2007 Wine Dinner Tasting Notes

It appears that the original posting of these notes vanished with the Angel's Share. The following represents tasting notes from the 2007 Wine Dinner held at the Pen & Pencil Club of Philadelphia in October 2007.

NV Heidseick Monopole "Blue Top" Brut
Somewhere, there's a checklist for classic Champagne: toasty aroma, plenty of mousse, crisp, appley flavor, zesty, lemon finish, and a desire to drink another flute immediately. This one checked all those high points. Couldn't have been more well-received by the guests. We served it with Scottish Imperial smoked salmon, dill cream and red onions and its freshness and zestiness cut the rich salmon very well. No, this did not have the breed and richness of Pol Roger, the evanescent lightness of Taittinger, the boldness of Lanson Black Label, the depth of Bollinger ... but it was a very nice middle-of-the-road prototype of a classic. Lasted nicely in the glass, still with crisp mousse 40-45 minutes later. At what we paid ($24) a steal. (And the elegant packaging was a plus ). ****

2004 Zind-Humbrecht Herrenweg de Turckheim Riesling
Now, if the Champagne was a prototypical classic, this was not: not much Riesling tastes like this. Would that more did. Words slightly fail me here because I was so blown away. That ultra-rich aroma, tinged with kerosene, pineapple, perfumed fruit, and hint of vanilla. Pale yellowish color. Massive depth of flavor and structure that hits you right away. Almost Sauternes-like in richness, but racier, and with a mind-blowing fruit finish (esp. apricots) that went on and on and on. Zind's wines are known for depth of flavor and richness. This was all of that. A nervous wine in that the structure had to fight off being swamped by the richness. Not especially sweet for Riesling though as it warmed, the sweetness level amped up. Could age for a decade or more; that might settle the richness down a touch. Good right now. We served it with luscious little crab-and-pimento cakes. This wine would overpower a lot of things; really good crabmeat would be fine. Also some Alsatian cheeses, veal sausages, blue trout would all be good. Not cheap ($32) but worth every penny. ****1/2

2005 David Duband Bourgogne Hautes Cotes de Nuits "Louis Auguste"
One word: fresh. From the delightful berry aroma to the entrancing first sip to the grandly sweeping, woody, earthy, Pinot Noir finish, all young and delightful and oh so fresh. Almost as effervescent as a good Beaujolais Cru (a compliment from me). Served lightly chilled - I highly recommend doing so - it was like a wine of young cherries and raspberries, with a fleeting, heady, almost magical Pinot aroma. If 2005 was like this in the Hautes Cotes de Nuits, just imagine what it was like in Gevrey or Chambolle (and given the 2005 prices imagining is what most of us will have to settle for). A pleasant bitterish finish left the palate ready for another bite of creamed portobellos. Excellent value at $25 from a wine shop in Chicago. Can age, but if you can buy village or 1er cru wines and age them and drink this lovely charmer while it's ... fresh. ****

2002 Sociando-Mallet
I have always like this big-shouldered Haut-Medoc (from St. Seurin de Cadbourne, just north of St. Estephe. It shares some of the characteristics of a St. Estephe, notably its firmness and body, but Sociando always drinks better young than do the great St. Estephe wines (or even the less great ones; I had a 2001 St. Estephe, I forget the chateau, in Paris in 2004 that was like drinking a brick wall. A big one). 2002 was one of those in-between vintages in Bordeaux, not a dazzler like 2000 or 2005, not as hot as 2003, but good wines were made, and the Sociando is one of those. All the classic Bordeaux elements: that elusive aroma of earth that says "Bordeaux" before you take a sip - it's what "terroir" is all about - then a jammy, cassis flavor that broadens to tobacco, lead pencil and leather as you swirl in the mouth, then a clean, crisp finish that went on for a while. Layers of flavor that came out in the glass. Not as fruity as, say, a 2003 would have been, and a touch austere for people used to Napa Cabs. Lacked that richness and depth of a top vintage, but also did not cost as much ($32). Perfect with lamb chops. A classic Bordeaux. Could age for 10-15 years, probably best in 2010 or so. My kind of wine. ***1/2

