"I Dreamed I Moved Among the Alesian Fields"

Eleven Madison Park
Tasted Thursday, December 21, 2006 by Keith Levenberg with 1,029 views

Introduction

Last night, a few aficionados of California wine and a few disparagers of California wine got together at Eleven Madison Park to taste through the whole lineup of wines from Rhys and Alesia.

The first thing we noticed was that the seven-or-so course seasonal tasting menu has been replaced by a ten-plus course “Gourmand Menu.” Well, we did have plenty of wine to taste through.

Flight 1 (1 Note)

Amuses bouches of hamachi, foie gras, and fried sweetbreads
Poached egg with oscetra caviar, sea urchin, and mystery foam—what a dish!

  • 1996 Louis Roederer Champagne Vintage Brut 86 Points

    France, Champagne

    Alluring, expressive bouquet of dried fruit, honey, and toast is explosive from the gate, eventually quieting down. Very aggressive bead, causing a little, but not too much, radio interference with the sumptuous apply fruit. Finishes quite sweet.

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Flight 2 (2 Notes)

Trio of heirloom beets with chevre cheese—great preparation. These beets got terroir!
Langoustines in a gelee—best part was the dollop of caviar.
Foie gras with veins of Venezualan cocoa beans—Omigod. Foie gras and chocolate. The best thing since Homer Simpson discovered fudge-covered bacon. Actually, the cocoa gives the foie an herbal, even spicy kick. Masterpiece. We went back and raided the Roederer for this dish, which had enough sweetness to dance with it.

  • 2003 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard 92 Points

    USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

    Unreleased, rare, bootleg demo wine generously donated in absentia to the cause. This has a pale, cloudy color in contrast to the crystalline 2004. Nothing cloudy about it on the palate, where it is speckled and shellacked from top to bottom with an amazingly tactile and pure expression of chalk, ocean water, and oyster shells. This could be a dream wine at an oyster bar. But I don’t want to suggest this is in the Chablis or Muscadet style. It smells a little nutty. And it’s a heavyweight, broad-shouldered and even a little stiff.

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  • 2004 Rhys Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains 88 Points

    USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

    Aromatically, the 2004 is far more expressive and voluminous than the 2003, but it is also a good deal less pure with more overt wood suggested by the buttery nose and popcorn flavors. The texture is more luxurious and mouthcoating, with a rich, chicken-brothy fullness, but I preferred the 2003 for its freshness and transparency. But wait. As this wine warmed up—and I think it hit its peak just a few degrees below room temperature—it underwent a total change of personality, eventually rivaling the 2003 in freshness and crispness and taking on leaner proportions.

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Flight 3 (2 Notes)

Slow-cooked cod with a side of mussels—not bad, but I would have preferred the mussels with a side of cod. Cod’s a pretty flaky fish… nice as fish and chips… but it looks silly in fancy clothes.
Lobster—tastes like lobster. Not an obvious upgrade over steaming in beer or baking with Ritz stuffing.

  • 2004 Rhys Alesia Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast 90 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

    Textbook nose of cherry, clove, and cinnamon with just a little bit of cola and dark bittersweet chocolate. Very well-rounded texture, and it undergoes significant changes in the glass, with the aromas turning more green and minty and an interesting herbal flavor complementing licorice/anise flavors on the palate.

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  • 2004 Rhys Alesia Pinot Noir Kanzler Vineyard 85 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

    Before I’d tasted either wine I thought this outclassed the Sonoma with its meaty, gamier nose with an array of black fruits. But ultimately the Sonoma is the more civilized wine. The shroud of blackness in the wine turns to a slightly confectionary “blackberry Jolly Rancher” stickiness. Also this is .3% higher in alcohol than the Sonoma, but that’s enough to make it stick out a little too much. Jay blames the temperature, but actually as the wine sat in the glass it smoothed out and eventually showed a more seamless texture and a rockier depth.

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Flight 4 (1 Note)

Truffled chicken, sous vide—Gorgeous. Tastes like chicken in a way that makes you say, “Oh! THAT’s what chicken tastes like!”

  • 2004 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard 98 Points

    USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

    Wow. Intoxicating scents. Hello, earth! Mushrooms. Underbrush. A whip-snap of thyme, herbs, and game. And then a pure distillation of crushed rocks and iron—but exotic rocks—this is Martian terroir. One of the most minerally red wines I’ve ever had. And the best California wine, period.

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Flight 5 (1 Note)

Venison crusted with some kind of goop—they seem to misstep with red meat around here. Nothing special. A little dry. And the goop tasted funny.

  • 2003 Rhys Alesia Syrah Sonoma Coast

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

    Second time with this wine. I cheated and opened a bottle last weak. This bottle showed a little more than the last one though, showing more of its tannic bones (which helped moderate the fat fruit) and a little kick of pepper. But it’s a very primary youthful fruit bomb. Tastes like cherry syrup stirred with milk chocolate and toast. If you have it, hold it. Unless that’s your thing.

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Flight 6 (1 Note)

A grilled cheese sandwich—no, really. A grilled cheese sandwich. Please bring back the old cheese plate, or at least re-conceptualize this dish…

Flight 7 (1 Note)

Chocolate souffle with salted caramel ice cream and popcorn and chocolate/caramel sauce—Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

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