One of the youngest winos in DC, Faryan is moving to NYC to take up a new position and we met up at Blue duck for his farewell dinner. In a dozen also dinners that I had with Faryan lead me to consider his palate one of the best and it was a pleasure to participate in his farewell dinner.
The restaurant was pretty busy and we were seated about 30 minutes late. Blue duck happens to be my go to restaurant in DC for the fresh ingredients and solid executions but this day, it didn’t meet the usual expectation. Nevertheless the wines showed extremely well and it was great fun to catching up with the good friends.
Starters
- 1998 Henriot Champagne Brut Millésimé Rosé - France, Champagne
Sweet nose, strawberry fruits, strawberry shortcake and caramel. Good weight, bright acidity and really dry finish. It is not a terribly complex wine but solid. BTW, really dry! (91 pts.) - 1989 Caves Duplessis Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos - France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru
Chris mentioned it was imported by Dan Kravitz. Beautifully fully matured medium to shy white Burgundy nose, honey, sea breeze more so than saline, apricot, a slight hint of les clos flint/limestone and roasted chestnut coming from slow bottle aging. Nice airy yet oily palate, slightly lacking acidity and definitely showing the maturity as the end note with a hint of sherry/oxidation which shortens the finish resulting in a couple points less than otherwise. Lovely. (92 pts.) - 1995 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Oenothèque - France, Champagne
Darryl mentioned that Justin Connor recommend this, a great call. It is delicate yet decadent, fine small mousse, a hint of grapefruit, a fresh slice of sweet apple, almond paste and ash. Delicate palate, bright acidity and long finish. Drinking perfectly right now. Lovely champagne. (96 pts.)
- 1996 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Jalapeno, a hint of green, lead pencil, cassis but overall red fruit expression, earth and ash. Silky sweet jammy palate, good balancing acidity and a hint of tannins at the end. There is a hint of bitter metallic note that results from a minor heat damage but still expressive and enjoyable. A good example of the 96 St Julien in bright acidity, lead pencil, a hint of green and tannins. Despite the possible damage, it is showing youthful. Still long life ahead. The correct bottle should be a 95 pointer. (92 pts.) - 1996 Château Léoville Las Cases - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Deeply toned and big scale. Sweet Inky black fruits, cassis, graphite, vanilla, mushroom and earth. Still extremely youthful and developing slowly. Exceptional concentration, sweet, silky and clean palate. Nicely integrated tannins. Clear LLC signature of clean, youthful and modern. Drinking nicely but will improve at least for the next 20 years and will last for a while thereafter. (95 pts.)
- 1989 Château Calon-Ségur - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
Showing the absurdity of 100 point scale and an extremely pleasant surprise. In general, Calon Segur really needs time and this, after twenty some years, is drinking extremely well. Sweet jammy red fruits, caramel, lead pencil, a hint of leather, tobacco, flower and earth. Silky jammy palate, good acidity and nicely integrated tannins. This is an intense and hedonistic wine. Definitely more advanced than the 96 LLC and drinking at the prime, most secondary heading towards tertiary. If tasted blind, I would guessed as the 90 vintage with hedonistic generous jammy fruits. Perhaps we caught this at the perfect moment but this is my WOTN. I highly recommend. (96 pts.)
- 1986 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
I mentioned that this was corked but some doubted. Towards to the end, some retried from the bottle and TCA was more noticeable as usual. Almost drinkable initially. NR (flawed) - 1986 Château Cos d'Estournel - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
Very youthful example, this particular bottle is showing more red fruits than usual, also lead pencil, mushroom and earth. Still remaining fresh, noticeable core intensity, silky and nicely integrated tannins. Perhaps need to be cellared a bit more as this bottle is not terribly complex, need a bit more tertiary to emerge. Still lovely. (93 pts.) - 1986 La Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary Release - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain
Clearly significantly riper than Bordeauxs, jammy black fruits, licorice, fruitcake, dark caramel and port. Big rustic palate, unctuous, bright acidity and port like finish. Still plenty of fruits, intense and a bit rustic. (91 pts.)
- 1985 Château L'Eglise-Clinet - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
From the start to end, minty note, also smoke, dark chocolate and only a hint of sweet dark fruits. Definitely unique and classically Pomerol amongst the left bankers. Silky, medium concentration and fully integrated tannins. Enjoyable but don’t see much upside and need to be drunk up sooner than later. (92 pts.) - 1975 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Fully matured and then some, cedar, nutmeg, leather, dry cherries and mushroom. Medium to light, silky and fully integrate tannins. This without food is a 88 pointer but with, a few points higher. Completely tertiary need to be drunk up. Recommend to those who love old school Bordeaux with mostly tertiary flavor and little fruit. (88 pts.) - 1978 Château Palmer - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Darryl loves Palmer and I see why. Always showing red fruit quality also intoxicating floral perfume, this is no exception. Pretty nose of strawberry preserve, perfume, prune, leather, tobacco and earth. Good concentration and nicely integrated acidity and tannins. The nose has good intensity but not terribly complex yet the classic Palmer perfume keeps the wine interesting. This is a hint of uncleanness but still quite enjoyable. No need to wait but will last. (92 pts.) - 1982 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Classic Pauillac nose, cassis, blackberries, lead pencil, a hint of cedar and earth. Excellent concentration and nicely integrated tannins. Still youthful and need time but drinking well with generous fruits. (94 pts.)
- 1975 Château La Tour Blanche Sauternes - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
A youthful example. Apricot, mango, botrytis spice, nutmeg, burnt sugar and earl grey. Unctuous, noticeable sweetness and bright acidity. This is drinking beautifully at the moment but will last forever due to the high concentration and acidity. (93 pts.) - 1970 Château d'Yquem - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Does D’Yquem ever make a bad wine? Not so at least based my experience and this is no exception.
I hit the jackpot and stayed at Chateau D’Yquem for two nights during my first trip to Bordeaux. Chateau D’Yquem is a fortress and situated at the plateau. Since the land is so flat, I could see miles away from my room on the second floor. Perhaps this is the reason why D’Yquem always display the unbelievable texture and the unique flavor profile.
The color close to the 75 than the 67, light amber, bright and clear. Still noticeable coconut and banana, also butterscotch, caramel, orange rind and apricot. The overall impression initially start shy but with air, it opens up nicely. IMO, what makes D’Yquem special is the texture, always oily and unctuous yet so ariy, disappears like cotton candy on the tongue. It is not the most complex D’Yquem and appears slightly lacking acidity but still showing exceptional balance and airy palate. A tremendous wine! (95 pts.) - 1986 Château Climens - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
This as expected from a Climen is more linear and cooler. Subtle ginger and allspice, yellow fruits and lemon curd. Perfect balance, subtle, airy yet intensely flavored. With air, it improved so my rating may be slightly conservative. (94 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker
