Showing posts with label Wine Dinner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wine Dinner. Show all posts

Saturday, August 26, 2023

Pour Boys End of Summer ('23) Wine Dinner

Pour Boys End of Summer ('23) Wine Dinner Extravaganza

Our Pour Boys wine group gathered in Northwest Indiana for our end of summer / early fall wine dinner hosted by Dr Dan and Linda. As always, the group brought a spectacular wine flight to accompany the extensive dinner offering. Dan and Linda prepared smoked beef brisket BBQ which set the tone for robust hearty full fruit forward wines. 

As usual, Dan set out an extensive selection of charcuturie, meats and sausages, and artisan cheeses, three types of grilled shrimp and mushrooms. 


For dinner, Dan and Linda prepared bratwursts, grilled chicken breasts, smoked beef brisket and pulled pork, followed by an extensive medley of sides and salads. 

 

The Pour Boys collectively brought an extensive wine flight worthy of a feast, and a serious wine tasting.

As has become his custom, 'Champagne John' brought two bottle of vintage Champagne:


Bollinger Extra Brut Champagne RD 2007 (De'gorge 10 Juillette 2020)
Charles Heidsieck Rose' 2008 

Bollinger Extra Brut Champagne RD 2007 (De'gorge 10 Juillette 2020)

 The blend of this 2007 vintage is composed of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay. It features 91% Grands Crus and 9% Premiers Crus. A total of 14 crus can be find in the blending. The fermentation is entirely in oak barrels.

Bollinger R.D. is sold just a few months after being disgorged, with a very low dosage known as “extra brut”, at just 3 grams per litre. The recent disgorgement guarantees the remarkable freshness of the wine.

The 2007 vintage marks a return to the roots of the R.D. cuvée and its historic label with the original material and legendary font of the 1952 vintage, once again showing the date of disgorging.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3916398

https://www.champagne-bollinger.com/en/wine/bollinger-rd-2007/ 


Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Millésimé Rosé 2008

Another special bottling, a blend of 63% Pinot Noir (including 9% of red wine) and 37% Chardonnay, this rosé from Charles Heidsieck is sourced from 11 grands and premiers crus sourced from Les Riceys in the far south of Champagne.

 It was awarded 98 points by James Suckling, 96 points by Decanter, and 95 points by Wine Enthusiast and Wine Spectator.

Beautiful rose colored, superbly balanced and tasty, toasted nutty character, perfect acidity with hints of apple, dried cherry and raspberry red fruits.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3321069

 

Eric did the honors of opening the Champagne with Dan's 'champagne sword' ... 


Dan followed the Champagne flight with an ultra premium vintage Chardonnay:

Sea Smoke Sta Rita Hills Estate Chardonnay 2014

We've had many vintages of this label over the years and I believe this vintage, at this age, tonight, was the best ever - in its sweet spot, at the apex of its drinking window! 

It was rated 93 points by Wine Enthusiast and 91 points by Wine Spectator.

Straw colored, medium bodied, concentrated white peach flavors predominate with notes of pear on a full smooth elegant finish.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=3022299

https://www.seasmoke.com/ 

Followed by another Sea Smoke label from Dan's cellar, club allocation, pivoting to the reds ...

Sea Smoke Botella Sta Rita Hills California Grand Cru Pinot Noir 2009

This limited release label is from Dan's cellar and wine club allocation. 

It was rated 92 points by Wine Advocate. 

Garnet colored, medium bodied, dark fruit with accents of smoke, licorice and leather with a smooth polished lingering finish. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1102815

And the red flight continued; as I've written often in these pages, the order of tasting is based on a intricate studious mating dance we go through at the beginning of each event, establishing the tasting order based on previous experiences, sweetness, age, depth, weight and boldness and body. 

Much of the fun of the evening is determining in retrospect how accurate we were in determining the best or optimal tasting sequence. Invariably we're very close to being right on, or within a very few, very minor variations or adjustments, swapping a couple bottles' order, for the ultimate tasting experience!

Here is the tasting order of the evening, which as usual, was spot on, and required little of no modification as the evening went on. Of course, such changes are the basis of fun, animated and lively discussion for the wholehearted wine geeks!

Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto 2008

Dan offered this ultra-premium Sangiovese blend from his cellar. It received 94 points from James Suckling and Wine Advocate.

Full bodied, dark intense concentrated  black fruits with notes of mocha, spice and hints of tar on a chewy tannin laced long finish. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1799632

Ernie followed with his customary ultra-premium Bordeaux blends ... two spectacular releases ! 


