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Mes Ami – C’est Mort

Mar28

Restaurant: Mes Ami [ CHEF LEFT SUBSEQUENTLY ]

Location: 561541 Wilcox Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90028. (323) 410-6200

Date: August 25, 2022

Cuisine: French Bistro

Rating: Excellent — but closed

This summer a couple trendy new Hollywood places opened and of course the Foodie Club had to go try them out, tonight consisting of Erick, Jeridan, and myself.

Quoting from Eater:

There seems to be renewed optimism around Los Angeles’s robust restaurant scene, particularly as the state prepares to open up more broadly next week. The latest bit of promise for LA comes out of Hollywood, as chef Lincoln Carson makes his long-hoped-for return to the city with a brand new project called Mes Amis.

As the name implies, Carson’s newest restaurant will lean into French flavors by way of Paris and Lyon’s many cafes and brasseries — though Carson says his menu will be a more California “reinterpretation” of the classics, using Southern California produce from the nearby Hollywood Farmer’s Market. While specific dishes are still being worked out for the menu, expect Mes Amis to exude an upscale casual elegance and offer a strong dessert program, in addition to cocktails and wine.

It has a gorgeous new interior in a classic building.

Bread and butter. Bread was nice and crunchy, butter was fine, but no Normandy butter (at least as far as I could tell).

The menu is small and focused, quite French in its way.

Our wines tonight, plus the Grande Dame we bought off the list.

2008 Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut La Grande Dame.

PETITE SHELLFISH PLATEAU. 6 east and west coast oysters, 4 littleneck clams, 4 new caledonian prawns, 1 maine scallop crudo. The shrimp and oysters were great. The clams were a bit fishy and the scallop lacked the acidity I was looking for.

A zoom.

NV Krug Champagne Brut Rosé Edition 26eme. JG 95 The soon to be released Krug Rosé “26ème Édition” is from the base year of 2014. Given the long history of Maison Krug, sometimes it seems impossible that this beautiful bottling of Rosé has only seen twenty-six renditions. The blend this year includes one-third of reserve wines, running back to the 2005 vintage. The cépages is forty-four percent pinot noir, thirty percent chardonnay and twenty-six percent pinot meunier and the wine is once again its very pale, salmon color. It offers up a beautifully refined nose of tangerine, white cherries, wheat bread, chalky soil tones, a touch of citrus peel, gentle notes of brown spices and a discreetly smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is young, full-bodied and displays excellent depth in the mid-palate, with elegant mousse, lovely focus and grip, bright acids and a long, complex and very well balanced finish. Fine, fine juice, but this is still a puppy and deserves at least a few years in the cellar to blossom. (Drink between 2027-2060)

CHICKEN LIVER MOUSSE NAPOLEON. puff pastry, prune gastrique. This was really lovely. It actually looked, felt, and tasted like a dessert. The pastry was a dessert mille-feuille with the foie acting more or less like a pastry cream.

DUCK PÂTÉ EN CROÛTE. black truffle, frisée, pickled rhubarb. Very nice decadant French pate.

“Everything” lavash for the pate and tartare.

PRIME CREEKSTONE STEAK TARTARE. egg yolk jam, crispy shallot, “everything” lavash. Very nice tartare with great texture.

BLACK TRUFFLE RISOTTO. ibérico ham, black trumpets, preserved truffle. Rich and subtle. Quite enjoyable.

1998 Domaine des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays. VM 92. Good bright red-ruby color. Knockout nose combines cherry, raspberry, redcurrant, underbrush, licorice, flowers and earth. Penetrating and quite fine; offers a three-dimensional texture but is not really showing its underlying fat today. Intriguing note of cinnamon in the mouth. Finishes very long and complex, with dusty tannins and compelling sweetness. This should be superb with eight to ten years of bottle aging.

STEAK AU POIVRE. potato millefeuille, prime shortrib, peppercorn jus. This was a great steak. It was salty (in a good way) and very tender. The pepper was subdued but present and the crispy potatoes were awesome.

SMOKED LIBERTY DUCK BREAST. swiss chard, parsnip, wild huckleberry jus. Really fabulous duck breast. Extremely tender and full of flavor without being either chewy or gamey. The berry sauce complemented perfectly.

ROASTED LAMB WELLINGTON. pastry crusted lamb loin, thumbelina carrots, shell bean ragoût.

Quite lovely looking and tasted nice as well. Certainly not the lightest dish.

The jus.

SHELL BEAN RAGOÛT.

thumbelina carrots.

POMMES FRITES. Excellent, albiet salty. Perhaps the two are related.

Our awesome server Christian

2005 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. BH 94. This is a mild step up in overall class and elegance with a gorgeously perfumed white flower fruit nose introducing linear, precise, intense and powerful medium full flavors that remain splendidly focused on the stunningly long finish that drenches the palate in dry extract. This is a striking 1er and one to buy as it easily delivers grand cru quality. (Drink starting 2012)

The gang.

The dessert menu.

PEACH PAVLOVA. rose geranium, yellow peaches, blackberry, white verjus. Bright enjoyable peach and merignue combo.

ST. HONORÉ. pecan mousseline, pâte feuilletée, caramel. I love a good proper St Honore and this was a somewhat modernized or deconstructed variant. It did fortuantly retain the basic elements and flavors of the original. I liked it a lot, although I’m not sure it was actually “better” than the classic form.

CHOCOLATE SOUFFLÉ. valrhona chocolate, green chartreuse, génépy gelato. Pretty classic and lovely.

The chef, Lincoln Carson.

Overall, the food at Mes Amis was fabulous. It was sophisticated, a bit different, quite French, and delicious. Most of our foodie friends went — often several times — during the restaurant’s brief tenure. One of my friends even tried to go weekly. But it was indeed a brief tenure, maybe 6 months. The chef left and they are rebooting with a new concept and chef. At the moment they are only open for breakfast and lunch.

Even when we went there was a bit of a mismatch between the location and crowd and the kitchen. This was good cooking. But outside the restaurant was one of those “Hollywood crowds” of very young people undressed to kill. The music was loud. The default service seemed to revolve around the idea of bringing you a small number of dishes all at once — which is sort of a Hollywood mode for non-serious eaters nibbling while taking in the scene. We had to carefully produce the timing of our meal (aka slow it down and stage it). Anyway, it was an opportunity and a fine chef wasted, but I’m glad we got to go during the brief glory days.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Dessert, Foodie Club, French Cuisine, Hollywood, Lincoln Carson, Mes Ami, pate, scene, tartare

Camphor Cool

Feb14

Restaurant: Camphor

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

Date: July 14, 2022

Cuisine: Modern French Bistro

Rating: Great fusion of flavors

Camphor is a modern bistro located in DTLA’s bustling Arts District led by Co-Executive Chefs Max Boonthanakit and Lijo George. It seems to merge French style with some Indian flavors.

Jeffrey and Erick and I, collectively the Foodie Club or Bottom Feeders, set off to try it out — and of course ordered almost the entire menu (as we are wont to do).

They are located down in the Arts District — ugly location, but a nice build out. It’s the same space that used to house Nightshade, another place I liked that shut down during the pandemic. Some of the owners and/or staff have carried over.

The interior. It doesn’t look that different than Nightshade did.

The menu and our marked up version.

1996 Robert Ampeau & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes. 92 points. Best attribute is a long finish, with good balance. Notes of white flower and tree fruit.

From my cellar: 1996 Robert Ampeau & Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. 94 points. When they are on the wines are really incredible, this bottle was flinty and completely alive and delicious, everything you could want but the success rate is pretty much 50% on these wines for me so as long as you are comfortable with that reality they are worth seeking out, I’m not sure I’m going to be buying anymore myself. Even at 2x the average retail price on these which is basically what the cost is when you have to pour out every other bottle, they are still a relative bargain compared to any other older White Burg but it’s a frustrating experience opening them.

Amuse in the form of a light delicious foam in a chickpea shell. Very nice refreshing bite.

Saucisson with brown pepper. Tasty thin salami.

Baby shrimp “gunpowder.” Incredibly tasty little salty crunchy shrimp with a hint of curry and/or lemongrass and basil.

Clam barbajuan. Tasty, but the ratio of fry made it taste like there could have been anything in there.

Clams with garlic parsley butter. Quite tasty.

Tartare of beef with an herb tempura. This was a fabulous “creamy” tartare and particularly delicious on the crispy herbs.

Herb tempura to put the tartare on.

A5 wagyu otoro carpaccio. Also creamy. They like the sacues here.

Barbajuan of Dungeness crab. There was also probably spinach in there. I thought there was a nice (but subtle) crab flavor. The shell was great.

Sauces for the barbajuan of a creamy butter sauce and incredible pickled sweet Peruvian peppers.

Special onion tart with anchovies. This was very good, but not as good as Jeffrey wanted.

From my cellar: 1989 Daniel Moine-Hudelot Clos Vougeot. Amazing!

Special dover sole with brown butter beurre blanc with capers and bread crumbs.

The browned butter.

Breadcrumbs.

They like to sauce at the table. Very soft and rich and delicious fish.

Lobster with coral bisque. Super tender lobster tail with a sauce that was basically lobster bisque.

The lobster claws in a ridiculously rich and delicious hollandaise-like foam.

Lentils and Lamb. Under this foam was a lentil soup with a hint of curry and a touch of lambiness. Not much meat but it was delicious.

1993 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge.

Chicken with Thyme and chicken jus. This was a soft log of chicken and super delicious. The sauce was vaguely curry-like and so we called it the “curry wurst.”

Asparagus and béarnaise. Salty and good.

Special of layered crispy potato. This was great and the sauce beneath had a complex sweet and sour flavor that reminded me of chaat puri (the Indian street food).

Special of ribeye from a special source with a slightly different bearnaise sauce. Very nice meat but I was very full.

Soft sweet bread.

Chocolate and hazelnut. There was icecream and crunch underneath. Quite good.

Special of strawberry and cream in a crispy shell. Fabulous. Again, too bad I was full.

The chefs.

Little madeleines.

This was a super fun dinner, one of my favorites of the year, and I loved Camphor. First of all, I really enjoy these small Foodie Club/Bottom Feeders outings to new restaurants. They are free of drama and chaos of some larger dinners. Then I really enjoyed the food. It’s precise, and very very saucy — but I like saucy. Be prepared for it. Everything is sauced. Béarnaise, beurre blanc, reductions, it’s all there. But sauce adds fat, salt, and flavor to otherwise plain proteins. And I really enjoyed the precise French style paired with bolder more assertive Indian flavors, without getting too heavy. The DNA is mostly French.

Oh and our Burgundies turned out very well tonight. The 1989 Clos Vougeot was one of those magical wines. So lucky when those happen. Some people have complained that Camphor dish size is too small. This is actually a plus in my book and just an opportunity to order more dishes. Look at how much we got through with just three gluttons!

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Camphor, DTLA, Foodie Club, French Cuisine, Sauce, Wine

Eating Paris – L’Ambroisie

Jan20

Restaurant: L’Ambroisie

Location: 9 Pl. des Vosges, 75004 Paris, France. +33 1 42 78 51 45

Date: June 29, 2022

Cuisine: 1980s Haute Cuisine French

Rating: Amazing

This was supposed to be my fourth starred restaurant in Paris, but some complexities of the “2022 moment” led to us missing two of them. I also ended up going here by myself instead of with a big group, but c’est la vie.

L’Ambroisie is a traditional French restaurant in Paris, France founded by Bernard Pacaud and now run by his son Mathieu that has maintained three Michelin stars for more than thirty years. The name “L’Ambroisie” (“Ambrosia” in English) comes from Greek mythology and means both “food for gods” and “source of immortality.”

The restaurant’s founder and head chef is Bernard Pacaud. He was abandoned by his parents at age 13 and raised in an orphanage in the mountains of Lyonnais. Pacaud started cooking at age 15, in 1962, as an apprentice at the famed Eugenie (Mére) Brazier’s restaurant Col de la Luère located 20 km from Lyon. Pacaud spent the next three years as commis at the Tante Alice restaurant in Lyon before becoming chef de partie at La Méditerranée in Paris. Pushed by Eugénie Brazier’s encouragements, he applied to work in 1976 with Claude Peyrot, the chef and owner of the Vivarois (a Michelin three star restaurant) on avenue Victor Hugo in Paris. In 1981, he opened his own restaurant quai de la Tournelle (at the crossing with rue de Bièvres) in Paris. In 1986, he opened L’Ambroisie at place des Vosges and obtained three Michelins stars in 1988 which he has kept since then. His refined and classical cooking style makes it one on the most esteemed French restaurants.

