Spring weekend in Paris
Posted: Sun Mar 29, 2015 8:57 pm
I was in Paris on business on Friday which provided the perfect excuse to hook up with Tim that evening, with Maureen taking the afternoon train to join us. Tim arranged a reservation at Le Gaigne, a splendid restaurant in the eighth arrondissement. He only said he might bring a 1976 a Clos De Beze and a 1975 Pauillac, among options. As it turned out he most generously brought a long a 1975 Ch. Mouton Rothschild and a 1976 Mommessin Grand Cru.
With the tasting menu we had five wines (it was Friday after all...)
Flight one:
Mommessin Chambertin Clos De Beze 1976
It had a low ullage on the shoulder and the cork crumbled. However the colour was a bright, healthy deep garnet. It started off a bit flat and acidic (balsamic?) but then it started to put on weight and become more interesting and expressive. It had some saline notes, earthiness and suggestion of forest floor...or something like that. The fruit had fled the scene some while ago but this was still very much alive and open for business. Given that few of 1976s made old bones, its condition was impressive. However it was a wine that I frankly struggled with and perhaps failed to grasp. Tim and Maureen got more enjoyment out of this than I did.
Ponsot Clos De La Roche Vieille Vignes 1997
A noticeably younger more fruit driven style, this also continued to improve over the evening. In five years from now this will be quite splendid, as it moves more decisively into its secondary/tertiary phase. It could have benefitted from being served a little cooler, but this is a very good CdlR from an under-appreciated vintage.
Flight two:
Pichon Lalande 1989
Surprisingly reticent on the nose, this wine did not really sing for some reason. Full-bodied and somewhat monolithic it had a powerful core of fruit and a dense gravelly middle palate, so the ingredients are there. It was a bit broody and probably needs more time. Given recent rave reviews elsewhere I suspect this was an off bottle, but it wasn't obviously flawed.
Chateau Palmer1985
This, in contrast to its flight mates, was singing straight out of blocks. It had an absolutely gorgeous truffle-infused nose, which was absolutely to die for. You won't encounter a better nose anywhere. The pleasure carried on to the palate, where it was medium-full bodied, refined and poised. An absolutely cracking bottle of Palmer, comfortably the wine of the flight, and indeed wine if the night. But was it wine of the weekend? Read on....
Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1975
This Mouton was more Benedictine than exuberant, more Rodin than Warhol (who's artwork adorns the label). The entry and palate are hushed and dignified, as if entering a monastery. Or, as you enter a drawing room in a country manor with a lone figure sat looking out of the window contemplating the rich tapestry of life, and the next one to come. As we paid homage to this venerable first growth, memories of the previous two encounters came flooding back: one a maestro-like rendition on a balmy English Solstice evening in 2006, and the other a more challenging experience with BWE in NYC in 2010 when it suffered some kind of cardiac arrest. This august treasure was in better shape than the one carried out by the pallbearers in 2010, but didn't quite scale the heights of the one in 2006.
On Saturday night we ate Le Bon George in the ninth arrondissement. We brought along two wines.
Etienne Sauzet, Puligny Montrachet, 1er Cru Les Referts 2011
We brought this from Ambassade De Bourgogne in the sixth arrondissement (Odeon). Light, bright, precise and vibrant, this is a thrilling, steely Puligny, overlaid with minerals, stones and bright citrus fruits. Drinking superbly well already, it went down a treat with gently warmed oysters and shallots...hand carpaccio of beef with Parmesan infused with olive oil. This Sauzet epitomised what is special about Puligny Montrachet.
Chateau Leoville Lascases 1988
A svelte, medium-bodied Leoville Lascases with the accent on refinement rather than power. This is in a perfect place right now. It has impeccable poise and breeding with notes of tobacco and freshly tilled earth. This is a Lascases that you can pop and pour with enormous pleasure. The fruit is there but it just takes a back seat to the secondary/tertiary flavour profile. This was Maureen's favourite wine of the weekend, just ahead of the 1985 Palmer. I had the Palmer a nose ahead of the Lascases.
With the tasting menu we had five wines (it was Friday after all...)
Flight one:
Mommessin Chambertin Clos De Beze 1976
It had a low ullage on the shoulder and the cork crumbled. However the colour was a bright, healthy deep garnet. It started off a bit flat and acidic (balsamic?) but then it started to put on weight and become more interesting and expressive. It had some saline notes, earthiness and suggestion of forest floor...or something like that. The fruit had fled the scene some while ago but this was still very much alive and open for business. Given that few of 1976s made old bones, its condition was impressive. However it was a wine that I frankly struggled with and perhaps failed to grasp. Tim and Maureen got more enjoyment out of this than I did.
Ponsot Clos De La Roche Vieille Vignes 1997
A noticeably younger more fruit driven style, this also continued to improve over the evening. In five years from now this will be quite splendid, as it moves more decisively into its secondary/tertiary phase. It could have benefitted from being served a little cooler, but this is a very good CdlR from an under-appreciated vintage.
Flight two:
Pichon Lalande 1989
Surprisingly reticent on the nose, this wine did not really sing for some reason. Full-bodied and somewhat monolithic it had a powerful core of fruit and a dense gravelly middle palate, so the ingredients are there. It was a bit broody and probably needs more time. Given recent rave reviews elsewhere I suspect this was an off bottle, but it wasn't obviously flawed.
Chateau Palmer1985
This, in contrast to its flight mates, was singing straight out of blocks. It had an absolutely gorgeous truffle-infused nose, which was absolutely to die for. You won't encounter a better nose anywhere. The pleasure carried on to the palate, where it was medium-full bodied, refined and poised. An absolutely cracking bottle of Palmer, comfortably the wine of the flight, and indeed wine if the night. But was it wine of the weekend? Read on....
Chateau Mouton Rothschild 1975
This Mouton was more Benedictine than exuberant, more Rodin than Warhol (who's artwork adorns the label). The entry and palate are hushed and dignified, as if entering a monastery. Or, as you enter a drawing room in a country manor with a lone figure sat looking out of the window contemplating the rich tapestry of life, and the next one to come. As we paid homage to this venerable first growth, memories of the previous two encounters came flooding back: one a maestro-like rendition on a balmy English Solstice evening in 2006, and the other a more challenging experience with BWE in NYC in 2010 when it suffered some kind of cardiac arrest. This august treasure was in better shape than the one carried out by the pallbearers in 2010, but didn't quite scale the heights of the one in 2006.
On Saturday night we ate Le Bon George in the ninth arrondissement. We brought along two wines.
Etienne Sauzet, Puligny Montrachet, 1er Cru Les Referts 2011
We brought this from Ambassade De Bourgogne in the sixth arrondissement (Odeon). Light, bright, precise and vibrant, this is a thrilling, steely Puligny, overlaid with minerals, stones and bright citrus fruits. Drinking superbly well already, it went down a treat with gently warmed oysters and shallots...hand carpaccio of beef with Parmesan infused with olive oil. This Sauzet epitomised what is special about Puligny Montrachet.
Chateau Leoville Lascases 1988
A svelte, medium-bodied Leoville Lascases with the accent on refinement rather than power. This is in a perfect place right now. It has impeccable poise and breeding with notes of tobacco and freshly tilled earth. This is a Lascases that you can pop and pour with enormous pleasure. The fruit is there but it just takes a back seat to the secondary/tertiary flavour profile. This was Maureen's favourite wine of the weekend, just ahead of the 1985 Palmer. I had the Palmer a nose ahead of the Lascases.