No wine Monday - dinner in office before a board member, then headed to city to lead a group around midtown. Tuesday Betsy made lobster with corn and tomato, with pea shoot salad and the 2014 Girard “ La Garenne” Sancerre. Lemon with just a hint of gooseberry, full, good acids, nice with the dish. B/B+
Wednesday was first jazz concert of summer, back at our redesigned waterfront park. Talented band, perfect weather, sunset over Hudson and the Palisades, and good friends made for a good night. We had brought lobster salad, soba salad (peppers, daikon, cuke, etc), soppressata and cheeses. Others share shrimp/pasta salad with pesto and assorted munchies. We had wine as well:
2015 Pecina Rioja rosado
Fuller riper style of rose, though with good acids. Cherries and a little stony note. I like Pecina a lot, and this is fine, but not especially looking to reload. B
2014 Piuze “Terroir de Chichee” Chablis.
Citrus and green apple, chalky Chablis note, fine value. B+
NV Brochet Brut
Loire, I think. Apple/applesauce, light, crisp, a bit thin. B-
2014 Thivin Cote de Brouilly
Lovely served with a slight chill, tart raspberry with some floral notes. Crisp and tasty. B+/B
Thursday was spaghetti with clams, tomatoes, and basil. Doesn’t exactly scream Riesling, but that’s what was in fridge- 2015 Keller Riesling Trocken. Snapcrackelly good, really nice for level. Citrus with a hint of sweet mango, some ginger and a little petrol. Full for level with good acids, nice showing. I look forward to trying more 2015s. B+
Friday we threw a chicken in oven (lower heat than our norm) and went for first set at a local cafe where we knew one of the singers. Pretty dull list (no vintages listed), but we ordered a charcuterie plate and a couple of glasses to hit minimum.
Sella and Mosca Vermentino
Apple fruit, slightly honied, hint of nuts, ok. B-
Jean Luc Colombo Cotes du Rhone
I actually ordered the Cannonau, but she brought a CdR and it wasn’t worth sending back. Of course, the CdR wasn’t worth drinking- round red fruit, slightly stewed edge, touch hot. This seems to be fading, not sure if storage, open a while, or just poor wine. This glass C
Back with our chicken, kale salad with peanut dressing, and soba salad, the 1983 L’Evangile. Less fruit than I expected, thought decanting was going to help. But what started off as a few puzzled sniff (cardboard, no cardboard?) clearly became TCA by end of dinner. Luckily there was still some Keller.
With tuna steak, leftover pasta, and salad, the 2013 Foillard Cote du Py Morgon. Raspberries and cherry, a little spicy edge, juicy. B+
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.