Peter Michael Les Pavots 2005
Lynch Bages Pauillac Bordeaux 2010
 
Peter Michael "Les Pavots" Knights Valley Bordeaux Blend 2005

This is a Bordeaux 'right bank style blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc, 12% Merlot & 2% Petit Verdot, akin to a St.-Emilion or Pomerol. 

It was rated 95 points Int'l Wine Review and Wine Advocate, 93 points by Vinous, and 92 points and "Top 100 Wines of 2008" by Wine Spectator.

Delicious! We drank this wine from the Reserve Winelist at our Pour Boys dinner at the Del Ray Beach Wine Room back in 2021.  Tonight was consistent with that tasting when I gave it 94 points. 

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/06/pour-boy-wine-dinner-at-del-ray-beach.html

Ernie brought this label to our Pour Boys OTBN night in 2014. 

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2014/06/otbn-2014.html 

Deep ruby colored, full-bodied, complex and multi-dimensional yet impeccably balanced, elegant and harmonious; dark currant and black raspberry fruits with spices, tobacco, leather, chocolate and cassis notes with a smooth silky finish. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=505831

For me, while the Les Pavot was elegant and complex, the more expressive and forward Lynch Bages, along with the Del Dotto Syrah were the WOTN - Wines of the Night (due to the smoked BBQ pairing), along with the Sea Smoke Chardonnay! With a grilled beefsteak, the Les Pavots and Lynch Bages would've been a wonderful duel!

Château Lynch-Bages Pauillac Bordeaux 2010

This is a spectacular wine, it was rated 98 points by Jeb Dunnuck and James Suckling, 97 points by Wine Advocate, and 96 points by Wine Spectator (also Cellar Selection), Wine Enthusiast and Decanter.

Dark garnet colored, full-bodied, layered, complex and multi-dimensional yet smooth, elegant and polished;  classic Pauillac dark berry and currant fruits accented by notes of cassis, cigar tobacco, and lead pencil graphite, with hints of oak and clove spice turning to firm, powdery tannins and lively acids on a long silky finish. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1123088

Then on to the Big Reds ... to accompany the BBQ ...

Bill brought this rare Carlisle Napa Valley Hayne Vineyard Zinfandel 2012

Followed by Lyle's, Seghesio Cortina Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2015

Then on to the Syrahs/Shiraz's ... 

I brought from our cellar this aged vintage classic label of which we've had great fun over the years, of which there are several stories across the group ... this was amazingly resilient and still going strong at 28 years.

D'Arenberg McLaren Vale "Dead Arm" Shiraz 1995

Consistent with earlier tastings, I first published a note on this wine in pre-blog days back in 2005, which I chose and opened from our cellar for my birthday dinner.

Eric brought this classic Chateau Tanunda "Chateau" 100 Year Old Vines Barossa Shiraz which we all discovered and of which we captured our unfair share of the extremely limited US/Midwest allocation through a special arrangement during the Grand Tour Chicago - Wine Tasting Extravaganza back in 2011. Lyle loved it and gave it WOTN while Bill thought it might be reaching end of its prime drinking window. 

Pour Boys at that 2011 Wine Spectator Grand Tour

Tanunda 100 Year Vine Shiraz 2008

John brought this classic, highly allocated rare Washington State Shiraz which he also brought from the 2012 vintage to our Pour Boys OTBN 2020 ~ Open That Bottle Night.  I wrote about the label  and producer extensively in my post of that event.

Cayuse Bionic Frog Walla Walla Valley Shiraz 2013

Bill brought this rare ultra-premium label from a well known favorite producer - I've never seen this label from a producer we thought we knew well.

Killikanoon Attunga "1865" Clare Valley Shiraz 2004


Another spectacular wine - an embarrassment of riches throughout this tasting. We love the Killikanoon "Oracle" label and never knew about this ultra-premium label from them. This special limited release label is released only in years of exceptional quality.

This Attunga "1865" single vineyard, Clare Valley Shiraz is named due to its source, from some of Australia's oldest living vines - 900 individual Shiraz vines, planted in 1865. According to winemaker Kevin Mitchell, it is the oldest commercially active vineyard still producing in the Clare Valley. 

This was rated  98 points by Wine Advocate and 97 points by Wine Advocate. 

It appears very little of this very limited release makes it to America. Cellartracker, which we use to track our wines, and the marketplace, has over 10 million reviewer tasting notes and has no listing for this label.

