Pre 1990 Cali Cab + 1981 Birthday Surprise!

Wow. Possibly one of the best wine nights we've had down in Jax. Huge thanks to Cowford which was just super with great food and service and getting what we were trying to do and making it happen. Also a big thanks to all of our friends who participated. It was clear that there was a lot of thinking that went into the wines that were brought. And of course big call out to my better half who completely surprised me by turning it into a mini-birthday celebration (which of meant we probably had a bit too much wine per person but that is not a bad problem to have). Overall an amazing memory.

If you have followed my notes you know that I believe all evenings should begin with champagne (and that many should prob end that way too) so it was nice to get off to the 'right' start. Both interesting bottles in their own right. They were actually popular enough that I only had small sips left at the very end although much of the evolution happened early in the glasses.

• 1981 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Millésimé

  France, Champagne

  Interesting to see the Pinot dominance in the write-up as this was all light and bright and fresh and lemon peel and really a wine that makes you think it has <10 years of age rather than being over 40. Later disgorgement. In that CH style that is elegant and refined and overall a bit lighter and easier. Drinking really nicely but with lots more time to go.

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• 1998 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon

  France, Champagne

  Different opinions on this wine from its flawed to going back for large second pours. I love it, but I don't mind some slight oxidation to a champagne. This was much older tasting than the 1981 CH that we had alongside it even though it is actually 17 years younger and out of a bigger format. It's all nutty and marzipan and a bit more evolution and actually with more air it gets a bit lighter and fresher. I thought it drank quite well.

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Deviled Eggs
Shrimp Cocktail
Steak Tartare

A funny event to try to create flights from and so we ended up doing it with a few different categorizations where this was probably the biggest stretch (esp as Randy left Caymus before these wines if I understand timeline correctly). Still, fun to get to try them all together and a great start to our red wines.

• 1984 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Artist Series Napa Valley

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  From a magnum. For awhile these wines were a 'go-to' for us because they were just so well priced and always a crowd favorite. In recent years I think the secret has gotten out a bit unfortunately. This was drinking very well (and apparently even on to the second day). There's a power and heft to the wine but also just a classic style. Not overly forward. I'm sure this was a wine that wasn't super drinkable or approachable on release, but now it's in a great spot. I'm not sure if it gets better with age, but I don't think it's going anywhere anytime soon either.

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• 1986 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Surprisingly young and coming on the heels of an 84 Dunn this is a more intense wine although of course age has softened the edges. Bigger fruit - lots of blueberry and blackberry and all of that. One of the big differences with Cali and Bordeaux I think is that most Cali wine when well made has a reasonably easy time keeping fruit for many years which can be interesting. This is still really fruit dominant - the secondary notes not there yet (as compared to the Dunn where it was a bit more integrated). The other thing that surprised me is drinking this and the '87 side by side the wines are very similar. Usually see a bit more vintage variation (and to be fair there are some who felt there was some nuance). To me though they both came across as fruit forward, younger in nature, more intense in style. Wines that are not going anywhere.

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• 1987 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Drank side by side with the '86. What surprised me the most with the two was how alike the wines were. I think both were good growing years but I remember many years ago doing a Dunn tasting and while I liked both of those wines a lot they had some changes. Here the wines were more fruit forward in style. All blueberry and blackberry and all of that. Not quite the extra ripe that is favored now in the Caymus style but you can see how the evolution happened. Very young and by that I mean the secondary notes aren't there yet. Many years to go.

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Caesar Salad
Chopped Salad (this was meant to be a wedge I think so a bit confusing)
Clam Chowder

Wines were nice. The food didn't pair even remotely. I think the she crab soup that was on the menu originally would have done well and the wedge maybe a bit better. So it goes.

• 1982 Beaulieu Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour Private Reserve

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Funny coming off of the Caymus which is all fruit and my question for these old BVs is where did their fruit go. This wine is very classic Bordeaux in style. All old leather and cigar and library. A touch more tired (which is true even when you source directly from the winery from what I can tell). I think these didn't age quite as well as some of their compatriots unfortunately. It is an interesting counterpoint though so some of the other wines.

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• 1986 Opus One

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Another bigger style of wine and one that I didn't take very detailed notes on. I haven't had many (any?) old Opus before and so my opinion has mostly been about more recent efforts which I've found a bit underwhelming. This though was when they were building that reputation and so much bolder. It's a bigger style of wine than the other two in the flight. More built to age. I somewhat wonder if this doesn't need another 20 years before it's really in its sweet spot.

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• 1987 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville

  The was the surprise wine of the day for me. I don't know much about the producer and usually am not as big of a fan of the valley floor as the mountains. This was great though. There's kindof an herbal spice cabinet mixed with plum and fig and in a great drinking window and just the right level of openness. Drinking fresh although with age. Very nice.

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This was an intermezzo of sorts between the course. For sure the best group of birth year wines I've ever had. For those who have spent any time with '81 it's basically a disastrous year outside of maybe champagne. Each of these producers (not surprising - some of the best producers in their regions) really made a great wine though. And not just a 'great wine for '81' which is often what I think when I try birth year wine. A straight up great wine that can compete with even better years (as shown by this dinner tonight). Pretty special.

• 1981 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon

  USA, Washington

  I did not realize Quilceda Creek went back so many years - I think before this the oldest I'd had was in the late 90's. This was great though and definitely built for the long haul. Kindof darker raspberry and fruit flavors, more spice and pepper, very lovely in style. A special treat as I'm not sure I'll see this wine again in my lifetime.

