Coche Dury :: All Things Andy Gavin

Archive for Coche Dury

Eating Paris – Jean-François Piège

Jan16

Restaurant: Le Grand Restaurant Jean-François Piège

Location: 7 Rue d’Aguesseau, 75008 Paris, France. +33 1 53 05 00 00

Date: June 28, 2022

Cuisine: Haute Cuisine French

Rating: Amazing

This was supposed to be my third starred restaurant in Paris, but some complexities of the “2022 moment” led to us missing two of them. Fortunately I didn’t miss Le Grand Restaurant Jean-François Piège as it was very high on my list.

I did however, due to another Paris in Summer of 2022 fact — a complete lack of taxis and Ubers — have to walk 45 minutes across the city to earn my dinner.

It’s tucked away on a classic street near a lot of the high fashion stores not too far from the Champs-Élysées.

JFP isn’t a huge place, but it does have a very stylish modern setting.
An opening glass of Champagne.

Fancy salt and pepper.

Elegant plates.

I went for the classic menu. All of the food here is regionalized to France.

Bretagne, Île-de-France. Le meilleur de la grenouille. The best of frog. This is playing on the old French/Frogs thing. It’s basically a buttery bread with some parsley garlic butter (and a tiny bitty bit of frog). Delicious though.

Île-de-France, Normandie. Radis beurre Hauts-De-France, Loire-Atlantique Rôtie de “Plumes”, macération de garum, feuilles et racines de réglisse. Hauts-De-France butter radish, Loire-Atlantique Roast “Feathers”, garum maceration, licorice leaves and roots. This plays on the classic “radish and butter” dish — albeit in a much fancier form.

Bretagne. Foie de lotte comme je l’aime. Monkfish liver as I like it. Taking a hint from the Japanese.

The girl with the box of knives!

This is just the “by the glass” wine list! The main list was something like 50,000 bottles!

2010 Coche-Dury Meursault. VM 92. The 2010 Meursault Village from Coche-Dury has a fresh, tight bouquet at first, gradually unfurling to reveal shucked oyster shell and sea spray notes that gain intensity over the course of 15-20 minutes. The palate strikes a sublime balance with a domaine-typical judicious line of acidity that keeps this Meursault on its tiptoes. Toward the finish, white chocolate and hints of marzipan emerge, completing (predictably) a sublime 10-year-old Meursault that is probably <em>à point</em>. Tasted at Hatched restaurant in London. (Drink between 2020-2032)

Vendee, Provence. Crevettes bouquet de Bretagne, nage de poutargue, ail des ours. Shrimps from Brittany, bottarga broth, wild garlic. This was a stunning bit of raw shrimp and buttery, almost curry-like, sauce. All the dishes with sauce come with a bit of “bread” to manage the sauce — which was a good thing considering how good the sauce was.

Bretagne, Pays de la Loire. Cuite sur un pave parisien, langonstine de belle taille, laitne de mer, sabayon de sarrasin. Cooked on a Parisian pavement, nice size langoustine, sea milk, buckwheat sabayon. The shrimp was cooked table-side on a hot rock and then the elements were layered on. There were buckwheat and seaweed type flavors giving it a bit of a Japanese vibe.

Provence, Île-de-France. Tourte de pois chiche en farine de Bertrand Allais et Fontainebleau. Chickpea pie in flour from Bertrand Allais and Fontainebleau. A very light, almost sponge-cake-like, bread with a sort of whipped cream.

2012 Etienne Sauzet Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. JG 96+. The 2012 Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet from Domaine Sauzet is a dynamite wine, offering up a deep, pure and stunning bouquet of apple, white peach, clementines, beeswax, citrus oil, chalky soil tones, apple blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and quite concentrated, with a supremely elegant profile, a great core, crisp acids and simply stunning length and grip on the long and racy finish. This is a broad-shouldered vintage of BBM, but at the same time, the inherent elegance and grace of this terroir are still very much in evidence. A great wine in the making. (Drink between 2020-2060)

Sologne, Normandie. Bar de ligne, cuit tout doucement, beurre noir Bretagne. Line-caught bass, gently cooked, Brittany black butter. This was a spectacular dish. Basically very very tender moist white fish with a black squid butter sauce and what seemed like corn flakes. You wouldn’t think it’d be so good, but it was.

Brioche to go with it — used for mopping up.

They took me to the kitchen.

Île-de-France, Provence. Concentre de celeri rave des jardins, huile d’olive maturee. Garden celeriac concentrate, mature olive oil. The chef himself serves this shot — interesting as it tasted like celery and olive oil.

Some gorgeous foods and/or decorations.

2011 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cuvée Duvault-Blochet. BH 91. A perfumed and very spicy nose features ripe and well-layered aromas of plum, violet, red and black pinot fruit plus hints of sandalwood. This is impressively rich with a highly seductive texture on the mid-palate as there is plenty of mouth coating dry extract, all wrapped in a complex, balanced and beautifully long finish. There is enough structure to suggest that this will need most of a decade in the cellar. (Drink starting 2020)

2017 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant. VM 98. A total stunner, the 2017 Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru is the most expressive wine in the lineup today. Rich, creamy and so wonderfully textured, the RSV simply has it all. The tannins are present, but they are also matched by tremendous fruit density and pure power. Floral and savory overtones grace the lifted, saline finish. Leaving price aside, if I could only have one wine in this range, it would unquestionably be the RSV. The 2017 is a total knock-out. That’s all there is to it. This fruit was picked on September 10 and 11. (Drink between 2027-2057)

Pyrenes. Mijotes sur des coques de noix, ris de veau sucs au gout de sotolon, girolles, briffeton a la graisse. Simmered on walnut shells, veal sweetbreads with sotolon flavor, chanterelles, briffeton with fat. This was rich and delicious, very meaty with amazing mushrooms. However, it was a hell of a lot of sweatbreads. It was almost like a test of will to get through the whole lobe or whatever it is. I observed that no lady I could see in the dining room made it past the half way mark. I finished it of course.

A different Bread to mop up the sauce.

Île-de-France, Bourgogne. Brie de Meaux vielli deaux ans, moutarde. Brie de Meaux aged two years, mustard. Very very aged cheese. Delicious.

Aquitaine, Val-de-Loire. Croute de fraises fleuree de feuilles de laurier. Strawberry crust with bay leaves. A lovely little tart with unusual flavors.

Tabiti, Normandie. Mon Blanc a Manger. My Blanc a Manger. This marshmallow-like texture broke open to spill out the most delicious Crème anglaise.

Somme, Val-de-Loire, Sud Ouest, Île-de-France, Bourgogne Rhubarbe. Dans un coin du jardin. In a corner of the garden. The amuses were particularly fun.

Persil. Parsley. A bit of parsley “pudding.”

Coriandre. Coriander. Bourgeon de cassis. Blackcurrant bud.

Fraises. Strawberries. Fleurs de sureau. Elderflower. A candied or soaked strawberry with a bit of elderflower liquor.

Pavais. Paved. A kind of chocolate mouse treat.

Chartreuse. Hands down the best Chartreuse I have ever had.

Overall, this was a pretty spectacular meal. Yes it wasn’t cheap, but it was playful and delicious. Service was amazing, fully at the 2-3 star level. Table-side presentations abounded. And the wine list! It was vast and cheaper than retail and the number of by-the-glass options were impressive.

For more French dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Coche Dury, DRC, Eating France, Eating Paris, Jean-François Piège, Michelin 2 Star, Wine

N/Naka on the Nose

Oct18

Restaurant: N/Naka [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]

Location: 3455 S. Overland Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90034. 310.836.6252

Date: June 16, 2021

Cuisine: Modern Kaiseki

Rating: Awesome

ANY CHARACTER HERE

N/Naka served as the host location for the second of our 3 epic June “Fred” dinners, this one being themed around Coche-Dury Les Rougeots.

The empty interior. This was actually the first night that N/Naka reopened after the long lockdown closure.

Our table — before we got to it.

1996 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. BH 97. A distinctly reticent but elegant nose with a purity of expression that is truly impressive to experience as it’s relatively high-toned and while the yeast comes up with air, it’s relatively muted at presence, combining with intense, precise and superbly detailed and complex flavors that culminate in an explosive and wonderfully long finish. This may very well rival the sublime ’90 in time even if it’s not quite as concentrated. This is still a baby so there is absolutely no rush whatsoever.

2015 Hubert Lamy Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Cuvée Haute Densité. A rare bird!

2005 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. BH 94. A strikingly pure nose of white flower and spice aromas complements perfectly the delicious, intense and stony flavors that are wonderfully vibrant and gorgeously detailed on the transparent and equally pure finish that explodes with more minerality. This is beautifully balanced and understated with a Zen-like sense of calm. I very much like this and it’s very Perrières in character. In a word, brilliant. (Drink starting 2013)

2007 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. VM 94+. Bright pale yellow. Soft citrus fruits and crushed rock on the musky, slightly reduced nose. Rich, perfumed and tightly coiled, with a terrific core of acidity intensifying the orange, floral and mineral flavors. Offers compelling cut and concentration but this infant will require several years of aging. Wonderfully refined Perrieres of grand cru class.

1993 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. 94 points. Signature coche gunflint, popcorn, dried extract, and smoked yellow fruit on the nose and palate. While the mid-palate did not have lots of substance, the flinty and popcorn-ish palate more than offset that shortfall. With the fresh acidity in the backdrop, the wine stayed energetic and interesting throughout dinner.

1996 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. VM 94+. Complex, lively aromas of lime, minerals and vanilla. Structured and almost shockingly intense; great material here. A step up from the ’97 in density. Extremely fresh and vibrant. A tactile, mouthfilling wine to drink and to eat. Palate-staining finish. I kept raising my score as I came back for more.

2000 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. BH 93. A completely different expression than any of the foregoing wines, which is interesting since the vineyard abuts Chevalières. This is classic Meursault in style with round, rich, generous, “warm” fruit and flavors, offering toasted nut and butter aromas plus fresh sliced peach, apricot and apple scents but gorgeously complex, intense, refined and beautifully precise flavors of terrific focus and cut. But it is the superb depth on the finish that really set this apart and this delivers such quality that it is almost a match for the Perrières, a compliment in anyone’s book. Simply beautiful wine that has just now arrived at its apogee though it should be capable of holding here for at least a decade. Tasted several times with consistent notes. (Drink between 2008-2010)

2008 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. VM 92+. Classic aromas of lemon, lime, minerals, hazelnut and grilled almond; smells rich in dry extract. Then dense and superconcentrated, with terrific inner-mouth energy to the flavors of peach, orange blossom, lemon and crushed stone. Time-capsule Meursault, finishing with superb length. This too should age very well.

1972 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Charmes!

Our menu.

Starter Tea.

Sakizuke. Uni, Cauliflower Puree, Carrot Coconut Ice, Trout Roe, Nori Sable.

Zensai. Uni, Eggplant Dashi, Kabocha Roll, Oyster Lime, Flounder Hasamiage, Wagyu Beef Roll, Cucumber, Cauliflower, Carrot, Burnt Chickepea and Miso Puree.

Uni.

Wagyu Beef Roll.

Cucumber, Cauliflower, Carrot, Burnt Chickepea and Miso Puree.

Eggplant Dashi.

Oyster Lime.

Kabocha Roll.

Flounder Hasamiage.

Modern Zukuri. Japanese Fluke, California Nori, Pistachio.

Owan. Hope Ranch Mussel, Summer Squash, Citrus Fern.

Otsukuri. Traditional Sashimi.

Yakimono. Tasmanian Sea Trout, Artichoke, Preserved Meyer Lemon.

Mushimono. Tomato, Lobster Shinjo, Tomato and Fennel Mochi.

Shiizakana. Spaghetti, Abalone, Picked Cod Roe, Truffles.

Niku. A5 Miyazaki Wagyu Beef, Baby Corn.

Sunomono. Nopales, Golden Kiwi, Cucumber, Aloe, Chia Seeds.

Yuzu juice intermezzo.

Pickled Ginger.

Miso soup with shrimp heads.

Nigiri sushi flight 1.

Nigiri sushi flight 2.

Blue crab handroll.

Mizumono. Lychee Sorbet, Shiso Lime Granita. Super bright and delicious flavors with a really nice textural contrast.

Mizumono. Peaches, Caramelized Pastry, Lavender Honey Ice-Cream, Hojicha Jelly.

Petite Fours.

So pretty!

Roasted green tea.

Burnt Basque Cheesecake Gelato — Milk steeped with Tahitian Vanilla Beans and Valencia Orange Peels and then blended with Cream-cheese and Egg Yolks, layered with house made “burnt” Caramel and topped with house-made Caramel Brittle, finished with the torch! — created 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 #lemongrass #ginger #CremeBrûlée #basque #cheesecake #caramel #brittle #orange

Matchacchio Latte Gelato — Ceremonial Matcha Green Tea and Sicilian Pistacchio di Bronte DOP gelato base. I was skeptical the first time I made it, but it turned out to be a lovely flavor. And the green is all natural! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #pistacchio #bronte #matcha #GreenTea #Sicily

Vietnamese Hazelnut Coffee Gelato — Cafe du Monde coffee milk with Piedmontese Hazelnut Paste swirled with Sweetened Condensed Milk — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #vietnameseCoffee #coffee #CafeduMonde #SweetenedCondensedMilk #hazelnut

A little take home snack for the morning.