1989 Clos Baudoin (Prince Poniatowski) Vouvray
All of what is good about French wine is in this bottle: the historic plot (a walled vineyard), the family traditions (the Poniatowskis fought with Napoleon), the regional grape (Chenin Blanc in its homeland, the middle Loire Valley), the refusal to pander (some years, the Clos makes wines that are sweet, some years they are dry, depends on the grapes and the weather. You have to know, or ask) and attention to detail and quality. The '84 Clos was one of the best dry whites I have ever had, even after 15 years it had power and lushness. The '90 is all power. The '89 is sweet, but not overly so, pale in color, lovely quince and apricot nose, plenty of acidity to tame the sweetness, and an elegant, sweet/sour finish that went on forever. DO NOT SERVE TOO COLD!!! It will lose its luster and just be a nice quaff. Changes personalities in the glass, becomes pineappley and denser as it warms. We served it with cinnamony bread pudding, but could also go with fruit desserts (but not chocolate or anything overly sweet), foie gras, and even scallops, shrimps or a flatfish. The Prince has sold the Clos and his winery so grab these classics while you can. At $19 the steal of the century. Could age for 40 years. Any I have won't get the chance to last that long. ******

Tasting notes from a glorious weekend

The weekend of 27-30 March offered a wedding, a terrific dinner, and some spectacular wines Given my schedule, it's unusual to have so many nights in a row where wine was a part of my life - it was very pleasant!

Notes in order:

2006 Domaine de Vercheres Macon-Villages
A strange, strange wine. Macon-Villages typically offers clean, crisp, refreshing wine, always Chardonnay lightly oaked if at all, simple but pleasant, good with food. Since this said Macon-Villages on the label, I will assume it was Chardonnay, but to me more like a white Rhone blend or even, at times, a Chenin Blanc - a tad watery, weirdly sweetish, heavy lime taste, not too pale, a little vanilla. Peach at mid-palate, creamy (like a Chenin), limey, short finish. Zero steely crispness typical of Macon. I tasted this before I ordered dinner, and the pork chops in a rich brown sauce - NOT normally what I'd eat with a Macon-Villages - went well. Not at all bad, but wildly untypical of its type. About $9 a bottle. Drink now. ** (at the Pen & Pencil Club, Philadelphia, 3/2008)

2007 Cantina del Castello Soave Classico
Served with wild boar prosciutto (on endive) from the remarkable butcher shop D'Angelo Brothers on 9th St. in Philadelphia's Italian Market - they have every kind of meat you can imagine and some you cannot . I was looking for something light but flavorful to match the cured meat and this was a real winner. Very pale, fruity nose. A hint of fizz, lemony, nutty, clean finish, not long, but lovely while there. Handled the boar and endive well, as its citrus elements cleaned the palate nicely. 12 percent alcohol or so. $17 a bottle, a fair price for hand-made Soave from the best part of the growing area (i.e., the hill, not the plain). Good summer wine. *** (at Chez Bailey, New York, 3/2008)

1996 H. Billiot en Fils Champagne
This and the next three wines came from a spectacular BYOB dinner thanks to the generosity of a wonderful old friend. This was the aperitif. It offered a yeasty apple blast at the beginning - I have never had such an apple-y Champagne - a light mousse, a gentle, mature wine with body and class. The '96's have been the greatest Champagne vintage of the last 15 years and they are starting to be fully mature. This lovely wine is ready now but has the structure and the fruit - all that apple! - to go for a while. My preference is towards more lemony and mineral bubblies, but I'd drink this anytime. Might be really good with a creamy, milder cheese. Now-2012. **** (at La Sirene, New York, 3/2008)

2002 Zind-Humbrecht Clos Windsbuhl Hunawihr Riesling
A half-bottle. Not as massive as some of the Z-H's I have had over the years - see the 2007 wine dinner report for one of those - but thus perhaps more typical of Alsatian Riesling. Deep, wonderful aroma of apricot and petrol; bags of racy Riesling fruit, nice acidity to balance the fruit and a firm, age-worthy body. Light honey on the long, long finish. It felt a touch stronger than some Rieslings (I did not get the alcohol number but it had to be 12.5 minimum). Delightful with duck salad, though trout or game may have been even better. Now-2017. **** (at La Sirene, New York, 3/2008)

