10/30/2023 - cookiefiend wrote:

Welp - that was an amazing bottle - would buy more. Had a ‘perfect bite + wine’ - biscuit + unsalted butter + sprinkle of salt + honey + sip of a sneaky quiet PB SC Rose Champagne. May I please have another?

7/31/2023 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Pop and pour - promptly said “Wooo Italian!”. Very nice wine, I’d say rustic but in a good way.

1/12/2023 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

1/2 bottle at Cafe Boulud - lovely nose, delightful palate. Very happy with this bottle.

8/27/2022 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

A lovely Chablis. Silky smooth, with a backbone of fine acid, hint of lemon and saline. This bottle was a gift in 2015 from a dear friend - thank you GG!

5/5/2022 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

After 10 days in France, I thought I might not like this - but… doggone it! I still love it. Fantastic with halibut, asparagus and morel mushrooms.

4/5/2022 - cookiefiend wrote:

Pedestrian at best. I know that sounds super bit@hy, but - it wasn’t anything much.

2/12/2022 - cookiefiend wrote:

On the nose - a little butterscotch giving way to a faint coconut and a little ocean spray, no stone fruit, no flint or stone. On the palate it is pretty one dimensional, no front, mid, or back palate. On the palate - we got a splash of fruit that gave way to a saline finish that lingers. For me it is the finish -it paired well with a shashimi trout, smoked roe, and a sesame seed cracker as well.

2/6/2022 - cookiefiend wrote:

What a lovely wine. Silky, elegant. Very pretty on the nose (for me this is what Pinot Noir smells like), with raspberry and a bit of… uhm… deliciousness. Follows right in into the palate. Long finish, nice acidity. Yum.

2/6/2022 - cookiefiend Does not like this wine:

While not ‘flawed’, it was not pleasant. Murky in color, with a lot of fine particulate matter. A bit of a stewed fruit
on the nose and a high fruity tone/note. On the plate - sour, acidic, and a bit bitter. Maybe that’s just me… but not what I expected. At all.

1/14/2022 - cookiefiend wrote:

omg - corked. Smelled like cabbage, small hands - ewwwwwwww

12/11/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

Ehhh…. At first - it was interesting - cherry, mushroom, forest. But, something was lacking. I thought maybe with food it will improve, it didn’t. So - long story short - it was not what I hoped for in a Grand Cru.

11/26/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

Delicious!! Again, words are failing me... it's really really good.

11/14/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

Beautiful, and definitely has more time ahead of it.

11/10/2021 - cookiefiend Does not like this wine:

So much wood, even after all this time. Perhaps it would have been better 10 years ago - maybe.

10/31/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

On 8/20/21 we Coravin-ed this wine, and I wrote a private note saying that I really liked it. Tonight - Halloween (Hallowine?) - I repeat my note. I do really like it. It is an earthy/forest… rub-your-shoulders-in-it wine. Fabulous with a NYStrip - from two different purveyors - so I wasn’t biased. Totally would buy again.

10/19/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

Delicious.
One day I’ll get better at writing tasting notes… but don’t count on it!

7/17/2021 - cookiefiend Does not like this wine:

Eh... it is strange, and I'm not sure what to think about it. I don't think it's corked, but perhaps cooked/maderized. Hopefully the other bottles are better

4/15/2021 - cookiefiend wrote:

What an extraordinary bottle of wine, opened apparently at the perfect time. Loaded with rich almost tropical fruit, but still had plenty of acid to keep it lifted and delicious. Had with pan seared grouper with a coconut curry sauce.

2/24/2021 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Lovely and refreshing, a lemony zip, but also a bit of merengue creaminess. Not sweet, but not too tart either. Lingering finish, I’m very pleased with this. What a delightful gift from my Secret Santa!

11/28/2020 - cookiefiend wrote:

First thought ‘Strawberries! Woot!’
But it’s really so much more than that. It’s rich, there’s a lovely note of honey. Beautiful acidity, lovely bubbles. So fine.

11/23/2020 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Golden in color, light in body. Nose is very quiet/muted, maybe a hint of pear. It's delicious - not that I can really point out a specific flavor... other than that light pear. There is minerality/saline, and a wonderful acidity. Medium to long finish, along with that marvelous acid that lets it linger nicely. Excellent with French Onion soup.

11/20/2020 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

49 years old - whoa! The cork was completely saturated, if we had not had a Durand we might not have gotten it out without making a mess. It's on its last legs (IMHO), but is still very enjoyable. There is forest floor, mushrooms, leather and dark chocolate. There's also a whiff of bret, but it is not unpleasant and lessened during the evening. Tannins are mostly resolved, there is still a bit of grip though, and the acid is still fine. A very fine old Bordeaux.

11/20/2020 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

A lovely lady. Pale straw in color, very fine bubbles - not many to see, but they are on the palate. It's a rich, honeyed taste and there is a slight spice. A very subtle and elegant Champagne.