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• 1981 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville

  Contender for WOTN, this was pretty amazing and maybe even rivals Grange for one of my most favorite from my birth year (which is a big statement as this is a single vineyard wine whereas Grange has vineyards from all over Australia to pull from to create the best wine of the year). That lovely blend of darker fruit and kindof a minty-eucalyptus style nose. I don't mind a hint of green in my wine and this has that for sure but in the most elegant manner.

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• 1981 Pine Ridge Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford

  Interesting wine. We haven't had this producer before although we have a bottle of the '08 sitting in our cellar. This was a nicely aged California wine. I think perhaps a bit less nuanced than the other wines in the '81 and I'm not sure if that was the producer which drove that or the fact that '81 is a tougher year. Enjoyable, but perhaps less layers (at least to me - there were others who thought this was the wine of the flight).

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• 1981 Château Mouton Rothschild

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  An extra special treat. A few years ago we had a half bottle of this wine to celebrate my birthday while we were some friends' wedding weekend. I remember thinking then that good producers make good wine regardless of the vintage (obviously 81 is nothing to write home about). This showed that in spades. Much better than that half bottle even was this was beautiful and just kept getting better throughout the night. That nice blend of fruits and spices that I love in a wine (and of the things that often falls down in the '81s since for most of the Bordeaux versions the fruit has long since faded). While it perhaps had some bumps as a first growth the difference for me for those vs. seconds has usually been the ability to keep the fruit a bit longer and this had that. Well balanced. Drinking very well.

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Choice of:
Snake River Farms Wagyu Filet
New York Strip
with horseradish cream
Wood-Fired Salmon
Fish of the Day
Wood-Fired ½ Chicken with natural jus

S I D E S
Seasonal Vegetable
Potatoes Au Gratin with crispy prosciutto
Mac & Cheese
Asparagus

Maybe the flight that I had been most looking forward to on our original list, but it's hard to come on the heels of the best '81 flight I've ever done. These were definitely all delicious though.

• 1987 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Started with just a touch of brett but that blew off with some time. Got to drink next to the '85 and it was interesting to compare and contrast. Both lovely wines in a good spot at the moment.

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• 1985 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  From a magnum. Clean and well structured and bright and young. Had been double-decanted before it arrived and not sure if it was that or the year that made this a bit more approachable than the '87 out of the gate. Very well done wine. A hint floral. Drinking nicely.

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• 1987 Heitz Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard

  USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville

  From a magnum. Not quite as pristine in quality as the '81 although I still really enjoyed this. A bit more grassy rather than the eucalyptus. It's got the darker fruits. Hint of mint. There's just an overall intrigue in the flavors here and a uniqueness to the wine that I really like. Looking forward to continuing to explore the older vintages of Heitz.

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Choice of:
Cheesecake
Chocolate Cake
Seasonal Crème Brûlée

I got the Chocolate because what else are you going to pair with red wine even though by that point I wasn't quite so hungry.

• 1977 Mayacamas Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

  USA, California

  Perhaps not totally fair but I just had very high expectations for this wine and I would say this was good, but it didn't quite get to the great that I was looking for. It's a nice wine. Just a bit simple in style. Drinks well, but missing the extra layers.

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• 1978 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Completely different experience from Jeff's. This had been opened and double-decanted before it was brought to the restaurant. Continued to open up over time. Almost came across as a bit young. A reminder that while Beringer now to me is a mass produced wine that I wouldn't really seek out back in the day they were one of the pioneers. Better than I expected.

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Not often that a night ends with a combination of 1800s and D'Yquem and so a pretty awesome way to do it. There was also a pretty impressive rendition of a Heitz Martha's bottle in the form of a cake which I only ate a few bites of but which was also delicious.

• 1891 D'Oliveiras Madeira Boal

  Portugal, Madeira

  Now we reach the point in the night where I got much less on top of my notes and more just enjoying the wines and anytime we get to anything fortified it tends to make the rest of the night a bit blurrier. These were a truly special treat. Not often you get to go back to the 1800s with wine and always special when you do. They can live forever I think.

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• 1826 Blandy's Madeira Bual Solera

  Portugal, Madeira

  Similar to the previous note although this might be my oldest madeira that I've had. Fun to get to try and even more fun because these had all been opened a few days before (I believe Madeira is one of those wines that gets better with air and time and really starts peaking more like a few days after initial cork pull). So we were in the sweet spot. And these were nice and sweet and dried fruits and a touch of spice and all of the good things (at least from memory - I didn't take detailed notes).

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• 1981 Château d'Yquem

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  A definite treat because D'Yquem is one of the few producers that always does a good wine year in and year out and this was no exception. Is it the finish that lingers completely forever - not exactly. It is still long and interesting and in some ways I'm not sure I don't like the 'off' vintages a bit more because they are more restrained in their sweetness. This was that. Drinking quite nicely. A great finish to the evening.

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Hmmm - so rarely would I have thought that an 81 would ever be my WOTN if there were other options but I find myself thinking back to that 81 Martha's which was pretty special. We definitely don't drink enough of that wine. Honestly though it was kindof an embarrassment of riches. We haven't done a lot of old Cali dinners but I'm realizing that's been a miss.

Going into my list as one for the ages.