agavin

Author Archive for agavin – Page 33

Spago – 2011 Montrachet

Apr17

Restaurant: Spago [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]

Location: 176 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210. (310) 385-0880

Date: March 27, 2019

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Still great

This dinner is the third part of the annual White Burgundy Premox test series, hosted by Burg-meister Don Cornwell. This dinner covers 2011 Montrachet Grand Cru and has for the last several years been hosted at Melisse — however, with the closing of that late great establishment, with some difficult maneuvering, it moved to Spago.

2011 White Burgundy is a vintage for those who prefer elegance and purity over power and concentration. It is the size of the wine that worried some white wine producers – many whites were willowy and gentle with low alcohol and modest acidity levels. This contrasts with the past several vintages – 2010, 2009 and the 2008 – where the overall frame and size of the wine was bigger. With the 2011s now either in bottle or about to be bottled, the wines have gained stature and flesh, though they will remain slim. What the best 2011 whites offer are seductive delicate flavors, purity of expression and delightful aromatics.

Spago has been an LA institution for over 30 years!

We were setup in the more intimate (but still quite large) private room. Perfect — as long as we kept the door closed (it’s loud on the main floor).

Tonight’s special menu.

1996 Philipponnat Champagne Brut Clos des Goisses. BH 97. One of the greatest examples of the ’96 vintage, this wine has it all with elegance, intensity, subtlety and grace, not to mention buckets of unrealized potential that will enable this beauty to improve for at least another decade and perhaps longer. I can only imagine just how good this would be from magnum format! The nose is discreet, reserved and pure with lemon, green apple and layers upon layers of fruit framed by just the right amount of yeast influence that continues onto the exceptionally dry and tight flavors that are crisp and refined as well as superbly intense yet through it all there is this underlying sense of harmony, as though all of the elements are working in concert. The greatest wines, at least those cut from classical cloth, persuade through the subtlest means and so it is with the ’96 Goisses, which is indeed a great wine by any measure. While it is drinkable now, for my taste preferences a lot of potential would be left in the glass and I wouldn’t start in earnest on this for another 5+ years.

2002 Philipponnat Champagne Brut Clos des Goisses. VM 96. The flagship 2002 Brut Clos des Goisses is simply stunning in this vintage. Seamless, ripe and beguiling, the 2002 is pure harmony in the glass. Dried pears, apricots, flowers, red berries and spices are some of the many notes that inform this towering, aristocratic wine. At once vertical yet endowed with serious length, the 2002 stands out for its breathtaking balance and overall sense of harmony. Layers of fruit built to the huge, creamy finish. This is a great showing from Philipponnat. The 2002 was disgorged in June 2011.

Spicy Tuna Tartare, Sesame-Miso Tuille Cone. I’ve had it a million times but it’s still great. The counter play between the crunchy-sweet cone and the soft-spicy interior.

Carrot. This carrot shaped thing in the soil-like pot (which was black pepper!) was reconstituted out of some kind of carrot puree. A touch sweet and rather delicious.

Pork belly macaron. Pretty amazing bit of sweet-fatty in a dessert-like presentation. Great textures too.

A kind of crab tartlet, if I remember correctly.

A sit down amuse inside an eggshell.

A kind of foam soup.

Bread. I always like the crunchy cracker stuff.

Flight 1:

From my cellar: 2011 Olivier Leflaive Montrachet. BH 92-94. This is the most complex if not the most elegant wine in the range with its broad-ranging nose of pure lemon zest, white flower, anise, dried apricot, peach, petrol and a hint of pain grillé. There is outstanding size and weight to the entirely graceful, textured and sappy imposingly-scaled flavors that are ever-so-slightly riper than those of the Bâtard, all wrapped in a powerful, moderately stony and hugely long finish. There are any number of aspects to admire but what stands out for me is the intensity as it’s breathtaking.

agavin: ranked #4 — awesome considering how reasonable it is (for Monty)

2011 Domaine Thenard Montrachet. BH 91-94. Here too there is visible but not intrusive wood that sets off a very closed nose, indeed this is almost mute. There is excellent volume and power to the big-bodied, intense and equally closed flavors that possess plenty of underlying tension on the tight, focused and beautifully long finish. This moderately concentrated effort is very much a work in progress.

2011 Louis Latour Montrachet. BH 92-94. This is aromatically quite similar to the Demoiselles though it’s presently much less expressive, indeed even brooding. The broad-scaled full-bodied flavors are markedly bigger, richer and more powerful with even more dry extract and an attractive sense of lift is provided by the solid minerality that really makes its presence felt on the saline-infused and impressively persistent finish. This is a big wine but not necessarily an especially big Montrachet though make no mistake, this is certainly no shrinking violet as patience will definitely be required.

RINGER: 2011 Château de la Maltroye Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Dent de Chien. BH 93. A ripe yet cool and wonderfully complex nose offers a broad range of aromas that include citrus and ever-so-mildly exotic yellow fruit along with background nuances of anise, clove, spiced tea and menthol. The intense, dense and focused medium-bodied flavors also brim with a remarkable level of dry extract that buffers the firm acid spine on the explosive and lemon-infused finish where the almost pungent minerality adds additional lift. This is also a remarkable effort and it might catch the La Romanée in time.

agavin: corked

2011 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet. BH 95. There is still a touch of wood remaining on the beautifully complex and wonderfully elegant aromas of spice, floral and white orchard fruit. There is stunning size, weight and sheer punch to the imposingly scaled, cool and admirably pure flavors that possessed an opulent mouth feel before culminating in an explosive and hugely long finish. This is breathtaking in its intensity and should amply reward at least a 15 years of cellar time in magnum format.

Olive Oil Poached Salmon. Turnip, radishes, bacon oil. Very delicate, soft and lovely.

Flight 2:

2011 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. VM 96+. Subtly complex, aristocratic aromas of lemon and pure crushed stone. Wonderfully intense and taut, with great mineral depth giving the wine a powerful impression of force. Finishes with explosive energy, an essence of crushed stone and outstanding lingering perfume. It’s virtually impossible to spit this unflagging, tactile wine: the minerality here is almost frightening. The best of these 2011s today, without question, and a wine that transcends its vintage.

agavin: an inexpensive wine

RINGER: 2011 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard. VM 93+. A model of precision, finesse and delineation, the 2011 Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard bristles with the essence of honey, white truffle, orange peel and nectarine. The 2011 needs a few years to drop some of its baby fat, but the direction it is likely to take becomes apparent with time in the glass. Watching the wine literally become crystalline and pure with air is quite an amazing experience.

2011 Château de Puligny-Montrachet Montrachet.

agavin: ranked #6 (tied with Ramonet Monty!)

2011 Bouchard Père et Fils Montrachet. BH 96. This is aromatically quite similar at this early stage to the La Cabotte. There is an extraordinarily powerful effort with impressive mid-palate density and so much dry extract that it imparts a sappy, even seductive texture to the mouth coating flavors that terminate in a breathtakingly long finish. Moreover, as good as the La Cabotte is, and it is indeed exceptionally good, there is simply no contest between the two wines as there is just another dimension present here. In sum, this beautifully well-balanced Monty is an absolute knockout!

agavin: ranked #5

2011 Etienne Sauzet Montrachet. VM 96. Pale straw-yellow. High-toned, expressive aromas and flavors of lime, peach, iodine and spicy oak. Large-scaled, spicy and deep, as tactile as a solid without coming across as obviously phenolic. A real essence of Burgundy in its density and concentration. Wonderfully integrated acidity leavens and extends the explosive, smooth finish. No rough edges here. This is 13.6% alcohol but is neither overripe nor lacking in acid spine.

Pan-Roasted Lobster Tail. Lemon butter, morel mushrooms, pea tendrils, squid ink tuille. A really awesome hunk of lobster with butter sauce!

Flight 3:

2011 Domaine Ramonet Montrachet. BH 97. The strikingly complex, cool and reserved nose of mostly citrus, stone, floral and white orchard fruit aromas still displays plenty of wood that has not yet been integrated but the density is certainly here to allow that to happen even though it may require 3 to 5 years to do so. In the context of the 2011 vintage this is a superbly well-concentrated wine as the imposingly scaled flavors are a breathtaking combination of size, weight, tension and borderline painful intensity. Despite all of the volume, there is absolutely no heaviness, indeed the acid support is such that this remains impeccably well-balanced on the hugely long and palate staining finish. While it is of course still in the early days for the vintage this is absolutely a strong candidate for the wine of the vintage.

agavin: ranked #6 (tied)

2011 Marc Colin et Fils Montrachet. BH 94. A deft touch of wood surrounds the strikingly complex citrus, floral, spice and essence of ripe pear scents. This is both bigger and richer than the Bâtard with absolutely superb size, weight and mid-palate density as the abundant dry extract both coats the mouth and buffers the very firm acid spine that shapes the explosively long finish. There is a trace of warmth but that is the only nit in an otherwise stunning Monty.

2011 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne. VM 97. Coche-Duryâ’s 2011 Corton-Charlemagne kicks off a flight of stellar white Burgundies. Of course, the 2011 is far too young to be at its best. Tonight, it is the translucent purity of the citrus and lemon confit flavors that stands out most. This really needs time to be at its very best.

agavin: even more affordable than the MP — not. ranked #3

2011 Louis Jadot Montrachet. BH 94-97. Here the nose is notably more reserved with aromas of citrus zest, spice, wood toast, fennel and spice hints. This is also a very imposingly-scaled wine with its big, muscular and wonderfully complex flavors that culminate in a long, focused and explosive finish of breathtaking length and intensity. This overtly powerful effort should reward at least a decade in the cellar and drink well for another. A ‘wow’ wine.

agavin: #1 ranked. WOTN

Slow Roasted Chicken Breast on the Bone. Black truffle, Emmental cheese soufflé. Excellent, for chicken.

The room in full swing.

Flight 4: dessert

1990 Château Suduiraut. 92 points. COLOR-copper; NOSE-obvious butterscotch, Pineapple Oil (mix of Pineapple & Petrol), rusty wet copper penny, ; TASTE-Mango w/ maple syrup, brown sugar & butterscotch on it, finishes w/ an Apricot Reduction sauce, I love this wine, outstanding, a bargain, seek this out.

Madagascar Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee, candied almonds, tangerines, saffron syrup.

And the gelato, both scoops were made by me! Score, added Spago to my list of BYOG places!

Nocciola, Espresso e Bacio Gelato – using my new egg yolk based nut formulation with Piedmontese hazelnut to produce a stunning hazelnut base, then adding in house-made espresso caramel and chopped up bacio — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #Espresso #coffee #cafe #hazelnut #Nocciola #caramel #bacio

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Gelato – the base is a Fior di Latte but I made it with brown sugar instead of white so it matched the cookies better. Inclusions are cubes of house-made gluten-free (almond flour) artisinal chocolate chip cookie dough with Valrhona chocolate chunks! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #CookieDough #ChocolateChipCookie #Cookie #chocolate #valrhona #BrownSugar #GlutenFree

Again Sommlier Paul Sherman joined us to coordinate the tasting. He was joined by Spago’s Christie.

The full lineup. Much more manageable than at the other two dinners.

This was a great night and lots of fun. The smaller Montrachet night is always more fun than the 30+ wine giant night 1 and night 2. I just can’t “handle” those flights with 8-9 wines. Almost a chore to get back to them.

The food was really on point as it usually is at Spago for these private events. It wasn’t a TON of food per se — except for the fact that I ate about 6 tuna cones to start (which set me up right). But each dish was delicious and very well prepared.

Service was great and wine service, thanks to Pual and Christie, even better.

Despite being too young, the Montrachet was great as well.

Some of Don’s comments are:

As some of you predicted, the Coche MP did manage to narrowly edge the Coche Corton for the number 2 position by virtue of getting votes from everyone placing it in the top 3.

I was pretty amazed that we didn’t have a single oxidized or advanced wine last night. I believe that this is only the second time that’s happened at the Mostly Montrachet dinner with the other instance being the 2007 vintage.. This was a bizarre year, with virtually no problems on nights one and three, but lots of issues on night two.

To answer Kent’s question, yes, last night was the third time that the Jadot Montrachet has finished in the top 3 at the Mostly Montrachet dinner, all starting with the 2007 vintage. Jadot finished 3d in the 2007 dinner, 2d at the 2010 dinner, and 1st in the 2011 dinner. I thought that the success of the Jadot wines over the three nights pretty conclusively proved that DIAM works. We’ve now had 30 different bottles over the last three years (many of which came from producers with prior major premox problems – e.g. Montille, Fevre, and Jadot) with no issues.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: 2011 White Burgundy, BYOG, Don Cornwell, Gelato, Montrachet, Paul Sherman, Spago

Eating Mammoth – Morrison’s

Apr15

Restaurant: Morrison’s

Location: 3516 Main St, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93514. (760) 934-7427

Date: March 24, 2019

Cuisine: American

Rating: Good for Mammoth

Somehow, in all my trips to Mammoth (probably at least 30) I never noticed Morrison’s.

But always trying to mix things up I figured to try it once I did. Looks pretty much like a typical Mammoth Lakes place.

From my cellar: 2003 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée. VM 94. Deep red. Strikingly complex nose offers powerful scents of red berries, spicecake, cured meat and potpourri. Velvety red berry and kirsch flavors stain the palate, picking pick up candied lavender and fruitcake nuances with air. The spiciness builds on the finish, which echoes the cherry note. This wine was most noteworthy for its power in the early going (I rated it 92-94 shortly before it was bottled) but has become more graceful and now conveys a stronger impressive of pure, spicy fruit.

The menu (forgot to photo the appetizer page apparently).

Shrimp and guac. Sort of a strange combo (guacamole in underneath) but worked out well enough.

SMOKED CRISPY CHICKEN WINGS. Hot buffalo or original matsu sauce with ranch dressing. Dressing was on the side because my brother doesn’t like sauce.

CAESAR SALAD. Spanish anchovies, sourdough croutons, parmesan cheese with homemade dressing.

WHOLE BRANZINO PAN FRIED. European sea bass in fine herb marinate, kalamata olives with cherry heirloom tomatoes and capers, served with basmati rice and seasonal vegetables.

Simple pasta for my son.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH RAVIOLI. Sauted in butter, fresh basil, toasted pine nuts with parmigiano-reggiano.

DUCK MOLE. Sauted breast, leg confit with a chocolate pecan mole sauce, roasted gold fingerling potatoes and seasonal vegetables. I would have liked a more pronounced mole flavor, but it was decent.

SCOTTISH SALMON. Crispy skin scottish salmon, served with a lobster and citrus bur blanc sauce with capers, chive mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables.

The dessert menu.

Belgian Chocolate Ganache. Raspberry coulis, amaretto creme anglaise and fresh berries. Very dark and dense!

Vanilla ice cream.

For Mammoth, Morrison’s was pretty good. It would be old fashioned in LA, but here it’s competent. Way better than something like Rafters.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: American Food, Mammoth, Mammoth Lakes, Morrison's

Chinese Fusion – Nightshade

Apr12

Restaurant: Nightshade

Location: 923 E 3rd St #109, Los Angeles, CA 90013. (213) 626-8888

Date: March 23, 2019

Cuisine: Chinese Fusion

Rating: Really tasty, imperfect service

Tonight was a a smaller Foodie Club dinner with core members Erick and Larry and newcomer Kim (owner of Khong Ten in Santa Monica).

Nightshade, located in the Arts District in Los Angeles, is a flagship concept and first restaurant for chef Mei Lin along with partners Francis Miranda and Cyrus Batchan of No.8. The highly anticipated project will draw from the culmination of Lin’s personal culinary history – from helping her parents and extended families in their Chinese restaurants as a child in Detroit.

The sure have jazzed up the formerly hideous neighborhood a bit with street art.

Sort of gilding the turd, but it (mostly) works.

And while Nightshade has the standard arts district brick front.

The inside though is elegant instead of the usual industrial look.
The menu is small, so even with four people we just ordered the entire menu. Turns out they also have a bunch of great looking secret larger pre-order dishes like a duck and a big steak — wish we had known.

NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 164eme. VM 97. Krug’s NV Grand Cuvée 164 Edition is a total knockout. Based on the 2008 vintage, the 164th Edition shows all the crystalline tension and energy that is such a signature of the year. At times, the 164 reminds me of the 2008 vins clairs I tasted after harvest. The flavors are brisk, delineated and pulsing with energy, while the more oxidative notes that are such a signature of Krug Champagnes are not especially evident. A wine of total pedigree and class, the 164 reminds me of some of the great Grand Cuvées of the 1960s and 1970s I have been lucky to taste over the years. No Champagne lover will want to be without this spectacular, captivating wine. All that said, readers should be patient, as the 164 is painfully young, austere and in need of serious cellaring. (Drink between 2027-2047)

oysters on the half shell, passionfruit emulsion. These were nice. Bright flavors from the sauce. It pretty much hid the oyster flavor (retaining the texture) but was still good.

hokkaido scallops, coconut vinaigrette, crispy ginger, coriander. Sauce was great. Bright flavors here.

baja kanpachi, radish kimchi, shiso, kohlrabi. This dish missed a little. It wasn’t bad in any way, but was mild flavored and the sauce VERY mild. I couldn’t really taste that much shiso (which I love).

NV Krug Champagne Brut Rosé Edition 21eme. JG95+. The Krug Brut Rosé “21ème Édition” is from the beautiful base year of 2008, with the oldest reserve wine in the blend going back to 2000. The wine was disgorged in the spring of 2015 and is a blend of fifty-one percent pinot noir, forty-one percent chardonnay and eight percent pinot meunier. Ten percent of the pinot noir in the blend is still red wine from Krug’s own parcels of vines in the village of Aÿ. The blend is a slight departure from many releases of Krug Rosé, as hail in the village of Ste. Ghemme in 2008 dramatically cut back the quality of pinot meunier from this vintage, so that Chef de Caves Eric Lebel opted to use all reserve wines for the pinot meunier portion of the blend. The very complex wine offers up the characteristically refined and gently exotic bouquet that this cuvée is cherished for, wafting from the glass in a blend of cherries, a touch of pomegranate, orange peel, beautiful, savory spice elements, rye bread, a complex base of soil tones , dried rose petals and incipient smokiness. On the palate the wine is full, complex and still quite youthful in terms of structure, with vibrant acids, a lovely core, elegant mousse and a very long, perfectly balanced and seamless finish. This is already beautifully complex, but I would love to revisit it five to ten years down the road and see what the passage of time does to this beautiful constellation of aromas and flavors. (Drink between 2018-2050)

beef tartare, sesame, egg yolk jam, kochukaru. Very nice beef tartar. Interesting “thick textured” shrimp toast. Went well though as it’s mild, and added some good crunch.

tom yum onion, coconut dip. Like an awesome blossom with a kind of Thai-flavored coconut dip.

tamarind glazed carrots, toasted coconut, carrot top emulsion. Good for carrots.

sunchokes, strawberry molé, seeded granola. Can’t really remember very well.

1995 Domaine Anne Gros Clos Vougeot Le Grand Maupertui. VM 92. Deep red-ruby. Extravagantly rich aromas of blackcurrant, pepper, smoke and tar. Large-scaled, deep and very sweet; explosively fruity and impressively tactile. Chewy tannins are buried under a wave of finishing fruit. A knockout Clos Vougeot truly worthy of its grand cru status.

koshihikari rice congee, xo, pork floss, onsen egg. We mixed this all up. It was one of the best dishes with both a homey carby quality and a delicious umami flavor from all that goodness including the XO sauce.

squid ink bucatini, cuttlefish bolognese, gochujang. Always love this kind of seafood / ragu type pasta.

lasagna, pork ragu, tofu cream, prickly ash. Very interesting light delicate texture made from many layers of wonton wrapper pastry! Quite nice, but we needed two of them and they closed the kitchen on us early and wouldn’t give us any more (more on that later).

Erick brought: 1996 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses. VM 93+. Saturated ruby-red. Supersweet aromas of raspberry, currant, graphite and sweet oak, plus an exotic suggestion of citrus fruit. Silky and sweet, if rather unforthcoming in the middle palate; offers great concentration and a near perfect sugar/acid balance. Firm tannins are covered by fruit. Great whiplash of a finish. This has considerable early appeal but will be even better after seven or eight years of additional bottle aging.

prawn toast, cantonese curry. Really good. Nice firm texture to the “toast” and great curry sauce.

szechuan hot quail, japanese milk bread, house pickles. This is a variant of the fried chicken bits in piles of aromatic chilies — the classic Szechuan dish that I order all the time. Nice, with moist larger meat and a good bit of heat. Although I would have liked the giant chili pile. I probably enjoy a great version of the classic slightly better — partially because it’s bigger!

coconut mousse, lime coconut granita, pineapple, nata de coco.

Check out inside. The faint white cubes were coconut jelly. The mouse is the white, the green the lime, and the pineapple inside. Weirdly deconstructed but absolutely fabulous flavors. Great, great dessert. Refreshing too.

guava, cream cheese, white chocolate. You break the (white chocolate) top. The guava and cream-cheese are below. Nice too.

almond sorbet, tangerine ice. Also really nice and refreshing. Interesting textures with the soft chocolate-textured sorbet rings and then the ice underneath.

silkened tofu, rhubarb, shiso, basil seeds. The weirdest of the 4 weird desserts, but tasty too.

I have to say that the desserts were excellent. But they aren’t a balanced set as all 4 were frozen, and sort of light fruits. All very refreshing but nothing in the cakey/bready or chocolate families. All technically very interesting though, and individually delicious with great texture factor.

Tonight’s crew, minus me.

Overall, this was a great meal. Often these small Foodie Club affairs are more enjoyable than large format dinners. We had a good little crew, ordered everything at the restaurant (minus the pre-orders, more on that below), brought excellent wines, and had a fabulous time.

Food was very good. I like that it’s upscale fusion with Chinese (and some other Asian) influences but not just special plated forms of Chinese dishes. Many dishes were very good: onion, scallops, tartare, congee, shrimp toast, pasta, lasagna, quail. That’s a high percentage! They weren’t super big and even with all that (the complete menu) for 4 people we could have eaten a couple more (more on that below).

Desserts were EXCELLENT. Really good. But not a wide ranging set. All too similar in form and profile. They need some chocolate etc.

Which brings me to a couple service points: Server was friendly, but there was some confusion going on (they are very new) and they weren’t super attentive. They did (mostly) follow my instructions of bringing the dishes one at a time. We also asked about 2/3 through to double up some of the courses that were ALREADY COMING (some time away, not anywhere near done) and they told us the kitchen was closed. But they never warned us about “last call”, and we could see the guys working in the kitchen making dishes. There was no cleaning up going on. And our remaining savory dishes kept on coming for 20-30 more minutes. So they easily could have done it. They hadn’t closed up. This is an example of not putting the customer first. Not that we went hungry, but we were peeved. Not a good thing for a restaurant. I’m still a bit peeved 3 weeks later!

Also, we kept seeing these really awesome looking big duck and steak dishes. We asked before we ordered and were told they are pre-order. But it’s not even mentioned on the menu (and we looked online) so how were we to know? They ought to list them like Majordomo does. We would have liked the larger dishes and they were needed on this menu that barely has formal mains — and no red meats (other than the tartare).

We handled the wine service (opening and pouring) but they let us open four bottles (and they pocketed the corkage, good deal by them but as long as there isn’t an enforced bottle limit I’m fine with it).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more crazy Foodie Club dinners, click here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Arts District, Asian Fusion, Chinese cuisine, Chinese Fusion, DTLA, Foodie Club, Nightshade, Wine

Montrachet Central

Apr10

Restaurant: Drago Centro [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 525 S Flower St, Los Angeles, CA 90071. (213) 228-8998

Date: March 14, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Great high end Italian

This dinner is the second part of the annual White Burgundy Premox test series, hosted by Burg-meister Don Cornwell. This dinner covers 2011 Bienvenues-Bâtard, Criots-Bâtard,Bâtard-Montrachet, and Chevalier-Montrachet.

This particular dinner is at Drago Centro, which is the new home for these big dinners after the closing of Valentino. I’ve been a Drago fan (and friend) for years. Celistino Drago has even cooked at our house a bunch of times.

Located on busy Flower in DTLA.

Drago!

There was a private party outside and the place was packed.

Fortunately, this time, we were in the vault room which is separate and quiet.

Our special menu.

Flight 0: Champagne

2004 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Premier Cru Coeur de Cuvée. VM 95. The 2004 Coeur de Cuvée has gained considerable weight, richness and resonance over the last few years. Brioche, almonds, marzipan, anise and dried flowers are some of the notes that flesh out in a radiant, super-expressive Champagne built on texture and class. The 2004 is every bit as impressive as it has always been. At eleven years of age, the Coeur de Cuvée is just entering an early plateau of maturity that is likely to last for at least a handful of years. Disgorged May 2012.

Mini crab cakes.

Sweet breads with caviar. Not my favorite as I don’t love offal.

Hamachi cones with roe and gold. A little mild in flavor. Could use a bit of spice or something.

Don imported (former) Valentino Wine Director Paul Sherman to mastermind the wine service for who-knows-how-many-years-in-a-row.

My friend, chef Celestino Drago checks to make sure everything is in order.

Grisini.

Fresh baked bread (Drago has its own bakery for the restaurant group).

Flight 1: BBM & Criots

2011 Domaine Leflaive Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 93+. ale, bright green-yellow. Precise, high-pitched aromas of lime, white flowers and crushed stone. Then juicy and supple on the palate, with enticing sweetness to its pure, sharply delineated flavors of lime and orange. Impeccably balanced Bienvenue with nothing fat or warm about it. Really sparkles on the powerful, mounting finish.

From my cellar: 2011 Etienne Sauzet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 95. Mint, lime, lychee, jasmine and white pear notes abound in the 2011 Batard-Montrachet. This is an especially tense, vibrant Batard that stands out for its energy, distinction and pure class. Super-finessed throughout, the 2011 impresses on the finish, where its crystalline brilliance dazzles. The style is very much built on precision, energy and minerality, rather than opulence. Today the 2011 is understandably a bit tight, but it should be superb in another few years. What a beautiful wine.

2011 Domaine Jacques Carillon Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 95+. arillon’s 2011 Bienvenues-Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru is total silk on the palate. Subtle, layered and exceptionally polished, the 2011 is all about texture. Exotic white truffle, mint, smoke and Chamomile notes are just starting to develop in the glass, but the 2011 has a long time to go before being ready. Riesling-inflected petrol notes add nuance on the finish. This is a seriously beautiful wine from Jacques Carillon.

2011 Henri Boillot Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 92-95. Bright yellow. Vibrant nose combines smoke, honey and sexy minerality. More concentrated and sweet than the Criots but with the verve–not to mention the saline density–of Boillot’s Pucelles. Lovely creamy old-viney texture and length. The minerally finish leaves the taste buds quivering.

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. Light color, smells young and reductive but the palate is smooth doesn’t taste as young as it smells. Interesting wine that’s in a good spot and should remain here for at least a couple of years.

2011 Hubert Lamy Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 97. There is little doubt Olivier Lamy’s 2011 Criots-Batard-Montrachet is one of the truly great wines of the vintage. Utterly vivid and constantly changing in the glass, the 2011 captivates all of the sense – both hedonistic and intellectual – with a captivating mélange of exotic white flowers, crushed rocks and pears. The bright, crystalline flavors blossom beautifully in the glass in that sweet, perfumed, ethereal style that is the signature of Criots. What an utterly moving, delicious wine this is.

2011 Louis Jadot Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 94. The 2011 Bienvenues Batard-Montrachet is huge. Rich, voluptuous and layered, the 2011 flows across the palate with stunning depth and richness. With time in the glass more subtle hints of almonds, hazelnuts, baking spices and mint emerge, albeit with great reluctance. There is plenty of energy in the glass. It will be interesting to see if the 2011 acquires more polish in bottle. Regardless, there is plenty to admire in a succulent, generous Bienvenues that is likely to offer a broad window of drinkability.

2011 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 92+. Pale yellow. Youthfully imploded nose hints at peach and smoky lees. Closed in the mouth as well, showing a slight bitter edge to the flavors of herbs, flowers and crushed stone. Best today on the juicy, echoing finish, which shows a subtle saline character.

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 94-96. Exotic white flowers, ginger, white pepper and lychee are some of the many notes that emerge from the 2011 Criots-Batard-Montrachet, a wine that dazzles from start to finish. The 2011 is pure seduction. Captivating aromatics, beautifully layered fruit and fabulous persistence are the hallmarks. Colin-Morey thought the 2011 needed a little more time in cask, and planned to bottle the wine later in the summer.

Jumbo scallops crudo, potato cream, onion jello and truffles. Very light dish and attractive plating. I was glad the scallops were raw — as I prefer them that way.

Flight 2: Bâtard-Montrachet

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 97. The 2011 Batard-Montrachet boasts serious richness, depth and structure. A wine of pure brawn and intensity, the 2011 impresses for its exceptional balance and harmony, but it is also very reticent and nowhere near ready to show the full breadth of its personality. The finish alone is simply sensational. Readers should give the 2011 at least a few years in bottle to settle down. The Batard is imposing, sensational and regal in every way.

2011 Domaine Bachelet-Ramonet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet.

2011 Domaine Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 95. Boillot’s 2011 Bâtard-Montrachet is striking. Pear, almond and spice notes open up in the glass, leading to bright fruit and expressive floral notes. In 2011 the Bâtard is linear, powerful and intense. This statuesque Burgundy is best left alone for at least several years.

2011 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 94+. Pale bright yellow. Sexy perfume of lemon, lime, clove and white flowers. A step up in weight and power from the Bienvenue, but still with lovely lift to the generous flavors of ripe peach and spices. Wonderfully energetic, tactile wine with terrific rising length and grip, and a late mineral character that contributes finesse. But this big, rich, backward Batard will need time to express itself.

2011 Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Vergers. VM 92. Pale, bright yellow. Subtle, pure nose offers pear and white flowers. Suave on entry, then juicy and sweet in the middle, with a minty lift contributing to the impression of inner-mouth perfume. Sappy, minerally, sharply delineated Chassagne with a positive iodiney character. This lively wine really coats the palate and lingers, without leavening any impression of undue weight.

2011 Etienne Sauzet Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 96. Gently spiced notes open into lemon oil and subtle yellow stone fruits in the 2011 Batard-Montrachet. The style is surprisingly weightless for Batard, in fact, this is one of the more refined, introspective 2011 Batards I tasted. The long, persistent finish along is striking. There is no shortage of nuance or finesse in this exceptional wine from Sauzet.

2011 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 93+. Good full medium yellow. Musky aromas of yellow peach, apricot and minerals lifted by a floral topnote. Boasts impressive volume and palate-saturating breadth but comes across as more closed than the Bienvenue in spite of its richness of texture. Finishes very long, though, with lingering notes of spices and smoke. Pernot recommends waiting three years before opening this.

2011 Pierre Morey Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 94. The 2011 Batard-Montrachet Grand Cru blossoms in the glass with light, floral-infused honey. Chamomile, tangerine and hazelnut notes. Rich and voluptuous all the way through to the finish, yet never heavy, the 2011 is a model of finesse. This is another superb showing from Pierre Morey.

Rigatoni Kamut, swordfish and eggplant ragu. An unusual pasta dish. The texture (al dente) on the pasta was incredible. Really these seemed closer to a picci (but not exactly). Very nice soft mildly rich flavor.

Flight 3: Chevalier-Montrachet part 1

2011 Domaine Bernard Moreau et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 96. A wine of pure texture the 2011 Chevalier-Montrachet captivates all the senses. Mint, lime, white flowers and Chamomile all vow for attention in a pliant, expressive wine of the highest level. The 2011 has a level of inner richness that is simply waiting in reserve. Another few years in bottle should unlock all of that potential.

2011 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. VM 97. Honey, almonds, white flowers and nectarines all take shape in Jadot’s 2011 Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles. Exotic white truffle, orange peel and spice notes appear later, adding dimensions of complexity and nuance to this pedigreed Burgundy. The flavors continue to blossom in all directions as the wine opens up in the glass. Simply put, the 2011 Demoiselles is a stunner.

2011 Domaine de Montille Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Le Cailleret. VM 92+. Lemon, lime, crushed stone and some noble herbal high notes on the nose. Citrussy and penetrating, with a hint of youthful bitterness to the lime leaf and chalky mineral flavors. Very pure, juicy, mineral-driven wine with sneaky depth and a persistent, vibrating finish. This is 12.7% alcohol following about 0.3% of chaptalization, notes Alix de Montille.

2011 Francois Carillon Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 95+. The 2011 Chevalier-Montrachet is drop-dead gorgeous. Hints of light floral honey, almonds and lemon oil are just beginning to develop, but the Chevalier-Montrachet is mostly a wine of texture and shape. Not a huge wine, the 2011 impresses for its incredible class and nuance. With air, slightly more exotic and tropical notes emerge, providing a hint of what waits for those lucky few who will be able to source this jewel of a wine.

2011 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 93+. Good bright, pale yellow-straw. Perfumed aromas of peach pit and vanillin oak, lifted by spicy high notes. Rich and concentrated but light on its feet. Shows sweet stone fruit flavors and very good breadth on the front half, then turns firmer and more saline on the back end, finishing dry and brisk, with lingering notes of citrus peel and white peach. Boasts a lovely core of sweet fruit but this will need patience.

2011 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 95+. Subdued but pure aromas of pineapple, crushed rock and white flowers; less fruity today than the Bienvenue or Batard. Then fat and ripe but with terrific verve to the mineral and spice flavors. With a few minutes in the glass, this highly concentrated, electric wine came across as more tightly coiled, with its energy and cut becoming more apparent. Most impressive today on the extremely long, perfumed back end, which leaves the palate vibrating under a layer of mineral dust. Winemaker Remy says he wouldn’t start drinking this wine for 12 years.

Cioppino, assorted seafood, lobster broth. Fabulous seafood soup. Really a lobster bisque with various extremely fresh seafood.

Flight 4: Chevalier-Montrachet part 2

2011 Domaine Marc Morey & Fils Chevalier-Montrachet.

2011 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 95. Exotic white flowers, lychee, mint and lime blossom in the glass as the 2011 Chevalier-Montrachet shows off its compelling personality. Impeccably pure and layered throughout, the 2011 impresses for its exceptional balance and class. There is plenty of Chevalier richness and honey, but no excess weight or sense of heaviness at all.

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 94+. Pale yellow. Slightly sullen, medicinal aromas of pineapple, menthol and crushed stone. Then taut and powerful in the mouth, with little early pliancy to the penetrating flavors of fresh pineapple and crushed rock. All in reserve today and in need of at least several years of cellaring. Classically dry on the high-pitched, echoing finish, which leaves behind piquant notes of dusty pepper, ginger, wild herbs and crushed stone. In the same bracing, mineral-driven style as Colin’s superb Meursault Perrieres and Corton-Charlemagne.

2011 Domaine Ramonet Chevalier-Montrachet.

2011 Vincent Dancer Chevalier-Montrachet.

2011 Etienne Sauzet Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 94+. Good pale yellow. Ripe, highly perfumed nose combines pineapple, flowers, mint and humid fern. Less obviously powerful than the Batard but offers insidious intensity and a more pliant texture to its yellow fruit and mineral flavors. Tightens up considerably on the back end, finishing subtle and long, with fresh minerality and a strong chalky character.

Pan roasted breast of duck, kumquat sauce. Great duck. Perfectly cooked and I loved the kumquat sauce (which was an interesting take on the orange duck thing). The forbidden rice was just there.

Appendix Flight: dessert

2002 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Eiswein. VM 93. This drinks like a pure and incredibly fragrant Normandy cider laced with lemon, vanilla and fresh strawberry. Weightless in feel, effortless gliding down, yet with incredible tenacity of grip.

Dark chocolate cremeux, cocoa almond, milk chocolate chantilly. The cake and its cream top was amazing. Really nice contrast of textures and strong chocolate flavors. The ice cream is gelato made by me (Celestino had it plated with the dessert):

After my advanced gelato class, trying a slightly new pistachio formulation — Pistachio Madeline Gelato — base uses my same awesome Pistachios from Bronte Sicily but also a small amount of egg yolk for extra body. I baked the Madelines from scratch and soaked them in hand made Grand Mariner syrup — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #Pistachio #lemon #orange #Sicily #GrandMariner #Madeline #cookie #baking

This one is also by me:

Getting whacky — Thai Peanut Coconut Lime Chili Gelato — Salty peanuts, Thai coconut cream, lime zest, and serrano chillies — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — almost too spicy! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #chili #spicy #thai #peanut #coconut #lime #SavorySweet #Serrano

Have a few glasses!

The reveal sheet.

And the full lineup.

Don’s notes on the wines:

It was interesting to “watch the race” for the top wine as I compiled the votes. The group’s top overall wine was the Bernard Moreau Chevalier Montrachet, which won despite getting fewer first place votes than the number two finisher, the Colin-Morey Chevalier (which was my favorite wine). Both were spectacular and easily the equal of the best 2010s (and I thought the PYCM Chevalier was clearly superior to his 2010 Chevalier.) Finishing third was the Jadot Demoisselles, which was easily the best version of that wine we’ve had since at least the 1996.
The huge difference in the number of oxidized and advanced wines between night one and night two was disconcerting. It demonstrates the risk of judging a vintage based on wines from a limited number of appellations. We had a large percentage of premox on night two, but with almost no premox on night one, at this point the cumulative statistics are right about even with 2010. (Hard to figure….)
The flight of Criots/BBM was maybe the best overall flight of those wines ever. Carillon was again the favorite of the flight as it usually is.
PYCM – Solid performance again, and the Chevy was spectacular, and probably the best he’s ever made. The Criots, Bienvenues and Batard, while all very good, were not as exciting.
Jadot — Three wines out of the four included finished in the top three over the first two nights. Jadot will go back on my “buy” list for their top wines starting with 2011. DIAM will probably restore their reputation, but the Bienvenues proved that you can still make bad wine despite DIAM.
The ringers – the Montille Puligny Caillerets (tied for No. 5 overall) was spectacular in context and nobody identified it as an obvious ringer in a flight of Chevaliers, which is what I had hoped. The Pillot Clos St. Marc (tied for 11^th), which comes from 100 year old vines in the best part of Vergers, also seemed to compete with the Batards, although it didn’t quite have the weight of the top ones. Maybe matching it with Bienvenues and Criots flight would have been a fairer fight. Finding really good ringers to include is one of the fun elements of this.
Leflaive – amazingly, all three wines were very good to excellent and not advanced or oxidized, though the style isn’t remotely the same as it used to be.
Ramonet – Obviously the least impressive showing for Ramonet since the premox disaster vintages in 1996 and 1999. I’m hoping that the Chevalier was an off bottle, but clearly that was the worst example of a Ramonet Chevy I’ve ever tasted.
Pernot – Both wines were again advanced. These wines seem to have notably declined since the 2007 vintage and are too often advanced.
Dancer – An enigma. Capable at time of producing spectacular wines (e.g. 2010 MP, the overall night one winner), yet also capable of producing horribly flawed, or in the past oxidized wines. Two disasters in 2011.
Boillot – On the second pass I concluded the Batard with the “blood orange” aroma was indeed advanced. Pretty underwhelming showing. Really hard to justify the insane pricing for the Boillot grand crus given the consistently poor premox performance.

Overall another highly education and fun evening. The wines were incredible and it is always amazing to taste so many great White Burgs side by side.

The food was a big step up from Valentino. Much better plating and more modern, sophisticated style. It’s still a touch plain by design as Don likes to keep it understated compared to the wines (while I, myself, am a bit more forgiving in the name of flavor). Service was excellent.

There is a lot to say about this tasting. The wine service was impeccable, and this is a difficult task (pouring lots of big blind flights). Overall service is absolutely first rate. It’s a large quiet room, and the staff was highly attentive. Celistino is a great host and his menu paired spectacularly.

Don has so many wines that the flights were too large. The first was 9 wines! And several were 8. Really this dinner could use 6 flights, no bigger than 5 wines each and about 6 savory dishes. But it’s a long evening as is, so I can understand why that might be pushing it. We debated going to Killer Noodle or KTown after but we were just a little too tired and full.

A great evening.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: 2011 White Burgundy, Bâtard-Montrachet, BYOG, Celestino Drago, Chevalier-Montrachet, Don Cornwell, Drago Centro, DTLA, Gelato, Paul Sherman, White Burgundy, Wine

On Fire at Charcoal

Apr05

Restaurant: Charcoal Venice [1, 2]

Location: 425 Washington Blvd, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292. (310) 751-6794

Date: March 3, 2019

Cuisine: New American Grill

Rating: Some great meats

Josiah Citrin’s (owner/chef of Melisse) newish more casual eatery has been open for a while — and although I bike past it weekly and went once for brunch, this is my first official dinner visit — and it’s a doozy having been invited by one of the owners for a blow out wine fest.

It’s located on Washington Blvd about 2 blocks in from the ocean.

Inside at night. By the middle of dinner service it was hopping.

2007 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. VM 96. Taittinger’s 2007 Comtes de Champagne will be nearly impossible to resist upon release. Soaring aromatics, mid-weight structure and soft contours give the 2007 its alluring personality. Lemon oil, white flowers, mint, chamomile and green pear add brightness and freshness throughout, with a persistent, clean finish that makes it impossible to resist a second taste. Today, the 2007 comes across as a slightly more open version of the 2004, with freshness that makes that wine so appealing, and a touch of textural richness that recalls the 2002. Although the 2007 does not have the explosive energy or verticality of the profound 2006, it will drink better earlier. The 2007 has been positively brilliant on the three occasions I have tasted it so far.

The menus.

From my cellar: 1985 Nicolas Potel Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes. BH 91. A very fresh yet mature nose of citrus, white flower and lightly toasted nut aromas combines with round and vibrant middle weight flavors that possess a seductive and rich mouth feel, all wrapped in a sappy and mouth coating finish. This is really a lovely effort with complexity and ample finishing punch and is a wine that will continue to hold well if not improve.

2014 Hubert Lamy Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Clos de la Chateniere. JG 91. The 2014 Clos de la Chatenière from Domaine Lamy is another really lovely bottle in the making, wafting from the glass in a blend of apple, a touch of grapefruit, pastry cream, chalky soil tones and a topnote of orange blossoms. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and nicely complex, with a good core, fine focus and grip and a long, nicely reserved finish that closes with a youthful note of citrus peel. Olivier Lamy noted “that we picked this on the earlier side to maintain freshness, as the exposition is plain sud.” A lovely wine.

Sandy, who was with us, is a very “narrow” eater so she added this item, which we otherwise wouldn’t have. Chopped Salad. Tomato, Havarti, Bacon, Grilled Onion, Kalamata Olives, and Jo-Jo’s Vinaigrette. It was fine, but I’m not a chopped salad fan — at least there were no beans.

Oysters on the Half Shell garnished Traditionally and Creatively. I’m not sure what the creative was — or maybe we didn’t have it — but they were good oysters.

Big Eye Tuna Tartare, Avocado, Yuzu vinaigrette.

This is a classic with 25 years of omnipresence on menus in some form or another. Maybe a little too much avocado for my taste (hiding the tuna).

It came with sweet potato chips.

1994 Joseph Phelps Insignia. Parker 98. The 1994 boasts an inky/purple color along with a glorious nose of black raspberries, blackberries and black currants that is still somewhat primary despite nearly 18 years in bottle. The Phelps team kept this cuvee in 100% new French oak for 28 months. Its magnificent structure, intensity and purity of fruit, ripeness, balance combined with authoritative power and the magnetic appeal of this full-bodied, Bordeaux-styled wine are extraordinary. This amazing effort is just coming into its best years, and should drink well for at least another 15-20 years.

VM 93. Healthy bright, dark red. Captivating aromas of raspberry, tobacco, truffle and smoke are distinctly darker than those of the 1990. Wonderfully suave, fine-grained wine with superb intensity and retention of dark fruit flavors. Harmonious acidity and a firm tannic spine give this wine noteworthy thrust and extend the finish. The wine’s 10% Merlot component was partly from the cooler Hudson and Hyde vineyards in Carneros. This impeccably balanced wine remains remarkably fresh.

Yarom brought: 1995 Colgin Cabernet Sauvignon Herb Lamb. VM 97. The 1995 Cabernet Sauvignon Herb Lamb is a bit juicier and more overt than the 1997 tasted alongside it in this flight. Forward, juicy and supple, but not at all over the top, the 1995 is a gorgeous wine from this late-ripening site on Howell Mountain. At twenty years of age, the 1995 Herb Lamb is fabulous. Its only real fault is following the 1997 in this tasting.

Smoky Grilled Chicken Wings. Oregano, Chili, and Vinegar. Nice wings. Lots of good meaty flavor.

Smoked Lamb Ribs. These were AWESOME. I don’t have lamb ribs that often but these were some of the best ribs period I’ve had. Tons of savory flavor.

Ron brought: 1995 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Landonne. Parker 99+. One of the treats when tasting through the profound Côte Rôties made by Marcel Guigal was the opportunity to taste all of the bottled 1995’s. Reviewed in previous issues, they are even better from bottle than they were during their upbringing (a characteristic of many Guigal wines). The 1995 Côte Rôtie la Landonne is the stuff of legends and is every bit as compelling as readers might expect. This single vineyard wine will have at least 2 decades of longevity.

M 97+. Deep ruby-red. More sauvage aromas of black raspberry, blueberry, tar, mocha, minerals, mace and roasted game. Superconcentrated and powerful, with a near-solid texture. One of those rare wines that seems almost too big for the mouth. Finishes with huge, toothfurring-but-ripe tannins and great persistence.

From my cellar: 2003 E. Guigal Ermitage Ex-Voto. Parker 100! Another perfect wine is the 2003 Hermitage Ex Voto and it’s the most over-the-top, decadent and hedonistic Ex Voto ever produced. From Les Bessards, l’Hermite, Greffieux and les Murets and aged 4 years in 100% new French oak, it offers off-the-charts concentration and texture as well as layers of creme de cassis, smoke meats, licorice, spice-box and spring flowers. Voluptuous, sweetly fruited and yet, like all great wines, still lively, fresh and graceful. It will have half a century or more of life.

VM 96-97. Bright, full, saturated ruby. Explosive aromas of black raspberry, blackberry and licorice, with a suggestion of medicinal austerity. Then raw and primary but incredibly thick, with a richness verging on port-like. Almost too big for the mouth. Actually more of a fruit bomb on the nose today and altogether more serious on the palate. If the 2003 La Landonne is an essence of syrah, this is an essence of Hermitage. Truly a black hole of a wine: there’s virtually no sign of the new oak, and the wine has a sappiness that belies its pH of close to 4. 0. Philippe says the Guigals were the first to harvest Hermitage in 2003, and yet this wine is a whopping 15. 5% alcohol!

2003 M. Chapoutier Ermitage l’Ermite. Parker 100! More youthful and backwards, the 2003 Ermitage L’Ermite has additional minerality, as well as the focus and purity that’s always imparted by this tiny lieu-dit. Inky purple in color, it offers up spectacular creme de cassis, blackberry, charred meats, graphite and toast as well as a full-bodied, massively concentrated profile on the palate. It’s a prodigious, insanely good wine that should be given another 2-3 years in the cellar, and enjoyed over the following two to three decades.

VM 97. Medium ruby. Dense, powerful, imploded aromas of blackberry, creme de cassis, coffee liqueur, pipe tobacco and smoked meat. The texture of this wine is impossibly lush and velvety, and the superconcentrated, sweet essence-of-dark-berry flavors are also incredibly lively. Wonderfully sweet, lush and endless on the finish. You’d need a squeegee to remove this from your palate.

Special Quail. I don’t think this was on a menu. Everything was in this incredible (and rich) reduction sauce. There were potatoes and root vegetables too. Delicious!

Coal Roasted Carrots. Sheep’s Milk Ricotta, Herbs, Honey and Black Pepper. Very nice carrots and I liked the cheese too.

2002 Abreu Cabernet Sauvignon Madrona Ranch. Parker 96. The 2003 Madrona Ranch, which is largely Cabernet Sauvignon, possesses a freshness that almost belies the vintage character. Its dense purple color is just beginning to reveal some garnet. The nose exhibits abundant floral notes intermixed with notions of blueberries, black raspberries and licorice-infused cassis. Graceful, elegant, and close to full maturity, it is drinking beautifully, displaying secondary nuances, a supple, full-bodied texture and a lush, layered mouthfeel. There is not a bit of aggressiveness, and the tannins, wood and alcohol (14.5%) are all beautifully integrated. As one might expect, this is one of the vintage’s superstars. Drink it over the next 10-15 years.

96 points. Deep ruby, dark fruit, med. tannins, long finish; delicious, but out shone by the 05 Spottswoode, possibly related to a longer decant. I suspect this wine is still evolving & it needs more time or a longer decant; delicious!

2002 Hundred Acre Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Kayli Morgan Vineyard. Parker 100! The 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Kayli Morgan Vineyard is medium to deep garnet colored with Black Forest cake, plums preserves and crème de cassis bursting forth from the glass with hints of blueberry compote, hoisin, espresso and star anise with wafts of potpourri and oolong tea. The palate is full-bodied, rich and beautifully plush, with tons of spicy fireworks lifting the sexy black fruit, finishing with amazing length and depth.

VM 94. Bright red-ruby. Very ripe aromas of chocolate, saddle leather, cigar tobacco, earth, truffle and tomato. Fat and warm but with a solid mineral underpinning to the flavors of plum, mocha and spices. Large-scaled, plush and seamless but not heavy, this deep wine finishes with substantial dusty tannins. For all its ripeness, there’s sound acidity here. Still, this huge wine would be best paired with winter fare. The brooding finish features lingering notes of cherry and cooked meat and building tannins.

2002 Paul Hobbs Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard. Parker 100! One of the greatest young Cabernet Sauvignons I have ever tasted is the 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard (which I also rated 100 when it was first bottled). This wine has hardly changed since its release. Still incredibly youthful, it reveals a blue/black color along with notes of black currants, camphor, graphite, high quality unsmoked cigar tobacco, blackberries and a touch of oak. Full-bodied and multilayered with terrific texture and richness as well as a 60-second finish, this young, exuberant, slightly flamboyant classic offers an interesting contrast in style with other top producers (such as Schrader Cellars) that also farm parcels of the Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard. Like most young Cabernets, this wine can be drunk now because of the sweetness of its tannins, but it is a good decade away from full maturity. It should last until 2040-2050. Bravo!

VM 93. Good saturated ruby. Superripe aromas of cassis, black raspberry, bitter chocolate and licorice; less herbal than this producer’s other cabernets from this vintage. A fine-grained fruit bomb, with a captivating sweetness. This really expands on the back half yet dances on the palate. The lush tannins reach the incisors.

21 Day Aged Half Liberty Duck. This was insanely good. Probably the best non-Chinese duck I’ve had. Crispy skin, but a tangy/sweet flavor too.

Cabbage Baked in the Embers. Yogurt, Sumac, and Lemon Zest. Great cabbage. Nice char flavor and interesting texture. Paired perfectly with the yogurt.

This giant (very young) Salt also doesn’t get a write up because it again lamely omits the year.

2015 Sine Qua Non Syrah Trouver l’Arene. VM 97. A real head-turner, the 2015 Syrah Trouver l’Arène is every bit as compelling from bottle as it was from barrel. Rich, sumptuous and exquisitely layered, the 2015 possesses magnificent concentration as it builds in the glass. Inky dark blue/purplish berry fruit, graphite, smoke, licorice and spice are some of the many nuances that develop in an arrestingly beautiful, vivid Syrah that will thrill those fortunate enough to find it. The blend is 80.5% Syrah, 7% Petite Sirah, 7% Mourvedre, 2% Grenache and 3.5% Viognier, done with 34% whole clusters and aged for 22 months in 48% new oak.

I have learned to photo the back of SQN — even though, again, it’s totally lame of them not to put the vintage on the front.

Giant bone in rib eye. This was good, but not as good as most of the other meat dishes.

Steak Fries with Ketchup, Mustard.

Charred Brussels Sprouts. Wheat Berries, Portobello, Calabrian Chili, Duck Egg. Nice sprouts, particularly for not having bacon.

Roasted Wild Mushrooms. Parsley Bread Crumbs, Fermented Garlic Dressing.

The dessert menu.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Crunch Cake. McConnell’s Double Peanut Butter Chip Ice Cream. The cake was awesome. Really nice moist cake. I’m just so spoiled with ice cream (it’s not gelato) that this would have been incredible with a straight up “salty peanut gelato” from Sweet Milk.

Lemon Meringue Tart. Awesome. I love LMT and this one was great.

Apple Crumble, McConnell’s Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Don’t love oats.

Apple Turnovers. Like Strudel.

The wines tonight were big, but incredible. For what it’s worth, we had five Parker 100s!

Our host on the left with Sandy.

I was impressed by our meal here. Not everything was perfect, but some of the dishes: duck, cabbage, lamb ribs, and quail were exceptional and most of the rest really good. A couple were a bit flat (like the chopped salad or tuna, but how exciting is a chopped salad anyway?). The name, Charcoal, implies wood cooked, and they deliver on that promise with an experience that has a bit of a non-Spanish Asador feel.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: beef, Charcoal, Dessert, hedonists, lamb, Rhone, Venice, Wine

Molten Lava Goodness

Apr01

Restaurant: Shancheng Lameizi

Location: Mandarin Plaza. 18932 Gale Ave, Rowland Heights, CA 91748. (626) 581-8808

and 1530 S San Gabriel Blvd, San Gabriel, CA 91776. (626) 766-1700

Date: March 7 and March 26 and May 7 and June 22 and December 27, 2019

Cuisine: Szechuan Hot Pot

Rating: Best Hot Pot restaurant I’ve been to

On the middle night of my 3 day class trip to the SGV Yarom made the trek out east to join me for what Erick and Skylar said is the best new Chongqing style hot pot.

They describe themselves on their website thusly:

Our secret recipes of the soup base all come from Chongqing, so that our customers can taste the authentic flavor of hot pot from that mountain city. Apart from that, more than twenty kinds of free special snacks also attract many diners and lead to our good reputation, making the company prosper in the dining industry for more than twenty years. Our tenet of providing quality and comfortable service also makes every one of our customers “come with joy and leave with satisfaction”. Our specialties are delicious, rich-flavored and good for your calcium supplement. Their functions of skin care and regulating Qi and blood are also good for your health. Our soup is daily fresh-made.

This branch (there are a couple) is located in busy Mandarin plaza. There are like 15-20 Asian places out here and we are returning in the summer for a crawl.

There is even a bit of outside decor.

Check it out, they spent some actual money.

There is even an outside hot pot patio! (the tables have the built in hot pots). I’ve never seen this before.

Inside has a cute bit of decor, and tiny Chinese girl sized booths. We were initially offered a 2 person booth like the near one on the right — Yarom and I, being neither a couple nor particularly petite waited for a four person sized table.

Then 2 weeks later I was out in the SGV by myself picking up some gelato equipment and decided to try out the Alhambra branch. Similar elaborate building — I didn’t see the patio, but friends say it’s there. I went back again 5/7/19 too because this place is just that good.

Inside has another of these “fancy” Chinese decors that would cost an American 3 million but probably only cost them $300,000.

They have the best “sauce bar” I have ever seen, although you have to pay $1.50 a person for it. It includes more than just sauce like these snacks (which I didn’t eat).

More snacks.

Dessert. Very Chinese. Bean stuff sesame balls. Kinda dry and not worth the carbs.

More snacks. Peanuts, dried lima beans, etc. These were good. Shrimp chips.

Not sure what all these were. Some red beans. Some weird mysterious sweet things. Like those sperm on the left. Kinda gelatinous and sweet.

This is the main sauce components (there were a few others, not pictured, like garlic, peanuts, etc. This stuff was awesome. So many different super Chinese fermented spice flavors.

Very detailed pan across of all the sauce components!

Various toppings to add into your sauce mixes. The soy sauces, vinegar, oils are separated out.

Never heard of this oils, which makes it cool.

You fill out the menu while waiting.

From my cellar: NV Philipponnat Champagne Royale Réserve Rosé Brut. BH 92. A moderately fruity nose reflects notes of cherry, strawberry, raspberry, yeast and a subtle citrus nuance. There is a really lovely sense of energy to the delicious, round and nicely voluminous flavors that are shaped by a moderately fine effervescence that carries over to a lingering and solidly complex finish that is drier than the 9 g/L of dosage would suggest. One of the aspects that I particularly like here is that unlike many examples of rosé that tend to be prettier than they are deep, there has very good depth. Like the Royale Réserve, this could easily be held for further aging but it is so attractive now that there is no particular reason to do so.

agavin: perfect hot hot pot pairing

I developed 3 sauce blends. This is the “light” blend with a lot of vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, and various fermented flavors. Trying to be vinegar heavy.

This is the “meat” blend with a lot of peanut, sesame, and other spicy fermented flavors. Very thick and and heavy but delicious with the meat.

A different day’s sesame based blend.

This was a “fermented” flavor. Tons of peppers and every weird fermented chili thing I could find. Interesting and delicious.

And another take on fermented flavor of death. I added every type of chili oil and everything fermented.

Sauce refills.

Crispy Pork Appetizer. I really wanted to order some pork rind like things I saw on another table, but ended up with these, basically like the fried pork chunks that are in a good version of the sweet and sour pork. Pretty delicious actually. Like pork tenders.

We got the hot pot split with bone broth and super spicy Szechuan hot pot (the slurry of melted ox fat, chilies, and peppercorns). I asked for max heat. They also have a 9 way split but it’s more so people can have their own area. They only have 2 broths.

Starting to heat up.

Furious boil (on the left).

Video of it boiling.

On request, you can even get a branded bib — I highly recommend you do!

Certified Angus Beef Short Rib. Very nice meat.

On top was Lamb Shoulder. Also really good.

Fatty Beef Belly — richer!

Some other meat.

Streaky Pork. Thicker and full of flavor.

Meatball Combo (beef? and a fish ball).

Tofu Combo. Lighter and heavier tofu.

Rice cakes. Carby but great texture.

Vegetable combo. Various cabbage and greens. These are really good sauce vehicles and helped wash things down.

Some root vegetables.

Yarom brought this Cab from the night before — still in awesome shape and strong enough to overcome the heat.

On top, Special Luncheon Pork (spam). So good we had three orders! Below was Mini Sausage which have a lot of flavor and open up when cooked.

Raw Pig brain! Yeah, it’s really scary. I made sure to cook it really really well.

Chicken gizzard. Very very chewy. Can’t say I would recommend.

Spongey mushroom with shrimp. Surprisingly delicious. Interesting spongey texture too.

Fish Filet. Chunks of thick deboned whole fish that you drop in — in my case into the spicy side — to get that Szechuan boiled fish effect.

Mushroom combo to add even more fiber to the mix — plus one of our extra luncheon meats.

Wood ear mushroom. I love these guys.

Special baby bamboo shoot (5/7/19). On one of my return trips they had added LOTS of specials, including all sorts of intestines. I skipped those and got this sheet of delicious fiber — along with the mushrooms and chili oil keeps one fully regular. Notice that I again ordered the baloney.

Lotus root. Always add some nice texture to a hot pot.

You can order fried or white rice if you like.

The girls next door ordered quite differently with quail eggs, bean curd, and PIG BRAIN!

The bill is 100% in Chinese!

Overall, this was probably the best Szechuan style hot pot I’ve had, up there with my friend Wendy’s epic home cooked New Years hot pot (which isn’t spicy, but had really good stuff). I think Shancheng Lameizi was actually better than the place we went in Chengdu and definitely a little better than my local favorite Hai di Lao. The atmosphere was very Chinese, the ingredient quality was excellent, service good, they allowed us to open our wine ($10 corkage, which they might not have even charged), the broth, particularly the spicy broth was insanely good, and the sauce bar was unparalleled for blending weird intense Chinese flavors. Now, do bear in mind, that given the super spicy soup base, and my thick chili laden slurry of sauces that what goes in the pot is largely about texture. lol.

Apparently there is a branch at Valley and San Gabriel, right near the Crack House, Shaanxi Garden, etc. When I went 2 weeks later it was just as good! Very crowded at lunch too (and this is a HEAVY lunch!). I’ve now been at least 5 times and it’s always great.

Oh, and do bear in mind that hot pot like this is a form of high fat “cleanse.” As they say at Killer Noodle, “mind your bottom!”

For my catalog of Chinese restaurant reviews, click here.

This minimall is hilarious. Tons of different places. Don’t know what this kind of BBQ is (appears to be a Chinese take on Yakitori), but the slogan is amusing.

This old school 50s or 60s place has become a Benihana clone — but more Chinese.

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: beef, Chinese cuisine, hot pot, pig brains, pork, Sichuan, spicy, Szechuan Hot Pot, Yarom

Quick Eats – Earthen

Mar29

Restaurant: Earthen Restaurant

Location: 1639 S Azusa Ave. Hacienda Heights, CA 91745. (626) 964-1570

Date: March 6, 2019

Cuisine: Taiwanese Chinese

Rating: Solid goodness

This week I had a 2 day gelato making course in Walnut, right in the heart of the eastern SGV (Hacienda Heights) and since I was staying over of course I took the opportunity to hit up some extra great Chinese.

Earthen is in the same mini-mall as the awesome Shanghailander Palace.

The inside is typical of these newer cafe type Chinese places. “Some” build out, as opposed to the older ones with absolutely none, but not much maintenance. They have no liquor license so it’s not a good spot for a wine dinner. But it was perfect for a quick solo dinner.

Hot and soup soup. I just had the feeling that this old comfort food from my youth would hit the spot. And this was a nice version of the classic. I actually ate pretty much this ENTIRE 4 person bowl (small) myself. It wasn’t the best hot and sour ever, but it was quite good, maybe an 8. Had the texture form the soft bean curd, egg, and the slightly crunchy bamboo and stringy mushrooms. Nice and tangy.

House special cold chicken. Like Hainan chicken with a garlic soy sauce. Cold but succulent. Bone is still all in there, Chinese style. Not a strong flavor, but very pleasant.

Garlic shrimp. I really shouldn’t have gotten a fried dish, but I LOVE this tangy garlic sauce type. It’s a bit of the way toward a sweet and sour sauce. Sticky. It would have been good without the breading too. Certainly tasted good with it — although I didn’t need the carbs.

Earthen hit the spot. All three dishes were quite delicious Taiwanese comfort foods. I do think they use a good bit of MSG as I felt it for the next couple hours afterward. Not a big surprise. Technically they were supposed to be open to 10pm and I had planned to slide in there at 9:15ish on my way out to the area, but fortunately I made good time as they closed at 9 and I was the last customer.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chicken, Chinese cuisine, Hot & Sour Soup, SGV, Taiwanese Cuisine

Date Night at Madeo

Mar27

Restaurant: Madeo

Location: 362 N Camden Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210. (310) 859-4903

Date: March 1, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Good, and a scene, but pricey

My wife and I are always casting out for the intersection of our tastes on our date nights and it had been forever (at least a decade, probably more) since I was at:

Madeo — which has (I think temporarily) moved to Camden from their longstanding location. This is an LA mainstay medium old school Italian. The menu is fairly 80-90s high end Italian like Toscana.

The scene was off the hook. Very crowded with lots of “celebrity types” (looked like menu music industry people). There were also A LOT of heavy age gap couples — like the dark haired heavy dude in the far left (looked like 50s) and his early 20s date. They were making out in case one wondered if it was a different relationship.

From my cellar: NV Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Extra Brut Extra Old. 90 points. Bone white! Tiny consistent bubbles.
Crushed bone, slate, minerals, oyster shell. Bone dry, medium finish, super high minerality. Bracing. An excellent value bubble. Better than the regular.

Pizza bread just like at Toscana.

Salmone Fresco Alle Erbe. Fresh salmon carpaccio with fresh herbs.

Carpaccio. Filet mignon, carpaccio, served with artichokes, parmigiano cheese and rucola. Very solid traditional carpaccio.

Rigatoni Mozzarella E Pomodoro. Diced eggplant and fresh mozzarella in a tomato sauce. My wife liked it, which is what matters.

Cacciucco. Fresh seafood soup in tomato sauce. Broth was good, if slightly salty and not a huge amount of it. Lots of good seafood, although it did have a pretty briny “seafood” smell. Really a mussels smell. I’ve had better, but this was a very respectable version of this dish.

Overall, service was very good at Madeo, and it’s quite a scene. Food was good, but for the price, not as good as I thought it should have been. I like Toscana’s food better and they are very similar style (if a tiny bit less of a scene).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Champagne, Date Night, Italian Cusine, Madeo, scene

Thirds at Majordomo

Mar22

Restaurant: Majordomo [1, 2, 3]

Location: 1725 Naud St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (323) 545-4880

Date: February 28, 2019

Cuisine: Korean Fusion

Rating: Big dishes amazing

It’s with gigantic expectation that NY restaurateur David Chang opened his first LA outpost last year and since then it’s become a regular foodie and wine destination among my friends. Tonight 6 of us core Foodie Club guys head on out for another great evening.

Looking on the map, I was pretty skeptical of the weird between Chinatown and Dodger’s Stadium location — a totally annoying spot for me to get to during traffic! Two brutal hours!

The area is extremely warehousey, much like the “Arts District” but even newer. This particular time, dropping off at night, we joked about our life expectancy.

The have a sort of hipster city built down here out of old warehouses.

With lots of bespoke graffiti.

And Majordomo, of course.

Which has a pretty big enclosed and outside space (which we ate in this third time). Have to say, the outside space was actually preferable. Less crowded and quieter.

As you can see.

Inside is one of those cavernous loud warehouse spaces.

High naked ceilings. Don’t come here when it’s raining! They also have the currently hip bathroom setup with the coed shared sinks exposed out in the main room. Not my thing. What if you want to clean up in private?

Tonight’s menu.

From my cellar: 2007 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. VM 96. Taittinger’s 2007 Comtes de Champagne will be nearly impossible to resist upon release. Soaring aromatics, mid-weight structure and soft contours give the 2007 its alluring personality. Lemon oil, white flowers, mint, chamomile and green pear add brightness and freshness throughout, with a persistent, clean finish that makes it impossible to resist a second taste. Today, the 2007 comes across as a slightly more open version of the 2004, with freshness that makes that wine so appealing, and a touch of textural richness that recalls the 2002. Although the 2007 does not have the explosive energy or verticality of the profound 2006, it will drink better earlier. The 2007 has been positively brilliant on the three occasions I have tasted it so far.

Bing is this Korean bread thing. Pretty much like a thick crepe or pita bread. They have various “toppings” you can get with the bing.

We got some free shaved chilled poultry liver.

Spicy Lamb. The lamb was vaguely Greek/Turkish or something with the yogurt and the stewed meat quality. Yummy though. The eggs were more complex and pretty excellent. You mash it up a bit to get the roe, egg, chips etc on the bing. I put the ham on at the same time for max effect and it was very good.

Eggs & Smoked Roe bing. This was pretty excellent. You mash it up a bit to get the roe, egg, chips etc on the bing. I actually skipped the bing itself this time in a vain effort to avoid some carbs.

Jacob brought: 1996 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne. BH 93. A stunning nose that offer simply wonderful complexity leads to racy, pure, intense and mineral-laden flavors of real length. This is an elegant wine that will require many years to come together completely even from a regular 750 ml bottle. An extremely pretty wine and one of Latour’s best recent efforts with this wine. Mostly consistent notes though I should point out that another recent magnum seemed a bit thin on the mid-palate and while the essential character remained the same, it didn’t have the same buffering material that the wine described above did.

Fried Cauliflower. Fish sauce vinaigrette, red onion, cilantro. Cauliflower is the new Brussels Sprout. But I actually love the vegetable and particularly when paired with acid like this.

Stuffed Peppers. Benton’s sack sausage, buttermilk ranch. Hehe, I said sack. These are like Jalepeno poppers — sort of. Shishito poppers.

Fried Oxtail. Salsa seca, chili, peanuts. Very interesting and different dish. You gnaw the bone for the meat. Then it was covered with the breakfast granola-textured but vaguely Chinese flavored pile of goodness. Great texture too. Like spicy trail-mix.

Kirk brought: 2011 Sine Qua Non The Moment. VM 93. Bright yellow-gold. Ripe pear, creme brulee and candied ginger on the powerfully scented nose, with notes of anise and smoky lees adding complexity. Pliant but focused candied citrus and orchard fruit flavors gain weight with air, picking up a dried fig nuance. The pear and smoke notes carry through a smooth, palate-staining and strikingly long finish that shows surprising vivacity. This wine was raised in a combination of concrete eggs, new French oak, used barrels and stainless steel tanks.

agavin: Rhone style. Kirk likes to bring these.

Uni pasta special. Always amazing and a good pairing with the Rhone style wine.

Walker brought: 1998 Prunotto Barolo. VM 89. Moderately saturated medium red. Flinty aromas of marzipan, underbrush and violet. Fat, sweet and smooth; this is quite accessible already. Solidly structured wine with nicely buffered tannins. Still a bit youthfully aggressive but tasty right now.

agavin: sadly our bottle was gone.

Walker brought: 1971 Fratelli Revello Barolo. Nice and still in good shape.

Mafaldine. Dungeness crab, bread crumbs, lemon. Mafaldine twice in a week or two! This one had a less tripe-like texture. Blew my “no carbs” thing for the night (along with the uni and several other dishes).

Warm Raclette cheese. This was for some other dish but they just gave us some on the house!

Erick brought: 1996 Sylvain Cathiard Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Malconsorts. BH 88. There is still enough wood to notice on the attractively spicy dark berry fruit nose that reflects moderate secondary development. There is good detail and vibrancy to the middle weight flavors that suffer from a slightly hole on the mid-palate before culminating in a mildly edgy if persistent finish. The edge to which I am referring is not astringent or excessively acidic yet there is clearly an element that is not as well-integrated as it might be. In sum, this is pretty enough but it lacks the concentration it needs to avoid its shortcomings.

agavin: sometimes Allen Meadows is insane. This wine was much better than 88, maybe like 93 (Burg 93).

From my cellar: 2003 Gros Frère et Sœur Grands-Echezeaux. BH 89-92. This too is very toasty but the spicy black fruit nose manages to transcend the wood and complements powerful, dense, borderline massive flavors of superb depth, all wrapped in dusty, firm and ripe tannins. This is a big wine and while it’s no model of elegance, one has to admire the muscle and sheer concentration. This will take its time coming around.

Roasted Duck Crispy Rice. Citrus, dates, turnips.

There was a kind of “jus” that was poured in.

Then it was all mixed up — amazing fried rice. Loved the egg in it too.

Smoked Cabbage. Brown butter, macadamia. We would have sworn that this excellent cabbage dish had bacon in it — but no, it was just the smoked factor — awesome!

Kirk brought: 1999 Cavallotto Barolo Riserva Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe. VM 95. A powerful, imposing brute, the 1999 Barolo Riserva Bricco Boschis Vigna San Giuseppe blasts across the palate with serious intensity. Next to the Vignolo, the San Giuseppe comes across as lacking finesse, but it is still super-impressive. Melted road tar, smoke, licorice, plums and black cherries race across the palate in a pulsating, tense Barolo that is all about structure. Readers who like virile, imposing Barolos will flip out over the 1999. Today, the only real competition comes from the Vignolo, Cavallotto’s other Riserva.

If you go, you must order this even though it’s very expensive! Whole Plate Short Rib (4-6 people). Smoked bone-in APL-style ribs. Served with beef rice, shiso rice paper, ssämjang & condiments.

The huge chunk of Texas style cow comes out on the cart with the stuff.

Lettuce wraps — yay, no carbs.

Rice paper for those who don’t mind.

Kimchee, pickled daikon, and a spicy Korean paste that is delicious and salty.

The “thin sliced” mode, which was amazingly flavorful. The fattier end cap slices which were to die for tender.

And the knaw on the bone for extra flavor bones.

And some of it goes back into the kitchen and emerges as beef fried rice — crazy good.

Jacob brought: NV Gosset Champagne Grand Rosé Brut.

They always have a shave ice (modernized Korean). This one had various exotic fruits and was light and delicious. Very refreshing.

A banana chocolate pudding. Not bad, even though I hate banana.

This time, no cake cutting fee for my BYOG. The staff loved it too!

Apricot Aperol Sorbetto – This is an old RnR favorite but I haven’t made it a while. Apricots from Avignon — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #sorbetto #apricot #aperol

Noce e Heath Gelato – trying out my new Northern Italian Walnut I decided it needed something else, and something sweet, so Heath bar seemed to fit the bill — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #walnut #noce #HeathBar #heath #toffee

Danish Lakrids Licorice Gelato – I haven’t made this in 2 years and wanted to update the recipe. Polarizing, but surprisingly addictive — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #lakrids licorice #LoveItOrHateIt

and a tiny bit of:

Strawberry Basil Hendrick’s Sorbetto – Strawberry and Hendrick’s Gin Sorbetto laced with Fresh Basil. Strawberries from Avignon — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #sorbetto #strawberry #basil #Hendricks #Gin #cocktail

The wine lineup.

Overall, we had a great time at Majordomo. You do need a decent sized party for the awesome large dishes and you need to preorder. One time, even when we got there at 6:45pm there were only 1 each of the beef and pork left!

The service and wine service were both spectacular. I was really surprised as these loud hipster places often don’t have good wine service but we were really taken care of and this added a lot to the evening. We had a great (large) table in the back corner of the patio and a huge unused table next to it for our gear, wines, etc. They were super attentive. Really unusually good service for this level.

The larger pre-order dishes like the rib and chicken are amazing and insane. Tonight the food seemed even better than the first time, even if we did have a lot of (delicious) carbs. Pastas and the fried rice were amazing too. Really liking everything about Majordomo other than the distance to get there.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: bbq, BYOG, David Chang, DTLA, Foodie Club, Gelato, Majordomo, ribs, Wine

Game of Thrones 1-7 Rewatch

Mar20

I just finished my full binge rewatch of all seven existing seasons of Game of Thrones — in preparation, of course, for the April debut of the final season. I wanted to offer some thoughts on the show as a whole, instead of the detailed episode by episode analysis I usually do. Bear in mind that I’ve watched many of these episodes 6-8 times (particularly the first 2-3 seasons) and read the books 3 times. However, it’s been 3 or 4 years since I did a big watch on the show, maybe a bit more, so it wasn’t too fresh (a good thing). Seasons 6 and 7 I only watched once previously when they were released (with maybe an episode or two watched twice).

I’ll just make a series of observations based on this watch. It took me about 4 weeks to view all 67 episodes (Feb 13 – Mar 18, 2019). There were a couple big binges in there, particularly season 7 which was all one day.

It’s hard to say if GOT or Buffy the Vampire Slayer is now my favorite television show of all time. Let’s just call them tied. Clearly GOT is far less dated but 7 full watches later Buffy is still a work of art. The slot just below them goes to Madmen.
You can really feel the budget ratchet up, particularly starting with season 4. Big events in season 1 and 2, namely the large scale battles, feel skimpy by the standards we have grown accustomed to. For example, Tyrion’s season 1 battle and the Battle of the Whispering Wood and even the season 2 Battle of Blackwater Bay. Large scale (CG) troop action is avoided for cost reasons. In the first few seasons some FX shots look a bit fake whereas they are seamless from season 4 on. An example would be Dany and her dragons at the end of season 1 or her “destruction” of the House of the Undying in season 2.
GRRM’s general pattern of oscillating the fortunes of each character in a slightly random sinusoidal pattern is more evident (and just as brilliant) when taken in bulk. Take a major character like Tyrion. His fortunes rise, hit setbacks, rise, then fall, then rise, then fall. Each of these individual notes (given the number of characters) combines in an orchestra like effect to form the whole.
He also really knows how to put characters to the test with really tough choices. They are often really really difficult. From Jaime’s simple choice in episode 1 to be caught with Cersei or push Bran out the window to Theon’s torturous decision as to whether to stay at Winterfell and die vs crawl home a coward. Each major character is confronted again and again with these breaking points.
As with the books, Season 1 still has the most dramatic and complex narrative. Really A Game of Thrones is a near perfect novel. GRRM’s ability to introduce such a vast range of characters, detailed world, and tell such a complex story is brilliant. Dany’s narrative in S1 / AGOT mirrors the whole season and is perfect rise and fall and rebirth.
Season 2 and to a slightly lessor extent 3 suffer the most relative to the books. A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords are nearly as good as A Game of Thrones and yet much larger. Compressing these two chunks of the narrative into one season each, when it probably needed 2.5-3 total makes season 2 in particular feel rushed. Watching it as a binge it’s less noticeable, but there is a lot of good stuff touched on, but not fully realized.
If seasons 1-3 are probably slightly inferior to the books, seasons 4-6 generally handle the material from A Feast of Crows and A Dance of Dragons better than the source novels. Both these novels suffer from terrible editing of the different narrative streams and the addition of useless and boring POV characters like Damphair and the forgotten extra heirs (2 sets?) who travel to Dany and get torched. Yes, the show’s Dorne narrative is weak, but at least it’s pretty short and gives Jaime and Bronn some banter.
Season 7 was better on this rewatch and felt a bit less rushed.
- Still there were some stupid decisions like the whole idiot plan to grab a live wight (losing the dragon).
- Also the narrative attempt to “fool” us with regard to Sansa and Arya’s relationship felt forced and an unusual distortion of the usually straightforward (show) POV.
- The season is nearly one continuous set of character reunions / dramatic first meetings (heroes and villains alike). But they nearly all work — even the “band of brothers” north of the wall.
The binge watching helps to smooth over the uneven episode presence of different characters. For example, Dany often disappears for an episode or two, particularly in season 2 or 3. Watched week to week this is very noticeable but all together not a big deal.
GOT has a tremendous number of characters and we can break them into a few tiers: A level (book POV characters like Dany, Jon, Tyrion, Arya, Sansa, Ned, Theon, Cersei, Davos, Jamie etc), B level (extremely important non POV characters like the Hound, Drogo, Littlefinger, Varys, Jorah, Ygritte, Tywin, the Red Lady), C level (memorable minor characters like Ser Roderick, Jaqen H’ghar, Gendry, the Sand Snakes, etc), and D level bit players. The books have vastly more C and D level characters. The show generally merges and minimizes many of the D level characters and promotes nearly everyone in the C and B level upward.
- Even the A characters have their narratives smoothed out. Due to a combination of Martin’s heavy POV style and his terrible breakdown for books 4 and 5 (discussed a bit here) the “pacing” of the individual character narratives is much better in the show. A perfect example would be Theon. He’s more or less always present in the show, even if his role in the first half of season 1 is minor. In the books, after his capture by Ramsay, he just vanishes for several books, then reappears in a narrative trick much later. The reconstruction of the Reek narrative over seasons 3 and 4 bridges this and keeps him relevant.
- B level characters of high importance like the Hound, Littlefinger, Varys, Jorah, Bronn etc get a huge promotion and much more development than in the books where the gap between POV and not POV is tremendous. A role for them is often found in parts of the story where Martin left them out.
- The ability of actors to add depth even during short performances (for example, Syrio Forel — but there are many others) breaths life into some of the C level characters. Others are are merged or given more involved stories like Gendry.
- Some of the irrelevant D level characters like those in the one off POV prologues lose out — but this is a wise choice.
Occasional weird recasting:
- The Mountain (3 actors!) is poorly handled (in season 2). Actors 1 and 3 are more or less interchangeable, but the decision to go with a tall skinny guy for season 2 sucks and would almost certainly make novice viewers not even realize this incarnation of the character is the same person.
- The Dario recasting is odd too, although I like the second Dario better.
Bran ages the most poorly of all the characters. He just looks (and once he’s the raven) acts so different. I know this later is on purpose, but you do feel like you’ve lost him.
It’s amazing how much emotional impact some characters that have very little overall time in the narrative have, for example Ned, Robert, Oberyn, and even Viserys.
Because I watch a TON of British period television, I constantly notice how GOT uses nearly every common BBC actor. Even minor little ones. And of course the batch overlap with certain shows like Rome (Mance, Ellaria Sand, Tobias Menzies), Skins (Gendry, Gilly), Iron Fist (Loras, Nym) and I’m sure more.
There are a couple of oddball castings/performances:
- Mace Tyrell is so broad and comic
- The Sand Snakes are so lame, particularly Obara. And I love Jessica Henwick in the Iron Fist — but she’s lame here. Speaking of, early (more swishy) Loras and Danny Rand are barely recognizable as the same actor.
The “sexposition” ratchets down after the first few seasons, although there is still some tendency to throw in gratuitous nudity even in later seasons. By gratuitous, I’m not talking about the love scenes, but for example, in the Season 6, the theatrical troupe is half naked back stage (and a bit on stage). Not that I mind, but in a mixed gender setting this would never happen in the middle ages — East or West. Perhaps among slaves in the ancient world.
Because Croatia (namely Dubrovnik and Split and environs) feature so prominently as filming locations, all/most of the cities have a seaside that looks a bit Adriatic. Or Irish (like in the case of Pyke). Or Spanish (Dragonstone, Dorne). This leads Kings Landing, Bravos, and Meereen to have some considerable overlap in visual style, particularly with the coastal view, general terrain, and grey stone streets. If they had shot Meereen in the middle east or something this could have been avoided, but the show has a lot of filming locations as it is.
GOT borrows liberally from all across history. A bit of history’s great hits. George R. R. Martin does it in the books and the show does it even more (as it continues the trend on a visual and stylistic level). The series is rife with out of time historical borrows/allusions. Below are a few ancient references repurposed into this largely medieval setting:
- Arya’s presenting Frey with the pie containing his sons’ is reminiscent of Herodotus describing the Persian king Cambyses as serving his enemies their dead children.
- The Titan of Bravos is borrowed from the Colossus of Rhodes.
- The architectural style of Old Town’s Citadel is copied directly from the Lighthouse of Alexandria (a second wonder of the Ancient World).
- As many of the scenes were filmed in the Palace of Diocletian, they have a Roman feel. As does the Dragonpit which is obviously old Roman construction because of the telltale Roman brickwork (looking it up, it’s a Roman amphitheater in Seville).
- Slavers bay feels vaguely Babylonian — the harpies subbing in for winged bulls and the like.
- The Dothraki are of course an amalgamation of steppe people like the Mongols and Huns. There have been steppe cavarly armies sense early antiquity and they posed a constant threat to city people until the invention of small (gunpowder) arms. At least one of the Dothraki “flavor” conversations is borrowed from Gibbon’s description of statements allegedly made by Atilla.

If you liked this post, follow me at:

My novels: The Darkening Dream and Untimed

or all my Game of Thrones posts or episode reviews:

Season 1: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]

Season 2: [11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20]

Season 3: [21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30]

Season 4: [31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40]

Season 5: [41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50]

Season 6: [51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57]

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Television

Tagged as: a game of thrones, A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Throne, George R. R. Martin, got, HBO, Narrative structure, Television

Bad Boys at Michael’s

Mar18

Restaurant: Michael’s on Naples [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 5620 E 2nd St. Long Beach, CA 90803. (562) 439-7080

Date: February 21, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: A top LA Italian

A couple years ago, we organized some Hedonist outings to Michael’s on Naples, rated on the Zagat list as #2 best restaurant in all Los Angeles. I co-organized this one with our fearless leader Yarom, myself, coordinating and designing the menu as well as ordering the wines. So many things sounded good that I came up with a 14 course extravaganza. The resulting Hedonistic Italian blowout ended up (with some alternates) as a total feast of great wine and food.

Michael’s is located on Naples Island, a bridge-connected island in Longbeach that looks so much like Florida they use it to film much of Dexter‘s Miami. During Fred’s recent visit the Foodie Club wanted to get together again with Orange County member, Kent — so we chose Michael’s this time as our southern destination.

Our special menu.

Fred brought (from Walker’s collection): 1959 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. JK 96. Stunning, just stunning.

Stuzzichino. Pizzette. Grilled flat bread with mortadella, burrata, pistachios. This wasn’t my favorite. Maybe the texture of the dough.

Risotto. Carnaroli rice, Dungeness crab, lobster, bottarga, meyer lemon. I thought I’d absolutely love this, as I generally adore seafood risotto. It was good, with nice lobster/crab flavor, but was maybe a little mild. Maybe it needed to be creamier?

From my cellar: 1997 Domaine Leroy Corton-Renardes. VM 91-94. Deep ruby-red. Wild, superripe aromas of liqueur-like cherry, smoke and game. Very concentrated, ripe and smoky in the mouth; a voluminous wine that’s supersweet without being overripe. Real grand cru size and power. Intriguing torrefaction notes of mocha and coffee. Finishes extremely long, with firm tannins and a late burst of cherry. Wow!

Fred says: The wonderful Leroy spice nose just stuns. So perfect that the only critique is that it is too perfect and too Leroy. Easily the best Corton Renards I have had. In a really nice drink window right now. The plate is very dense and long but accessible. There is a hint if heat and volitility if you look hard enough and if you are comparing to Rousseau Chambertin. A stunner.

agavin: loved this wine, with tons of dried fruit.

Erick brought: 2000 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin. JG 96. The 2000 Rousseau Chambertin another majestic example of the vintage, and there cannot be too many 2000 reds that are in this same league. The deep and utterly classic nose soars from the glass in a blend of raspberries, cherries, clove-like spice tones, coffee, a touch of venison, cedary wood and that magically complex signature of Chambertin soil tones. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very complex, with a great, great core of fruit, exquisite focus and balance, seamless tannins and exceptional length and grip on the poised, elegant and powerful finish. A great example of Chambertin.

Fred says: Gosh these are drinking well now. Decanted for sediment this was initially a little too young next to the 97 Chambertin. However it also had more length and weight. With time that youthful awkwardness resolves and again becomes a delicious and caressing Chambertin. Just starting to enter it’s drinking window. Give this a good decant or 1-2 hours in the glass. Excellent.

agavin: this was great, but I thought the 97 slight more approachable right now.

Fred brought: 1997 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Chambertin. BH 91. Dense and richly fruited with copious black fruits trimmed in a deft touch of wood followed by round, intense, full-bodied flavors and fine persistence. This is not a great Chambertin by the lofty Rousseau standards but there is plenty of wine here, not to mention excellent richness and length. It is approaching peaking drinkability though it should hold here for at least a decade. Consistent notes.

Fred says: Very much Chambertin in the nose with earth and meat aromas. On the palate dried cranberry and tart cherry fruit with a hint of sous bois. This started out wonderful then went into an awkward acidic inbalanced phase only to emerge balanced with those harsh edges disappearing 2 hours later. A wonderful wine up against some tough competition in field of Jayer, Truchot, and 00 Rousseau Chambertin.

Agnolotti. Pasta filled with braised beef cheeks, veal reduction, sage bread crumbs. Excellent and meaty. Could have maybe used more butter flavor — and more agnolotti!

Kent brought: 1987 Henri Jayer Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaumonts. Fred says: Served double blind. The weightlessness and purity was apparent and striking. A very classy wine with just a little spice and hint of meat aromas. The hint was that it was a lighter vintage. I guess 88. Having only had Jayer one other time I dare not be so bold to think it could be another. But it was. A wonderful treat. Not as clean as the 88 Jayer Beaumonts that I had a few months ago but the weightlessness and purity of that rises above a field of Rousseau Chambertin is quite remarkable. These wines are really about length and complexity without weight. WOTN tonight.

agavin: probably my favorite wine was well. Fully mature, tons of dried fruits, great depth.

Kent brought: 2000 Domaine Truchot-Martin Clos de la Roche. JG 95. I had not tasted the 2000 Truchot Clos de la Roche in several years, as I bought more Charmes for my own cellar, and I was quite surprised to see how beautifully the Clos de la Roche is drinking today, as my bottles of Charmes (after a long and glorious period of generosity) have currently closed down again for a bit of hibernation. However, this is not the case with the 2000 Clos de la Roche, which is at its zenith and offers up a stunningly expressive nose of cherries, beetroot, mustard seed, roasted venison, a beautifully complex base of soil, woodsmoke and just a touch of new wood. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, complex and in full bloom, with a gorgeous core of fruit, glorious soil inflection, modest tannins and a very, very long, focused and tangy finish. Just a great bottle of Clos de la Roche that should continue to cruise along for decades, but is now fully into its plateau of peak maturity. A stunning wine.

Fred says: Served blind. Intense spice and sweetness on the nose. So much so I thought it must be a producer that included stems. Dusty in color, the palate was sweet and silky but with plenty of length. Truchot critics need not worry about this being too light. A wonderful wine and second only to the Jayer tonight.

Umbrian black truffles!

Malfaldine con funghi e tartufo nero. I hadn’t had this tripe-textured pasta shape before, or at least not by name and now I’ve had it twice recently.

Really great texture though and amazing pasta with the truffles. Cream and truffles, yum!

Quaglie. California quail, black lentils, heirloom carrots, apple salad.

Anatra (duck).

Anatra. Whole liberty farm duck, farrotto, butternut squash, baby broccoli. Excellent duck. Farro was pleasant and grainy.

Panforte. Chocolate cake, candied citrus, honey mascarpone whip. Dry (and very Italian) but quite delicious.
Butterscotch Butterscotch Caramel Popcorn Gelato – I made my rediculously decadant homemade butterscotch, crafted a gelato from it, layered it in, and added caramel popcornjust because I could! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #butterscotch #vanilla #popcorn #CaramelCorn #sauce #sweet!

Salty Peanut Fudge Reese’s Gelato – Salty Chunky Peanut Base with homemade Valrhona Chocolate Fudge Ribbon and mini Reese’s Peanutbutter Cups! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #peanut #salty #reeses #peanutbuttercup #fudge #Valrhona

Food: Execution was excellent with some dishes being stellar: duck, pastas, and the rest being just “very good.” This is very interesting modern “fancy Italian”. Some of the best in the city, but a few dishes could use more “yum.”

Wine: We had an incredible array of wines. We had incredible luck as every wine was in great shape — even the 1959 Champagne! The reds were just amazing, particular for me the 87 Jayer, 97 Leroy and 97 Rousseau.

Service: The staff did a fabulous job. At first we had a chilly table on the roof deck, but they were very nice about relocating us downstairs to a great table with tons of room. The owner came by at the end and we were chatty and sharing some wines. Plus, he loved my gelatti.

Value: Tremendous. This was just fabulous value — partially for not being in LA proper — particularly given the level of service and the lack of corkage. Bravo!

But it is FAR AWAY. haha.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Foodie Club dinners here!

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Foodie Club, Gelato, Italian cuisine, Leroy, Michael's on Naples, pasta, Red Burgundy, Rousseau, Truffle

Coche vs d’Auvenay at Melisse

Mar13

Restaurant: Melisse [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]

Location: 1104 Wilshire Blvd.Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 395-0881

Date: February 20, 2019

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Great finish

With Foodie Club champ Fred in town the core gang of Erick, myself, Fred got together with Liz for a final meal at Melisse, one of LA’s too remaining Michelin type restaurants — closing any day now sadly and reinventing itself. Liz “twisted our arms” to step up to the rather heroic standard of Coche and d’Auvenay 1re crus. woah!

Not only is the food at Melisse great but I always enjoyed the super close Santa Monica location.

Tonight we got the “10” menu plus the truffle pasta + the special preorder chicken.

2005 Jacques Selosse Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Millésimé. 94 points. Jumping right out of the glass with notes of top quality vanilla bean, chalk, white flowers, citrus, honey, and many other things. It’s super tense, high-toned, explosive, with razor-sharp acidity and perfect mousse. EXcellent length. A superb combination of richness, excellent tension and mineral salinity. There is a certain sweetness of fruit too. I really love this.

agavin: we bought this lovely champagne off the list to save on a corkage — although it was pricey enough that I’m not sure it was a save, even if great.

Melisse always has great bread.

Erick brought: 2003 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. 96 Points. Fred’s notes: Coche vs d’Auvenay night. Tasted single blind. This was beautiful from the beginning. Very light in color and wonderfully floral. No hint of heaviness or heat. I thought it could have been the 04. The fruit is ripe but not heavy. This was unchanged in its beauty for the entire 4 hours. The floral perfume is just intoxicating. Remarkable for the vintage and tied with the 95 Coche MP and the 00 Coche Caillerets for my WOTN.

agavin: This and the 95 (below) were my favorites.

Fred brought: 2004 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault 1er Cru Gouttes d’Or. BH 93. Like the 2005 version (see herein) this is relatively strongly reduced though in this case it’s possible to see some maturing notes underneath the reductive funk. There is a good deal of petrol character on the impressively dense and intense flavors that possess a seductively textured mid-palate before culminating in a citrusy and ever-so-slightly dry finish that doesn’t really affect the persistence as much as it slightly compromises the overall sense of balance. While this could certainly be drunk now for my taste I would advise holding it for a few more years first. Note too that I would strongly advise decanting this first as help alleviate the reduction.

Fred’s Notes: Very rich and honeyed. There is some lemon acidity but this is more advanced than it should have been. Followed it through for 4 hours in the hopes it would improve but it did not. Drinkable but not what it should have been. Possibly heat damaged.

agavin: Fred, always the mensch, opened his backup

Liz, generous as always brought: 1995 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. BH 94. A killer nose of absolutely stunning complexity and incredible elegance, especially for the vintage is followed by precise, pure and delineated middle weight flavors that offer plenty of sappy and generous Meursault character and a crisp, intense and utterly mineral-driven finish. This is impressively harmonious, strikingly long and while there is a trace of finishing warmth, this remains a marvelous effort. I have tasted this wine many times over the years and the last few bottles are starting to lose a bit of freshness and thus I would be drinking up over the next few years. To be sure, there is no rush but unless you like very well-aged aromas and flavors, there is no reason to wait any longer.

Fred’s notes: Coche vs d’Auvenay night. Tasted single blind it had so much reduction and richness I was sure it was a d’Auvenay. It then when through a grumpy phase where it was not giving up much. After 2 hours it really blossomed and the richness was replaced by floral perfume and a wonderful ethereal quality. This needed time to unfurl and when it did it became one of my favorites of the night.

agavin: loved it. a little closed at first, but opened to be gorgeous after some time.

Fred’s backup: 2000 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. BH 93. This has now peaked and is drinking beautifully with a fully mature nose of honeysuckle, peach, apricot and very subtle spice notes that can also be found on the enveloping flavors that possess a wonderfully seductive mouth feel and ample dry extract that both completely buffers the still firm acid spine and coats the palate on the long, lingering and strikingly perfumed if ever-so-slightly warm finish. One character that Coche seems to consistently be able to achieve is how his wines are at once generous yet retain a fine sense of focus and precision and this wine certainly displays this. Lovely stuff that is perfect now. Tasted thrice with consistent notes.

Fred’s notes: Coche vs d’Auvenay night. This was wicked good right out of the gate. Much lighter weight than the others and in consummate balance between fruit, acid, and the Coche profile. A long finish. Some thought it was better than the 95 Coche MP and 03 d’Auvenay Folatieres. For me it was too close to call with each wine showing a little something different.

agavin: very good, and really singing.

From my cellar: 2002 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. BH 93. There is a hint of mineral reduction on the otherwise wonderfully fresh, complex and cool nose of mostly acacia blossom and pear scents. I very much like the detail and sense of underlying tension to the mineral-driven middle weight flavors that possess a lightly saline character on the balanced, long and strikingly harmonious finish. While this is sufficiently close to its peak that it could certainly be enjoyed now with much pleasure, I would suggest holding it for another 2 to 4 years first if you want to try the ’02 Caillerets at its apogee.

Fred’s notes: Similar to the note below from Burgundy Al this was muted. With time a faint hint of cork emerged not enough to be obvious on the nose but enough to render it flat

agavin: very flat. I really couldn’t smell/taste the cork, but it was certainly flat, and much much lamer than the other two Caillerets. Sad. Very sad. Opened my backup (the 11).

Backup from my cellar: 2011 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. 94 points. Pale, bright yellow. Peach and spicy oak on the nose. Sweet, fleshy and rather opulent, with a fine-grained texture and superb concentration. Very ripe but refined wine. Coche told me these vines suffered in the late June heat spike, but I don’t find the wine obviously marked by heat. Aged in 30% new oak.

Fred’s notes: Some lime and sweet tart notes to start. That profile starts to blow off to reveal a remarkable wine of elegance and acidity. Very young and give these another 10 years.

agavin: very tart, sweet tarts ground in, but lovely. Young!

An opening cocktail? Or juice. Hard to tell.

Some kind of very bright punchy fruit flavor.

Hawaiian Kanpachi. Sorrel panna cotta, hass avocado, radish and yuzu. Very nice bright starter. A unique take on the “tuna and avocado” thing. Loved the panna cotta and the yuzu.

Potato Leek Soup. Crisp Oyster, Preserved red onion. Fine and creamy, if not the most exciting dish of the night.

Egg Caviar. Soft poached egg, smoked lemon creme fraiche, golden ostera caviar. I’ve had this nearly every time I’ve been to Melisse. Still love it. Hard to eat neatly though.

Wagyu Beef Tartare. Charred leek, sunflower, capers and black garlic. Really great tartare with interesting crispy and leafy texture and great flavor.

Toast and chicharrones for the tartare. Chicharrones are perfect for me, less carbs, more fat and flavor!

Dungeness Crab and Geoduck Clam. Sisho and kefir lime infused custard, nori dashi. Very light Chawanmushi-style dish with extremely Japanese flavors. There has been strong Japanese influence at Melisse for some time.

Stonington Maine Diver Scallop. Diver Tim Robbins, FV Nilly Willy, Blue Hill Me. Young leeks, Brussels sprouts, fermented black beans, pomelo and mussel jus. A fine dish, but I don’t adore scallops in this kind of prep. I prefer them raw with yuzu!

Wild mushroom risotto. Aged acquerello rice, shaved perigord truffles.

Here with the truffles. Fabulous dish. Expensive supplement (maybe $85) but fabulous.

Black Bass “En Ecailles”. Salsify, fava beans, morel mushrooms, parsely and green garlic. Tasty white fish, but the scales give me the willies as always. Trypophobia!

21 Day Aged Liberty Duck. Salsify, bloomsdale spinach and procini. Very aged — tasty meat though.

We ordered special the Poulet Roti. It comes table-side like this.

Poulet Roti. Potato Mousseline, sunchocke, chanterelle, black truffle. Really nice chicken. Maybe not as great as the chicken baked with straw I had here once or twice, but great.

And bonus legs.

And they served this chicken and truffle salad. Best “chicken salad” I’ve ever had by an order of magnitude.

Camembert. Perigord truffles. We screwed up and forgot to tell them we wanted the cheese cart and not a fixed “cheese course” like this. It was fine, but nowhere near as good as the cart — and you can barely find the cart anywhere nowadays.

Red Velvet. Cream cheese tres leches, red beet and rose geranium.

With the sauce. Beautiful and tasty. Reminds me I have to make red velvet gelato again — been two years!

Lisa Cherimoya. Cara cara, passion fruit, lemongrass and coconut. For me, this was like a perfect dessert. I love this kind of bright creamy passionfruit / coconut kind of thing.

Petit fours. The usual, cannelles, chocolates, pate de fruits, macarons.

Mint tea. Unusual, but nice.

Erick.

Fred (He and Sebastian keep in the best shape of any Foodie Club guys).

Liz.

And me.

The full wine lineup.

Overall, another epic epic night.

Service at Melisse is first class. As is the food. Plenty of it, delicious, if rich. The price tag is a bit high and it’s not that surprising that they are transforming into something more casual and modern. Our dinner was about $800 a person! The set menu itself isn’t so bad, maybe $210, but add the truffle supplement, the chicken, the hefty corkage, the champagne and all the tax and tip and it really gets up there!

The somm is a friend and really on it. One of the best in town. Our wines were great, but our luck wasn’t as we had to open two backup with only 4 people and these aren’t exactly bargain basement vino. The 02 d’auvenay and 95 MP were the wines of the night — but everything (not flawed) was quite lovely. Paired perfectly with the food and we skipped the red meat (replaced it with the chicken) to highlight the white burg more.

The no flash thing (like many fine dining places) makes photography hard, but I was set with two tripods and my new 35mm 1.8 macro lens. A big improvement in quality but fussing with the tripod constantly makes it a lot more work.

Very fun evening.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

I brought some gelato for a bit of a parking lot tailgate (didn’t bring it into the restaurant).

Another new flavor, but continuing my Sicilian theme — Pistachio Almond Lemon Gelato — base made with a 50/50 blend of Pistachios from Bronte Sicily and Noto Almonds, plus Sicilian candied lemon! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #Pistachio #Almond #lemon #sicily

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chef Josiah Citrin, Chicken, Coche Dury, d'Auvenay, Foodie Club, French Cuisine, Gelato, Melisse, Truffles, White Burgundy

Thai Tour – Sri Siam

Mar11

Restaurant: Sri Siam Cafe

Location: 12843 Vanowen St, North Hollywood, CA 91605. (818) 982-6262

Date: February 11, 2019

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: First rate Thai

Yarom has been scheduling a whole long series of Thai Mondays this spring — and you all know how much I love Thai food. I unfortunately couldn’t make the first one at Sapp, but I slogged out to North Hollywood for Sri Siam (which I had tried to go to before but failed).

Very casual storefront.

This is not exactly the loveliest neighborhood — check out the laundry-mat.

And the unassuming entrance.

Inside is bright and cheery though.

Crispy Rice Salad. This might be carby, but it was scrumptious. Nice texture and great flavor. There is crispy rice in there too.

Chicken Satay. Broiled marinated chicken skewer served with toast, cucumber relish & peanut sauce. This particular version came with a great little mini BBQ you could use to sear your own satay on. The cucumber salad was fabulous too, sweet and tangy.

Spicy Grilled Salad. Pork with shredded green apple, lemon grass, onion & mint leaves in spicy lime dressing. Great flavor and nice crunchy/chewy texture.

Miang Pla Too. Fried Macherel herb salad served with romaine and cilantro. Extremely polarizing dish. I loved it for the salty/fishy chew of the fish and the complex herb flavor. The Mayberry types at the table hated it.

Dried Fish Cake. Seasoned curry paste, fried ground fish and green bean patties. A bit contentious at the table for the spongy/chewy texture. I thought they were fine, but not super exciting.

Tom Yum Koong. Coconut milk chicken soup with lemongrass, galangal root & lime juice. I love this rich savory and slightly spicy soup. It has all sorts of savory/sour flavors going on. Sebastian complained that I got the one with the coconut milk because he’s watching his girlish figure — but everyone else at the table loved it.

Prawns with glass noodles. A lovely special dish with tasty tender giant prawns.

Pad See Mao. Shrimp, pan fried noodle w/ chili, garlic, and basil.

Khao Soy. Curry soup with chicken and egg noodle. Plus those interesting pickle condiments.

I love this dish and with a bit of the chili oil it can be pretty hot!

Sri Siam Spicy Ribs. Fried spicy pickled pork spareribs. A bit chewy, but tons of flavor.

Duck larb. No dish was as polarizing as this sauté of duck meat with red onion, cilantro, and chilies. The meat was very chewy and had a strong fish sauce flavor. I happened to love it because it was so intense and flavorful. Again, the wusses differed.

Spicy Basil Beef. Stir-fried basil leaves, garlic & chili with beef. Also a bit chewy. This place is small and they don’t use the highest quality meat in the universe.

Green Curry with Chicken. Green curry in coconut milk, bamboo shoots, Thai eggplant and basil. Other people had forced me to tone down the spice of most dishes but this one I got hot — which meant it was “acceptable” 🙂

By special birthday request — Gorgonzola Fig Walnut Gelato — Gorgonzola Dulce base with Fig Jam and Candied Walnuts! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #gorgonzola #fig #walnut #SavorySweet

Overall, the food at Sri Siam was great. The place is cute and friendly and this is a somewhat different style of Thai than Jitlada. The menu is big but not quite as vast and they seem to make things for Thai taste (with fish sauce). It isn’t super hot though by my standards.

The servers were very nice and she put up with my “flighted” ordering (where I put in 3ish dishes at a time so as not to have them all arrive at once). She a couple times warned me off of several “too Thai” dishes that again I would have liked — as would Yarom and some of the more “seasoned” eaters — but the riff raff would have found “weird.” Still, I got a couple like the duck and the mackerel.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

From my cellar.

I thought both these wines were wretched over extracted messes.

Number two.

This was murky, but actually pretty tasty — one of the best of the night.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, curry, Gelato, hedonists, satay, spicy, Sri Siam, Thai, Thai cuisine, Thai Tour, Wine

Petrossian Party

Mar06

Restaurant: Petrossian Beverly Hills [1, 2, 3]

Location: 321 Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90048. (310) 271-6300

Date: February 8, 2019

Cuisine: Caviar +

Rating: Amazing night!

The birthdays of my good friends Erick and Liz fall on the same day, and so have seen some seriously epic dinners over the years like this and this.

For this year’s extravaganza, Liz organized things at Petrossian, which has incredible food, and very wine friendly. She’s friends with the manager.

Petrossian has been importing caviar for a long time.

They are located on Robertson.

And they gave us a good chunk of the dining room to ourselves.

We got a special menu, of course. Ordering off the menu here just isn’t the same, particularly with wines of THIS quality.

Liz even brought in our own Somm (standing at the far end of the table).

1971 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Oenothèque. VM 97. One of the most pleasant surprises of the evening the 1971 Dom Pérignon Œnothèque (disgorged 2006) is superb. Powerful and vibrant on the palate, with tremendous freshness, the 1971 Œno exudes class. Lemon oil, almond and wild flowers give the wine its bright flavor profile, but it is the wine’s tension, energy and balance that are most remarkable on this evening.

agavin: OMG!

1988 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut (special 2016 release). VM 97. The 1988 Krug makes for a fabulous start. Tasted from a perfect bottle, the 1988 remains bright and focused, with all of the energy of this great vintage very much on display. Time has naturally softened some of the contours and added a good bit of nuance, but the 1988 Krug remains a Champagne of crystalline precision. I loved it.

1996 Dom Pérignon Champagne Oenothèque. BH 97. This remains one of my favorite all-time vintages of the Oenothèque series. An elegant if highly restrained nose displays cool nuances of green apple, a variety of citrus elements and discreet floral hints along with plenty of yeast character. There is superb precision to the equally cool and restrained middle weight flavors that dance across the palate thanks to the incredibly fine mousse that is at once firm but not aggressive on the notably dry but not really austere finale. I very much like the ’96 Oenothèque as it’s a wonderfully graceful effort that possesses impeccable balance and a refinement that it doesn’t always achieve. In terms of where it is in its evolution, ’96 is going to be one of those timeless vintages that will still be with us 30 years hence as I believe that it will continue to age effortlessly. For my taste this gorgeous effort has arrived at its peak though it should continue to hold here for years to come. In sum, this is flat out great and one of the greatest Champagnes of the modern era.

Caviar flight. To go with the Champagne, 10 different ultra premium caviars! An incomparable tasting.

Here is the list of caviars in case you are curious.

In the back, standing, Chris the manager explains the caviars.

I could have eaten about 6 “flights” :-).

2008 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet. BH 96. A strikingly complex nose that is ripe, pure and airy speaks elegantly of white flower, spice and subtle pear aromas that complement to perfection the rich and mouth coating flavors built on a base of fine minerality, all wrapped in a sappy and explosive finish that oozes dry extract. This is really a stunning effort in what has become a very long line of them for the 76 year old Michel Niellon.

2008 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne Quintessence. Rare and delicious.

2000 Domaine Ramonet Chevalier-Montrachet. BH 95. Surprisingly, this is much more open, expressive and accessible than the Bienvenues and the sheer scale and wet mineral quality is dramatic and imposing. The focused, detailed, almost razor-sharp flavors possess astonishing levels of sappy extract and this both coats and stains the palate and the intensity is borderline painful. This is reference standard quality.

2000 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. BH 95. Very Puligny in style with discreet white flower, pear and apple aromas with flavors that are so powerful that the palate experiences them in waves as they roll from the mid-palate to a thundering, top grand cru finish. Yet this is by no means monolithic as there is detail and subtle gradations of wet rocks, minerals, earth and an indefinable crystalline essence. I literally had to pause for a minute due to palate fatigue as this both stains and saturates the palate yet it remains perfectly balanced. For a premier cru, this is a veritable tour de force! A brilliant wine.

agavin: OMG this was killer. Blasted out of the glass. MZ had brought this to Maude years ago and we couldn’t open it so he promised to bring it back another time — this was the time.

Langoustine Carpaccio. Blood orange, hazelnut, caviar. Another lovely dish — lobster AND caviar!

1996 Dom Pérignon Champagne Rosé P2. 95 points. Mostly berry, some apple and pear with textures that demand attention. Nuanced spice and energy on very long finish. So great now, with upside.

1993 Dom Pérignon Champagne Rosé Oenothèque. VM 96. One of the many surprises in this tasting, the 1993 Dom Pérignon Œnothèque Rosé is truly spectacular. Explosive, voluptuous and also quite tannic on the palate, the 1993 boasts superb density to match its powerful personality. Readers lucky enough to own the 1993 are in for a real treat. Unlike the 1995 or 1996 – both far more celebrated vintages – the 1993 has the balance to continue to improve in bottle. What a gorgeous wine this is. Disgorged 2011.

For the rose, Diver scallop en Croute. Bernaise, asparagus, black truffle. Sort of like lobster Wellington!

From my cellar: 1993 Domaine Jean Gros Richebourg. 95 points. I had always been under the impression that the 1987 vintage was the last truly great vintage for Jean Gros’ Richebourg, but the 1991, 1992 and 1993 all showed magnificently well (in the context of their respective vintages) at this tasting. The nose on the 1993 is delightful, and classic Jean Gros, soaring from the glass in a mélange of bacon fat, ripe plums, raspberry, grilled nuts, some meaty tones, earth and toasty new oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, urgent and focused, with outstanding intensity of flavor, a fine core of fruit, and a long, complex peacock’s tail of a finish. The tannins are ripe and well-integrated here, and the vintage’s tangy acids beautifully frame the wine. This is eminently drinkable already, but clearly more nuance and complexity will emerge as the wine ages further. This is a dynamite Richebourg in the making.

1971 Camille Giroud Charmes-Chambertin. BH 92. Warm, rich, complex and fully mature aromas lead to big, dense, still firmly tannic flavors that display incredible vibrancy and vigor for a 30+ year old Burgundy and the finish is long a satisfying. This is a very impressive effort and while it is no model of finesse, the density and freshness this exhibits is nothing short of remarkable. First rate and this has another 20 years of life, even though I would not expect it to improve from here. Consistent notes.

1990 Domaine Leroy Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Aux Combottes. 94 points. Leroy spice superimposed on Gevrey earth and mineral tones. This is a spectacular bottle. The fruit from the 90 vintage is still deep and persistent. Secondary notes of leather, smoke and salted plum is present. A bit of black tea and menthol notes. Pairs shockingly well with smoked pork shoulder. Still quite young and still improving.

Black truffle pasta. Parmesan, mushroom jus. Small but amazing. Perfect with red burg.

1996 Maison Leroy Charmes-Chambertin. 94 points. The aromas were very tight at first, with some reductive notes, but this opened up and got quite fresh. Some asperagus stems and slightly herbal. After two hours I swear I briefly smelled hamburger. Overall though, the aromas were elegant and soft, with all I can describe as an impressive presence in the glass. Very exuberant fruit on the palate! Impressive, really amazing and lushously fresh. Grippy tannins begin after 10 seconds in the mouth and it couldn’t be held on the tongue for much longer. This really does have a WOW palate that’s very pretty and so herbal. Really impressive fruit on the finish as well, with incredible length. Even a minute later I’m getting more evolving red berry fruits that are different. So sexy on the finish. Acid, minerality, bright and very grippy and tart. I think this was drinking nearly as good, if quite a bit differently, from the Latricières. This is an overall prettier wine, if not quite as deep. After two hours this thing got so grippy and tight, losing the fruit and becoming all structure.

1996 Domaine Leroy Clos Vougeot. 94 points. Red-ruby color. Highly aromatic nose of black cherry, herbs and licorice. Wonderful sweetness for young Clos Vougeot, and not at all hard. As expressive in the mouth as on the nose. Offers terrific snap and a firm structure; currently hiding considerable power under its fruit. Finishes with firm but ripe tannins. Much easier to taste than the ’95 was a year ago.

1996 Domaine Jacques Prieur Musigny. BH 94. This is quite deeply colored for a ’96 and evidences no bricking after 13 years. Perhaps the best part of this wine is the nose, which is warm, inviting, seductive and gorgeously complex with abundant spice notes and really lovely elegance though there is also much to be said for the rich and phenolically ripe flavors that coat the palate with velvet on the broad and surprisingly round finish. I say surprisingly because there was none of the typical ’96 edginess or green acidity and while this will certainly continue to hold, I would be drinking this now and over the next ten years. An excellent wine in the context of a variable vintage.

A5 Wagyu Tenderloin. Bone marrow, charred pickled onion, beef tendon croquette.

From my cellar: 1989 Château d’Yquem. VM 97. Laid-back, extremely young aromas of honey, creme caramel, smoke and earth; essence of semillon. Rich, large-scaled and powerful; really expands in the mouth. Lovely harmonious acidity and bright notes of orange peel and minerals give this very youthful wine great clarity of flavor. Classy and impeccably balanced. The subtle, oak-spicy, nutty finish goes on and on. Conveys an almost saline impression of extract. This should approach peak drinkability within the next eight to ten years and last for decades.

agavin: perfect paring with…

Seared Foie Gras. Kumquat, st Germain Gastrique. The forbidden fruit is twice as sweet! This was one of my favorite foie preps as of late. Really great textural interplay.

Cheese selection with nut brittle.

Bread and crackers for the cheese.

Another new flavor, but continuing my Sicilian theme — Pistachio Almond Lemon Gelato — base made with a 50/50 blend of Pistachios from Bronte Sicily and Noto Almonds, plus Sicilian candied lemon! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #Pistachio #Almond #lemon #sicily

By special Liz’s birthday request — Gorgonzola Fig Walnut Gelato — Gorgonzola Dulce base with Fig Jam and Candied Walnuts! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #gorgonzola #fig #walnut #SavorySweet

The wine lineup.

Dressed to impress and below a rare MZ sighting!

When Liz sets up a dinner, she really endeavors to get everything right.

Food was some of the best in town for wine tastings. Really light, fresh, and delectable.

Wines were just off the chart good at this dinner. Just blockbusters and nothing really flawed. For a moment, Kirk thought his 2008 Chevy was, but it blew off. Winners for me were the ’71 Dom ,the 2000 d’auvennary, the 93 Riche, and the 89 Y’quem (sweet tooth!). But so many great wines.

Service was great. Having our own Somm ensured that — and we had unique stems for everything. Petrossian really took care of us too.

Plus, this being a friends only dinner, as opposed to a winemaker dinner with a broader attendance base, meant the company was extra extra fun.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more Foodie Club dinners, click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Caviar, Champagne, Foodie Club, Gelato, Liz Lee, Petrossian, Red Burgundy, Sage Society, White Burgundy

Dolan’s Uyghur Cuisine

Mar04

Restaurant: Dolan’s Uyghur Cuisine

Location: 742 W Valley Blvd, Alhambra, CA 91803. (626) 782-7555

Date: February 5, 2019

Cuisine: Uyghur Chinese

Rating: Excellent execution, and closer to Afghan than Chinese

There are a bunch of new SGV places that Yarom and I have been wanting to try so we’re making a point of heading out for some small lunches to do forward recognizance as we just don’t have enough dinner slots available.

Dolan’s, which is a new Uyghur place celebrating the cuisine of Western China — the part above Tibet known as Jing Jiang. Perfect for lunch to as they are Halal and don’t allow alcohol.

The interior has a distinctly “western” style — and considerably more style than most Chinese places. While the building was probably some mid-century family restaurant they have added the Islamic style “windows” and tile.

Copper tea pots.

A big menu featuring lamb, lamb, and more lamb! Good thing we love lamb!

Cucumber with garlic. Cucumber salad with garlic dressing. Pretty typical Chinese appetizer but this was a great one with really crunchy cucumbers and nice tangy (garlicky) dressing.

Cold Beef Salad. Sliced cold beef with chili sauce. Not sure what is salad about it — except maybe the green onion — but this was also a great dish. The beef was dense, almost like tongue, but thinly sliced and the tangy/spicy sauce was excellent.

Fried Tomato with Egg. Scrambled egg with stir-fried tomato. Yarom ordered this Chinese comfort food and it turned out to be a nice rendition of the dish.

Uyghur Goshnaan. Uyghur style hame-made Naan filled with lamb, onion, and green pepper. This is a specialty of the house, although it was one of our least favorite dishes. The meat inside was delicious, and the outside nicely made, but there was so much breading that it drowned out the meat.

Manti. Uyghur style dumpling filled with ground beef. These are stylistically close to XLB (but with beef) and also to Afghan Manti. I love both of those and I loved these. The skins were delicate and the filling really flavorful. I started using some of the chili sauce as a dip, but the waiter told us that Uyghur do not eat them with sauce. Still, I think they would be best with the yogurt, tomato, and green chili Afghan sauce.

Laghman. Traditional hand pulled noodle served with stir fried veggies and lamb. We think it was lamb. The meat was very flavorful and this dish overall was like an Uyghur Jewish “beef stew.” The carrots were cooked really well too. The noodles (you can glimpse them underneath) were tasty but a bit heavy.

Braised Lamb. Lamb stewed with wolfberry, chili sauce, and pepper over round noodles. This lamb was also very good and the round noodles were even better — fabulous actually.

Roasted Mutton Leg. Marinated mutton leg made with family recipe. Just lamb meat — but tender and delicious.

Lamb kebabs. Sheep must be very scared when they cross into Uyghur territory! But these were some of the best lamb kebab I have had — hot off the grill and super tender and with just the right amount of cumin and spice.

Fried cabbage. Stir-fried cabbage with chili dressing. Nice and crunchy and really delicious! Loved this dish.

We didn’t have this baklava, but they had it on the counter.

Overall, not only was Dolan’s super interesting, but they were delicious as well. It’s related most closely to Western Chinese, but not totally Chinese in style (food-wise, decor isn’t Chinese at all). The kitchen was excellent though, and everything was extremely tasty — you better like lamb though!

For my catalog of Chinese restaurant reviews in China, click here.

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chinese cuisine, Dolan's, Dolan's Uyghur Cuisine, lamb, Lunch Quest, SGV, Uyghur Cuisine, Western Chinese

Still Cuts It

Mar01

Restaurant: Wolfgang Puck’s Cut [1, 2]

Location: 9500 Wilshire Blvd. Beverly Hills, California 90212. P: 310-276-8500

Date: February 1, 2019

Cuisine: Steak House

Rating: Top quality

It’s been since 2012 that the Foodie Club has been to Cut and so this year for Erick’s birthday we decided to hit it up again.

Cut is located inside the Beverly Wilshire Hotel (think Pretty Woman) and is Wolfgang Puck’s take on redefining the American Steak House. In this, it succeeds very well. While it adheres to the Steak House basics: slabs of beef served plain on the plate, Cut upgrades things in a number of ways. But we’ll get to this in good time.

Fancy cars in the causeway.

They don’t build ’em like they used to!

We were early and had this view for half an hour while waiting to sit.

The dining room looks light in this photograph but it wasn’t! And they didn’t allow flash, so the photography was challenging to say the least. I had to shoot mostly wide open at 1.8 and so depth of field is tiny.

The current menu.

Erick brought as bonus: 2012 Georges Laval Champagne Les Hautes Chevres. VM 94. Laval’s 2012 Brut Nature Les Hautes-Chèvres, 100% Pinot Meunier, is a dense, powerful wine. The old-vine gravitas of this site, planted between 1930 and 1971, comes through loud and clear in the wine’s ample frame. Dense, powerful and broad on the palate, the 2012 is all class. Dried pear, hazelnut, smoke and dried herbs add tons of complexity. The finish is substantial and intense in all of its dimensions.

Cheesy puffs as an amuse.

Smoked Burrata Cheese. Oro Blanco, Cara Cara Oranges, Tangerines, Charred Fennel. Everyone has a burrata salad but this was a good one — what you can see if it in focus. Colorful, and the combination of greens, cheese, and citrus was nice.

Sea Urchin. Horseradish custard, dungeness crab, bergamont vinegar, avocado. This was more crab than uni by a long shot but was delicious.

And sadly you really can’t see much at this depth of field.

Bread sticks and pretzel bread. I love good pretzel bread.

Wine service started off a touch slow, but was very good, and they have us our own sidecar table and multiple decanters.

Speaking of the wine, Seb convinced us beforehand to coordinate a 4 bottle mini vertical of Château Léoville Las Cases. He, Erick, and I brought them and I swapped an extra one with Erick’s friend Sijie Xiang — who brought me an excellent non-LLC bottle of Bordeaux in exchange.

From my cellar: 1985 Château Léoville Las Cases. VM 96. The 1985 Léoville Las-Cases is quite simply one of the finest Saint-Julien wines of the decade and over a dozen encounters have reaffirmed this as the most pleasurable Las-Cases ever made. This is a stupendous bottle, perhaps the best that I have ever encountered. It has a brilliantly defined bouquet that soars from the glass: red berry fruit, crushed stone, pressed flower, a hint of blood orange and woodland aromas. You could nose this all day. The palate is medium-bodied with the depth and structure one expects from this Second Growth. But what the 1985 has in spades, a virtue not always found at this address, is charm. Silky smooth in texture, the pure red fruit seduces the sense with a shimmering sense of energy on the finish. It is drinking now after three decades and based on this showing could give another three before it declines.

agavin: awesome bottle and WOTN

From my cellar (for Sijie Xiang): 1989 Château Léoville Las Cases. JK 93. A gorgeous, perfectly mature LB Bordeaux. Concentrated with mature, complex fruit and loaded with secondary and tertiary notes of aged cedar, dried tobacco leafs and bell pepper. Elegant with a leanness that doesn’t compromise forward, fleshy fruit. Can hold but really no reason to hold — drink now and enjoy a great, mature Bordeaux.

agavin: very good too, and smooth, but not as powerful or complex as the 1985.

Bluefin Tuna Toro. Smoked Soy Sauce, pickled daikon radish, apple sorrel. We didn’t get much each, but what we did was a lovely sashimi-like bite.

Prime Sirloin Steak Tartare. Herb aioli, grilled sourdough, shallots, dijon mustard. We mixed it all up, including the quail egg. Delicious tartar — really good. Right balance of tangy, meat, pepper etc.

Erick brought: 1995 Château Léoville Las Cases. VM 94+. Deep ruby-red. Deep, lively aromas of red- and blackcurrants, licorice, tobacco and grilled nuts. Great sweetness and silky texture in the mouth currently overshadows the wine strong supporting acidity and tight core of spice and minerals. The toothcoating tannins don’t cover as much of the mouth as those of the ’96 do, but this wine offers uncanny length.

Seb brought (decanted way in advance): 2005 Château Léoville Las Cases. VM 98. A wine for the ages, the 2005 Léoville Las Cases is slow to come out of the gate, but its beauty and pedigree are evident. The 2005 Las Cases is one of the only wines in this tasting that still needs time in bottle, something that won’t come as a surprise to fans of this St. Julien estate. The 2005 offers plenty of the typical Las Cases power, but it is also remarkably nuanced and translucent for a wine of its sheer size. When all is said and done, it is in my top three or four wines of the night.

agavin: the powerhouse monster of the night. Amazing wine and good thing Seb decanted it early that day.

A duo of Snake River Farms Filet Mignon and Nebraska Dry Aged 36 Day Petite Cut New York.

On the side there was some Cavatappi Pasta “Mac & Cheese” with Quebec cheddar. We also ordered Soft Polenta with Parmigiano Reggiano but it was gone faster than I could photo it (given the low light and the fact that I was using a tripod).

A set of sauces including Red Wine Bordelaise, House Made Steak Sauce, and a couple others. I like extra flavor so I’m a sauce guy.

Cauliflower, vadouvan, coconut, curry leaves. Nice interesting veggie.

Celery Root, salsify, carrots, wildflower honey.

Wild Field Mushrooms, shishito peppers, mirin, yuzu. Loves this version of the sautéed mushrooms. The shishitos were great.

The dessert menu.

Baked Alaska. Tangerine Sherbet, Vanilla Gelato, Buttermilk White Chocolate Cake, Candied Kumquats.

They light it on fire in the traditional manner.

Wow this was a great dessert, one of the best baked alaska versions I’ve tasted. Nice hot and cold and texture variance going on.

Orange Honey Nougat Glace. Passion Fruit Granita, lemon yuzu curd, winter citrus. Another dessert winner as it had all those tart flavors.

And for Erick’s birthday: BCP. Caramelized banana, tahitian vanilla custard, puff pastry, banana sorbet, salted caramel sauce. I assume BCP stands for Banana Custard Pastry. It was enough in control banana-wise that I could try it.

The full wine lineup.

Overall, Cut is very very good, if a little expensive. It does succeed in taking the Steak House format and shaking it up a bit, elevating the ingredients and presentation, etc. Partly by offering unusual cuts of beef, partly by having newer more modern appetizers and sides. Execution is very good. Service is very good. It isn’t as over the top as Mastro’s. Not that Cut is lightest meal ever, but I definitely felt less “bombed” than at some other steakhouses, which was nice. Maybe they use less butter. Cut is probably the best Steakhouse in LA, maybe tied with Alexanders on a good night.

More Foodie Club extravaganzas here.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, Bordeaux, Château Léoville Las Cases, Cut, Dessert, Foodie Club, Leoville Las Cases, Steak, steakhouse, Uni, Wagyū, Wine, Wolfgang Puck

Crawling with an Old Friend

Feb27

The SGV (or San Gabriel Valley) of Los Angeles is not only a Chinese Food mecca (best in America) but lends itself to the peculiar but extremely fun tradition of the “food crawl” or as we sometimes call it the “SGV Parlay.” This involves heading out there and visiting multiple locations in the same day. Everything is so close together and the density is very high.

My oldest friend, Brent, and I have been eating Chinese food together for about 40 years so on this particular Sunday night (January 27, 2019) when he was in town we went out at about 4pm for the crawl.

First stop the Hunan Chili King and late Lucky Noodle King mini mall. This is a classic old school SGV mall, probably from the 70s.

Here’s HCK, the best Hunan joint I’ve been to in the state.

They were decorated for Chinese New Year.

And here’s Brent.

Hunan style cold cucumber salad with marinated cucumber, Cilantro, and chilies (everything has chilies). This was really tasty, and one of the least spicy dishes. The marinate lent it a slight cool quality. Very salty though.

Snails with preserved vegetables. This dish was amazing! Sure it’s an “advanced” dish, and incredibly spicy. Hottest dish we had that night by far. Super deep potent heap. The combo of the chewy snails and the unusual pickled green beans (with their crunch) was stunning.

This might have been our most expensive stop too. Lol.

Next over to King Kho Bo for some dried snacks like dried seasoned mushrooms and whacky New Year’s coconut strips.

Then into this weird low rent mall. Like a cheap mall in China as there are all sorts of “stores” tucked away inside this vast drop ceiling hall. Pretty ugly! And classic SGV charm (actually is fairly charming).

Speaking of charm, this guy in the parking lot drives a manga rice rocket!

Next we moved over to another (newer) minimall on Valley. I’ve eaten here at Mian, Mei Long Village, J &J, and Tasty Dining! This is in the heart of Alahambra and very dense.

Mian, where we decided to get some Szechuan on, gets a serious line. About 30 min at 7pm on Sunday for 2!

This place is much newer (2 years) and popular with the young Chinese couples on cel phones — wait, that’s all young Chinese (and other) couples.

Weird cold tea.

Slightly fermented spicy cabbage adorn the table — like Szechuan kimchee.

The awesome cold smoked plum juice — so good (too much sugar when you guzzle it though).

Egg custard with ground pork. One of those delicate fluffy egg custards covered in savory ground pork. Yum! I really enjoy the texture (and taste) of this kind of custard and with the pork was fabulous.

Beef in chili sauce. Quite spicy, dry, and nice.

Szechuan Cold Noodles.

You mix up the above cold noodles and eat. These were superlative. Nice noodle texture, good weight, and this scrumptious tangy chili sauce. Loved them. I adore when the acid balance is right and these really had it down. A bit of nuttiness, but not nearly as nutty or heavy as a dan dan — different, but great.

Then we went across the mini mall to the Foot Soak for a 1 hour Foot Massage ($20!).

This particular FM “spa” is one of my favorites because the guys on staff are strong and do a good job. There is NO GLAMOUR here. In fact, it has the oddest (not for the SGV but to the uninitiated) ambiance. The chairs are packed together almost touching and period Chinese dramas (in Chinese, of course) play on the TV. Plus, quite a number of people just hang out or sleep. The massage is good though and the price right ($20 is for a full 60 min).

Now on to our third minimall, well actually welcome to the Maxi-Mall. The California Mini-Mall’s GIANT SGV cousin.

You could spend all day in this mall, there are so many restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries, and massage places. But since we’d done two spicy spots, we figured we’d finish up with some awesome carbs. Juicy Dumpling is upstairs.

They have a glassed in dumpling workshop!

Brent pounds the hard stuff — tea!

XLB (xao lao bao) “sweet”. Also known as Juicy Pork Dumpling. Really nice version of the classic. Soft skin. Juicy. Good filling. Maybe not as good as a Din Tai Fun, but great still. They have two types here — savory and sweet. We ordered the sweet because it’s more unusual. I kinda like it, although maybe not as much as the savory.

Pork and Shrimp Dumpling. Great version of the pork and shrimp, with delicate but pronounced flavors. Like the savory pork only version but with a shrimp inside!

Giant Crabmeat Juicy Dumpling. You eat this with a straw! People said this was a gimmick, but the slurry of crab and pork inside this thing was to die for. And after you burn your tongue slurping it out you can cut it up and eat the shell like pasta.

Here with the straw — so good, just watch you don’t burn your tongue.

As our final (7th!) stop we wanted some boba tea. There were options to choose from, like Boba Ave but we went instead to:

Whacky name.

Typical young clientele.

Slick modern (industrial) decor.

They double as internet cafe and offer unusual savory treats. Brent joked that “real men” would polish off the evening with an egg and prosciutto waffle — couldn’t manage it.

Instead just got a milk boba tea (small for me).

Overall, a total blast of a night. It’s really hard to convey how fun these crawls are — which is the purpose of this post. It feels kinda like teleporting to a section of a some slightly (American) Chinese city for an evening. Everything is so close together and if you like Chinese food the density of places is off the chart. We walked by a good 15-20 other places that looked delicious, some of which I have been to, many not.

This whole adventure was probably about $120 for the both of us too, including the Foot Massage and tip. Food was probably $80. With 4 people it would be even cheaper (each) and one could try more dishes. Hard to crawl with more than about 4-6.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chinese cuisine, crawl, dumplings, Hunan, parlay, SGV, Shanghai Cuisine, Sichuan, Szechuan, XLB

OOToro Five O

Feb25

Restaurant: OOToro [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Location: 1569 Fairway Dr, Walnut, CA 91789. (909) 598-8299

Date: January 26, 2019

Cuisine: Japanese Sushi (with slight nod to China)

Rating: Ends of the earth, but very good

Chef Kaz of Totoraku, an occasional hedonist, sent us far east to this Sushi restaurant in 2016 and it was such a fun time that we had to return again for a fifth visit — it’s now become a twice a year thing.
And by far east I mean REALLY REALLY far east — to Walnut California. 40+ miles from my house. 20 miles past Alhambra (which most people consider to far to drive for food). It took an hour and twenty minutes on a Saturday night!

The slick looking location is in the heart of the affluent Chinese American San Gabriel Valley. But yes, it’s Japan, if perhaps catering to Chinese taste. This photo was shot at about 10pm after everyone else had left.

Here is the private room — the only way to go.

A bit of the menu. We got the Shiki Omakase this time + maybe some tempura. It was enough, although I would still maybe prefer the even bigger one.

From my cellar: NV Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Extra Brut Extra Old. 91 points. Gentle, frothy texture. Light on its feet, but possesses a wonderful balance between freshness and aged nuance. Subtle wine, no hard edges, very refined. Perhaps lacks a little intensity, and layers of flavour in the middle, but it is completely convincing in its smooth as silk style. Great wine to start start a meal.

Cod sperm with radish and ponzu. Looks like brain and has a soft squirmy texture — but tastes great.

2002 Dom Pérignon Champagne. VM 98. The 2002 Dom Pérignon speaks to opulence and intensity. Rich, layered and voluptuous in the glass, the 2002 shows off its flamboyant personality with flair. Butter, cooked apple and tropically-leaning fruits mesh together effortlessly. Interestingly, with time in the glass the 2002 gains in freshness and energy without losing its essential opulence. The elevated ripeness of the year gives the 2002 Dom Pérignon distinctly Puligny-Montrachet leaning inflections. Chef de Caves Richard Geoffroy adds that August that year was hot and very dry. Rain towards the end of the month and into early September freshened the vines and accelerated the final phase of ripening. This is yet another fabulous showing from the 2002, which continues to cement its reputation as a truly epic Dom Pérignon.

Live halibut with yuzu and wasabi. Very light but scrumptious.

2014 Maison Alex Gambal Chassagne-Montrachet. BH 89. This is also quite expressive with its aromas of resin, pear, apple and fresh citrus. There is a lovely purity to the intense and beautifully delineated middle weight flavors that possess a succulent mouth feel on the balanced finish that is also clean, dry and very solidly complex. This is more refined than usual plus it offers excellent quality for a Chassagne villages. Recommended.

Oyster and clam. Great raw shellfish duo.

Yarom and the younger chef.

2002 Domaine Henri Boillot Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières. Weird, not CT entry! Our best still white of the night.

Sashimi plate. Shima aji, toro and otoro. I forgot to photo it myself, so this is Arnie’s (mobile phone) picture. Fish itself was each one better than the next. The toro here is stunning.

Scallop and shellfish inside bamboo. Interesting new one.

2013 E. Guigal Condrieu La Doriane. VM 94. Vivid yellow. High-pitched aromas of fresh citrus and orchard fruits, quinine, jasmine and chalky minerals, with a smoky quality emerging with aeration. Sappy and expansive on the palate, offering Meyer lemon and poached pear flavors plus a hint of anise. Alluringly sweet and broad on the finish, which clings with excellent tenacity and lingering notes of honeysuckle and chamomile. The blend of power and vivacity here is quite deft.

Hokkaido Uni on edamame tofu. Tofu was a bit interesting, uni was fabulous. They love wasabi here.

Sine Qua Non Deux Grenouilles. Not even sure of the year. Tasted like hermitage blanc.

Live lobster sashimi. He was squirming a bit. That green stuff was okra and wasabi and was incredibly potent (and delicious).

2016 E. Guigal Côtes du Rhône Rosé. VM 90. Cheap but good. Bright orange-pink. Ripe red berry and tangerine flavors and a subtle herbal flourish on the expressive nose. In a plush yet lively style, offering bitter red currant and cherry flavors braced by a spine of juicy acidity. Clings with very good tenacity on the red-fruit-dominated finish, which is given a zesty edge by a late jolt of white pepper.

Monk fish liver and seared toro and pickles. Incredibly bite. Super rich and unctuous. Plus gold and caviar for good measure.

Mountain potato tufu with ikura and wasabi. On the milder side (except for the wasabi).

From my cellar: 2001 Domaine Anne Gros Clos Vougeot Le Grand Maupertui. 94 points. Lovely strawberry, vanilla nose; ripe cherry palate with sweet tannins, tight yet; medium finish

Uni, toro tartar, avocado and truffle. Oh, this dish how I love these. A Yamakase style dish but pure goodness.

Seared beef rolled around fresh snow crab. Unique and delicious.

Yarom with the older main chef.

Kama toro. And the crazy good fatty tuna collar. The best toro ever.

Red snapper and golden eye snapper sushi. Fabulous.

Kanpachi sushi.

Fake pinot (can’t see the year or vineyard).

Uni pasta with clams or mushrooms. Amazing tiny bite of pasta. The yellow stuff around was a kind of cured fish egg like bottarga.

Lobster shabu shabu. This delicious broth was the host for dipping…

A5 wagyu. The fat then melted into the broth.

And one could dip the cooked meat into the sesame sauce.

Seafood tempura. They really make a great mixed tempura here with lobster, eel, and more.

2008 Sine Qua Non Roussanne Jinete Bajo Vin de Paille. VM 95. Deep gold. A highly aromatic, pungent bouquet of orange marmalade, apricot nectar and yellow plum, with exotic honey and spice notes. Lush and creamy in texture, with deeply concentrated, sweet pit and tropical fruit flavors and a strong note of candied citrus. There’s surprising energy and lift to the finish, which leaves juicy peach and orange notes behind. I’d serve this as a dessert, by itself. This clocks in at 11.8% alcohol, with 240 g/l of residual sugar.

Poached sweet white miamoto pear with condensed milk.

I also brought gelato I made:

Another new flavor — Orange Cinnamon Gelato — I steeped the milk with blood orange rind, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #orange #cinnamon #vanilla #nutmeg

Riffing on a theme — Raspberry Passionfruit Amaro Sorbetto! — the Amaro and Passionfruit offsets the cloying sweetness of the Raspberry nicely — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #raspberry #passionfruit #amaro #cocktail #sorbet #sorbetto

Overall, OOToro — while always good — showed for the third time that the private room is really the way to go. This was a great meal and much more subtle and sophisticated than some of the front room fare. Really great stuff — although we should have gotten the largest omakase for max variety, but even one down I was more than full. I was tired tonight and skipped the post dinner parking lot antics.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Gelato, hedonists, ootoro, SGV, Sushi, walnut california

Sauvage Spring

Feb22

Restaurant: Spring Place

Location: 9800 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90212. (310) 591-8884

Date: January 25, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent neighborhood Italian

We Sauvages have been following chef Mirko Paderno around for a while now, from Oliverio, to Officine, to Culina, to Estrella, and now to Spring Place. The wine theme for today’s lunch is Nebbiolo (namely Barolo and Barbaresco).

This is one oddball location, a sort of business club in the heart of Beverly Hills with a restaurant. How they possibly pay the rent for this gorgeous (empty) space is beyond me.

Everything is quite modern and attractive.

We had this huge private dining area to ourselves.

2004 Bruno Paillard Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut. VM 90. The 2004 Brut Millesime Blanc de Blancs is made in a fairly rich style for Chardonnay in this vintage, with a bit more body and overall breadth than is found in most 2004 Blanc de Blancs. Pear, baked apple, apricot pit, sage, mint and butter meld together in an open-knit, expressive, poised Champagne to drink now and over the next 5-10 years.

