WTN: Apiary with Mark, Matt, and Ramon

Mark Lipton was in town, so Matt, Ramon and I welcomed him last night at dinner at Apiary in East Village. As we were seated and started pulling out our wines (almost 2 bottles per person average) we were told while it is BYO night, the limit is a bottle per person. That's a new policy, fair enought, it's just I wish they mentioned on website or when I confirmed with reservation person that it was Monday No Corkage night. So we made a couple of choices and opted to go with 5 bottles, and pay the $25 corkage on the extra bottle. In the end, the sommelier waived that charge. I will say the wine service was very good, he consulted about glass choices for the whites, which was thoughtful.

We started with the 2006 Pernot Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet. Big, full, good length, this tended to reinforce my impression of 2006 as a vintage to drink on early side (not even considering PremOx). Bright bosc pear, honey, a bit of oak, a hint of mineral chalkiness on finish, but still fruit dominated. It did an ok job with the hamachi crudo. B+

First red was the 1993 Ecard "Les Serpentieres" Savigny-les-Beaune 1er. I thought there was a little volatile note when first poured, but whatever quickly blew off. Red berry and cherry, earth, spice, good acids, bright. In a really nice place right now. Elegant but not delicate. A-

Both the Savigny and the BBM went well with the salmon with fennel, pickled onions, a small roe (crab Mark guessed?), and a white port sauce

Next up was the 1991 Groffier "Les Sentiers" Chambolle-Musigny 1er. Nose seemed strangely mute when first poured, but quickly opened up. Bigger, fuller, rounder than the Savigny. Black cherry and a slighlty exotic note- sandalwood? I quite enjoyed, though I think this might have been better served by a hunk of Charolais than the sweetbreads and duck. B+

The sweetbreads came with frisee and a romesco sauce, and were delicious, but hardest wine match of the night.

Last red was the 1975 Heitz "Martha's Vineyard" Cabernet. Sommelier brought over cork- stained about 1/4 inch, looked more like 6 years than 36. I had no idea what to expect, but this was a lovely example of older Napa. Fresh cassis and black cherry fruit, cedar, just a hint of mint/menthol. Good finish, still a little tannic grip, pretty wine. A-/B+
Both Burgs and the Cab were good with duck breast with parsnip puree, "tokyo turnips", cooked greens, and a fruit sauce

We finished with Epoisses, a goat cheese, and a cows milk that I think he said was Swiss. The wine was a 1983 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Gold Kapsule Auslese. This is an auction bottling, AP 14, from CT it looked liked it was actually a Long GK (capsule was long, but without another to compare to unsure). Cork was a little protruding, and apparently slid right in. Advanced color, but still a very enjoyable wine. Petrol, apple pie, slatey mineral notes. Excellent length. This probably isn't up to a pristine bottle, but I enjoyed (and drank a lot!). A-/B+

Food was really quite good, and wines were excellent (as I've noted, I'm terribly inconsistent, and probably would have scored these even higher if they were solo dinner wines). But really the highlight to me was the company- you'd be hard pressed to find 3 winegeeks- or 3 guys period- I enjoy more. Thanks guys.

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.

Nice lineup and notes Dale. Thanks for the info re. Apiary's new policy - had last gone there about a year ago, and remember it only being BYOB with no corkage on Mondays.

Both the Zilliken and the old Heitz Marthas sound great.

Sounds good. And nice to see Mark getting around. We'll have him tonight with a different crowd, and probably more bottles.

I haven't had the 93 Ecard Serpentieres but I still remember a civilized and elegant bottle of 93 Narbantons from a couple of years ago.

A really fun evening. The food was very good, the wine service was excellent, the company and conversation were fantastic, and all of the wines were delicious. Thanks guys!


2006 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru
Broad, round, full flavored. Nice yeastiness with a little sweetness. Not a ton of complexity, but a very nice white Burg full of class.
B++


1993 Maurice Écard Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Serpentières - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru
Rich & soft. Broad with some rubber, bright cherry, high toned acid, and a long finish. Wonderful.
B+/A-


1991 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Sentiers - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru
Bright with sweet cola, acidic fine tannins. Smooth and silky. Leans a little new world. Expansive, youthful and really enjoyable.
B++


1975 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
Given the luminaries at the table I was concerned that this wouldn't show well, but this bottle was in perfect shape. The cork was stained about 1/4" and was perfectly solid.
Big, smooth and strong. Soft lush tannins with olive and black fruit. Youthful and full of life, I would have guessed it was 15 years younger. A real treat.
A-


1983 Zilliken (Forstmeister Geltz) Saarburger Rausch Riesling Auslese Lange Goldkapsel #14 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Light and fully mature. Lots of baked apple.
B+

Thanks for posting notes, Matt and Dale.
A fun night to finally meet up with Mark, catch up with the Dale and Matt, and to drink very good wines. I also found the food last night to be the most enjoyable when compared to other times that I've dined at Apiary. I really liked ALL the wines last night and will post notes later.

Rahsaan (and Salil I believe) have fun at Il Corso tonight. Mark is a nice guy (but you both know that).
Matt, nothing much to disagree with. Ramon, look forward to your notes (and Mark's).