Deep purple-colored, full round, rich, concentrated yet elegant and polished, black and blue fruits with notes of floral, creosote and crushed rocks. 

https://kilikanoon.com.au/collections/back-vintage-wines/attunga

 

We closed the red wine flight with this label we tasted during our tour and tasting at the producer's estate Del Dotto Napa Valley Cave Tour Barrel Tasting, and acquired during our Del Dotto Piazza DELICACIES Food and Wine Experience culinary tasting at the producer's other property estate, Piazza Del Dotto, back in 2018. 

Tonight's tasting was consistent with my last bottle tasted earlier back in 2019

Del Dotto Cinghiale For Ross Seaview Sonoma County Vineyard Syrah 2014

To close, Lyle brought what has become somewhat custom, a vintage port dessert wine for the final course (s). Terry brought her decadent, spectacular orange cake, which Dan and Linda served alongside gourmet chocolates, chocolate cake and a selection of ice creams including sea salt caramel, and others.

Dow Vintage Port 1997


A classic vintage port from a spectacular vintage. This was awarded 95 points by Wine Spectator and 94 points by Wine Enthusiast, and 92 points by Int'l Wine Cellar.

Ruby colored, medium-full bodied, black currant fruits with bittersweet cocao, notes of dark mocha, expresso, sweet fig and herbs with a long smooth balanced finish. 

Unlike Attunga above with no Cellartracker listing, this classic label is four digit 2186 out of the hundreds of thousands of labels registered. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2186 

Notice, Two-fisted Dan directing the orchestrated proceedings ... 

Thanks all for another spectacular wine and dine evening.

Saturday, September 25, 2021

Winers and Diners Cityscape Deck Wine Dinner '21

 Winers and Diners, Pour Boy's Cityscape Deck Wine Dinner '21

The 'Pour Boys' gathered for the annual Winers and Diners Cityscape Deck Dinner hosted by Lyle and Terry F in their west loop dual condo. Since they first moved to the neighborhood it has undergone an incredible renaissance transformation with the Oprah Harpo studios being demolished and replaced by the McDonalds World HQ complex, Google and numerous other hi-tech firms moving into the new developments in the area. 

Lyle and Terry merged their condo with an adjacent unit and transformed the second kitchen into a purpose built custom designed wine cellar. They also completely renovated and expanded their existing kitchen and transformed the adjacent space into a dining area. 

Of course one of the most distinguished highlight features of their residence is the extraordinary adjoining deck with views of the skyscrapers of the nearby loop. 

The evening was perfect with ideal weather conditions of a pleasant early autumn evening.

Pour Boys on the cityscape deck.

Lyle and Terry prepared grilled filets of beef, scalloped potatoes, brussel sprouts from Duck Inn Chicago, where we ate as a group recently, ceasar salad, green beans and carrots.Prior to the main course they served grilled scallops, and a selection of artisan cheeses, olives, and deviled eggs.

Pour Boys Winers and Diners Dinner -
photo by Linda M

For the wine flight planning, I suggested Bordeaux Blends to accompany the beefsteaks. 

I had an aged vintage Joseph Phelps Insignia from 1989, one of Bill and Beth's sons' birthyear.
That, coupled with Dan's deep vertical of, and collection of this label as a long time club member and collector, I suggested we bring Insignia's from our cellars, for those of us that had such. 

We visited the magnificent Joseph Phelps Winery and Vineyards in Napa Valley together during our Napa Wine Experience in 2017, one of the highlights of that trip. 

So, our wine flight was anchored by the vertical of Phelp's Insignia consisting of:

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Blend 1989, 2000, 2007 and 2008

 

Note the three generations of wine labels during this period. 

The red wine Phelps Insignia vertical flight was augmented by the following additional wines:

Domaine Jean Grivot Bossieres Vosne Romanee Burgundy 2002
Peter Michael Les Pavots Red Wine 2005
Beaulieu Vineyards Georges de Latour Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2010
Rubissow Napa Valley Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Newton "Puzzle" Napa Valley Spring Mountain District Red Blend 2016
Cos d' Estournel St Estephe Bordeaux 2009

Prior to the red flight we had a selection of white wines including French Champagne and California Methode Champonais Sparkling Wine. 

Salon Le Mesnil Blanc de Blanc Brut Champagne 2006
Sea Smoke 'Sea Spray' Santa Rita Hills Sparkling Wine 2015
Sea Smoke 'Gratis' Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay 2012

John brought the Salon Les Mesnil from his cellar, which has become somewhat of a tradition, and Dan brought the duo of Sea Smoke labels, Gratis Chardonnay and Sea Spray, from Santa Rita Hills.  

 

Salon Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne 2006 

John brought this classic cellar selection that he has brought in earlier years.