The restaurant is in a period house on the southwestern corner of the Place des Vosges in Paris. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Place des Vosges was an upper-class and noble neighborhood.

The interior was very 1980s “le Grande Restaurant.” I didn’t photo much of it because the Madame en Charge was giving me the evil eye and I didn’t want to get boxed out of using my camera. As it was I didn’t dare even put the flash on, I could just tell that wouldn’t fly.

2015 Rapet Père et Fils Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92. This easily possesses the most complex nose in the range with its ripe yet cool array of green apple, citrus, petrol, soft wood and spice hints. There is impressive size, weight and concentration to the muscular big-bodied flavors that coat the mouth on the citrus and mineral-inflected finish. I would make the same observation here that while this could easily be enjoyed young, I would be inclined to give it at least a few years of bottle age first to develop more depth. (Drink starting 2022)

The menu. This is pretty close to the style of menu I generally encountered at nice restaurants in the 1980s. Dishes are vaguely clustered into courses and the intent is that you order one from each. Lighter eaters could skip one.

Special cornbread-like bread.

Amuses. Fennel tart (front). Delicious. Red pepper mousse (back left) on a crisp. Leek with Caviar (back right). I always enjoy the rich and varied tastes of amuses — I could do an entire meal of amuses trivially.

Sour dough bread and Normandy Butter. Sour dough seems a recent thing at high end French places.

The bread itself.

And le beurre.

I started (with the amuses) trying to shoot these dishes with my F1.8 lens and a tiny tripod. About one picture in the eagle eye’d manager honed in on me and made me ditch the tripod. Why me sitting alone at my large table with a 6″ tripod was “distracting to the other guests” is anyone’s guess, but as I had to make due hand holding in dim light with no flash I was basically shooting with a couple mm of depth of field — hence I present several photos (pretty hard to focus stack without a tripod).

Feuillantine de langoustines aux graines de sésame, sauce au curry. Langoustine feuillantine with sesame seeds, curry sauce. Lanougstines (course 1). Very precise. Perfectly cooked and the buttery mildly curry sauce was delicious. This was an excellent dish.

Interlude de homard aux pusses de legumes, nage a l’anis etoile. Lobster interlude with vegetable pusses, star anise broth. Lobster (course 2). Incredibly tender and another great beurre blanc. Basically you could think of it as perfectly cooked lobster in perfect beurre blanc — nothing wrong with that. The broth was so good that it made the vegetables awesome.

2013 Domaine Poisot Pere & Fils Romanée St. Vivant. BH 92. There is a fine sense of freshness to the cool and overtly spicy aromas of various floral, plum and sandalwood hints. I very much like the purity of the energetic, sleek and attractively detailed medium-bodied flavors that possess a highly refined mouth feel thanks to the fine grain of the supporting tannins, all wrapped in a balanced, persistent and beautifully complex finish. This is quite good and should age effortlessly over the next 10 to 15 years. (Drink starting 2025)

They noticed me squinting at the wine list and offered me reading glasses! Very helpful.

Supremes de pigeon laques a la Montmorency, meli-melo de betteraves confites. Supremes of pigeon lacquered with Montmorency. Pigeon (course 3). Good, and perfectly cooked, but touch heavy.

Candied beetroot medley. Beat side dish as part of duck. Kind of lovely.

Centerpiece on the table.

Pre-dessert. Very light.

Blanc-manger meringue aux agrumes, sorbet cerises a la Kriek. Blancmange meringue with citrus fruits, cherry sorbet with Kriek. Super fresh and great cherries and cream thing.

Petite fours.

Mini strawberry tart.

Perfect cannel.

Pastry with Chantilly cream and a caramelized top. It’s sort of related to a Saint-Honoré pastry and includes a slate of elements I love.

An immense amount of cocoa almonds.

Overall, this is a great kitchen and in summary a great way to experience the 1980s/early 90s style of high end French Cusiine, but I’ll break down the elements:

Food. Dated, without the heavy Asian or modernist influence that’s common these days, but extremely precise and and well cooked. This makes the cuisine more “French” than most other 3 stars. It also floats everything along with butter and creme instead of using some of the lighter newer “solvents.” The format also features a more or less 3 savory style which I found less exciting than a newer style with many more, smaller, savory courses. Being by myself, I didn’t get to sample that many things.

Wine. The by-the-glass wine list was surprisingly poor compared to my meal the previous night at Le Grand Restaurant – Jean-François Piège. I had to pick from the kind of “off vintage, off producer, a bit too young” Burgundies I won’t even buy anymore.

Atmosphere. The room is pretty, but formal in the classic way. I’m certainly fine with that. Tables were very spaced out and things were quiet. For me, being along, and in combination with the relatively small number of courses and the slow pacing and my inability to use a tripod or flash (which would occupy me a bit longer with my photography) the whole experience was kind of slightly uncomfortable and a bit dull. I was a little too far from the other diners to easily listen to their conversations. haha. The staff, particularly the manager, seemed more stern and disapproving, if always flawlessly polite, than the friendliness I experienced the previous night.

For more French dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Eating France, Eating Paris, France, French Cuisine, Haute cuisine, L'Ambroisie, Michelin, Michelin 3 Star, Paris, Wine

Eating Chantilly – O Bistrot Chic

Jan12

Restaurant: O Bistrot Chic

Location: 62 Rue du Connétable, 60500 Chantilly, France. +33 3 44 63 93 46

Date: June 26, 2022

Cuisine: French Bistro

Rating: Casual, but very tasty

After a visit to the Chateau de Chantilly we found this casual bistro for a quick bite.

Looks the part.

A cute interior with locals and tourists.

The classic French menu board.

Eyes Mayonaise. Aka deviled eyes. Very soft and nice. On the side is a beef pate with a very pureed texture.

Liu Noir (fish) with rice and a Thai-like light curry. I could have used about 2-3X the sauce, but otherwise good.

Another fish.

Caesar Salad with chicken and anchovies.

Without the chicken.

Beef Filet with pepper sauce.

This was a pleasant little casual place. Food wasn’t crazy innovative or anything but it was tasty and the service was very friendly.

Afterward we got some pastries with Crème Chantilly (whipped cream).

For more French dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Bistrot Chic, Eating Chantilly, Eating France, French Cuisine

Eating Paris – Bistro V

Jan07

Restaurant: Bistro V

Location: 56 Bd de Port-Royal, 75005 Paris, France. +33 1 45 35 35 31

Date: June 24, 2022

Cuisine: French Bistro

Rating: Meh French

On our first night in Paris I knew we were tired and was looking for a very casual “good food, authentically French” place for our large party with kids. Given that, I didn’t want to use the Michelin Guide or anything, so I thought I’d try one last time to use Trip Advisor. This place was EXTREMELY highly rated (on TA), like #20 out of almost 16,000 restaurants in Paris and above almost every 2 and 3 star etc.

Looks like a typical Bistro.

Inside had some atmosphere, but not as much as I would have liked. It was deserted — we were the only people — yet they basically ignored us.

Crisps from a bag. Not an auspicious beginning.

Bread with a butter packet. Oh boy.

Watermelon, honey, mint and feta salad.

Chicken spring rolls from Chef Alain Kassi, Thai herbs and hazelnut chips. These weren’t bad per se, but spring rolls?

Périgord duck foie gras, citrus chutney. This was solid, but you could buy a can in Paris and slice it.

Creamy risotto with coconut milk and ginger, grilled prawns, fresh herbs and parmesan.

Supreme of cod, roasted broccoli and basil pesto.

Beef tenderloin (High Quality Meat Breed) black pepper sauce, sautéed potatoes.

Duo Camembert with Tartufata and Comté cheese.

Semi-cooked chocolate with a runny heart, passion fruit juice and vanilla ice cream.

Cheesecake, Matcha tea cream and salted butter caramel.

Plain strawberries.

Strawberry salad, balsamic caramel and mascarpone ice cream.

Food was okay. Nothing inspired at all. Just fine. Not super authentically French. I’ve had better meals in totally random cafes. I just don’t get the rating.

Service was VERY slow with a single employee in the front and one in the kitchen. The waitress was a bit exasperated with our frustration at the pace and showed it. We were the only people for an hour but they really didn’t get going, probably because of the kitchen guy. Dessert took 45-60 minutes because the kitchen guy wanted to finished everyone elses savories. Basically miserable service and very irritating when we had been up for 40 hours (with kids).

This concludes any trust I have in Tripadvisors ratings as this is rated VERY high on their list, as I said #20 out of 16,000! I will NEVER trust a TA score or reviews ever again. I might have to use them when there is nothing else in English, but only as a last resort. Given how many great places are in Paris some tourist trap would have been better. I don’t even know who this restaurant is aimed at.

For more French dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Bistro, Eating France, Eating Paris, French Cuisine

Melisse 2.0

Sep06

Restaurant: Melisse [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 (Citrin), 14 (takeout), 15]

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

Date: December 16, 2021

Cuisine: California French

Rating: New style lighter, but still great

Right before the pandemic “Old Melisse” reopened split into a more casual ala carte Citrin and this new smaller tasting menu only format Melisse.

There is a new door on Wilshire.

And what used to be the slightly lower back room of “By Brazil II” and Old Melisse has been closed off to form the new more elegant tasting menu venue. It feels quite separate and you only go into the main dining room to use the restroom. The decor also looks and feels different and it’s set up pretty much exclusively for 4 tops (which I guess can be 2 tops).

Tonight’s menu.

Welcome cocktail.

1999 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 98. Very fresh, bright medium yellow. Knockout mineral-saturated scents of lemon cream, lime oil, acacia flower, vanilla, crushed stone, nut oil and iodine. Sappy and vibrant but at the same time utterly seamless, offering a compelling combination of refinement, concentration (especially impressive in light of the year’s full yields) and acid balance. The wine’s outstanding mineral tension is intensified by its brisk acidity–or is it the other way around? This is an exhilarating and truly exceptional grand cru but I would not describe it as an easy drink. Finishes with powerful crushed-stone salinity and a rising whiplash of flavor. A real cellar treasure and my favorite wine of the tasting, still with a long life ahead of it. The ’99s at Domaine Leflaive have always stood out for their ripeness and richness but today this wine is even more impressive for its adamant minerality. (Incidentally, my notes at the time said that following a reorganization of the cellar, 1999 was the first vintage at Leflaive to be bottled without filtration, as well as the first vintage to be bottled by gravity.) (14% alcohol; 3.18 pH, September 25 harvest) (Drink between 2019-2036)

Aged Beef, Green Goddess, Charcoal, Caviar.

Gougeres, Chestnut, San Daniele Ham.

Toasted Buckweat, Gouda and Bourbon

Potato Tart, Sunchoke, Mushroom, White Truffle.

Trio of starters. The new more Japanese influence is instantly obvious.

Shibumi Oyster, Smoked Vinegar Jelly.

Kona Abalone.

Scallop, Squid, Matsutake Broth.

Uni Cromesquis, Yuzu, Honey.

Golden Osetra Caviar, Roasted Potato, Creme Fraiche, Champagne. This was a bit more “French” in style.

Toro Sawara, Concord Grape Vinegar, Oboro Kombu.

1999 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes. VM 97. Very bright red with ruby tones; looks like a young wine. Deep, dark red and black fruit aromas are complicated by cinnamon, black pepper, roast coffee and a hint of truffley underbrush. Wonderfully rich but classy and reserved, and not a bit heavy. Utterly silky, plush, energetic wine with a relaxed quality to its lively dark fruit and dark chocolate flavors. Finishes classically dry, with beautifully buffered tannins and captivating building sweetness. Amazingly, this 375-milliliter bottle seems still short of its peak, so I would imagine that well-stored 750s still need time. I’d guess 2022-2042 for 750s. (Drink between 2018-2034)

From my cellar: 1999 Domaine Anne Gros Richebourg. JG 94. Whereas Anne Gros’ Clos Vougeot has been seemingly slaughtered by new oak in this vintage, the Richebourg has had no problem gobbling up its new wood. The result is a superb Richebourg, bursting from the glass to deliver notes of sappy black cherries, plums, hints of dark chocolate, woodsmoke, violets and a framing of toasty new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and packed with urgent fruit, with impeccable balance, lovely generosity on the attack, and fine depth in reserve at the core. The finish is long, complex and ripely tannic, with fine balance and very impressive grip. This is a majestic young Richebourg that should blossom in another eight to ten years, and drink well for at least a quarter of a century. Fine juice. (Drink between 2010-2035)

1999 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Cuvée Duvault-Blochet. VM 93. The 1999 Vosne-Romané 1er Cru Duvault-Blochet, the debut release in the modern era, was beginning to show some signs of bricking on the rim. The bouquet is a treat: decayed red berry fruit, sage and peppermint, just a soupçon of wild fennel all at the liminal point as primary tips into secondary aromas. The palate is soft and mellow on the entry with a subtle meaty/dried blood quality, fine tannin and well judged acidity that keeps this linear and focused. There is just a pinch of spice on the finish that strangely brought to mind more Chambolle than Vosne-Romanée, not that I am complaining. Tasted at the 1999 DRC dinner. (Drink between 2020-2040)

Chicken and Rice, Cordon Bleu, Vin Jaune. This is the “chicken” part.

And the rice part was pretty much a Japanese ingredient flavored/inspired risotto — one of my favorite dishes.

Turbot “Marchand de Vin”, Brown Butter Sabayon, Celery Root. I love a good Sabayon (aka eggy fat emulsion).

Corvus Farm’s Guinea Hen “En Farci”, Turnip Soubise, Sauce Albufera.

A bit of light soup.

Millbrook Farm’s Venison Loin and Bun, Pumpkin, Walnut, Chocolate, “Pickleback.”

A bit of bread to sop up that reduction.

1966 Paul Reitz Corton.

Chocolate, Rum, Chestnut.

Mont Blanc Choux. A choux is a style of pastry where the dough is heated as it’s made.

Coffee and Caramel Brittle.

Chocolate and Whisky and Mulled Pear.

A take home gift of shortbread.

Melisse 2.0 remains and exciting and focused tasting menu restaurant. Right now, it’s decidedly lighter, more Japanese, and less French than the original restaurant. The number of courses, while plenty, is more restrained and there are essentially no options. But it’s also more experimental and quite delicious. I really enjoyed the food. Individual dishes felt distinctly “French” or “Japanese” in style.

However, the format changes make this a place for 2-4 person high end dinners as they do not really do larger groups and are decidedly less accommodating with regard to outside wine. They really want you buying off the list. This is a bit tough for guys like me as we almost always do dinners with slightly more bottles than people and where everyone tries to bring fairly evenly.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: French Cuisine, Melisse, Red Burgundy, Richbourg, Wine

Reborn as Citrin

Mar13

Restaurant: Citrin [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13]

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

Date: January 29, 2020

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Rebooted

Iconic Santa Monica Melisse has rebooted as 2 restaurants in the same space. In the front, Citrin, in a (slightly) more casual (slightly) more shared format, and a small room in the back with Melisse — as a $300ish a head tasting menu only spot.

For my Mom’s 75th bday 8 of us headed to Citrin to celebrate.

The front has been opened up and now has a bar.

The main dining room is similar, but with the finishes redone.

Our table of 8.

Special DineLA menu.

The menu.

Plain pasta for my son — at least they can do it!

From my cellar: 2002 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut. BH 97. There is a distinctly phenolic character to the secondary-tinged yet super-fresh nose reflects notes of bread, yeast, pear, baked apple, spice and a hint of citrus. The bold and full-bodied flavors possess superb complexity while being underpinned by a notably fine but dense mousse, all wrapped in a gorgeously persistent finish. This is a seriously impressive effort and one of the best of the Krug Brut vintage series released in many years. Note that while this should continue to age effortlessly, it could certainly be enjoyed now. (Drink starting 2017)

Basil Brioche. Beurre de Baratte. These Melisse used to have. They were great then, they are great now. But you have to order (and pay for) them separately now.

Japanese Hamachi. Citrus, Radish, Cilantro — nice and bright.

Wild Japanese Yellowtail. Grapefruit, Radish, Cilantro.

From my cellar: 2009 Bouchard Père et Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. BH 91-94. A ripe yet airy and quite cool nose of indisputable class reflects notes of citrus, stone and white flowers that serve as a graceful preface for the intensely mineral-driven, tension-filled and chiseled flavors that possess sneaky power and outstanding length. There is notably more acidity here than in the Genevrières and better persistence as well. (Drink starting 2016)

Honeynut Squash. Goat Cheese, Pinenut, Lemon-Thyme.

Seared Maine Scallops. Celeriac, Coconut, Lime. Pretty much as you would expect looking at it.

Loup de Mer “En Ecailles”. Potato, Fennel, Parsley-Miso Broth. They love Ecailles. Creeps me out a bit, actually.

From my cellar: 1947 Moillard-Grivot Chambolle-Musigny. agavin 95. Awesome.

Truffle Risotto. Aged Acquerello Rice, Mascarpone, Black White Truffles.

With the truffles. Super creamy “simple” risotto. Really, really good. Not a huge portion though.

Diamond Ranch Quail. Pear, Salsify, Walnut, Beet, Calvados. My mother didn’t love this, thought it was dry.

Lobster Bolognese. Capellini Pasta, Brown Butter Truffle Froth. This was a Melisse classic for decades.

Vermillion Rock Cod “En Ecailles”. Cauliflower, Meyer Lemon, Pichuberry. More creepy scales.

Snake River Farms Wagyu Coulotte. Carrot, Leek, Shallot, Cayenne.

With the jus. Nice beefy beef.

Miso Glazed Rapini. Turnip, Chanterelle, Yuzu, Toasted Barley.

The dessert menu.

Tea.

Chocolate, Yuzu, Passionfruit.

Grand Marnier Souffle. Winter Citrus, Vanilla Ice Cream.

Mocha Ice Cream — tasted almost like a sorbet.

Passionfruit Sorbetto.

Overall, another epic epic night. Above is the birthday girl and my son.

Service at Citrin is first class. Wine service is very good. As good as it gets in LA. There is no bottle limit too, although corkage is a bit steep at $50 for the first 2 bottles then $70 after that.

Food was quite good. Similar to Melisse, but formatted differently. Half the table — including me — had the DineLA menu so that was like a mini old Melisse menu. I’m not sure yet what it’s like with the ala carte. Supposedly these are sharing dishes, but they don’t LOOK or sound like sharing dishes. The plating is too delicate. Look at the Lobster pasta above. It’s tiny (and delicious). Maybe you could share it with 2 people. So I don’t think the kitchen has yet “committed” in their heart of hearts to the real idea of the modern sharing format.

Great evening, and I’ll be back many more times I sure — and to the more “elite” Melisse.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: birthday, Chef Josiah Citrin, Citrin, French Cuisine, Josiah Citrin, Santa Monica

Chef Yu Bo & LQ Foodings

Jan02

Restaurant: Laurent Quenioux / Yu Bo [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]

Location: Korea Town

Date: November 15, 2019

Cuisine: Modern French & Modern Szechuan Chinese!

Rating: Maybe the best LQ yet!

Six and a half years ago Foodie Club co-organizer Erick and I put together one of our more legendary dinners, the Bistro LQ Trufflumpagus. Ever since then we periodically trek out to visit our friend Chef Laurent for some kind of extravaganza — and tonight he’s hosting a special two chef dinner in Korea Town with Chengdu Chef Yu Bo — one of China’s most famous and avant-garde chefs.

Chef Laurent Quenioux grew up in Sologne, France, where he developed a passion for food. As a young boy, Quenioux and his father would hunt duck, partridge, and rabbit. Then, he and his mother would prepare her favorite recipes in the kitchen. Eventually, Quenioux left home to embark on an apprenticeship where he trained in some of Europe’s finest kitchens. Quenioux spent time at Maxim’s, Bistro De Paris and La Ciboulette in Paris, before moving on to Negresco in Nice and LaBonne Auberge in Antibe.

In the early 1980s, Quenioux made a move to the United States with a team from L‘Oasis at La Napoule to open The Regency Club in Los Angeles. In 1985, he introduced the celebrated and award-winning 7th Street Bistro in downtown Los Angeles. In the early 2000s, Quenioux debuted the cozy Bistro K in Pasadena and in 2009, Bistro LQ in Beverly Hills. At Bistro LQ, Quenioux set new standards for cuisine in Southern California with his Farmer’s Market-driven kitchen and an emphasis on value and fun.

For this particular dinner, LQ and Bo have set up shop in the Hotel Normandie in Korea Town, which is one of those cool, old school LA buildings.

Check out the old pre-war style.

Our actual dinner was in the middle of this big (banquet?) room.

The menu tree.

The intro to the food.

The chef’s offered a decent looking wine pairing option — but we never like wine pairings — so we brought our own as usual.

From my cellar: 2010 David Leclapart Champagne Premier Cru L’Artiste Blanc de Blancs Pas Dosé Trépail. 92 points. Just a stunning nose with soft white flowers, citrus, a bit of toasty oak. The bubbles were soft and gently lifted the flavors: more floral notes on the palate, with lemon and lime and fantastic acidity. Seemed like it might have been less pressurized than some of the other champagnes.
The amuses are so elaborate they have their own menu page! There are, in fact, 13 of them!

Chef Bo’s amuses were all laid out in advance, a bit like a Chinese version of banchan. Mostly (but not entirely) the dishes were served in pairs with both chefs riffing on a particular ingredient.

Bitter Melon with Litsea Oil (Bo). This really showed off the “bitter” aspect of bitter melon.

Bitter Melon Grecque Style (LQ). The bitterness was a bit more offset by the sweetness of the tomatoes in this preparation.

Silk Ribbon Snake Bean in Ginger Sauce (BO). Tastier. Interesting twisted shape too. Beans were a bit spicy.

Blue Crab Gingered Achard (LQ).

Snow White Coral Roll (Bo). Lots of vinegar flavor and very tasty. Like a pickle essentially.

Pate Croute Grouse (LQ). This one didn’t match and was a prep of grouse liver.

From my cellar: 2012 Veyder-Malberg Grüner Veltliner Hochrain. 90 points. Poured a light golden yellow to the stem. Fresh nose of honeydew, smoke, cantaloupe, and lemon oil. Medium and refreshing on the palate with hints of grapefruit, green melon, hazelnut, and diffuse citrus nuance. A slight spritz on the back end characteristic of some Gruners. Very adept and precise winemaking here with a convincing vein of acidity. Paired with fresh line caught Snapper with basmati rice and cornbread.

Sparrow’s Wing Broccoli (Bo). Never had this vegetable before — that I know of — but Bo was showing off his knife skillz because it’s cut to look like a Sparrow’s Wing!

Petit Gris Snail Anticucho (LQ). Escargot skewers!

Pickled Endive Sprout (Bo).

Braised Endive Chipotle Cotija (LQ). Fried!

Tomatoes with Aged Mandarin Peel Powder (Bo). Pretty good for tomatoes.

Mandarine Truffle Honey (LQ). Sweet.

Smoked Haddock Potatoes, Black garlic congee (LQ). Sort of a marriage of both Chinese and Western. Vaguely like a croquetta in form factor.

Dried mandarin peels. This was largely aromatic.

The menu.

One of the wine pairing wines.

Mapo tofu, avocado, abalone (Bo).

With truffles too! I love Ma Po, and this was certainly the fanciest version I’ve had, and maybe one of the best. It was quite spicy, which I loved. Not so great for the wines, but tasty dish.

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

Abalone, Arborino Rice, Uni (LQ).

Truffles here too. Nice risotto.

Fish Fragrant Lobster (Bo). Spicy also, and look at the interesting vegetable carving.

