1953 Dinner: Milestone Birthday
Gemma Fish + Oyster
Tasted December 22, 2023 by MC2 Wines with 82 views
Introduction
It’s not always easy to do milestone birthday dinners but it’s always fun! 1953 was a great year for wine as we learned this evening. I’d say we were very lucky given that we started the year with only a few of these bottles and so this was a collection over time. The only fully corked bottle wasn’t a 53 (much younger) so that’s good! Lots to love.
Flight 1 - Reception (4 notes)
Raw Katama Bay Oysters | Ember Roasted Beet Salad | Dressed East Coast Salmon Tartare Crostini | Baked Crab and Artichoke Dip
White - Sparkling
N.V. Delamotte Champagne Brut
France, Champagne
Off the wine list at Gemma so that we had something for people to sip on as they came in. 53’s can move fast on you so we wanted to open them once we had everyone ready to enjoy. This was good and made a nice mixer base for some of the older wines if you wanted to add a few extra bubbles to them.
White - Sparkling
1953 Krug Champagne Private Cuvée
France, Champagne
This has to be a contender for WOTY as well. The champagne is just kindof almost perfect. It still has just the trace of bubbles. Some freshness to it. Lots of age and interest and toast and nuts and overall just drinks very well. Surprised me a bit although I had high hopes for the bottle. One of my all-time favorite champagnes I’ve ever had was Krug from the 60’s and to have this one was a really special treat.
White - Sparkling
1953 Pommery Champagne
France, Champagne
This wine surprised me and unlike with the Krug I didn’t have high expectations. But it was drinking great. Again there is just that bit of fresh that is here, maybe the memory of the bubbles in the wine that comes through. Very nice and drinking quite well.
Flight 2 - First (3 notes)
Ember Grilled Head-on Shrimp
N’duja butter, grilled sourdough
We also had a 1953 Riesling in this flight which wasn’t in CT and I imagine is fairly unknown. It was interesting though. Still had the acid. To me tasted a lot like mint in a very pleasant way (I like that flavor in a wine though). Quite enjoyable.
Red
1953 Patriarche Père et Fils Mazis-Chambertin
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru
This was drinking really well. Surprised me with how lovely the wine ended up being. Old Burgundy can be very hit or miss but we got it with this one. Just great.
Flight 3 - Second (2 notes)
Creamed Artichoke Soup
Sauce soubise, cream, herb oil
Red
1953 Château Margaux
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Twice in one year and this time out of magnum! What an absolute treat! This was drinking incredibly well. It’s a real contender for WOTY. There’s just a lovely beauty to the wine with this amount of age. Much lighter in style. Absolutely stunning. The red fruits just poking through. I am enchanted by it.
Red
2010 Château Margaux
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Paired next to the 1953 and of course it doesn’t hold up next to its much older brother but at the same time it is fun to see what the evolution might hold. Also a reminder that I can’t really buy much young wine because I like the really old ones. Alas.
Flight 4 - Third (1 note)
Hokkaido Scallop
Heirloom hominy & edamame succotash, baby sweet potatoes, herb oil infused cream
Red
1953 Château Mouton Rothschild
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Drinking incredibly well. An absolutely great bottle which was a later find than some of the other ones and so glad that we got it. In a perfect spot. Lots of moodiness from the age but still some darker fruits and a lovely balance and again with this age the wine is a bit lighter in style and truly lovely. Special to get to try.
Flight 5 - Fourth (3 notes)
Pork Loin
Fried baby sweet potato, koji mayo, aleppo chili crips, black garlic reduction
Red
1953 Château Ausone
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
The wine that I was the most excited about for the night since I do think 53 is a really special year and so perhaps this is an issue of expectations just too high. It was totally fine and drinking ok but not one of those perfect bottles and it was a good wine but perhaps not quite as great as I’d hoped it would be. The Margaux, Canon and Mouton all showed a bit better. Alas. Fun to try.
Red
1953 Château Canon
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Totally blew me away and I wasn’t really expecting it because you can see that the bottle had been through some things and the label was coming apart completely. Didn’t matter at all. This wine was great and fresh and bright and dark and brooding and all of the things I love to see in a wine. A bit more weight perhaps from the cab franc than the CS based wines of the evening. Really a special one. One of my wines of the evening.
Red
1953 Clos Fourtet
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Sourced from the winery and it just goes to show you the difference in age when you are buying a wine that has been in one place its whole life. My takeaway from this wine was it’s actually much too young. Needs more time. Lovely and very tasty but actually almost too fresh after all of the other 53s around it. Wonderful. I get the feeling this is a wine that can go for a very long time with the right aging conditions.
Flight 6 - Fifth (1 note)
Moroccan Roasted Chicken
Chermoula potatoes, yogurt sauce, honey glazed carrots
Red
1953 Fratelli Polatti Valtellina Superiore Sassella
Italy, Lombardia, Valtellina, Valtellina Superiore
Drinking very nicely. The high acid of the Nebbiolo is very clear. In a good place. Not quite as interesting and complex as some of the Bordeaux before it but almost a nice intermezzo before we got to some of the younger wines. An enjoyable one.
Flight 7 - Sixth (2 notes)
American Wagyu Flank
Roasted potatoes, sauce bordelaise
Red
1982 Château Haut-Brion
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
We’ve returned to the ‘young-uns’ by which I mean I was alive when the wine was made although of course this has lots of great age as well. It’s a wonderful bottle. Drinking great and really intriguing. HB is one of my favorite of the first growths and this shows why that would be. The only nit picking is maybe a touch too young which you realize especially after the older wine.
Red
1982 Château Léoville Las Cases
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Dark and brooding and intense and lovely and like the HB just a touch too young but still a very nice wine. Fun to end with a bit of a young horizontal of things.
Flight 8 - Dessert (1 note)
Orange Semolina Cake
Ricotta icing
A cake in the form of the Latour pigeonry that was pure art in both shape and tasted
White - Sweet/Dessert
1970 Château d'Yquem
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
I took just a small bit of this because it was a big evening and I was so enjoying the 53’s that I didn’t want to put off my palate at all. It’s nice and lovely and d’yquem and really what more is there to say. A bit of a bigger version of the wine with more power but still very tasty.
Closing
So very many favorites. The ‘53 Margaux which I’ve now had twice in the same year is just spectacular - definitely a WOTY for me. I was really surprised by how good the 53 Canon was. Another favorite. And the bubbles were just singing. Overall a great evening with great company in tribute to a great friend.
Also shout out to Gemma which did an excellent job managing this dinner during their opening period. Great food and great space.
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