Dinner at La Zie with the NYC crew
New York, NY
Tasted Tuesday, August 9, 2005 by Eric with 2,406 views
Introduction
On my second night in NYC I was lucky enough to join Wilfred van Gorp, Craig, Michel Abood, his girlfriend Catalina, Drew Skroback, his wife Gina for a nice tasting of Italian wines made of Bordeaux varietals. This is a theme that has often perplexed me. The wines are interesting and unique, not easily mistaken for California or Bordeaux, yet I'm still having a hard time pinning them down. Anyway, this was a fun lineup. Dinner was at Le Zie, and the food was very authentic and very enjoyable!!! I spent so much time chatting and eating that I finished the evening with a very terse set of notes.
Flight 1 (3 Notes)
We started with a motley crew of white wines, and the cork bug hit us hard with 2 of 3 wiped out!
Flight 2 (3 Notes)
The food was a Cutting Board of Speck, Mortadella, Prosciutto, Coppa, Cacciatorino Salami & Lard with Grilled Polenta and parmesan wafers. Also making the rounds was Baked Goat Cheese with tomato sauce and garlic croutons. Finally, Carpaccio of Beef with Arugola and Shaved Parmesan Cheese in a Dijon Mustard Dressing.
Next we moved onto a flight where 2 of the 3 wines where technically outside the theme, as the Campaccio are Sangiovese dominated with some Merlot. Still, with the plate of dried meats this worked. Alas, the cork bug cut this pair in half which was very disappointing. The Falesco on the other hand was not very good. Gina defiantly proclaimed it as "consultant wine!" While she may be a little overexcited about her viewing of Mondovino (and certainly agrees with the premise far more than I do), she was certaintly correct on this forgettable wine!
Flight 3 (2 Notes)
Now we started moving into the big boys right as our entrees landed. And mmm, does it get much better than a pair of Orny's with a very nicely prepared steak atop a peppery bed of arugola that literally melted under the hot steak? Happy, happy camper here!
Flight 4 (3 Notes)
We finished up with a pair of Sass's and a very herbal San Leonardo. The contrast in style between the Sassicaia (very bright with lots of acidity) and the Ornellaia (black fruit, tobacco, more earthy) was fascinating and worth the price of admission. The 1990 Sass took a while to shine (we popped and poured), but it was coming on like a freight train towards the end.
Closing
Thanks everyone for a very enjoyable evening. I especially enjoyed putting more faces to names and laughing with Drew about (1) his stance on the pricing of 2003 Clos des Papes and (2) Gina's 'little is good' stance that would make Nossiter proud.
1997 Domaine Antoine Jobard Meursault 1er Cru Poruzots Flawed
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Meursault 1er Cru
Corked!
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1998 Azienda Agricola Valentini Trebbiano d'Abruzzo
Italy, Abruzzi, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo
Served very cold, this was fairly mute at first showing some notes of shellac with a slightly nutty edge. The palate was peppery and spicy, not very familiar to me. I figured it was probably some sort of Italian varietal given the theme, and indeed it was. Alas, I did not notice it, but Michel found there to be a faint and growing note of cork in the mid-palate, and Drew kept the leftovers and confirmed that it became extremely corky with time. Darn!
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2002 Caves Albert Duhr (Château Pauqué) Auxerrois Blanc Clos du Paradis
Luxembourg, Moselle, Moselle Luxembourgeoise
Wow, this was extremely ripe with notes of peach, almost rotten it is so ripe. The palate is lush and loaded with glycerin. I guessed that this was a new world Roussane/Marsanne blend, but in fact it is oak-aged Chardonnay. Go figure! This was a gift to Wilfred from GJE member Abi Duhr.
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