Triangle Wine Experience “Chave” Dinner

This charity wine dinner sponsored by the Triangle Wine Experience was one of 32 dinners at local restaurants tonight benefiting the very worthy cause of the Frankie Lemmon School for Disabled Children in Raleigh, NC. This was billed as a Chave dinner at the wonderful Fearrington House Inn Restaurant. Calling this a Chave dinner was more than a small stretch as 4 of the 6 wines served were not Chave and the 2 that were Chave were served in miniscule quantities ( 3 bottles of ’00 Chave Rouge for over 60 people ). The representatives from the local distributor and the importer were both buffoons. The importer left us debating after his talk whether he was drunk or stupid or both. I spoke to the Maitre D’ and Sommelier about this when we were back on Saturday for dinner and they were equally surprised by the miniscule quantities of Chave presented and felt it was a bad reflection on their restaurant and may not participate next year. Unfortunate, since the end cause is worth donating to. In addition to me & Dena, we were joined by the Souths and the Bowers and having a table of 6 all to ourselves added lots of fun to the evening as others didn’t have to listen to us debate the wines ( or make fun of the distributor and importer! )

The food was excellent as it usually is at Fearrington. Tonight’s fixed menu consisted of:

Beef Carpaccio with a Mustard Aoili, Baby Arugula, Shaved Parmesan and Black Pepper

• 2003 Mas de la Dame Les Baux-de-Provence Rose du Mas 78 Points

  France, Provence, Les Baux-de-Provence

  Light pink in the glass, this wine clearly had low extraction and little going for it. A fruity nose, primarily of raspberries was followed by a very dry palate. The winemaker was present and seemed to be firmly in the dry at all costs camp. No complexity and almost no finish. Who had the brilliant idea to put this in the same flight as the Chave Blanc? 50+10+7+5+6 = 78

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• 2001 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Clearly this wine has not yet shut down and it was a real pleasure to drink. For a young wine it had great complexity and seems to have a very strong future ahead of it. Nutty and truffly with an extremely long finish. 50+12+13+9+8.5 = 92.5

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Seared Bass with Black Trumpet Mushrooms, Collard Greens and a Champagne Sauce

• 2001 Mas de la Dame Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence Coin Caché 75 Points

  France, Provence, Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence

  Medium yellow in color and 100% Semillon left me and Fred surprised as it had a Rhone feel to it despite the grape makeup. Steve disagreed and felt it to have more in common with White Bordeaux. Some smoke and beeswax characteristics but also very bitter and woody making for an unenjoyable experience. To me it tasted very oxidized and just not to my liking at all. 50+8+6+5+6 = 75

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Roasted Venison with a Celery Root Rosti, Roasted Baby Root Vegetables, Rutabega Puree and a Juniper Berry Sauce

• 2000 Mas de la Dame Les Baux-de-Provence Coin Caché 85 Points

  France, Provence, Les Baux-de-Provence

  Dark crimson and certainly the most drinkable of the Mas de la Dame wines this was an old vine Grenache. A very earthy nose gave way to some Grenache typical richness and glycerin on the palate. A short finish added some spice characteristics to the mix. 50+10+11+7+7 = 85

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A Selection of European and American Cheeses with Bread and Homemade Crackers

• 2000 Mas de la Dame La Stèle 78 Points

  France, Provence, Les Baux-de-Provence

  Crimson colored, this wine was light and simple with nothing noteworthy about it. Why put this in the same flight as the Chave? Afterwards the distributor had the audacity to suggest that it was just as good as the Chave for 1/10 the price. The night was not supposed to be about selling wine but I guess someone forgot to tell this boob! 50+9+7+6+6 = 78

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• 2000 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  The pours on this were restricted to 1oz due to the ridiculous fact that only 3 bottles were brought for 60 people ( what if one had been corked? ). Very young and tight but the richness, depth and complexity could be seen hiding under the surface. With a little time in the glass the wine began to open but mostly it was closed for business. This should be a great Chave in time. 50+12+13+8.5+8.5 = 92++

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