30th Birthday Bash at Bern's Steak House

Many thanks to Trey and Laura Christy, Bern's sommelier and salesperson (respectively) who helped me with this event. The idea was to try some famous pairings by going out on a limb with some off-the-beaten path (well, for the people in our group, anyway) food and wine. We all love a good Napa cab, but we wanted to branch out and challenge ourselves. Needless to say, the entire evening was a tremendous success, made possible by the thought put into the food and wine, by Bern's tremendous execution in the kitchen and stellar cellar, and most importantly by the wonderful group of friends.

The pairing was brilliant, and the whole caviar experience was a lot of fun. We had Chattanooga Beluga and Golden Whitefish. Both were delicious in their own right, and while the various creams were interesting, I preferred just eggs on toast.

• 1990 Pol Roger Champagne 2000 Selection Brut

  France, Champagne

  My first ever vintage Champagne, and it did not disappoint. First of all, the bottle is pretty bad a$$; a big black magnum with gold etching. The wine itself had aromas of white chocolate mousse, lemon rind, wet stone, and some baked apple pie crust. The palate was full of so much life for a 21-yo sparkler. I got a lot of distinct citrus flavors from the palate. The finish was quite long, pushing nearly a minute, indicative of the excellent acidity that buttressed the flavors suggested by the nose and palate. Truly a wonderful wine. If I was scoring, 92-95, though I have -0- frame of reference for vintage Champagne.

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This was a less traditional pairing, but a home run success! We enjoyed the Maine lobster two ways: 1) Maine Lobster Cocktail - lobster chunks tossed in a citrus mayonnaise along with mango and avocado, topped with micro greens, and served on a gaufrette potato, and 2) Surf roll - a sushi-esque roll of lobster, Thai herbs, sushi rice, mango, coconut, and avocado. By itself I preferred the Cocktail, but with the wine the spiciness of the Thai herbs in the surf roll were amplified by the acidity and spice in the wine. Wonderful!

• 1966 Felix Becker Ayler Kupp Riesling Auslese

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  The label on the neck indicates that this was bottled specifically for Bern's Steak House.
  
  This was profound. Golden honeyed color, with a nose of stewed apples, fresh flowers, herb garden, and a spice component that bristled with teeth and power. What does that mean? Hell if I know, but that's the only way I can describe it. The palate was thick but neither sweet nor cloying; just dense, oily (in a good way), and expansively flavorful with yellow tree fruit. The finish sang on and on with plenty of acidity, slight petrol, abundant caramelized apples, and again that mind-blowing spice. Paired ethereally with Maine lobster prepared two different ways. If I was scoring, 97-100.

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I asked for Sauternes and Foie Gras, but the sommelier recommended the Tokaji, and it was an excellent pairing. The Foie Gras was prepared two ways: 1) seared and served warm on toasted brioche with wild mushrooms and accompanied by a Merlot reduction sauce, and 2) "cold" on toasted brioche with roasted Macadamia nuts, candied ginger, and pickled pineapple. This wasn't a smash hit for the others at the table, but I loved it, especially the "cold" preparation. The Tokaji was perfect with the food.

• 1999 Royal Tokaji Wine Co. Tokaji Aszú 6 Puttonyos Szt. Tamás

  Hungary, Tokaji

  A little lighter in color than I would have expected. The nose did not fail to deliver on ripe peach and preserved apricot. What blew me away about this wine was the fresh, laser-like focus of fruit in the mouth on the finish that was achieved with tremendous acidity. The balance on this wine was to die for. The finish was long and delicious, without any other real complexity that stood out to me. An excellent pairing with Foie Gras. I wanted Sauternes, but the sommelier steered me to the Tokaji, and I'm glad he did! If I was scoring, 91-94, though I have very limited experience with Tokaji.

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Boring. The soup was boring and the wine was boring. Have a nice life, Burgundy; you and I were never meant to be together.