2016 Pierre Boisson Bourgogne Blanc. 92 points. Lovely Bougogne Blanc. Fleshy but still has some ‘zing’ to it. Wonderfully pure and clean.

Pacific Lobster, Mango, Ginger, Avocado, Yuzu Vinaigrette (LQ). Very nice lobster/avocado prep.

Black Cod, Pickled Mustard Greens (Bo). Lovely little soup. Very delicate cod. If I remember correctly, it was super spicy.

From my cellar: 2012 Prager Riesling Smaragd Wachstum Bodenstein. 91 points. More rounded and more fragrant on the nose than the Klaus, with white peaches and a bit of pear nectar. Slightly muted at first on the palate, but opens up to coat the roof of the mouth. Seemed initially to tail a bit on the finish, but leaves a longlasting impression in the lower register. A wine that creeps up on you!

North Sea Yellow Cod, chicken broth, fennel two ways, crosnes (LQ).

Chicken Tofu (Bo). With truffle. Tofu texture, chicken taste. Interesting. Perhaps weird for those who don’t like unusual textures.

DGR Quail, Persimmons Chutney, celery root slaw (LQ). LQ excels at game birds.

Portraits of both chefs (Bo on the left, LQ on the right).

2002 Jean-Pierre Mugneret Echezeaux. 93 points. Initially baking spice and cherries, pretty but somehow reticent, youthful and inexpressive. After 4 hours slow ox a real powerhouse of weightless complexity. Rose, violets, complex perfume scents on the nose. Quite a saline, savoury palate, beef stock, soy, hoisin, seaweed, iodine, Yuzu, very intense and long. But the nose is truely amazing.

Wild Wood Pigeon with Sweet Paste (Bo).

The meat was inside the orange. Very unusual presentation and highly aromatic. Sort of vaguely sweet too.

Scottish Wood Pigeon, huckleberry, chanterelles, fig tatin (LQ). Lovely, and very gamey (in a good way).

Steamed Pork Belly, Jasmin Rice (Bo). A truffled modern version of the classic pork with rice.

DGR Braised Pork Shank, sweet potato, pomegranate, Tokyo turnips (LQ). This was a great dish. Super meaty and tasty. Sort of springroll like.

From my cellar: 2003 Gros Frère et Sœur Grands-Echezeaux. BH 89-92. This too is very toasty but the spicy black fruit nose manages to transcend the wood and complements powerful, dense, borderline massive flavors of superb depth, all wrapped in dusty, firm and ripe tannins. This is a big wine and while it’s no model of elegance, one has to admire the muscle and sheer concentration. This will take its time coming around. (Drink starting 2011)

Sautéed A5 Wagyu Beef (Bo). Outside was crunchy with a beefy soft interior — like a Chinese taquito?

Flannery Wagyu Rib Cap, Torchon, Leeks (LQ). Pretty classic.

Cabbage Heart in Clear Broth (Bo).

Actually kinda lovely.

2 Vacherins, truffle brioche (LQ). Vacherin is always a great cheese.

Truffle Cremeux, Sichuan Peppercorn Ice cream (left).

Chestnut Fontaine Bleau (center).

Rose Mountain Apple, Apple Mousseline (right).

The two chefs, LQ (far right) and Chef Bo (to his left in the blue chef’s jacket).

This was another seriously epic night, probably my favorite LQ meal yet — maybe because I love Chinese food the mix added a lot. I loved many dishes from both chefs, but I probably leaned a little toward Chef Bo’s on this particular night because of the increased novelty factor. I’d wanted to go to Chef Bo’s place last year when I was in Chengdu but didn’t want to drag the whole family to a huge modernist Szechuan dinner, so I was very grateful to try it here in LA. His knifework is pretty crazy as you can see.

This was a big meal with a lot of courses. The pacing was good though and I wasn’t completely stuffed — merely quite full. Not on the scale with our LQ Seafood Tower over order! Just about right. Great stuff and extremely creative work from both chefs.

For more LA Foodie Club dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: French Cuisine, Laurent Quenioux, Sichuan, spicy, Szechuan cuisine, Wine, Yu Bo

Kass has Class

Aug12

Restaurant: Kass Restaurant – Wine & Bar [1, 2]

Location: 320 South La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036. (323) 413-2299

Date: June 19, 2019

Cuisine: California French

Rating: Fabulous

Years ago I enjoyed Chef Christophe Emé’s Ortolan and have had attended private dinners he’s prepared.

So it was exciting that he opened a new place on La Brea — supposedly a bit more casual this time (as is in vogue).

I think the sign was completed in 2018, I believe the restaurant itself opened in 2019 :-).

From my cellar: 2006 Billecart-Salmon Champagne Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon. VM 94+. The 2006 Rosé Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon is powerful, intense and also classically austere in its make up. Crushed flowers, mint, red berries and cranberries are all finely sketched. The 2006 finishes with striking mineral-driven precision, and while it doesn’t have the opulence or exuberance of the 2002, it is still a very pretty and appealing Champagne. The Elisabeth Salmon is 50% Pinot Noir and 50% Chardonnay, with about 8% still Pinot Noir. Dosage is 6 grams per liter.

Erick and I, then Ron, sat outside for a bit drinking our Champagne while we waited for the full crew to assemble.

This is the inside after dinner when we outlasted everyone. Clean and cosy.

The kitchen was small and neat and you can see Chef Christophe Emé in the center, carefully managing every detail.

Grilled Sardines with Eggplant Caviar. Delicious and perfectly cooked sardines. The eggplant beneath had a Lebanese sort of flavor. Delicious!

The next dish makes an arrival.

Egg Caviar. The classic, with scrambled eggs and Kaluga caviar.

Close up. This was a perfect pairing with the 2002 Krug!

Ron brought: 2012 Domaine de la Vougeraie Vougeot 1er Cru Clos Blanc de Vougeot. VM 92. Pears, white flowers and quince meld together in the 2012 Vougeot Le Clos Blanc de Vougeot. This is another rich, inviting white with lovely resonance and an inviting, soft personality beautifully suited to near-term drinking. The oak still needs to become a bit more fused with the wine, but there is a lot to look forward to.

Tuna Sashimi. Arima Sansho Infusion. Crispy Rice. The textural play here was perfect, with the soft tuna and crunchy rice. But the flavors were amazing. There was some olive oil, giving it an Adriatic Italian vibe, and a perfect zing from the Sansho.

From my cellar: 1993 Robert Ampeau & Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. 93 points. This has aged well, and I think the second time I have encountered the wine in the last four years, as Howard Cooper also brought it to another holiday dinner a couple of years ago, if I recall correctly. It may not have as much precision as the Ramonet, tasted just before, but I really like how it combines grace and “fat” at the same time. Indeed, the palate is more broad than long, but always pleasing. I am not sure how much longer anyone should hold on to this. It seems fine now and likely just on its plateau.

Housemade Tagliatelle. Lobster Bolognese. Caviar. Another amazing dish. Petite, but the pasta was cooked perfectly and paired fabulously with the rice lobster. Very umami.

Erick brought: 2002 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut. JG 100. It is hard to believe that two and a half years have now passed since Champagne Krug unveiled its long-awaited 2002 Vintage Brut. I do not know if there have been different disgorgements of this bottling, but this one is the same as the last bottle that swept me off of my feet back in the spring of last year, having been disgorged in the autumn of 2015. The wine is a blend of forty percent pinot noir, thirty-nine percent chardonnay and twenty-one percent pinot meunier in 2002 and is already one of the legendary vintages of Krug ever produced. The bouquet is deep, pure, ripe and vibrant, wafting from the glass in a marvelous blend of pear, apple, almond, a stunningly beautiful base of soil tones, subtle spice shading, patissière, a touch of citrus blossoms and that signature Krug smokiness in the upper register. On the palate the wine rock solid, mineral-driven and shows off stellar purity, with its full-bodied format seamlessly supported by great structure and grip. The mousse is impeccable, the complexity still youthful and growing with each visit and the finish, long, refined and absolutely perfect. This will last almost forever and I suspect at age fifty-seven, I will never drink it at its absolute zenith of evolutionary perfection. But, I admit very much enjoying my occasional visits as the wine is in climbing mode to that future peak!

Grilled Octopus. Basil mashed potatoes, red pepper coulis. A very nice and tender leg of octo.

Seared Maine Scallop. English peas, salmon roe, beurre blanc sauce. Awesome. Totally brought together by the peas in butter and elevated with the briny bits from the roe.

Ron brought: 1998 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape. VM 92. Good medium red. Aromas of red fruit syrup, cola, milk chocolate, humus, graphite and prune. Sweet, lush and rich, with the fruit syrup flavor showing a distinctly roasted quality. Grew fresher and juicier with a bit of aeration and held its shape nicely, but eventually the pruney element became more pronounced. With little in the way of primary fruit remaining, this doesn’t really come alive, in spite of its complexity.

Grilled quail breast. Meaty, almost livery like. Delicious.

Larry brought: 2001 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage. VM 94+. Good bright medium ruby. Subtly complex, granitic nose melds cassis, blueberry, smoky gunflint, pepper, tar, bitter chocolate, roast coffee, leather, game and animal fur. Wonderfully juicy but currently rather folded in on itself. But this has brilliant acidity, precision and penetration on the palate. Almost painfully intense and wonderfully long and gripping on the back. Very firm and structured but not at all dry. This will need a good decade of additional cellaring.

Braised Lamb Shank. Jus. Gnocchi. Super rich and meaty. Absolutely delicious. Needed bread. haha.

Cheese and raison bread. The left one was barely cheese, pretty much fromage blanc. All lovely.

Cherry tart. Perfectly in season and a fabulous cherry flavor.

Poached Rhubarb. Strawberry sorbet. Very nice light dessert. I don’t even normally like rhubarb. Sorbet has that paco jet thing where the structure starts to melt instantly (a gelato maker’s complaint). Tasted great though.

Tarte au Citron. Orange Granite. Crunchy, meets cold, this had amazing textures and bright orange flavors.

Tarte aux Pommes. Vanilla Ice cream. A perfect classic Tarte Tartin. Ice cream again was delicious but instantly starting to lose structure. It’s a pacojet thing, because it wasn’t formulated perse but is just frozen and whipped.

But this is the real thing, even if a bit ugly in this container. My home-made gelato:
Arancia Crema Fiorentina Zabaione — Marsala Orange Vanilla Zabaione base with Orange Variegate — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — Very close to the oldest gelato 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 #Zabaione #CremaFiorentina

Salted Caramel Chocolate — House-made salted caramel forms the core of this base which then is layered with house-made Valrhona dark chocolate ganache and Valrhona milk chocolate chips — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — my best salted caramel yet — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #caramel #chocolate #Valrhona #ganache

We spent at least 30 minutes talking with Chef Christophe Emé after dinner.

Overall, this was an amazing meal. Our wines were nice, and service was really spot on, but it’s the cooking that really showed everything else up. Every dish was amazing. 8 out of 8 for the savory and 4 out of 4 for the dessert. Even the cheese course was really nice. Bravo!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Champagne, Christophe Emé, French Cuisine, Gelato, Kass, Krug, La Brea, Los Angeles, Wine

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
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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
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Posted in: Food

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

Put a Spring in your Step

May09

Restaurant: Spring

Location: 257 S Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 372-5189

Date: April 3, 2018

Cuisine: French

Rating: Gorgeous room, very polished food

Spring was a big opening a year or two ago with a hugely expensive build out. It’s quiet French (in a lightly LA way). Somehow I never got there because of the annoying (for me) DTLA location. Known for only using fresh and local ingredients, Chef Esnault pays tribute to the season of long days and temperate nights with his full Seasonal Dinner Menu, featuring dishes that are available as each season permits.

We were roving downtown and happened to pop by for a quick post museum lunch.

Self referential.

I’m glad I visited during the day as the space is gorgeous and airy — and this is just the entrance.

The kitchen is open and of epic proportions. Chefs moved carefully and quietly about their tasks.

The main space is like a museum space with the glass ceiling and this green and cream vibe.

The lunch menu.

Seasonal pea soup. The guts in first.

Then the soup. This was an excellent soup, actually. Really fresh and lovely.

