Dinner with Champagne, Barsac, and Volnay

[jal]

Friends came over to watch the sunset and stayed for dinner, with hydrogen bomb and ICBM threats, we thought we should go all out so we opened the following:

With foie gras and pomegranate seeds on toast we opened the 2014 Climens: So young, I prefer younger dessert wines with foie gras but that was a little ridiculous, so much wasted potential. I should have gone with a 2011 Guiraud I have. Still, this is lovely with clean but little acidity, balanced sweetness and pronounced botrytis.

We needed more acidity and opened a 2008 Agrapart Venus Blanc de Blancs: This was amazing; precise and clean with a gorgeous pale color. Very refined and elegant, with great structure but so good, we drank it very quickly so I opened a 2002 Bollinger Grande Annee: More heft, color is deeper yellow, nose had a little oxidation and this has stronger backbone and would have gone well with any food. I much much preferred the Agrapart but both were delicious though very different.

With strip steaks, salads, and kale rice pilaf we opened a 2007 Marquis d'Angerville Volnay Champans: Great bottle! beautiful color, fabulous nose, elegant, clean, vibrant on the palate, structured enough for the steak with a good finish, it and blows away the 2005 Potel plonk we drank last week. To all the critics who poo pooed the 2007 vintage in Burgundy, you can take your 1999 and 2005 and sell them, I don't think I've ever been disappointed by a 2007 Burgundy.

We finished the Climens with a vanilla pot de creme, it didn't open much but went well with the custard.

[Carlos Delpin]

2007 Volnay is really good at all levels. Will keep my 99 and 05's although in agreement that the 07's in general are drinking well now. Cheers.

[stefan]

I remember well the delicious 2002 Bollinger your served at your NYC penthouse.

Last night with T & Judd we ate grilled Coho and drank a couple of Burgs--2012 Maison Ilan MSD Les Chaffots and 205 Haegelen-Jayer Clos Vougeot. I had read about Maison Ilan but had not previously tasted anything from this producer. The MSD is modern style with tannins that are not completely tamed and plenty of oak. It is firmly textured and pungent. I liked it. The Vougeot is as great as one would expect; classic, smooth, lovely fragrance, and perfect balance. It will continue to improve for a long time but is satisfying now.

[jal]

This was the last bottle of the Bollinger six pack Stefan and to my mind the worst. I am very sensitive to oxidative aromas and while others swore they couldn't notice, it was off putting to me.

One of the friends who came yesterday had a huge fight with Ray Walker of Maison Ilan on Berserkers. The place I think went bust, there were rumors of undelivered wines, bottles with low fill because there were more bottles ordered than available wine, and finally even domestic violence. I really only know about the rumors and haven't followed the story but it's really sad, especially since the beginning was so compelling.

About 2005 burgundy, I'm glad the Clos Vougeot was great and I don't disagree that on the whole, the wines are excellent, but I always prefer finesse and elegance over power. The 2007 is my kind of vintage.