1998 La Conseillante Pomerol
I've had La Conseillante before and always been pleased but somewhat underwhelmed (in Bordeaux I am more of a Left Bank guy), but it is a favorite of my dining group and thus I see it more frequently than any other Pomerol (or Right Bank wine in general). Decanted for roughly an hour. Eucalyptus and mint on the powerful nose at first, then, in a bit, classic Bordeaux nose, not as leathery as the Left Bank, more plummy cassis and hints of cigars (good ones too!). Deep purple color, rich, a hint of sweet, well-balanced, body to spare, refreshing, cassis long finish. A powerhouse. Got better in the glass. Had this with the duck and a rich monkfish stew with mushrooms. Absolutely classic, best La Conseillante I ever had. Good now, will last. And last. Now-2020. ****1/2 (at La Sirene, New York, 3/2008)

1999 Laville Haut Brion Pessac-Leognan blanc
The white of La Mission Haut Brion. White Bordeaux is usually hit with me, though more so from Pessac-Leognan and Graves than the Medoc; I've had Mouton's (Aile d'Argent) and Margaux's (Pavillon Blanc) whites and been, again, pleased but underwhelmed, while I cannot praise Domaine de Chevalier's white (Graves) enough. I came to this wine with much anticipation and excitement and I am pleased to say it delivered though in an unexpected way. In an age of obvious wines that show their hand right at the start, this is a subtle, quiet gem that reveals its pleasures slowly and only to those who are paying attention. Don't guzzle this, don't serve it without food and DO serve it with people whose conversation is as good as the wine because that will stretch the wine and you'll know its secrets better. Palish, golden wine. Minty, subtle nose of citrus and lanolin; more lime and meadow on the palate, a bare hint of grapefruit, and then it goes on and on and on the finish and remained in the mouth as an evanescent memory. Served probably a hair too cold, changed as it warmed, apricot, mint, that meadowy, grassy (in a good way) flavor. Some commentators such as Michael Broadbent suggest this wine could be in a "dumb" (i.e., closed) phase now, which could account for the subtleness of the flavors, but it gives much pleasure. It suited the monkfish stew but would have been so perfect with diver scallops or even simply prepared good pork. A wine for connoisseurs and sophisticated palates. Now-2020? ****1/2 (At La Sirene, New York, 3/2008).

1998 Aubry Champagne
Wow! This one grabs you at the start, bready, zesty nose leaps drom the glass, chalky, minerally, aggressive in a good way. Massive mousse. Lemons and citrus on the palate, not as appley as the Billot. A tremendous aperitif but stood up just fine, indeed amazingly well, to somewhat overcooked prime rib. Oysters or game birds would be a spectacular match. Years to here. I have been loyal to the '96 Champagnes but '98 needs more investigation, will have get on that prompt. A divine wine to toast the wedding of two of my dearest friends - they deserve the best, of course! (They had Pol Roger '96 at the head table; my little party had this wine to ourselves). Festive, a real treat, made the occasion sparkle even more than it did already. Now-2015? More? **** (At The Riviera at Massapequa, Massepequa, New York, 3/2008)

2007 Monkey Bay Sauvignon Blanc (New Zealand)
The wedding (open) bar's white wine. A commercial product and it shows, the flavors are more obvious and cruder. Served too cold, flat and cloying when too cold. But as it warmed up, hints of lemon, mint and vanilla. Would be a decent beach wine or lunch wine with leftover fish and fowl. OK value at $8. Drink now, if at all. For what it was, OK; could have been a lot worse. *1/2 (At The Riviera at Massapequa, Massepequa, New York, 3/2008).

Next P&P tasting: Brad’s summer favorites

Wines for the deck, grill, picnic, beach and porch will be featured at the next Pen & Pencil Club wine tasting on Thursday, May 22, at 7:30 p.m., at the club, 1522 Latimer St. in Philadelphia. We will be serving four wines that will liven up and enrich summer activities, wines that I serve my family and friends in the warmer months. Cost is $25 and includes appetizers. Sign up at the club or call (215) 731-9909.

Craig LaBan's unfair, inappropriate comparisons

I am a fan of the food writing of The Philadelphia Inquirer's gastronomic critic, Craig LaBan, though that may because I don't own a restaurant. His savage negative reviews are legendary; he carpet-bombed a trendoid haven, Trust, right out of existence a few years ago much to the moans of the smug, overly complacent Philadelphia restaurant community more used to coddling than criticism. (For a recent example of a vicious LaBan pan, see: this.)

For the record, his food criticism that I am informed to comment on seems pretty accurate; if he lacks the generosity of spirit and dry wit of Frank Bruni of the New York Times he can be better on details and zeroes in on faults much more precisely.

LaBan's rather more erratic on the subject of drink; his booze clunkers come often enough so you wish the Inky would hire a wine and spirits critic (fat chance of that, given the economics of journalism these days).

His taste in red wine is, frankly, crass and obvious (fruit bombs away!), though he's much more dependable discussing whites and his work on spirits is admirable.

The latest LaBan wine effort that falls short is this. Besides reading like the winemaker paid him for the story, there's this:

"When we entered the tasting room, I saw his wines posed for a test-sip against two of France's most famous bottles."

Oh boy. Trot out the old beat-up-on-the-French gimmick again. Isn't the more obvious comparison to California wines, given the price point? And the New World origin of the wines? Or maybe to New York State?

"When you want to do something good, you can do it anywhere if you have the passion, dedication and knowledge," Razzi said.

No, you can't. You can't make Bordeaux in Pennsylvania. You can make a good red wine in Pennsylvania, but you can't make Bordeaux. Only the Bordelais can do that.

He then proceeded to pour his 2005 Ameritage, a $55 Bordeaux-style red blend, against a Bordeaux legend, a 1998 Chateau Mouton-Rothschild that runs $253 in Pennsylvania. We sipped his 2005 Chardonnay Reserve ($33.50) against a 2003 Corton-Charlemagne from Laboure-Roi (about $100), one of Burgundy's most storied whites.

Where do we start with the problems here? First, it is utterly unfair to poor Signor Razzi to compare his wine to Mouton-Rothschild, one of the world's greatest and most historic wines! Later in the story other wine experts comment that the red wine matches up with lesser Bordeaux wines. Why not use one of those, taking care to match Mr. Razzi's cepage (nebbiolo?) as much as possible - sounds like Cos-Labory, d'Armilhac, or Gloria might work.

And then the unfairness reverses. To have white Burgundy, at its height perhaps the world's most sublime white wine, represented by the wine chosen is ludicrous. First, 2003 was a notoriously hot summer in France (it was the horrible summer that so many elderly people died of heat-related illnesses) and the wine made that year all over France was fat, flabby, baked, completely atypical. And while certain American critics raved about the vintage, one Bordeaux wine maker noted, "We didn't think it was very good. But then (the American critic) raved, so we knew ..." 2003 was probably the weakest white Burgundy vintage of the 21st century so far.

Then to pick a wine from a Laboure-Roi, one of Burgundy's most pedestrian and dull winemakers, one unlikely to deal too well with 2003's special challenges, compounds the problem.

Corton-Charlemagne is unquestionably one of the great vineyards of the Cote d'Or, but a 2003 C-C from Laboure-Roi is simply not going to be anything like a Grand Cru should be. I'd bet many wines would taste as good.

These kind of missteps make me wary of the judgments that follow:

Remarkably, the Penns Woods wines held their own quite well - even if they did not have quite the resonance or complexity of those French classics. The Ameritage, mostly cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and merlot (with a splash of nebbiolo), was plush with licorice, cassis and cedar, riper and more balanced than almost any other local red I've tasted. The chardonnay was touched with butterscotch and zesty tangerine, but also braced with a long and flinty, mineral finish. Other Penns Woods wines, such as the lively sauvignon blanc and rich gold pinot grigio, were also impressive.

Rich Pinot Grigio? Well, maybe.

I'd like to try Mr. Razzi's wines, though their pricing, as LaBan notes, is not enticing. (For $50 I can drink good Bordeaux, for $33 Premier Cru Chablis or village Chassagne-Montrachet, Beaune, or Meursault.)

But this kind of wine writing does not help the cause. Comparisons need to be with well-made wines that match the wines being tasted, not just by spending a lot of money on big names. And the comparisons need to be fair.

LaBan would cringe at comparing haute cuisine to a crêperie, but he's made the same kind of mistake here.

