WTN: Pre-jeebus dinner at Bob's

A few of us came in on Friday afternoon/evening for the big jeebus. Bob Ross, JuliaB, Howie, Alan Kerr and I sat down to a dinner of white truffle risotto, pork tenderloin and cauliflower with some superb wines as Bob opened some gems from the cellar.

2009 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling "Anrecht"
Lovely as always. Ripe citrus, apple and pear fruit combined with slatey minerality and floral elements in a lightweight, moderately sweet package balanced by plenty of acidity.

2010 Hart Cellars Dry Riesling
My first chance to try one of Howie's wines, and this was delicious - certainly dry, but not lacking any fruit with plenty of green apples, lemons and limes, bracing acids beneath that keep it very lively and refreshing.

1985 Château Haut-Brion
Drinking amazingly well right now. Perfectly mature with gentle cassis and red fruits framed by developed cigar smoke, truffle, gravel and leathery notes that combine into one incredible scent; medium weight with tannins fully resolved, a beautiful, polished texture and perfect balance - fantastic.

1990 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle
Quite a surprise - this seems incredibly primary and youthful for a 20+ year old wine, packed with red and dark fruited flavours with accents of meat, pepper and faint herbal elements. This has considerable depth - with time it starts to unravel more layers and nuance, and it's an amazing wine to sit down with and explore.

1990 Château Haut-Brion
Darker in its flavour profile and more powerful and brawny than the '85 poured earlier; this starts out with a similar scent of pipe tobacco, cedar, leather and dark fruited flavours, but it's much richer and more primary in the mouth with the fruit very concentrated and forward and plenty of tannin beneath, though still very easy to drink. There's impeccable balance and tremendous length - spectacular now, and I imagine this will only get better with age.

2004 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
Brilliant; layers of fresh citrus, pear, peach and red fruited flavours infused with a vivid stony minerality and accented with high toned floral and spicy notes; moderately sweet but beautifully balanced with really vibrant acidity, a polished, glossy texture and amazing length.

1999 Dönnhoff Norheimer Kirschheck Riesling Spätlese
Drinking very nicely right now with fresh pears and white cherries combined with developed petrol and creamy notes in a round, medium bodied package with generous sweetness and a nice sense of freshness, even though there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of acidity here.

1990 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage
Wow wow wow. Starts out with an intoxicating aroma that combine red fruits, olives, leather, hickory smoke and a vivid meatiness into one incredible fragrance and then it's just amazing on the palate, tasting exactly as it smells while conveying amazing power, depth and balance with a beautiful, polished texture and a finish that just keeps persisting. Unfreakingbelievable.

A lovely evening, great to sit down and enjoy a relaxed dinner with Bob, Alan, Howie and JB with some wonderful wines - hell of a way to start the jeebus weekend.

[David M. Bueker]

So that didn't suck.

I would have been insanely jealous if Saturday had not been so outstanding!

[James Roscoe]

I liked the way that the Friday night dinner guests kept the bottles out on the counter so as to taunt the early Saturday arrivals. Fotunatelly all was soon forgiven!

[David M. Bueker]

As they say, living well is the best revenge.

Some incredible wines there, Salil. Excellent notes, as always. To drink a '85 & '90 HB, '90 JLC and '90 La Chapelle in one sitting amongst some very smart Rieslings! All I can say is ..... jeez!

A few of us came in on Friday afternoon/evening for the big jeebus. Bob Ross, JuliaB, Howie, Alan Kerr and I sat down to a dinner of white truffle risotto, pork tenderloin and cauliflower with some superb wines as Bob opened some gems from the cellar.

Um Salil..you forgot to mention that fantastic dinner was totally prepared by you! You certainly know your way around a kitchen! The pork tenderloin with the '85 Haut Brion answered Bob's question: "Do you think this would work?"
(After our collective jaws were reclaimed from the floor, I'm sure I heard someone say yes, while the rest of us just nodded.)

A lovely evening, great to sit down and enjoy a relaxed dinner with Bob, Alan, Howie and JB with some wonderful wines - hell of a way to start the jeebus weekend.

Yes, it was...thank you for the food and company...and this write up.
JuliaB

Alan Kerr arrived at my home around noonish on Friday. We finished loading up our belongings in my small pickup, had a cup of coffee and hit the road. The trip was rather uneventful (a good thing), except for an hour-long hold-up for a construction detour on I-81. Once we got through that, we stopped for a bite to eat at Spiedie’s BBQ in Binghamton, one more stop later for gas and we arrived at Bob’s about 8:30.

Julia gave us the obligatory tour and showed us our room. The house is probably the most beautiful home I’ve ever been in. I could live there! Salil was cooking up a storm and presented us with a wonderful meal of bacon-wrapped pork loin, risotto and Indian seasoned cauliflower.

Somehow, over the course of several hours, the five of us enjoyed a long relaxed dinner and managed to consume 11 bottles of wine. I did not take notes on either day, but am relying on my memory for impressions of specific wines that I enjoyed. We started with Riesling while Salil was still cooking. Before sitting down we enjoyed a 2009 Selbach-Oster "Anrecht" Zeltinger Himmelriech, which was a great starter, a bit sweeter and softer than my home made. In addition to what is listed in Salil's excellent notes (above) other wines were Gruet Blanc des Noir – Brut, a well made bubbly that worked very well as a change of pace and palate cleanser and 2004 Martinelli Zinfndel – Jackass Vineyard. At 16.9% abv, this was approaching Port and was hot, almost difficult to even sip, but Alan provided a Stilton cheese with bread and suddenly, the wine became more than drinkable. Amazing! I should point out that Alan's license plate reads "Zin Fan".

Suddenly, someone looked at a clock and proclaimed "Oh my God, It's 3AM!" I was so happy and contented that if the weekend had ended then, I would have proclaimed it a stunning success. Great food, wine, surroundings and folks. And then, we all meandered off to bed…

it's unseemly to feel a little jealous when presented with such bounty the following night, but as a big HB fan you guys having 2 of my favorite vintages does make me go "damn," Of course I was never very seemly. Food, wine, and company sounds lovely.

I was so happy and contented that if the weekend had ended then, I would have proclaimed it a stunning success.

I'd have considered my year in wine a stunning success with that one evening. Wow. My jealousy is mitigated only slightly by the fact that I've actually had the 1990 Haut Brion (what an amazingly awesome nose that has), but might be worse for the idea of getting to taste it along side the '85 that I've heard great praise of.