Extreme Wine Tasting Day and Evening in Sonoma

Chez Haserot and El Dorado Kitchen, Sonoma, California
Tasted Thursday, August 16, 2007 by rjonwine@gmail.com with 645 views

Introduction

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Talk about over the top: not only did we have 27 bottles for this tasting (3 bottles per person), and fabulous wines they were, but the restaurant was also hosting a troupe of female models who were using the fountain near us to pose and mug, so there was all that unexpected and distracting eye candy as well.
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We poured everything blind, in themed flights, but for the La Grande Dame Champagne vertical and the concluding vintage Madeira. The evening was planned by Craig Haserot, and we started out with appetizers and the Grande Dames at his spread in Glen Ellen, before moving on to the model infested EDK. A big thanks to Craig, and to Don, Michael, Mark, George, Jonathan, David and Barry for their great wines and company. Craig's Sojourn partner, Erich Bradley, a wonderful young winemaker with a great palate, made it in time for the Syrah flight and sweeties.

Flight 1 - Grande Dame Flight (3 Notes)

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Flight 2 - Intermezzo (1 Note)

  • 2004 Stony Hill White Riesling 83 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Vanilla and cream nose; creamy, sweet but a little chemical tasting on the palate, with a sense of effervescence; short-medium finish

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Flight 3 - White Burg and Chard flight (3 Notes)

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At El Dorado Kitchen, we started with "The Patch" heirloom tomato salad, with shaved fennel, arugula and watermelon. We then moved on to the following lovely flight, served with a parmesan risotto with white truffle foam.
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Flight 4 - '70 Pinot Flight (2 Notes)

George and Mark put together this and the next two flights, with George selecting his all-time favorite California Pinot from each of the last three decades, and Mark putting in some excellent Burgs from the past three decades. I'm happy to report that we properly identified the Burgs in the blind lineup. These were served with a very tasty course: herb roasted Alaskan halibut with fennel confit, Nicoise olives, piquito peppers and Yukon gold potatoes.
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  • 1971 Pierre Bourée Fils Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits-Saint-Georges 1er Cru

    Medium dark red color with pale edges; big, rich black cherry and soy nose; tasty tart strawberry and rose hips palate with minerals and high acidity; medium-plus finish 93+ pts.

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  • 1976 J.W. Morris Pinot Noir 91 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

    Dark red color; funky, ripe red fruit and coconut nose showing a little reduction; very big, ripe cherry, raspberry and rosehips palate with depth and a little hot; medium finish 91+ pts.

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Flight 5 - '80 Pinot Flight (2 Notes)

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  • 1985 Domaine Louis Remy Clos de la Roche 92 Points

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

    Medium red color with pale edges; rich, tart cherry, soy, black cherry and raspberry nose; yummy, rich tart black cherry and soy palate; medium finish 92+ pts.

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  • 1985 Calera Pinot Noir Jensen Vineyard 91 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

    Dark red color; rosehips, sage and Balsamic nose with lifted raspberry note; tasty, deep, Balsamic, soy and tart cherry palate; medium-plus finish

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Flight 6 - '90 Pinot Flight (2 Notes)

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Flight 7 - Mystery Syrah Flight (4 Notes)

This was my flight, as I've been wanting to compare some of the new releases from Pax, Radio-Coteau and Kosta-Browne with a knowledgeable crowd. I threw the JC Cellars/Cote Rotie collaboration into the lineup, as I've loved it in the past, and thought it would be fun to have a little bit of French juice in the mix. I decanted them all for about four hours prior to the dinner. When it came to voting for WOTF, the Kosta Browne won with five votes (including mine), and the Pax and JC Cellars were tied for 2nd with three votes each. The Radio-Coteau received no WOTF votes. These were served with a very tasty and tender Niman Ranch Pork Osso Bucco, with melted Walla Walla Onions, Arrowleaf Spinach and Frog Hollow Peaches.
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Flight 8 - Sweet Flight - Part 1 (4 Notes)

As if the tasting had not been sufficiently over the top already, we proceeded to not one but two sweet wine flights, comprising eight very diverse sweeties, thanks to Craig and David. We enjoyed these with a variety of sweets and sorbets, and a delicious cheese course.
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Flight 9 - Sweet Flight - Part 2 (3 Notes)

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Flight 10 - Madeira (1 Note)

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As we wound down our evening of excess, smoking Romeo y Julieta cigars, we finished things off properly with some vintage Madeira, courtesy of Rare Wine Co.'s Barry Herbst. (Personally, I can't believe I was still able to take readable, albeit terse, notes at this point. Barry, I think I need to try this Verdelho again.)
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Closing

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