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Archive for Babykillers

Orange Afternoon — Garlic & Chives

Aug08

Restaurant: Garlic & Chives

Location: 9892 Westminster Blvd #311, Garden Grove, CA 92844. (714) 591-5196

Date: June 23 & September 13, 2018 and October 3, 2021

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Rating: Old School Vietnamese

_

In June of 2018, Fred C and Andrew T convinced me to head down on a Saturday afternoon to Garden Grove for some serious Vietnamese. Now, despite the horrific traffic, they didn’t have to twist my arm too hard because I love Vietnamese food, as evidenced by my eating around that lovely country. Since then Garlic and Chives has become a favorite and this post includes multiple lunches and one wine dinner.


In June of 2018, after a “snack” (aka full lunch) at Tai Buu we secured our late afternoon reservation at the insanely popular Garlic & Chives — apparently by Kristin!

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Inside is cute and more modern.
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Interest ice tea with an exotic flavor.

Wines we just popped and jammed on.

1998 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. BH 94. An elegant but austere wine that is almost as reticent as the ’96 with pure citrus and floral aromas that continue onto the crisp and still very tight medium-bodied flavors that are beautifully precise and impressively delineated on the gorgeously long finish. This is a long way from being ready and I wouldn’t touch a bottle for another 5 to 7 years.

From my cellar: 2006 Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Rosé Brut. VM 95. Taittinger’s 2006 Comtes de Champagne Rosé has come along nicely over the last six months. Intensely perfumed, Pinot-inflected aromatics carry through the mid-palate and finish as the 2006 shows off its depth and pure energy. Veins of chalky minerality give the red berry and cranberry flavors an extra kick of energy. The 2006 is both powerful and delicate at the same, with crystalline precision and fabulous depth. Hints of orange peel, mint, cinnamon and cranberry add further shades of nuance on the complete, beautifully articulated finish.

2014 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru Vaillons. VM 93. Very pale yellow. Lemon oil, flowers and a lightly lactic yeasty nuance on the nose. Tight, upright and penetrating, with brisk lemony acidity intensifying the dense flavors of white peach and almond flower. Shows terrific grain and palate presence and finishes with explosive mounting length. A very serious Vaillons. Dauvissat noted that as these vines have aged, they are yielding consistently more mineral wines.

Omg, more babykill! 2013 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92-94. A shy, indeed almost mute nose only grudgingly liberates its cool aromas of green apple, white fruit, spiced pear and wet stone. The intensely saline and stony big-bodied flavors are supported by a firm spine of citrus-inflected acidity that shapes the powerful finish that delivers outstanding complexity and persistence. I very much like the balance and this will need plenty of time to realize its full, and considerable, potential.

And if we thought 2013 white was young! 2015 Domaine Arlaud Charmes-Chambertin. BH 92-94. Reduction. The supple, round and strikingly refined, indeed even silky flavors possess focused power and punch while offering outstanding length on the dusty, palate coating and mildly austere finale. This is an exercise in harmony and refinement.



A REAL Vietnamese menu (gigantic).
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Lime Beef Tenderloin Salad (9/13/18). Beef tenderloin marinated in lime juice, mint, onion, chili and peanuts.
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Papaya salad with beef jerky (10/3/21). super savory and delicious.


Beef Salad (June 2018 and 10/3/21). Slices of beef, papaya, and all sorts of tangy, sweet, spicy Vietnamese salad goodness. Notable on 10/3/21 that it wasn’t quite as good as the beef jerky salad.
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Raw Ahi Tuna Spring Rolls (9/13/18). Raw ahi tuna, fresh lettuce, avocado, pickled daikon and carrots, crispy wonton wrapper rolled up in rice paper. Served with house special soy sauce and wasabi. These were a bit different, sort of Vietnamese / Japanese. Good though.

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Grilled pork sausage roll / goi con em nuong (10/3/21). Great.
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Shrimp and pork mustard green roll (10/3/21). A bit boring.

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Holy Crunchy Chicken Wings (9/13/18). Heavenly crispy fried chicken wings with sweet and spicy sauce topped with fried garlic chips.

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holy crunchy chicken wings / canh ga chien (10/3/21). Sweet and spicy and amazing. They were much saucier (and better) this time.

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Salt and pepper shrimp (10/3/21).


Stir Friend Ong Choy with Sea Snails. Yes, this is a garickly green with SNAILS. It was delicious too.


Coconut Sea Snails (many times including June 2018 and 10/3/21). Special Vietnamese Sea Snails cooked in coconut curry sauce. I LOVED this dish. I’ve had a pink version before at Phong Dinh and this green version was slightly different, spicier, and just as good. The snails are in little conical shells inside the curry. You suck out the creatures. So good. I could eat two bowls myself!
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Rice for the snails.


Baked Clams with Garlic & Chives. Or maybe Chili Garlic. Nice actually. Lots of flavor.

Razor Clams (June 2018). Baked Razor Clams topped with peanuts, chili, garlic, and bell peppers. These were dry and overcooked and our least favorite dish.

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Razor clams (10/3/21). Delicious this time.

House Special Lobster (every time I have been including 10/3/21). Sautéed in house special sauce with garlic, onion, jalapeños, on a bed of noodles. This was AWESOME. Tons and tons of flavor, particularly over the noodles. Way better than the Crustacean and probably 1/4 of the price.
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Zoom on the lobster (from 9/13/18). So much garlic!

Spicy Crab in Tamarind Sauce (June 2018 and 10/3/21). Sort of close to Singapore Chili Crab, and certainly tangy and spicy, but a bit different. Great too. Really great with a ton of flavor. The sauce was absolutely amazing. Hard to get into the shells but a lot of the meat was out. I would still love to find some exact Singapore Chili Crab, but this variant was fabulous.

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Singapore Chili Crab (10/3/21). Amazing. We added noodles into the sauce too. Better than the Tamarind crab we had the same day.

Vietnamese breads (June 2018 and 10/3/21), including the fried donut-like thing which was heavy and delicious. These come with the crabs.

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Grilled Turmeric Fish with Dill served on the skillet w/ vermicelli.
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Vermicelli noodles and herbs served with turmeric fish. You wrap these up with the fish. Delicious and very much like we had a couple of times in Vietnam.

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Grilled Chili Lemongrass Pork Ribs (9/13/18). Crispy rice with pork ribs marinated in chili and lemongrass.

Spicy Garlic Toothpick Lamb (June 2018). Small pieces of lamb marinated in garlic and house seasonings deep fried. Basically the Szechuan dish, but with a few more aromatics.1A4A5337
Pork belly (10/3/21). Sweet.
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Mustard greens (10/3/21).
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More rice (10/3/21)
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Lamb chops (10/3/21). Good.
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sautéed beef vermicelli / bun bo xao (filet mignon, lemongrass etc) (10/3/21).
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Grilled pork and egg roll noodle / bun thit nuong cha gio (10/3/21).
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Goat curry (10/3/21).
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Bread for the curry.
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Oxtail hotpot (10/3/21). I was reaching painful levels of full here and not really able to try this.
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The hotpot comes with lots of herbs.
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Added in.


Made by me (June 2018), of course: Almond Boba Tea Gelato — Oolong tea steeped milk, Romano Almonds from Noto Sicily, and topped with Boba! Suffered slightly from the long transit and wait, but still good.

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Almond Amaretto Truffle Gelato (10/3/21) — Amaretto Zabaglione (egg yolk, amaretto, and sugar custard) Sicilian Almond gelato base with stacked layers of house-made Valrhona Almond Amaretti Ganache — 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 #Valrhona #almond #amaretto #amaretti #cookie #ganache #ChocolateTruffle
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Cherry Cough Syrup Sorbetto (10/3/21) – Amareno Cherry, Morello Cherry, and Creme de Cassis Sorbet! — so intense, and so awesome for a red fruit lover — 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 #sorbetto #amareno #morello #cherry #CremediCassis #cassis

Fred brought the whole family! (except his wife, who was out of town)

Andrew and Madison who hosted us down south that first time and treated us to this amazing fare.

This was an awesome afternoon and crazy crazy good food here at Garlic & Chives. I like this bright flavor forward style of Vietnamese (with a bit of Chinese, Singapore, and Thai influences). Just tons of… well garlic, chili, and chives. Closest in some ways to some of the really good places I went in Vietnam too. More fusion yes, but really good. Apparently they always have a huge line. Sigh. And a huge drive. But I’ll be back for sure for more good stuff and more Champagne. This is really Champagne food.

I’ve been back a whole mess of times for lunch and it’s always been good. Then we were back for a wine dinner on 10/3/21. They set up a large table outside on the sidewalk, which wasn’t bad at all as it was a nice night. They allowed the wine with no problem and had allowed us a reservation and preorders. This is unusual for Garden Grove Vietnamese restaurants which often don’t take reservation — a must for large party wine dinners involving people driving for over an hour! Food was awesome that night as well. A few people complained about my overzealous ordering (if I’m going to trek to Orange County for dinner I want to try EVERYTHING!) and the price creeping up because of the lobsters and crab. It wasn’t actually expensive, it just wasn’t “dirt cheap” the way people have come to expect from a small ethnic place like this. That’s unfair, as we had a TON of food and lots of signature ingredients.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

1A0A7274Sea Salt Latte from next door.

Related posts:

  1. Orange Afternoon — Tai Buu
  2. Orange is the New Black
  3. Hop Woo is Hop New
  4. Quick Eats – Little Sister
  5. Hunan Mao
By: agavin
Comments (4)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, BYOG, Champagne, Garden Grove, Garlic & Chives, Garlic and Chives, Gelato, Orange Afternoon, Orange County, Vietnamese cuisine

Orange Afternoon — Tai Buu

Aug04

Restaurant: Tai Buu Paris Restaurant

Location: 9684 Westminster Blvd, Garden Grove, CA 92844

Date: June 23, 2018

Cuisine: French Vietnamese

Rating: Old School Vietnamese

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Fred and Andrew T convinced me to head down on a Saturday afternoon to Garden Grove for some serious Vietnamese. Now, despite the horrific traffic, they didn’t have to twist my arm too hard because I love Vietnamese food, as evidenced by my eating around that lovely country.