On pizza, guanciale and wine

I never know what wine to drink with pizza. I have had a long fondness for beer with my pizza, but generally only draft beer, for reasons I cannot explain except that I drank a lot of draft in West Philadelphia, Princeton and Highwood (Ill.) bars with pizza in the 1980’s and 1990’s. The beer wasn't usually very good (Rolling Rock, Stroh’s), but then neither was the ‘za (an old Nassauian bit of slang, that); still, they seemed to do well together. (The Blatz dark at Buffo’s in Highwood especially so.)

But when confronted with good pizza, I am often at a loss. (I should say right away that none of this applies to Chicago deep-dish pizza, which is a huge favorite of mine and goes well with beer, almost any beer [I like Goose Island or Old Style]; I couldn’t imagine drinking wine with deep-dish.) Good, thin-crust, wood- or coal-oven baked pizza: I love it. What wine goes with it?

I don’t know. I’ve tried Chianti, Beaujolais-Villages, Chinon, Lambrusco, Uruguayan tannat, Cotes de Provence rose, Zinfandel, even cava, and nothing seems to be spot-on. A good lager or pilsner are, but I’d love to find a wine to match.

So when confronted with a wood-baked thin-crust pie topped with homemade guanciale (cured meat from the pig’s jowl) and egg in Brooklyn recently, I hoped I had found my answer in a well-aged (2000) Barbera d’Asti from a friend’s cellar.

Verdict: outstanding pizza, good wine, bad match, again. Sigh. Pizza rocked, tangy, spicy, the meat, a real revelation, never had it before, like luxury bacon spiked with cloves, the egg a neat touch, loved the tomatoes and the tangy cheese slathered on the almost-perfect crust (a little soft in the center but the edges, woof).

The wine, from Prunotto, was dark, inky, austere, deep, not a whole lot of fruit, tannic, gripping, dry in that thirst-inducing way Piedmontese wines can be. Together, they quarreled, the pizza’s fresh flavors warring with the wine’s deep austerity. The wine needed mushrooms, or spicy meat. The pizza needed, well, I’d have settled for some of that old Blatz Dark with it, I think. The hunt continues.

2000 Prunotto Barbera d'Asti: **1/2 (at Roberta’s [well worth a visit at the Morgan Ave. L train stop, get pizza, chocolate-amoretto cake and the cheese plate] Bushwick, Brooklyn, 4/2008).

Lunch at Le Bec-Fin: food good, wine off the charts

I was one of the last customers to enjoy a weekday luncheon at Philadelphia’s temple of haute cuisine, as they only serve lunch on Friday and Saturdays now (and just this week chef Georges Perrier announced he was scrapping his prix-fixe-only dinners and will serve a la carte). I still think the $52 lunch menu was a bargain, given that it offered an appetizer, entrée and the fabulous, Lucullan, dessert cart, perhaps the greatest landmark to the sweet meal-ending course ever devised. There are at least 20 choices, you can have as many as you want, and among the classics such as gateau de l’Opera, sorbet de cassis, and floating island, there pop up things such as lemon-basil cake. Get anything with pears.

I have eaten at Le Bec occasionally over the years since 1983, and the food is always never less than terrific, though at times one wonders if it could be a tad less rich and still as good. Perrier’s quenelles of pike in lobster sauce still set the standard for me for seafood and nobody does veal better. His service has had its ups and downs, which it should not given the price (prix-fixe dinner with wine for two was not less than $400 assuming a decent bottle of wine and a tip) but service at a 2007 lunch was near-perfect.

So when I was invited to luncheon by an old friend on his dime, I was of course thrilled. Since both of us needed to be functional afterwards, and we like different foods (he almost always orders a steak) we decided on wine by the glass.

And was I glad I did. Three brilliant wines, each better than the last – I was left staggered at the quality. I would imagine Le Bec’s glassware (Riedel of course) helped a lot.

I wanted a wine aperitif, knowing that: a) Le Bec’s liquor prices are staggering and b) their mixed drinks have always been so-so. So I chose a 2002 Domaine Armand Gilg Grand Cru Moenchberg Riesling from Alsace, and it was just what I wanted: a bouquet bursting out of the glass, pure Riesling fruit, a little petrol-scent, apples and peaches, tons of structure and acidity carrying the fruit, long, scented finish. Talk about whetting the palate! Served perhaps too cold, warmed up nicely. A solid ****. Now-2015.

