Dinner at Doyle & Lesley's

This was a very special evening hosted by an extremely generous friend. Every bottle served at this dinner was bought on release by the host and stored in his cellar ever since...and it showed…not a single dud in the 14 bottles that were opened. There were eight people total (four couples, including the host and hostess) at this dinner party, so two bottles of each wine were opened except for the Perrier-Jouet, Krug, Warre and Yquem, where one 750ml bottle of each was opened.

Chef Alvarez, Executive Chef of Restaurant Fraiche in West Vancouver, prepared this unbelievable meal in the tradition of the avant-garde, contemporary cuisine of the greatest of the Spanish Restaurants where he has trained and had extensive experience as a chef.

Bacon Tuile + Pineapple Sage
Mozzarella S'mores + Fig
Manchego Puff
Octopus + Saffron Tapioca
Veal Tongue + Chipotle
Birch Wood + Truffle
Black Rice + Bison Tartar

• 1996 Perrier-Jouët Champagne Belle Epoque 92 Points

  France, Champagne

  Straw colour. This was great right from the get-go with beautiful aromas of yeast, minerals and nuts with green apple and citrus fruits. These notes carry onto the palate where the mousse is fine and delicate with bright acidity and a full but precise mouthfeel. This is drinking extremely well right now but should continue to develop for 5+ years. Excellent. 92+

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• NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée 93 Points

  France, Champagne

  Straw-gold colour. Old label and cellared for approximately 7-10 years. One of the best bottles of Grande Cuvée I’ve ever had with a pronounced and rich nose full of autolytic character and mature red apple aromas with hints of minerality and earth. Rich and creamy in the mouth with a gentle mousse, fresh acidity and a savoury finish. This was a really great bottle and indicates to me that Grande Cuvee from Krug needs minimum 5-7+ years to truly strut its stuff. Outstanding.

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The Lost Cork - Foie Gras Cork + Red and Black Fruits

• 1998 M. Chapoutier Ermitage Blanc Le Méal 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Medium yellow-gold colour. Nose offered some nice riper notes of oxidized pear with nuts and hints of honey and the slightest traces of sherry on the nose as well. In the mouth it was full bodied with more honey and almond flavours with decent acidity and a long finish. I don’t have much experience with Hermitage Blanc but this seemed to be drinking quite well. Excellent.

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Scorched Lemon Salmon - Ash Cured Salmon + Parsnip Gelato

• 1996 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Montrachet Grand Cru

  Light yellow-gold colour. This was very different from the ’98 Le Meal with a fresh and bright nose of citrus and apple with floral and hints of minerality. Moving on to the palate where this full bodied yet defined wine coats the palate with citrus, apple and minerality. It’s rich yet fresh and had loads of complexity and depth. Solid acidity and a medium to long finish where a trace of spicy oak comes through that just adds to the dimensions of this wine. Drinking extremely well now but should last another decade at least. Outstanding.

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The Duck Trapped in Smoke - Cocoa Marinated Duck Breast + Anise Smoke

• 1989 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Richebourg 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Richebourg Grand Cru

  Light to medium garnet colour with some bricking at the rim. Served in massive Baccarat red Burg glasses. Beautiful aromas of spice, violets, dark red fruits, barnyard and earth jumped from the glass with such a delicate yet generous profile. The generosity continued on the palate with rich and masculine red and black fruit flavours, along with spicy and earth tones too. The mouthfeel is silky and the fine tannins and moderate acidity are perfectly balanced. More spice and earthy flavours appear on the lengthy finish. What amazed me about this wine was the richness and generosity of the fruit while being so silky and delicate at the same time. This was singing the entire evening and never stopped or faded one bit. In a superb place right now. Outstanding.

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Nitro Apple Soda in Liquid Red Coral

The Ostrich in the Forest - Ash Crusted Ostrich + Tuffle Jus

• 1990 Pétrus 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol

  Dark ruby colour (looked like a barrel sample). Not only did this look incredibly youthful, it smelt and tasted like a barrel sample. Nose was fairly pronounced with ripe, rich and dark plums, berries, blackberries and hints of cedar and chocolate. There was also some alcohol coming through on the nose. On the palate this was enormous: full bodied, rich, opulent and intense with palate staining blackberry, plum and tobacco flavours. There’s adequate acidity with round and dense tannins and the finish is extremely long. The mouthfeel is velvety and rich but doesn’t come across heavy or overblown even though there isn’t a ton of acid. I’d say this wine is at least 10 years away from primetime drinking but getting to taste it today was a real treat. It’s hard for me to evaluate this as it’s clearly an exceptional bottle of Bordeaux but so much of its greatness has yet to come. I can see this being in the mid to high 90s one day, but today it’s 'only' a 93 pointer. Outstanding. 93+

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• 1982 Château Mouton Rothschild 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Medium to dark ruby with slight bricking throughout. This grabbed my attention and didn’t let go. The nose here was simply killer. Intoxicating notes of sous bois, cassis, blackcurrants, cedar, and tobacco with hints of gravel and earth. The sweet and pure flavours on the palate are exceptionally complex, rich and pure. Depth and layers of complexity without being heavy. The acidity remains vibrant, the tannins chewy, silky and firm and the finish is insanely long and offers notes of dark cherries, earth and truffle. This is offering such an exceptional drinking experience today but it also has decades of development ahead of it as I’m guessing this will be even better in 5-10+ years, but there is no denying the greatness of this wine today at 30 years of age. The best bottle of Bordeaux I’ve ever had was an ‘89 La Mission Haut-Brion and that was almost 5 years ago; this bottle of ’82 Mouton equals that and will be engraved in memory for a long, long time. Exceptional. 96+

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Various cheeses

• 1985 Warre Porto Vintage 90 Points

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  This got sandwiched in between ’82 Mouton and ‘89 Yquem so this didn’t get the proper attention it deserved. Drinking very well with dark cherry, chocolate, dried figs and hints of floral. Rich and balanced in the mouth with fine gritty tannins and solid acidity. A really nice bottle of Port. Excellent.

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Chocolate Cremeux
Mignardises

• 1989 Château d'Yquem 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Medium gold colour. Exotic and youthful nose of tropical fruit, honey, crème brulee and candied lemon. On the palate it’s rich and concentrated with apricot, honey and sweet pineapple flavours wrapped in a balanced framework of intensity, acidity and length. Full bodied and complex. Seems to me this is in its early drinking window and should continue to drink well and develop for decades. Outstanding. 93+

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As if we hadn't indulged enough at this point, we finished the evening off with a bottle of Courvoisier Cognac XO Imperial. This was easily the best dinner I’ve ever had the pleasure of attending and I cannot thank the host enough for his insane generosity. It was a truly memorable and special evening.