Various breads.

Here is chef Mirko in the whites.

Our special menu, designed by Stuart.

2016 Bruno Giacosa Roero Arneis. 89 points. Nice mineral driven wine. Great mouth feel.

Amuse-Bouche. Kumamoto oyster, yuzu and ponzu citrus vinaigrette & hamachi nigiri eel sauce. More Japanese than Italian, but quite tasty.

Flight 1:

From my cellar: 1978 Cantine del Castello Feudale di Montegrosso d’Asti Barbaresco Riserva Speciale. 90 points. A touch shaken up so there was a lot of sediment.

1997 Albino Rocca Barbaresco Vigneto Brich Ronchi. VM 93. Good full deep red. Superripe aromas of roasted plum, redcurrant, marzipan, grilled nuts and pungent oak spices. Dense, fleshy and seamless, with compelling depth of flavor. This wine has the sheer buffering material to handle the high percentage of new oak in which it was aged.

2001 Giorgio Pelissero Barbaresco Vanotu. VM 91. The estate’s top botling, the Barbaresco Vanotu (made from parcels in Neive and Treiso) is a superb wine with penetrating aromas of alcohol and toasted oak. It offers outstanding balance, in its round, lush personality, with a lingering note of balsamic sweetnes on the exquisite finish. Made from parcels in Neive and Treiso.

Antipasto. Beef tenderloin battuta, black truffle infused soft egg yolk, black truffle, and tonnato sauce. I mixed it all together. Very coarse texture on the beef which I liked, although it felt slightly Italian old school in that way. Lots of truffle flavor and beefiness with that umami thing from the tuna sauce.

Flight 2:

1967 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva. JG 89. The 1967 Barolo “Riserva” from Borgogno is a good, solid example of the vintage that shows the sturdy style of the house in this era. The bouquet is complex and still fairly youthful, offering up scents of cherries, licorice, road tar, herb tones, forest floor and a touch of blood orange in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and tangy, with a good core, fine focus and balance and still a touch of backend tannin perking up the long and gently autumnal finish. This is quite elegant in profile for the Borgogno wines of the sixties, and while it is not the most complex example of the fine ’67 vintage, there is a lot of pleasure to be found here.

1990 Prunotto Barolo Cannubi. 93 points. Started out nicely and evolved beautifully to the last sips. Wonderfully perfumed and complex with nascent signs of tertiary development and a light puff of silky tannin still standing guard. Lovely now, but seems poised for continued positive development. Important to stand this up a few days before drinking and pour carefully as there is quite a bit of sediment here.

1996 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Riserva Granbussia. VM 95+. Deep, full red. Great subtly sweet aromas of redcurrant, plum, spice cake, minerals, dried fruits and marzipan; a wine of compelling perfume. Extremely tightly wound and vigorous, with great sappy verve and powerful framing acidity. Fruit flavors are lifted by an exotic suggestion of orange peel. Very youthful and long, finishing with great thrust and buns of steel. A tightly coiled wine with a long future, perfectly representative of this great vintage. “This will last 30 years without any problem,” promises Aldo.

agavin: huge and amazing wine

1996 Domenico Clerico Barolo Pajana. VM 93. Dark ruby-red. Classy, sappy aromas of black cherry, currant, dark chocolate, cola, tobacco and nutty oak; hints at a medicinal austerity. Silky and dense but with no loss of focus. A very concentrated, deep wine with chewy extract. Extremely long on the aftertaste. The noble tannins reach the molars.

Pasta. Maccheroncini amatriciana, smoked bacon, onion & pecorino cheese. Classic Roman dish. Pasta itself was perfect. It was a very good dish, but not quite as “porky” (and salty) as I like in amatriciana.

Flight 3:

2000 Paolo Scavino Barolo Riserva Rocche dell’Annunziata. VM 97. The 2000 Barolo Riserva Rocche dell’Annunziata is another exceptional Barolo. Impossibly fine, silky tannins support sweet red cherries, raspberries, rose petals and spices, all of which come together in the open-knit style that is typical of this great site. This, too, is another fabulous Barolo from Scavino.

2000 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Cicala. VM 92. The 2000 Barolo Cicala opens with gorgeous notes of crushed berries. It is a relatively small-scaled, lithe Cicala that shows excellent freshness all the way through to the long finish. The wine gains freshness and focus in the glass, with suggestions of menthol and pine that add lift.

2001 E. Pira & Figli (Chiara Boschis) Barolo Cannubi. VM 91. The 2001 Barolo Cannubi is a pretty wine, but despite its considerable charms, it remains heavily marked by French oak, which was 100% new in this vintage. There is plenty of intensity in the dark fruit, along with pretty suggestions of flowers, spices and mint that add complexity. Still, I can’t help wondering what the 2001 might have been like with a less overt use of French oak. A recent magnum was naturally fresher than the normal bottle. I would prefer to drink the 2001 sooner rather than later.

Risotto acquerello, black winter truffle & parmigiano reggiano. Amazing dish, best of the day. Very simple with good truffle quality.

Gratuitous Zoom!

Flight 4:

1998 Gaja Langhe Nebbiolo Sorì Tildìn. VM 93+. Full ruby-red. Restrained but pure aromas of currant, plum, menthol and roasted meat. Supple, rich and seamless; less sweet and accessible today than the Costa Russi but already shows superb generosity of texture. Finishes with sweet, building tannins and excellent length. This may well shut down in bottle.

1998 Gaja Langhe Nebbiolo Sorì San Lorenzo. VM 96. The 1998 Sorì San Lorenzo is one of the most pleasant surprises in this tasting. Fresher than the 1997 – even if not as voluptuous – the 1998 captures the best qualities of the year. Smoke, tobacco, menthol, plums and black cherries are all laced together in a silky, perfumed wine that is stunning today. This is a terrific showing from the 1998.

2004 Enzo Boglietti Barolo Arione. VM 93. The 2004 Barolo Arione stands apart from Boglietti’s wines from La Morra. A powerful, sinewy wine, it captures the essence of this Serralunga vineyard in its autumn leaves, iron, licorice, tar and dark fruit. There is plenty of richness and depth here as well, but the wine possesses an additional level of brute force and thrust. This too is a beautifully expressive wine loaded with personality. As is the case with Boglietti’s other Barolos in this vintage, the Arione develops nicely in the glass. Ideally a few years of cellaring are warranted, but my impression is that some of the wine’s tannins may never melt away completely.

2004 La Spinetta (Rivetti) Barolo Vürsù Vigneto Campè. VM 93. La Spinetta’s 2004 Barolo Campè has softened nicely with time. When it was first released, I thought the 2004 might be slightly lacking in fruit, but all things considered, it has held up nicely. Today the 2004 is forward, juicy and supple, with plenty of up-front fruit and overall generosity. With air, the wine comes together nicely, as the strong French oak accent softens and the fruit emerges more fully. Attractive scents of super-ripe red cherries, mint, cinnamon and wild flowers meld effortlessly into the seamless fruit. The racy, sleek finish captures the essence of the La Spinetta house style.

Secondi. Roasted quail, cauliflower puree, eggplant caponata & natural jus. Very nice little bird.

Bonus Flight (for cheese):

2004 Paolo Scavino Barolo Carobric. VM 94. The 2004 Barolo Carobric is in a great place today where it is starting to show the first signs of aromatic complexity, yet it also clearly has plenty of upside for the future. Firm yet nicely integrated tannins give the 2004 much of its energy. Sweet tobacco, plums, underbrush, cherries and melted road tar linger on the multi-faceted finish. Carobric is a blend of fruit from Cannubi, Rocche di Castiglione and Bric del Fiasc.

The gang at the table.

Crisps for the cheese.

Nice set of cheeses including parmesan with balsamic, stilton, and a Barolo cheese.

Dessert Flight:

NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this <em>cuvée</em>, but with no lack of vivacity.

Two gelatti I made myself, stacking up the BYOG count:

Food was excellent. Not perfect, but Mirko is a really really good Italian chef and it was as always, very good. Particularly the Risotto and Beef Tartar.

Setting was weird but gorgeous.

Service was very friendly but super slow. Food service suffered from at least two 35-45 extra minute insertions between courses making it a four hour lunch! This kitchen probably isn’t tuned for large special parties. And the wine service was well intentioned but kinda laughable. Emil and I had to organize and open the wines ourselves and the waiter was pouring them SO slowly the food was done before the first wine got around. Pours were uneven too. Clearly he hadn’t really done this stuff before — but he was nice and well intentioned.

Wines were excellent. Nothing really flawed and I do love good Nebbiolo.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Barbaresco, Barolo, Gelato, GYOG, Mirko Paderno, Nebbiolo, Sauvages, Spring Place

Isole e Olena il Pastaio

Feb19

Restaurant: Il Pastaio [1, 2]

Location: 400 N.Canon Drive. Bevery Hills, CA 90210. Phone: 310.205.5444

Date: January 24, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Superb

Liz Lee of Sage Society always puts on fabulous winemaker dinners. She focuses on making every element perfect from the location, food, wines and has some of the best winemakers in the world.

For Isole e Olena — one of Tuscany’s greatest producers — she selected il Pastaio, one of the many Drago restaurants. Normally, Giacomino Drago (one of the several chef brothers) helms il Pastaio — a Beverly Hills mainstay — but tonight Celestino was supervising this special dinner. Celestino and I have been friends for nearly twenty years since we met when he catered the dinner the night before our wedding!

Il Pastaio has a nice private room — or maybe it was a section of the restaurant that can be closed off for special events.

But it was decorated with illuminated trees and ceramics from Caltagirone Sicily (the Drago’s are Sicilian).

There is a cute wine room too.

NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru. 92 points.

Crispy Shrimps, Fennel Marmalade. Like a little spring spring roll, but the combination with the fennel jelly was fabulous. Sweet and interesting.

Foie Gras Crostino, Caramelized Onions, Aged Balsamic. Great combination of rich foie, sweet onions, and savory crostino.

Scrambled Eggs and Truffles. Simple but perfect.

Close up of the table.

And my spot.

Liz Lee introduces our winemaking guests.

In the center is Paolo De Marchi, legendary owner and winemaker of Isole e Olena. His family originally hails from Northern Italy but in the 1950s they bought the Isole e Olena and through lots of hard work and innovation brought it to the peak of Tuscan wineries.

The lady in red is the highly selective importer.

Our special menu.

Drago bakery bread.

2016 Isole e Olena Chardonnay Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. 90 points. Very well made Chardonnay in a modern style, ripe fruit, rich but fresh, lovely complexity, lots of savoury oak, especially on the slightly resinous finish, very good length.

2012 Isole e Olena Chardonnay Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. VM 93. Another super-impressive wine, the 2012 Chardonnay Collezione Privata races across the palate with gorgeous nuance and pure texture. Apricot, white flowers, spices, butter and French oak all meld together in a Chardonnay that stands out for its texture and balance. Today, the French oak is quite evident, but that should be less of an issue over time. I have seen Isole’s Chardonnay age well in the past, and expect to see the same here. The textured, impeccable finish makes it impossible to resist a second taste. I am typically not a fan of Italian Chardonnay. This is about as good as it gets.

2011 Isole e Olena Chardonnay Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. VM 89. Almonds, butter, pastry and juicy yellow stone fruits emerge from Isole e Olena’s 2011 Chardonnay. Paolo De Marchi has done a remarkable job with this wine considering how difficult the vintage was for whites. The 2011 shows the ripeness and breadth of the year in its volume, yet all the elements are beautifully balanced. This is about as good as it gets in 2011.

Sea Food, Sea Urchin Panna Cotta. This is the second sea urchin custard I’ve had recently! There was a lot of it too, and it had that interesting sweet/rich/briny quality. The seafood was impeccable as well. Lovely dish, and actually a great pairing with the more mature Chardonnays.

2015 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico. VM 87-89. Tasted from tank just prior to bottling, the 2015 Chianti Classico is very pretty. Surprisingly medium in body, especially for the year, it is a model of total sophistication. It will be interesting to see if the 2015 gains a bit more flesh. Today, it is on the lighter side, even by the estate’s historical standards.

agavin: this is IEO’s basic Chianti. It’s a pretty blend, very much a great Italian table wine.

Scallops Saltimbocca, Cream of Forbidden Black Rice. I’ve never had the forbidden cream before! Great scallop nicely offset with the pancetta.

2016 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. no reviews at all.

agavin: Cepparello is IEO’s “Super Tuscan” being basically a pure Sangiovese.

2015 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. 93 points. dark red, dark ripe cherries, masculine, lovely style of Sangiovese, rich & round
2014 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. VM 97. The 2014 Cepparello is one of the truly great wines of the vintage. Vivid and intense in all of its dimensions, it exudes purity from start to finish. Silky tannins, expressive aromatics and beautifully delineated, bright, layered Sangiovese fruit are some of the signatures. In 2014, Paolo De Marchi produced an epic Cepparello for the ages. Don’t miss it.

2013 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. VM 96. The 2013 Cepparello is superb. Polished, silky nuanced and exceptionally beautiful, the 2013 exudes freshness and energy from start to finish. Succulent red cherry, plum, lavender and rose petal are some of the signatures. Aging in French oak shapes the wine nicely without marking it excessively. The purity of the flavors is striking. This is an especially cool, savory Cepparello built on finesse and persistence rather than power. Rain during harvest robbed the wine of some of its breadth. Otherwise, this is a striking Cepparello. I can’t wait to see how it ages.

Wagyu Beef Carpaccio, Pickle Mushrooms, Truffle Pecorino, Truffles. Fabulous Carpaccio. In fact, probably one of the best I’ve ever had. Great beefiness, olive oil, and truffle notes.

2013 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. 95-96+ points. Tasted after the outstanding 2015 Cepparello, this also is an absolutely stunning wine. A little more restrained on the nose maybe showing dark fruit, spices, tobacco, floral notes. Lots of fruit, powerful tannins, wonderful acidity in near perfect balance on the palate. Big, dense and concentrated, but not heavy. Like Cepparello, quite elegant in fact with lots of finesse. Super persistence to the finish. Keep. 95-96+.

agavin: Gran Selezione is even pricer (and rarer) than the Cepparello and is like the ultimate Chianti. Generally Paolo blends the Sangiovese with a bit of French wine like Syrah or Cabernet depending on the year. Selection is fierce and he uses only the best sections of the vineyards meticulously sorted.

2010 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. VM 98-99. The 2010 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione is extraordinary. A wine of pedigree and class, the 2010 boasts magnificent intensity and depth yet never comes across as heavy. The flavors are layered, nuanced and beautifully delineated in the glass. Plum, black cherry, spice, menthol and sweet spices are laced into the exquisite finish. The 2010 is a stunner today, but also has plenty of upside for the future. A reduction of time in barrel vis-a-vis the 2006 has paid off handsomely. The 2010 is going to be expensive, but it is worth every penny. Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot round out the blend.

Cavatelli Wild Boar Ragout. I couldn’t help think of how Paolo told us that he hates the cinghiale (the Tuscan white boar) because they mess with the vines — so he enjoys the revenge of eating them. This pasta was amazing, as Celestino’s hearty ragus always are. It was rich and porky. The cavatelli had that awesome thick chew.

2006 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. VM 93. Isole e Olena’s 2006 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, a wine that was originally produced for home consumption, turned out to be the drawing board for the Gran Selezione. Cherry jam, earthiness, spices, mocha, sweet herbs and French oak all meld together in the glass. The 2006 is marked by a slightly oxidative note in its aromatics it has always shown – the result of having spent three and a half years in oak. Otherwise, the 2006 is exceptional.

agavin: interesting that this was my favorite and the professional reviewers liked the younger wines.

2006 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. VM 96. The 2006 Cepparello is a super classic wine. It brings together the best elements of the house style in its breathtaking aromatics, delineated fruit and striking overall balance. All of the elements are in the right place for the 2006 to develop into a spectacular wine. The 2006 stands apart for its nuance, depth and overall detail. Juicy red cherries, raspberries, rose petals and licorice build to the huge, dramatic finish. The 2006 is one of the all-time great Cepparellos. It bears more than a passing resemblance to the stunning 1988. The 2006 has blossomed beautifully in bottle over the last few years, and it is now clear I underestimated its potential.

2005 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. VM 94. The 2005 Cepparello is glorious. A dark, mysterious wine, the 2005 has put on considerable weight in bottle, while the flavors have turned quite somber, with plenty of espresso, dried flowers, mocha, tar and licorice overtones woven throughout. The 2005 can be enjoyed today, but it also has more than enough stuffing to last for another 10-15 years. It is one of the real triumphs of the vintage. Specifically, the 2005 exudes a strong, assertive personality that simply can’t be denied. In 2005, proprietor Paolo De Marchi blended in a bit of Cabernet Sauvignon to add structure.

agavin: again I liked this less structured, less “big” wine.

2004 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. VM 95. The 2004 Cepparello has fleshed out beautifully since I last tasted it. Dark raspberries, flowers, licorice and spices blossom from the glass as the wine opens up over time. When it was young the 2004 was a much more linear wine, but since then it has put on a lot of weight. Today, the 2004 comes across as a modern day 1982 because of its balance of aromatics, fruit and structure.

Rabbit Cannellone, Squash Puree. This was a novel (and very Italian) dish. The rabbit was like a pink meat filling — not unlike dumpling filling. It was rolled into the pasta and than the unusual sweet squash sauce.

2014 Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. 92 points. Paolo has some pure Cab and Syrah cuvees too.

2013 Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. VM 96. The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione Privata is superb. A delicate, nuanced wine in this vintage, the Cabernet Sauvignon speaks in hushed tones. Silky tannins and highly expressive aromatics add to an impression of total finesse. In many vintages, the Cabernet can be quite big, but not in 2013. This is a brilliant showing from Isole and proprietor Paolo De Marchi.

2015 Isole e Olena Syrah Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. 92 points.

2011 Isole e Olena Syrah Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. VM 94. The 2011 Syrah Collezione Privata is a big, powerful wine. Dark cherry, smoke, plum, pipe tobacco, cedar, leather and menthol notes make a strong opening statement. Plush and deep on the palate, the 2011 is super-inviting. A dollop of Viognier rounds out the blend. This is one of the most intriguing Syrahs being made in Italy today.

Pan Roasted Lamb Loin, Eggplant, Apple Fritters. Yum, lamb.

2000 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT. 91 points. Red berries and rose hip tea in the nose, all a bit high toned. Much personality, elegance, consistence right from the start but playing all cards only for so. with some patience: clearly best sip on day 3 from remaining small tasting glas. Good length, great robustness, sweet fruit expression. Great wine.

1998 Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione Privata Toscana IGT.

1997 Isole e Olena Syrah Collezione Privata Toscana IGT. 90 points.

Wagyu New York Steak, Potato Gnocchi, Parmesan Cheese Cream, Pea Tendrils, Balsamic Sabayon. Boy was I getting full — and this was some great beef!

2008 Isole e Olena Vin Santo del Chianti Classico. Sticky!

Italian Cheeses. Liz normally doesn’t like sweets at the end of red wine meals as to not conflict with the wines but I twisted her arm and brought some of this:

Another new flavor — Orange Cinnamon Gelato — I steeped the milk with blood orange rind, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #orange #cinnamon #vanilla #nutmeg

Have a few wines!

My cryptic notes.

And some glasses.

As always from Liz and Sage Society an impeccable dinner. Lovely setting, Drago food at its best (and a rare and excellent showing these days with Celistino helming the kitchen), individual labeled stems for every wine (and there were A LOT) and perfect wine service!

Plus Paolo talked and was available all night we really got an insight into the creativity and energy that has made him one of Tuscany’s best winemakers. He engaged in all sorts of experiments with various clones, sites, variants, and techniques in the vineyard, individually pressing and separating small batches of differing grapes. In this way he was able to isolate his best plots and some variations and techniques that really enabled him to push his winemaking forward.

For more LA dining reviews click here.