This 2006 release was awarded 100 points, a 'Cellar Selection' by Wine Enthusiast, 97 points by James Suckling and Vinous, 96 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, and 95 points by Decanter.

This release from a great vintage for Chardonnay in Champagne was considered perfect by Wine Enthusiast.

The 2006 Salon Blanc de Blancs Le Mesnil Brut is silver-golden color, pure and fresh mouthfilling, round and elegant, well balanced, creamy and elegant. Beautifully fresh acidity, rich creamy lemon and white peaches with tongue-gripping minerality.

RM 95 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2595658

 

 The wine flight was concluded with bottles of Chateau Suduiraut dessert wine. Ernie brought the 2013 and I brought the 2002.

Chateau Suduiraut Sauterne Bordeaux 2002 and 2013

As has become custom and tradition of our Lyle and Terry hosted wine dinners, Terry prepared her delectable, decadent Orange Cake and her cheesecake with chocolate sauce and fresh berries. 

Steve S brought this Burgundy Pinot Noir for opening the red flight as we transitioned from the white wines to the reds.

Domaine Jean Grivot Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru "Bossieres" 2002

A different profile and character than the bigger bolder Bordeaux varietals, this Burgundy is based on the native Burgundy varietal Pinot Noir. It was a nice transition wine from the flight of whites to the reds. It was a nice accompaniment to the deviled eggs, olives and selection of cheeses.

Ruby colored, light-medium bodied, cherry and red current fruits with notes of spice, dusty forest floor, earth, mushrooms and hints of vanilla.

RM 90 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=20610

Some wine tasting observations from the evening:

The Insignia vertical flight was fun and interesting, as to be expected, as such comparison tastings of multiple vintages of the same label usually are. 

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Blend 1989

We tasted this same vintage release of this bottle at Dr Dan's at OTBN in 2020. Tonight was consistent with that tasting experience when I wrote the following: "Drank adjacent a 2006 Insignia.' 

"Garnet colored, slightly opaque, this was medium bodied, lighter than I expected, with dark berry fruits, notes of anise, spice, plums and currants. A mere shadow of the bigger, more concentrated and fruit filled 2006, not due to age, but likely indicative of a lesser vintage and perhaps lesser selection of the fruits."

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2020/03/otbn-2002.html

Tonight, the 1989 vintage Insignia, at 32 years, was in remarkably good condition, showing impressive aging steadfastness in a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. Indicating excellent provenance cellar and aging conditions, the label, and foil were in excellent condition, the fill level was ideal, appropriate, customary at low neck above the shoulder.  The cork was slightly saturated but generally in excellent condition. 

This wine was past its prime but still within an acceptable drinking window, the color was good, dark garnet colored, the structure was medium bodied, holding together nicely, the fruit was still in-tact showing only slight but expected levels of diminution from aging, the black berry and plum notes giving way to tones of spice, earthy leather, tobacco leaf and tea. 

RM 88 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=14182  

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Blend 2000

This bottle was one of the surprises of the evening, for the wrong reasons, it was a bit disappointing showing less than we expected and hoped. 

Dark garnet colored, medium bodied, black berry and plum fruits with moderate structure and backbone, this too was past its prime, and still within its acceptable drinking window, but more akin to the 30 year old than the dozen year old vintage releases in comparison. The fruits giving way to earth, leather and notes of tea. 

RM 88 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/notes.asp?iWine=4283

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Blend 2007 

This was one of the standouts of the evening, likely at the apex of its drinking window, dark blackish garnet colored, medium-full bodied, big, forward, complex, concentrated, vibrant bright fruits with dusty, firm tannins, notes of anise, tobacco, cigar box and black tea. 

RM 94

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=674245

Joseph Phelps Insignia Napa Valley Red Blend 2008

Another surprise of the evening, this was the Insignia profile of the flight, but a bit closed and tight with slightly subdued black fruits, it took a while to open indicating it needs a couple more years to integrate and open to reveal its true character and full flavor profile - still, concentrated, big, impressive and elegant.

RM 93 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=880843

Chateau Cos d' Estournel 2009

This was another standout of the evening, showing well with big bold complexity and concentrated fruits - also likely at the apex of its drinking window, but likely too to age beautifully for a couple more decades. 

We saw the legendary St Estephe estate during our trip to Bordeaux in 2018. We hold several vintages of this classic label dating back to the early 80's. This too would make for a marvelous vertical wine flight with its extensive longevity with drinking windows that would span several decades.

Dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, complex, elegant, polished and nicely integrated full forward bright vibrant black berry and currant fruits with earthy tobacco, notes of anise, spice, herbs and black tea with oaky, silky tannins on a long lingering finish. 

RM 95 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=874488

 

Peter Michael Les Pavots Sonoma County Knights Valley Red Wine 

Ernie brought this ultra-premium label from his cellar. Records show he brought this vintage of this label to an earlier Pour-Boys dinner back in 2014. 

Les Pavots is an estate bottled Bordeaux blend from the slopes of Mt Helena above the eastern Knights Valley in Sonoma County. This release is a Bordeaux Blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc, 12% Merlot & 2% Petit Verdot.

This release got huge reviews and scores - 95 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator and 93 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

Pour Boys Dr Dan, Bill and I attended our special wine dinner back in June of this year down in Florida when we had this label.  Ernie was not with us that night. but we toasted him noting he collects this label as a member of their club. At that time, I researched and wrote in this blog that Ernie served this same label to us at our OTBN wine gathering tasting in 2014.

This was awarded 95 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 93 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, and 92 points by Wine Spectator.

Parker likened this wine more to a Right Bank Merlot based blend, "a sensational wine, with a style that suggests a hypothetical blend of a great St.-Emilion and Pomerol". 

This was not like my earlier tasting six years ago, when I wrote this was "Dark ruby colored, elegant and polished, full bodied with full complex concentrated layers of blackberry, black raspberry and blackcurrant with tones of black tea, cigar box and hint of dark mocha and cedar on a silky smooth finish," and at that time gave this 95 points. 

This was more subdued and modest with the fruit being more restrained and less concentrated and less complex than earlier. Perhaps this was due to the comparison with the bigger more forward wines compared against it tonight. 

Tonight I would give this 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=505831

http://www.petermichaelwinery.com/

https://twitter.com/PMWinery

 @PMWinery

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/06/pour-boy-wine-dinner-at-del-ray-beach.html

Beaulieu Vineyard "Georges de Latour Private Reserve" Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

Lyle pulled this ultra premium Napa Bordeaux Blend from his cellar. This received from 94 points Vinous, 93 points from Wine Spectator, 92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocateand  Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar.  

This is a blend of Bordeaux varietals, 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot and was aged in new French oak for 22 months.

Coming across like the Les Pavot, this was more elegant and polished, coming across more subdued and subtle than some of the bigger, bolder more concentrated forward wines. 

Deep garnet-purple colored, notes of plum and dark berry fruits accented by spice, touches of tobacco, mocha, hints of mint, licorice and graphite with a lingering finish. 

RM 92 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1668973


Newton "Puzzle" Napa Valley Spring Mountain Red Wine 2016

I came across this ultra-premium label recently and picked up several bottles to share and compare, commemorating the wine from this producer that we served at our son's wedding welcome reception a couple weeks ago. 

I served that wine from our son Alec's birthyear 1990 vintage from a six liter Imperial large format bottle. Hence I wanted to try a recent release of that wine that has recently appeared in the marketplace. 

This is a Bordeaux Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Malbec. It was rated 94 by James Suckling. 

This was dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, complex and flavorful black berry and black raspberry fruits with accents of spice, tangy acidity, hints of dark cocao, vanilla and black tea. Yet this was less concentrated and forward than some of the other wines tasted tonight. I put this near the middle of the spectrum.

RM 92 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2720196

https://www.newtonvineyard.com/en-US/our-wines/puzzle/

Rubissow Napa Valley Mt Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Bill brought this from his cellar from Charleston. We visited this producer estate vineyards high atop Mt Veeder during our Mt Veeder Napa Valley Wine Experience back in 2011. At that time we met with the founder, George Rubissow and tasted and acquired earlier releases of this label. Bill subsequently acquired this later release as well.

In their peak production, Rubissow produced about 5000 cases per year. In 2016, with their vintage release, they announced 'that after 37 years, the property would be taken over by new ownership'. With their 2016 release, they wrote at the time, "When Tim made this wine, he and we didn’t yet know that it would be our final Rubissow Reserve, but just as well."

This bottle was another one of the surprises of the evening, showing bright vibrant expressive fruits and tangy spices. 

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, black berry and black raspberry fruits with note of tangy clove and cinnamon spices, hints of cigar box and black tea on a lingering finish. 

RM 91 points.





