Tavola di Perpetua e Felicità

Big thanks to Tim O'Rourke for organizing this "head-to-tail" tasting of beef at Palena in DC. A small group assembled for what was to be an absolute tour-de-force of amazing food and Rhone Valley varietals. As good as the wine was, I actually thought they were outdone by the incredible menu that chef Frank Ruta put together.

The staff at Palena did a great job keeping the food coming, providing us with new stemware, and letting us be probably a bit louder than we should have been. I would highly recommend this restaurant and this menu to anyone planning on a larger dinner in the Washington area.

Carne Cruda – Diced Gretna Farms (Virginia) Tenderloin, Shaved Reggiano and Lemon Olive Oil. I thought the lemon oil was the perfect touch to this course and paired nicely with the whites we had picked out.

• 1997 Gaston Chiquet Champagne Premier Cru Brut Millésimé 89 Points

  France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru

  Yeasty nose, with melon and white flowers on the palate. Good depth with a brisk finish. Very nice.

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• 2006 Domaine Georges Vernay Condrieu Coteau de Vernon 93 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Condrieu

  Fantastic nose of rich honey, dense pears, coconut, white flowers and warm spices. Incredibly deep and complex on the palate. My favorite Condrieu's usually have exotic fruits on the palate with a beautiful oiliness and this didn't disappoint..amazing how it walked that line effortlessly of being viscous and fresh. Wonderful.

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• 2004 M. Chapoutier Hermitage Blanc Chante-Alouette 87 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Nose was a touch hot with honeyed pears, flower blossoms, and minerals. Most agreed this was in some sort of dumb/backward phase. Palate wasn't giving much away besides some subtle pear, apple and spicy melon. Finish was a bit hot. Definitely hold onto this one for a couple years.

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Brodo – Julienned Crêpes, Slivers of Gretna Farms Beef Shoulder, Vegetable Garnish in a Rich Clear Oxtail Broth. I was blown away by this soup. the beef shoulder was ultra tender and I could have eaten a gallon of the broth. Spectacular!

• 2006 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

  A very intriguing wine. Nose is dark with crushed black pepper, meat drippings, charcoal and black cherry. Palate is medium-bodied and complex with earthiness, subtle olives, blood. Flavors are perfectly balanced with a nice vein of minerality. Still in its infancy, the complexity of flavors and composition on the palate seem to be setting this up for classic showing down the line.

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• 1996 Domaine Auguste Clape Cornas 90 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

  I've had this bottle a couple of times now, and this one was the most feminine and thin of the bunch. Still had that romantic nose of olive tapanade, bacon juice, sausage, and wet coffee grinds. Palate lacked some weight, but still had minty tobacco, black tea, violets, and subtle blood. Sad that this was my last bottle, of what I consider to be a great example of classic Cornas.

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Spiedini d’Amore - Grilled Beef Heart - Roseda Farms (Eastern Shore)
House Cured Beef Tongue – Roseda Farms, Puntarella, Radish and Herb Salad – Salsa Verde

Both of these dishes were sublime. The cured beef tounge was incredible...I could have eaten that all night. It was sliced nice and thin and had such a silky texture. This was the first time eaten beef heart for me since I was over in Tokyo and it cooked very nicely and had that rich flavor that I just loved. Definitely my FOTN.

• 2002 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie 86 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  Coming from such a poor vintage, nobody had much hope that this would show much. Many of us were surprised by how well this actually showed! Nose had earthy notes, with musky tobacco and some plums. Palate was medium weight with dark fruit, some pepper and coffee grinds. Nothing special, but not a disaster either!

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• 1996 Rene Rostaing Côte-Rôtie Côte Blonde 86 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  Disappointing showing for this wine. Nose wasn't very effusive only giving off subtle dark fruit and some spice cake. Palate wasn't much more exciting with some crushed rocks, blackberry, and light pepper. Not really sure what was going on here, but this was just boring.

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• 2002 M. Chapoutier Ermitage l'Ermite 88 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Showed a bit better than the 2002 Jamet Cote Rotie was drank alongside this one. Good minerality on the palate, with spicy plums. Definitely a nice surprise.

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Oxtail and Beef Cheek, “Vaccinara” Horst Co-Operative (Pennsylvania) with Toasted Vermicelli Pasta Aglio e Olio.

Holy cow, what a filling dish! The beef cheek was so tender and wonderful..but the oxtail had such incredible flavor. Paired so perfectly with three enjoyable wines.

• 2001 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  Dark nose of crushed rocks, black pepper, roasted coffee, bacon and lots of olive tapanade. Beautiful array of blackberries, sous bois, more roasted coffee, truffles and pepper. I was a big fan of this wine, and while it was incredibly young, it's easy to appreciate what it's offering at this point. Lots of structure to this wine, and lots of life left on it.