For my monkfish-and-lobster napoleon first course, the sommelier ravished praise on the 2005 Domaine de la Chapelle Pouilly-Fuisse. And he should have – this was perfection. Easily one of the best white Burgundies I have ever had, even better than some Grand Crus – this blew away a 1998 (I think) Bonneau du Martray Corton-Charlemagne I was unimpressed with once. If I had been served this as a Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru I’d have been very pleased and it would have trounced most village Pulignys and Chassagne-Montrachets. Pale, aroma rendolent with tropical fruit, toasty nose, spicy, creamy, rich, even a hint of pineapple, crisp, steely finish, a little vanilla there. If there was oak, it was judiciously used. Went on and on. Served just chilled enough. As I said, if this had been a Cote d’Or Burgundy, I’d have been thrilled, but this kind of splendor from the Maconnais, even from Pouilly? Who could have expected that? I didn’t want to finish it because then it would be gone. I kept the glass to savor the aroma. Easily a top-5 Chardonnay-based wine. This just shows how good the 2005 vintage was in France and especially Burgundy – as I said if the Pouillys are like this, what must the Pulignys be like (or the Montrachet and its hyphenated Grand Crus)? I can’t imagine. ****1/2. Now-2012.

Couldn't get better? Well, came pretty close. With my perfectly-done duck breast in a rich demiglace came a glass of 2000 Domaine de Courcel Pommard “Les Fremiers” Premier Cru. Here’s an example of fine winemaking in an iffy vintage; 2000 was not an easy year in the Cote de Beaune and the pinot noir can be temperamental even in a fine year. But Courcel, a family concern with four centuries of winemaking in Pommard under its belt, has few peers in Pommard; they do not destalk and try to get the most out of every grape. They conquered the elements to produce this earthy, fragrant, cassis-soaked wine which had a beguiling, soft, earthy, nose; sweet cassis and cherry on the palate, tangy, a hint of vanilla and coffee, but still tannic at the end, oak helps the structure, more cassis on the elegant finish, which never seemed to end. A mouthful of this was like having a succession of small flavor-filled fireworks going off on the tongue, one following the other in harmonic excitement. As I said, heavenly with the duck. Would have been spectacular with veal or even a well-roasted capon. At its peak, I’d say, but the tannins may last. Now-2010. ****1/2.

No wine with dessert, which included a pear tart, pistachio ice cream and macerated cherries. Finished with a lovely Cognac, I did not catch the label, smooth and well-balanced.

Let's do lunch again, eh?

Wines of Hungary: The Report

Many, many people of the huge crowd at the Pen and Pencil Club said this may have been the best tasting ever. I hear that occasionally and say perhaps so, knowing the customers are being effusive, but this time I feel they may be right. This one rocked. Even the two real live Hungarians we had at this one were delighted, and while I knew they’d be there I was still concerned: I am going to talk to them about their wines? Even leaving aside my occasionally dreadful pronunciation of overseas place names and the like, yikes. And I know well of the intense national pride of Hungarians. But they had a terrific time. So all was well on that front.

Why was this one so good? Three reasons (besides the wine, all from native Hungarian grapes, not international varieties, being good):

1) We took extra time and care over the food. Some of it came from the Yorkville Meat Emporium/Hungarian Meat Market in Manhattan’s old Eastern European neighborhood on the far Upper East Side (1560 Second Ave. at 81st St.; http://www.hungarianmeatmarket.com) which I cannot recommend highly enough to those interested in pursuing Hungarian meat and food (try the paprika head cheese). The lovely ladies there will assist you with delight and total efficiency. Between myself, P&P chef Dennis Hagen and P&P manager Dan Kenney, we came up with a menu that, I think, complimented the wine as well as anything we have ever done.

2) The wine service was perfect – we had the temperatures right and the order was perfect.

3) And everybody was in such a good mood; it seemed more than unusually festive.

