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Loosen at Spago

Jan08

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

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

Date: November 20, 2019

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Still great

As you can see from the links above I’ve done a lot of wine dinners at Spago — and for good reason because with the right person planning they do a spectacular job. Tonight’s was organized and hosted by Liz Lee of Sage Society and she is the best wine dinner organizer in the city. It features wines by Dr Loosen and the Dr himself, Ernst Loosen. This is my second Sage/Loosen dinner, the first being several years ago at Republique.

Spago has been an LA institution for over 30 years!

We are in this side private room again — been there for a lot of dinners.

2006 Billecart-Salmon Champagne Cuvée Nicolas-François Billecart. 90 points. A powerful Champagne, large scaled and luxurious, prominent yeast, buttered multigrain toast, preserved and grilled lemon, golden apple, chalk dust, grainy texture, firm acid backbone, didn’t last long enough for it to unfurl a bit; delicious.

Tomato & Goat Cheese Arancini. Ricey cheese balls.

New Potatoes, Creme Fraiche, Caviar. A bit too potatoey.

Parmesan Cheese “Marshmallow”, Olive oil. Neat marshmallow texture — tastes like Parm and Olive Oil.

Have a few glasses!

Wines chilling.

Our hostess, Liz Lee of Sage Society.

Ernst Loosen of Dr. Loosen — generations of Riesling.

Chef Wolfgang Puck greets Ernst in German.

Our special menu for the night.

Bread to fill up on.

2016 Dr. Loosen Graacher Domprobst Riesling Großes Gewächs. VM 90-91. Tasted in late July 2017 and slated for bottling around the end of September, this delivers a brash amalgam of chewy, seed-tinged apple and zesty grapefruit. The palate is firm and substantial, the finish blazingly bright and mouthwateringly salt-tinged – a Grosses Gewächs conveying real energy as well as refreshment.

2016 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Alte Reben Großes Gewächs.

2016 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben. VM 91-92. Tasted in late July 2017 and slated for late September bottling, this delivers a fascinating combination of coolness and incisiveness by way of greenhouse-like scents of foliage and flowers, seedy kiwi, zesty lime and cress. Glycerol-rich but with underlying firmness, the palate is not at all weighed down by its 12.5% alcohol. This finishes with penetrating, refreshingly juicy persistence and admirable animation, salinity and impingements of cress and crushed offering saliva-inducement and invigoration.

Crudo of Japanese Red Snapper, Osetra Caviar, Lemon, Olive Oil. Nice bright lemon / olive flavors.

2014 Dr. Loosen Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben. VM 90. Pungent lemon and grapefruit peel with a dusty crushed stone overlay in the nose lead into a firm, brightly juicy but also sizzlingly piquant palate performance. Full in feel and impressively gripping, this brings along considerable apple and citrus seed bitterness that I don’t envisage moderating with bottle age. The result is one of those many GGs that are more formidable than fun.

2014 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Alte Reben Großes Gewächs.

2014 Dr. Loosen Bernkasteler Lay Riesling Großes Gewächs. Alte Reben Reserve. VM 90. A site-typical mélange of apple and cherry displays satisfying juiciness and fullness without heaviness. Basil and cress add a sense of coolness and cherry pit lends invigorating piquancy to the seriously sustained, slate-lined finish. This texturally polished performance avoids austerity or overt bitterness and may well reveal further nuances with time in bottle.

Maine Lobster “salad”. Vanilla vinaigrette, sorrel. Huge chunk of perfectly cooked lobster — although the strong vanilla was a touch sweet and distracting.

A non lobster version for the shellfish adverse.

2013 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben Reserve. VM 93. Bottled soon after the 2015 harvest, this leads with intriguingly mossy and stony scents along with narcissus-like, musky floral perfume and a vaguely spirituous intimation of site-typical apple and vanilla. The silken-textured palate delivers enough primary apple and lemon juiciness to refresh, while the long finish reprises the mossy, stony notes familiar from the nose and adds invigorating black tea smokiness as well as mouthwatering, maritime mineral salts. There is still a subtle, efficacious spritz here, incidentally, so evidently CO2 did not dissipate significantly during the wine’s two years in cask, and the effect adds to an overall impression of dynamism and finesse.

2013 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben Reserve. VM 92. Fresh lime, basil, strawberry eau de vie and wet stone introduce a satiny palate satisfyingly juicy in its evocation of fresh strawberry and cooling in its green herbal aspect. Hints of cress and lime zest lend incisive, zesty invigoration to a lingering, mouthwateringly saline finish. The corresponding Wehlener is more intriguingly nuanced but this Würzgarten is more winsome. I suspect that both will outlast their “regular” Grosses Gewächs counterparts, which were not nearly as interesting, charming or indeed juicy and mouthwatering when I last tasted them soon after their mid-2014 bottling.

2013 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben Reserve. VM 89. As with the corresponding 2011 and 2012 – but more emphatically – I find this Prälat reserve less convincing than its two siblings. The pungency and piquancy of kumquat on the nose as well as on a substantial and subtly oily palate, when reinforced by underlying nuttiness, generate a sense of opacity and borderline bitterness at odds with the refreshment and transparency to mineral nuances displayed by the corresponding Wehlener Sonnenuhr and Ürziger Würzgarten. That having been noted, this bottling’s austerity is certainly coupled with impressive sheer persistence and smoky, stony intrigue. It’s too early to hazard a guess as to whether Prälat is inherently less amenable to longer élevage, or perhaps even whether it simply needs more than two years. But Loosen has additional Grosses Gewächs material still in cask to test the latter hypothesis.

Austrian Cheese “Knodel” Dumplings, white truffle. Delicate poofy cheese balls with butter and truffle. Lovely.

2015 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett Alte Reben Reserve. VM 90. Lily and heliotrope garland cidery apple on the enticing nose, while the palate impression is snappy, tart-edged, and even a bit spare. I like the tang, invigoration and refreshment of the finish, though, which predictably features fresh lime and apple over a bed of wet stone. As with the corresponding Lay, it could be that screwcap closure is playing a significant role here.

2015 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese Alte Reben Reserve. VM 91. Fresh strawberry and lime laced with cress offer a bracing aromatic and palate impression, and bright, infectious juiciness carries into an invigoratingly zesty and mouthwateringly salt-tinged finish. As befits Riesling of Mosel origins, wet stone runs like a cantus firmus through this entire delightful performance, whose supportive sweetness knows when to back off in the interest of clarity and refreshment.

2008 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese Alte Reben Reserve.

Loup de Mer En Croute. Scallop Mousseline, Sauce Beurre Blanc.

A delicious and very rich fish dish with the pastry and the buttery sauce. Now here is a whitefish I can get down with!

A simpler version with no pastry and no scallop.

2005 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett. VM 89+. Pale yellow. Stately aromas of quince, honeysuckle and nut oil.With its rich papaya fruit and subdued minerality, this is the most aristocratic of these ’05 kabinetts and the one that is most clearly a spatlese in character. At the same time, it’s the most closed and in need of patience.

2011 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett. 90 points. Superb Riesling with lots of tropical fruit. Creamy texture and great acid who balance well with the fruit. If you like the style you like the wine. Works wonderfully on its own as well.

2017 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett.

Slow Roasted Pork. Cardamon, star anis, savory glaze.

Rich almost “bbq” style pork.

Eggplant instead.

Savory Consommé.

A different version.

1983 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese.

1989 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese. 92 points. A rounded style, complete. Very nice though.

1997 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese. VM 93. Strawberry chiffon nose. Again, a rather delicate, easy wine, but there is extract underneath, plus a distinct note of slate.

2002 Dr. Loosen Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese Goldkapsel Auction.

Kaiserschmarren. Basically super fluffy pancake with strawberry sauce. I was blown away by how delicious this dish was. The strawberries were super intense and the cake ultra fluffy.

1976 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel.

1985 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel. 95 points. One of the best bottles from this old stash of rising I bought about ten years ago. The wine was harmonious, complex and very long. It offered s prism of golden orchard fruit, mineral and savory notes.

1993 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel.

2011 Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese Lange Goldkapsel Auction. 97 points.

1959 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese Lange Goldkapsel.

Cheese Course. Brabander Gouda, Robbiolo Bosino, Manchego 1605.

And some cheese / cherry toast — very Austrian.

And a special birthday layered pastry and creme!

This was just an epic procession of epic riesling. So many wines! 25 distinct wines, ranging from 1959 to 2016 and from bone dry to ultra sweet. Most of these were special Alte Reben Reserves or Goldkapsels, all very rare. A stunning tour-de-force of this under-appreciated grape.

Food, as usual for a Sage Society dinner, was perfectly paired. Spago really does a good job at these special dinners when care is taken with the menu — and service was perfect as always. I enjoyed the slightly German/Austrian vibe to some of the dishes. We had labeled glasses for every wine — which is always the best way.

