Wines and friends with lovely little Adira, and Seth and Keshet; chez them

Love. That's it, that's what we do this stuff for...

• 1978 Ballot-Millot & Fils Beaune 1er Cru Epenottes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
  Well-bricked ruby, obviously used to be a fairly deep blood. Big, earthy nose showing its age; nice vegetal character, fortunately just this side of canned asparagus/green beans; petrichor; canned mandarin oranges; a little stewed tomato; really nice. Sweet entry on palate; fruit fading a bit to tannin, structured, but still alive with lovely, earthy cherry; tomato; an edge of lacquer/Elmer's glue. Good length, tasty. Nothing to wait for anymore -- drink up but in no hurry.
  
  [Note: This vineyard is more commonly spelled "Epenotes" and borders Pommard's Les Petits Epenots; this could easily have been guessed as a Pommard with its structure and longevity.]
• 2010 La Pousse d'Or Volnay 1er Cru Clos de la Bousse d'Or - France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru
  Absolutely perfect ruby, perhaps a little violet on the meniscus. Fresh, beautiful perfume floats in the glass, cherry liqueur, very pure; lots of pretty spices and some coffee grounds (probably oak toast); a little lacquer; but then it closes up a bit in the glass with air; no obvious oak (other than the coffee note, perhaps). The palate is very pure, refined, elegant; again, no obvious oak; fabulous balance; cherry and spice. Perfect acid and fruit, i.e. terrific balance. Good length. Superb wine. Give it time, but pretty approachable now.
  
  [Note: this is not a big wine, and it faded as it sat open; my opinion of it soured somewhat. I would be very careful aging this beyond 8-10 years -- perhaps it will put on weight, but perhaps not, too. Keep an eye on it.]
• 1990 Rolly Gassmann Riesling Vendanges Tardives - France, Alsace
  Amber gold. Bang! Petrol like a backfiring Volkswagen, practically gasoline. Then -- carefully, so my face doesn't catch on fire -- orange peels, hazelnuts, custard-cream; and a box of rotten oranges. Palate is dry, spicy, weighty; more of the rotten oranges, some cream, and oxidation; shy on fruit. Decent finish. Nice wine but drink up!
• 2004 Gaston Chiquet Champagne Special Club Brut - France, Champagne
  Straw. Monster nose, smells just like a bakery: yeast, flour, rising dough; then cream, orangesicle, and, interestingly, fresh-cut grass or alfalfa -- an epic nose! The palate is, somewhat thankfully, more reserved and elegant; nice sweetness, obviously a healthy dosage (love) and a matched creamy mousse; cream with a little salinity to it. But really delicate and poised, a ballerina. Lovely, long length. Excellent. Doesn't need age, it's great now, but I'm sure it will improve for a few years. Delicious wine.
• 2010 Franz Hirtzberger Riesling Smaragd Hochrain - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
  Green straw-gold. Big, classic steely nose at first, but then creamy vanilla, nutmeg, crème brûlée; beautiful nose. Palate is very approachable and a little sweet; perceptible residual sugar. Tangy grapefruit length, though hardly taut acid. Extremely nice now. It's primary, and it will keep for a while, but why bother? Drink this.
• 1978 Hacienda Winery Cabernet Sauvignon - USA, California, Sonoma County
  Well-bricked blood. There was an initial ferocious, snagglepuss, volatility on the nose that was killing me and needed to blow off, godawful -- then it did. Now quite perfumed (and it became more>more>more perfumed the longer it stayed open; glorious, huge tobacco gorgeousness!) with mulberry compote, tar, licorice. Really freaking nice, wow... The palate is resolved, sweet, lovely; candied, lifted '78 fruit, very classic there, for sure; cherry and red berries of your choice. Decent length, but that's about it, no need to overstate it all. Really nice, classic wine. Drink. (my wine) (Edit: Seth is correct -- this is Sonoma Valley designated, not Sonoma County. I didn't notice this when I entered my note.)