The wines:

2003 Envinor Pinceset Tokaji Furmint Felszaraz
The first thing to know about the great wine region in the northeast of Hungary – Tokaj – is that the name of the town and area is Tokaj, the wine is Tokaji. The second is that not all wines made there are the rich, honeyed sweet wines that are justly world-renowned – dry white wines are made as well. Now, when one says “dry” in Hungary, one does not mean bone-dry in the way a Macon-Villages or Muscadet is; Hungarian wines, even what they think of the driest, are sweeter than what most Americans would think a dry wine should be. As was this charmer. Made from Furmint, a spicy, flavor-packed grape, florid as a bouquet of garden-fresh flowers on the nose, pale greenish, product of a hot summer, green apples and peaches on first taste, satisfying and mouthfilling (a old friend once said Peach Snapple was the most ‘mouthfilling’ drink he’d ever had, thus that phrase). Loads of fruit mid-palate, maybe heading towards flabbiness if served too warm (we nailed it at 50 degrees or so) but with enough acid to avoid cloyingness. Ethereal, short Vigonier-style finish. Went well with a mildish Cantelet cheese from the Auvergne, France, and then, much later, with my dinner of crab-topped salmon. Not much life left here though, drink up. $11 in NYC; 12 percent alcohol. Now-Christmas 2008. *** (just) (with Cantalet cheese and later with salmon filet topped with crabmeat, rice on the side, at the Pen & Pencil Club, Philadelphia, 4/2008)

2003 Egervin Leanyka
A very light pale wine from Leanyka, a native white grape that translates to “young girl” or “little girl”, from the huge Hungarian producer Egervin, grown in Eger in the northeast of Hungary. Aromatic but not hugely florid – its scents were more of a freshly cut meadow, say, or delicate wildflowers – as dry as Hungarian white gets, zippy, light, pleasant, nicely held together by its acidity, a touch sharp on the finish, Light at 11.5 percent alcohol, almost like a Hungarian Muscadet but spicier and a tad sweeter. Value at $7. At least one bottle was lightly maderised, which turned the wine into a nutty fino sherry clone, and it was not at all bad that way (I’d maderise some intentionally and see if I could market it as a sherry-esque wine; it was tasty). Coped well with a plate of “Hungarian antipasto” – piquillo peppers stuffed with hummus, Hungarian dry paprika sausage, a goulash/sour cream dip, two types of
pickles (one crisp chips and the other gherkins cooked, the latter from Hungary), and bread. Worth looking for. But drink up. Now-2008. **1/2 (at the Pen & Pencil Club, Philadelphia, 4/2008)

2005 Marka Szekszard Nemes Kadarka
Supposedly the “Nemes” (‘noble’) means that this wine was sweet, even botrytized, but I tasted none of that. The label said semi-sweet, but for once with Hungarians, it was drier than that, if, again, not starkly dry. Kadarka is the grape type, native. Szekszard the region, in the south of Hungary. Served lightly chilled. Gorgeous pale reddish color, looking a little like Lindemans’ raspberry lambic beer; spicy, intriguing aroma; luscious fruit at first on the palate, then cherries and raspberries take over, cherries dominate the aroma after a while, tangy and tart, looong finish of black cherry and earth. Similar in some ways to a good Alsatian Pinot Noir but more luscious, or to a Beaujolais Cru (Chiroubles?) but with more structure. In some ways like a light Portuguese red. Might not stand up to lamb or a strip steak or really good roast beef, but superb with chicken, sausages, pork, duck, grilled veggies, Cornish hen, salmon, even flank steak and Latin-style meat stews. 12.5 alcohol, steal at $8. A terrific summerish red!! Now-2011. ***1/2 (with breaded pork cutlet and sauerkraut garnie at the Pen & Pencil Club, Philadelphia, 4/2008)

2001 Kereskedohaz Tokaji Aszu 4 Puttanyos
For 500 years the Aszu has been the most famous wine of Hungary – indeed of Eastern Europe – treasured worldwide for its richness and intensity, and this shows precisely why. Stimulated conversation!! Served well-chilled. Pure honey and richness on the nose, like a full-flavored honey such as chestnut, nutty, alluring. That unmistakable lushness of botrytized grapes everywhere. On the palate, ‘wows’ around the room, fully ripe, honey, vanilla, butterscotch, massive flavor up and down the tongue, and then, instead of the kiss of sweetness a Sauternes gives at the finish, comes that searing, racy finish of great Aszu. 4 Putts is sweet but not overwhelmingly so (think Climens vs. Rieussec). “Luscious and heavenly”, I said. Served all by itself after a sorbet palate cleanser and deserved to stand alone. 12.5 alcohol, $24 (500 ml), not cheap but a solid value in the world of sweet wines. A fabulous, luxurious wine, years of life left. Foie gras would be a truly opulent pairing. Now-2020. **** (at the Pen & Pencil Club, Philadelphia, 4/2008).

