Irish makes his half century..."The Lads" celebrate...

So a meeting of "The Lads" was called to celebrate Irish turning 50. The line up being Irish, Halifax, Ronaldinho, Woo, Monty (new name on account of hints dropped) and myself. We were sad to unavoidably lose the presence of Chewy but we drank to him and I am sure he'll be back with a bang next time. 

This group is a joy. A few of the previous outings can be seen below, were I more IT savvy then maybe there would be a section of this site dedicated to the group...the same could be said of the May trips group.

Boats, bottles, tides and pirates

Irish goes into his 50th year

Double birthday bonanza

Lunch at Ronaldinhos

The venue and co-ordination was chosen and orchestrated by Irish. Kitchen W8 is a great spot and one I have always enjoyed - if you've not been you must go. The brief was a simple one "bring a great bottle or two and NO meaningless volume". I tell you what, it worked as you'll see. But first the menu which was faultless - pics at bottom of this post.

Warm Baked Celeriac, Autumn Truffle,

Roast Chicken Skin and Hazelnuts

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Risotto of Cepes with Aged Parmesan

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Fillet of Turbot, Autumn Roots, Iberico Lardo,

Smoked Potato and Red Wine

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Haunch of Venison, Bulgur Wheat, Swiss Chard,

Creamed Chanterelles, Liver and Onions
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Cheese

So let's start at the beginning, Halifax (aka Nobby) is almost always in charge of the Champagne which is fine given he has good stocks and loves it BUT has the one downside of being served first, Nobby is almost always late! Only 15 minutes this time so having discussed the state of the world over a glass of water and got the first of Ron's dodgy jokes out the way we were on. 

North-South divide...

There was an element of "blindness" to almost all the wines. Louis Roederer 1988 from magnum was just splendid. We were on the money vintage wise having been in the 1988 to 1990 range but we were almost all leaning towards a Blanc de Blancs - Taittinger and Salon both being put forward. It was lemony with a little biscuitiness in the mix, no nuts, brioche and toast, great energy, delicious now, will age well but I can't imagine liking it more than right now! The magnum size had a positive effect without doubt. We were off and running in style

With one notable exception we went wine by wine rather than pairs which meant we could concentrate on getting things properly wrong. Meursault-Charmes 1er Cru 2002 from Lafon was up next and bang on the money. A little reduction, some petrol, good generosity, very good, focused but proper and perfect from now on, a taut density and easily of Grand Cru quality.

I decided to go early and get it wrong next, I said Grand Cru Chablis and from the mid-late 90s. I was, kind of, wrong for the right reasons but mainly because the wine was quite cool. It was a cracking bottle of Montrachet Grand Cru 2001 from Sauzet. Once up to temperature it was marmalade, tangerines, rich, with good minerality underneath and opulence (essential in Montrachet I'd say). Lanolin, iodine and full, those that kept a little in their glass just kept getting more and more...lovely.

What came next was the - ludicrously generous - focal point, even in this company. First we had Hermitage La Chapelle 1990 then Hermitage La Chapelle 1978, both these bottles and the next one having come from the estate in original individual wooden cases last year. The 1990 was stinkingly rich on the nose, full, I noted that you could smell the viscosity, whether that is possible or not, I know what I mean, rich bacon fat, so sweet big and bold but balanced and digestible, almost raisined, some soy and aniseed. A brute but a dam good one, mightily good. The 1978 was by contrast all together gentler with a more tender sweet maturity, leaves, forest floor, strawberry leaf and then tea and wood smoke, a delight. A really balanced wine, Burgundian if anything...so poised.

The Hermitage La Chapelle 1961 that followed managed to combine all the best bits of both these wines. It was perfect to have then in this order. Having a bottle of this in perfect shape is a dream come true. I was laughed down for suggesting that there was a time or mood when I would pick the 1978 over the 1961. I maintain there is, the 1961 has everything you could want. I just loved the tenderness of the 1978 as well. Looking back to the 1990 I see this as having the structure and DNA of the 1961 rather than the 1978, it has that incredibly rich sweetness. My note for the 1961 was easy to write; "Pine, resinous, oils, savage, a brut, wild, uber-concentrated degraded berry fruit, bovril and sweetness...super...wild, hickory smoke, grip...stunning...complete, Indian spices now, ferrous...magnificent!"

Where on earth do you go from that? Well one thing is for sure, you get the hell out of the Rhone...Burgundy it was and more specifically Clos Saint-Denis Grand Cru 2000, Dujac from magnum. I really enjoyed this and was pleased it was a magnum as it just begged to be drunk. Degraded sweet and feminine. Waxy with palma violets, and some tangerines rind. We were pretty rubbish trying to get this blind as we were in the 1980s mainly, it had an open knit maturity, attractively so.