Apiary, NYC
04/23/2011

This was a fun dinner with one of my best food experience at Apiary ever. It was a pleasure to meet with Mark and to get the chance to catch-up with Matt and Dale. Great conversations and topics overall, complementing the wines that I found to be all enjoyable.

Flight 1: “It’s like Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho”, but my true-life version is better.”

2006 Paul Pernot Bienvenues Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru, Burgundy
Started as big and slightly oily to the taste. But, nonetheless, a pleasing wine to drink that was nicely-balanced, with hard candy, honey and notes of apples. Silky mouth-feel with no harsh element. B+


Flight 2: “Red burgundy and salmon dish? You must be …!”

1993 Maurice Ecard Savigny-les-Beaune “Les Serpentieres” 1er Cru, Burgundy
With an apt- level of sweetness amidst the steady core of earth, tea and pure red fruit, this medium-bodied wine epitomized a solid red Burgundy to my mostly-Bordeaux/Cab-trained palate. Leafy bouquet. A fine level of acidity and a lengthy finish and, even with the discussion and counter-points on red Burgs and salmon, this wine went very well with our excellent pan-roasted salmon-and-white-port-sauce dish. A-

1991 Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny “Les Sentiers” 1er Cru, Burgundy
Tasted young in relation to the Ecard. I thought there was slight funkiness on the bouquet at the start, but which quickly went away and was replaced with fruit and wood. Spicy and mocha notes, with a touch of wood. Big and ripe with enhanced fruitiness and likeable level of tartness toward the end. B+


Flight 3: “Can you repeat what you just said, but in the form of a question.”

1975 Heitz Cellar Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
I’ve not had many opportunities to drink New World cabernet lately, but now wish I can often come upon wines that approach the exceptional quality and grace that this one showed tonight. Sweet nose, with fresh confection, leafy, and hints of dried herbs. Plenty of blue and black fruit, with well-structured finesse and power. It was difficult not to keep sipping at this wine while having our terrific duck breast course. If this was Jeopardy!, then this was the Double Jeopardy! A-


Flight 4: “We need more table napkins, please.”

1983 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Gold Cap Auslese, Mosel Saar Ruwer
A dark gold, copper-tinged color. Petrol and cake on the very alluring nose. Lemon, medium sweetness and ripe orange. Well-knit and tightly-structured with a very long and delicious finish. Went well with our cheese course, but would have loved to have tried with the sweet breads dish. An excellent aged riesling. A

nice notes, great flight titles

First of all, many thanks to Dale for organizing this dinner and to Matt, Dale and Ramon to bringing such fabulous wines. The food at Apiary was wonderful as well. All four of us chose the 5-course tasting meal for what I consider the most reasonable price of $65 a head and the dishes went well with our wines, which is after all a signature of Scott Bryan's cooking.

2006 Paul Pernot Bienvenue Bâtard-Montrachet
nose: topical fruit and pineapple
palate: soft entry, slightly buttery, a good core of fruit

(This was poured for an aperitif but remained for our first course, a hamachi carpaccio with minced jalapeño, basil oil, pea sprouts and salt)

This wine was definitely on the riper/less structured side of white Burgundy but still an appealing rendition of Chardonnay. As most of my Chardonnay drinking these days is Chablis and BdB Champagne, this wine was quite a departure from my normal Chardonnay experience.

1993 Ecard Savigny-les-Beaune Les Serpentieres 1er
n: a hint of pencil lead, gorgeous red fruit, earth
p: silky, rich red fruit, firm acid backbone

(This showed up in time for the salmon topped with crab eggs, ramp and asparagus, all in a white Port reduction -- though I am not typically a fan of Pinot Noir with salmon, this pairing worked quite well to me)

Over the years, I have enjoyed many great bottles of Ecard's Savignys and this was yet another to add to my memories. In a really nice place right now, it showcases the attraction of good Savigny with its bright and open fruitiness combined with the earthy overtones.

1991 Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny Les Sentiers 1er
n: initially, showing a bit lactic but otherwise a bit mute; later showing more fruit
p: very ripe and rich, big and dark fruit

(served with the best preparation of sweetbreads that I've had: in Romesco sauce with frisee, basil oil and balsamic vinegar)

At first, I wondered if the bottle was slightly corked because of the muted nose, but no indication on the palate. Instead, it seemed quite consistent with my other Groffier experiences in that the wine was big and ripe.

1975 Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard
n: slightly volatile, dark fruit
p: firmly acidic, dark fruit, graphite

(With a dish of Peking Duck with Tokyo turnips and parsnip purée in a red wine reduction)

What a lovely surprise! Joe Heitz's flagship bottling of Cab at 36 years of age and it's still doing well. Perhaps most surprising about it is the lack of mintiness, a characteristic I strongly associate with this bottling in other years.

1983 Zilliken Riesling Auslese Saarburger Rausch LGK
n: petrol, apricot, spice
p: vividly acidic, with a clean sense of fruit

(This was served with the cheese course, the details of which escaped me)

Overall, a lovely selection of wines and a complementary selection of food. The company was convivial, too, and it was a pleasure to meet Matt and Ramon after years of reading their notes here. Dale, as always, was great company, too, and I was greatly relieved to see how well he'd recovered from his injuries. Again, many thanks to the others for contributing such interesting and tasty wines to this meal.

Mark Lipton