Great night!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, Dr Loosen, Ernst Loosen, Liz Lee, Riesling, Sage Society, Spago, Wolfgang Puck

Spago – 2011 Montrachet

Apr17

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

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

Date: March 27, 2019

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Still great

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

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

Spago has been an LA institution for over 30 years!

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

Tonight’s special menu.

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

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

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

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

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

A kind of crab tartlet, if I remember correctly.

A sit down amuse inside an eggshell.

A kind of foam soup.

Bread. I always like the crunchy cracker stuff.

Flight 1:

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

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

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

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

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

agavin: corked

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

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

Flight 2:

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

agavin: an inexpensive wine

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

2011 Château de Puligny-Montrachet Montrachet.

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

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

agavin: ranked #5

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

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

Flight 3:

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

agavin: ranked #6 (tied)

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

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

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

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

agavin: #1 ranked. WOTN

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

The room in full swing.

Flight 4: dessert

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Some of Don’s comments are:

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

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

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

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

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

Veuve Clicquot at Spago

Dec26

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

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

Date: November 12, 2018

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Still great

Spago is always fun but it’s especially good when it’s a Sage Society arranged Veuve Clicquot dinner. I love great Champagne and this sort of dinner is a fun way to learn more about different houses.

Spago has been an LA institution for over 30 years!

Tonight Veuve Clicquot has taken over the private dinner area.

We have this lovely long table.

And they take it seriously, as does this guy who has way more gear than even I do!

Lots of “displays.”

Etc.
Tonight’s special menu.

Tonight is partially about introducing a new NV blend cuvee:

NV Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Extra Brut Extra Old. 93 points. At least 6 years old, only reserve wines, dosage 3 gr. a champagne with a great character, very classic, also in its bitters, firm, but not severe and a long aftertaste.

Caviar Blini with creme fraiche.

Cheese (and maybe foie) Gougeres.

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

Crab and uni and flowers in a crispy/chewy sesame ball.

Jewish pizza. Smoked salmon with creme fraiche and ikura (salmon roe). I love this too. I even make it at home.

Place settings.

Various folk from Veuve get up to talk.

This is Dominique Demarville, the wine maker! He told us all about each cuvee and a lot about the history of the house — really fascinating.

Wild Hamachi. Beet Ponzu, ginger oil, sea grass. Great fish quality. Very bright strong vibrant flavors. Super delicious.

2004 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame. VM 93. Vivid gold. Heady aromas of orange, white peach and smoky minerals, with a note of buttered toast adding depth. Densely packed citrus and pit fruit flavors show chewy texture and a bright mineral quality that adds vivacity. Rich but lively and precise, finishing very long, with notes of candied fig and toasty lees.

2006 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame. JG 94+. The final blending of the 2006 La Grande Dame was completed prior to Dominique Demarville joining the team at Veuve Clicquot, so we will have to wait for the release of the 2008 version to see his impact on this bottling. The 2006 Grande Dame is a blend of fifty-three percent pinot noir and forty-seven percent chardonnay and was finished with a dosage of eight grams per liter. The wine is excellent, wafting from the glass in a complex blend of apple, pear, wheat toast, fine minerality, a touch of smokiness and a nice note of caraway seed in the upper register. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, deep and complex, with elegant mousse, fine focus and grip and a very long, vibrant and zesty finish. This is drinking beautifully, but has the balance to age long and gracefully as well. High class juice.

2008 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut La Grande Dame. 92 points. Tasting, brief note. A new age for Grande Dame – 92% Pinot Noir. Berries really come through with some toasted almond and toasted rye bread. Rounded textures, very good length.

Spago always has great bread.

Main Diver Scallops. Matsutake Mushrooms, Sea Grass, Yuzu Emulsion.

The non shellfish version.

2004 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Rosé La Grande Dame. VM 94. Vivid orange-pink. Seductively perfumed aromas of ripe red berries, Asian spices, rose and smoky minerals. Densely packed and palate-staining, offering vibrant red and dark berry flavors, along with floral pastille and buttered toast qualities. The strikingly long finish repeats the red fruit and mineral notes and lingers with serious tenacity.

The Madame Clicquot invented the technique of mixing red pinot noir into Champagne to make rose and so these (like many rose Champagnes) use that technique as opposed to leaving the pinot on the skins.

2006 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Rosé La Grande Dame. JG 95. For both the vintage-dated and the Grande Dame Rosé bottlings, Veuve Clicquot uses their parcel of Clos Colin in the village of Bouzy for the still red wine that is used to add color to the final blend. The ’06 Grande Dame Rosé is comprised entirely of chardonnay and pinot noir, with thirty-three percent of the blend the former and sixty-seven percent of the blend the latter (with fourteen percent still pinot noir). The dosage is eight grams per liter and the wine is outstanding, offering up a pure and complex bouquet of tangerine, desiccated cherries, chalky minerality, orange peel and plenty of smokiness. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and complex, with a superb core, lovely focus and grip, elegant mousse and a very long, zesty and wide open finish. This is drinking beautifully right now, but will age very gracefully as well.

2008 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Rosé La Grande Dame. CW 95-97. This is perhaps the best young Rose Champagne I can remember. Very fresh, frozen-berry nose, and on the palage this shows rich citrus and red fruits, and the characteristic ’08 electricity and density, dialed up to 11. Notwithstanding the massive concentration of raw material, this is pretty drinkable due to the excellent balance, saline freshness, and beautiful fruit. A real wow wine. Expensive but, dare I say, worth it.

The giant double mag of 1990 rose!

1990 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut Rosé La Grande Dame. VM 92. Salmon-orange with a pale rim. Deep, smoky aromas of strawberry, pear cider, cinnamon, earth and maple syrup. Very rich in the mouth, but also shows excellent verve for a wine with such volume; superripe flavors of strawberry, rose petal, iron and earth. In texture and size, this comes across more like a red wine than a rose Champagne. Spicy finish is long and gripping.

Marcho Farm’s Veal Loin. Chanterelle Mushrooms, Pancetta, Creme Sauce. Not usually a veal fan, but I know Wolfgang is, being Austrian — still this was fabulous.

Pasta for my wife who doesn’t eat veal.

1989 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Vintage Cave Privée. VM 92. Almonds, pastry and brioche are some of the notes that open up in 1989 Brut Cave Privée. The warm, resonant style is hugely appealing. Hints of toast and spice add complexity in a Champagne of pure texture and breadth. This is another terrific showing from Veuve Clicquot.

1982 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Vintage Cave Privée. 95 points. Wonderful expressions of toast and bread. Slight oxidation, dark hay color, lasting taste on the palate, went down smoothly. Drink.

House Made Seaweed Tamale. Main Lobster, Aonori Beurre Blanc. I wonder if this was developed at Rogue as it reminded me of the stuff from our visit to Wolfgang’s kitchen lab. Really great.

My wife got another pasta (gnocchi) where they emulated meat with mushrooms. I ate a few and quite excellent.

1979 Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Vintage Rosé Cave Privée. 96 points. Delicately floral start with strawberry with ripe apple on nose and palate. Lots of power and textures start-to-finish with an incredibly persistent, long finish. Wow.

Chef’s Selection of Artisanal Cheese. Bandaged Bismark from Raw Sheep Milk. 3 Year Aged Gouda Beemster from Pasteurized Cow Milk. Saint Gil d’Albio from Pasteurized Goat Milk.

This was a great night and lots of fun. Set wine dinner meals are tough on restaurants, particularly with restrictive wine themes like “all champagne” but Spago did a fabulous job. I think they are actually one of the best at this kind of dinner. Liz Lee of Sage Society always arranges an impeccable affair. Plus our service was impeccable and our wines amazing — I left with a new appreciation for Veuve Clicquot!

The old Veuves like the giant 90, 82, 79 etc were just crazy good.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, Champagne, Dominique Demarville, Liz Lee, Lobster, pasta, Sage Society, Spago, Veuve Clicquot, Wolfgang Puck

Family Spago

Aug15

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

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

Date: June 29, 2018

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Still great

When looking for a “nice” place to go with my parents at the last minute guess what turned out to have space on a Saturday night:

This mainstay of the LA restaurant scene has managed to stay pretty current, which is impressive given it’s 3+ decades in business.
The current menu.

My mom and wife love champagne, so why not some: From my cellar: Jacques Selosse V.O. Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut. VM 94. The NV Extra Brut V.O. (Version Originale), taken from hillside parcels in Avize, Cramant and Oger, possesses striking aromatic presence allied to a rich, creamy expression of pure Chardonnay fruit. Beautifully textured and nuanced, the V.O. is superb on this night.

Bread.

Awesome crispy seed breads

Yogurt pesto like dip which was great.

Summer Endive Salad. Date Purée, Pine Nuts, Snap Peas, Baby Asparagus, Feta, Lemon-Herb Vinaigrette.

Heirloom Tomato Salad, burrata “Mozzarella”, basil-pinenut Aioli, Balsamic, Shaved Onions.

Big Eye Tuna and Kampachi “Chirashi Box”. Salmon Pearls, Ora King Salmon, Jalapeño-Yuzu Gel. Very good, nearly as good as at a top Japanese place, just very small.

Steamed Striped Bass “Hong Kong” Style. Bok Choy, Lotus Root, Sweet Soy, Jasmine Rice.

From my cellar: 1996 Domaine Jean Grivot Echezeaux. VM 92. Deep red-ruby. Very subtle, classy aromas of cassis, raspberry, coffee, mace and cardamom. Velvety, sweet dark berry and floral fruit offers enticing sweetness with perfectly integrated balancing acidity. Really silky and mouthfilling. Explodes and persists on the very firm aftertaste. Like the Beaumonts, this is quintessential ’96. Delicious.

agavin: 96 Tight. But pened up after a few min and was delicious.

Handmade Agnolotti with Sweet White Corn, Mascarpone, Parmigiano Reggiano. These are to die for.

And even better with truffles!

Ricotta Gnocchi. Braised Veal Ragout, Pecorino Romano, Parsley.

Pan-Roasted Half Jidori Chicken. Wild mushrooms, Yukon Gold Poato Puree, Natural Jus. (modded to reduce carbs so green beans instead of potatoes).

Devil’s Gulch Ranch Rabbit. Bacon Brioche Stuffing, Chanterelle Mushrooms, Shoulder Ragout.

And a little side of rabbit gnocchi.

The dessert menu.

A Sweet Take Away (6 piece). Plus some chocolate meringues.

Overall, a great dinner. Service was good, although not like it was when I came with Vahan 6 months before. Then we had all these bonus amuses etc. This was just a normal 5-top dinner. But it was very good.

I brought some good wines too 🙂

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, Family, Spago, Wine

Foodie Club at Spago

Jan08

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

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

Date: November 28, 2017

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Impressive

December is always busy with dinners and we even have two separate Foodie Club events this week.

The first one is to old LA mainstay Spago for a special dinner arranged by Vahan — who has been coming here regularly since the 80s!

Our menu.

We sat out in the lovely (and busy) courtyard. It was loud, but cool.

We had a huge spacious table in the back by the funky fireplace.

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

2005 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. VM 94. Bright yellow. Vibrant pear and melon aromas are complicated by suggestions of ginger, brioche and smoky minerals. Dry, smoky and precise, offering intense orchard and pit fruit flavors that gain weight with aeration. A dusty mineral quality adds focus and lift to the long, penetrating, floral finish. There’s a Burgundian thing going on here that’s quite intriguing.

Dinner at Spago almost always includes amuses, and the first is the classic:

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

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

Jewish pizza. Smoked salmon with creme fraiche and ikura (salmon roe). I love this too. I even make it at home.

Foie gras and strawberry. Another yummy sweet-fatty bite.

Because of Vahan we got a special kitchen tour.

Pizza oven.

Even the storage.

Have some tuille cones.

Or a plate of veal off the regular menu.

Chefs at work plating.

We had a bite in the kitchen. Crab and uni and flowers in a crispy/chewy sesame ball.

1995 Robert Ampeau & Fils Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Combettes. BH 91. Medium golden color. While fully mature this remains quite fresh with lovely complexity on the honeysuckle and dried fruit compote nose. The depth reflected by the nose is also present on the utterly delicious middle weight flavors that possess a very rounded and attractively textured mouth feel before culminating in a palate coating, balanced and lingering finish. Like most ’95s today there is no reason not to drink up though at the same time neither is there any need to rush through your remaining stocks.

1995 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. BH 94. Wonderfully complex and now fully mature aromas of pure white fruits and green Chablis notes are followed by superbly intense and beautifully defined medium-full flavors that just ooze minerality and offer superb length. This is not nearly as heavy as many ’95 Chablis and there is real grace and class here. A drop dead gorgeous wine. Note that I have recently had an lightly oxidized bottle that was at least drinkable if not nearly as good as what I describe above.

Diver Scallop Sashimi. Santa Barbara Uni, Keluga Caviar, Sudachi. A nice soft and tasty dish with complex briney flavors.

Bread. Awesome crispy seed breads.

Sweet carrot hummus with lebneh. Loved this stuff because of it’s sweet and tangy pairing.

1987 Louis Jadot Montrachet. Still in good shape!

2001 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. VM 94+. Pure, reserved aromas of apple, powdered stone, white flowers and nutmeg. Juicy and very intense, with impressive purity and structure for the vintage. Explosive, almost painfully long finish. This extremely youthful, fresh wine should develop in bottle for 10 to 15 years. A more intellectual style this year than the Cabotte.

Handmade Agnolotti. Kabocha squash, pine nuts, amaretti, white truffles. Amazing pasta in butter sauce. The truffles really added too, but my favorite element was the sweet/spiced quality of the Ameretti cooks — traditional in the Verona/Mantua area with pumpkin (in this case squash).

1991 Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs. BH 94. Another fine success in what was generally a difficult vintage in the Côte de Beaune (though a very good to excellent one in the Côte de Nuits). The color is still vibrant with only the barest of lightening at the rim. A gorgeously complex, admirably fresh and remarkably dense nose that is, somewhat oddly at this age, trimmed in a discreet touch of wood and displays a wide range of secondary aromatics. The flavor profile is quite similar with that rare and utterly seductive impression of sweetness that great Burgundies often display and derives not from sugar but rather from the superb sappy extract; there is also a lovely plumy character to the mineral-driven and palate coating finish. This is wonderfully rich while displaying real volume in the mouth, yet it remains gracefully balanced and finishes with knockout length. A brilliant and big-bodied Ducster that is more a wine of impressive power than finesse. And for those lucky enough to own a bottle or two, it should continue to hold effortlessly for several more decades.

From my cellar: 1995 Dominique Laurent Clos Vougeot. 93 points. Initial reticence and a considerable amount of sediment, then a rather elemental, pheremonal nose of redcurrant, black tea and incense. On the palate a very bright juicy acidity underlying an attractive body. With roast duck and lots of air, this became richer and juicier, the noticeable acidity cutting the duck fat and rendering the whole quite delicious. The wine had a charming rusticity to it, with a slightly old fashioned brutishness to it. Not for those afraid of acidity, but this has a really bright future. Thoroughly enjoyed and ran out too quickly!

2001 Faiveley Echezeaux. BH 91-93. This too offers astonishingly elegant and pure black fruit aromas and intense, sweet, spicy full-bodied flavors that build and build into a finish that simply doesn’t quit. While this doesn’t quite have the finesse and precision of the Combe d’Orveau, it offers even more power and muscle in a perfectly balanced, stylish and harmonious package. This is a beautiful, seductive effort.

Crispy Scaled Black Bass. Main Lobster, Spanish Octopus Bolognese. Nice rich sauce and good lobster. I find the crispy scales on this type of bass a little creepy though.
Liberty Duck Breast. Poached Persimmon, beet-parsnip Puree, Caramelized Salsify. Nice bit of duck.

1964 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva. JG 90. I had a less than stellar bottle of this wine in January of this year, but a bottle tasted six months before that was quite lovely, so I have to assume that the most recent example was simply a bottle of poor provenance. The last pristine example of the ’64 Borgogno Barolo Riserva offered up a complex and fully mature nose of cherries, camphor, forest floor, tar, anise and a bit of bonfire in the upper register. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, deep and tarry, with lovely complexity, good focus and still a bit of untamed tannin to resolve perking up the long finish. Like many of the Borgognos from this era, this is not the most elegant rendition of Barolo, but it is deep, complex and has matured nicely into a wine that offers up the blossoming of bottle age and is a good example of the vintage.

1968 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva. 90 points. Again a rare treat to sample another well kept wine from decades past. Light brick in the glass, with some opacity. Enchanting nose of leather and sous-bois. On the palate, I am in agreement with previous notes commenting on the similarity with Burgundy of the same era. Balanced acids, mature fruit, earth, and leather. Add another star to the already fabulous lineup this afternoon.

1970 Faustino Rioja I Gran Reserva. 92 points. Aged to perfection, rather bright acidity and lift for its age, fully resolved tannin, notes of leather dominate the nose. Paired amazing with our finishing dishes. What an experience.

Grilled American Wagyu New York Steak. Root Vegetable gratin, sauce bordelaise.
With the Root Vegetable Gratin added to the plate. Rice stuff (and I had two helpings).

1996 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron. VM 90. Good full ruby-red. Roasted plum, leather and smoked nuts on the nose. Silky and layered in the mouth. Sweet and suave, with a complicating mineral quality. Suggests solid extract but ultimately a wine of very good rather than outstanding intensity. Finishes with fine tannins and persistent, slow-building flavor. Fleshier and more pliant than the ’98.

1988 Château Mouton Rothschild. JK 90.

1990 Château Lagrange (St. Julien). VM 93. Good deep, full ruby. Explosive, rather wild aromas of dark fruits, leather, animal fur and chocolate. Fat, lush and silky, with a seamless texture and a deep sweetness. This offers terrific volume and finishes very smooth and very long, with utterly suave tannins, notes of leather and game, and a suggestion of surmaturite According to Ducasse, 1990 witnessed cooler September nights than ’89 and thus offered “better conditions for producing great wine. ” A superb showing.

agavin: I used to drink this wine on dates in the 1997-98 time frame. lol

Chef’s Selection of Assorted Cheeses. Manchester, L’Amuse Signature Gouda, Blackstone, Shopshire Blue, Blueberry honey, date walnut cake, fall fruit compote. Really nice little cheese spread.

And great bread to go with it.

Espresso.

Overall, another fabulous dinner. Service was first rate, particularly with Vahan being almost Spago family. Wolfgang spent some time at our table too. I always forget how great the food is at Spago too, and how much they keep updating it to keep it fresh and relevant. The place may still have the format of an 80s/90s fine dining place, but the build out, cuisine, and all that keeps evolving and staying relevant. It’s a big pricey, but it is very very good. We also had tons to eat and I was almost painfully full.

Wine lineup was interesting, varied, and almost all were great. 1-2 flawed wines, but that’s to be expected and we had no shortage — we never do!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or just Foodie Club meals.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Foodie Club, Spago, Wine, Wolfgang Puck

Krug at Spago

Oct24

Restaurant: Spago [1, 2, 3]

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

Date: October 20, 2016

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Impressive

Today’s lovely luncheon is a combo Sage Society Krug event!

Nothing like Krug for lunch.

It was located in “Prive” one of the Spago private rooms.

Krug Grand Cruvee 163 Edition – ID 215034. 94 points. Mint, white flowers, pastry and yellow orchard fruit meld together in Krug’s NV Grande Cuvée. This is one of the very best versions of the Grande Cuvée I can remember tasting in recent years. The impression of total silkiness on the palate is classic Krug. Even though this release is exceptional today, I would be tempted to cellar a few wines for the future, as the best Grand Cuvées age effortlessly. This release is based on 2006 and includes wines from 11 vintages going back to 1990.

Falafel fritters.

Spago staple, sweet sesame cones with ahi tartar.

Pork belly macaron. Pretty awesome! Half dessert, half savory.

Salmon, creme fraiche blini. Another Spago classic that doesn’t disappoint.

The serious looking “krew”.

We got Krug goodies. A cookbook, and the history of the domain.

Spago bread. This one was olive.

Le menu.

Krug Clos du Mesnil 2002 – ID 115024. VM 96. The 2002 Clos du Mesnil is brilliant right out of the gate. Vibrant, focused and crystalline, the 2002 hits all the right notes. Lemon peel, grapefruit, slate and white flowers give the 2002 its high-toned personality. The ripeness of the vintage has softened some of the typically angular young Clos du Mesnil contours. Best of all the 2002 is a rare Clos du Mesnil that drinks well right out of the gate, even if it will surely be more complex with more time in bottle. The 2002 has been absolutely stellar on both occasions I have tasted it so far. The 2002 was vinified by Nicolas Audebert, who is now making the wines at Rauzan-Ségla and Canon.

Sunnyside Up Egg, rye crisp, potato chip espuma. A classic champagne pairing of egg and caviar.

Wolfgang Puck materialized to say hi and grab his glass of du Mesnil!

Krug 2002 – ID 315043. 92-94 points. I have tasted Krug’s 2002 Vintage on multiple occasions but have yet to encounter a bottle that is fully expressive or that lives up to the level of the year. The 2002 needs several hours of air and even so, it remains incredibly reticent, both by Krug standards and relative to the other Champagnes of the vintage, nearly all of which have been released by now. My best advice to Vinous readers is to taste the 2002 before making a decision on whether to buy it or not.

Pan Roasted Maine Lobster Tail. Vanilla Dressing, Mizuna, Bartlett Pear. Interesting vanilla tone with the pear. Perhaps my lobster was very slightly overcooked.

Krug Rose – ID 414068. 94 points. The NV Brut Rosé is brilliant and finely-sculpted in the glass, with floral aromatics, pulsating minerality and chiseled fruit. Less austere than it can be, the Rosé impresses for its combination of tension and textured, phenolic weight. There is so much to like.

Slow Roasted Veal Loin!

Glazed carrots, wild mushrooms, chardonnay reduction. This was the best “prime rib” I’ve ever had — super tender as it was veal. Oh, and there were truffles too. The reduction was fabulous as well.

Krug 4 ways.

Standing is Maggie Henriquez, President and Directeur General of Krug! (the title makes me think of Napoleon). We learned a lot about Krug!

Krug Grande Cuvee 158th edition – ID 108002. A super rare “based on 2002” Grand cuvee. Amazing!

And an older Krug Grande Cuvee, probably from the 80s. Very slightly corked, but mostly blew off and was rather lovely.

Petits fours & Mignardises. I ate like a whole plate.

The lineup.
Maggie and Liz Lee of Sage Society, our hostess and superlative organizer.

I’m always blown away by the quality of Krug. Really, just one of those domains that makes sure the quality is always top notch.

Spago too continues to be fairly impressive. Service was flawless and the food was very good. Particularly that veal was stunning.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Krug, Sage Society, Spago

Sauvage Spago

Oct28

Restaurant: Spago [1, 2]

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

Date: October 23, 2015

Cuisine: American

Rating: Great

Nothing like a Friday afternoon for Grand Cru Burgundy Lunch — and this time at LA classic Spago.

The whole restaurant is lovely, but the private room is the real way to go.

Our special menu.

From my cellar: 2007 Simon Bize Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Aux Vergelesses. Burghound 90. As would reasonably be expected, there is just more here in every dimension with a more complex and more elegant nose that is layered and very fresh and this refinement continues onto the nicely concentrated middle weight flavors that display evident minerality on the sappy, intense and mouth coating finish that lingers and lingers. This is a terrific Savigny blanc and recommended.

agavin: our bottle was a bit advanced.

1986 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet “Morgeot”. 94 points. A single vineyard village, almost 30 years old, and stunning! Lots of nutty richness and good acid.

Buttery puffs filled with country ham. Delicious.

Spago staple, sweet sesame cones with ahi tartar.

Bread.

1996 Domaine Ponsot Chapelle-Chambertin. Burghound 85. Lightish cherry/pinot fruit without much structure or body. Good finesse but that is about the best that can be said for this.

2000 Domaine Robert Groffier Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 92. Much more forward and evolved than any of the preceding wines as the malo finished almost 3 months before the others. Elegant, rich, extremely ripe with somewhat low acidity that is barely able to buffer the powerful flavors yet the wine is also able to effortlessly carry the elevated alcohol. The wine finishes with a touch of warmth but it is not unduly intrusive. This is a surprising wine in that it’s extremely ripe, lavishly rich with very high alcohol yet somehow it remains beautifully balanced. It’s not clear how well it will age but there is enough tannic structure to require 7 to 10 years to resolve.

agavin: spice, lovely.

1999 Bouchard Père et Fils Bonnes Mares. Burghound 93. This is still quite youthful with ever-so-mildly toasty dark berry fruit, earth, wet stone and underbrush-infused aromas leading to rich, full-bodied, powerful and appealingly intense flavors that are blessed with ample amounts of tannin-buffering dry extract that both coats the palate and confers a sappy texture to the beautifully long and still notably structured finish. This may turn out to be even better than my score suggests because while there is not yet outstanding complexity, the underlying material is present that could very well allow the additional depth to develop.

1999 Frederic Esmonin Chambertin. Burghound 89. A noticeable step up in size and volume though not necessarily in intensity or complexity. Earthy and rich with solid power and length to go with medium weight flavors and relatively fine tannins. While this is certainly not disappointing, I was hoping for more.

Grilled Lobster Tail. Herbed Oat Porridge, Glazed Baby Carrots. A big portion of juicy moist lobster. A very lovely dish.

2002 Faiveley Mazis-Chambertin. Burghound 91-93. Always one of Faiveley’s best wines and the ’02 is no exception with an incredibly complex nose of damp earth, minerals, game and a slightly wild fruit component followed by wonderfully sappy, deep, broad, muscular flavors and knock-out purity of expression. I very much like this and the finish is long and strikingly persistent.

2001 Louis Jadot Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 91-94. As it should be, this is easily the biggest wine of the entire line up with robust, intense, broad-shouldered, supremely complex, solidly structured flavors introduced by deeply spicy, quite aromatic and expressive aromas and dramatic finishing intensity. An altogether superb effort that delivers knock out quality.

2003 Louis Jadot Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St. Jacques. Burghound 90-92. Interestingly, this is also quite ripe but not necessarily any more elegant though there is perhaps slightly better depth of material and certainly better overall purity of expression and intensity, especially on the superbly long, firm and punchy backend. While this is not classic in style, there is so much explosive energy and verve that this may very well surprise to the upside with time in bottle.

agavin: best wine of the flight right now.

2002 Louis Jadot Chapelle-Chambertin. Burghound 89-91. Noticeable wood spice frames pretty and pure earthy red fruit that highlights the rich, sappy and elegant medium weight flavors that deliver fine length. This is quite elegant yet altogether serious and blessed with plenty of old vine sap and enough structure to suggest that this will benefit from the better part of a decade in bottle.

Cacao Pasta Matlagliatti. Braised Oxtail Ragout, Pecorino Romano.

2002 Domaine Bertagna Clos St. Denis. Burghound 93. Rich, even extravagant and exotic black fruit leads to round, supple, forward and generous flavors with excellent richness and fine detail. The superbly long finish is impressive for its sheer depth and wonderful complexity and as many of the best ’02s reveal, the tannins here are extremely fine. In sum, this is an absolutely stunning wine with serious potential.

2002 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Chambertin-Clos de Bèze. Burghound 91. A spicy black fruit nose that remains reserved and completely primary leads to rich, full and solidly concentrated flavors that have better definition than what Girardin usually produces and in particular, this is a good deal less fruit-driven as well. Good juice here and one that should age very well yet be accessible relatively early on.

agavin: drinking great now

2001 Domaine Méo-Camuzet Richebourg. Burghound 94. A spicy, elegant and very pure nose is just beginning to display the initial hints of secondary development. There is superb precision to the racy, intense and mineral-driven medium-bodied flavors that exude a focused power on the driving and explosive finish. There isn’t the mid-palate fat or velvety texture of the 2002 but this has its own personality and charm and overall, this has arrived at a place where it could be drunk now with immense pleasure or held for another 5 to 7 years. Note that I have had several bottles that did not show as well as the one described above though most bottles have showed most impressively.

agavin: really great right now, prob best of the flight

1996 Geantet-Pansiot Charmes-Chambertin. VM 94. Saturated deep ruby; one of the darkest ’96s I saw in November. Multifaceted nose combines black fruits, violet, licorice, espresso, smoke, gibier and sweet butter. The class of the cellar in terms of concentration, sweetness, finesse and length; in fact, today this wine makes Geantet’s ’95 seem almost heavy in comparison. Lovely roundness and clarity of flavor. Really explodes on the palate-staining finish.

Roasted Rack of Lamb. Cauliflower Flan, Wild Mushrooms savory cabbage, Cabernet Savignon Reduction. You can never go wrong with lamb chops. Well you can, but not when they are done correctly like this.

1990 Domaine G. Roumier / Christophe Roumier Bonnes Mares. VM 98. Good deep, dark red. Explosively ripe aromas of plum, raspberry, mocha, mint and fresh herbs. Wonderfully fat and voluminous; in fact, this is downright massive for Bonnes-Mares, offering extraordinary palate presence. Finishes with huge, dusty tannins, outstanding breadth and palate-staining length. Unquestionably the most impressive wine of the tasting, but to my palate not the most interesting wine, as the vintage dominates the terroir But this will go on in bottle for many more years.

agavin: Maybe WOTN, or certainly close.

From my cellar: 1993 Louis Jadot Bonnes Mares. Burghound 92. Earthy, deep and wonderfully fresh fruit leads to dense, solidly tannnic, beautifully delineated and focused, rich flavors of exceptional purity and length. While the finish is firm, it is by no means hard and there is excellent buffering sève all underpinned by vibrant acidity. There is plenty of wine here but this is a wine for the patient and it should live for years to come.

agavin: this bottle was sadly just a little corked, not undrinkably so, but enough to steal away the fruit and ruin the experience.

From my cellar (replacing BM above). 1990 Gros Frère et Sœur Clos Vougeot Musigni. 93 points. Powerful fruit, great structure. Just the beginnings of secondary flavors. Rich nose of bright fruits with a smoky undertone. Tastes incredibly fresh for a 19 year old. Bright cherries smoothed by tannins. Very nice. Great burgundy from a great vintage.

agavin: a great wine, in the top 3 or so of the day.

Chef’s selection of artisanal cheese. Nice cheeses, although not enough of them for my taste.
Great fruit bread for the cheese.

I needed a macchiato, it was after all only 4pm when we finished.

Sauvages lunches are always great, but this one like the previous Burgundy lunch was particularly fabulous. Spago is one of the few white table cloth restaurants left in town, and it’s been around for a while, but remains fresh and contemporary. It doesn’t embrace the loud new ambiance like Republique or Bestia, but it does knock the food out of the park, while keeping the look up to date and timeless. The food these days is more Japanese inspired, and less of the California whimsy that Puck originally introduced, but it’s equally fabulous.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or check out other Sauvages meals here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Burgundy, Red Burgundy, Sauvages, Spago, Wine

Spago – 2005 White Burg part 1!

Feb08

Restaurant: Spago

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

Date: February 5, 2013

Cuisine: American

Rating: Mind Blowing

Faithful readers know that I love Burgundy. There is no wine area in the world, red or white, that is so focused. More, or less, this glacial valley in Eastern France only grows two grapes: red Pinot Noir and white Chardonnay. It does so in a minimalist manner that emphasizes the exact geographic and micro-climate conditions of small named parcels of land – and people here have been doing exactly this for well over a 1,000 years.

In the last year I’ve been trying to up my Burgundy game. I’m taking a Burgundy Master (Sommelier) class and really trying to become much more knowledgable about this challenging area. Most casual wine drinkers probably don’t realize how complex it is. You could invest decades of full time study in this one region and still not know all there is to know.

Which brings me to tonight, where I was lucky enough to attend the first of three dinners that explore the white wines of Burgundy in a manner so focused its worthy of the . I’m mostly a pinot guy (red) but this series focuses only on white 2005s (all Chardonnay) and this particular dinner on Chablis, Meursault, and Corton-Charlemagne. All of the wines here were provided by the participants and were in impeccable condition.

While tasting 30 Chardonnay’s from just three regions all together is a bit of a buttery blitzkrieg, there is no better way to get a sense of the specific flavor profiles of the different vineyards. By sampling across several great 2005 Chablis, you can get a real grasp on what IS Chablis and hence what is Corton-Charlemagne.

Tonight’s venue is the (new) original Spago in Beverly Hills.

And we were set up in a private room, which given the nature of this exacting tasting was essential.

Tonight’s wines and the menu. The four large flights are each paired with a course. The food was great, although personally, I would have matched perhaps three small courses to each flight, but I’ve become ridiculously spoiled and find anything less than 8-10 courses anemic :-). World’s smallest violin, I know.

This dinner was ALOT of work for the Sommelier. We tasted each flight blind, knowing the wines (5-8) in the flight but not which was which (they had numbers). The Somm had to organize a legion of glasses, label them, and pour and serve!

The whole blind/not-blind thing is a bit of a debate. I can understand why it’s very useful to try the wines stripped of their identity so as not to be colored, but at my stage in my own personal learning curve, I get more out of knowing what I’m tasting as I taste it. I’m still trying to build mental flavor profiles for specific vineyards and associate them analytically with descriptors and various qualities. I had printed out individual tasting sheets for each wine, but I had made the mistake of labeling them by the wine. Next dinner I’ll just put numbers on them and fill in the wine later.

The amuse section was accompanied by the 1996 Egry-Ouriet Brut Grand Cru Vieilles Vignes. A very nice dry champagne that’s reached that stately level of maturity.

Steak Tartar. On a toast, with black truffle. I love good steak tartar!

Spago falafel. With creme fraiche.

1996 Bollinger Grande Annee.

Buttery pastry filled with bacon. Very yummy.

Puck’s Jewish Pizza. Creme fraiche, chives, dill, red onion and nova lox. This is always SO good. I make it myself at home too, pretty successfully.

Flight 1: Chablis

2005 Domaine Vincent Dauvissat Chablis Les Preuses

(from a 1 ha parcel planted in 1970)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Good pale yellow. Knockout nose combines peche de vigne and gingery spices, plus the same violety high note I found in the 2006. Rich, broad and tactile, with terrific energy and intensity to the slightly exotic flavors of orange, lemon peel, flowers and licorice. As silky as this is, it conveys an outstanding lightness of touch. Best today on the explosive, rocky, palate-staining finish, which offers a real whiplash of iodine, warm stone and citrus peel flavors. This vineyard was the least affected by botrytis in 2005, according to Dauvissat; the wine is the lowest in alcohol, but still a full 13.5%. 94(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: Here the restrained nose is bright, elegant and classy, offering an unmistakable step up in distinction and refinement with very subtle background notes of botrytis that can also be found on the textured, supple and pure medium full flavors that are sweet, complex and utterly palate drenching on the hugely long and intense finish. Indeed, this is so intense that I had to stall for time to allow my palate to recover before moving on to the Les Clos. Trust me, this is a “wow” wine. 94

2005 Domaine Raveneau Chablis Les Clos

(from a .54 ha parcel dead center in the vineyard)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Pale yellow. Ineffable nose combines fresh pineapple, grapefruit, crushed stone and menthol. Pure, taut, extremely backward wine that’s like sucking on a mouthful of rocks today. Like a richer and even more austere version of the Montee de Tonnerre. With no obvious sweetness showing today, this is revealing more than it’s showing. Finishes very long and very dry, with a purity of mineral expression that’s rare for this vintage. Less likable today than the Valmur but even denser. This will require at least a decade of cellaring. 95(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: An incredibly pure but also incredibly backward ultra high-toned ripe floral and white pear and peach nose nuanced by subtle spice and brioche notes complements perfectly the round, intense, delineated and stony flavors that are like drinking liquefied rock, all wrapped in a textured, palate staining, austere and almost painfully intense and chewy finish. This is a bit more reserved at present than the Valmur, which is interesting because normally it’s the other way around. Either way, this has flat out great potential. 95

This wine was unusual in the Chablis flight for being SO intensely mineral with a hint of sulfur. Now, Chablis is a very mineral wine, but this was the oddball of the group.

2005 Domaine Vincent Dauvissat Chablis Les Clos

(from a 1.7 ha parcel of 47 year old vines)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Bright, pale yellow. Classic, soil- inflected aromas of citrus fruits, clove, wet stone and iodine. Suave on entry, then quite high- pitched in the middle, with superb purity to the flavors of grapefruit, lemon and minerals. At once fine-grained and taut, with captivating floral lift. Like the Preuses, this is most impressive today on the highly complex, uncommonly long finish, which throws off notes of sexy brown spices, juniper and white pepper, along with an intriguing saline quality. 95

Allen Meadows, Burghound Database, tasted Nov 17. 2011: This terrific effort only seems to be getting better and better with each passing year with its spicy white flower aromas that introduce sophisticated, pure and gorgeously intense flavors that explode on the strikingly long and chewy finish. The depth here is just terrific and the hallmark minerality is present in spades. And, as is always the casee with this wine, the driving and penetrating finish just lasts and lasts and this is without question truly a stunner of a wine. I have upgraded my rating slightly as this is still on the way up but is drinking so well right now that it would not be complete infanticide to drink a bottle now. 95

2005 Domaine William Fevre Chablis Les Preuses

(from two parcels of vines that total 2.55 ha, or 22% of the entire appellation)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Good pale color with green highlights. Elegant nose hints at gunflinty silex, with pineapple emerging with aeration. Very rich and suave; in a rounder, fatter style than the Cote Bouguerots but with a bit less clarity and lift. Shows a more exotic peach quality in the middle palate. Finishes subtle, smooth and long. 92

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: This is the second year running where the Preuses really distinguishes itself with an incredibly complex nose of brioche, spice, green fruit, shell fish, algae and sea breeze notes that merge into wonderfully elegant yet generous, full, forward and strikingly classy flavors that are dense, balanced and unbelievably persistent plus they display more minerality than usual. The acid spine is firm and ripe but not aggressive and should easily see this through at least a decade of cellar time. I normally have a real weakness for the Valmur at this address but the Preuses is really something in 2005. A “wow” wine. 94

2005 Domaine Raveneau Chablis Montee de Tonnerre

(from a huge parcel of 2.5 ha though this figure includes the surface area in Chapelot which is bottled separately)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Bright, pale yellow. Pure but reticent aromas of citrus peel, hazelnut, clove and minerals; even more strict today than the Butteaux. Powerful but almost painfully closed, dominated today by citric and mineral cut and a flavor of wet stone. A very rich but austere wine that’s presently hard to taste. Finishes broad, layered and quite dry, with a ripe, honeyed quality. This will almost certainly be for drinking after the ’06. 92+

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: 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. 94

This was our only Premier Cru of the flight but was one of my favorite wines. It was a bit more expressive than many of the Grand Crus and had a wonderful complexity.

2005 Domaine William Fevre Chablis Les Clos

(from 4 separate parcels totaling 4.11 ha, 3 of which are all at the top of the slope)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Pale green color. Pure but subdued aromas of lemon-lime and crushed stone. Intensely flavored and youthfully tight, offering sharply delineated citrus fruit, white peach and crushed stone elements. In a cooler style for the vintage, with just the slightest exotic hint to show that it’s from a very warm year. The very long, rising finish displays uncommon precision for the vintage. But the young 2006 appears to be even longer and more minerally. 94(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: In contrast to the relative expressiveness of most of this group, the Les Clos is backward, reserved and very tight, revealing only glimpses of white flower, oyster shell and an airy marine influence that can also be found on the intense, pure and astonishingly precise flavors that possess another dimension relative to all of the other ’05s with the exception of the Preuses. Class in a glass as they say and while presently tighter than a drum with an exceptionally dry finish, this has the material and balance to age for years. 94

2005 Domaine Raveneau Chablis Valmur

(from a .75 ha parcel)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2007: Pale yellow. Brisk, pure aromas of citrus skin, powdered stone, quinine and iodine. Juicy and citric on entry, then supple and rich in the middle, but with superb energy giving shape and grip to the lemon-lime, citrus, stone and floral flavors. Conveys an impression of sucrosite but also comes across as wonderfully fresh and taut. Pure, palate-dusting, rising finish boasts terrific lift and aromatic perfume. Valmur is favored in hot years, notes Raveneau. “The vines here run north-south, which enables them to resist the mid-day sun and retain freshness.” 95

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 28, Oct. 1, 2007: This is more expressive than usual, featuring a hint of wood spice and the usual gorgeously elegant cool green fruit, oyster shell and saline notes that introduce unusually big and powerful flavors that are naturally sweet, intense and like the majority of these ’05s, possesses buckets of dry extract. The finish just oozes with minerality and the intensity is almost painful as it really stains the palate. I noted last year that there was marvelous quality here and there was so much material that it could be even better than my range suggested. Well, I agree with my initial prediction as the Valmur is indeed better in bottle than it was from cask and a flat out magnificent wine. 95

The glass farm after round 1.

“Chirashi Sushi”. Blue Fin Tuna, Hamachi, Salmon Pearls, Sea Urchin. Very yummy, and unusual to get something so faithfully Japanese in a non-Japanese restaurant.

Various bread.

Flight 2: Meursault

Colin-Morey Meursault Genevrieres

Stephen Tanzer: not reviewed

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A completely different nose is present here with seductive, spicy and slightly exotic fruit aromas marry into intense, delineated and explosive medium plus weight flavors, all wrapped in a vibrant and terrifically long finish that is picture-perfect Meursault in character. There is also a touch of wood on the backend but it’s subtle and will be absorbed in time. 92

Mikulski Meursault Genevrieres

Stephen Tanzer: not reviewed

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 31, July 1, 2008: A subtly spicy and wonderfully seductive nose features notes of citrus, pear and green fruit that precede the racy, gorgeously intense and seriously pure flavors that are textured, sweet and mouth coating on the energetic and penetrating finish. This is one of those ‘wow’ wines that really grabs your attention with its effortless grace. This bears more than a passing resemblance to the ’06 version except this is more concentrated and slightly more powerful. Either way, it’s most impressive as well. 93

Henri Boillot Meursault Charmes

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Cool aromas of citrus fruits and stone. Dense, concentrated and sappy, with sweet citrus and mineral flavors firmed by surprisingly sound acidity. A classic Charmes with terrific inner-mouth energy. Finishes long and brisk, with excellent cut. 93(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: An extremely subtle touch of pain grillé works well with the ripe peach, apricot, floral and lemon rind aromas that introduce rich, pure and generous flavors that coat the mouth with sappy extract and there is a lovely minerality that surfaces on the highly complex and impressively long finish. This combines most of the power of the Poruzots with most of the elegance of the Les Cras to create a more complete effort. Note that there was a bit of CO2 on the finish and I would suggest decanting this for 20 minutes first. In a word, gorgeous. 93

Lafon Meursault Charmes

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Aromas of peach and vanilla. Rich, fat and classically dry, with compelling purity to the lemon, crushed stone and mineral flavors. Perfectly integrated acidity extends the palate-staining, layered finish. With a blend of 15-, 45- and 75-year-old vines in his 1.7-hectares holding in Charmes, Lafon has the flexibility each year to make one of Burgundy’s top Meursault bottlings. 93-95

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 31, July 1, 2008: Here the reserved and tight nose is less spicy but no less complex with high-toned aromas of white peach and pear nuanced by subtle notes of hazelnut and orange blossom that give way to rich, full and mouth coating flavors that evidence a silky mouth feel and culminate in a focused, linear and intensely mineral finish that offers both class and finesse. This really expands on the borderline tannic and almost painfully intense finish and it seems like an even bigger wine than it is. As good an example of Lafon Charmes as I have seen in a while. 94

2005 Roulot Meursault Charmes

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Reticent, pure aromas of lemon and crushed stone, with a hint of vanillin oak; a more exotic mango note emerged with aeration. Rich, dense and young but with a distinct sweetness in the middle palate, in part a function of the wine’s vanillin oak component. This is fat and sweet but doesn’t quite come alive today. Roulot finds this a bit anonymous, “in the warm style of 2005.” 91

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A moderately exotic nose of honeysuckle, mango and apricot trimmed in discreet brioche notes leads to delicious, round and sweet flavors that are generous and nicely harmonious if not as intense and persistent as the best in the range. Still, this is really quite lovely as it has already found its center. 91

Domaine Henri Boillot Meursault Genevrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Aromas of soft citrus fruits, pear and crushed stone. Wonderfully dense and sweet but with great precision and juicy cut to the fruit and mineral flavors. Finishes impressively long and pure, with superb cut. An outstanding Genevrieres in the making. 94

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: The first wine to display any real wood influence, which in this case manifests itself with touches of pain grillé and vanilla that highlight the naturally spicy and equally seductive aromas where the spiciness continues onto the round, rich, concentrated and impressively powerful flavors blessed with huge dry extract levels that lend an almost chewy quality to the hugely long finish. This is not quite as elegant or racy as the Pucelles but it’s close. 93

The glasses keep coming!

“Uova da Raviolo”. Ricotta Cream, Parmesan, Black Truffle. This was yum, yum, yum as it’s filled with poached egg (complete with runny yolk). A great buttery rich dish that paired brilliantly with the Burgs.

Flight 3: Meursault Perrieres

Matrot Meursault Perrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Good pale color. Classic aromas of pineapple, citrus fruits and wet stone; this reminded me of a Riesling Schlossberg. Wonderfully dense and intense, with terrific cut and acidity giving sharp definition to the mineral and citrus flavors. Thick but uncompromisingly dry wine that finishes with great verve and a stony whiplash of flavor. This needs a decade of bottle aging. 92+

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A superbly elegant nose of green apple, spiced dried rose petal and orange and lemon citrus nuances merge into almost aggressively mineral suffused medium-bodied flavors that are classic Perrières in character, all wrapped in very tight, linear and gorgeously detailed finish. This is a seriously impressive effort but one that will need plenty of cellar time. Terrific. 94

Colin-Morey Meursault Perrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Classy aromas of superripe peach and crushed stone. Rich, broad and full, offering most of the Perrieres food groups: peach, apricot, oatmeal, minerals, hazelnut, vanilla. Finishes extremely broad and long, with the wine’s very ripe apricotty fruit not yet in harmony with its powerful minerality. A great wine in the making but this will need five or six years of cellaring. 94(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A very deft touch of wood frames ripe and strikingly elegant white flower aromas that are somewhat higher-toned and airier than those of the Genevrières while introducing rich and full yet finely detailed medium-bodied flavors that also positively exude an almost pungent minerality on the gorgeously persistent finish. This is built on a base of minerality and it lends a completely different textural impact to the wine, particularly on the finale. 93

Le Moine Meursault Perrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: (sugar fermentation finished, malo almost complete) Nose dominated by crushed stone and lemon; precise and vineyard-typical for 2005. Dense and fat with fruit, showing the sweetness of the vintage in spades. Very promising but can’t quite match the 2004 for precision or length. 90-92

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A stunning nose of subtly spiced white flower and green apple is trimmed in background hints of pain grillé that merge into sophisticated, pure and strikingly textured medium-bodied flavors oozing with both minerality and dry extract that really coats and stains the palate on the wonderfully precise and moderately strict finish. This will require a few years to really unfold and blossom but the material to do so is here. 92-94

2005 Roulot Meursault Perrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Vibrant aromas of orange, minerals and crushed stone. Juicy, sexy, taut wine with terrific energy to its flavors of orange and stone. This has the clarity and breed that the Charmes is not showing today. Wonderfully minerally and long on the aftertaste. Almost deceptively accessible today, this is built for extended cellaring. 94

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 31, July 1, 2008: A strikingly pure nose of white flower and spice aromas complements perfectly the delicious, intense and stony flavors that are wonderfully vibrant and gorgeously detailed on the transparent and equally pure finish that explodes with more minerality. This is beautifully balanced and understated with a Zen-like sense of calm. I very much like this and it’s very Perrières in character. In a word, brilliant. 94

Don Cornwell, from a dinner with Jean Marc Roulot on Feb 21, 2012: Medium yellow color; quite forward floral and pear aromas; this was bigger and clearly richer than the 2000. It had more body and more alcohol – but it lacked the minerality and grip of the 2000. This was a wine of greater weight and higher alcohol – a thicker style of MP. 93

Lafon Meursault Perrieres

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Explosively ripe fruit aromas of apricot and pineapple currently dominate underlying minerality on the nose. Silky, rich and powerful, with the pineapple and peach flavors framed by harmonious ripe acidity. A wine with superb stuffing and back-end breadth, finishing with palate-saturating mineral and dusty stone flavors. This boasts impressive aging potential, but the Charmes is at least as impressive in the context of the year. Just 10 barrels of this wine were produced, compared to 18 in 2004. 94(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 31, July 1, 2008: Once again the Perrières is the class of these 1ers with its cool and reserved nose of white flower and green apple that complements to perfection the textured, pure and stylish flavors that possess excellent volume but also wonderful detail and punch and the intensely mineral finish that is refined, pure and long with plenty of underlying tension. A ‘wow’ wine. 95

Flight 4: Corton-Charlemagne

Black Bass. Crispy Scale, Littleneck Clams, Herb Coulis, Garlic Purée. The sauce was wow tasty.

Jadot Corton Charlemagne

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: A strikingly complex nose of green apple fruit, pear and a distinct floral note complements perfectly the hugely powerful flavors brimming with dry extract and built on a base of solid minerality. This is a borderline massive wine that is textured, concentrated and sleekly muscled yet it remains precise, pure and balanced with positively huge length. A very impressive wine that could actually surprise to the upside as the underlying material here is as good as any 2005 Corton-Charlemagne. 95

Bouchard Corton Charlemagne

(3.65 ha of east-facing vineyards in Ladoix-Serrigny-climats; vine age presently unknown)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Pungent stone fruits, cold steel, marzipan and charred oak on the nose. Large-scaled, tactile and quite powerful, with captivating, utterly pure flavors of pineapple, wet stone and minerals. Wonderfully sweet and smooth on the back end, with a lovely light touch, but the dusty, tactile aftertaste is stony and uncompromising. I’d forget about this extremely backward wine for a good decade. 95(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: An expressive and highly interesting nose of cool and fresh green apple surrounded by freshly baked brioche aromas leads to big, rich and sleekly muscled flavors that are quite ripe yet there is a very firm acid backbone that maintains outstanding focus on the almost painfully intense mineral-infused finish. This is a ‘wow’ wine that cedes nothing to the Montrachet in terms of power and weight. 95

Don Cornwell, notes from a tasting on January 24, 2008: Very light yellow gold; pear, citrus and some S02 (though a bit less than the second wine); bright, sweet pear/green apple flavors with the best acidity of the flight; this demonstrates some power, some minerality, and some elegance and minerality in the finish. Some of the guys thought this was Chevalier. My clear favorite of the first flight. 94+

Girardin Corton Quintessence

(from 0.30 ha of 70+ year-old vineyards located in En Charlemagne and Le Charlemagne, with southwest exposures)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Smoky aromas of flinty silex and chicken broth; in an awkward stage. Then sweeter than the basic Corton-Charlemagne bottling, at once more opulent and more closed. Can’t match the ’06 for grip or class but this boasts superb richness and smoky depth. Today I find this less pristine and less vibrant than the regular bottling, but it’s also extremely unevolved, and longer and more powerful on the back end. 93(+?)

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: Here the wood is a background nuance if not invisible, highlighting spicy, pure and wonderfully expressive green fruit aromas that are really quite classy while merging into rich, round and stylish medium full flavors brimming with huge amounts of dry extract and an explosive, driving and persistent finish where the wood resurfaces. This is a serious effort but one that is generous and beautifully balanced, which will permit it to age well. 92-95

Bonneau du Martray Corton Charlemagne

(9.5 ha contiguous plot of southwest-facing vineyards planted from 1950 to 1994 with an average age of 47 years; 4.52 ha is located in En Charlemagne and just under 5.0 ha in Le Charlemagne.)

Stephen Tanzer: not reviewed

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 31, July 1, 2008: A ripe and classic nose of distinctly discreet and reserved green fruit and floral aromas that are airy, pure and lightly spiced merge into intense, precise and penetrating medium full flavors blessed with terrific acid/fruit balance and huge length. This is really a lovely wine that is presently a tightly coiled spring and in need of extended bottle aging to really put on display the superb potential here. An understated stunner of a wine as well as ultra refined and one of the best examples of this appellation in 2005. 95

Le Moine Corton Charlemagne

(Negociant wine; produced from two plots in En Charlemagne with a western exposure; the larger plot is 40 year old vines and the smaller one is 18 year old vines)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: (Bottled in March of ’07) Very fresh aromas of cold steel and menthol; distinctly medicinal in the context of the year. Then wonderfully full but with superb energy, combining flavors of lemon, lime, ginger and crushed rock. The minerality here is almost painful. A compellingly taut wine with great palate-staining length and cut. 95

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: As one would reasonably expect, this is much more elegant and refined with moderate wood highlighting the fresh and stony green fruit aromas that offer real depth and leads to precise, minerally and exceptionally powerful flavors that positively drench the palate in dry extract on the hugely long finish. This is still sorting itself out but the quality of the raw materials is impeccable and it possesses impressive potential. 92-94

Boillot Corton Charlemagne

(beginning with 2005, the Boillot Corton was sourced from a different vineyard located in Aloxe-Corton [I believe it is Le Corton] which has a “full south facing” exposure)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Sep/Oct 2007: Wonderfully ripe, deep aromas of lime, minerals and crushed stone. An incredible mouthful of stones and minerals, with uncanny intensity, juiciness and lift. At this point in my marathon tasting with Boillot, my handwriting was degenerating and I was using exclamation marks rather than adjectives. Flat-out great white Burgundy. Incidentally, Boillot changed his supplier of Corton-Charlemagne as of this vintage; he now works with vines in Aloxe-Corton that face full south. 98(+?)?

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: Here the nose is completely different with pungent and almost aggressively intense green apple aromas infused with an underlying sense of wet stone that is in keeping with the character of the pure, chiseled and fantastically intense full-bodied and muscular flavors that possess serious punch and verve on the equally explosive and very fresh finish. This also has that ‘wow’ sensation because of the beautiful sense of tension that is like a tightly coiled spring. Terrific. 95

Montille Corton Charlemagne

(1.04 ha of south-facing vineyards located in Pougets; these were old Corton (rouge) vines grafted over to chardonnay beginning with 2004 vintage)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2006: Perfumed aromas of apple and nutmeg. Large-scaled, tactile and wonderfully ripe, with rich apple and peach flavors. Very sweet and broad for young Corton-Charlemagne, combining impressive volume and lovely finesse of texture. This was acidified, but one would never know it. Finishes rich, sweet and very long, without the austerity so often shown by this grand cru. There’s just a single barrel of this juice from the family’s new half-hectare holding on 25-year-old roots. (This is actually a south- facing parcel in Corton Pougets that was grafted over to chardonnay two years ago.) 90-93

Allen Meadows, Burghound, Issue No. 27, July 1, 2007: While the entire parcel eligible to be declared as Corton-Charlemagne measures 1.05 ha, it was originally planted to pinot noir and was grafted over to chardonnay in 2004. As a result, the net production was only about 15% of what it will eventually be in 2010 and the vines produced a total of one barrel. An expressive nose of discreetly toasty oak, green apple and spicy pear aromas gives way to rich, full and impressively intense big-bodied flavors that possess excellent volume and a fresh, vibrant and pure finish that just goes on and on. If 2005 is indeed representative of what we can expect going forward, room will need to be made among the very best producers of this appellation to welcome a new member as this is extremely impressive. 93-95

Colin-Morey Corton Charlemagne

(Negociant wine; half comes from 25 year-old vines En Charlemagne vines with a southwest exposure and half comes from 45 year-old vines in Le Charlemagne with a south/southwest exposure; both parcels are usually picked the same day and vinified together)

Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 2006: First cuvee, from Aloxe (fermentation finished): Aromas of apple, spices and liquid stone, with the metallic aspect often shown by young examples from this grand cru. Then wonderfully concentrated and precise, with uncanny sucrosite for a dry wine (this has just 1.3 grams of r.s.). Rock-solid yet supple and ripe, with captivating ginger apple flavor. Finishes with outstanding persistence. A great sample. Second cuvee, from Pernand: Ginger, apple and crushed stone on the nose; just a hint of malic acidity remaining. Then thoroughly ripe and sappy, with a dominant crushed stone character suggesting cool soil. Offers the combination of density, strong acidity and length that normally points to a very long evolution in bottle. These two lots, both from purchased grapes, will be assembled into a single wine, which is likely to be extraordinary. 93-97

Allen Meadows, Burghound Database. Tasted Dec 4. 2011: There are still noticeable toast elements coupled with overtly ripe and complex green fruit, white apple and pear aromas that merge into big, textured and notably big-boned flavors that feel almost opulent as the texture and mid-palate fat render the acidity almost invisible. This is a big and very rich wine that is impressive through its sheer size and weight and as such will most please those who enjoy power white burgundy as it’s here in spades. For my taste, this has arrived at its apogee and while it will certainly continue to hold for many years to come, I don’t foresee any additional upside development. 93

Don Cornwell, notes from a tasting on January 24, 2008: Light yellow-green color; brilliant citrus and green apple aromas; bright citrus and pear flavors yet fatter than virtually all 2004’s I’ve had; some minerality in the back half of the mid-palate; long fruit and effect finish. 92+

By round four the glass explosion was nearly overwhelming! This is even AFTER some had been cleared.

Trio of Veal Loin, Cheek, Tongue, Oven Roasted Maitake Mushrooms, Apple-Celery-Vanilla Purée, Confit Lemon. Very tasty reduction.

2001 Chateau de Fargues

Wine Advocate: Still in barrel, this Chateau d’Yquem look-alike exhibits powerful creme brulee characteristics along with some volatile acidity, huge, full-bodied, unctuously textured flavors, ample intensity as well as purity, and caramelized tropical fruits. This brawny heavyweight requires 5-6 years of bottle age, and should evolve for three decades. 94-96

Passion, Pineapple, Mango. Rum Baba Boules. Passion Fruit Frozen Kumo. Oven Roasted Pineapples. Paired brilliantly too.

All the wines in a line. Wow!

This was a stunning dinner. The food was really spot on and Wolfgang himself popped in to say hi. He really gets around as I’ve seen him a large percentage of the time when I eat at ANY of his places. There was plenty of food too, although my food snob preferences would have been for more dishes, but each one was extremely well executed, some memorable even (like the Ravioli).

What can you say about the wines? Those of you who only know Chardonnay through its pathetic internationalized and manipulated variants are really missing something. White Burgundy, which I find many (less serious) wine drinkers aren’t really aware of, is in a rarefied class by itself and this was a hyper focused peak into a slice of the best of the best. Now, I still prefer great red Burgundy — nothing really matches the brilliance of an awesome Bonnes-Mares, Richebourg or the like — but it was great to really delve into a comparison of the different vineyards. One of my take aways was invest in more Meursault Perrieres because it’s a really sexy wine, and not quite as pricey as some of the grand crus.

I eagerly await night 2, which will focus on the “hyphenated” Montrachet’s like (Batard-Montrachet and Chevalier-Montrachet) and will be hosted at Valentinos. I’ve learned some things about how to taste at these events and will be better prepared to do it a different way. I would like to reach the point where I can write up a competent professional report myself, but I still have a way to go with whites (and to a lesser extent with reds).

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By: agavin
Comments (4)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: 2005 White Burgundy, Allen Meadows, Burgundy, Chablis wine, Chardonnay, Corton-Charlemagne, Foodie Club, Meursault, Spago, Stephen Tanzer, White Burgundy

The New Cal Cuisine: Rustic Canyon

Nov16

Restaurant: Rustic Canyon [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 1119 Wilshire Blvd. Santa Monica, Ca 90401. 310-393-7050

Date: Aug 25, 2010

Cuisine: Farmer’s Market Californian

ANY CHARACTER HERE

Having lived for 16 years in LA I’ve watched the evolution of California Cuisine. When I first came here we were still in the fading years of the 80s eclectic, typified by places like Spago or 90s fusion like Matsuhisa or the much missed Abiquiu. Today, it’s all about being ingredient driven, and Rustic Canyon is one of our many fine examples of this trend.

Burrata with peaches. You can pretty much never go wrong with Burrata or Fresh peaches.

An heirloom tomato (this very buzz word a legacy of the trend), cucumber, yogurt, goat cheese salad.

Tonight’s pick from my cellar. I love my burgs. RP gives it 93, “The dark colored 1997 Latricieres-Chambertin has profound prune, plum, and licorice flavors. This satin-textured, explosive, deep, masculine wine is tannic, structured, and powerful. Blackberry juice, mint, and plums can be found throughout its deep flavor profile and opulently flavored, persistent finish. It will require cellaring patience yet has the potential for mid- to long-term aging. Projected maturity: 2003-2012+.”

Sweet corn soup, with Pistou. This dish had an unctuous foamy texture, and brought out the very best in sweet corn flavor.

A trio of crustini. Each with very interesting (and delicious) flavor profiles. Tomatos and basil, new style. Anchovies (not the over salted sort) and a sweetish tapanade, crisp goat cheese and olives.

Homemade Gnocchi, with fresh Genoese pesto. This brought out the lovely brightness of the basil.

Sweet corn (again :-)) Agnolotti. Yum. Fresh pasta, which you never saw 10 years ago.

Cinnamon beignets with a foamy chocolate cappachino sauce. This is really a variant of the traditional Spanish churro with chocolate. And that’s not a bad thing because both are delicious! These were hot hot out of the frier.