Lunch at Alba

Good time of catching up over a Friday lunch with some of the usual suspects - William, Joyce, Leonard and Lawrence, who shared some news with us. The restaurant is no longer called Alba, some Pasta thingy now. Same management, but different chef, for the 3rd time.

Food was decent, wine was nice and the company sterling as always. It certainly was nice to run the gamut from bubbles, white, red and then end with a sweet. Unusually, we had three American wines!

• 2005 Schramsberg Vineyards Blanc de Blancs 90 Points

  USA, California, North Coast

  Very decent. I thought it was clearly new world at first pour, but a couple of others who only tasted it after it had a little time in the glass were not so sure. Nice nose showed sweet apples scents, yeast, earth, some flowers, bits of toasty vanilla, and a savoury white meat note. Palate was really very dry on the attack, quite lean and mean! Boy this needed food. It was nicely structured though, with sweet red apples and ripe lemons bolstered by a minerally backdrop that had a sense of plenty of dry extract. Finish had a little perfumy, flowery lilt and just that touch of heat. It did open up with time too, rounding out slightly, especially with our frito misti (fried seafood) appetiser. Still always just a little on the skinny side, but all in all a nice starter.

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

• 2005 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Narvaux 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault

  I really liked this - a classic Meursault that paired beautifully with both squid-ink and carbonara pastas. Nose as full of buttery cream and yellow fruit spiked with gunpowdery scents and earthy undertones, all rich, wonderful Meursault smells. Palate was really nice too. Tons of slatey mineral streamed through fleshy yellow fruit, sweet lemons flavours and more of that gunpowder kick. It certainly was rich and creamily textured, but had lots of nice balancing acidity to go with it. Long finish had lashings of butter and, with the creamy carbonara sauce, some lovely honeyed sweetness and spice notes that just bloomed out past the mid-palate. Not yet tremendously complex, but this had lots of delicious character wed to classic Roulot elegance. Very nice indeed.

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

• 2005 Van Duzer Pinot Noir Westside Blocks 91 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

  My goodness, this was a surprise. None of us had ever heard of this producer before, but the wine was really good. Beautiful nose. Some cola, spritzy dark cherries, some bramble, dried earth, clearly new world, but really nice with lots of exuberance. With time, pure cherry and berry scents, a little vanilla and some florals starting showing. Palate had some richness, with high-toned blueberries, some plums and crushed raspberries filling the mouth with flavours from the attack. Again, clearly new world, but just so yummy, with great balancing acidity and not a smidgen of heat, glycerol or articifcial candied sweetness. Some animale meatiness at the edges and gentle earthy spiciness at the end made a little nod towards Burgundy as well. A lovely wine, probably at peak.

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

• 2003 Saintsbury Pinot Noir Brown Ranch 89 Points

  USA, California, Napa / Sonoma, Carneros

  A solid example of Carneros Pinot that went wonderfully well with of grilled beef in blue cheese sauce, but this was unfortunately left in the shadows by the Oregon that was poured just before. Nice nose, quite a bit more low tone than the expressive high-toned fruits and flowers of the previous wine. This had earthy scents, meat, dark cherries, savoury umami, almost Burgundian but for the whoosh of glycerol at the end. The palate was clearly new world though. Rich, thick, glycerol laced, but rather nice for all that, with ripe dark fruits, black cherries I thought, showing lots of depth, along with more earthiness driving towards a decent finish. Acid was lower than the Oregonian, but balance was still decent. A good effort.

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

• 2001 Château Coutet Barsac 92 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

  Very yummy. Perhaps less layered and complex than expected for a 2001, but nevertheless a delicious wine to end the meal with. The nose was classic Sauternais. Honey, nectar, apricot jam, preserved peaches, dried longans, along with a little rubbery overtone. Palate was a little less developed, but still nice. Some lychee creme, peaches and apricots, more honeyed tones, all wrapped in that just superb 2001 balance that kept the wine lithe and lively from attack to finish. I thought it was a little on the thin side for a 2001 Barsac at first, but to my surprise, it actually stood up to a rich chocolate lava cake! It was just the balance of the wine that kept it seeming so light I think. There certainly was some substance here. A very nice wine.

  Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue