Dinner at Maureen's
Washington, DC
Tasted November 19, 2011 by tooch with 648 views
Introduction
I joined Bob Semon and Ian Lipner at Maureen's house for dinner. We were joined by new D.C arrival Keith Levenberg about an hour into dinner. The food was incredibly well prepared and the wine was thoughtfully chosen. Boy....will I miss dinners like this when I relocate to South Dakota in 11 days. Thanks to Maureen for the epic hospitality, Keith for the wonderful Overnoy, Ian for the ride home, and Bob for the sizzling desert wine (not included in my notes). Great night!
Flight 1 - Welcome Whites (2 notes)
The whites were had as the first course was being prepared. The beet salad was served first and the Saarsteiner was a great pairing for it. The Trimbach was ridiculous...and was served primarily with the pumpkin raviolli.
White - Off-dry
1990 Trimbach Riesling Cuvée Frédéric Emile Vendanges Tardives
France, Alsace
A real treat. Threw this in the decanter for about 30 minutes or so before digging into it. It was pretty cold at first but the peach and tangerine fruit were expressive enough to break through the low temperature. As it warmed up the aromatics really soared with the peach, tangerine, mango, lychee, and petrichor becoming more and more expressive. The palate was lush but was constructed with lithe tones of white florals, melon, white peach, and lychee. Incredible length, depth and complexity.
Flight 2 - Burgundy Flight (4 notes)
Maureen prepared amazing food for this flight; broccoli rabe and italian-styled pork carnitas! Loved all the food, and was probably the first person with a clean plate.
Red
1988 Albert Morot Beaune 1er Cru Teurons
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
Started off a bit reductive on the nose, but with air it opened up more. It wasn't until a couple hours in did this really begin to express itself. It took on lovely dried red floral tones, subtle brown sugar notes and a brambly-ness. The palate was dominated by silky red fruit, warm spices and spicy cranberry. In a cruel turn of events, I think my favorite glass of this was my final glass...so I'm wondering if decanting would augment its enjoyment?
Red
1988 Domaine du Château de Chorey (Germain) Beaune 1er Cru Teurons
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
This had a distinct "funk" to the nose. Momentarily, I thought it might be corked....but decided against it. The "funk" I got on the nose seemed to morph into a mushroom brothy-ness of sorts. The earthiness was saddled with tart cranberry, sour cherry and dried florals. In my opinion, this only became more elegant with air. Lovely stuff.
Red
1990 Albert Morot Beaune 1er Cru Teurons
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Beaune 1er Cru
Very nice red florals, dried tobacco, subtle herb notes and dark fruit. The palate was elegant and balanced with a core of red fruit, a molasses note and subtle spice notes. The palate was incredibly silky and the tannins weren't noticeable. Drinking very well.
White
2004 Emmanuel Houillon (Maison Pierre Overnoy) Arbois Pupillin Vieux Savagnin ouillé
France, Jura, Arbois Pupillin
With air this really rounded into an incredible bottle of wine. It had incredibly dense meyer lemon, banana peel and roasted nut notes at first. The nutty flavor seemed to dissipate over the first 45 minutes or so, and the elegance seemed to just build from there. Towards the end of the night this was pairing very well with some cheeses on the table and had a nice floral and honeyed pear component to it. Up to this point this is probably the most elegant Jura white I've had - thanks to Keith for bringing this along.
Flight 3 - Desert (1 note)
Wow, desert was crazy. I don't have a note for the muscat desert wine we had...the label was just too hard to figure out.
White - Sweet/Dessert
2001 Müller-Catoir Haardter Mandelring Scheurebe Eiswein
Germany, Pfalz
Had a nose of almonds, vanilla, lemons, grain, and tropical fruits. The intensity of the palate is worth noting - just incredible density with pineapple, peach reduction tones, and dense white florals. Being a neophyte to Eiswein, I guess I'm unsure if the lack of acidity is normal or not...but I personally wish it had been a bit more acidic. The flavors were incredibly expressive...but just didn't have the "cut" I was hoping for I guess.
Closing
What a lovely dinner - I regret not going over to Maureen's house prior to this considering how close we live to one another!
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