Friday, June 4, 2021

Pour Boys Wine Dinner at Del Ray Beach Wine Kitchen

Pour Boys Wine Dinner at Wine Kitchen Wine Cellar in Del Ray Beach

The Pour Boys descended upon Del Ray Beach to visit Bob & Gloria in their sunshine state home for a mini-reunion. We held a wine dinner in the private cellar dining room at Wine Kitchen in Del Ray Beach. We dined there on our previous trips to the area and planned a dinner in their cellar private dining room on our next trip into town. 

I first wrote about the Delray Beach Wine Room Kitchen Wine and Cheese Bar after our first visit back in 2019. They boast to have "The World's Largest Selection of Wine by the Glass!"  with over 200 hand-selected wines available through their Enomatic wine dispensing machines. Bill and I visited there again when we were in town later in the year and had a Spectacular Wine Cheese Pairing featuring Cliff Lede Poetry 2004.

Rick & Bob with Wine Director Ron Mitchell
in the cellar during our winter visit last year

A major attraction of the venue for serious wine aficionados is their extensive wine cellar of fine wines with a Reserve List of top vintage wines dating back several decades. Most importantly, they offer such wines at close to retail prices rather than marking them up 1.5, 2 or two and a half times retail or more.

The Reserve Wine List includes extraordinary vintage selections of premium and super premium wines including First Growth classified Bordeaux that are also offered at fair market price or current retail prices for such wines, a fraction of what most other restaurants would charge.

With this enticement, we reserved the private dining room for our gathering. Dr Dan and our two Lindas and I flew in from Chicago, and Bill and Beth C drove down from Charleston. 

We selected a flight of extraordinary wines, perfectly paired with the selection of artisan cheeses and charcuterie, our pre-entree selections, our entrees and the dessert courses. 

One of the showcase highlights of the Del Ray Wine Kitchen, beyond the wine BTG (By-The-Glass) selections and the Fine and Rare Cellar Collections, is their Cheese program. The Cheese program is designed and developed by world-renowned Maître Fromager and James Beard award-winner Max McCalman. He was America's first restaurant-based Maître Fromager. Max was honored by L'Esprit Alimentaire (French Food Spirit Awards) in NYC. 

Max is the author of Mastering Cheese which received the World's Best Book on Cheese award in Paris at the 16th Annual Gourmand World Cookbook Awards and was designated a finalist by the prestigious International Association of Culinary Professionals.

Max has also written two more books on cheese - "The Cheese Plate" (Clarkson Potter Publishers, 2002), which was nominated for awards by the James Beard Foundation and by the International Association of Cooking Professionals, and Cheese: A Connoisseur's Guide to the World's Best (Clarkson Potter, 2005), an expansive reference on the world's finest cheeses and their wine pairings, which won a 2006 James Beard Award. 

Max personally currated our cheese and charcuterie plates from the incredible selection of over 80 cheeses and a broad variety of charcuterie meats in a Mix & Match offering. In addition to the cheeses were olives, almonds and artichoke hearts. 

Max was so into the cheeses and the whole culinary experience, he made no effort to leverage the opportunity to promote or commercialize his brand. Earlier in the day I asked that he come in and meet us and bring and sign copies of his book which we looked forward to purchasing. We never got around to it. A missed opportunity for all.

The Wine selected was guided by Wine Director Ron Mitchell. 


Our wine flight journey started with this extraordinary white with the cheese and charcuterie selections. 

Kongsgaard Napa Valley Carneros Chardonnay 2016

John Kongsgaard and his wife Maggy are fith-generation Napa natives. They began their Napa Valley wine experience in the 1970s planting The Judge vineyard on the Kongsgaard estate family land near Napa. The inaugural Kongsgaard wines came in 1996. 

Today, in addition to their legendary signature estate The Judge labels, they produce a portfolio of Napa Valley varietal wines - Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc and Albariño. They craft their wines in their underground winery — a cave dug into the volcanic rock, high on the eastern rim of the Napa Valley where they have also planted their spectacular mountain vineyard. 

My son's and I had the Kongsgaard Carneros Hudson Ranch Syrah for my father-son birthday celebration dinner just a couple weeks ago. This is sourced from the same vineyard as tonight's Chardonnay. 

Kongsgaards source the fruit for this label as well as their Syrah from several perfect acres in the Napa Carneros, of which they direct the farming under long-term contracts. They also source fruit from several sites near the winery. They write that "these intensely farmed, shy-bearing vineyards and their traditional low-intervention winemaking produce powerful, graceful wines—vivid expressions of vineyard and variety". Production is limited to what they, along with their son Alex, hand craft in their own proprietary labels. 

This release was awarded 97 points by The Wine Advocate and 95 points by Vinous / IWC (International Wine Cellar). It should be noted that the 2016 Kongsgaard "The Judge" Napa Valley Chardonnay was awarded 100 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate.

Golden colored, medium full bodied, rich, focused, complex, round, decadent fruits of what Wine Advocate calls "nectarine, spiced pears and apple pie... and candied ginger", with stunning sprites of what I struggled to describe as nutty almond and nutmeg with a long smooth sumptuous finish. 

RM 95 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2719612

www.kongsgaard-wine.com

We then moved to a flight of red Bordeaux blends wines that were a perfect pairing with our next courses. This provided a nicely diverse but balanced trio to compare.

From the charcuterie we shared a 56 ounce tomahawk ribeye steak sliced for sharing by the group. 


Château Beychevelle St Julien Bordeaux 2010

We hold more than a dozen vintages of this label in our cellar dating back to the eighties. We visited Château Beychevelle and had a private tour and tasting during our visit to Beychevelle St Julien, Bordeaux in 2019. 

As usual, we were attentive to the tasting order of the wines based on our experience and knowledge of their character, profiles and the vintages. We tasted this first in our flight of three reds. In the end, we were correct in our approach in all respects. 

The Chateau Beychevelle 2010 blend consists of Cabernet Sauvignon (54%), Merlot (38%), Cabernet Franc (5%) and Petit Verdot (3%).

This release was awarded 95 points by James Suckling,  94 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and Wine Enthusiast, 93 points by  Wine Spectator, and 91 points by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar.

Suckling summed this up well, "Beautiful aromas of blackberries, currants and flowers. Very aromatic. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and gorgeous fruit. It's polished and very refined. One of the best Beychevelles in years."  

Wine Enthusiast also captures the style and approach, "Beychevelle's style privileges elegance over weight, and such is the case with the 2010. It's a pure-fruited, ripe and lightly tannic wine, emphasizing a blackberry note."

This was the lightest, and most approachable of the three labels. Ruby colored, medium bodied, soft, nicely balanced, initially slightly astringent on opening (what Stephen Tanzer referred to as 'medicinal'), it opened up and that blew off after 1/2 hour to reveal pleasant black currant and black berry fruits, notes of floral, earthy leather, herbs and hints of plum on the smooth moderate finish. 
 
RM 91 points. 
 
https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1358113

Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Pauillac 2011


We toured the estate and grounds of the Pichons, Chateau Pichon Baron and the adjacent Chateau Pichon Lalande (shown left), during our Bordeaux trip to the Medoc, the same trip we visited Château Beychevelle. 

This is another one of our favorite labels that we hold going back more than three decades, including our kids' birth-year vintages, several in large formats. 

Next in the tasting order, despite being from a lesser, lighter vintage, this was bigger and more complex than the Beychevelle. 

Classic Pauillac in its profile and character, dark garnet colored, full bodied, more tight and firm with its structured backbone, complex black berry fruits with notes of smoke, anise and graphite with a firm long tannin laced finish.

This was a blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 12% Cabernet France, and 2% Petit Verdot.

This was awarded 95 points and a *Cellar Selection* by Wine Enthusiast,  93 points James Suckling, 92 points by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, and 91 points by Wine Spectator.

Dark garnet purple colored, full bodied, concentrated with weight and power, rich black fruits with blackberry, dark-chocolate, cassis, spice, tobacco and hints of cedar with firm tannins on a long, intense finish. 

RM 93

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1355736

Peter Michael Les Pavots Sonoma County Knights Valley Red Wine 

Fellow Pour Boy Ernie was not with us tonight. but we toasted him with this super premium Sonoma County Bordeaux Blend that he collects as a member of their club. In retrospect, as I research and write this blog, I see Ernie served this same label to us at our OTBN wine gathering tasting in 2014

We hold a few bottles of this in our cellar. 

The 2005 Les Pavots is a blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc, 12% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot.

This was awarded 95 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 93 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, and 92 points by Wine Spectator.

While this was last in our tasting order it might've been best placed in the middle but it was great to compare the Bordeaux and then move to the Californian. 

This was the most elegant, polished and refined of the three wines, more complex, fuller, more round than the Beychevelle, but more approachable than the more powerful brutish Pichon. 

Parker likened this wine more to a Right Bank Merlot based blend, "a sensational wine, with a style that suggests a hypothetical blend of a great St.-Emilion and Pomerol". 

Ruby colored, medium full bodied, smooth and harmonious layers of black berry, black raspberry and currant fruits with notes of tobacco, mocha and hints of anise and graphite on a soft silky tannin laced lingering finish. 