Another Burgundy mag next, any Rousseau wine is a treat and in magnum even more so -  Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos St Jacques 1988 was everything you would want and expect. So good in fact that it blew a fuse in the restaurant. This was tightly coiled with red fruit power, poised and persistent and with stunning depth. None of the tougher, acidic nature you can get with 1988. Just a super super wine - a treat. A little bit more about Clos Saint.Jacques. 

As cheese was ordered we went back to white and a crackingly interesting pair of whites. Firstly, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 1991 from Neillon, then the very same wine from the following year - Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru 1992, Neillon. The 1991 has absolutely no right to be this good, none at all. Oyster-shell and a tinge of green serious focus, spicy with a little nuttiness, some stemginger and a little lanolin, the definition of an over-performer. The 1992 was altogether richer and more decadent, a little reduced, unctuous and superb, spot on with the cheese, toffee apples and hedonistic maturity.

Just the perfect time now for a sugar lift. So where better than Yquem and the 1953 specifically. I've had very few 1953s but those I have had have usually been in verticals courtesy of Jordi. This had an expressive and fully mature nose, creme brulee with a slightly burnt topping. There is a rancio sweetness to this, lifted like PX sherry but then with a drier more intense middle, slightly burning caramel.

The next wine - Mehringer Blattenberg 1989er Trockenbeerenauslese from the wonderfully named Friedrich-Wilhelm-Gynasium - was an amazingly good contrast. So incredibly zippy and energetic, intense yet light as a feather, an amazing liquid. Lemon and even line freshness...superb. 

Then the final bottle, fittingly a birth year wine for Irish - Taylor 1966 - which had been double decanted that morning. Marzipan and full raisined sweetness but a nice medium weight, it just got better and better with air...we had the predictable "why don't we drink more Port" conversation. With that and the sound of a hoover doing its business we managed to depart before anyone arrived for diner!

Another splendid few hours spent with great bottles and great people...long may it continue! It is exactly what wine shouldbe about. Here's to the next 50 Irish!

A wave to Chewy and Newcastle!!

Food pics as promised!

Warm Baked Celeriac, Autumn Truffle, 

Roast Chicken Skin and Hazelnuts

Risotto of Cepes with Aged Parmesan

Fillet of Turbot, Autumn Roots, Iberico Lardo, 

Smoked Potato and Red Wine

Haunch of Venison, Bulgur Wheat, Swiss Chard,

Creamed Chanterelles, Liver and Onions

So…2015...

I haven't done any form of "awards" since 2011 but for some reason I thought it might be fun this year.

Tasting of the Year: There have been several glorious candidates but it has to go to this one 10 Vintages of Romanee-Conti it was a tasting that I will certainly never get to repeat in a glorious setting.

Restaurant of the year: No shocks here at all, it has to be Zucca. I'll miss it so very much. I do feel I need to mention Kitchen W8 which has produced some cracking food and has a nice atmosphere and attitude to wine. It is such a shame that it is not more conveniently sited (for me).

Wine trip of the year: This was not difficult either, it has to be Piedmont 2015 with a rather splendid group of chaps. Piedmont really is somewhere every wine lover should go. I had to pull out of a trip to Port country which was a shame. I really want to go there.

Winery of the year: So for all those who assumed this was a "Shoe in" for Giacomo Conterno, and really that is still No.1 for me, a little surprise as Case Basse / Soldera just pips it to this years "title". It is such a great place to visit and Gianfranco is simply wonderful.

Birthdays and sad days: There have been some wonderful meals to celebrate birthdays this year:

Double birthday bonanza

Jordi is 40

Irish goes into his 50th year

At the same time it was so very sad to lose Anne-Claude Leflaive - whose wines I continue to love.

Meal of the year: I've gone a bit corporate here by choosing "All aboard the Cutty Sark" but it was such a special (unique) evening shared with lots of customers who have become friends.

Wine discovery of the year: I think that as a region it has to be the Rhone thanks to a holiday down there and the fact that I just love more and more of the wines (Hartley you still won't get me to like Condrieu). But as a single producer it might have to be Flavio Roddolo in Barolo. A very notable mention to Domaine Labruyere in Moulin-a-Vent for converting me to the joys of Cru Beaujolais. Even an opinionated old fool like me can have their mind changed.

Quote of the year: Not one I had heard before and I probably apply it to Negronis rather than martinis but "One martini is all right. Two are too many, and three are not enough." from James Thurber

Sportsperson of the year: This is a shared award for two similarly brilliantly indestructible sports people who have both spent ages at the top of very tough sports. Both made their names or initials only mean one person so the nod goes to AP and Richie or Sir AP McCoy and Richie McCaw to use full names. Both have retired and both will be missed but at the same time it is wonderful to see them walk away in good health.

