Dinner with Oleg & Jess

At their home
Tasted Sunday, September 14, 2025 by VlgJeff with 47 views

Introduction

Been a while since our last get together. Nice to spend a late summer afternoon in their backyard.

Flight 1 (1 Note)

Bottle of our favorite Rose Champagne to get things started.

  • NV Laurent-Perrier Champagne Cuvée Rosé Brut 93 Points

    France, Champagne

    Disgorged in the 1st quarter of 2021 based on the A12 printed on the neck of the cork. After cork extraction we allowed this bottle to slo-ox for about 10 minutes which allowed the wine to "calm down".
    The wine continued to improve with additional slo-ox as the second pour was even better than the first. On the nose, and more so on the palate, there was a red berry mélange of strawberry, cherry and raspberry, along with a touch of citrus. The mousse was creamy and smooth, and the acidity was lively and balancing. A very enjoyable bottle of our go-to rosé champagne.

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Flight 2 (1 Note)

The drink of the summer while sampling some hors d'oeuvres.

  • NV Campari Aperol Spritz 82 Points

    Italy

    Picked up a four pack (200 ml each) of this Ready To Serve Aperol Spritz (9% abv). Label declares it to be a "mix of Aperol liqueur and sparkling wine". Vivid orange color -- probably enhanced by the addition of FD&C Yellow #6 and FD&C Red #40, per the label.
    The package says to pour it in a glass over ice and add an orange slice. We did that and the drink was intensely bitter. Luckily, we brought some San Pellegrino Blood Orange Sparkling Water (just in case). The addition of about 160 ml of Sparkling Water to each 200 ml bottle of Aperol Spritz made the mix more palatable - at least for us.
    May be worth a try if you don't want to go to the trouble of mixing an Aperol Spritz from scratch - but be prepared with some sparkling wine or sparkling water if you find these RTSs too intense.

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Flight 3 (2 Notes)

A white and a red to enjoy with dinner.

  • 2021 Bosman Family Vineyards Chenin Blanc 88 Points

    South Africa, Coastal Region, Wellington

    PnP, chilled. Notes of green apple, stone fruit and citrus on the medium bodied palate, with juicy acidity and some evidence of time spent on the lees. Will probably continue to hold but may be more enjoyable when young.

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  • 2014 Pisoni Pinot Noir Estate 94 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Lucia Highlands

    Allowed to slo-ox for only 15 minutes so the second pour was better. There were lots of dark fruits and some spice on the nose. These dark red and black fruits, and spice, were joined by some earth and light minerality on the medium plus bodied palate with acidity that was up to the task of balancing the fruit. Overall, this bottle was quite enjoyable and received enthusiastic thumbs up from all. Will continue to hold.

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Closing

Lots of catching up, lots of laughs, great food and drink.

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