Post dinner lethargy.

The setting is elegant, minimalist, and very Japanese. N/Naka really is a very special place. All the meals I had here were spectacular (here for the first, here for the second, here for the third). Plus we even did an amazing all foie gras meal here once. The place keeps getting better and better. This is thrice wonderful because often one finds a slight bloom to come off a place on repeat meals. At N/Naka everything is seasonal and constantly rotating.

Coming back to N/Naka after the pandemic I thought they were really firing on all cylinders. This was the best meal I’ve had there since the incredible Foie meal. I think her sushi has gone from “okay” to “great” and with regard to other dishes she has toned down a bit of the “theatrics” slightly but really upped the flavor balance and intensity. There weren’t some of the more interactive dishes of years past, like cooking your own item on hot stones, but the cooking was even more on point.

Service is also spectacular, highlighted all the more by the extremely low understaffed standard currently found in LA.

And what can we say about the wines? Awesome labels, awesome wines. All the coches were flawless, although the 93 was my favorite. So good!

Click here to other LA Japanese restaurants.

Or other Foodie Club extravaganzas.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Champagne, Coche Dury, Foodie Club, Gelato, Japanese cuisine, Les Rougeots, N/Naka, Niki Nakayama, Sushi, Wine

Power Providence

Oct15

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

Location: 5955 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 460-4170

Date: June 15, 2021

Cuisine: Cal French

Rating: Best meal I’ve had at Providence

I usually make it to Providence about once a year, and so we return with the Foodie Club for a small, epic main dining room. After a long time off (for the pandemic) the core gang of myself, Erick, and Fred met up, joined by Michael Z wanted to really up the game and we focused on the awesome white Burgundy wines from d’Auvenay and Coche-Dury.

The space used to be Patina in the 90s.

While the colors are different, Providence still looks a lot like Patina to me — as the layout is basically the same.

This is the view from the chef’s special tasting room — adjacent to the kitchen in it’s own little nook.

Our special menu tonight.

One of the few places in town that still has elegant table wares.

2000 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. BH 95. Very Puligny in style with discreet white flower, pear and apple aromas with flavors that are so powerful that the palate experiences them in waves as they roll from the mid-palate to a thundering, top grand cru finish. Yet this is by no means monolithic as there is detail and subtle gradations of wet rocks, minerals, earth and an indefinable crystalline essence. I literally had to pause for a minute due to palate fatigue as this both stains and saturates the palate yet it remains perfectly balanced. For a premier cru, this is a veritable tour de force! A brilliant wine. (Drink between 2008-2020)

2000 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. BH 93. This has now peaked and is drinking beautifully with a fully mature nose of honeysuckle, peach, apricot and very subtle spice notes that can also be found on the enveloping flavors that possess a wonderfully seductive mouth feel and ample dry extract that both completely buffers the still firm acid spine and coats the palate on the long, lingering and strikingly perfumed if ever-so-slightly warm finish. One character that Coche seems to consistently be able to achieve is how his wines are at once generous yet retain a fine sense of focus and precision and this wine certainly displays this. Lovely stuff that is perfect now. Tasted thrice with consistent notes. (Drink starting 2016)

1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux. VM 92. At nearly twenty years of age the 1999 Meursault Les Narvaux is just starting to enter its early plateau of maturity now! Exuberant and powerful, the 1999 possesses off the charts intensity and a level of pure class that is far beyond the realm of most village crus. Time in bottle has started to bring out slightly tropical overtones that add complexity to the yellow orchard fruit character. Readers lucky enough to own it can look forward to another 20 years of exceptional drinking. (Drink between 2018-2038)

2005 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. VM 96. The 2005 Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières 1er Cru has a multidimensional bouquet that delivers intense honeycomb and brioche intertwined through the mineral-rich citrus fruit. The palate displays a perfect line of acidity, a brilliantly poised and tensile Folatières from Lalou Bize-Leroy that unlike the 1999 just builds and builds towards a focused and electrifying finish that shimmers with energy. Frankly, I cannot think of many Puligny Premier Crus that have surpassed this astonishing wine. 897 bottles produced. Tasted at Carré des Feuillants restaurant in Paris. (Drink between 2018-2038)

From my cellar: 2009 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux. 95 points. Rich quince, citrus, popcorn, crème brûlée, and minerals galore backed by abundant acidity. Fantastic wine, and will last a long time.

An amuse of crisp with seafood.

And amuse of toro tartare.

A third amuse of shellfish “tart”.

The final amuse of scallop with contrasting fruit.

With a bit of sauce. Super zingy and delicious.

Bald Point Oyster. Gently warmed, with golden kaluga caviar.

Tai Sashimi. Seville sour orange, rosemary, ogo.

Uni Egg. Sea urchin, champagne beurre blanc, brioche croutons.
Maine Lobster. Favas, daikon, ramps.

Special bread.

And French butter with salt.

Farfalle. Box and dungeness crab, uni, geoduck, basil. Amazing flavors with a strong Thai basil character.

Black Cod. Black truffle, dutch white and green asparagus.

Australian Black Winter Truffle. Porcini Cannelloni.

Australian Black Winter Truffle.

All put together it was spectacular.

A5 Wagyu. Potato, morel, watercress, bordelaise.

Fried Wagyu lump, amazing.

Rhubarb, citrus, almond.
With sauce and very refreshing.

House-made Hawaiian Chocolate. Chocolate gelato, whiskey.

Sauce for the chocolate.

Tea.

Petite Fours. I love some good fancy candies.

This was by far the best main dining room and probably the best Providence meal I’ve ever had. They had just recently reopened post-lockdown and had clearly spent the time well retooling the menu. Service was exceptional as well which was very nice, particularly in contrast with so many “middle end” places that are short staffed right now.

There was a little take home goodie too, but I forgot to photo it.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Burgundy, coche, Coche Dury, d'Auvenay, Foodie Club, Providence, Seafood, White Burgundy, Wine

Marcheing South Again

Nov20

Restaurant: Marche Modern [1, 2]

Location: 7862 Pacific Coast Hwy, Newport Beach, CA 92657. (714) 434-7900

Date: October 10, 2019

Cuisine: Modern French

Rating: Great food and service

This particular reunion of the Foodie Club: OC Edition has been in the making for months and follows the format of the previous dinner. Tonight’s them was loosely, coche vs. Domaine d’Auvenay (plus a “bit” of spectacular Champagne).

Due to group constraints, we had to meet deep in the OC at 6:00 — lots of traffic again. This time most of us didn’t do the double header (lunch + dinner) because we were so full last time (even me). Fred, however, is a beast and he met up with some other friends beforehand!