While we waited for our table to come up at Garlic and Chives (more on that later) we went to one of Andrew’s favorites, old school Tai Buu.

Like a weird Parisian/Vietnamese cafe.
As usual for Babykillers events all the wine was just popped so I’ll list it here.


From my cellar: A great bottle of 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.

Young reds.

This is why we call them the Babykillers!

But on to the food. You always get this stuff here. Salad, spicy salt, and soup. French dressing. lol!

Here is the soup. Like simple duck consume or something.


Beef tongue in gravy. Looks ugly, but pretty tasty. Particularly with carbs (below).

Goat curry. Yum. I love curry and this was a nice classic brown curry with excellent goat.

There was French Bread.

Fried Eggs. Yep. Apparently you eat them with the tongue, or maybe it was the curry.

And tomato rice.

Fried coconut sticky rice. I really enjoyed the texture and the mild coconut flavor.

Garlic frog legs. Really tender and full of garlicky flavor. Not so different than frog legs Aleppo style!

Roast quail. Like at a Chinese place but with greens.

French style beef. This was an old school rendition. Filet Mignon and a thinner, more garlicky sauce than I usually see.

Flan. Absolutely first rate flan. Caramel, light hint of orange maybe.

Overall, a fun place and some tasty (and really cheap) food. Friendly service too. Some of our party are native Vietnamese speakers so that helped too. After this, on to the main event at Garlic and Chives…

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Orange is the New Black
  2. Quick Eats – Little Sister
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, Burgundy, French Vietnamese, Orange Afternoon, Orange County, Tai Buu Paris, vietnamese

Long Lunch at Longo

May16

Restaurant: Longo Seafood Restaurant [1, 2]

Location: 7540 Garvey Ave, Rosemead, CA 91770.  (626) 280-8188

Date: April 10, 2018 and August 13, 2022

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Amazing Lunch

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A couple weeks ago I had dinner at a new Cantonese place in the SGV. Jonathan Gold wrote it up and our dinner was great. So I jumped on the opportunity to meet a few Babykillers and some Instagram wine folks out there again for lunch — really as part of a SGV double header (I had dinner later at Newport Seafood).

Oddly too, the next time I returned serious for dim sum was again with the Babykillers, and again was part of a “2 in one day” SGV face-stuffer (this time with ootoro). These are painful! Even though I got 4 hours of massage in between! Plus the night before was a big Fred dinner at N/Naka.


Longo is on Garvey right next to the Longo Toyota. Lol.

It’s one of these big formal Cantonese places.


But we had the generously sized private room.

A nice side table for getting the wines ready.

This was lunch, and dimsum time, but we ordered some regular banquet food too. Including the incredibly priced $25ish a pound live King Crab! This one was smaller, because we weren’t a huge group.
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Crab in 2022.

They brought out all the sauces. Love the XO!

1993 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. VM 91. Understated, pure aromas of musky stone, orange, smoke and truffle. Full, ripe and harmonious; not a huge or superconcentrated wine but quite subtle and fine, with brisk, juicy flavors of orange and minerals. Lingering, ripe finish.

NV Jérôme Prévost La Closerie Fac-Simile. VM 94. Jérôme Prévost’s NV (2012) Rosé Fac-simile is flat-out delicious. In this vintage, the Fac-simile is decidedly lifted and understated in style, with gorgeous aromatics and lovely overall balance. The Pinot fruit is incredibly expressive, but the 2012 is not a wine of impact, rather it is a Champagne that draws the taster in with its allure. Prévost only makes his 100% Pinot Meunier Rosé Fac-simile in top vintages, which makes it one of Champagne’s rare birds. After the disappointing 2011, the 2012 put things back on track.

agavin: really tremendous, on the dry side, rose.

1996 Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Brut Millésimé. 90 points. Not a lot of bubbles left in this one – has become quite a mature champagne. It’s good drinking at the moment, but nothing in the glass wowed me. An enjoyable drink nevertheless and still some nice acidity/lemon/sherbert at the end of the palate. I would drink these up now.

1995 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires. VM 95. The 1995 Brut Blanc des Millenaires shows just how compelling this often overlooked vintage can be. Layers of lemon, pastry spices, crushed rocks and savory herbs literally jump from the glass in this exquisite, perfumed, beautifully delineated Champagne. The 1995 shows lovely flavor complexity and nuance from its extended time in bottle, yet it also retains plenty of freshness, verve and acidity. This is a great showing from Charles Heidsieck. The 1995 was made before the tenure of the house’s current team, headed by CEO Cécile Bonnefond. It will be very interesting to see what develops at this historic property over the coming years.

NV Laurent-Perrier Champagne Grand Siècle Grande Cuvée. 93 points. from the latest lot, mostly 2002 and a bit of ’99 and ’98. Took a bit of time to open out completely; honeyed flowers mixed with bits of toffee, caramel and almond shadings. Poached yellow orchard fruits, apple and pear, long line of acidity, shows more width and concentration with air time. This bottle was tighter than others I have had recently. 93-94 points.

NV Emmanuel Brochet Champagne Le Mont Benoit Extra Brut. VM 93. The NV Extra Brut Le Mont Benoit 1er Cru is terrific. Dried flowers, almonds, dried pears and chamomile are some of the many notes that flesh out. Ample, broad and creamy, with plenty of depth from the red grapes that make up most of the blend, the Mont Benoit is terrific today. Specifically, the Mont Benoit is rich and vinous on the palate, yet also remains wonderfully light on its feet. Don’t miss it. Disgorged April 2016. Dosage 4 grams per liter.

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Cucumbers with a spicy bean paste.
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Jellyfish. Kinda bland actually.

Great Macau style roast pork.

Perfect with rose Champagne!
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Geoduck sashimi. Lovely again with a very briney quality.
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Fried geoduck and octopus. The fried clam was amazing. Delicious “fry”.

The crab came back in stages, first stir fried with salty egg yolk. Pipping hot.

And so delicious it warranted a close up.

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Typhoon style crab body meat. Perhaps a bit too much bread crumbs, but very tasty.

Then a bit of dimsum, their specialty lobster har gow. These were great, with a nice strong lobster flavor and light shell.

1999 Dominique Laurent Clos Vougeot. BH 88-91. Austere and regal in its reserve yet the density is breathtaking. A good deal more structured than the Clos de la Roche and not nearly as forward yet there is more finesse here than most young Clos de Vougeots offer. Solid in every respect.

On the house, roast duck. Very succulent, juicy, and delicious. Perfect with Red Burgundy.

2011 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Narvaux. 92 points. Another cracking bottle from Roulot. He just keeps hitting them out of the park it seems.

2014 Domaine de Montille Corton-Charlemagne. VM 94. Bright yellow. Very ripe aromas of lemon oil, grilled nuts, toasted bread and brown spices. Fat, rich and very ripe, with mineral and spice flavors accented by lemon zest, lime and lavender. This initially struck me as weightier and less classic than the 2015, but the wine’s strong spine of stony acidity gives it terrific penetration and really frames and extends the fruit on the long finish. Still, this big, smooth wine is showing beautifully today. Winemaker Sieve notes that the south/southeast exposition of the vines gives this wine a crunchy fruit character along with considerable weight.

2016 Walter Scott Chardonnay Cuvée Anne. 92 points. Nice for a fake chard. The wine paired pretty well thanks to its terrific acidity. Loads of crisp yellow apple. I’m going to try to give this wine at least a year before opening another bottle. Delicious!

Crab round 2: King crab legs with garlic and rice noodles. Amazing!

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Steamed then chilled crab legs. Cool, sweet, and delicious.

And Crab Brûlée, what I call the crab meat egg custard in the crab shell.

From the dim sum menu, chicken feet in sweet soy.

Shrimp chow fun (rice crepe) with the new “twisted” style.

Fried chicken feet in red sauce.

Spare rib nibbles.

2016 The Standish Wine Company The Relic. 93 points. Some monster Syrah, but pretty good after 2+ hours in the decanter.

Chewy meat stuffed fried rice buns. These were nice versions.

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BBQ pork buns. A little soggy.
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Steamed pork buns.

Fried chicken cartilage. Chewy and delicious.

Truffle siu mai. The dumplings were good, but this canned truffle “relish” (more olive probably than truffle) actually diminished them. Might have been better with real truffle. As it was, just get the sui mai.

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Shrimp and chive dumplings. Very nice.
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Crab and tobiko dumplings.
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Har gow. Very nice with real shrimp inside.

Spare rib and pumpkin chow fun. More twisted rice crepes, some made with special red rice!

Roast duck chow fun. Never had this combo. Also good, and I like the interesting “twisted” texture.
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Seafood chow mein (crispy).

Seafood chow mein. The classic crispy egg noodles with seafood in a light sauce.
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Tofu and veggies.

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Garlic greens.

They plated this table-side.
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Fried rice.
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Yolk buns and tea jelly. Interesting.
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Almond Chocolate Cloud Gelato – The base is made with Valrhona 62% Satilla Chocolate and then layered with Toasted Sicilian Almond Cream and chopped Classic Toblerone! — 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 #Valrhona #chocolate #creamcheese #ganache #icing #almond #Toblerone

English Breakfast Garden Gelato — this is a creative new flavor of mine: milk steeped with Orange Peels and Rosemary with just a touch of Orange Marmalade worked in — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — very subtle and lovely flavor — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #orange #rosemary #Marmalade
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The gang in 2022.

The service was absolutely first rate. The manager above really took care of us. The food was great too. The pig and crab were as good as it gets and the crab was a total deal at only $25/lb (in 2018 — in 2022 it was a lot more). The duck was very good too as were a number of the other dishes. I would like to order more dimsum on a return to get a real feel for it, and we just had a few dumplings (all good) and the chow funs.

Reflecting in 2022, just a few months before we tried out a vast host of dim sum places, Longo is one of the top couple dim sum places in the SGV, probably in the top 5. It’s not as “typical” as some, belonging a bit to the new school, and their dim sum menu is smaller than the big Cantonese palaces, but the ingredients and execution are first rate.

But the lunch itself was tremendous fun. The wines, particularly the champagnes were stellar and a great crew of people.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

IMG_5695

Just a few of the champagnes in 2022.

Related posts:

  1. Late Night Longo
  2. Ultimate New Bay Lunch
  3. Go Sushi Goes To Lunch
  4. World Seafood is Elite
  5. Cocoa Island – Languorous Lunch
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, BYOG, Cantonese cuisine, Champagne, Gelato, Longo Seafood, SGV

I-Driva to I-Naba

Mar11

Restaurant: I-Naba

Location: 20920 Hawthorne Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503. (310) 371-6675

Date: January 18, 2018

Cuisine: Japanese Tempura

Rating: Solid but not amazing Tempura

_

Various people in my foodie circles had been floating the idea of a wine dinner to old school Torrance tempura joint, I-naba.

I ended up going with the Baby Killers (what I call one of my food groups). The reservation was for a blisteringly early — thanks Charlie! — 6:30pm which resulted in hideous traffic to it’s undistinguished mini-mall location.

The inside is seriously old school Japanese restaurant.

The even have a tempura bar — which is cool.

Cured duck with mustard. Nice, like a pastrami.

Amuse of marinated onions and some fish.

Sashimi plate with salmon, yellowtail, and another fish.

Fermented squid guts. A winter special — very briny and not to everyone’s taste — I actually like it.

Simmered chicken with taro. Chunks of taro and chicken soup. Pretty good.

Fried tofu in dashi soup. Very mild flavor but I love the texture of the fried tofu and the mild dashi flavor.

Pressed mackerel sushi. Very old fashioned — like 19th century!

Chawanmushi – Simmered egg custard dish. Always love these.

Stew of egg and some other stuff.

Deep fried pork cutlets.

Various tempura.

Even more tempura.

And more.

And my favorite tempura, the mixed everything (Kakiage).

Cold buckwheat soba noodles.

Soy sauce like dipping sauce and the traditional condiments of wasabi, green onion, and daikon radish. You dump them in the sauce and dip. Very nice soba.

So-so Japanese ice cream. (Overly grainy and frozen).

Red bean flavor.

Green tea.

Real genuine Sweet Milk Gelato that I made (and brought)! Meyer Lemon French Vanilla Gelato — looks simple, but the milk was steeped with Tahitian Vanilla beans and Meyer Lemon peel. I pair it in the bowl with Amareno cherry syrup too!

Here it is with the cherries!

And me serving.

Instagram fodder!

The dump included ice cream!

Tonight’s wines were great, but a total free-for-all as Charlie likes to do it. Because I’m lazy, I’ll just post the pictures.










As you can see, mostly Champ and Burgundy of both flavors.

More instagram posing.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable evening (except for the traffic), and the wines and company were fabulous, but I was a bit underwhelmed by the food. It was good traditional Japanese, and some dishes were very good like the tofu and soba, but the tempura in particular sat too long (possibly due to our large party) and was only good, not great. In fact, I like the tempura better at super casual Hannosuke. I had hoped for mind blowing tempura. That being said, the whole meal was tasty and a great deal.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Hannosuke Tempura
  2. Food as Art – Tempura Endo
  3. Mori Sushi – A Top Contender
  4. N/Naka Reprise
  5. Hurry Curry
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, BYOG, Gelato, i naba, Japanese cuisine, Sashimi, tempura, Tofu, Wine

Pok Pok Raveneau

Feb01

Restaurant: Pok Pok LA

Location: 978 N Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 613-1831

Date: January 29, 2016

Cuisine: Northern Thai

Rating: Spicy & Good “high end” Thai

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Pok Pok is essentially a Northern Thai restaurant, but unlike most of it’s LA brethren, it’s fairly high end, with a real bar, some hipster cred, and a reputation that spans beyond the city. I came here with the Babykillers to enjoy and to open a whole mess of Grand Cru Raveneau!

It might be Thai, but it’s located in Chinatown.

The interior isn’t really fancy.

Tons of whiskey at the bar.

Peanuts with Thai basil and chili.
 Pandan water. Pretty good, makes you think of spa.

The menu.

Our Grand Cru Raveneau lineup.

2007 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Burghound 94. Here the nose is every bit as elegant if not more so but it’s distinctly cooler and somehow more distant yet the strong Chablis character is immediately evident as the nose is a classic combination of green fruit, warm stone, iodine and distilled extract of sea water and this intense saline quality continues onto the equally cool, brilliantly defined and stunningly well balanced flavors that are crystalline in their purity on the driving finish. This does a slow but steady build in intensity from the mid-palate on back and the length is flat out amazing.

2004 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Burghound 94. This is a much different and classically styled with an ultra pure nose of ripe but austere green fruit brimming with oyster shell and seawater notes that introduce elegant, pure and sweet flavors all wrapped in a beautifully balanced and wonderfully detailed finish that also displays some austerity. This is built on a base of pungent minerality and will require ample time to come around. A Chablis lovers Chablis.

Sai Ua Samun Phrai. Chiang Mai sausage with herbs. Burmese curry powder and aromatics. Grilled and served with Naam Phrik Num (spicy green chili dip). Really first rate sausage. Some kick to the green stuff too.
 Laap Thawat Isaan. Deep-fried Iasaan style spicy pork laap with lime leaf, kao khua, chilies, lime juice and herbs. Fried ground spiced pork — what isn’t to love.
 Neua Khwai Sawan. Deep-fried marinated dried buffalo with coriander seed and deep fried lime leaves. I’ve had this dish — but it’s usually beef or pork — and we call it “Thai Beef Jerky”. Here do they mean American Bison? Or Thai water buffalo? No idea. Still, it was the best “Thai Beef Jerky” I’ve had. Much more tender than usual.
 Phat Hoi Laai. Stir-fried manila clams with chilies, galangal, garlic, krachai, and Thai basil. Nice clams. Then I slurped down what I thought was basil — it was some kind of green Thai chili and was INSANELY hot. It burned my throat for like an hour. And this is from a guy who slurps down Szechuan Chili Oil at least once a week.

1999 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Burghound 90. I found this fascinating as Valmur is my favorite of the Chablis grands crus and is normally the most austere and understated of them all, yet this was positively “friendly” with its round, almost easy fruit and flavors and while there is certainly breed and class here, it lacks the same driving persistence and pungency of the Blanchot. To be sure, there is plenty of wine here and there is a hint of finishing austerity but this is not at the same level as the Blanchot. All of that said, I still quite like the wine and while it is nearing its apogee, it could use another year or two of cellar time. Consistent notes.

1998 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Showing wonderfully. Saline. Full. Plenty of rich fruit. Very expressive on the nose and palate. Finish is just a touch short. But otherwise excellent. Salty!
 Ike’s Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings. Natural chicken wings marinated in fish sauce and sugar. Deep fried, tossed in caramelized Phu Quoc fish sauce and garlic and served with Vietnamese table salad. Really nice wings. Juicy, with a great sweet/tangy garlic flavor.
 Khao Soi w/ chicken. Northern Thai mild curry noodle soup made with our secret curry paste recipe and house-pressed fresh coconut milk. Crispy yellow noodles. Love this stuff.

Kao Soi served with house pickled mustard greens, shallots, and roasted chili paste. You dump it in and mix.
 Kaeng Awm Neua. Spicy aromatic Northern Thai beef shin stew with dry chilies, tumeric galangal, lemongrass, lime leaf, and coriander root. Comes with sticky rice too. The meat was a bit tough but the sauce was awesome, particularly with rice.

Kaeng Hang Leh. Northern Thai sweet pork belly and pork shoulder curry with ginger, palm sugar, tumeric, tamarind. Burmese curry powder and pickled garlic. A rich dish with Burmese origins. Quite delicious with tender (fatty) meat.

1995 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Blanchot. Burghound 89. Advanced but not aged aromas of honeysuckle and a pretty mineral nuance lead to sweet (in the best sense), round, delicious, nicely detailed flavors of excellent length. While there is reasonably good power, the ’95 Blanchots is more a wine of elegance and finesse. This should continue to improve for another few years and I would elect to start drinking this in earnest in two to three years.

agavin: our bottle was nice.

1995 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Valmur. Unfortunately corked.
 Muu Paa Kham Waan. Boar collar meat rubbed with garlic, coriander root and black pepper. Glazed with soy and sugar. Grilled over charcoal. Tasty stuff. Tangy, salty, with a bit of kick.

Served with iced mustard greens. Not sure what one was supposed to do with these. Eat them with the boar, I guess.

A special fish steamed with garlic.
 Laap Pet Isaan. Spicy Northeastern Thai chopped duck salad with duck liver and skin. Lemongrass, herbs, toasted rice powder, dried chilies, lime juice and fish sauce. A really nice “meaty” salad.

This came with the duck.

1983 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Blanchot. 93 points. Oldest Rav I’ve had and WOTN. Wow. Rich. Buttered popcorn. Touch of alcohol and heat. As the night progressed developed a distinct coffee aroma on the nose. Love it.

Yam Makheua Yao. Smoky charcoal grilled long eggplant salad with spicy dressing of Thai chilies, lime, fish sauce, and palm sugar. Topped with boiled egg, dry shrimp, pork, prawns, shallots, and crispy garlic.
 Kanom Jiin Namm Yea. Coconut curry with ground fish and krachai, made with fresh pressed coconut milk, served over thin rice vermicelli with pickled mustard greens, bean sprouts, bai menglak (lemon basil), and boiled egg. Good stuff, but not quite as good as the Khao Soi.

