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Clos St. Hune..... Vosne - Beaux Monts..... Bonnes Mares.....

20-Dec-96

First "formal" dinner for six wine loving friends at our new home. As usual, I chose the wine (the back breaking chore) while Dorit had the easy one - just preparing the dinner...

Bacon-wrapped cheese-stuffed mushrooms, with hot & sour sauce
1988 RIESLING "CLOS ST. HUNE", TRIMBACH
________
Rich Cassoulet: goose legs, pork, three kind of sausages, white beans
1988 VOSNE "BEAUX MONTS", LEROY
________
Cheese Plate
1978 BONNES MARES, CLAIR-DAU
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Souffle Grand Marnier

A cosy evening of great food, wine and company.

Riesling "Clos St. Hune" 1988 Trimbach

12/96. Bought in London Mar-96 for $42.
Perhaps the flagship of all Alsatian Riesling and one that takes ages to mature. This wine accompanied the multi-flavored first course of stuffed mushrooms in a sauce made of home-made apple confiture, horseradish, pineapples and mustard!
COLOR: Standard golden-straw Riesling color.
NOSE: Complex. Woody oily nose but with good "vineyard" fruit. A bit subdued for the first 20 minutes or so. Then, when there was very little wine left, the nose became more profound and enticing. For the umpteen time: a good bottle of white wine should be let to breath for 20-30 minutes. A pity to lose all it has to give.
TASTE: Elegant, multi-layered, still not totally mature! Mouth-filling yet tightly knitted. A firm, aristocratic and tasty wine that stood well to the difficult but marvelous dish.
LENGTH: Medium long aftertaste that left a pleasant feel after every sip.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: Mid weight wine, full of character. Extremely elegant, well structured with perfect balance to show its breed.
OVERALL: Superb wine now. Again, will take another 3-5 years to show its full potential.
MARK: 18/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.


Vosne - Beaux Monts 1988 Dom. Leroy

12/96. Bought in auction Jul-95 for $80 (imported from Chicago for $92 net).
A Vosne-Romanee Premier Cru from the superb 1988 vintage. The renowned Domaine Leroy do not filter their wines so you get some sediment as an extra for the 'modest' price they charge < g >.
COLOR: Impressive dark red with hardly any clearing around the rim.
NOSE: Fantastic! Gobs of red fruit burst out of the glass. Clean leathery aromas surrounded by a beautiful 'Bourgogne Nose' robe. Well developed nose that is neither too young nor too ripe and soft.
TASTE: Mouth-filling nectar. Multi-layered wine that creates a celebration on the palate. Vigorous enough to stand up to the full-flavor Cassoulet dish, yet delicate and smooth to be enjoyed on its own. Perfetto!
LENGTH: Extremely long and reverberating aftertaste. A touch of tannins at the finish give way to an acidic fruity sensation.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: Full-Bodied, 'manly' (B) wine. Concentrated from nose to taste to aftertaste. Superb balance between the tons of fruit, acidity tannins and alcohol.
OVERALL: Superb+! Nothing can be done about it, Leroy's wines are in a class of their own. Except for Jayer's "Cros Parantoux" I've never tasted a 1er Cru that could so easily be mistaken for a GOOD Grand Cru...
MARK: 18+/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.


Bonnes Mares 1978 Clair-Dau

12/96. Acquired from England Feb-96 for $91 (imported for $106 net).
My last bottle of great wines from the once-great Clair-Dau domaine. 1978 being an extraordinary vintage and Bonnes Mares being one of my favorite (B) wines.
COLOR: A bit faded, certainly in comparison to the Leroy Beaux Monts. Good color and appearance though for a 19 years (B) with plenty of sediment to attest to its age.
NOSE: Ohhh, ahhh, ummm... such were the noises all of us made when first sniffed this unbelievable wine. A 'fully integrated' nose that combines all that is worth having in a perfectly matured Grand Cru. Wet forest earth, leather, meat, plummy fruit, and the most enticing 'Bourgogne Nose'.
TASTE: Extremely complex, still very concentrated, yet smooth as silk. Unlike the 'baby' Beaux Monts, the old Bonnes Mares has the mature sweetish ripe feel on the palate. With no hint of tiredness, this rare and harmonious wine superbly accompanied the various good cheese.
LENGTH: Perhaps the length of a wine is the most striking evidence of its vigor and concentration. The multiple sensations this old bugger left on the taste buds long after every sip was taken complimented its other aspects of greatness.
TEXTURE & BALANCE: Fully mature, delicate yet powerful. All elements totally harmonized to yield a perfectly balanced nectar that defies definitions.
OVERALL: Superb+! The epitome of a mature Grand Vin de Bourgogne. If you are lucky to have a bottle don't take chances. Drink it soon though I don't really think it will go away for a few more years.
MARK: 18+/20.aaaaaaaaBUY MORE? Yes.


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Jacob "Yak" Shaya.