. B
* edited to add the name/vintage of the dessert wine