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• 1995 Rene Rostaing Côte-Rôtie La Landonne 86 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  This was giving a bit more than the 96 Rostaing Cote Blonde, but still a boring wine to me. The nose was faint with some earthiness and spice, and the palate was tight and unforgiving. This was splash decanted about 2 hours prior to service but was still unyielding. Disappointing showing.

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• 1992 M. Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon 94 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Beautiful wine. Nose was gorgeous with damp earth, dried leaves, spicy plums, and meat drippings. Incredibly lush on the palate surprising for a 19 year old Hermitage from an off vintage. In addition to it's thrilling mouthfeel, the combination of flavors were perfectly in balance. The meatiness worked really nicely with integrated notes of roasted italian herbs, roots, blackberries and roasted coffee. This was my WOTN.

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Wood Grilled Steak –Roseda Farms Ribeye Steak (Dry Aged 8 Weeks in House) with a side of Corona Beans, Sautéed Escarole, and Horseradish Cream.

The food just kept coming out, but by this point I could hardly eat anymore! The steak was perfectly prepared and seasoned very well. It's what you look for in a steak - textbook.

• 2006 Jean-Michel Gerin Côte-Rôtie Les Grandes Places 89 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  I thought the nose was a bit closed down - but tones of rock, blackberries, and tobacco wafted through. Palate was tense and nervy with silky fruit and olive compote. I think this needs time to develop more complexity on the palate - I thought it to be a bit monolithic at this point.

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• 1999 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie Château d'Ampuis 90 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  Dark color with a boisterous nose of red fruit, warm baking spices and roasted coffee. Palate was decidedly bright, and when drank alongside many other Cote-Rotie's seemed almost "new world". There was really nice flavors of plums, blackberries, subtle sous bois, and minerals. I didn't think this came across as typical for the region, but it was certainly enjoyable.

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Meadow Creek Dairy “Grayson” – Galax, Virginia with Local honey and Tyrolean Almond Bread.

The cheese was stinky. REALLY stinky...to the point it was hard to be near a piece. I thought I had a high tolerance to stinky cheeses, but this was intense. The local honey and almond bread was great...I ate a bunch of it.

• 2000 Michel & Stéphane Ogier Côte-Rôtie 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie

  I thought this was one of the more surprising wines of the evening. The nose was really beautiful with a dense melange of black fruit, spices, and meat - so elegant and refined. The palate was characterized by complex flavors of subtle mint, blackberries, coffee, and sausage. The finish was long and had nice minerality...all-in-all, a very nice wine!

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• 2004 Radio-Coteau Syrah Timbervine 89 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Nose of sour cherry, some tilled soil and subtle meats. Palate was focused and featured red fruit, warm baking spices, roasted herbs, and bacon. I was pleasantly surprised by this, thought that the flavors were subtle, refined and elegant...just lacking a bit of depth.

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• 1997 Coriole Shiraz Lloyd Reserve 90 Points

  Australia, South Australia, Fleurieu, McLaren Vale

  Spicy nose of forestfloor, red fruit, and black fruits. I enjoyed this wine a bunch as it had really interesting, complex tones of spicy red fruit, tobacco, and mushrooms. Good balance, and thought it was surprisingly complex!

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• 1999 Sine Qua Non Syrah The Marauder 93 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast

  Intriguing nose of grilled meats, black pepper, sous bois & black fruits. I had been anticipating that this wine would feature big, in your face fruit...and boy was I wrong. The palate was incredibly silky, with big flavors that were restrained. The meatiness of the wine was really special and combined perfectly with blackberries, and earthy tones. The craftsmanship was top rate on this wine...completely changed my thoughts about what aged Sine Qua Non can become. This was just a hair behind the 92 Chapoutier Pavillion for WOTN in my eyes.

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Fiore di Latte Ice Cream from the Trickling Springs Dairy (Pennsylvania) with Dried Fruit Compote, and a Red Wine Sauce and Assorted Cookies.

Honestly, I had one spoonful of ice cream and just about burst!

• 2001 Domaine Yves Cuilleron Roussilliere Doux 89 Points

  France, Vin de Table Français

  Nice freshness and balance. Nice herbs and candied pears on the palate. Lacked some acidity on the finish, but other than that thought this showed really well.

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• 1988 Château Caillou Sauternes 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Youthful color, and intoxicating nose of almond paste, honeyed pears, and apricots. Palate was refreshing and long. Yum.

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• 2003 Château La Tour Blanche Sauternes 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Great fresh nose of vanilla, banana, cream and almonds. Palate was fresh with deep apricot, a smokey nuttiness, and roasted vanilla bean. Very nice.

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