Papaya Pok Pok. Central Thai-style spicy green papaya salad with tomatoes, long beans, Thai chili, lime juice, tamarind, fish sauce, garlic, palm sugar, dried shrimp, and peanuts. Made to order in.
 Yam Kai Dao. Crispy fried farm egg salad with lettuce, Chinese celery, carrots, onions, garlic, Thai chilies, and cilantro. With a lime, fish sauce, palm sugar dressing. Really nice, with a great vinegary tang.
 Da Chom’s Laap Meuang. Northern Thai spicy hand-minced pork “salad” with aromatics, spices, herbs, cracklings, and crispy fried shallots and garlic. Served with phat sot (fresh herbs and raw vegetables, like the duck above). Also good stuff, but this pork one was much saltier than the duck — a bit too salty for my taste.
 Sangkhaya Thurian. Sweet sticky rice with durian scented coconut/palm sugar custard. This was a highly “advanced” dessert with that funky durian smell and a creaminess mixed with petrol followed by mango and pineapple finish. I loved it, but as I said, for the “advanced” palette. Stinky even.
 Another view of the Ravs.
 Above, the sacred flower decanter.

Overall, food was great. I still like Jitlada better, mostly because I’m a crazy curry devotee, and Norther Thai is more “grilled meats” (sort of). But this was great stuff. Very similar to Renu Nakorn. Some complain about the “A list” prices. I.e. it’s 50% more expensive than the whole-in-the-wall places. I personally think it’s worth it because the ingredients are a lot better. With the exception of a few dishes like the wings, Pok Pok doesn’t give up on authenticity as far as I can tell. There is some real heat to the food too (although not quite Jitlada heat).

The wines were awesome as expected. One out of seven corked, par for the course, but the others were all good. Some of the older ones, particularly the 83 really showed well. Raveneau is hands down my favorite Chablis producer. Generally I’m a cote de beaune guy, but Rav has a roundness that most Chablis doesn’t, even if it still has that searing Chablis mineral acidity.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Hedonists Noodle over Hoy-Ka
  2. Jitlada – Fire in the Hole
  3. Quick Eats: Chan Dara
  4. Renu Nakorn
  5. Jitlada Overkill
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, durian, Pok Pok, Thai cuisine

Republique of Old Nebiolio

Dec16

Restaurant: Republique [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]

Location: 624 S La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036. (310) 362-6115

Date: December 16, 2015

Cuisine: Modern Bistro French

Rating: Nice (loud) space, tasty hip food, great service

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OMG, Republique again! This time with the Babykillers group for some serious old Nebiolio. Gaja and Giacosa, 1990s, 1982s and older!

1E7D8B4E-370A-476F-A7E6-30C49C803519.jpg
1996 Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Millésimé. VM 93. Musky, pungent, leesy nose hints at spice, fresh hay, chlorophyll, toast and Sancerre-like gaminess. Very rich and full, with superb concentration and density and a solid dosage Crushed stone and lime skin flavors carry through on the tactile, gripping, almost dusty finish. This struck me as distinctly Krug-like, as in Krug Clos de Mesnil, but then this chardonnay specialist is also located in Le Mesnil. A superb example of the ’96 vintage, offering an uncanny combination of sheer material and stylishness.

They had dug into a charcuterie plate before I arrived and these pates were about all that was left of it.

It’s also worth noting that tonight we ordered off the menu family style, while normally I’m upstairs in the private room with a set dinner. So this fare is (menu and season allowing) exactly what you can get just walking in.

It might be an old B dinner, but you still have to have some Chard.

2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières. Burghound 91-93. A spicy, cool and airy nose of slightly exotic white orchard fruit, acacia blossom and Asian tea nuances leads to rich and palate coating medium-bodied flavors as there is plenty of dry extract that adds a real sense of volume to the mid-palate. There is really lovely intensity and detail to the lemony and bone dry finish that is presently notably austere. This beauty will also require extended cellaring.

2012 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Les Genevrières. Burghound 90-93. Strong reduction. The mouth feel here is slightly finer than that of the Charmes with a bit more minerality as well to the relatively broad-shouldered flavors that are shaped and supported by a firm acid spine on the impressively long finish. This is more refined but not quite as complex though both wines are lovely and worth your consideration.

Escargots en Croûte. garlic, parsley. These are an awesome updated take on the classic snail prep. The snail is underneath, with all that garlic goodness. You can basically use the delicious puff to soak up the sauce.

Charcoal-Grilled Mediterranean Octopus. asian pear, pomegranate, cabbage, pistachio, chile, lime. This looks like a chickenless Chinese salad. It tastes vaguely Vietnamese. And while pretty good, the octopus is hardly to be seen.

Gruyère & Potato Beignets. tarragon, mustard aïoli. Curtsey of the house! Super gooey and cheesy inside. Yum!

1961 Gaja Barbaresco. Agavin 93. Really in great shape. Still tons of fruit and it opened up with classic Barbaresco nose.

1978 Gaja Barbaresco. Agavin 86. We had 2 bottles of this. The first was cloudy, and had a weird nose at first, but opened up and wasn’t bad.

The second bottle. Agavin 78. Was corked and pretty nasty.

Pappardelle. Italian white truffles (minimum three grams – price per gram).

With shaved truffles. This was a nice buttery mild pasta. The truffles this year are a bit flat (not Republique’s fault). The pasta was perfectly cooked.

Cavatelli. black trumpet, chanterelle & porcini mushrooms, parmesan. An awesome pasta. Light, bright, with a nice textural bite.

Green Fettuccine with crab and uni. Not your ideal Barbaresco pairing, but actually the uni was very mild in this dish and it worked well. Very tasty pasta too.

New Bedford Sea Scallops. baby root vegetable slaw, red flame grapes, capers, verjus, brown butter.

1982 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco. agavin 88. We called this the “classico” or “villages”. It was a little weird at first, not funky, but off kilter, then opened up really nicely and balanced. It never got nearly as good as the single vineyard, but it was nice. Very tannic though, as all the 82s were.

1982 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Rocche Falleto. 92 points. Very tannic also, but much more expressive and complex than the classico.

1982 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì Tildìn. 94 points. The 1982 Barbaresco Sorì Tildìn, on the other hand, was awesome. It revealed superb depth in its core of generous fruit, with superb concentration as well as balance. It was a memorable wine in every way. In the late 1970s and 1980s Gaja often waited to harvest until very late in the growing season in order to achieve the ripeness he was looking for. 1982 was the last vintage made with this method as subsequent vintages brought warmer weather than had previously been the case.

Mary’s Organic Rotisserie Chicken. fingerling potatoes, black kale, mustard, chiles, chicken jus. Good chicken. The sauce/kale was amazing. The only problem was that we waited exactly 56 minutes from our last pasta until this came 🙂  Republique was slammed, and totally full even on a Tuesday, and their kitchen does it right, but takes a while.

Cassoulet. white beans, pork belly, duck confit, sausage. Great stuff. Full of all sort of rich goodies and a really tasty bean sauce.

1990 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Le Rocche del Falletto di Serralunga d’Alba. 96 points. WOTN. Just an awesome, young, complex Barolo. Massive still, but really nice long flavors. All Barolo nose.

From my cellar: 1990 Gaja Barbaresco Sorì Tildìn. VM 97. The 1990 Barbaresco Sorì Tildìn opens with a wonderfully expressive, floral bouquet that leads to a finely-knot core of ripe red fruits, sweet tobacco and spices. Here the warmth and generosity of the vintage offer superb balance and fleshiness to the wine’s sculpted, well-articulated aromas and flavors. The wine’s overall sense of harmony is spectacular. agavin 95. So big, purple, brooding. Still tons of tannin but tons of powerhouse fruit. Not yet as integrated as the Giacosa. This puppy needs at least 5, maybe more years.

Sliced steak. A solid good steak.

Frites. Double fried. Awesome.

And some hollandaise or whatever.

Apple & Blackberry Tart. vanilla ice cream. I almost never have dessert here for a variety of reasons. Wine dinners with only cheese. Or like tonight, they take so long. So I just had Taylor bring this. It was a very nice tart.

Overall, a super fun evening.

Food was super delicious. It did take forever. It often does downstairs. You just have to be prepared for it. The kitchen is very on point though. Every dish was hot, fresh, and as it should be.

As usual Taylor did an amazing job with the wine service. We had new glasses for each flight. He decanted and opened with his usual expertise. Awesome.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Trimbach Republique
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  3. Republique of Vosne
  4. Third Republique
  5. Vive la République
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, Barbaresco, Barolo, Gaja, Giacosa, République, Taylor Parsons

Elite – King Crab Custard

Nov23

Restaurant: Elite Restaurant [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 700 S Atlantic Blvd, Monterey Park, CA 91754. (626) 282-9998

Date: November 21, 2015

Cuisine: Cantonese Banquet

Rating: Elite!

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Elite is well known as one of great LA’s top dimsum places, but less well known is how great a Cantonese banquet place it is.

 But Charlie chose it as the site for his legendary birthday feast, not only because of how good the food is (and it is good), but because they have a nice private room, great service, and are very Burgundy friendly.

They actually have a couple private rooms, but this time we had the small one, although it was certainly big enough for the 10 of us.

NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut V.O. 2006 disgorgment. VM 95. The NV V.O. (Version Originale) presents slightly darker, more burnished tonalities of Chardonnay. Almond, marzipan, dried rose petals, spices and anise blossom in an ample, generous Champagne built on volume, but supported by insistent veins of minerality. Hints of trademark Selosse oxidation make the V.O. a bit more eccentric, especially for readers who might not be familiar with these Champagnes. V.O. emerges from parcels in Avize, Cramant and Oger, all Grand Cru villages. The vintages are 2006, 2005 and 2004. This bottle was disgorged on October 15, 2013 and bottled with no dosage.

agavin: delicious. Super rich and tasted more like a 90s Champ.

Peanuts on the table is a Chinese staple.

2001 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. Burghound 93. This is a big step up in power and weight with a gorgeously complex nose of minerals, white flowers and minerals that leads to pure, muscular, fantastically detailed and precise flavors just oozing with sappy extract. This is quite concentrated and there is a certain regal classiness that separates this from all of the prior wines plus the length and vibrancy are simply incredible. This will require a few years of bottle age to completely integrate as the finish is very firm and quite dry for an ’01 but all of the requisite material is here for this to evolve into a superb Les Clos.

agavin: a little closed and reductive at first, but opened up into a green apple monster.
 Suckling pig. We preordered this little fellow. He’s kinda sad, but he sure tasted great. Really just a fabulous bit of pork and cracklings. The sweet sauce on the side is great too.

After we ate all the easy bits they took away the pig face and limbs and chopped them up for sort of a “piglet: the return” dish. A little too boney and nasty for me.

Charlie brought: 1995 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères. Burghound 88. Golden color though with no hints of browning. As one would reasonably expect, the nose has now gone completely secondary fruit though there is no sous bois or undue exotic notes in evidence and introduces flavors that are classic Puligny in style with their understated, delineated and pure character and clear minerality that shapes and defines the mid-palate plus a crisp, intense and fine finish for a wine of this level. This has always been a somewhat lean effort for a ’95 and it remains that way and to my taste, should be drunk up over the next few years as the acidity may begin to dominate the finish if held for much longer. To be clear, there is no danger of this falling over the edge, just that the balance may become compromised in time.

agavin: our bottle was a bit oxidized. Old enough not to be premoxed, but heading downslope. Still, it had a lovely complexity and brulee.

We also went all out tonight and got the giant crab! Here he is alive!

From my cellar: 1996 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Chevalières. Burghound 91. Coche always seems to be able to coax another dimension out of his array of villages level vineyards and the Chvalières is no exception with its completely mature nose of hazelnut, orchard fruit and hint of reduction that doesn’t carry over to the precise and mineral-driven middle weight flavors that offer a fine sense of focus and energy on the punchy and lingering finish. This is lovely juice that has arrived at its apogee but should remain here for at least another decade.

agavin: Charlie opened a bottle of this exact wine at his birthday 2 years ago and I immediately bought some. Expensive, but a total stunner then and now. Reductive, with a staggering nose and real depth. Most in the room agreed it was one of the two best whites of the night.

And in his first prep: Garlic fried ginger crab. Leg sucking yummy.

2002 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 94. A supremely elegant nose of white flower and limestone notes are followed by sweet, pungently mineral and ultra precise middle weight flavors that offer simply incredible focus with an almost painfully intense, stunningly long finish. This\nhas just now arrived on the front edge of its peak drinkability though some may prefer a few more years in the cellar first. In sum, this is really lovely juice that should age gracefully for several decades.

agavin: a young monster, but fabulous.

But nothing compared to prep 2: Garlic steamed crab. This was incredible. Just plain 15 minute old crab steamed with garlic. Oh so good.

2008 Domaine Leflaive Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 96. Here the nose is notably tighter and more reserved with aromas of citrus blossom and zest, spice, smoke, fennel and hints of acacia that introduce big, muscular and wonderfully complex broad-scaled flavors that culminate in a long, focused and explosive finish of breathtaking length and intensity. This should reward at least a decade in the cellar and drink well for a similar period thereafter. This too is terrific and very Bâtard and like the Combettes, the ’08 version is one of the very best young examples from Leflaive that I have ever seen.

agavin: The group joked that this was premoxed. But no, it was nice, young and fresh but dominated by reduction and will almost certainly be even better in a few years.

And version 3: King Crab Head Custard. This crab gave great head. The custard was amazing, soft and tofu-like with bits of crab mixed in. About as perfect a white Burgundy pairing as exists.

Fred brought: 1996 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Charmes. Burghound 94. Ultra pure and refined white flower and hazelnut notes introduce crisp, delineated and wonderfully refined, linear and nuanced middle weight flavors that culminate in a bright, racy and extended finish. This is incredibly youthful at 9 years of age and should age for 25 years. A great, great ’96 of uncommon elegance for Charmes.

agavin: another stunner. Got better and better through the night too.

Then garlic fried lobster. A truly great lobster prep. Crunchy, salty, and oh so garlicky.

Amanda brought: 1996 Domaine Ramonet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. BH? In its youth and up to 2003 or so, this was a brilliant wine and one of the best examples of Bienvenues that I have ever tasted chez Ramonet with an almost painful intensity and superb cut and detail. However, the last 4 bottles that I have tried, and from multiple sources have all displayed unacceptable levels of oxidation and were essentially undrinkable. It’s not clear whether good bottles exist or not but my luck with it has not been good.

agavin: well, our experience jives with Meadows because this was super oxed. 🙁

Another super special. Winter melon soup. Served fresh in the winter melon!

This doesn’t necessarily look like much, but it was an amazing mild soup. I had 2-3 bowls of it. Delicate lovely broth, and all sorts of bits of goodness in there. More like one of those traditional Japanese soups. There was pork, chicken, seafood bits, crab from our crab of course, mushrooms, and this fibrous soft yummy thing that might have been melon. Hard to say.

Amanda brought: 1969 Camille Giroud Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Pruliers. 93 points. A late release from the domaine. This was showing quintessential Nuits, with a simply massive dose of rustic earth on the nose and palate. The mushroom note was also quite prominent, though I think it’s more reasonable to chalk that up to its age. This was showing amazingly fresh for its age thanks to some bright acids. I’d never be able to call this as an almost-50-year-old wine blind. The ripe and prominent fruit makes this taste a lot younger than it is.

agavin: very fresh for its age. Browned out in the glass after about an hour.

String beans with sausage. A richer version of the usual prep.

1996 Domaine Robert Arnoux / Arnoux-Lachaux Romanée St. Vivant. VM 94. Deep red-ruby. Knockout nose combines raspberry, violet, coffee, licorice, spice and smoky oak. Superb richness and volume without excessive weight. Thick for a ’96, but kept bright by tangy Oriental spices and a lively floral nuance. Extremely long on the aftertaste, with noble tannins. Classy juice.

agavin: good stuff. Very much in the house style.

Roast squab. Succulent little birds, heads and all.

Erick brought: 1990 Domaine Dujac Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Aux Combottes. Burghound 92. A beautiful and now fully mature, complex and pure red berry fruit nose that has taken on secondary nuances is trimmed in noticeable oak that continues onto the supple, rich and still fresh middle weight flavors that offer excellent detail and plenty of finishing vibrancy. This is carrying a bit more oak than I personally like but there is no question that this is a quality ’90 that delivers a high quality drinking experience and should continue to do so for another decade, perhaps longer.

agavin: very nice, but at a sufficient level of maturity (bricking) that I’d drink up.

French style beef. Good with the reds.

2005 Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs. Burghound 96. The magnificently pure and airy essence of notably ripe dark pinot fruit, cassis and menthol remains reserved and cool with its exceptionally rich, classy, sweet and vibrant mineral-driven and large-scaled flavors that are shaped by powerful if buried tannins. While magnificently long, this stunning Ducster is completely shut down at present and it would be a vinous crime to open one at this very early point in its development as the ’05 is built for the very long haul, indeed 20 years may be too soon. In my view, the ’05 Ducster is destined to take its place alongside the greatest vintages of the past, and while the words “best ever” are presumptuous in a wine with such a distinguished history, the mere fact that it has the potential to be among the very best ever is praise enough.

agavin: we decanted for a while. Even so, while there was tons of fruit, there was so much tannin that it needs AT LEAST another ten years.

Pea greens. Not the pea tendrils, but the older version of the same. With garlic of course.

1994 Vega Sicilia Unico. Parker 96-98. The 1994 Unico is a blend of 80% Tinto Fino, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Merlot (presumably 2% is unknown varieties) that was picked from September 28. It is very intense with notes of raspberry, wild strawberry and mulberry with sensational minerality and vigor. There is a Margaux-like florality to the 1994 that blossom with aeration. The palate is rounded and supple on the entry with great weight and backbone. There is real substance here, similar to the 1996. It expands in the mouth with ravishing notes of blackberry, strawberry, citrus lemon, orange peel and a touch of cedar. There is enormous weight on the finish, a behemoth of a Unico. This is very potent, but it still requires several years in bottle. 96,280 bottles produced. Drink 2019-2040.

agavin: We decanted, very nice.

Dried scallop fried rice. Salty with a lot of umami.

1983 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Parker 90-94. A stunning wine, Pichon-Lalande’s 1983 has been gorgeous to drink for a number of years. It is one of the finest 1983s, especially for a northern Medoc. The color remains a dark ruby/purple, with slight lightening at the edge. The knock-out nose of roasted herbs, sweet, jammy black currants, and pain grille is followed by a full-bodied, gorgeously concentrated and well-proportioned wine with low acidity, plenty of glycerin, and a savory, highly extracted, fleshy mouthfeel. This has always been one of the stars of the vintage. Anticipated maturity: Now-2008.

agavin: in really great shape and lovely

Seafood chow mein. I love these crispy noodles.

The sauce soaks into them and softens them up. Oh so good.

1991 Domaine Bertheau (Pierre et François) Bonnes Mares. Burghound 87. Bricking now though still showing a bit of elegant cherry/berry fruit influence on the nose leading to slightly sweet, somewhat light flavors that offer good complexity but not much density. There is good complexity and overall, this is pretty rather than profound and performs more like a good but not special premier cru rather than a big grand cru like Bonnes Mares. In short, this is perfectly good but frankly a bit disappointing for a wine at this level.

agavin: a third bottle left over from the night before.

Dessert buns. These fluffy buns are shaped like peaches, which have traditional happy symbolism in China. They had a bit of sweet paste inside. Perfectly nice (for Chinese desserts).

Another awesome Chinese feast. A lot of these dishes were stunning, like the pig and all the crab dishes. The private room was great and we had a stunning lineup of (mostly) Burgundy. Only one wine had any serious issues (the 96 Ramonet) and this dinner showed the power of high quality producer Burgundy — particularly in context of a dinner without too many big reds (only really the Unico and older Bordeaux). I feel that Burgundy shows off by far at dinners where it dominates (although it can mix fine with Champy). You can’t easily go back and forth between the big extracted wines and the more subtle Burgundy.

Fu really knows how to celebrate!

For more LA Chinese reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Elite Wine Night
  2. Elite Dim Sum
  3. Elite New Years
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  5. More Awesome Dimsum – King Hua
By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, Burgundy, Cantonese cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Elite, Elite Restaurant, Wine

Babykiller Birthday

May06

Like many of us, my friend Matthew likes to celebrate his birthday with Burgundy. In this case, a free-for-all house party with lots of it. NOTE: this group doesn’t have real name, but I call them the Babykillers because they’re mostly younger than me, and because of a tendency to open great wines young (like 2010 DRC!). But hey, after who knows how long in the decanter those young DRCs were pretty awesome.

