Birthday Dinner (2) 2014

This was one of the most enjoyable dinners I have had in a long time. Great company, fantastic food, and lovely wines, many of whichseemed to be performing very well on the night. A great way to celebrate a birthday.

• 2002 Dom Pérignon Champagne Rosé 93 Points

  France, Champagne

  Very yummy stuff. This had a lovely nose, full of rock melon, strawberry ice and little floral aromas, with a light trace of mineral and a little vanilla nuttiness, very pretty. The palate was beautifully fruity, with sweet, fleshy rock melons, strawberries, even a hint of raspberry bubblegum wrapped in a really fine mousse and fresh, but mellow acidity. Beneath that, it was nicely structured with a good spine of mineral trailing into a pretty, rather floral finish. A joy to drink. Surprisingly ready, but this can still go on for some time yet.

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• 1990 Veuve Clicquot Champagne Vintage Cave Privée 93 Points

  France, Champagne

  Aged on lees in Veuve Cliquot’s cellars for 15-20 years and disgorged in October 2008, this was a lovely aged Champagne. It had a beautifully matured nose, with aromas of honey and caramel and roasted nuts wreathed around a core of lemon and appley cider and Calvados notes. It was still very fresh in the mouth, with lively acidity and just a hint of fine mousse still enlivening the palate. The flavours were nicely matured though, with a slightly brandied Calvados and apple cider notes on the attack that echoed the nose. These were met with some dried kumquats on the midpalate. The wine showed a depth and strength that was quite characteristic of the 1990 vintage, with a nice creamy presence that carried it from the attack all the way into a lovely long finish, where soft notes of honey, browned apples and a little trace of spice lingered nicely in the mouth. Lovely, matured and very yummy – I enjoyed this.

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• 1992 Louis Latour Meursault 1er Cru Gouttes d'Or 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru

  Opened 3 hours before dinner and double decanted, this was a lovely wine. The nose was really expressive, with a kaleidoscope of perfumed aromas - white flowers, vanilla and beeswax, red apples and peaches, soy milk and white chocolate, then little umami hints of white miso and a whiff of chalk around the back of the bouquet – so much going on here. It reminded me a bit of scented candle in its perfumy attractiveness. The palate was just a beautiful package as well. It had lovely balance and poise, with a spine of freshness running through plump, fleshy flavours of sweet apples and juicy melons. It finished nice and long, with a layer of honey and beeswax and white fruit lingering into a buttery tail. Lovely stuff, quite at peak.

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• 2002 Château d'Yquem 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Consistently excellent. On the night, this had a wonderful, wonderful nose, full of honey and apricots, browned sugar and candied orange peel, with a shot of preserved fig skin and just that hint of roasted coconut rind at the edges. Lovely. Beautiful on the palate as well, unfolding as it did with layer after honeyed layer of dried apricots and crème brulee and boiled coconuts wrapped around a beautiful core of gloriously fresh orangey acidity. It was then closed off in an elegant finish that glided effortlessly through the backpalate on a bed of gentle roasted coconut and toasted spice accents. Absolutely delicious, this was made even better by an amazing pairing with lobster and salted egg-yolk. With each sip, the acidity of the wine cut through the dish’s salty richness, while the moreishness of the lobster brought out lovely dried fruited responses from the wine. Wow - this was a fantastic example of a food and wine pairing bringing out the best of both. The 2002 d’Yquem is really growing from strength to strength. This can easily go on for decades yet. Without the lobster, it was still sweet and sticky and deep and still quite primary. Lovely.

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• 2003 Jean-Pierre Robinot (L'Opera des Vins) Jasnières Symphonie du Temps 91 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Jasnières

  Decanted for an hour and a half, this was still not showing all that well – it probably needed years in the bottle more than anything else. The nose was quite an intriguing mix of smoke and beeswax and toasted butter aromas with something a bit fishy, like roasted mackerel swimming around in there, all on a base of more neutral white-fruited aromas. With time, a whiff of rocky mineral and a little curl of lanolin came out as well. I almost suspected that there was a flaw with that fishy tone, but it seemed to dissipate after awhile. The palate had a deep, waxy texture, with white fruit and melons seasoned with tons of spice on the attack. A honeyed midpalate then led into a heavyweight finish that had, on one hand, the ripeness and heft that spoke of the warm 2003 vintage and, on the other, a real beam of stirring acidity and a nice touch of chalky, seashelly mineral. This needs time yet. It has a good bit of character on it, but seems more interesting than truly delicious at the moment. It would be interesting to try again in 5 years or so.

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• NV Equipo Navazos La Bota de Oloroso 28 "Bota Punta" 97 Points

  Spain, Andalucía, Jerez-Xérès-Sherry

  A killer wine. Wow. This had an incredible nose, just layer after layer of salted nuts and fig skin and fried shallots, apple rind and dried lemons, milk chocolate and mahogany wood, with just a drift of spice, a little hint of penicillin and the tiniest kiss of mineral, all packed into a wonderful kaleidoscope of a bouquet – wonderful, wonderful stuff. I could lose myself in a nose like that. The palate was absolutely incredible too, just wow. It had profound depth, with a creamily textured flow of dried figs and molasses, savoury notes of preserved fruit peel and dried oysters, and then a lift of kumquats and puffs of saline seabreeze, all wrapped in wonderfully fresh acidity that kept the wine lithe and graceful, dancing across the palate into a wonderful finish. Here, it seemed almost neverending, coating the backpalate with creamy layers of dried figs and dark Valrhona chocolate, mahogany and warm spice, even a savoury soupcon of duck consomme with time - on and on and on it went, covering every last crevice of the mouth. This could well be the longest finish of any wine I have ever had. A great, great wine, probably the best amongst the many great bottles of La Bota I have had. To cap if off, this was an awesome pairing with suckling pig. I tried to savour it for a longer time in the glass, but it was so delicious that, sip by sip, this just disappeared down the gullet much faster than I would have liked.

