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Holiday Dinner at Nathan's

Nathan's House - Chicago, IL

Tasted January 3, 2015 by tooch with 600 views

Introduction

Nathan and Brooke invited over a couple of people for a post-holiday dinner. Nathan prepared a beautiful pork roast, and there were some awesome oysters, chorizo stuffed dates wrapped in bacon, salad and cheeses. Great way to ring in the new year.

Flight 1 (12 notes)

White
2002 André-Michel Brégeon Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine Sur Lie Reserve France, Loire Valley, Pays Nantais, Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine
93 points
A pitch-perfect muscadet that was opened alongside some oysters. Elegant, sweet lemon flavors that were perfectly restrained by the chalky minerality in the wine. Beautiful acidity, and the pairing with oysters absolutely made this taste better and vice versa. Brégeon is one of those producers that I always regret not buying more from.
White
2007 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis France, Burgundy, Chablis
93 points
Baseline chablis my arse! Like drinking seawater, this was gritty and fresh with lots of cool fruit. This still had some of the good freshness they can have upon release, but this had some of the fun secondary oceanic tones that some of their 1ers and GCs get with more time. You're a clown if you're not cellaring these.
1 person found this helpful Comment
White
2004 Emmanuel Houillon (Maison Pierre Overnoy) Arbois Pupillin Vieux Savagnin ouillé France, Jura, Arbois Pupillin
90 points
Intensely nutty and waxy, there's a lot to like here if you're a fan of the style. The fruit was very bright and had nice lemon/lime throughout. The fruit was really overpowered by the nuttiness and the floral notes. An interesting wine that paired perfectly well with some Comté.
White
2005 Emmanuel Houillon (Maison Pierre Overnoy) Chardonnay Arbois Pupillin France, Jura, Arbois Pupillin
94 points
This was firing on all cylinders and is really a singular Chardonnay. Incredibly elegant and floral the fruit was cool and refined. Pears, apples, and peaches blended together with some chalky/salty tones to give this a real exoticism. This was served with some Comté and the combination was compelling.
White
2005 Jean-François Ganevat Savagnin Côtes du Jura Sous la Roche France, Jura, Côtes du Jura
93 points
I enjoyed drinking this alongside the 2004 Overnoy Savagnin ouille and thought it performed better on this night. Along with the 2005 Overnoy Chardonnay, we had a brilliant representation of what 2005 Jura can put forth. Much like the 2005 chardonnay this was incredibly powerful and rich. The flavors of lemon were almost sappy...but then you remember you're drinking Jura and the acidity snaps you in the lips. Incredible combination of freshness, concentration and cut. Beautiful.
White
2001 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis 1er Cru
flawed
Some at dinner thought this was corked, but those aromas seemed to go away with time. To me, the palate was a bit tired. It had some of those waxy notes you're always hoping you don't run into with white burgundies and I'm afraid that what we had here was a oxidative Raveneau. It's a shame....I've ran into more and more oxidative wines from Raveneau over the past year than in years past. Boo.
Rosé
2011 Domaine de l'Anglore Tavel Vintage France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Tavel
94 points
Sage advice from Dr. C suggested I give this a bit of air and try serving it around cellar temp. I was able to give it enough air, but I actually perferred it a bit more at room temp! Pfiffering really hit a home run with this wine...creating a Tavel that has intense strawberry and cranberry tones with soft floral notes. It sounds simple, and maybe it would come across as such to other people, but I found its airy palate had incredible beautiful and balance. Like drinking a glass of silk.
Red
2004 Domaine Leroy Bourgogne France, Burgundy, Bourgogne
90 points
Hadn't had one of these in a while, but it's still exciting to get to try them. Lots of depth and concentration for a Bourgogne (but given the back story, I kind of expected that going in...). Lots of dark fruit, some of that Leroy spiciness on the nose, and a healthy dose of earth throughout. I liked the bottle I tried last year a bit more than this one, but there was a lot to like here, too.
Red
2009 Jean-François Ganevat Côtes du Jura Cuvée de l'enfant terrible France, Jura, Côtes du Jura
86 points
Super spritzy at first...it was like a fizzy soda. Let me glass sit for a while and the spritz went away. Odd, but, whatever. Thought this was a pretty solid bottle. The fruit was juicy and concentrated, but was a bit fleshy and one-noted for me. While Ganevat's whites might be some of my favorite white wines in the world, his reds have never moved me like other Jura producers. Another example here...a bit boring and probably costs far too much.
Red
2013 Dirty and Rowdy Mourvèdre FAMILIAR USA, California
91 points
I took my own advice this time and gave this about 5 hours of air before dinner. I think that did the trick. The nose was big and pungent with lots of violets, dark cherry, earth, and spices. The palate was airy and light. Beautiful floral and dark cherry tones dominated the palate and I thought it showed really impressive balance. Yum!
2 people found this helpful Comments (1)
Red
1986 Niebaum-Coppola Rubicon USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford
92 points
Thought this was lovely. Had a lot of that "old library book" smell going on that I really like. Despite the aged qualities on the nose, the palate was still dark, dense, and concentrated with very nice black cherries, cassis, smokey notes, and spice. Drinking in a great spot, and I think there's still a nice bit of life left on bottles that have been stored well.
1 person found this helpful Comment
White - Fortified
N.V. Les Dolomies Macvin du Jura France, Jura, Macvin du Jura
88 points
Gotta be honest...I'm still adjusting to this style of wine. Had good tart berry flavors, a potent mix of citrus and apple with a fair bit of acidity on the finish. Wild stuff.
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