Dinner at Edmund and Shuming's

Edmund and Shuming hosted dinner with Claudio and Dawn, Winnie, Juliane and me. Fantastic company, great wines and great food cooked by Edmund. I was so spoilt and had such a good time that I was glowing from the dinner for the next 24 hours or so.

Foie Gras / Prosciutto on toast;
Tagliatelle with truffle paste and sliced truffles

• 2006 Tulbagh Mountain Vineyards (TMV) White Coastal Region 92 Points

  South Africa, Coastal Region

  I was as impressed by this bottle as the last one I had. Golden yellow coloured, this was served a little warmer than the last time I had it, with the flavour profile showing less of the citrussy grapefruit tones. This time round, the nose held fleshy white fruit, musky white flowers and a slight savoury whiff. The palate was rich and creamy, with honeysuckle and beeswax tones. Very nicely balanced, with round dollops of acid and a nice minerally finish. Just a light touch of heat, but otherwise a great wine all round.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Roast beef (beauftifully done!), mash potatoes and salad on the side, with mustard and aged caramelised balsamic vinegar

• 2000 Faiveley Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos des Ormes 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Morey St. Denis 1er Cru

  Second time I have had this bottle. Poured straight out from the bottle, this was far, far better than the last bottle that I had. Red core with slightly garnet rim. Nose showed lots of dusky cherries, dried earth and some savoury leather and game tones. With a bit of air, some deeply inviting forest floor aromas emerged. Really lovely. More of the same on the palate - dusky cherries, with good intensity and concentration and just that little touch of game. Good enough acid, nice and round though not tremednously fresh, and slightly powdered tannins gave the wine a nice sense of structure and balance. Excellent really, save for the rather short and abrupt finish. So differently built from the previous bottle, making me suspect that the earlier version may have aged rather prematurely.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• 2001 Viña Almaviva S.A. Almaviva 95 Points

  Chile, Maipo Valley, Puente Alto

  Now, this was really, really excellent. My WOTN. Took ahwile in the decanter to come around, but when it did, wow. Far better than the last bottle of 2001 I had, and this was on a different plane altogether from the good but not fantastic 2002. Great pairing with the roast beef as well.
  
  70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Carmenère and 3% Cabernet Franc. Dark purple core with a pink rim still hinting at youth, but the nose showed lots of secondary development. Leather, spice, anise, moss, pepper, all very perfumed, and then lots and lots of cassis. Great nose, complex and ultra attractive. I would say almost Bordelais with a new world twist. Palate was plush and classy, full of power and richness, yet so nicely structured and balanced that it came across really clean from the unobtrusive freshness and firm but super-fine tannins. It attacked with a load of cassis fruit on the front of the mouth and then showed unfolding plum flavours on the mid-palate. All this was backed up with a savoury meat and leather undertone and a pleasant sprinkle of black pepper floating above. Really complete and absolutely focused from start to finish. After time in the decanter, the wine took on some new worldly sweetness, showing licorice and anise flavours. But it also became even plusher and rounder. The finish was long and absolutely seamless, with lingering leather and cassis tones along with a flourish of bitter-sweet herbs and a hint of minerality. Absolutely lovely. I think we hit the wine in its sweet spot, with the fruit still fresh, the tannins starting to soften, secondary flavours showing well and a great pairing with roast beef.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Blackforest Gateau (Claudio and Dawn baked this really good rendition)
Cheese platter

• 1990 Giuseppe Quintarelli Valpolicella Classico Riserva 94 Points

  Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Valpolicella Classico

  Edmund's very generous donation. Decanted for some time before I arrived, this was probably the best Amarone I have had - even though this was so sweet that it tasted almost like a Recioto! Still, a great wine that was a match made in heaven with some of the cheeses that we had. It still had a deep purple core, but with a shading of garnet on the rim showing its age. As would be expected, the nose was beautiful. Deep, luxurious and plush, with loads of dried figs and little hints of bramble and a slight mocha tone adding relief. A little whiff of alcohol, but that was well under control. The palate flowed seamlessly from the bouquet - sweet and rich, it showed much more of the lovely fig flavours with just the smallest touch of brambly thornbush playing a quiet counterpoint. Winnie said it was luscious, which it certainly was - big and luscious - yet it was also nicely balanced and very clean, so that it went down so very well. A lovely raisiny finish with a touch of spice-cake rounded the wine off. I think Edmund and I may have been expecting transcendence, which did not quite happen. But a lovely bottle nonetheless. Yum.

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

• NV Graham Porto 20 Year Old Tawny 91 Points

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  Very nice, but just lacking the butterscoth nuttiness and just the all round soul that the 30 year has. Still, this nice tawny, amber brown port had an inviting nose of caramel and dried fruit and an equally delicious palate, which showed more caramel, rich raisiny flavours and a lovely fresh acidity that carried the wine to a really decent finish replete with dried fruit and a hint of nuttiness. Lovely with the cheeses of course, but completely overshadowed by the Amarone that came before!

  Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue