Traveling Methuselah's
The Murray's!
Tasted Saturday, July 29, 2006 by Tubbs with 1,080 views
Introduction
This month the Methuselah's went traveling. Normally the tasting is held at the McCrary's, this month it was held at the Murray's. The theme was different this month, rather than mixed bag we went with a mini vertical of Ridge Chardonnay Santa Cruz and some Bordeaux of my choice.
We kicked things off with a bottle 1998 Perrier Jouet Fleur de Champagne and a bottle of Billecart Salmon Rosé. I didn't take notes on these, (I never do on the starter wines), but they were both excellent. The Perrier Jouet was powerful and fruity with fantastic balance and excellent length. Billecart Salmon Rosé is one of my favorites & it didn't dissapoint on this night - it was a fantastic match with warm herbed ricotta cheese on walnut bread. Tonight, the edge went to the Perrier Jouet - fantastic stuff.
Note: We never have formal flights for this tasting, rather we consume one wine at a time. The "flights" below represent logical groupings with wines listed in the order consumed.
Flight 1 - Ridge Chard's Mini Vertical (3 Notes)
Whoops! Forgot to get some food for the first flight. Thus the Chard's were cosumed while hanging out on our deck picking at the remains of that fantastic cheese dish. (Sorry folks.)
Flight 2 - Four Blind Reds (4 Notes)
I was responsible for supplying the reds, thus most folks had no idea what to expect. Glenn and Casey had a bit of a clue as we discussed possible themes a couple days earlier. Glenn had a BIG clue as he caught me asking how long to decant a '96 Cos on the Squires board earlier in the day. Nosey bastard.
In any case, I decided to go with a couple of Las Cases, the '96 Cos, and a '95 La Chapelle as a ringer. Everyone immediately picked out the difference of the La Chapelle and most pegged it as Syrah - good job kids!
(Consumed with grilled flank steak, mushrooms and onions. )
Flight 3 - Some sweeties (2 Notes)
The story of dessert was Sand Castle Cake ala Regan - a fantastic cake in the shape of a castle, filled with blueberries and raspberries. Raw sugar sprinkled around the base completed the piece. It really was a work of art, I wish I had a picture of it to post.
I wasn't sure if we'd want more wine with dessert so I hadn't pull anything. Both of these wines would have benefited from decanting but they were excellent anyway. The Bonnezeaux went particularly well with the cake.
Closing
Once again, the Methuselah's was a blast! I look forward to next month!
Cheers!
1991 Ridge Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains 83 Points
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
I really expected this to be dead & it was.
The nose was smokey, woody and toasty with a funk of rotting leaves? (Not in a bad way if that makes sense.) The palate was like a butterscotch caramel apple with a long somewhat bitter finish. Time to put this one in the grave, if you have some, drink it now or gift it to you Mother-in-Law. (Truth is, I actually kind of liked this, does that make me a necrophiliac? )
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1997 Ridge Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains 88 Points
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
I had no idea what to expect from this.
Ah, sweet candy. The nose showed loads of butterscotch and some toast. The palate was like biting into one of those carmel corn balls you used to get at Halloween. For me this was a bit oaky, however the balance is good and the finish is extremely long. A nice wine, not my style though.
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2001 Ridge Chardonnay Santa Cruz Mountains 90 Points
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
Wow, the nose on this was all butter and oak. I liked the palate much better than the nose, it also showed butter, oak and loads of caramel. I believe a couple more years or some decanting might bring the oak more into balance but who knows. I liked this best of the three Ridge Chard's tasted tonight.
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