Dinner at Cru
New York, NY
Tasted Monday, August 8, 2005 by Eric with 1,065 views
Introduction
I'm on a very brief trip through New York City to do a little CellarTracker PR, and Wilfred is being so kind as to give me a place to stay.
Flight 1 (2 Notes)
While doing a little surfing and catching up on email, we ran across a thread on the 2003 Clos des Papes (subscriber only) on the Tanzer BB. It just so happened that I had some with me, so it seemed like a good time to pop a 375ml and see for ourselves! To follow that up, Wilfred opened a stunning and intense Alban Lorraine.
Flight 2 (2 Notes)
Dinner was at Cru, a lovely meal! After arriving we settled into the unreal wine list and made our selections as we waited for our table.
The food was simply fantastic. I started with a stunning troika of Crudo (sashimi); (1) Live Sea Scallop Buffalo Mozzarella, Caviar and Peach; (2) Langoustine Green Papaya-Truffle Salad and Gin Sauce, and (3) Aji Ginger-Scallion Salad, Maldon Salt and Chili Oil. From here we all ordered the same things, a knockout course of ravioli filled with braised beef cheek! Then we finished up with a very nice bit of lamb with artichokes in a somewhat Southern French preparation.
Alas, hindsight is 20-20 and looking back at the Chablis (which Wilfred had tasted in Paris just a month earlier), the bottle was prematurely advanced. It still went well with the Crudo, but it apparently wasn't what it should have been. The Haut Brion on the other hand was haunting, everything I could ask for in an exotic 1990 Graves and cheaper on the list than many current retail prices!
Flight 3 (1 Note)
Upon arriving, we had run into John Kapon at the bar. As always, he had an impressive looking lineup of wines in front of him, so after a brief greeting we let him get back to his evening. We didn't end up seeing him leave, but as we neared the end of our meal some glasses appeared and the waitress explained that John wanted us to have a taste of some Quantarelli. OK, that works for me, thank you John!!! And of course this was a lovely match with a plate of cheeses.
Closing
All in all, it was a lovely evening of food and wine. Cru is the real deal, a lovely restaurant.
2003 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape 95 Points
France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
When we first popped the 375ml there was indeed some heat on the nose, but within 5 minutes this was integrated. The nose is dusky, almost forbidding with some hints of leather but not giving away much right now. The palate was initially sweeter than I recall with intense, almost jammy raspberry. However, after 10 minutes the spicey, dried herbs and white pepper are exploding in the mouth. This is very tannic, but the fruit and extract already make it surpisingly approachable. Wow, this is lovely albeit much more monolithic than the 375ml the other evening (which I sipped at slowly from a decanter for 3+ hours). I let the glass sit for an hour and if anything the wine shut down a fair bit but did show lovely elegance and balance. This stuff is the real deal. I need to hide more of my bottles away and soon!
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2002 Alban Vineyards Syrah Lorraine 93 Points
USA, California, Central Coast, Edna Valley
Oh my, what a nose on this wine! Smokey blackberry, coffee, tar, roasted meat, overrripe plums (nearly rotting), ripe and rich, wow this pushed the envelope. The palate is a little heavy at first, but wow this is stunningly plush and rich, an extremely opulent wine! And amazingly, despite the waves of silky fruit, there was very nice freshness beneath this with a faint undercurrent of mandarin orange, lightly juicy and citric. Wow, this is a big, heavy, packed wine. I simply love the nose, although the palate is just a little too much for me. Wow, look at that, I used the word "WOW" three (well, technically now four) times describing this; I guess it made an impression!
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