Dumbfounded by Dominus

Kirkland, WA
Tasted Saturday, April 7, 2007 by Eric with 1,174 views

Introduction

Sometimes wines don't just show well, but this was a tasting which, on paper, should have been outstanding. Instead, at the end of the night most tasters were scratching their head and wondering what happened? Glassware, serving temperature, provenance in most cases, were all good. Perhaps the food/wine matches were not so harmonious, but I'm personally at a loss to explain the showing of most of these wines.

Flight 1 (2 Notes)

As we arrived, we poured a pair of whites and enjoyed the following starters:
Duck liver crostino with balsamico pickled peppers
Wagyu Beef Tongue and Caramelized Onion crostini
Wild Gulf Prawns with Peperoncino and Meyer Lemon ( with skewers to serve)

Flight 2 (1 Note)

Seared Foie Gras with Rhubarb and Candied Ginger

  • 2001 Château Rieussec

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    The wine of the night. Thick notes of botrytis and mandarin orange. Penetrating acidity. This is pretty closed up right now and not showing the sheer precision that it had in its youth, but hooboy what a wine!

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Flight 3 (4 Notes)

Tagliatelle with Trippa alla Fiorentino and Pecorino

Flight 4 (4 Notes)

Radicchio with Balsamic and Parmigiano-Reggiano

  • 1990 Dominus Estate Flawed

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Corked.

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  • 1991 Dominus Estate Napanook Vineyard 90 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    A very Cab Franc nose with pickle, vegetal and stalky notes. I actually rather liked it though. Hmm, some more green notes with bell pepper, and this really seemed to bug a lot of people. Later on some charcoal and tobacco emerge. Wow, the palate is big, ripe and chewy although there is a fairly dry note on the finish. Powerfully bretty. A very disappointing showing for what is usually a world class wine.

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  • 1992 Dominus Estate Napanook Vineyard 91 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Ripe nose, caramel, resin and pine, high-pitched. Wow, this is quite young and tannic, chewy, a really deep palate with rich depth of fruit. This shows some harshness on the young, dry finish.

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  • 1994 Dominus Estate Napanook Vineyard 89 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Dill and chocolate on the oaky nose. Really young and horsey, lots of harsh and somewhat bitter tannins. Chocolate, meaty, leafy, very stylistically distinct. Somewhat bitter though.

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Flight 5 (3 Notes)

Saddle of Lamb with Anchovy Laced Potato Gratin, Lacquers Olives, Fried Rosemary and Pepperoni

Flight 6 (4 Notes)

Ripe Italian Cheese - Family style

Flight 7 (1 Note)

Parlous Chocolate Soufflé with Crème Anglaise

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