9/10/2020 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Well - this was a smashing success - I’m happy, Mr Cookie is happy. And - I fooled Mr Cookie. He thought it was an Oregon Pinot... and it is. And it’s not. Perfect with pork chops, roasted cauliflower and a corn/carrot/jalapeño dish. Absolutely delicious, light and yet really rich. Like a Volnay, but - well - better.

1/4/2020 - cookiefiend wrote:

Sadly corked. I didn’t pick it up at first, but when I added a lovely grilled pork chop and frizzled cabbage - ther was the wet basement smell.

12/14/2019 - cookiefiend wrote:

Rich and round, much better than the 2013 Vilmart & Cie Grand Cellier D'Or. Fun to do a comparison between the 2 since Vilmart is often called Baby Krug.

5/10/2019 - cookiefiend wrote:

Winner of the evening - fresh strawberries - lovely

5/10/2019 - cookiefiend wrote:

Surprisingly good - fresh and not too much melon

5/8/2019 - cookiefiend wrote:

Oh my - so good. Not flabby and rich, great acid. Excellent with grilled pork chops.

12/28/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Corked

10/11/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

A bright and clear dark raspberry color, but an odd note on the nose. A bit chemical-ish and spice of the baking sort, one of 'em anyway. Tangy, lots of acid but not unpleasant, but not delicious either. Sigh - it's obviously going to be one of those nights.

10/11/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Ugh. Flat, stewed dark fruit. Down the sink.
Not sure if it was a flaw or a symptom of the vintage and 10 years time.

9/10/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Hrmmm - should have drank this a couple years ago. It's lost it's acid and is a bit flabby. Only showing dark heavy red fruit.

7/2/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Light, lively, but still full of flavor. Not too tart.

7/2/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Lovely and rich. Acid is not too high, making it easy to drink

6/28/2018 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Delicious, as in a big plus one. Sadly, this was my last bottle.

6/8/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Corked

3/22/2018 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Om nom nom! This bottle leaked, and was sticky at the neck. Cork came out easily but was really nasty looking. The wine though, oh the wine! Fantastic. Pale straw in color, faint petrol note on the nose. Medium body but fabulously light; peach and honey flavors, a tinge of acid gives a slight tangy pink grapefruit taste. Mouth coating deliciousness.

3/22/2018 - cookiefiend wrote:

Corked - blech

10/26/2017 - cookiefiend wrote:

ohmigoodness. This is an amazing wine - blew my socks off... Buh-bye!
Seriously tho - structure, fruit, body, acidity - all outstanding. If I were a dog (shut up!), I’d roll in this. It’s delicious.

9/1/2017 - cookiefiend wrote:

We felt this was on it's last legs. This bottle was picked up for a song a couple years ago and while the others were fine this one seemed like it may have suffered from some heat damage - it was a bit prune-ish in flavor, and flat.

9/1/2017 - cookiefiend wrote:

Still delicious! Loads of dark fruit (esp dark cherry), tannins are silky.

8/19/2017 - cookiefiend wrote:

Slightly corked - blech.

8/19/2017 - cookiefiend wrote:

Lovely. Delicate fruit, delicious all the way. Lingering finish, superbly balanced.

9/14/2016 - cookiefiend wrote:

Unapologetically delicious. Dammit.
That was my last bottle.

6/30/2016 - cookiefiend wrote:

A lovely Oregon Pinot; marvelous nose that follows through on the palate. Silky and smooth.

5/30/2016 - cookiefiend Likes this wine:

Absolutely delightful - deliciously full of lovely strawberry flavors and a fantastic finish. Crisp, clean and fresh; beautifully balanced.

3/2/2016 - cookiefiend wrote:

Cork was stuck and I broke it, the last little bit promptly fell in the bottle - shoulda used the Durand … note to self. Light in body, pleasant over all. Went absolutely great with a Steak Niçoise Salad - just the right amount of acid and briney olive in the wine.

1/1/2016 - cookiefiend wrote:

A beautiful gift and a beautiful bottle of Champagne. Opened at midnight to celebrate the New Year and friends. Beautifully developed with a rich and slightly smoky nose, yellow and ripe pear, loads of verve and zip, lots of those marvelous bubbles. There is still plenty of life in this wine - so enjoy!
Thank you again Brad and the CT Santa Elves - you know who you are!

12/15/2015 - cookiefiend wrote:

A little gray-green mold on the top of the cork, cork came out fine, wet half way up. Dark rich color, clear edges. Gorgeous nose - clove, raspberry jam, a hint of sulfur, earthy bit of forest and mushroom, strawberry - the nose is fantastic, could just stand around with my nose in the glass. On the palate - tannins still there but not obnoxious, acid keeps it from being flat, really seems young. Lively, fresh. I'm very happy with this.