For our super duper elite Foodie Club OC dinner, we selected Marche Moderne — pretty much because it’s one of the best wine friendly restaurants in Orange County (which is a bit of a limited pool).

It’s high end modern French bistro.

Attractive modern decor.

Lots of sunset light.

Our special menu tonight.

Bread.

Butter.

Liz brought: 1969 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Oenothèque. Vinous 98. One of the highlights in this range, the 1969 Dom Pérignon Œnothèque (Disgorged 2006) is magnificent A stunning, vibrant Champagne, the 69 Œno hits all the right notes. Lemon peel, white flowers, crushed rocks, slate and smoke all soar out of the glass. A thin veil of reduction adds character without being overpowering or dominant. Vivid in color and totally crystalline, the 1969 dazzles at every turn. What a gorgeous wine it is. (Drink between 2017-2027)

Santa Barbara Sea Urchin. Grapefruit Gelee, Fresh Oregano, Radishes, Avocado, Kosho lime vinaigrette. The uni was great, but some of the elements here didn’t quite gelee (haha). Maybe the grapefruit? Maybe the avocado. A touch weird.

From my cellar: 1998 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. VM 92. Fred says much higher. A shockingly elegant and pretty Coche open from the beginning. The delicious Coche signature is present and try as you may you cannot detect any vintage flaws. The more I drink Coche Caillerets the more I am convinced I like it better than the Genevrieres. A wonderful wine that was in the discussion for WOTN next to 92 Coche MP, 99 d’Auvenay Puligny En la Richarde, and 00 d’Auvenay Folatieres. An impressive showing.

Fluke Crudo & Faux Gras. Burnt Shallots Creme, Thinly Sliced Maui Hearts of Palm, Yuzu Confit Marmelade, Beurre Monte Matsutake. Again a slightly bizarre combo of poultry liver and fish.

Kent brought: 1992 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. VM 98. Fred says: Darkest wine is the night next to the 98 Coche Caillerets, 99 d’Auvenay En la Richarde, and 00 d’Auvenay Folatieres. Also the most dense and ripe. The balance is there with the acidity and richness in play. There is fruit and rich honey notes but not leaning into botrytis. This continues to build throughout the entire 3 hours. Impressive power.

Egg & Caviar & Cured Scottish Ocean Trout. Kaluga Caviar, Sorrel, Beurre de Citron Confit. More uniform and successful than the previous two dishes. Hard to go too wrong with either egg and caviar or cured salmon and butter.

Fred brought: 1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet en la Richarde. BH 91. Fred said: Given the comparisons to Chevalier Montrachet I was expecting power. Instead I got elegance and balance along with floral and mineral puligny character. This bottle is still young and needed 2-3 hours to slowly pick up weight and power. All the while it remains impeccably balanced, not unlike the 98 Coche Caillerets. I believe the best is yet to come and will try to wait another 5 years to open my next one. Lovely. Just lovely.

Sauteed Black Bass. Demi Jus de Bouillabaisse, Barigoule d’Artichaud, Calamari and Mussel, Olive, Basil Emulsion, Spicy Tomato Tartine. The Bouillabaisse “base” was nice. Fish maybe a touch dry.

Erick brought: 2000 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. BH 95. Fred says: Wow. Now this has the power and weight of a Chevalier Montrachet. The most fruit forward of the bunch but supported by that d’Auvenay linearity. A massive and structured wine impressive richness and a hint hazelnut deliciousness. What a treat.

Civet de Homard & Dover Sole. Lobster in a Civet Style, Dover Sole, Gnudi, Chanterelle, Shallot Soubise.

With the sauce. Another slightly oddball mix. This didn’t do the lobster justice. Reduction was good though.
Premier Dessert. Rose & Lychee Sorbet, Eau d’ Hibiscus.

Close up! Nice refreshing sorbet. Texture isn’t as good as mine — of course.

Cheese — because it’s so great with wine. Nice cheeses too.

Strawberry & Pistachio Croustillant. Almond Butter Gateau, Citrus Mousseline, Pistache, Cassis Berry Sorbet. I love a good “Napoleon” although this was jazzed up a bit too much.

Because we didn’t just have 3 ice creams/sorbets from the restaurant, I brought 4 (never one to be outdone).

Nocciola Caramello Budino Gelato — Nocciola custard base made with Pure PGI Piedmont hazelnut paste, infused with house-made caramel (instead of sugar) then mixed with toffee and topped with Toffifay — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — so good it’s an instant signature flavor –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #hazelnut #nocciola #caramel #caramello #toffee #toffifay

Cinnamon Apple Pie Gelato — An intense cinnamon base layered with my house-made bourbon apple pie filling and house-made caramel — 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 #applepie #apple #cinnamon #caramel

Blood Orange Compari Sorbetto — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #bloodorange #orange #compari #cocktail #sorbet #sorbetto

Key Lime Pie Gelato – base is a key lime egg custard, layered with house-made frozen graham cracker and covered with house-made meringue — 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 #KeyLime #lime #custard #meringue #GrahamCracker #cookie

Overall, an incredibly epic meal.

Service was first class. We did the wine service though, which is how we wanted it with these wines. Which, by the way, were all incredible. The MP was probably in the “weakest” drinking spot — but that’s like calling Michael Jordan short because he’s not as tall as Manute Bol. Haha. Fantastic and very lucky that we had no flaws.

Food was “interesting” this time. Not as uniformly successful. It was certainly well made and executed, but the combos were a bit odd. Last time they felt much more harmonious.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Coche Dury, d'Auvenay, Foodie Club, Gelato, Marche Moderne, Orange County, White Burgundy, Wine

Hayato Redux

Jun26

Restaurant: Hayato [1, 2]

Location: 1320 E 7th St #126, Los Angeles, CA 90021. (213) 395-0607

Date: May 17, 2019

Cuisine: Japanese Kaiseki

Rating: Amazing

For the third of the three epic meals shoved into Fred’s 36 hour May LA visit we again traveled east to DTLA Japanese newcomer, Hayato.

It’s located in Downtown’s fancy new “ROW” complex — and quite hard to find (use the guide on the website).

This time we had all (7-8) seats in the place and we gathered outside for a few minutes before the set entry time (7pm).

It’s tiny, as I mentioned, only 7-8 seats, and helmed entirely by chef Brandon Go. As he says, Hayato is the culmination of a twenty year journey he has taken as an American-born chef learning about Japanese cuisine.

Brandon says himself:

My Japanese father owns a sushi restaurant in the Los Angeles area, and I began working in his restaurant when I was fifteen years old. As with most Americans, sushi was the gateway through which I became seriously interested in Japanese food. During my teenage years, I made sushi. Throughout college, I made more sushi. After graduating from college, I went to live in Tokyo for a short time, I got a job in an izakaya, and I started to realize that sushi is a very tiny part of Japanese culinary tradition. I have spent rest of my life trying to learn the rest of it.

I dreamt of having my own restaurant since I began making sushi. But the type of restaurant I wanted to open has evolved since then. For my entire life, I have heard Japanese chefs talk of how good the cooking is in Japan, but how it would be impossible to garner support for truly authentic Japanese cooking in the U.S. because of how different American tastes are. I heard this constantly from chefs both in Japan and at home. I have even read it in cookbooks. Because of this, I always envisioned my restaurant being mostly authentic but having to play to the American tastes in order to ensure survival.

Brandon Go.

Like at many good Japanese places, the service is very elegant.

The dinner begins with a glass of (included) sake.

Look at these cute gold sake bowls. Reminds me of a fancy Buddhist alms bowl.

We brought loads of good wine as usual:

1985 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut. BH 94. I have had a number of bottles, even from the same cellar, that have been showing plenty of age and even occasionally flirting with oxidative hints yet this most recent bottle (from my cellar) was among the freshest I’ve had in a while with its intensely yeasty and toasty aromas of white orchard fruit, citrus peel, marmalade and orange peel. This is arguably the most complex vintage of the 1980s (though not necessarily the most vibrant or the most complete) and in particular I like the way that the mousse has managed to maintain most of its original vigor on the sweet yet ultimately dry finale that delivers very fine persistence. While this bottle was admirably fresh it’s clear that it’s time to drink up sooner than later unless your taste runs to post-mature characters.

Brandon even pours between his culinary labors.

Components for course one — most things being prepared in front of you.

Hokkaido Scallop with chrysanthemum greens and Tosa Zu Jelly.

The contrast between the rich scallop and tangy jelly was great. Interesting textures too, with the cool soft jelly and the slightly firm scallops. I’m an acid freak so I could have eaten a bowl of this jelly straight.

1996 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères. VM 92+. Fred says: Outstanding. Very light yellow in color. No signs of being advanced at all. Lots of ripping 96 acidity with elegant fruit and floral character. Starts out excellent and just keeps getting better all night. Seems ageless and could go another 20 years.

Hokkaido Kobashira and Tara No Me Tempura. Great tempura. Light fry. Reminded me of New England fried clam — elevated. And I mean no disrespect in that, as I happen to love good fried clams. I’ve always enjoyed something about the chewy texture.

1998 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères. BH 89. Fred says: Light yellow in color. Minimal Coche flint on the nose. The palate is softer and more gentle. Not hot per se but more rounded in texture. Wonderful ripe fruit and lemon. Very easy drinking and in a great spot.

Prep for the next dish. Notice the real wasabi root and hand grater.

Kasugo dai Bo-Zushi. I haven’t seen (or maybe don’t remember) this particular sushi prep where the shiso is mixed into the rice as opposed to layered between. In any case, like all of Brandon’s dishes, it was lovely.

From my cellar: 2004 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. VC 93. The 2004 Meursault Les Rougeots is a vintage that I have not encountered previously and proves a very pleasant surprise considering the vintage. It is a little deeper in color than I was expecting however, the nose is immediately entrancing with wet stone mixed with orange blossom, quite astonishing delineation, later traces of yellow plum and jasmine emerging. Both nose and palate sport a very subtle reduction (less than other vintages in my experience). It retains wonderful tension and poise, perfect salinité with an understated and yet energetic finish that remains over the course of two hours in the glass. Tasted at Taillevent restaurant in Paris.

Lovely lacquer bowl.

Dungeness Crab Shinjo Owan. This class of dish was delightful both this time and last (when it was the lobster ball). It was great again this time, although not quite the highlight. Dashi was scrumptious. Crab had nice depth of flavor.

2004 François Raveneau Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. BH 95. This too is ultra pure and fine with its nose of wet stone, white flower, sea water and iodine that precedes delicious, full, detailed and impeccably well balanced flavors that are tight but long with a laser-like sense of focus and coherency. This too finishes with noticeable austerity yet there is real freshness and presence, indeed vibrancy here. The ’04 Le Clos will require at least 5 to 7 years to really begin to open up but once it does, it should drink well for 15. A stunner of a wine and one of the stars of the vintage that will be a long distance runner.

Chop chop.

Tai and Live Spot Prawn Sashimi, hokkaido uni sashimi, fresh nori. Excellent. All incredibly fresh and toothsome. Well maybe not the uni, that was fresh but soft.

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

Don’t lose a finger Brandon!

Elegantly piled ingredients.

Katsuo Tataki. Early season lean bonito, topped with onions, ginger, probably some kind of ponzu. Perfect texture and nice assertive flavor.

1999 Domaine Armand Rousseau Père et Fils Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques. VM 92+. Bright ruby-red. Sexy nose combines maraschino cherry, roast coffee, bitter chocolate and lively oak spices not apparent in the foregoing wines. Full, sweet and chewy in the mouth, with a silky, layered texture to buffer the wine sound acidity. Cherry and black raspberry flavors are nicely sweetened by the wine’s new oak. Features a long, gripping whiplash of a finish and fine tannins that coat the entire palate.

Nodoguro Shioyaki with Lotus Root. This was a very notable “grilled fish” the first time around and is again. It’s very oily, but not in an off putting way at all, more just rich. And the crunchy lotus adds some great textural balance.

Next.

Kisu with Fava Bean Ankake. The fish was extremely lightly fried and then covered in a very gooey (thickened) dashi which added its own complementary fish flavor. Light and extremely subtle in a very Japanese manner. Not everyone might be down for the unctuous texture either — but we enjoyed it.

Greens for the next course.

A5 Omi Wagyu.

A5 Omi Gyu Shabu Shabu, komatsuna, bamboo, shiitake. A sort of highly elevated shabu shabu bite crossed with an ultra elevated version of the toppings you get on a Japanese beef bowl. None of that description does it any justice, as there was this intensely rich and beefy + dashi thing going on.

Ko no ko (sea cucumber ovaries). It’s fairly similar to the Izakaya favorites like fermented squid guts. Slimey and briney. Without the off notes that a lessor prep might have had. I happen to like these fermented flavors and weird textures. Not everyone does. I’ve been really digging the seas cucumber this last year since my most recent trip to China.

1990 Domaine Leroy Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Narbantons. 94 points. Best Savigny I will ever taste, probably. Amazing nose of ripe fruit and mature whole-cluster notes (spices, soy, hoisin, stems), which, alone is worth the price of admission. The 1990 Leroy wines are showing more tannic structure than DRCs. The abundant fruit lets you get past the equally abundant tannins, but the overall persistent structure makes me wonder if this wine needs more time (after 25+ years?) or if this is how this wine will always be. A pleasure to drink, regardless.

Sawara Yuan Yaki Rice Pot. I forgot to photo this dish as a whole, as the various elements are presented on a tray together, but this is the fish ready to be prepped into the rice.

This is the miso soup with a spongy type of tofu or fish cake.

The pickles. They are traditional with rice at the end of a meal.

The fried rice itself. I had several helpings.

Roasted tea.

A different, green tea.

Brandon prepares the dessert.

Harry’s Berries with Kinako Infused Whipped Cream. I had these same strawberries the night before and they were amazing both times. Just a simple dish with two notes (strawberry and cream) but both where complex harmonic notes. The strawberries had a lot of zing, intense sweet and tangy berry flavor. Like a fresher (more acidic) but slightly less intense version of great French Strawberry puree or jam. The “cream” was nutty and served as a nice counterpoint to the acidity.

A bunch of gelatti brought (and made) by me:

Almond Amaretto Truffle Gelato — 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

Sicilian Tiramisu Gelato — attempting to reinvent Tiramisu with Sicilian flavors: Pure DOGC “Bronte” pistachio paste gelato base with lady fingers soaked in house-made orange syrup and layered with house-made “cannoli filling” (sweetened fresh ricotta with cinnamon and mini dark chocolate chips) — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — this one will be a test of concept: too much? –#SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #pistachio #sicily #ricotta #chocolate #orange #ladyfingers #tiramisu

Nocciola Espresso Caramello Gelato — A classic nocciola base made with Pure PGI Piedmont hazelnut paste and then layered with a house-made Espresso Caramel Ganache then topped with fresh roasted hazelnuts — 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 #hazelnut #ganache #dulcy #ChocolateTruffle #nocciola #caramel #caramello

Brandon with the wines and Eve — who always makes livens up any dinner or photo!

Overall, stunning evening.

Hayato was some of the best food I had in 2018 and remains so in 2019. He’s mixed things up a little bit, but it’s still the same very focused style. He intensifies ingredients and brings forth this very natural expression of nature’s bounty. Every dish just tasted great.

Plus there was the intimacy of being right there with the chef — and our great crew — and our great wines. Really great wines. Brandon told us they were the best he’s had at the restaurant and I believe it. We had some real stunners tonight, and on the heels of our crazy old White Burgundy dinner the night before!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

More Foodie Club meals.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brandon Go, BYOG, Champane, Coche Dury, DTLA, epic, Foodie Club, Gelato, Hayato, Japanese cuisine, Kaiseki, Legendary, White Burgundy

Marche Modern Madness

Jun21

Restaurant: Marche Modern

Location: 7862 Pacific Coast Hwy, Newport Beach, CA 92657. (714) 434-7900

Date: May 16, 2019

Cuisine: Modern French

Rating: Great food and service

This particular reunion of the Foodie Club: OC Edition has been in the making for months. Fred was buying up old Coche, Roulot, and Leroy for us in anticipation.

Due to group constraints, we had to meet deep in the OC at 6:15 — but before that, we caught a late, HUGE, amazing wine lunch at the LSXO — even my hollow leg was full before we got started on dinner.

Because we were down in the OC for hours and hours I packed my gelato cooler full of dry ice, worried that my normal cooling packs wouldn’t keep it cold enough. Boy did the dry ice keep it cold enough — so much that it was like a block of diamond ice at the end of the evening!

For our super duper elite Foodie Club OC dinner, we selected Marche Moderne — pretty much because it’s one of the best wine friendly restaurants in Orange County (which is a bit of a limited pool).

It’s high end modern French bistro.

Attractive modern decor.

Lots of sunset light.

And our perfect corner table.

Bread to start.

We had four epic bottles we were all sharing, all mature super producer White Burgundy. We pretty much opened all four at the start and drank them through the night. These were crazy good wines!

1986 Domaine Roulot Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Fred writes: A beautiful medium gold color similar to the 86 Coche CC to indicate this was indeed a properly stored bottle. Again, the 86 botrytis is apparent. On the palate the fruit is rich and ripe and there is incredible length and power. The wine continues to improve over the next 3 hours picking up more acidity and precision. A rare rare treat and I doubt I will see this beautiful wine ever again.

1989 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. Fred writes: Wow from beginning to finish. This started off with the classic Coche aroma of flint that was less prominent on the 86 CC. On initial sip it was perfect in every way: the fruit, the acid, the precision. Everything was perfectly integrated, extremely elegant, and nuanced. A wine that makes you vow not to open any more Coche MP prior to its 30th birthday (knowing that you will fail miserably and happily). The greatness of it is only highlighted by drinking it next to other great wines. Not much else to say except that it’s a 100 point wine if there ever was one.

First course was an uni parfait with I think tomato jelly underneath. The whole menu was designed by Fred (and the chef) to perfectly pair with our epic whites.

Next up real caviar with blini and a version of the traditional accompaniments suspended in a vanilla lemon foam. Quite awesome, actually.

Here you can see the below foam strata a bit better.

1986 Coche-Dury Corton-Charlemagne. Fred writes: The honey and botrytis of 86 was apparent as was with the 86 Roulot MP. There is that long elegant floral finish that you get with Coche Corton Charlemagne. Initially a little behind the 89 Coche MP due to the weight and slight lack of acidity and focus. However, over the next 3 hours it continued to improve becoming more refined and elegant with each repour. By the end of the night, it was as good and maybe even better than the 89. Hard to say as both wines were flawless tonight and showcasing their vintage and vineyard perfectly.

1996 Domaine Leroy Corton-Charlemagne. Fred writes: This is a powerful Corton Charlemagne. The 96 acidity is very prominent. There is not as much fruit or depth as the 04 that we had a few months ago. However the oak on this was far more integrated and not noticeable. There is a fine mineral streak through this great wine. On any other night this has a shot at WOTN. Tonight it lacked the complexity and nuances of the Coche and even the Roulot. Still, a great drink.

Lightly poached or raw salmon with baby asparagus and beurre blanc. Another lovely dish.

Fried soft-shell crab with ginger. In season too. This was a good bit of food and we finished a massive lunch just an hour or so before this dinner!

Scallops with saffron, artichoke heart, and puff pastry.

Lobster with risotto. Awesome courses, but not light — I would have been full without the huge lunch!

Turbot with some kind of broth. Feeling really full!

Tarte Aux Fraises – Strawberry Tart Harry’s Berries Strawberries – Crème d’amande. Strawberry Compote – Crème Fraiche Chantilly – Lemon Confit Gelato. Really lovely intense berry flavor and nice textural interplay. Harry’s Berries are fabulous when in season.