The birthday boy.

It should be noted that this dinner, like many Babykiller birthdays before it, has an unusual format. Food is casual, and all the when is just popped and self serve with small pours. There are 1.5-2 bottles per person, so there is no huge rush. Even the 1990 Dujac took 2 hours to be finished.

1988 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut. 95 points. howed beautifully, but not as well as the last bottle. The wine is light golden honey coloured, with fine mousse and effervescence that’s still alive, although fading. Notes of toasted brioche, hazelnuts and dried fruit on the nose. On the palate the wine is smooth, rich and long, with good, muted fruit and great balance and decent effervescence. Drinking at its peak now.

1999 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut. VM 95. The 1999 Salon, tasted from magnum, is the first wine in which fresh, primary fruit flavors are replaced by more mature notes. Lemon oil, light honey and chamomile flesh out in a radiant, expressive Champagne loaded with class. Here it is the wine’s texture and breadth that impress above all else. The 1999 is a fabulous transition to the older wines in this tasting, as it is both youthful and complex.

From my cellar: 1995 Pierre Morey Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. 93 points. Quite refined nose and palate with subtle nose of flowers, green fruit and brioche. Fresh and not even slightly premoxed.

1996 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. Burghound 91. Exquisite nose of hazelnut and ripe melon with flavors that are not particularly dense but very fine, tight and beautifully detailed with plenty of minerality and outstanding acid/fruit balance. Even though this is young vine fruit, it shows excellent intensity on the long finish.

1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Auxey-Duresses Les Clous. 94 points. This seems to be a mix between the roundness of a Meursault (buttery flavor, texture on the palate) and the minerality of a Puligny (fresh, citrusy scents, length on palate). This one is a knockout, that clearly rivals the grands crus, let it be Chevalier/Batard and the likes. But for a fraction of the price. A knock-out effort by Mme Bize!

2002 Bouchard Aîné et Fils Montrachet. 95 points. A real stunner. We decanted and it had a knockout power.

2004 Domaine Amiot Guy et Fils Montrachet Le Montrachet. 93 points. The aromas are softer and lighter than the ’05, with some slight green notes. Soft palate entry, with a creamy, chunky texture, without quite the complexity of the ’05. Still very rich, offering nice lemon notes coupled with some good minerality. Nice blossoming finish, which really opens up beautifully, and surprisingly considering the palate. Lovely puckering notes linger, but they are particularly graceful. Nice tartness. Really wonderful on the finish.

Lucky to be having more Amiot Monty!


Various cheeses. I always forget how great a pairing cheese and White Burgundy is.

Antipasta.

Caprese.

Panna.

Arugula salad.


2001 Bernard Dugat-Py Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Petite Chapelle. Burghound 92. Riper red fruit nose and with excellent finesse and purity of expression as the intense, understated, precise and detailed flavors display outstanding length. I very much like this as it’s harmonious, subtle and dazzlingly pretty.

2010 Finca Allende Rioja Martires. 91 points. Holy oak, vanilla, alcohol batman. Served blind. Thought it was high octane california chardonnay. Yowsers. No me gusta.

From my cellar: 1997 Alain Hudelot-Noellat Romanée St. Vivant. 94 points. Drinking great. Very RSV, round and expressive. Hedonistic.

1997 Domaine Leroy Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts. VM 93. Deep red-ruby. Precise, floral aromas of red fruits, flowers and minerals; less superripe and perhaps more vineyard-specific than the Boudots. High-pitched, fine and light on its feet. Really impressively delineated and lively. Fruity but with firm underlying backbone. Firmly tannic, pure aftertaste.

1990 Domaine Dujac Echezeaux. Burghound 91. A beautiful and fully mature nose of dark berry fruit, spice and earth with just the initial hints of sous bois leads to round, rich, powerful and still moderately structured medium full flavors underpinned by still firm but softening tannins and excellent length. This is still quite well balanced and displays none of the “fruit/tannin” separation that so many ’90s do today and as such, the ’90 Ech should drink well over the next 20+ years.

agavin 96: a knock out and clear WOTN.

1986 Michel Bonnefond Ruchottes-Chambertin. 88 points. Short.

2006 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant. VM 95. The 2006 Romanée-St. Vivant is backed up by firm veins of mouthwatering salinity and acidity. The characteristic Romanée-St. Vivant perfumed bouquet is very much in evidence, while there is a sense of energy and pure drive that distinguishes it from the Échézeaux. The RSV can be drunk today, but knowing how these wines age, patience will be rewarded as 2006 still isn’t showing all of its cards.

2010 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Echezeaux. Burghound 94. Exuberant and ripe spicy purple fruit also exhibits distinct floral and warm earth nuances that go on to suffuse the rich and finely detailed medium-bodied flavors that possess excellent underlying tension before terminating in a focused, intense and gorgeously long finish. This is pure silk and lace but the really impressive aspect of this wine is just how much depth it has. A sublime knockout, particularly by the usual standards of this wine.

2006 Domaine Denis Bachelet Charmes-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes. Burghound 94. Despite being harvested first, this is clearly the ripest wine in the range where the wonderfully dense fruit is highlighted by a background touch of wood that continues onto the refined, pure and concentrated flavors that are supported by dense but fine tannins and flat out terrific length. This is a lovely wine in every respect and while not exactly understated, everything does seem to be in perfect proportion.

agavin: tighter than a witches tit!

Spaghetti with seafood.

Spaghetti al carbonara.

Baked ziti. I haven’t seen that in a while!


My plate.


195x R. López de Heredia Rioja Viña Tondonia. Can’t read the year, but it was good. Very dirty, in that good Rioja way.


1960 Fonseca Porto Vintage. 91 points.


Beard Papa cream puffs, both chocolate and vanilla.

Cookies.

More cookies.


The damage.

Overall another night of great fun and fabulous wines.

Related posts:

  1. BOA Birthday Blitz
  2. Birthday Party, Hedonist Style
  3. Il Grano Birthday
  4. Pistola with a Bang
  5. Sauvage Republique
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, Burgundy, Chardonnay, Italian cuisine, Matthew G, Pinot noir, Wine

2002 White Burgundy at Kinjiro

Mar25

Restaurant: Kinjiro

Location: 424 E 2nd St, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 229-8200

Date: March 20, 2015

Cuisine: Japanese

Rating: Good modern Japanese comfort food

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Last year the Babykillers and I went to BOS in this same spot. It was good, but kinda extreme, being an offal restaurant. The owners have since rebooted the space as Kinjiro, a modern Izakaya (bar with food).

It should be noted that tonight’s wine theme was 2002, mostly. The mostly being both the year and White Burgundy. We also tossed in a couple of 2002 Champagnes and the like and a couple reds to round out the steaks.


It looks pretty much the same as it did before, with slight superficial alterations.



The menu.


2002 Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Cuvée Rare. JG 95. Light, bright gold. An intensely perfumed bouquet evokes candied orange, pear and ginger, with building floral and spice nuances. Juicy and precise on the palate, offering an array of citrus and floral flavors that become richer with air. A hint of nuttiness arrives on the finish, which is spicy, focused and very long. This Champagne seems set for a long life.


Kinjiro Ceviche (Octopus, Shrimp, Snapper, Scallops, Mango). Fairly mild, but certainly fine. The chips added some traditional (in south/central America) crunch.


2002 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. JG 98. A beautifully elegant and ultra-pure nose serves up attractively layered aromas of spiced pear, white rose, citrus, brioche and hints of green apple. There is really lovely complexity to the moderately vibrant flavors that are supported by impressively refined effervescence before terminating in a balanced, dry, clean and lingering finish. While this could certainly be held for further development it is drinking very well now.


Kinjiro Japanese Wagyu Carpaccio w/ Arima Sansho. A really yummy tangy sauce. The texture was perfect, and it was very beefy with a nice zing.


Warm Organic Baby Spinach with Assorted Organic Mushrooms. Salad. Enough said.


1982 Robert Ampeau & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes. Burghound 91. Richly perfumed aromas of yeast, herbs, white flowers and moderate secondary fruit leads to sweet, round and full-bodied flavors that manage to offer lovely delineated, hints of minerality and fine finishing punch. As with virtually all older Ampeau wines, this is really impressive with its youthful vigor and zesty overall character with almost none of the heaviness that characterizes many ’82 whites today. While there is no reason to hold this further, neither is there is rush to drink up.

agavin: doing surprisingly well for a 33 year old premier cru white!


Kinjiro Free-range Chicken Maki-age. Awesome. Fried chicken roulades (more or less). Nice crispy skin and very savory meat.


2002 Dauvissat-Camus Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. 91 points. Very fresh and nice, and also VERY Chablis.


Wild Black Cod with Saikyo Miso. Sort of the usual.


2002 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Meursault 1er Cru Charmes. Burghound 93. This too displays some toast notes with tight, reserved and perfumed roasted nuts and a brown butter character. The big, rich and intense flavors are blessed with massive amounts of dry extract and display an astonishing level of refinement; in particular, this seems chiseled directly from limestone with the superb minerality and near knife-like precision. A great effort of surpassing freshness and a finish that lasts for several minutes.

agavin: arguably the (white) wine of the night. Really killer with a lovely nose of reductive fruit and a great mid palette.


Thick-cut Prime Beef Tongue with Sea Salt. Good juicy tongue.


2007 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clavoillon. Burghound 91. At the moment this displays a bit of post-bottling reduction though hints of white flower, peach and apple can still be discerned. The clean, intense, precise and energetic medium-bodied flavors possess good cut and more precision than I usually see with this wine, all wrapped in a mildly austere and wonderfully long finish. This seems to have more “presence” than usual and while it’s not an elegant wine, it’s quite satisfying all the same.

agavin: I’m kinda sick of 2007, but this was a solid wine.


Grilled Amberjack (Yellowtail) Collar. I don’t love this kind of fish prep.


