HDH BYO Dinner

Blackbird - Chicago IL
Tasted Thursday, March 26, 2009 by Burgundy Al with 683 views

Introduction

Hart Davis Hart's first pre-auction BYO dinner. Lots of great wine. Large communal table set up in Blackbird's private dining space encouraged significant wine sharing across groups. Food was very good, but not quite up to the standard I've found in the Blackbird dining room.

I know I didn't take notes of somewhere between 5 and 10 great wines I tried tonight.

Flight 1 - Whites (6 Notes)

  • 2005 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Slightly floral with lush stone fruit aromas with hints of tropical fruit. Slightly leaner and more balanced on the palate with good structure and length.

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  • 1995 M. Chapoutier Ermitage Blanc De L'Orée 90 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

    Magnum. Very similar to another time tasted a few months ago. Good stone fruit on nose and palate with rich butterscotch. Unctuous and oily, with heat coming through at end.

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  • 2003 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Cuvée Roussanne Vieilles Vignes 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    No shrinking violet here. Ultra ripe peach and apricot aromas with some marzipan character. same stone fruit and almonds on palate, incredibly intense and powerful. Long and fat finish. I certainly liked this wine, others liked it even more tonight.

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  • 1996 Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim 93 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Honeyed aromas with ripe fruit. Lush stone fruit flavors with hints of sweetness near finish. Good spice and sensational minerality give its layers of unfolding flavor. Only nit is the ripeness seems to translate to some heat also emerging at the end.

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  • 2000 Marcel Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim 91 Points

    France, Alsace, Alsace Grand Cru

    Similar to another bottle from a few months ago. Delicately sweet to start, with peach and candied orange peel aromas and some baking spice hints. Similar fruit profile on palate with some sweet hints, all nicely structured. I slightly preferred its 1996 counterpart in the next glass.

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  • 2006 Sine Qua Non The Hoodoo Man 91 Points

    USA, California

    Tropical fruit aromas with sweet poached pear and hints of vanilla. Slightly less tropical on palate but still giving a slight sense of mango. Aromas were exciting, palate less so, still very fat but also a bit flabby.

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Flight 2 - Reds (8 Notes)

  • 1990 Domaine René Engel Clos Vougeot 96 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos Vougeot Grand Cru

    Sensational, this is the best bottle of any producers' Clos Vougeot I can ever recall tasting. Very ripe black cherry aromas with brown sugar and some emerging sauteed mushroom. Great fruit and spice on palate that to me seemed very Vosne-styled. Great intensity from start-to-finish with a very clean character throughout. This wine can still get better.

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  • 1966 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Saint-Julien

    I've become a fan of 1966 Bordeaux over the past few years, so brought this as well as 1966 Figeac tonight. This showed lots of cigarbox, underbrush and a surprising amount of pronounced black cherry. Similar on palate with some subtle spice emerging as well from middle to finish.

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  • 1966 Château Figeac 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

    Great aromatic start with leather, softening black fruit and a slightly sweet character. Palate less interesting, mostly earthy but still reatining a fascinating green pepper edge. Medium length.

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  • 1992 Harlan Estate 96 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Magnum. Alluring aromas of plum, black cherry, cocoa and cigarbox. Great black fruit again on palate with background spice and structured with incredible balance. While this clearly has an assertive, precocious New World character, it has stellar Old World refinement as well.

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  • 1984 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 91 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Very nice version of silver Oak from a charming, bygone era. Still reasonably fresh with great overall balance, then a moderate, slightly simple finish.

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  • 1996 Dalla Valle Maya 95 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville

    Great black cherry aromas with dark chocolate and hints of licorice. Great fruit on palate with some interesting bell pepper background notes. Long and powerful.

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  • 1989 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Flawed

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Magnum. Seemingly heat damaged.

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  • 2000 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

    Ripe and intense black fruit aromas with some emerging forest floor and woodsy spice. Very ripe fruit again on palate, hints of sweetness, also that same earthy character coming through. Drinking well now, but I wouldn't hold this more than another 5 years.

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Flight 3 - Sweet (1 Note)

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