• 1995 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Bonnes Mares

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Bonnes Mares Grand Cru

  Another boring bottle of Burgundy. I asked for a Burgundy that would blow me away, and if that's what this bottle was supposed to be, I'm done spending money on Burgundy. Dried, dehydrated cherries, wilted flowers, and earth funk. Thin and insipid on the palate, with some watery red fruits. The finish was extraordinarily forgettable. Paired with an equally boring French Onion Soup. They can't all be winners. If I was scoring, 80-83.

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In retrospect, we probably should have just had water with this course. The wine did nothing with the food, and while I'm sure the wine is nice on its own or with a piece of seared red meat, it was quite forgettable.

• 1996 Tenute Cisa Asinari dei Marchesi di Grésy Barbaresco Martinenga Gaiun

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  The nose on this was far more compelling than the palate or finish. The nose offered up some citrus, a little tar but not much, anise, and cherries. After that, things went pretty simple and forgettable. This wine may have been hurt by the boring Steak House Salad we paired it with. If I was scoring, 87-90.

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We asked for the meat to be medium, but it was very rare which was fine for my wife and me, but probably not great for the other people in the group. The meat was nothing spectacular; I've had better steak at many other restaurants. The Ridge was the star of this course, as well as the entire night for me.

• 1973 Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Bello

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  WOTN. This was tremendous, stupendous, mesmerizing, spell-binding, etc. Huge aromatics of ripe red berries, cedar, cigar box, saddle leather, anise, herb garden, and fresh tilled earth. Smelled like a 10-yo wine, not a 38-yo wine. The palate was fresh, with gorgeous elegant red and black fruits and nice acidity, following into a long, supple, red and black berry finish accented by mocha and soft spice. One of the best wines I've ever had in my life. Superb! If I was rating, 96-99.

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• 1986 Château Cos d'Estournel

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Biggest disappointment of the evening. I was so looking forward to this wine given its pedigree, the success of the vintage, and my continued quest to determine whether I actually like Bordeaux or just want to like Bordeaux because it's Bordeaux. Green pepper extract on the nose, and NOTHING else. No fruit, no oak, no secondary anything. The palate was monolithic, drying and was almost like I was drinking water. The finish was short and gave up a hint of black fruit but mostly spicy green pepper. Maybe this is shut down right now, but it was a major swing and a miss for me. If I was scoring, 84-87.

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See the closing notes for why I'm not really able to comment much on this course.

• 1963 Sandeman Porto Vintage

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  Unfortunately, I lit into this wine as if it were Kool-Aid and not a 20% ABV wine. So my memory from this point forward gets fuzzier and fuzzier until the big gastrointestinal upheaval that occurred on the drive home. I remember really enjoying the wine, but I remember nothing of it. Bummer, as I was so looking forward to this. While most of the blame for this is mine, I will throw Bern's under the bus for serving this wine in standard Bordeaux-style glasses, and not small Port glasses. Had the wine been in Port glasses, I think I would have paced myself better. Oh well.

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WOTN for me was the 1973 Ridge Monte Bello. Trey recommended this wine, and while I was very hesitant given the age, it was tremendous. Close second was the 1966er Felix Becker Riesling Auslese Ayler Kupp Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, with its knockout nose that I can still smell and amazing dance with the lobster dishes. The burgundy reminded me why I just don't get burgundy; so boring, so forgettable, and so over-priced. The disappointment of the evening goes to the 1986 Cos d'Estournel St. Estephe, with its overwhelming bell pepper, monolithic structure, and almost entirely closed nose, palate and finish. Perhaps this is shut down? I wish I had treated the 1963 Sandeman Vintage Port as Vintage Port and not as kool-aid. I drank so much of it so quickly, that everything decided to come up in the car on the way home. I grabbed my friends sport coat and threw up into it. Why didn't I just roll down the window like a normal over-served a-hole? I have no idea. We'll all laugh about this someday, but for right now, I'm not interested in showing my face around those people for awhile!