2002 Marc Colin et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. Burghound 88. Softly perfumed notes of toasty oak and sweet chardonnay fruit lead to rich, round, generously but not over-oaked broad scaled flavors that are delicious if not especially precise, nor do they carry the classic minerality one expects from a great Corton-Charlemagne. To be sure, this is a very attractive wine with much to like but it doesn’t have enough punch or depth to carry it to the next level. Solid and attractive in a slightly international style.

agavin: our bottle was premoxed and undrinkable. Gross.


Kinjiro Agedashi Homemade Tofu, Mushroom Ankake Sauce. Amazing. The soft texture plus the rich but subtle mushroom sauce. Just awesome and very Japanese.


So you can see the texture.


2002 Louis Latour Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles. Burghound 93. By contrast, this seemed to have suffered no effects at all from the mise with its deftly oaked nose that combines superbly elegant white flower and green apple aromas that melt into very bright, racy and intense medium full flavors that possess stunning delineation and the hallmark pungent minerality of a great Demoiselles. This is more powerful than it usually is yet sacrifices none of its precision or style because of it. In short, this is a complete wine of considerable grace and presence.

agavin: ours was very flat. no fruit at all. Fairly lousy.


Steamed Manila Clams (Ginger or Butter). Nice clams.


From my cellar: 2002 Louis Jadot Chevalier-Montrachet Les Demoiselles Domaine des Héritiers Louis Jadot. Burghound 94. This is really a lovely effort and one that has reached its peak with a lovely panoply of mature white burgundy aromas that include dried floral elements, spice, wet stone and white orchard fruit. There is fine concentration and plenty of power to the tension and mineral-inflected medium-bodied flavors that offer outstanding complexity on the gorgeously long and impeccably well-balanced finish. To my taste this is drinking perfectly now and while there is no further upside development potential, neither is there any need to drink up as the ’02 Dem should hold well for years to come.

agavin: Certainly the best of our Chevys. Round, and opened up after an hour to have a really typical and lovely middle. Not much finish though.


Dashi simmered wild snapper. Very soft.


2002 Domaine Jean-Marc Pillot Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 93. A deft touch of wood spice frames gorgeous and superbly elegant white flower and green fruit aromas that introduce intense, refined, superbly precise mineral-infused flavors that are also crystalline in their purity. The flavors explode on the finish and this is clearly very classy juice that will be capable of aging for a decade or more.

agavin: just so so. Fine, but not spectacular.


Niman Ranch Pork Belly Kakuni, Half-boiled Free-range Egg & Daikon. Totally awesome. Rich, porky, with a very similar dashi sauce as the tofu. Just amazing. Fell apart into strands it was so tender.


Kinjiro Bone Marrow Dengaku. I’m not normally a huge bone marrow fan, but the brown sauce (more or less a plum based sauce like that served with Peking duck) really sold it.


1998 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Landonne.

IWC 97+. Saturated medium ruby. Incredible nose combines black fruits, violet, meat, licorice, brown spices, cinders and tapenade. Dense and powerful, with a strong flavor of bitter chocolate and great delineation of flavor. This has the most impressive tannic structure of these ’98s. Offers great breed and vivacity. Finishes with superb palate-staining persistence. The pH here is about 3.77, which is significantly lower than that of the 2000 version but higher than the ’99.

Parker 100. The 1998 Cote Rotie La Landonne is a perfect wine … at least for my palate. Its saturated black/purple color is accompanied by an extraordinary nose of smoke, incense, tapenade, creosote, blackberry, and currant aromas. It is densely packed with blackberry, truffle, chocolate, and leather-like flavors. The wine possesses high tannin, but perfect harmony, impeccable balance, and gorgeous integration of acidity, alcohol, and tannin. It is a tour de force in winemaking. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2025.

agavin: our bottle was a touch corked, but still enjoyable. Sigh.


Australia Wagyu Chuck Rib Kalbi Salted. A little more tender and flavorful than the marinated.


Australia Wagyu Chuck Rib Kalbi Marinated. A bit sweeter than the salted.


2004 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 99. This vintage shocked me when I did my retrospective earlier this year, and the 2004 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select acquitted itself brilliantly in the vertical of Hillside Selects. It was a hot year, a relatively early harvest and there were worries that the heat had stressed the grapes, and there would be a lack of physiological ripeness and nuance. Those worries have not manifested themselves in this great Cabernet Sauvignon. Inky/purple-colored with notes of blueberry, blackberry, cassis, spring flowers, and a touch of toast, the wine is opulent, voluptuous and full-bodied with sweet tannin, just enough acidity to provide freshness, vibrancy and delineation, and a spectacular finish that goes on 40+ seconds. This is a killer, a showy and flamboyant style of Hillside Select that’s already drinking beautifully and should continue to do so for another 15-20 years.

agavin: open half a day. Really really nice, if still massive.


Japanese A5 Plus Wagyu Steak (Miyazaki | Sirloin). Amazing. So soft. With a bit of the yuzu pepper it was to die for — and it might with all that fat.


Various toppings. Yuzu, wasabi, ponzu, salt, daikon.


1987 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. Parker 97. This extraordinary wine is backward and unevolved, but even neophytes will recognize its potential greatness. The opaque, saturated, dark purple color reveals no sign of age. The huge, smoky, oaky, blackcurrant, herb, and vanillin-scented nose only hints at what will be achieved with further evolution. Sweet, decadently rich, dense, highly extracted flavors are wrapped around a full-bodied, chewy, super-concentrated, moderately tannic wine that, ideally, needs 7-8 more years of cellaring. It is a 25 to 30 year California Cabernet Sauvignon that is just beginning to become civilized. A potential legend in the making!


Prime Dry-aged Ribeye Steak. With toppings. More gristly and not as super soft as the wagyu.


2002 Jean Boillot & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Mouchère. VM 94+. Lemon, lime, spring flowers, nut oil and minerals on the vibrant nose. Dense and sweet, with penetrating flavors of peach, spice and minerals lifted by a captivating floral character. Broad, classy and extremely long on the back end. Already showing terrific personality, but this will be even better for five to seven years of cellaring.

Wild Snapper Sashimi Ochazuke. Amazing porridge of rice and snapper. Totally killer.


Toppings for the porridge.


2002 Henri Boillot Meursault 1er Cru Charmes. VM 92. Lemon, lime and spices on the nose. Very ripe but brisk orange and lemon flavors show an exotic aspect as well as terrific cut. Hiding its substantial fat today. Finishes very long, with a note of vanillin oak. Boillot used about 50% new oak for his 2002 crus.

Kinjiro Beef Tendon, Tongue, Sinew & Tripe Miso Stew. Better than it sounds by far.


2002 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne. VM 95+. Steely, penetrating aromas of minerals, crushed stone and vanillin oak. Wonderfully dense and broad, with a dusty, tactile texture and powerful underlying spine. Shows a superripe note of crystallized pit fruits, but the wine’s powerful acids give it great precision and penetration. A great young Corton-Charlemagne.

Santa Barbara Uni Udom with Hijiki Seaweed. Basically Japan’s answer to linguine con le vongole. Fine, but not really rich enough and the pasta felt a little dry.


2002 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 95+. Subdued, brooding nose hints at pear, clove and nut oil. Superconcentrated, rich and deep, with compelling sweetness of apple and pear fruit perfectly balanced by powerful acids (5. 2 grams per liter, with a pH of 3. 11, according to Boillot). Offers an uncanny combination of fat, density of texture and sheer sweetness. “This needs ten years despite its great early sucrosite,” notes Boillot. Finishes with outstanding palate-staining length. Another monument of the vintage.

Santa Barbara Uni Udom with Hijiki Seaweed. This was awesome though. The udon had a nice heft and there was the nice briny tone to the uni.


Desserts! Each creme brûlée thing had a sauce of sorts.


Sake Kasu (Lees) Crème Brulee. Like creme brûlée with a bit of a yeasty kick.


Black Sesame Mousse. Awesome black sesame flavor and nice soft texture.


Hojicha (Roasted Green Tea) Panna Cotta. Arguably the best of the three. Nice soft tea flavors and fabulous with the honey.


Overall, an amazingly fun night. Great company. Great wines. And some really tasty comfort food that paired very well.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Burgundy at Providence
  2. Valentino – 2006 White Burgundy
  3. Burgundy at Bouchon – Jadot
  4. Valentino – 2007 White Burgundy part 1
  5. Valentino – 2004 Red Burgundy
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: 2002 White Burgundy, Babykillers, Izakaya, Japanese cuisine, Kinjiro

Elite Wine Night

Sep15

Restaurant: Elite Restaurant [1, 2]

Location: 700 S Atlantic Blvd, Monterey Park, CA 91754. (626) 282-9998

Date: September 11, 2014

Cuisine: Cantonese Banquet

Rating: Elite!

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Elite is well known as one of great LA’s top dimsum places, but I’d never been for dinner. Tonight I gathered with a group of Burgundy loving friends for some awesome Cantonese grub.


We had the private room, complete with authentic Chinese decorative screen.


For whatever reason, tonight’s wine lineup is a crazy blitz of great champagne (+ a bunch of Burgs and Rhones). But because it’s so chaotic in format, and didn’t really match the food, I’m going to detail all the wine together after the food.


Peanuts on the table start off many a real Chinese meal.


Suckling pig. We preordered this little fellow. He’s kinda sad, but he sure tasted great. Really just a fabulous bit of pork and cracklings.


XO sauce. For that savory fermented seafood zing.


Fish maw soup. This is the same mild and fluffy textured soup I had the other week at Newport Seafood.


Roast squab. Succulent little birds, heads and all.


Lettuce chicken. Chicken with water chestnuts in lettuce cups.


Straight off the PF Changs menu, but delicious.


Flounder. Some special “meaty” flounder in mild sauce with vegetables. Very succulent actually.


Garlic fish bits. The fins and tails and the like off the flounder fried with garlic. Boney, but surprisingly delicious.


Lobster! Some awesome tender lobster in garlic sauce.


Sea cucumber. Not my favorite protein, but tasty enough.


