"Casual" Weeknight at Viet's

Tasted Tuesday, May 28, 2019 by Satoshi Nakamoto with 162 views

Introduction

Viet generously hosted four of us on a "casual" weeknight with insane Flannery dry aged beef (ranging from 60 days, 70 days, 77 days, and 84 days), roasted chicken, and other lovely and memorable dishes. We had a total of 9 blind wines between the five of us and it was just a lovely time.

Flight 1 (3 Notes)

  • 2014 Marie Courtin Champagne Concordance Extra Brut 93 Points

    France, Champagne

    Served blind. Love when tastings start with a bottle of Champagne.

    This wine was a complete shocker. By the color and nose, I thought this was older by at least 6-8 years.

    Lovely nose of hazelnut, honey, white flowers, apple sauce, and some candied fruit. It was chalky on the palate with lovely acidity, balance, and minerality. If it wasn’t so lean, I would have given it a nod as a big house Champagne. I was completely shocked to see 2014 as the vintage year. It just goes to show that Marie Courtin is legit!

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  • 2008 Jacquesson & Fils Champagne Dizy Terres Rouges Rosé 90 Points

    France, Champagne

    Served blind.

    The nose was somewhat muted, but the palate really gave way to high tones red fruits, especially cherries. It was also a bit savory, reminding me of a Mousse, but with a more structured and dense body. Chalky, lean, nice acidity, and just a delicious wine!

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  • 2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Chassagne-Montrachet Les Ancegnières 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet

    Served blind.

    The signature matchstick aroma initially pulled me towards either Henri Boillot or PYCM. The richer color, youthful lemon/mineral expression, flintiness, and density of this wine correctly led me to PYCM, although I incorrectly guessed 2014 instead of 2011. Delicious wine. Unmistakably Burgundy.

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Flight 2 (3 Notes)

  • 2012 Marie et Pierre Bénetière Côte-Rôtie Cordeloux 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    Served blind.

    This wine greatly humbled me, as I didn’t guess Côte Rotie or the 2012 vintage at all, even though I knew it was an old world Syrah.

    Silky, primary, and lush with some meaty components, this was a perplexing wine that seemed almost too delicate for Côte Rotie. I really wasn’t sure where to go with this.

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  • 2000 Château Léoville Poyferré 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    Served blind.

    A generous nose of red berries, anise, tobacco, wet forest floor, lead, and earthy aromas.

    The nose on this wine felt distinctly Bordeaux, but the lighter flavor profile threw me off and left me a bit hesitant to make the call. It also drank more youthful than a 19 year old wine. Still, lighter color and body, nice acidity, and some resolved tannins. My mind did not go to Saint-Julien, so this was another surprise!

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  • 2013 Cantine Bonacchi Brunello di Montalcino Casalino 90 Points

    Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Brunello di Montalcino

    Served blind.

    Tasted it and figured it was Italian with a Brunello touch. Extremely aromatic with plenty of strawberries and light red fruits on the nose. On the palate, a very tart wine (which led me to Italy) with stuffing that show some cellaring promise. A nice wine that’s approachable and doesn’t require deep analysis for now.

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Flight 3 (3 Notes)

  • 2016 Bernard Levet Côte-Rôtie Les Journaries / Maestria 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

    Brought this to the blind tasting.

    Oof, this wine is already showing so well. It took a few minutes in the glass to open up, but when it did, it was a showstopper. Unmistakably Cote Rotie with notes of seductive mixed berries, olives, dried herbs, and a bit of funk. The gorgeous inner mouth perfume that Ryan at Golden 8 Wines mentioned was prominent.

    I expected this wine to a little too tight and disjointed to sit back and enjoy, but it took me by surprise. What a great wine. Can't wait to see what additional cellaring will bring!

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  • 2016 Clos Saint Joseph Syrah Côtes de Provence 91 Points

    France, Provence, Côtes de Provence

    Brought this to the blind tasting.

    Deep inky purple. The elegant nose I expected was a bit tight and needed time in the glass to open up. When it came around, you got a lot of beautiful violet flowers and luscious, jammy red fruit. The palate brought more of the same with some earthy notes, but this wine was not as open as the last bottle. However, it has enough acid lift and structure to be put away for a while.

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  • 2016 Carlisle Alicante Bouschet Pagani Ranch 92 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley

    Served blind.

    This wine was crazy to try guessing! It struck me as a domestic Petite Sirah with Carlisle DNA, but I could not confidently call out the varietal. The wine has a wild and expressive nose. It was full of cedar, maple syrup, toasty aromas, concentrated red berries, baking spices, and cinnamon.

    Visually, this wine was so dark violet that when you swirled the glass, you could see the glass staining. A beautiful sight, reminding me of the appeal of the 2016 Tercero Aberration.

    On the palate, it was similar to the nose with deep structure, lovely tannins, and a lingering finish. One of the most interesting wines I've had in a while and my first experience with this grape. Wish I could find more! This was a strong wine to end the night with. Big thanks to Frank for graciously allowing me to take home the rest of the bottle for the sake of science. ;)

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Flight 4 (1 Note)

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