Jay Hack hosted Leo's blind tasting group this month at Del Frisco's steakhouse and coming soon after his 60th birthday, he went for a crazy birthday wine blowout.
An incredibly fun lineup with some really eye opening experiences, and some truly memorable wines. The food was also quite good (liked the sides better than the meat though; GREAT onion rings and cauliflower au gratin), and always fun to catch up with good friends.
Starter:
1996 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon
Impressive stuff; packed with layers of fresh baked brioche, rich citrus and white fruited flavours and doughy and yeasty notes with a sense of power and freshness. There's lots of depth here, great balance and length - fantastic way to start the evening.
Flight 1:
2002 Château Pape Clément Blanc
Starts out quite strange and funky with a blast of exhaust fumes and burnt rubber dominating the aromatics, but it clears up with time to show fresh, pale citrus fruit and vanilla cream flavours over a stony base. Nicely balanced with a sense of lightness and clarity to the flavours and bright acids underneath.
2007 Araujo Estate Sauvignon Blanc Eisele Vineyard
Like the Pape Clement Blanc, this also starts out with a strange funky/reductive aromatic profile initially, but it clears with air to show fresh, pale fruit seasoned with saline and green herbal notes. With time it gets deeper and a little creamier, very enjoyable.
1985 Lur-Saluces "Y"
The dry wine made by Yquem in some vintages (labelled Bordeaux Superieur as it's not typical Sauternes). Don't know what happened here or if this was a representative bottle - rich butterscotchy, caramel and tropical fruited aromas hinting at plenty of botrytis, but on the palate the fruit flavours come across dried out and hollow and it's quite unpleasant to drink.
Flight 2:
2005 Hospices de Beaune Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières Cuvée Philippe le Bon Bouchard Père et Fils (Hospices Auction Group)
Corked.
2010 Paumanok Chardonnay Grand Vintage
Damn impressive, a real eye-opener of a Chardonnay. Fresh pear and green apple fruit framed by herbal, floral and minerally flavours conveyed with moderate weight and a sense of real freshness and clarity. There's great balance and lots of depth here, and an aromatic brightness and elegance that had many of us guessing this to be either a top dry Riesling or Condrieu. Fantastic wine that I really should look out for.
1990 Kistler Chardonnay Dutton Ranch
Flat, flabby and oxidative.
Flight 3: (the pointless Jay Miller flight)
2002 Joseph Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Rouge
Starts out rather tight and unyielding, but opens a little with air to show fresh, bright cherry fruit framed by a delicate earthiness and an interesting pine cone-like note. Still comes across very young and in need of a lot more time. I remember this being much more enjoyable some time ago from a half bottle.
1990 Domaine Lejeune Pommard 1er Cru Les Argillieres
Interesting, shows more kinship with a Northern Rhone Syrah with its deep complexioned fruit, savoury meatiness and a smoky overlay to the flavours. There's subtle oak and a herbal element that surprised me for such a ripe vintage, but it's nicely balanced and very enjoyable.
1990 Louis Jadot Corton-Pougets
Comes across remarkably young and very, very ripe (I was guessing this to be an '03) with dark, plummy fruit and a roasted tinge to the flavours. It's still quite primary, a little tannic and really needs time. Not a big fan.
Flight 4: Jay's chance to mess with our heads
Jay opened a jeroboam of 1997 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle earlier; splash decanted a portion early in the day and decanted into an empty 750, decanted another portion closer to the serving time into another bottle, and then poured another portion (that had only slow-oxygenated) into a third bottle, then served the three side by side.
I'm quite amazed at how much variation I found between the three pours. The long-decanted pour showed a lot more depth and textural finesse than the other two, and I certainly didn't imagine them to all be the same wine from the same bottle.
Flight 5: (the other Jay Miller flight)
2007 Saxum James Berry Vineyard
2003 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
2002 El Nido El Nido
Much spitting at my end on all these 3. I will say that while I don't like the Saxum style, I do find their wines distinctive for reasons I can't pin down - the JBV was recognizably a Saxum wine straight away, though I didn't care for it. Didn't like the QC or El Nido either, but found those more woody and generally anonymous.
Dessert:
1875 Barbeito Madeira Malvazia Reserva Velha
What a treat. There's a ton of depth here, constantly unfolding layers of savoury roasted nutty flavours, dark chocolate, dried orange and fig, a slightly sour tamarind-like element, caramel and so much more. A really amazing wine to sit down with and explore, remarkably light on its feet for a Madeira with impressive acidity and just a touch of finishing heat, but what an experience.
1983 Château d'Yquem
Hard to put this one into words, other than saying it's one of the greatest dessert wines I've ever had. That beautiful Yquem flavour of apricot, orange marmalade, vanilla cream, honey and caramel in a perfectly proportioned, seamless package with incredible depth, balance and persistence. 'Wow' might be understatement. Thanks Jay.
An incredibly fun evening as always, great to see the group again and enjoy a very fun lineup. Thanks again Jay.