Greens. A typical Chinese green vegetable. More or less a colon sweeper.


Noodles. I LOVE these noodles. I’ve had them before at several Cantonese places and they are always great. This particular version was just awesome. The mild savory sauce soaks into the crispy noodles. Yum!


Shrimp fried rice. Classic goodness.


Fried tofu. A kind of soft fermented tofu, deep friend. Tasty and hot (temperature).


Steamed pork. Yeah, it looks like barf, but it was delicious. More or less, this was pork meat minced up with ginger steamed. Seriously it was great.


Coconut and coffee gel. Really great actually. Mild coco/coffee flavor. Delicious.


Goji berry gel. These were actually spicy! I like the jello-like texture, so I enjoyed it. The spice was a bit of a surprise.

Overall, while Cantonese isn’t my favorite Chinese sub-cuisine, this was a fabulous and tasty meal.


This isn’t wine (it’s a beer), fresh brewed just the day or so before. It tasted like grapefruit peels.


1988 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. Galloni 94. An unexpected treat, the 1988 Dom Pérignon is a fabulous surprise. Here the flavors are bright, focused and tense, with attractive floral and citrus notes that cut through the richness of the chilled lobster appetizer.

agavin: our bottle was a little oxidized.


1995 Guy Larmandier Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut Grand Cru Cramant. IWC 92. Pale color. Precise, vibrant aromas of lime, lemon, tangerine and stone. Creamy and rich yet light and lively, thanks to its steely mineral spine. Very firm and concentrated. Lovely purity of flavor and finesse. Finishes graceful and very long, with spice and mineral traces and some youthful austerity. Impeccable blanc de blancs.


1996 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Oenothèque. IWC 96. Yellow-gold. Explosive aromas of ripe pear, honey, gingerbread and iodine, with intense smokiness and notes of chalky minerals and magnolia. Sappy, palate-staining orchard and pit fruit flavors are braced by exotic spice and mineral qualities, picking up notes of buttery brioche and toasted grain with air. Strikingly dense but energetic too, finishing with superb thrust and mineral-driven persistence. This ridiculously complex Champagne is only beginning to enter its window of maturity.


1997 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut. IWC 90. Light gold, with a hint of copper. Expansive and powerful on the nose, displaying scents of honey, light toffee, fresh fig and baked apples. Dense and thick, with serious heft; emphatically not an aperitif style of Champagne. The flavors of ripe apple and pear, singed butter and baking spices are concentrated and deep. Boasts a velvety, weighty texture that carries through the finish.


1997 Salon Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs. Burgound 95. An elegant and very fresh but distinctly yeasty nose of stupendous breadth leads to incredibly intense, pure, detailed and vibrant flavors that possess superb depth and simply knockout length. This is a powerful Salon and even though it doesn’t have the solid acid spine of the very best vintages, this compensates by its approachability and terrific mouth feel. This could be drunk now or aged, depending on one’s preference. If you can find it, I would lay in a case and drink it selectively over the next 20 years.


2000 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut. IWC 95. Bright gold. Pungent aromas of candied orange, buttered toast, pear skin and vanilla, with a smoky nuance that gains power in the glass. Stains the palate with intense pear liqueur, citrus pith and brioche flavors, picking up notes of licorice and candied ginger with air. A bright mineral note adds lift and energy to the finish, which clings with superb tenacity and lingering smokiness. This complex, concentrated Champagne is showing very well right now but has the legs to age for years to come.


2002 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. IWC 95. Light, bright gold. A heady, intensely perfumed bouquet evokes lemon curd, pear skin, iodine, honeysuckle and toasty lees, with notes of ginger and honey emerging with air. Strikes an impressive balance of power and restraint, opening slowly to offer vibrant citrus and orchard fruit flavors, along with intense floral and spice nuances. Clings with superb tenacity on the gently smoky finish, which features zesty orange pith and mineral qualities. By the way, the 2004 Comtes de Champagne Rose has become even more intense over the last 12 months, gaining in both mineral and floral intensity. I know the old saw about aging rose Champagne but this is a wine that is built for the long haul.


From my cellar: 2004 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 95. Perhaps the most backward and reserved wine to this point as the nose reveals only hints of white flower and green fruit aromas that are framed in a subtle touch of pain grillé but the flavors explode on the palate as there is a chewy texture to them yet there is ample minerality present, particularly for Bâtard. This too is blessed with abundant dry extract and a finish that won’t quit but for all of the size and weight, this is impeccably balanced. This has that “wow” factor and in terms of style, it’s almost like a muscular Chevalier.


2008 Domaine Michel Niellon Chevalier-Montrachet. Burghound 95. This hasn’t changed much since my 2010 review as it remains strikingly complex with an ripe, pure and airy nose that speaks elegantly of white flower, spice and subtle pear aromas\nthat complement perfectly the rich and mouth coating flavors that are 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 that is perhaps a bit more forward than I originally envisioned and thus I have shorted my estimated initial drinking window slightly. Seriously beautiful juice.


2010 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 95. This is not quite as refined as the Bienvenues but it’s more complex still with an unusually expressive nose at this early stage of notably ripe white peach, pear, yellow peach and apricot fruit scents that combine with very pretty floral nuances. The rich, powerful and muscular full-bodied flavors ooze with dry extract that imparts an opulent mouth feel to the attractively precise and borderline painfully intense finish. This is exceptionally backwards and just like the nose, the palate impression is not as fine but this is both bigger and longer. Impressive.


2007 Clos Rougeard (Foucault) Brézé. JG 94+. The 2007 Brézé Blanc bottling from Clos Rougeard is a terrific wine in the making. This is a one hundred percent chenin blanc cuvée that is aged in a judicious bit of new wood and shows every sign (if premature oxidation does not rear its ugly head with this wine) of aging for several decades with great style and class. The deep, pure and complex nose jumps from the glass in a blaze of apple, orange zest, bee pollen, complex, chalky soil tones, dried flowers and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very tight out of the blocks, with a rock solid core of fruit, bright acids, excellent focus and balance and a very long, tight and racy finish. This will be a long distance runner, but it deserves at least four or five years in the cellar to uncoil. A beautiful wine.

agavin: The Chinese food was really throwing my palette with regard to the whites. This dry Chenin is one of those wines that pairs with unusual stuff — I just couldn’t tell what last night.


From my cellar: 1996 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes Mares. IWC 93+. Good fresh dark red. Flamboyant nose combines blueberry, blackberry, licorice and Cuban tobacco; distinctly blacker aromas than the ’97. Great sweetness and penetration on the palate; flavors are given thrust and grip by a strong spine of acids and tannins. Quintessential grand cru intensity without excess weight. Extremely long, noble finish. Fascinating Bonnes-Mares, and likely to be very long-lived.


1996 Georges Lignier et Fils Clos de la Roche. agavin 92. A bit of funk, but quite enjoyable. This particularly bottle didn’t feel like it would be improving.


2009 Domaine Dujac Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Beaux Monts. Burghound 93. A ripe yet still cool and elegant nose of classic Vosne-style spice notes adds breadth to the black fruit and stone aromas. The naturally sweet and succulent flavors brim with a fine minerality and plenty of mouth coating dry extract that conclude with a dusty, firm and impressively persistent finish. This is terrific and should age effortlessly.

agavin: a perfect example of why I think of this group affectionately as the “babykillers”


1989 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Parker 97. The 1989 is inkier/purple in color than the 1990, with an extraordinarily sweet, rich personality offering up notes of smoke, melted licorice, black cherries, Asian spices, and cassis. Full-bodied and concentrated, it is one of the most powerful as well as highly extracted Beaucastels I have ever tasted. It requires another 3-4 years to reach its plateau of maturity, where it should remain for at least two decades. (Many purchasers have reported bottle leakage (due to a cork problem) with this vintage. I purchased two cases of this wine, but none of my bottles reveal any sign of leakage.

agavin: by this age there is considerable bottle variation and ours was in the middle of the pack. Not bad, but not fabulous either. A tad sour, although certainly enjoyable.


1998 Robert Michel Cornas La Geynale. IWC 89. Medium red-ruby. Sweet aromas of crystallized red berries and minerals. Strong fruits and spices in the mouth: raspberry, cassis, blueberry. Really expands on the palate; lush impression suggests a high pH. But youthfully firm and quite solid thanks to its solid spine of tannins. Finishing note of licorice. In contrast to the ’99, no new barrels were used for this ’98. This will require a few years of bottle aging.


2004 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard. IWC 95. Dark purple. Ripe, potent cassis and blueberry scents, with a striking floral quality. Lush and creamy, showing impressively pure dark fruit flavors, juicy acidity and fine-grained, silky tannins. Finishes sweet, supple and with superb length, the sweet berry notes clear and persistent. No sulfur was used for this cuvee.


2005 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon CCS. Parker 95. The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon CCS, which is clone 4 from block C1, displays a bit more depth and tannic structure. Its inky/ruby/purple color is accompanied by sensational aromas of creme de cassis, scorched earth, acacia flowers, licorice, cedar, and grilled meats. Pure, full-bodied, and powerful, it should hit its prime in 4-5 years, and last for 25.



We had no idea what vintage this BV was. Probably 80s.


2007 Weingut Ökonomierat Rebholz Gewürztraminer Spätlese. Parker 90. Litchi, pear, muskmelon, and lily perfume mark the nose of Rebholz’s 2007 Gewurztraminer Spatlese, which then comes to the palate with corresponding and predictable opulence and inner-mouth perfume. Creamy in texture; delicate at 9.5% alcohol – especially for this grape variety – and managing to balance out its residual sugar, if barely, this finishes with honey and brown spices adding to the wine’s succulently ripe pear and melon. I imagine it might stay fresh for a decade or more, but I have no experience with its track record.

This amount of wine needed: foot massage!

For more LA Chinese reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Wine on the Beach
  2. Fraiche – Ultimo Wine Dinner
  3. Elite Dim Sum
  4. A Night of Cheese
  5. Friday Night Lights
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Babykillers, Burgundy, Chinese cuisine, Elite Restaurant, Monterey Park California, suckling pig, Wine, XO sauce
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