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• 1981 R. López de Heredia Rioja Viña Tondonia 93 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  A lovely wine, drinking quite at peak. This had a classic Rioja nose, with cigarette smoke and tobacco aromas (somewhat reminiscent of Marlboro menthol lights) around a core of sweet cherry notes, then little drifts of dried herb and dried flowers and fragrant spice all playing against a backdrop of loamy earth – an absolutely beautiful bouquet. The palate had a stunningly youthful brilliance to it, with wonderfully bright, juicy acidity and the silkiest tannins hugging lovely flavours of bright cherries and wild berries. The wine may lack some of the depth that you will find in the Reserva or Gran Reserva, but there was such beautiful purity here. Bright, fresh, lively and absolutely joyous, I really enjoyed drinking this. A streak of metallic mineral and a little waft of cigarette ash and dried herb then stretched into a wonderfully fresh, lengthy finish. A beautifully elegant and graceful Rioja, this was drinking wonderfully on the night.

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• 1998 Domaine Ponsot Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes 93 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Clos de la Roche Grand Cru

  I have been disappointed by Ponsot’s Clos de la Roche more than once, with the wines either being too young, or shut down, or just underperforming. I have actually had this particular wine before, and thought it was good, but not great. It was really on song tonight though. It had a beautiful nose, with funky shades of boiled herbs and damp earth underneath gorgeous wafts of wild cherries and berries, and then a twist of orange peel and a nice trail of Morey spice drifting along behind. With time, a shades of herby Vermouth and sarsarapilla root aromas came out as well. Lovely. It was on the palate were the wine really impressed though. Soft, velvety tannins and bright, juicy acidity made for a really open mouthfeel. It more or less melted over the palate with beautifully pure flavours of maraschino cherries and raspberries flecked with lots of complex little nuances, showing sweet herbs, spice and bramble laced through the midpalate. There was a thick depth here, but this was also a wonderfully transparent expression, so different from the whole series of grumpy Ponsots that I have had in recent times. Nice long finish too, mellow, gentle, but deep and persistent, unfolding beautifully across the backpalate in lovely notes of dark cherries and berries, earth and herb, and a gentle spiciness twisted around a core of fresh acidity and fine tannins. This was lovely, a complete wine that was drinking wonderfully. With the depth it had and that firm structural backbone, it can probably go on for quite some time yet as well.

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• 1998 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Volnay 1er Cru Santenots-Du-Milieu 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Volnay 1er Cru

  A solid wine, but many years too young. The nose had deep, weighty aromas of black cherries and dark berries with a bit of liquered sweetness to them, alongside more savoury tones of meat, earth and herbs, a touch of oak, and then a musky whiff of wilting flowers. In keeping with the nose, the palate was rich and deep, with sappy, black-fruited flavours of dark cherries and blackberries riding on a light layer of soft, but still mouthcoating tannins. From the midpalate and moving into the finish, lovely juicy acidity came in, with motes of spice and dried herbs and a touch of woody oak lingering into the distance. This was a very masculine wine, with great depth and a muscular structure. Just a little hint of wilting flowers on the nose and then again at the finish nodded towards Volnay. A wine with a good amount of quality then, but it needs many years yet. It is all still quite primary and very structured at the moment and I would put this aside for another 5-6 years at the very least. Hopefully, any trace of all that overt oakiness will be soaked up by then as well.

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• 1990 Château Talbot 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Saint-Julien

  This was very good indeed, a really nice end to a solid line-up of reds. It had a lovely left-bank nose, with matured notes of sous bois and tea leaves, green herb and roasted capsicums, and a waft of tobacco drifting alongside aromas of cassis and plums that filled up the back-end of the bouquet. Very inviting. The palate was at just about the perfect place for drinking. Juicy and round, with succulent flavours of cassis and plums laced with tobacco and cigar smoke, then a crunch of roasted capsicums and a little cucumber note on the fresh finish - it was masculine but elegant, and really delcious. A little layered of powdery tannins right at the end provided a bit of grip as well. A lovely mature Talbot drinking very nicely on the night, this really punched above its weight.

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• 1977 Dow Porto Silver Jubilee Vintage Port 93 Points

  Portugal, Douro, Porto

  Hmm. Very good, but this bottle was not as impressive as the last one I had in 2010. While the last bottle came across youthful, even a bit too young, I could not help feeling that this was flagging ever so slightly. It felt a bit tired, less energetic. The nose was rather tight but very nice, with shades of mahogany and spice dancing around rich aromas of kirsch liqeur, maraschino cherries and sweet berries. With time, a little smoke and spice, some juniper notes and a little mineral character started showing as well. A nice and complex bouquet I thought. After that, the palate seemed really soft and mellow, showing none of the tightness of the nose. It did have quite deep, luscious notes of sweet maraschino cherries, blackberries and raisins seasoned with spice and mahogany – there was a beautiful voluptuousness about those flavours. However, it seemed to lack the freshness and structure necessary to make it a great Port, coming across really soft and mellow and gentle, especially towards the finish. Not a bad thing, but I would have really liked a little backbone and energy. This bottle seemed as though it needed drinking up and soon.

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