Consistent with my earlier tasting six years ago, "Dark ruby colored, elegant and polished, full bodied with full complex concentrated layers of blackberry, black raspberry and blackcurrant with tones of black tea, cigar box and hint of dark mocha and cedar on a silky smooth finish." At that time I gave this 95 points. 

RM 94 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=505831

 http://www.petermichaelwinery.com/

 After dinner we had dessert selections, Parisian Beignets, Crispy Pâté à Choux, Cinnamon & Sugar, Salted Caramel, Spiced Ganache, Passionfruit Curd and decadent Double Dark Chocolate Cake, Coconut Dulce de Leche, Sweet Shiraz Jam, Dried Blueberries, Hazelnut Crumble.

With the delicious dessert course we took advantage of the BTG program and tasted two perfect accompaniment dessert wines. 

Dolce Napa Valley Late Harvest 2013

This Dolce Late Harvest White dessert wine is a meal course in itself! Dolce is one the most notable late harvest wines in America, first crafted in 1985 by the partners of Far Niente. Dolce stands as standard bearer. Wine Enthusiast lovingly calls it "one of the greatest sweet California wines in memory". 

Dolce’s 20-acre vineyards are located in Coombsville, east of the city of Napa, and are situated at the base of the Vaca Mountains, which define the eastern border of the valley. The volcanic soil is loose and well drained, and the west-facing vineyard is protected from the prevailing winds so that the damp, morning fog of autumn—a very important factor in the development of Botrytis cinerea—hangs longer amongst the vines, often until midday. A combination of high humidity followed by drying conditions encourages, but does not guarantee, the growth of Botrytis. As the mold develops, its coverage is seemingly random with individual berries succumbing to Botrytis at different rates, if at all. 

With a classic blend of late harvest Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc varietals in the style of a classic Bordeaux Sauterne, Dolce is the only American winery dedicated to producing a single late harvest wine. 

Dolce has produced a wine in every vintage, yet in small, unpredictable quantities; testament to the incredible difficulties presented every year in the effort to make Dolce. "Dolce is an extraordinary wine bred from a combination of sunshine, soil, fog, expertise and dedication; a wondrous luxury, limited by nature to always being a gift of absurd rarity." 

Dolce is a blend of 89% Semillon and 11% Sauvignon Blanc.

Winemaker's Notes: "The 2013 Dolce offers lifted and youthful aromas of orange zest, vanilla bean and butterscotch with subtle notes of minerality and oak-derived spices. The entry is juicy, and Dolce’s signature texture is lively and enduring on the palate leading to a mouthwatering finish. Flavors of orange, pear and dried apricot mingle together with rich caramel notes and hints of minerals that make this vintage a delicious expression of the season’s exceptional ripeness." 

After nearly three years in French oak, this luxurious vintage shows bright stone-fruit aromatics and flavors, elegant caramel undertones and has a texture like silk.

RM 94 points.  

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2547948

Fonseca Vintage Port 2016

Winemaker's Notes: "Dense purple black with a narrow purple rim. The nose opens with very fine pure black fruit, a fusion of black cherry, cassis and blackberry jam aromas, with notes of crushed mint, an ethereal fragrance of violets and undertones of ripe tropical fruit. The year has added an additional layer of purity and refinement to the subtle, complex Fonseca fruit character, as well as an attractive minerality. The palate is supported by a vibrant acidity and taut, wiry tannins that provide structure but also texture and volume. The fresh berry flavours carry into the long finish A finely crafted and perfectly balanced Vintage Port."

This was awarded 98 points by Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and James Suckling, and an extraordinary consensus 97 points by Wine Enthusiast, Wine Spectator, Decanter and the Tasting Panel.

Parker said, " Don't even think of buying it if you aren't prepared to cellar it. The 2030 start date that I have will not be even close to late enough if you want harmony and complexity. To me, this is the best of the three 2016's from the Fladgate Group this issue (Croft and Taylor being the other two), thanks to its pure intensity, but time will tell if it becomes as sexy as I'm sure Taylor's will be. In the meanwhile, Fonseca looks like one of the greats of this vintage."

We're holding in our cellar releases of this label dating back to the eighties, most notably the 1985 vintage, birthyear of son Sean. 

Dark ruby colored, full bodied, dense, mildly sweet with notes of figs, sweet cassis, vanilla, hints of creosote and toast with tongue puckering gripping sweet tannins on the lingering finish. 

RM 93

https://www.cellartracker.com/editnote.asp?iWine=2977974

http://www.fonseca.pt/

https://www.thewineroomonline.com/delray-beach

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