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Tasting Group Dinner - Post-Election Grab Bag
Heidi's, Minneapolis
Tasted November 5, 2008 by Siggy with 606 views
Introduction
Dave Dalluge, Craig Vanderah, Chris Larson and I met for a mid-week, post election dinner at Heidi's. We had originally envisioned a 1966 Bordeaux tasting, but it turned into a grab-bag event because two of our three 1966s were off. My WOTN on this fun evening was Craig's 2000 Raveneau Montee de Tonnerre.
Flight 1 - Starters (2 notes)
Paired with Chef Stewart Woodman's pork wontons, mini goat burgers with spicy aioli, and smoked scallops.
White - Sparkling
N.V. Tarlant Champagne Cuvée Louis
86 points
Disgorged December 2003. Heavily oxidative, with flavors of apple cider, mushrooms, and blue cheese. Good bubbles and balanced supporting acidity. Interesting. This smelled and tasted much older than a 5 year old NV. Stylistically, Tarlant tends toward the oxidative side of the spectrum, and although this bottle was more extreme than others I've tasted, it didn't seem obviously flawed.
White
2000 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre
91 points
Tight, steely, and minerally, with a pronounced and tasty flavor signature of lemon curd and sea water/sea shells. Round, saline mouthfeel. Showing very well. Not surprisingly given the vintage, this shows a bit less flavor concentration and length than other Raveneaus I've tasted. Delicious and drinking very well now.
Flight 2 - 1966 Bordeaux (4 notes)
Paired with filet mignon, roasted broccolini, and truffled roasted potatoes.
Red
1966 Château Haut-Bailly
89 points
A recent Winebid acquisition. Mid-neck fill; excellent cork. Terrific earthy, dark cherry nose. The palate is soft and supple. A low-acid, ripe, moderately concentrated wine that shows some classic scorched earth Graves character. Mature fruit that is still lively; fully resolved tannins. Started to fade and picked up some brown sugar flavors after about an hour. Not especially complex, but tasty and still kicking.
Red
Red
2000 Château La Fleur de Boüard
88 points
Popped and slow oxygenated for ~3 hours. The palate shows concentrated, youthful dark fruit, green pepper, herbs, and meat juice. I'm guessing there is a fair amount of Cabernet Franc in the blend here. Still tannic. Improved significantly with food.
Flight 3 - New World Pinot (2 notes)
We finished the evening with a dessert course of... more pork wontons.
Red
2005 St. Innocent Pinot Noir Seven Springs Vineyard
90 points
Ripe, earthy, nicely complex red fruit. Good balance and length.
Red
1998 Hanzell Pinot Noir
Deeply pitched, earthy red fruit on the nose, with slight VA in the background. The palate shows nice dark fruit and chocolate, but turns a bit muddied and tired with air. Not sure how representative this bottle was, I would be inclined to drink up relatively soon.