First champagne of the lunch, generous contribution from Jay. My first experience with this champagne.

Crisp and elegant - citrus notes, wet stones, toast, pears. Great secondary characteristics, showing almonds and spice, nice creaminess on the back palate. Chalky throughout...very nice and still seems young. Would like to have spent more time with this, a lot going on...Should have a long arc ahead of it.

First white of the lunch, nicely chilled. Nice to revisit this wine, its been a few years since I had it.

Medium gold color. Orchard fruits, apples, pears, quince, lemon zest. Medium weight, nice texture throughout. Layered finish, elegant, really delicious. In a good spot right now, should hold at this level for a while.

Nice to have the opportunity to try this, so little of these are made but I am reminded whenever I have Bordeaux Blanc. This one brought by Jamie.

Beautiful nose of stone fruits, gooseberry, citrus, wet stone. Palate is crisp and precise: showing grapefruit, gooseberry, pear, green apple and stone. A lot going on here...Finish complex and deep, one of our group said "chiseled" which I thought was spot on. In a great spot, probably close to full maturity at this point.

Reminded how much I love Bordeaux blanc, I dont get many opportunities to taste them and they are not cheap... I'll have to look to expand my cellar in this direction as budget allows...:)

Really nice to check in on this one at 21 years old, always great to drink the "La-Las", they age and evolve beautifully.

Deep ruby red color, opaque. Nose of savory/meats, animal notes, plum, blackberry, minerals and spice. Palate is dusted blackberry, mushrooms, earth,leather and floral/violet notes. Dense texture but not overwhelming, dark and brooding. No real discernible oak...

Needed a longer decant than we afforded it - it was probably open an hour, we drank over 2. Last sips were the best, wine kept getting better Would try to give this 3+ hours in the decanter if drinking again. Still has a ways to go - should drink at this level for another 5-7 years (best guess)

This one brought by Tom, PnP, drank over an hour.

Consistent with prior notes:"Great dark fruits, black currants, blueberry, holiday spice, chocolate. Long 30+ second finish. Mouthfeel is smooth and viscous, not too dense, Tannins resolved and sweet.."

This bottle seemed less impressive (by memory) but still nice. Group was mixed on it. I think we did not allow it time to open or the bottle was off..no rating this one, stuffing still there we didnt allow it time.

Brought by Juan, PnP, drank over 2 hours.

Dark and opaque purple color. Expressive nose of blue fruits, savory and floral notes. Palate was classic Realm BTK, blueberry pie, cassis, espresso notes, mild oak. Rich and layered finish, really beautiful...

Obviously young but fun to drink at an early age...this should be a long lived wine that will evolve into something even better in time

My contribution to the lunch, this bottle (magnum) has been in my cellar for some time. Needed the right group of wine friends to pull the cork. This is the oldest Monte Bello in my cellar, I try to let them age to really show the nuance. Decanted at the restaurant for about 90 minutes, drank most of the bottle over an hour.

Color is medium garnet, some separation, opaque. Nose showing dried red fruits, leather, floral notes. Palate is smooth and silky, showing dusted black cherry, violets, pencil/graphite, minerals. Finish was elegant, medium length with secondary characteristics coming through nicely.

I am biased, but this was star of the show for me. Beautifully aged, in a great spot, should continue to drink well for well stored bottles for some time. I drank some the following day and Tom finished the bottle a few days later, it didnt fade as I expected it to...a great sign of life left in this at 32 years!