Looking for offbeat wines? Good bargains?

The circular for the Chicago-based Wine Discount Center came the other day and I was once again reminded of their fascinating selection and very fair pricing. They are not paying me for this, by the way, but I’d recommend a look at their Web site and signing up for their newsletter – this month it features a dry Alsatian Muscat, a Prum Mosel Kabinett and some excellent Portuguese wines among other treasures. They are especially strong in Champagne and sparkling wines, Beaujolais and the Rhone, also ports and the like.

A.C., ac, ac: The Report

Overall a successful and delightful tasting. Dave Wolf’s food was terrific and matched the wines well.

2005 Domaine de Petit Paris Monbazillac
Wow, what a way to start! Americans have an irrational aversion to sweet wine, and it’s almost unknown here to serve them as an aperitif. Europeans do so much more often – the French drink ruby port as an aperitif – and often serve cheese with sweet wines. With wines like this, you could see why. A honeyed, liquorous nectar that both satisfied and whetted the appetite. Rich nose of mead, wildflower and caramel, tropical fruit and peach and clover honey on the palate, endless flavor with acidity to support the richness, long, long finish of apricot tossed with vanilla. Improved as it breathed into the kind of nectar you could imagine Odysseus sipping on Ithaca. Heavenly – almost as deep and luscious as a really good Sauternes and better than some lesser Sauternes I have had. This wine also shows why vintages matter – I have had this house’s 2002 vintage and it was racy, dryish, short, not nearly as lush and sweet. 2005 was a glorious year all over France – this wine shows why. At $18, an utter steal, bargain of the year. Don’t serve too cold, but it needs a good chill. Went well with Gorgonzola dolce from Italy, a creamy blue cheese. ****3/4

2006 Domaine de Petit Paris Bergerac Sec
Semillon/Sauvignon blend, never sees oak, meant to be crisp and refreshing and basic and it is all of that. Pineappley, citrusy, nose covered by too much chill, eventually opened up as limey and tart. Good acidity keeps the semillion’s lusciousness in check, a little quince and grapefruit on the palate and zippy, clean if a tad short on the finish. Pleasant without being especially memorable, but, at $11, it’s a solid everyday wine with seafood, lighter cheeses, chicken, salads, even Caesar salad. Would be superb with simple fish dishes and ethnic cuisine as well. Paired well, if not perfectly, with a rich crabcake (sole, say, would have been better). Good bistro wine. **1/2

2006 Domaine de Petit Paris Bergerac Rouge
A clunker. Grassy, stalky, wet-leaves nose, bitter and unripe on first tasting, not much fruit, hot, jammy, short, bitterish, chemical finish. A shock after the first two wines. Mostly Merlot, which makes one wonder if the merlot did not ripen, how green was the Cabernet Sauvignon that went into this? Yikes. Mellowed slightly in the glass but never gained the sweetness and plumpness good Bergerac Rouge can have. Alcoholic, not in good balance. $11. Not worth it. Fortunately the beef daube with pearl onions survived anyway. *

NV Jean Filloux COQ Grande Champagne Cognac
One Cognac fan called this the best one he’d ever had. I wouldn’t go that far but it is surely, easily the best $38 Cognac I have ever had. Filloux uses no artificial colorings or additives common in industrial Cognacs and his grapes are situated in the best part of Cognac. Deep nose, not hot at all, a hint of creaminess on the palate, bracing, nutty, and a lovely, warm but not hot finish that went on and on. Well-balanced. The first Cognac I have had that you could call refreshing. Perhaps not a Cognac to go with a full-bodied cigar but with a lighter stogie (Dunhill, say) it would be fine. Because of its lightness and crispness, an outstanding digestif. Filloux also made the Pineau de Charentes that was a big hit at the rose tastings. He also makes Cognacs of higher grade than this, including some high-end ones that mist be spectacular. This could hardly be bettered; you can spend a lot more and get nothing as tasty as this. ****