Fondant Au Chocolat Amer 64%. Apricot Stracciatella Gelato – Cashew Praline Crème Monté. Bring the wafer thin mint!

Plus, I had 4 flavors of gelato! Yeah, 4. But they were so frozen rock solid by the dry ice that I couldn’t even chip into them. They were still rock solid when I got home hours later and had to “thaw” in the freezer. But will return for tomorrow night’s Fred dinner.

Overall, an incredibly epic meal.

Service was first class. We did the wine service though, which is how we wanted it with these wines. Which, by the way were all four incredible. Fantastic and very lucky that we had no flaws. Probably the 89 Coche MP was the “best” — but all 4 were amazing. Legendary wines and we may never see their like again.

Food was amazing too. Certainly the best non-Asian I’ve had in Orange County. Very good by any standards. And our custom meal was stunning. TONS of food too — it would have been a lot even if I arrived starved, and I’m a big eater — but after being stuffed at LSXO an hour or two before, it was a serious struggle to find the room. I mean, I pretty much finished every plate — that’s what I do — but I was in some serious overstuffed discomfort! Ah, first world problems.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Coche Dury, Foodie Club, French Cuisine, Gelato, Legendary, Leroy, Marche Moderne, Orange County, Roulot, White Burgundy

Coche vs d’Auvenay at Melisse

Mar13

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

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

Date: February 20, 2019

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Great finish

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

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

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

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

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

Melisse always has great bread.

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

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

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

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

agavin: Fred, always the mensch, opened his backup

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

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

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

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

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

agavin: very good, and really singing.

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

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

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

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

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

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

An opening cocktail? Or juice. Hard to tell.

Some kind of very bright punchy fruit flavor.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And bonus legs.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Mint tea. Unusual, but nice.

Erick.

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

Liz.

And me.

The full wine lineup.

Overall, another epic epic night.

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

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

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

Very fun evening.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

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

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

By: agavin
Comments (0)

Posted in: Food

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

Major Coche to the Dome-O

Sep21

Restaurant: Majordomo [1, 2]

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

Date: July 26, 2018

Cuisine: Korean Fusion

Rating: Big dishes amazing

It’s with gigantic expectation that NY restaurateur David Chang opens his first LA outpost.

Looking on the map, I was pretty skeptical of the weird between Chinatown and Dodger’s Stadium location — a totally annoying spot for me to get to during traffic! Two brutal hours! It took Fred much less time to get here from the OC!

The area is extremely warehousey, much like the “Arts District” but even newer.

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

With lots of bespoke graffiti.

And Majordomo, of course.

Which has a pretty big enclosed and outside space.

As you can see.

Inside is one of those cavernous loud warehouse spaces.

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

From my cellar: NV Pierre Gerbais Champagne Extra Brut Grains de Celles Rose. 90 points. Tastes like a fruity young dry rose still but with bubbles.

Today’s menu.

Chilled Shrimp summer melon, cucumber, fish sauce vinaigrette. Really nice interesting dish. Vaguely Vietnamese with one of those sweet/tangy/fishy light sauces. The combo of fruit, crunchy cucumber, and shrimp though was really interesting and partially Vietnamese, partially Shirazi salad, and partially all it’s own.

Our main event, wine wise, tonight was a blind flight of 5 Meursaults, 4 Coche, one ringer. Larry was supposed to bring the 09, but he ended up in the hospital. Poor Larry.

1998 Coche-Dury Meursault. 95 points. The regular Meursault but an aged one at least, a special wine. It is a classy Burgundy with a lot of roasted almonds and nuts, but still a refreshing acidity. It shows some aging signs I would say at his peak, great company for food. Getting better with time and air. Missing a little bit more complexity in the finish. Anyway nicely balanced.

agavin: tied with the 2011 for white of the night

2004 Coche-Dury Meursault. BH 91. Soft mineral reduction does not materially detract from the green fruit, citrus, stone and slightly smoky nose that introduces detailed, pure and attractively intense middle weight flavors that possess excellent vibrancy on the taut, linear and refined finish. This isn’t quite as complex or concentrated as the ’02 version (see herein) but the sheer persistence is most impressive. And in the same fashion as the 2002, this has reached an inflection point of maturity where it could be enjoyed now or held for a few more years depending on how one prefers aged white burgs. For my taste, I would hold this for another 2 to 4 years but many people will find the current state of maturity to be perfect now.

agavin: nice out of the gate and for a long while.

2006 Coche-Dury Meursault. BH 89. An expressive and attractively layered nose of citrus, yellow orchard fruits and a hint of roasted nuts trimmed in a note of subtle wood toast that is also picked up by the rich, full and generous flavors that possess a seductively textured and balanced finish that delivers fine intensity and impressive persistence for a villages level wine. Recommended.

agavin: flabby out of the gate (we thought it was the non-coche) but really opened up and grew.

From my cellar: 2011 Coche-Dury Meursault. 94 points. An elegant, pure and very pretty nose is now displaying just touches of both wood and some secondary development though it’s clear that the ripe orchard fruit and citrus-infused aromas are still developing. There is a lovely sense of energy to the delicious, round and caressing middle weight flavors that exhibit a subtle mineralitly that continues onto the nicely intense and sappy finale that delivers excellent persistence and particularly so for a villages level wine. This is really lovely stuff and while it could easily be enjoyed now, I’d be inclined to allow it another 5 to 7 years of bottle age first.

agavin: big, long and full of acid to start and just kept getting better.

2013 Bernard Boisson-Vadot Meursault Les Chevalières. 93 points. This was served single blind. The Coche flint and acid was obvious. Except this for was Boisson Vadot. Started off a dead ringer for Coche but as the Coche all picked up complexity with air this b came a little one dimensional. Certainly held its own as a Coche ringer.

Bings (flat breads) with Spicy Lamb and Eggs & Smoked Roe.

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

Hiding behind the coche!

A gift of the house: Macaroni & Chickpea black truffle, black pepper. Really good. Like a cacio e pepe, but with an interesting cheesy/sweetness and that fabulous truffle flavor.

More carbs! Crispy Rice shrimp, corn, bacon. Form favor is Korean, but the flavors were different and the crispy rice reminded me of those Persian dishes.

You mix it up and it was bright and delicious.

Crispy Pork Belly kohlrabi, Bibb lettuce, Domojang. The pork was very crispy, really nice, but it was all about the XO-like Domojang sauce.

Fred brought: 2002 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Chambolle-Musigny. VM 88. Moderately saturated medium red. Lively, pure aromas of raspberry and flowers; I had the impression of getting back to my preferred style of Burgundy Supple and round, but juicy thanks to an edge of acidity. Subtle notes of red fruits, flowers and minerals. Finishes with dusty tannins.

agavin: reviewers way under rated this fresh lovely young village wine.

