Friday night we gathered at Vinology Wine Bar and Restaurant in Ann Arbor. I really didn't have much wine that first night. I had a decent-sized pour of the Littorai Pinot Noir I brought and tried one of the Italian white wines Madeleine (the somm) was serving--the 2013 Bastianich (yes, that family) Vespa Bianco Venezia Giulia IGT, a white blend with 45% Chardonnay and 45% Sauvignon Blanc , (50% stainless and 50% small oak barrels) and 10% Picolit in 500L barrels "demi-nuids." The wine sees 60% malolactic fermentation and one year on the lees. This is a flagship wine of the Bastianich Winery in Friuli Colli Oriental DOC. I really liked this. It had some richness but also a bright, crisp center. I received tastes of two Barolos, one from Poderi and one that O.W. Holmes brought--was it Roggeri? The 2001 Pegau Chateauneuf du Pape had some brett which was not much of a surprise. Later in the evening I tried some of the rose' wine that Madeleine had been serving at Vinology but I did not really care for it--others did. We had some very nice hors d'oeuvres at Vinology and I went through the line twice, filling up again on the wonderful cheeses.
The theme of the 25th MO'COOL was a nod to the Judgment of Paris forty years ago so we had tables for red Bordeaux versus California Cabernet Sauvignon and Cab blends and tables for white Burgundies and California Chardonnay as well as a winemaker's table and a table for wines outside the theme.
One of the few California Chardonnays I tried was the 2012 La Follette Chardonnay. I'm not sure if this was the North Coast one or from a specific vineyard but it was quite enjoyable.
The first wine I opened of four I brought to Saturday MO'COOL picnic was the 2010 DOMAINE HENRI BOILLOT PULIGNY-MONTRACHET 1ER CRU "LES PUCELLES." It was young but quite drinkable with a nice oak edge--not overpowering. Joel Goldberg liked it from nose to palate and I did too. I have always been fond of the "Les Pucelles" terroir but can't afford to buy them often. CellarTracker community average on the wine was 92.7points but several postings suggest it would be better in 2019 or 2020 if it doesn't oxidize prematurely. I do have one more bottle and may risk holding it for three or four more years. Among the white Burgundies was a 1999 Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Les Blanchots. Nice golden color. I don't think I did justice to this wine having it right after an intervening St. Emilion red wine. No evidence of premox on this wine.
I enjoyed a taste of Jim Grow's Chateau Clos St. Martin St. Emilion Grand Cru. Wanted to record the vintage but got distracted before I got that info. Can you fill in the vintage, Jim? This was drinking nicely with fruit and earth and some said tobacco notes. It was quite smooth.
The first of two California reds I opened was the 2007 CAIN FIVE, Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley. The blend of five Bordeaux varietal grapes was C.S.: 68%, Merlot: 16%; Malbec: 6%; Petit Verdot: 5%; and Cabernet Franc: 5%. It was 14.4% alcohol by volume. I've enjoyed the 2007 vintage in California Cabs. Deep ruby color; semi-opaque. Evolved tannins. Seems ready-to-go just short of a decade after harvest.
Shortly before the main course was brought out from the lodge (we had been noshing on crostini, pizza, guacamole with tortilla chips, many cheeses, etc.) I opened my 1994 CHATEAU MONTELENA CABERNET SAUVIGNON THE MONTELENA ESTATE and took a pour into the chef in the lodge. This was labeled as 13.5% abv. (wonder what the alcohol percentage is on current vintages?) Darkly colored; nearly opaque; not faded in appearance. It still shows some soft tannins; possibly at peak or on a sustainable plateau for a few more years; throwing some sediment. The flavor was something like the Cherry Herring Dutch pipe tobacco my father used to smoke. I liked this a lot.
Some off-theme wines I enjoyed: a 1999 Etude Pinot Noir, Carneros. This was very pleasant with dark raspberry nose and flavor. One taster said they normally didn't care for Pinot Noir but liked this. I was struck by how well it held up for so many years. I have had Etude Cabernet Sauvignon that I have liked in the past and I have had a few other Pinots from Carneros that aged quite well. Martha Mayo's 1995 Domaine Vincent Bouzereau Beaune 1er Cru "Les Pertuizots. It's nice to have a chance to try an older Burgundy if your own collection doesn't go back that far. The color was rather a cordovan and I found a fig scent on the nose. Very mellow on the palate with soft cherry notes and some tertiary characteristics.
Joshua Kates was generous in sharing a bit of 2005 Harlan Estate The Maiden, a red Bordeaux blend. Jim Grow shared some 2001 Chateau Pichon-Longueville Baron. I was interested in this because I had attended a wine tasting of Pichon Baron at the Nantucket Wine Festival last May.
Probably the oldest wine I sampled was the 1975 Lascombes Bordeaux. It tasted old style with tertiary notes of autumn leaves--nice. There was also a 1989 Chateau Leoville Barton and a Chateau Greysac from Sally Goldberg. I didn't get down the vintage. It smelled a little earthy and funky and had some Bordeaux typicity.
The last of my bottles to be opened was the 2001 Chateau Cos d'Estournel, a Grand Cru Classe from St. Estephe labeled at 13% abv. It had some sediment. Unfortunately, I failed to take any notes on it. I did like it.
It may have been Mike Hughes who offered me still another red after I had decided to stop drinking. I accepted. After all, we had a shuttle from the Holiday Inn Express picking us up so I wasn't driving. (The Holiday Inn Express, btw, is only about 15 months old and the rooms were very nice. I will look forward to staying there again although I may regretfully miss MO'COOL next year due to a conflict in my schedule) On the way back to the hotel we drove through Dexter, MI which was celebrating Dexter Daze that weekend. As we pulled up to the Holiday Inn Express, we saw fireworks going off from Dexter Daze. Nice touch for the conclusion of a wonderful MO'COOL event marred by tragedy in losing one of our favorite ladies.