Seasonal market crudo, pear, watermelon radish, pickled mustard seeds. Nice, but not as exciting as the soup.

Branzino, red quinoa, leeks, turnip, red cabbage, sauce matelote.

Lily risotto, aged carnaroli rice, spring onion, mascarpone, pistachio, chive blossom. Lovely vegetarian risotto. Great texture and a nice creamy “green” quality.

Chocolate hazelnut tart with passionfruit meringue. We watched them assemble and cut this for an hour. I.e. the pastry chef was painstakingly working on the tart itself. Delicious too.

A different chocolate and hazelnut dessert.

Overall, Spring is unusual for LA. It feels and tasted like a high end Paris museum restaurant. Very good too and a great atmosphere if the airy quiet thing is what you are looking for. I’d like to try it at night. They do allow unlimited corkage.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Dessert, DTLA, French Cuisine, lunch, Spring

St Patrick’s with Laurent Quenioux

Apr23

Restaurant: Laurent Quenioux at the Villamalka

Location: The Villamalka

Date: March 17, 2018

Cuisine: Contemporary French Californian

Rating: Awesome

For several years now my wife and I host a second annual special fund-raising dinner at our house. And given our penchant for details, things were bound to be off the charts epic. The first year was a blast and so was year 2, so we had really high standards and wondered how to take it to the next level…

We brought in Chef Laurent Quenioux, a friend of mine who has cooked some epic truffle dinners for us.

And of course had to get the last of the real French black truffles fresh off the boat.

These were used in a bunch of dishes.

Including truffle pastry soup!

I might like modernism in my food, but when it comes to the decorative arts my wife and I agree things have been on a downhill slope since the mob stormed Versailles. We’re both history buffs and have gone to some length to recreate the fantasy of a 1730s Italian villa. So, in that vein, guests are welcomed into the Chinoiserie Drawing Room for champagne and snacks.

Tonight’s special menu.

The list of wines I pulled for the evening.

NV Drappier Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 89. Dark orange-pink. Exotically perfumed scents of raspberry, pungent herbs, candied rose and smoky minerals. Fleshy and supple in texture, showing a floral accent to its red berry compote and tangerine flavors. Lush and broad but lively too, finishing with a hint of spiciness and good floral persistence.

Beets, Fourme d’Ambert, Roasted Pecan.

Roasted Eggplant, Brioche Toast, Sherry Blossom Shoyu Vinaigrette.

NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée. VM 94. The NV Grande Cuvée is absolutely stellar. This is one of the very best Grande Cuvées I can remember tasting. The flavors are bright, focused and beautifully delineated throughout, all of which make me think the wine will age well for many, many years. Lemon peel, white flowers, crisp pears, smoke and crushed rocks race across the palate in a vibrant, tense Champagne that epitomizes finesse.

Nantes Carrot, Black Garlic Molasses, Timut.

The table is set, and with Riedel Sommelier stems too, as it should be. The walls of the dining room were painted by my mother from photos we took in Italy.
The place setting.

Details, details.

2008 Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Cuvée Speciale Blanc de Blancs Les Chetillons. VM 95.5. The 2008 Les Chétillons seems to slowly be coming out of a period during which is has not been very expressive at all. In the last few months however, the 2008 is showing like it did about two years ago, when it positively sizzled with vintage 2008 cut and tension. Citrus, floral and mineral-drenched notes abound in this captivating Champagne endowed with real Mesnil character.

1988 Ruinart Champagne Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs. VM 93. The 1988 Dom Ruinart (original release) was wonderfully complete, with layers of ash, smoke, minerals, licorice and hazelnuts that swirled around in the glass.

1976 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. 94 points. Rather youthful, minty, ripe, honeyed nose – honey on a piece of rye bread. Very friendly and likeable.

One of Laurent’s assistant chefs intros the food.

Potato Pancake, Apricot Lane Arugula, Fresh Morels, IPA8 Vinegar, Roasted Apples.

2014 Királyudvar Furmint Tokaji Sec. 94 points. Ke-rye-oohd-var. This is the one tied to Huet in Loire. Hay, honey, yellow fruits, oxidative notes, almond skins. Wow, super good!! Acid is med plus. This unusual dry Hungarian wine is super super sexy.

2007 Y de Yquem. 94 points. Golden wine with vanilla and citrus notes primarily with an undertone of honey. On the palate medium bodied and elegant. Length. This was a wine of character with some finesse. 4/10, where 10 is a wine of character, finesse, complexity, power and property specificity.

2005 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Butteaux. BH 93. Easily the best of the these three Montmains climats with an aromatically reserved nose that is clearly less ripe offers nuances of white peach, pear and sea breeze that continue onto the impressively concentrated, intense and powerful flavors that possess excellent dry extract, all wrapped around a firm acid spine and terrific length. This has plenty of nervosité and real harmony of expression.

Another of Laurent’s chefs.

Black Chanterelles, Yuzu Ranch Dressing, Pea Tendril, Nori Crumble, Chervil.

Cold Ramen Salad w/ European White Asparagus, Garlic Chili Dressing with Red Boat, Basil, Pickled Lotus Root, Roasted Kumquats. One of my favorite dishes of the evening.

2010 Domaine de Saint-Just Saumur Chateau Brézé – Clos David. 90 points. Light yellow color. Nose of lemons, limes. some apple, pear and sometimes reminds me of those orange flavored baby aspirin.

2012 Château de Brézé Saumur Blanc Clos de la Rue. VM 92. Very pale peach skin color. Fresh melon and nectarine aromas are complicated by cream, lanolin and honey. Fleshy and smooth, showing a pure, bright orange quality and toasted wood nuances and then picking up nervier lime notes on the back of the palate. Suavely blends depth with vivacity and finishes with excellent clarity, balance and mineral persistence.

2012 Domaine Guiberteau Saumur Clos de Guichaux. 92 points. Reduction with smoky and charcoal notes. Big acids and length on the palate.

Chawanmushi, Ikura, Truffle Slaw. Awesome. I always love these soft eggy dishes and the truffle / caviar / egg factor totally gelled.

1993 Robert Ampeau & Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. BH 92. A fully mature and expressive nose of elegant secondary fruit and floral aromas introduces intensely mineral-driven, pure and beautifully well-detailed middle weight flavors that possess excellent depth and fine length. This is drinking perfectly now and should continue to do so without effort for at least another decade. Tasted only once recently.
1995 Robert Ampeau & Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. 94 points. Another awesome older White Burg.

Buckwheat Blini w/ Smoked Haddock, Turmeric Meyer Lemon Ricotta, Crème Fraiche, Corn Tortilla Powder. Smoked haddock is amazing!

1995 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. VM 94+. Red-ruby color. Knockout nose combines rose petal, raspberry, mulberry, iodine, cardamom, tobacco and iris. Great sweetness on the palate; offers as much volume as the mouth can hold. Builds and builds. Really exhilarating delineation and depth of flavor. Tannins are substantial but ripe. A superb example of this great grand cru.

Truffle Soup, Wild Mushroom Broth, Perigord Truffles, Fresh Morels, Spring Cabbage.

A peek inside. Amazing!

1997 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. VM 94+. Healthy dark red. Superripe aromas of crystallized black raspberry, rose petal, violet, iron, baking spices and meat. Huge entry, then almost painfully intense, with superb extract and great thrust. Exhilarating hints of dark berries, mint, flowers and minerals give this wine great complexity and verve. Would come across as thick if it weren’t so sharply focused. The firm tannins are buried in fruit on the extremely long, tactile finish. Should enjoy a long and spectacular evolution in bottle.

Atlantic Turbot, Sorrel Nage, English Pea Profiterole, Leek Fondue.

1997 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo. VM 93. All of the radiance and warmth of the vintage comes through in the 1997 Barolo. Voluptuous and racy, with plenty of dark red cherry and plum pushed forward, the 1997 hits all the right notes. A rush of red cherry, plum and tobacco give the 1997 its luscious, creamy personality. This is a pleasant surprise.

North Sea Cod, Green Garlic, Cauliflower Risotto (no Rice), Chipotle Tuille, Cordyceps.

Endives 2 Ways w/ Roasted Blue Fin Tuna, Braised White Endive in Galabe Sugar, Tossed Red Endive, Warm Beet Coulis, Beet powder.

The whole gang.

2009 Château Smith Haut Lafitte. VM 94+. Good bright red-ruby. Enticing aromas of blueberry, flowers, graphite and charred, nutty oak, plus a sexy suggestion of floral white fruit. Like liquid silk on entry, then concentrated and lush in the middle, with red plum, tobacco and mineral flavors given definition by lovely harmonious acidity. Utterly seamless wine with suave tannins. Voluminous and intense but not a powerhouse. Finishing flavors mount slowly and stain the palate without leaving any impression of weight. Conveys a beautiful impression of site and vintage. The most complete young Smith Haut Laffite I’ve yet tasted at this early stage; perhaps my score will ultimately prove to be conservative.

Les fromages. Leonara, Brillat Savarin, Roomano, Rush Creek Reserve, Point Reyes Bay Blue, Accoutrement.

Pre – Desserts, Jasmine Madeleine, Orangette, Macaron.

Sweet Milk Gelato (made by me), Café Choc-o-lait, Chocolate Old Fashioned, Blastberry Madeira Sorbetto, Gorgonzola Fig Walnut, Hazelnut Espresso.
Passion Fruit Cremeux, Coconut Ice Cream, Chocolate Chips, Macadamia Nut Crumble, Black Sesame Sponge Cake, Miso.

Mignardises, Pâte de Fruit, Chocolates, Nougats, Taffy.

Bundt cakes to go from Nothing Bundt Cakes. Can’t have a truly epic dinner without “parting gifts.”

This dinner ran a little more efficiently than our last one, clocking in at “only” 5.5 hours! A marathon of gluttony, but everyone had a fabulous time. Laurent’s cooking was on point and inventive, particularly given all of the house restrictions (as you may have noticed it was mostly fish and vegetarian).

Everything was amazing. The food was just crazy good. I was staggered at how efficiently Laurent and his team were able to churn out so many complicated dishes. And they really tasted great too. There wasn’t a miss among them. My favorites were the noodles, turbot, egg custard, and truffle soup.

The wine pairings were really amazing too. Duh! Sommlier Eduardo Bolanos helped set all the choices and was really spot on with his picks.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Eduardo Bolanos, French Cuisine, Gelato, Laurent Quenioux, Mirman School, Truffles, villamalka, Wine

Family République

Oct25

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

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

Date: September 16, 2017

Cuisine: Modern Bistro French

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

This is my 11th time writing up Republique! Woah. My parents were in town and turns out they had never been, so we headed on over for a dinner nominally celebrating my awesome dad’s 75th birthday!

Busy and loud as always!

Le menu.

From my cellar: NV Savart Champagne Bulle de Rosé. 92 points. Light pink/salmon color; nose has some strawberry fruit, clean, a bit limited; palate is full bodied, wonderful mousse, plenty of red fruit with strawberry and raspberry, tart grapefruit citrus from start to finish, slight brioche, nice density throughout but also medium-plus acidity that gives it crispness and freshness; medium to medium-long finish. The palate is really strong here with an awesome balance of richness, fruit, grapefruit tartness, and fresh acidity throughout that keeps it exciting and fresh. One of the most enjoyable and complex NV Rose Champagnes that I’ve had, and one of the best priced too. If the nose opens up a bit more, this will be killer, but for now still wonderful. Seems like it may change over a few years in the cellar too. 92+
30 minutes air: After warming from fridge temp, the nose is a bit more aromatic with clearer strawberry fruit, now a slight chalkiness (a bit denser than just minerality).

The bread and Normandy butter is always amazing.

Kampachi Crudo. Green thai curry, watermelon, basil, peanuts. Really nice interesting flavors. Love the combination. Very “Thai.”

Spanish Bluefin Tuna Toast. Avocado, yuzu, smoked sesame seeds, sun gold tomatoes.

Heirloom Tomatoes, cucumber, tenerelli farms peaches, santa barbara pistachios. Can we say seasonal California cuisine?

From my cellar: 1993 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Saint Georges. VC 95. The 1993 Chevillon Les St. Georges is as fine a bottle of young Nuits as I have ever had the pleasure to taste, as it again seems to take the best of both the Cailles and Vaucrains and roll them into a whole that is more than a sum of its parts. The nose is deep, refined and regal, soaring from the glass in a mélange of black cherries, plums, violets, nutty tones, herbs, intense minerality, and woodsmoke. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, complete and youthfully complex, with a sappy core of fruit, brilliant acidity, great focus, and a very, very long finish of modest tannins and soil-driven flavors. This is a remarkable young wine that towers above many examples of the vintage that wear the grand cru label.

Hudson Valley Foie Gras. Steel-cut oats, applewood-smoked bacon, black mission figs, maple gastrique. Not sure what I thought about the oats but the foie and figs were perfect.

Charcuterie Board. Terrine, dry cures, pickles. I’ve had this a lot of times at wine events here, but it’s solid. Love the pates.

Simple pasta for my son. He liked it so much he ordered a second one!

Spinach Cavatelli. Wild mushrooms. Love the bitey texture and butter sauce. The pastas here are some of the best in the city. Better than 98% of all the Italian restaurants.

Sweet Corn Agnolotti. Chanterelle mushrooms. To die for. Absolutely incredible little pillows of sweetness.

Bucatini alla Carbonara. Pancetta, parmesan. Also buttery goodness!

From my cellar: 2001 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape. RJ 95. Bricking dark red violet color; ginger cake, pepper, garrigue nose; silky textured, pepper, very tart black fruit palate; long finish

Red wine-braised beef short rib. Braised kale, roasted carrots, fingerling potatoes, applewood-smoked bacon.

Cauliflower. Sweet potato, pomegranate, goat cheese, arugula, dukkah.

Mary’s organic roasted chicken. Summer corn, cherry tomatoes, basil. Getting full. They changed up the veggies for the season.

Les desserts.

Chocolate ice cream. Good flavor but still that hard ice cream texture — gelato is better!

Salted caramel chocolate cake. Like chocolate cake with caramel on top.

Plum crisp. vanilla ice cream. My dad’s style. This is, by the way, in about 20 République meals one of the first times I’ve had normal dessert here!

My Dad and I.

I haven’t just “eaten” here in a while — normally I’m at a private function — and I was impressed by how on point all the food was. Service was great too. There wasn’t that thing that sometimes happens at République where a 1 hour gap develops between dishes. The place is buzzing! Both with customers and staff and is humming along like a well oiled machine (this was a Saturday night). There is a reason why it’s one of the most popular major restaurants in the city.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: birthday, Family, French Cuisine, République, Walter Manzke

Belle Vie

Jul03

Restaurant: Belle Vie

Location: 11916 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025. (424) 832-7375

Date: June 2, 2017

Cuisine: French

Rating: Cute French Bistro

French restaurants used to be everywhere, but in recent years they have faded more into the Los Angeles background.

Belle Vie seems to be a relatively new one, a neighborhood bistro up in the not-so-neighborhoodly area of mid Santa Monica.

The interior is cute with a large selection of mysterious black & white photos of a mustachioed gentleman.

The menu.

And specials on the chalkboard.

From my cellar: NV Drappier Champagne Rose Brut Nature. VM 90. Pale orange. Mineral-accented red berries and citrus fruits on the nose, complemented by hints of candied rose and white pepper. Stony and precise, offering lively strawberry and orange zest flavors that expand slowly with air. Closes spicy, stony and tight, with very good clarity and floral persistence.

Beef Burgundy Tacos. Beef Bourguignon on a corn tortilla, raw mushrooms, pickled carrots and onions, crispy bacon, spring onions and Dijon mustard. Interesting taco and very tasty.

Petit Mesclun. Mix green salad.

Special with asparagus, thyme, ricotta, hazelnut and croquant lemon.
Gratin de Coquillettes. French mac and cheese with truffle cream, Compte APO and bread crumbs. On the dryer side for M&C.

7 Hours Lamb Leg. Braised with garlic thyme and rosemary, served with spring vegetables, Harissa. Not bad. Very tender and a good bit of flavor.

FFF (Fresh French Fries). 100% homemade with Kennebec potatoes, fried with beef tallow, seasoned with parsley, garlic and Porcinni mushrooms. Too thick for my taste. I prefer the classic thin French Fries.

Overall Belle Vie was okay. Nice in that it modernized bistro food a bit, a little medium in that execution wasn’t perfect and no dishes stood out as amazing. Some were good, and some just okay.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Belle Vie, French Cuisine

Bad Boys at Brandywine

Jun12

Restaurant: Brandywine [1, 2]

Location: 22757 Ventura Blvd, Woodland Hills, CA 91364. (818) 225-9114

Date: May 8, 2017

Cuisine: French American

Rating: Best old school in town!

My second visit to the amazing Brandywine (first one is here).
Located on Ventura in the far valley, this French American has been open and popular for roughly 30 years. Despite the “classic” decor and menu there is NOTHING dated about the execution here. This place has a 28 on Zagat, and for good reason. It’s run with serious attention to detail.

The decor is cute and romantic, and it has been run by a husband and wife team. She cooks and he runs the front room. They have recently sold the restaurant and we are making some visits during the transition to make sure we get it properly cemented in our minds.

The gang took over half the room.

2004 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. VM 96. I am thrilled with the way the 2004 Comtes de Champagne continues to evolve in bottle. A few years ago, the 2004 was quite focused and linear, in the style of the vintage, but more recently, the wine has begun to fill out beautifully. The 2004 remains bright, with a full range of citrus, white flower and mineral nuances that dance on the palate. A brisk, saline-infused finish rounds things out beautifully in a Comtes that impresses for its crystalline purity. I expect the 2004 will always remain a bit cool next to the more opulent 2002, but it is still drop-dead gorgeous.

An amuse of grav lox with creme fraiche. Really yummy salmon. Great cure.

For the foie:

1990 Château de Rayne-Vigneau. 90 points. High-toned, expressive aromas of lime leaf and licorice. Silky and harmonious in the mouth, with impressive intensity of flavor and terrific underlying extract. Just a hint of acid and alcohol to be integrated. Finishes very subtle and long.

Seared foie gras with toast and slightly spiced jam. Super awesome classic foie. This is actually a half portion, and was super generous, plus the accompaniments were perfect.

From my cellar: 2005 François Raveneau Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. BH 94. This is a mild step up in overall class and elegance with a gorgeously perfumed white flower fruit nose introducing linear, precise, intense and powerful medium full flavors that remain splendidly focused on the stunningly long finish that drenches the palate in dry extract. This is a striking 1er and one to buy as it easily delivers grand cru quality.

2001 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne. BH 89. This is a good deal bigger and certainly more powerful than the Truffières though it does not offer quite the same level of finesse and detail but it is every bit as intense with even more minerality, plenty of sappy extract and dense, mouth coating flavors and fine length. This is also noticeably oaky with good if not exceptional Corton-Charlemagne character and bracing acidity. In contrast to the Referts though, there is at least a reasonable possibility that the oak will ultimately be absorbed as there is good density and the oak, while certainly prominent, does not dominate the flavors as it does in the Puligny.

agavin: our bottle was a little thin, missing the fruit.

Shrimp cocktail. Nice shrimp. The homemade cocktail sauce was pretty awesome.

2013 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru La Garenne. BH 91-93. A discreet application of wood allows the fresh, pure and expressive nose that features notes of acacia blossom, white peach and wet stone hints to shine. The attractively textured, dense and mouth coating medium-bodied flavors possess fine balance and impressive persistence on the notably dry finish where notes of lemon zest appear. This is a really lovely effort where the natural class of a fine Puligny is in evidence.

Escargots. Super buttery and garlicky. Loved them. Some of the best snails I’ve ever had. And dipping the bread in the garlick after!

2014 E. Guigal Condrieu La Doriane. VM 93. Light, bright yellow-gold. Broad, mineral-tinged orchard and pit fruit aromas show excellent clarity, and a sexy floral element emerges slowly. Sappy, palate-coating pear nectar and tangerine flavors are complicated by notes of violet, honey and candied ginger, while a minerally element adds vibrant lift. Becomes spicier on the finish, which hangs on with superb tenacity and a lingering floral quality.

Spinach and bacon salad.

They have one of the best (and totally correct) table-side caesars in town.

Tossing the Romain.

All that zesty goodness.

2006 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Morey St. Denis 1er Cru Clos de La Bussière. BH 90. Earthy dark berry fruit and slightly herbal aromas introduce solidly rich, punchy and vibrant medium-bodied flavors that possess excellent length and more sophisticated tannins than usual. This should be lovely in 6 to 8 years.

2000 Domaine Dujac Morey St. Denis. VM 86-89. Full red. Aromas of strawberry, raspberry, spiced plum, mocha and smoky oak. Lush and pliant in the mouth, with mineral, chocolate, smoke and menthol flavors complicated by a vegetal complexity. Finishes with ripe tannins and good length.

Ron has been raving for years about the Lobster Bouillabaisse here, so I had to order it. This HUGE portion of shellfish in broth was amazingly fresh and the broth was to die for garlicky. So good. So massive.

Garlic toasts.

From my cellar: 1998 Mongeard-Mugneret Richebourg. 94 points.

1998 Domaine Robert Groffier Bonnes Mares. VM 93+. Deep ruby-red. Sauvage, highly nuanced aromas of blackberry, black plum, raspberry, gunflint, leather and pepper. Great penetrating sweetness leavened by powerful spice and firm backbone. Very powerful wine but not at all hard today. Finishes with building tannins and outstanding power and persistence. This should reach its peak during the second decade of its life.

Abalone.

2010 Aubert Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard Sonoma Coast. VM 95. The 2010 Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard is the richest and most expressive of these 2010 Pinots. It also shoes the best balance of aromatics, fruit, acidity and tannin. Soy, mocha, the blackest of cherries and white flowers are some of the notes that flesh out in the glass. Delicately woven layers of flavor distinguish the UV-SL. This is a striking wine in every way.

2005 Marcassin Pinot Noir Three Sisters Vineyard. BH 76. Strong mercaptans (think garlic or burnt rubber) with burnt vinyl undertones lead to suave, round and impressively scaled flavors that possess no detail and the finish is hot, bitter and unpleasant. Commercially unacceptable in my view.

New York steak au poive. Classic!

Shoestring fries

NV Bodegas Vega-Sicilia Ribera del Duero Único Reserva Especial 1994, 1996, 2000 (2015 Release). 95 points. Mesmerizing wine. Dark fruit on the nose, subtle balsamic character, coffee, tobacco, leather, vanilla. Smooth tannins, elegant overall feel. Not as wild as the ’09 Valbuena. More majestic than raw and charming.

1996 Penfolds Grange. VM 92. Ruby-red. Complex, high-toned, oak-driven aromas of mocha, flowers, spices, bourbon, peat, licorice, vanilla, cigar tobacco and earth. Juicy and penetrating, with strong mineral, lead pencil, espresso and tobacco flavors. Has a solid backbone and noteworthy grip, but shows no hard edges. Finishes with big, ripe tannins and excellent length.

Inside that yummy NY.

Veal chop. Modest portion.

1983 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape. In great shape.

This is two portions of lamb!

Lamb chops. Not only is it massive, but it was incredible.

2004 Merus Cabernet Sauvignon. VM 93. Bright, saturated ruby. Brooding blackberry and blueberry aromas, with notes of mocha, cola and minerals complemented by a sexy meaty nuance; slightly high-toned in a positive way. Fat, sweet and seamless; very plush wine but not over the top. Rather oaky flavors of black raspberry, mocha, oak spices, toffee and minerals. Not hugely complex but wonderfully rich and layered wine, and evolving slowly. Hedonistic and utterly satisfying. Finishes with serious but well-buffered tannins.

2004 Hundred Acre — I dunno which one because of their annoying labeling (nothing on the front).

Veal sweetbreads and some cut of steak.

Bread pudding. Awesome bread pudding.

Meyer lemon cake.

Lemon ice cream and berries. Wow!

Chocolate cake with expresso ice cream.
The chef, Peggy, has an amazing touch.
Chris (right), the host, is married to the chef. This place is polished with love.

The food was so spot on. I admit, I was slightly skeptical going into it despite Ron and Larry’s great reviews. The menu seemed a bit “old fashioned” for my taste. But the execution! Wow! The kitchen here is seriously on point. These are classic dishes, but most of them are among the best versions of said dishes I’ve ever had. And there is nothing wrong with the classics when you knock them out of the park. This is far easier said than done, because all over the country (and France) you can find lots of mediocre attempts. Not here. The foie, escargot, caesar salad, and bouillabaisse were all to die for.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brandywine, Caesar salad, French Cuisine, woodland hills

Doing it All Right – Christophe Emé

Sep30

My friend Eric Cotsen’s house is again host to another amazing food & wine event. French chef Christophe Emé, formerly of Ortolan, “whips” up an epic dinner with wines brought by the gang — with the organization of the evening arranged by Stewart.

First the setting….
Which is decidedly first class.

Look at that view!

Then the first time I’ve eaten at the inside table.

And chef Christophe Emé works had in the kitchen — he was slaving away intently the whole evening.

Have a few champagnes!

And the apropos fish theme.

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.

agavin: really awesome bottle, one of the best of the night.

1990 Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée. An older GC!

Gougeres. The classic French cheese puffs.

1998 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame. VM 90. The house’s 1998 La Grande Dame reveals notable clarity and precision. This focused, poised wine emerges from the glass with well-articulated flowers, pears, smoke, crisp apples and minerals in a medium-bodied style. The wine appears to have enough freshness and sheer depth to support another decade or so of aging. La Grand Dame represents a significant step up from the estate’s other wines. In 1998 La Grande Dame is 64% Pinot Noir (Aÿ, Verzenay, Verzy, Ambonnay and Bouzy) and 36% Chardonnay (Avize, Oger, Mesnil-sur-Oger). This is Lot 510 2572, disgorged between December 2006 and January 2007.

agavin: big flavors (for champ)

An amuse of grains, beet, and leaf. Gorgeous, huh?

1998 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Rosé La Grande Dame. VM 92. Copper-pink with a frothy mousse. Smoky strawberry and cherry aromas are complicated by buttered toast, blood orange and dried flowers. Deep and chewy, with vivid red berry and bitter cherry flavors underscored by dusty minerals. Gains power on the broad, focused and gently nutty finish. Already complex, and ready to drink.

1995 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon Rosé P2. VM 95.5. The just-released 1995 Dom Pérignon Rosé P2 is stunning. Young, delicate and vibrant in the glass, the 1995 has it all; expressive aromatics, crystalline fruit and fabulous overall balance. Cranberry, mint, hard candy, cinnamon and dried rose petals are laced into the super-expressive finish. The 1995 P2 is sweet and layered, but with lovely veins of chalky minerality that give the wine its sense of energy. A delicate, floral finish rounds things out nicely.

agavin: LOVED LOVED this champy — and so did everyone else.

1997 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut. VM 95. One of the surprises in this vertical, the 1997 Salon is super-polished, delicate and refined. The 1997 offers lovely detail and nuance throughout. Hints of candied lemon peel, white flowers and white pepper add an element of brightness that complements the wine’s natural richness. Although 1997 doesn’t belong to the group of elite vintages at Salon, it does come close to that level. Perhaps even more importantly, the 1997 is aging gracefully and should continue to drink nicely for a number of years.

agavin: another amazing champy!

1990 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. BH 95. This is a wine that I know extremely well from 750 ml and it’s one that is beginning to tire though I hasten to point out that it’s still enjoyable and just beginning to show signs of fatigue. However there are no such concerns with the same wine from magnum that remains magnificently fresh and while it’s clear that the aromas are mature, that’s not at all the same thing as describing the yeasty and baked apple suffused nose as tiring. There is equally good depth and vibrancy to the beautifully delineated flavors that are supported by a fine and firm mousse that allows the texture of a well-aged Dom to be easily appreciated. For my taste this has arrived at its peak though note well that it should easily be capable of effortlessly holding for years to come.

Foie gras terrine, toasted brioche, pear and apple chutney. Awesome foie terrine — serious fat!

Look at this house baked brioche!

And sliced open like pound cake.

The next course arrives from outer space.

The classique scrambled eggs caviar served in the shell. Can you saw Champagne pairing?

2001 Marquis de Laguiche (Joseph Drouhin) Montrachet. BH 93. Perfumed aromas of honeysuckle and ripe peach that display just a hint of secondary development introduce rich and solidly concentrated big-bodied flavors of limestone, citrus and an attractive nutty quality that are underpinned by good depth and outstanding length. This has lost the robust character that it displayed early on and has now matured into a delicious, round and relatively forward effort that is drinking perfectly for my taste even in magnum format though it should easily continue to drink well for much longer. As is often the case, I preferred the magnum to the 750 ml version (see herein), if only slightly.

agavin: needed like an hour in the glass.

From my cellar: 2000 Domaine Ramonet Bâtard-Montrachet. BH 94. Like all great examples of Ramonet Bâtard, the nose is simply gorgeous with immensely complex aromas of peach, white flower and ample minerality, which leads to big, rich and muscular full-bodied flavors that retain excellent focus and incredible intensity plus first rate precision on the hugely long finish. While approachable now, for my tastes I would be inclined to wait another year or two first as it still is on the way up. In a word, masterful. Tasted multiple times with consistent results.

agavin: I loved this very Batard batard

1998 Coche-Dury Meursault. BH 88. A touch of botrytis adds nuance to the otherwise clean, pretty and notably elegant aromas that merge into relatively dense, pure and round flavors that are supported by solid finishing acidity. As is often the case with this wine relative to its upper level siblings, this isn’t really built for the long haul and 2 to 3 more years of cellar time should see it at its best.

agavin: big reduction!

1980 Château Haut-Brion Blanc. In great shape considering. A bit amber, but delicious.

Lobster spaghetti, artichoke barrigoule, and parmesan.

I’ve had some versions of this amazing pasta years ago at Ortalon. This was a nice lobstery one — wrapped in spaghetti!

The chef at work.

1996 Domaine Leroy Richebourg. VM 94-97. Restrained but vibrant aromas of violet, licorice and cassis. Offers great volume in the mouth, but this is more muscular, more musclebound, than the Romanee-Saint-Vivant. Fabulous subtle flavors of black fruits (creme de cassis!) and minerals. Superb richness and powerful structure. Less giving and perhaps less subtle, but even more impressive on the finish. Will be more difficult to taste early on than the Romanee-Saint-Vivant.

agavin: a serious pedigree red Burg packing serious big flavor.

From my cellar: 1996 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes. VM 94+. Very good deep red-ruby. Black cherry, boysenberry, rose petal, licorice, minerals, shoe polish, mint and white pepper on the nose. Extremely unyielding today in the middle palate, and dominated by its rather large structure. Exotic hints of citrus fruit keep the flavors bright and sharp. Then extremely long and authoritative on the back end. A wine of great potential, but it’s all nose and finish today. May ultimately merit a considerably higher score.

agavin: very elegant.
2006 Camille Giroud Vosne-Romanée. BH 86-89. eduction. The delicious and rich flavors are attractively sweet and full with fine depth of material and good punch on the firm finish that offers just a bit more overall complexity. A serious villages.

The seabass (for the below dish) in its salt/dough shell.

Opened up to reveal the fish.

Sea bass en croute de sel with clams and lemon confit and artichokes. Great broth. I actually liked the artichokes the best. Some bones in the fish.

1998 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 97-100. The awesome 1998 Cote Rotie La Mouline is a seamless, full-bodied classic with many characteristics of the 1997 La Landonne , but more structure, tannin, and muscle. It will need two years of cellaring, and will last for twenty years. Stylistically, it is reminiscent of the 1988.

1990 Montrose. Parker 100! The final blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc was harvested between September 14 and October 3. The spring was cold, yet summer was extremely hot and dry – one of the hottest vintages since 1949. The fact that virtually no rain fell in September served as a catalyst to get all the grapes ripe and in cellars. Some bottles of this wine have a definite brett population that gives off the notes of sweaty horses, but this one did not. The ones I have had from my cellar – where I have had it frequently – are quite pure and clean. I suspect that the brett population is in all of them, but unless the wine hits some heat along the transportation route or in storage, the wine will not show any brett. This one tasted at the chateau, as well as those I’ve had from my cellar, have been pristine and not showing the sweaty horse notes that can be in evidence in brett populations that have flourished in the bottle because of external temperatures. This wine has an incredibly complex nose of spring flowers, blackberry and cassis liqueur, scorched earth and barbecue spice. It is full-bodied, majestic and opulent, with low acidity and fabulous fruit. It is close to full maturity. The wine should continue to drink well for at least another 30 or more years, but it is showing secondary nuances in the perfume. The wine is absolutely magnificent, broad, savory and mouth-filling. This is one of the all-time modern legends from Bordeaux as well as Chateau Montrose.

agavin: great bottle.

2006 Haut Brion. Parker 96. Tasted at Bordeaux Index’s annual 10-Year On tasting in London. The 2006 Château Haut-Brion has a more ostentatious bouquet than the comparatively reserved La Mission: quite feisty blackberry, briary, kirsch and red plum scents, hints of leather and sage tucked just underneath. This is a bouquet determined to make an impression! The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, well-judged acidity, a gentle build to a concentrated, earthy, truffle-tinged finish that lingers long in the mouth. This seems to have the upper-hand over the La Mission and probably has a longer future. A thoroughbred from Jean-Philippe Delmas and his team. Tasted January 2016.

agavin: babykill

1986 Henri Bonneau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve des Célestins. Parker 96. Few Chateauneuf du Papes from this vintage turned out well, and the few that did required consumption during their first decade of life. Bonneau’s 1986 is just hitting full maturity. It offers a concoction of jammy, concentrated licorice-infused black cherry fruit, with hints of tobacco, cedar, beef blood, smoked herbs, and Asian spices. As the wine sits in the glass, aromas of licorice, Peking duck, and other exotic scents emerge. An amazing effort, it may be the only Reserve des Celestins I own that can be classified as fully mature. Anticipated maturity: now-2020.

agavin: looked a little cloudy, but tasted awesome.

Seared squab filet, wild mushroom, crispy potatoes. I liked the long gnocchi like things.

Partial lineup.

Les fromages.

1989 Chateau d’Yquem. Parker 97. The favorite sweet wine of millionaires, Chateau d’Yquem has, not unexpectedly, turned in a brilliant effort with their newly released 1989. It is a large-scaled, massively rich, unctuously-textured wine that should evolve effortlessly for a half century or more. It does not reveal the compelling finesse and complexity of the 1988 or 1986, but it is a far heavier, richer wine than either of those vintages. It is reminiscent of the 1976, with additional fat and glycerin. The wine is extremely alcoholic and rich, with a huge nose of smoky, honey-covered coconuts and overripe pineapples and apricots. As with most young vintages of Yquem, the wine’s structure is barely noticeable. These wines are so highly extracted and rich yet approachable young, it is difficult to believe they will last for 50 or more years. The 1989 is the richest Yquem made in the eighties, and it has an edge in complexity over the powerhouse 1983. It remains to be seen whether this wine will develop the extraordinary aromatic complexity possessed by the promising 1988 and 1986 Yquems.

agavin: awesome!

1999 Chateau d’Yquem. Parker 92.

Mille feuille caramelise with vanilla butter cream. Perfect contrast between crispy/butter pastry and the creamy filling.

1994 Broadbent Porto Vintage. 90 points. not bad at all.

Chocolate tart, fig and cream de praline. Looks dry, but tasted great.

1983 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Eiswein. 95 points. Great stuff — very mature, but awesome.

Artisanal gelato by moi. On the left macha green tea white chocolate straciatella and on the right rose water white peach sorbetto. Eric Cotsen called it by describing the rose one as like eating a “perfectly textured really high end bath soap” (he loved it though).

Overall a really epic evening. Super great combo of superb food, crazy sick wines, and great company!

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Christophe Emé, Eric Cotsen, French Cuisine, Gelato, Wine

Mountain Eats – Brasserie

Apr11

Restaurant: Mammoth Rock Brasserie

Location: 3029 Chateau Rd, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. (760) 934-4200

Date: December 27, 2015 & March 24, 2016 & Dec 28, 2018 & March 23, 2019

Cuisine: French / American

Rating: excellent, for Mammoth

Mammoth Lakes isn’t exactly a culinary capital, but the Brasserie is one of the better places I’ve found:

Mysteriously, it’s located above — and owned by — the bowling alley!

Yep, downstairs is the Rock & Bowl!

Some nice views though.

And the upstairs is classy and surprisingly contemporary for Mammoth.

On our second visit we had this huge private room!

The menu.

From my cellar: 2000 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru La Forest. VM 93+. Pale green-tinged straw. Reticent but ripe and highly nuanced nose combines peach, nectarine, lime, lemon skin, nuts and an intriguing, soil-inflected vegetal/smoky quality. Very dry, taut and reserved yet already rich and mouthfilling, with the ripe fruit notes perfectly supported by a flavor of liquid stone. A wine of great energy, finishing with explosive length and powerful minerality. Grand cru size and cut.

Bread & butter.

Butternut squash soup (12/28/19). Very tasty dairy based soup, tasted like corn soup.

House Green Salad. Tomatoes, Cucumber, Carrots, Rice Wine Vinaigrette. One of our party really likes green salads!

And even more feel the same about caesars. Classic Caesar. Romaine, Parmesan, Croutons, Caesar Dressing.

French Onion Soup. Nice broth, solid soup. My version didn’t have enough cheese though.

Beef Carpaccio (12/28/18). Very nice carpaccio.

Special Fois Gras Torchon with toast. Can’t go wrong with foie!

Mary’s Free Range Airline Chicken Breast. Roasted Garlic Cream, Root Vegetable Julienne.

Simple pasta for my son (12/28/18). My son loved this particular pasta.

Grilled Vegetable Wellington. Puff Pastry, Parmesan, Gruyere, Ricotta, Tomato Basil Coulis.

Elk Medallions. Aged Balsamic Demi Glace, Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables.

Lamb chops (12/28/18). Not bad. Could have used a bit more gamey flavor.

Bone In Rib Eye. Roasted Garlic Beurre Blanc, Pomme Frites, Seasonal Vegetables.

Filet with sauce on the side (3/23/19). They likka the sauce here.

Beef Bourguignon with bacon (3/23/19).

Ice Cream Sundae (down at the bowling alley). This wasn’t the greatest, just regular vanilla ice cream with Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup.

MBR is quite excellent for Mammoth. Dishes are a little on the heavy side stylistically, but execution is good, which puts them radically above many places in town — and service was also quite decent.

Revisiting in Dec 2018, MBR remains perhaps the second best (after Skadi) kitchen in Mammoth. It’s actually pretty good, which is a rarity for a town not exactly known for its culinary genius.

For more dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: bowling, French Cuisine, Mammoth Lakes, Mammoth Rock Brasserie, Rock & Bowl

Mountain Eats – Petra’s

Apr06

Restaurant: Petra’s Bistro & Wine Bar

Location: 6080 Minaret Rd, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. (760) 934-3500

Date: March 22, 2016 & Jan 1, 2019

Cuisine: French / American

Rating: excellent, for Mammoth

Mammoth Lakes isn’t exactly a culinary capital, but my friend Liz had recommended Petra’s as among the best that it has:Located just across Minaret from the village.
The menu.

From my cellar: 1997 Louis Jadot Echezeaux. VM 91. Full deep red. Complex aromas of red berries, cassis, cocoa powder, tar, game, dark chocolate, nutmeg and roasted nuts. Concentrated, spicy, fresh and youthful. Dense and mouthfilling but not at all heavy. Structured to age. Finishes long and subtle, with ripe, dusty tannins. Even better than it appeared a year ago from barrel. Drinking great right now.

Pretty olive oil and vinegar.

Green salad.

Caesar Salad. Hearts of Romaine, Shaved Parmesan, Croutons, House Caesar Dressing, Parmesan Tuile.

Baked Brie (1/1/19). My wife liked, but didn’t love this appetizer.

Smoked Salmon Trio. Applewood Smoked Salmon Flake, Gravlax, Smoked Salmon Mousse, Dill Crème Fraiche, Fried Capers, Pickled Shallots, Cucumber, Grilled Pita Bread.

Duck Confit. Crispy Skin Duck Leg Confit, Mushroom & Leek Risotto, Fried Leeks, Whole Grain Mustard Sauce. Not bad at all.

Grilled New York. New York Strip, Gruyere Potato Au Gratin, Grilled Asparagus, Cab Demi Reduction.

A swordfish special.

Scallops. Pan Seared Sea Scallop, Turnip Puree, Sautéed Snow Peas, Brown Butter, Lemon Parsley Oil.

A different version of scallops with beans, radish, and lobster (1/1/19).

A slightly strange maple/orange ice cream float. The liqueur was very strong, giving this a pretty intense alcoholic taste.
Homemade brownie vanilla ice cream.

Not only did Petra’s have a more modern menu, but the kitchen out cooked by far most Mammoth places. Service was pretty good too. This would just be middle of the pack in LA, but it’s solid, probably the third best kitchen in this small town.

For more dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: French Cuisine, Mammoth Lakes, Petras

Saint Joseph at Maison G

Nov02

Restaurant: Maison Giraud [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 1032 Swarthmore Ave, Pacific Palisades, Ca 90272. 310-459-7562

Date: October 21, 2015

Cuisine: French

Rating: Classic French “home” cooking

Maison Giraud is the closest fine dining to my house. Pacific Palisades doesn’t have a lot of great food, but this restaurant/bakery is from acclaimed LA French chef Alain Giraud. This wine dinner, featuring the wines of the Northern Rhone’s Saint Joseph region was hosted by a friend of mine, Merv Hecht, author of The Instant Wine Connoisseur.

And it should be noted that the Swathmore Ave frontage might not be there for too much longer, as the whole street is slated for massive construction in 2016 when developer Rick Curuso starts building his new “Palisades Village” project.

Anyway, as it was a lovely warm (late October in LA) night, we dined outside.

With a generous staging area for the wines.

Tonight’s special menu.

2012 J.L. Chave Sélection St. Joseph Céleste. VM 91. Light gold. Pungent, mineral-laced aromas of dried pear, fig, honey and fennel, with a hint of jasmine in the background. Fleshy and dry on the palate, offering incisive orchard and pit fruit flavors and a touch of waxiness. Smoothly combines richness and vivacity, finishing with firm mineral bite and strong floral persistence.

agavin: I’m not sure I’ve even had a Saint Joseph blanc before. It tastes very much like white Hermitage, and that means Rousanne. Not sure it’s my favorite grape. A bit hot.

2013 J.L. Chave Sélection St. Joseph Circa Clos Florentin. 90 points. Obviously young. This is probably getting more serious and I think has more sulphur. Very rich, concentrated and that slightly oily texture that you get with white rhone. I’m sure this will get better, and probably will leave for another year before approaching again. Good value.

2013 Domaine Coursodon St. Joseph Blanc Silice. 92 points. 100% Marsanne this had a fruity honey quality. Vinified without oak.

Maison G bakes its own fabulous bread.

Classic french pate with toasts.

2011 Domaine Faury St. Joseph Vieilles Vignes. VM 92. Opaque ruby. Intense, mineral-driven aromas of dark berries, candied licorice and potpourri, plus a sexy Asian spice quality. Tangy and sharply focused, boasting impressive purity and depth to its sweet blackberry and cherry compote flavors. Silky tannins build on the persistent, incisive finish, with the floral and spice notes repeating.

2013 Domaine Faury St. Joseph. VM 89-91. Bright purple. Lively black and blue fruits on the spicy nose and in the mouth. Nervy and focused, showing no excess weight and a subtle sweetness. Shows good clarity and siky tannins on the gently gripping finish. Very fresh, in the style of the vintage.

2012 Domaine Coursodon St. Joseph Le Paradis Saint-Pierre. VM 92-94. (made from 80-year-old serine vines and raised in all new oak): Dark purple. A complex, highly perfumed bouquet evokes ripe blackcurrant, cherry pit, potpourri and olive tapenade, along with smoke and mineral accents. Stains the palate with intense dark fruit liqueur flavors and suggestions of candied violet and licorice. Closes on a smoky note, with superb clarity and lift and slow-mounting tannins.

Lobster bisque. Jumbo crab, asparagus, brioche croutons. One of my favorite soups. This version didn’t disappoint and was full of chunks of crab meat.

2011 Domaine Coursodon St. Joseph L’Olivaie. VM 91. Bright ruby. Fresh blackberry and floral scents are complemented by deeper-pitched notes of dark chocolate and licorice. Supple and open-knit, offering gently sweet black raspberry and cherry flavors that become spicier with aeration. Closes tangy and quite long, with sneaky tannins adding grip.

agavin: these Coursodon’s were in general my favorite wines of the night.

2012 Domaine Coursodon St. Joseph L’Olivaie. VM 91-93. Inky ruby. Fresh blueberry and candied violet on the highly perfumed, spice-accented nose. Fleshy, seamless and broad, offering intense black and blue fruit flavors and a sweetening note of vanilla that gains strength with air. The spicy quality comes back on the finish, which clings with excellent tenacity and just a hint of tannins. These vines are now over 60 years old, according to Coursodon.

2012 Domaine Coursodon St. Joseph Silice. VM 90-92. Brilliant ruby. Spice-accented black raspberry, mocha, pipe tobacco and licorice on the nose, with a sexy floral topnote. Sweet, spicy and penetrating, displaying a silky texture to its dark berry and spicecake flavors. Shows pinot-like character–or at least pinot from a warm region. Finishes round and supple, with soft tannins, good breadth and a lingering suggestion of violet.

Spanish Turbot. Slowly backed, forest mushroom, porcini emulsion. An absolutely lovely fish and a killer sauce.

In the back is chef Alain Giraud.

2012 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave St. Joseph. VM 93. Bright violet color. Explosive aromas of black and blue fruits, smoky Indian spices and minerals, with a suave floral quality in the background. Fleshy and expansive on the palate, but with excellent clarity and spicy lift to its blackberry and licorice flavors. The dark fruit element recurs on the long, seamless finish, which is framed by supple tannins that fold smoothly into the wine’s lush fruit.

2012 Paul Jaboulet Aîné St. Joseph Domaine de la Croix des Vignes. VM 92. Deep ruby. Explosive aromas of black and blue fruits, smoky Indian spices, licorice and minerals, with a suave floral quality building in the glass. Fleshy and expansive on the palate, showing excellent clarity and breadth to its blueberry and cherry compote flavors. The floral quality repeats on a long, seamless, fruit-dominated finish that’s framed by velvety tannins.

2012 Domaine Boissonnet St. Joseph.

Rack of Lamb. Roasted, Fall baby carrots, lamb Bordelaise. A perfect pairing for the wines.

2011 François Villard St. Joseph Reflet.

2010 Domaine du Tunnel (Stéphane Robert) St. Joseph. VM 90. Inky ruby. Spicy black raspberry and cherry aromas are complicated by notes of black pepper and dried flowers. Deep, chewy dark fruit flavors are framed by dusty tannins and become spicier with air. Shows very good energy and focus, finishing with strong cut and grip.

2012 Domaine Blachon St. Joseph Hommage. 91 points. Deep purple to rim. Barnyard earth, pepper spice and a sweet floral tone on the nose. Sweet cherry, toasted bread and rhubarb on the palate. Medium to medium-plus tannins. Medium acidity. Medium-long to long finish.
I’m thinking this would be great with braised lamb and cassoulet. Also a good cigar wine.

Cheese Plate. Selection, grapes, fruit-nuts bread. This was both a generous and awesome little trio of cheeses. I loved the buttery one in the middle.

2012 Domaine Durand St. Joseph Lautaret. 89 points. Gamey.

Lemon Tart. Meringue, berries, raspberry coulis. Also classic, but perfectly executed.

This was a great dinner. The food is very classic, but these special menus show off Giraud’s cooking even better than the regular menu. Each dish was superlatively executed. The wines were fun, and solid, if a little young and not quite up to the refined heights of Syrah at my recent LaLa dinner.

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