We also pre ordered Boiled Whole Chicken (2-3 people) rice, morels, hand torn noodles.

This was some absolutely first rate chicken. Pretty much Hainan chicken with the spice already rubbed on, much more Chinese than anything else.

The hand torn noodle soup was like some of the best (Chinese) mushroom noodle soup you’ll ever have, and they have amped it up with not only truffle butter.

But a pile of real truffles too (replacing the morels from before).

Our wine lineup.

Which Eve shows off for Instagram.

We also happened to be “crashed” by Charlie Fu and friends at the next table over.

Wine service is so good here they also brought some lousy juice.

The dessert menu.

Strawberry Kakigoro. Shiso, burrata. Strawberry and shiso shaved ice with burrata sauce and dehydrated strawberries. It was mild in flavor, but very intriguing and refreshing. Plus it was amazing paired with the coche. Made it taste like strawberry coche. I think a nice high acid White Burg would be great with a little Boiron Strawberry Puree!

Mandorla Tostata Stroopwafel Gelato (Toasted Almond) made by me for Sweet Milk Gelato — toasted Sicilian almonds and Dutch Stroopwafel, because, why not? Some of Charlie’s guys declared it the best gelato they have ever had — makes a dad proud!

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

The service and wine service were both spectacular. I was really surprised as these loud hipster places often don’t have good wine service but we were really taken care of and this added a lot to the evening.

The larger pre-order dishes like the rib and chicken are amazing and insane. Tonight the food seemed even better than the first time, even if we did have a lot of (delicious) carbs. Maybe it was the Coche. Coche makes everything taste better.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Chicken, Coche Dury, Dessert, Foodie Club, Gelato, Majordomo, White Burgundy

Big Guns at Providence

May26

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

Location: 5955 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 460-4170

Date: April 21, 2018

Cuisine: Cal French

Rating: Awesome food

Foodie Club core members Fred and Erick wanted an excuse to open some of our really serious whites and so we set up another Providence meal.

While the colors are different, Providence still looks a lot like Patina to me — as the layout is basically the same.

The bar has this blue and gold thing going on.

Tonight Erick, Fred, and I decided to go with “big gun” white Burgs.

From my cellar: 2009 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. VM 94. Deep but bright aromas of crushed stone and cherry-almond. Fat and opulent; stuffed with soft citrus, spice and stone flavors. A wine of impressive volume, power and fullness but rather backward today. Finishes with lovely balance and superb length. Despite the wine’s sheer size and ripeness, the <em>terroir</em> of Rougeots dominates the vintage.

Erick brought: 2002 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux. VM 92+. Pale yellow. Perfumed nose combines minerals, flint, smoke and a roasted nuance. Superconcentrated yet downright elegant, with strongly mineral flavors of lemon and liquid stone. Finishes with superb length and lemony cut.

agavin: these official scores do not reflect the (superlative) quality of these serious whites from one of Burgundy’s best producers.

Fred brought: 1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Auxey-Duresses Les Boutonniers. sadly, this bottle was corked 🙁

The white lineup.

We bought this off the list because it was below retail (due to recent inflation of Liger).

2015 Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair Vosne-Romanée La Colombiere. VM 91. Healthy red-ruby. Blackberry and black raspberry aromas are complicated by a gamey nuance. Plush and classically dry, with smoky and saline qualities and a touch of animal fur reduction that currently blocks the wine’s fruit. This, too, will be racked soon.

Fred’s backup: 1985 Maison Leroy Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru La Richemone. BH 91. A highly expressive and nicely airy nose offers up notes of sous bois, spice and warm earth that merge seamlessly into delicious, round and impressively complex medium full flavors that are still underpinned by noticeable if integrated tannins that are mildly rustic on the focused and persistent finish. This is a most satisfying if not especially elegant wine that should continue to drink well for years to come. In a word, lovely. Note that this bottle was definitely fresher than another that I tried in four years ago.

The menu we ordered tonight.

Amuse of crudites. Mussels and various root vegetables (like radishes) along with a bit of dipping sauce.

A dash of soup.

Crab tarts — delicious.

Oyster bites.

Wagyu “cigars.” Amazing.

Scallop, geoduck, sea beans, caviar.

A bit of a zoom in so you can see it better. Notice the generous blob of caviar. And I guess those little green things are the sea beans. This was certainly a nice bite with real brine and interesting textures.

Providence has nice house-made bread.

And Normandy Butter, although it was a bit cold.

I took all the bread types.

Spider crab, truffle butter, crab-infused soy milk. This looks like a ravioli, but the pasta is actually a bean curd made from soy milk. The whole thing was delicious.

Spot prawn with xo. The head was good for sucking out the juices.

But the caviar studded body was the real winner. Absolutely delicious, particularly with the salty, umami-laden xo sauce.

Black mouth chinook salmon, shunkyo radish, nasturtium, vadouvan. Everyone loves nasturtium these days. Very nice delicate salmon.

Black cod, Japanese turnip, clam, ginger. Straight fish dishes like cod are sometimes boring, but the clam brought out some complexity.

Duck & sweet pea tortellini, duck heart, mushroom consommé. A very lovely “French” take on tortellini en brodo.

Foie gras supplement, with olives and almonds. One wouldn’t have thought that olives and almonds was a good foie pairing but this was a first rate dish.

A5 Wagyu, delta asparagus, coastal onion, lime. A nice hearty rich slab of beef.

Providence has a real cheese cart.

And a more frontal look.

Bread for the cheese.

Our custom cheese plate of strong and gooey (for the most part) cheeses with some scrumptious condiments.

Ginger, tomato, soy. An unusual dessert flavor pairing but totally worked.

Rhubarb, creme fraiche, meringue. A bit like strawberry rhubarb and cream. Very tart and a lovely combo.

Bergamot, assam, alpaco. These “rocks” were ice cream and absolutely delicious — although very unique and herbal in flavor.

Petit fours of macarons, gels, and chocolates. All unusual.

A little breakfast cake to go.

This was a great night and lots of fun. It was also the best meal I’ve ever had at Providence and really first rate. Tonight’s dishes were delicious and memorable. Maybe not as memorable as dishes at the very best restaurants, but way more so than I usually find Providence dishes. Plus our service was impeccable and our wines amazing — if we do say so ourselves.

After growing used to the more rustic and less buttery more casual places that dominate LA these days Providence does feel a bit old school. But I still like the tasting format, particularly in Europe at playful top places like Azurmendi and they are clearly still changing things up on a continual basis.

For more LA dining reviews click here,