Sunday we went to the 50th (and final) Memorial Day lawn party put on by a wonderful couple. A couple of wines floating around (more beer) but I stuck to iced tea. By time we got home for dinner (duck breast over salad, side of pasta with pesto and peas) I was ready for wine and opened the 1998 Bachelet Gevrey-Chambertin VV. Tight at first, opens nicely. Black cherry, smoke, spice, lots of Gevrey earthiness. Unusually Betsy comments several times how much she likes. Great showing for a village wine from a modest vintage. A-/B+
We were back and forth all weekend watching forecast for Memorial Day- cancel, downscale, or keep going with our party. We held off and Mon AM forecast was for rain to end by noon. We declared ourself open, and then at 1 PM started getting calls as late afternoon thunderstorms were forecast. The hell with it, let’s go. It turned out hotter and more humid than forecast, but no rain. Slow start but by 4 people starting arriving in quantity.
Lots of food.
Betsy made potato salad, garlic-scape/white bean dip, melon salad
I was on grill duty and made”
tandoori-esque chicken
clams with fried garlic
Poat dot (cambodian style corn)
Baby back ribs
Hot dogs
Squash with za'atar
Others brought things to throw on grill including:
Lamb (interesting cut, loin with tenderloin removed, excellent with a great marinade)
Marinated flank steak
Shisitos
Mushrooms
Others brought a lot of great stuff such as guacamole, salads, slaws, risotto, roasted vegetables, deviled eggs, & pies
Wines included
2014 Baudry Chinon rose
Still going strong, a little rounder than last year, red fruits, herby, a little mineral. B/B+
(I had a 2015 of this to try, but it was apparently emptied without me)
2015 Edmunds St John Bone-Jolly Rose
Another lovely BoneJolly pink. Cherries and strawberries, citrus zest, a little hint of herbs. B+
2014 Clos Roche Blanche Sauvignon #2
Nice match with the clams. Full, crisp, minerally, a great adieu to an old fave. B+
2010 Mt Eden Reserve Chardonnay
Big and full, pretty tight, pit fruits and spice. Best glass is last. Needs time, but I liked a lot (more than some others) B+/A-
‘2015 Thomas-Labaille "L'Authentique" Sancerre
Crisp, bright, good length. B/B+
1990 Stony Hill Chardonnay (magnum)
Sawdust cork, dark color. A few people liked, for me this was quite tired and oxidized. Storage or the wine? C+
2013 Pepiere “Briords” Muscadet
Citrus, smoke, saline, this is my “drink now” Brords while I age other recent years. B++
1997 Nigl “Privat “Gruner Veltliner
Full, rich, zippy with green fruit, white pepper. Quite lovely. A-/B+
There was also the remnants of a magnum of 1996 Trimbach “Cuvee Frederic Emile” Riesling from Saturday that was still showing quite well (maybe better than Sat)
1962 Grivot “Boudots” Nuits St George 1er
Mark brought this with little hope, noting poor fill and color. The nose was full of stank and decay, but there was still some fruit on palate, but dominated by a sweet balsamic note. Interesting to try, if not so appealing on a “tasty” scale (B on former, C+/C on latter)
1997 Gouges “Vaucrains” Nuits St George 1er
Drinking quite well. I don’t drink many ‘97s but liked Jadot, need to add Gouges to that short list. Red and black cherry, cocoa, earth. B+/A-
1982 Torres “Gran Corona” Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva
Quite mature but still some .interest, dark fruits, smoke, leather. B
1987 JL Chave Hermitage
Mature and ready (I was surprised, as I was thinking I was drinking 1997). Medium bodied, leather, gamey notes, good acids. B+/A-
1964 Lynch-Bages
Fully mature but holding on, pencil shavings and saddle leather over black fruit. A little short but that;s a quibble. First bottle of three was off, now I have hopes for the last one. B+/B
2005 Clos Roche Blanche Cabernet
Uh oh plastic cork. Hey, it’s actually ok. Black fruit accented with green herbs, a spicy twist on the finish. In a good place with light tannin, good acids, good fruit. B+
2004 Roumier Bourgogne
A light pine needle note that is green but not particularly mean. Light, red fruited, some earth. Maybe fading a tad on finish. B
2007 Donkey & Goat “Recluse:” Syrah
Meaty black fruit, smoke, game. Very good. B+/B
There was also a Texier Chat Fou that was drained without me encountering it.
Fun day with fun people, and we got lucky with weather.
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. 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.