Personal sports highlight: This is an easy one. I had always wanted to play rugby in the same team as my son Charlie but due to too many bangs on the head (I never had enough brain cells to start with so have to be careful) I had to stop at 36 and so we missed out on that. But this year I have gone back to playing Hockey, which I love and thoroughly recommend, and now Charlie and I play in the same team. (He has more assists, I've scored more goals as I keep reminding him).

I am not sure who has appeared most on the blog this year but to all those who have contributed - Nobby/Halifax, Irish, Mr Magnum, Newcastle, Henley, Jordi, Ronaldinho, Chewy, Fiscali, Very duty bottles, Geronimo, Raw, Vestier, JuJu, Barolo Guru, Jazz Hands, Manski, Masterofwine - and many many more thank you so much for the bottles and the laughs! To colleagues and producers everywhere the very same thanks!

Same again in 2016?

Irish goes into his 50th year

I am a few blogs behind at the moment but this one has jumped the queue so that I can write it up while things are fresh in my mind. The other reason is that it is Irish Pete's actual birthday today and the lunch that follows was to celebrate this a couple of days early. Irish is one of the select few with a nickname on this blog…I can't quite remember from where or when the name started but there we go, Halifax (aka Nobby) started it.

So an email came round 10 days ago, can you make a relaxed lunch at Kitchen W8? I was delighted to be able to say yes. Come the day we were 8 in total and a lovely line up had fallen into place. As an aside it now often seems easier to organise dinner 3-10 days in advance rather than with lots of notice.

The menu that Kitchen W8 put together, of 4 half main courses, was spot on and is listed below (with a few pics at the bottom). I must have been there four or five times now and will be actively looking for chances to go back, I think the food and service are both very well pitched, "relaxed attention to detail" may be. Sadly living North and working just south east of the city it is not as close as I'd like.

Croquettes of Mangalitza Pork with Smoked Yolk, Glazed Salsify and Black Pudding

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Thinly Sliced Smoked Eel with Grilled Mackerel, Golden Beetroots and Sweet Mustard

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Fillet of Cornish Brill, Delica Pumpkin, Chestnuts, Trompettes, Turnip Tops and Red Wine

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Slow Cooked Short Rib of Beef, Parsley Potato, Heritage Carrots, Savoy Cabbage, Horseradish

And so to the wines:

Salon 2002, ok I am biased but Salon is never a bad way to start any meal, the 2002 is a teenager at best but a perfectly mannered and promising one at that. Brisk with great freshness, Chablis-esque possibly but not sharp, very moreish with a dash of saline, lovely and with such a bright future.   

Then as we sat down we had a pair of whites. Meursault 1er Cru Genevieres 2009 from A.Gambal and Chateau de Fonsalette Blanc 1997 from Rayas. The Meursult was exactly what you want of Meursault for drinking now, rich, opulent but with good warm minerality, really good length and a lovely rounded but not flabby texture, a very slight whiff or reduction essentially just a very good wine. The Fonsalette was a lovely contrast, more complex and academic for sure but not to such a degree that it was anything but delicious to drink. A little lanolin and chestnut, dry toffee and a burning butter as well a a long length and no lack of acidity, really rather splendid especially with the food. The wonderful contrast of the three whites already had me thinking this was a good tasting day.

Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Ducs 2002 from d’Angerville was up next as we sort of served the reds in a staggered, one wine at a time, order which worked well. I know Clos des Ducs pretty well, in the main thanks to this exception tasting. The 2002 was showing very well, saline and tight with focussed red fruit and elegant persistence, serious with the drinking window just opening…really lovely, coiled tight. We now shifted both to the Cote de Nuits for the next 3 reds…some big names.

Clos St Denis Grand Cru 2001 from Ponsot was some how less precise, soupier possibly than the d'Angerville but that worked as a nice contrast. The less defined, slightly degraded nose gave way to a good, more generous palate and a certain lush decadence.

Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cr Clos St Jacques 2001 from Rousseau had a nose of sweet fruited density with a dash of bovril just adding a savoury side which just shows this wine to be moving into the second phase of a long life. It was very precise, with fruits that are hard to describe, red fruit on a core of something darker possibly, long and just so dam drinkable. Yet another bottle of Rousseau that just makes you wonder how they do what they do.

Romanee Saint Vivant Grand Cru 2001 from DRC followed, it can be dangerous with DRC and Rousseau for a winner to appear and then the sum of the parts is less than the individual loveliness should make it. On this occasion both were singing. This RSV was superb, focussed and red with primary fruits but in no way one dimensional the nose is so packed with life, an exceptional bottle in every way. I think this will age with grace and balance rather than going through the phases that the Rousseau before it, I would be equally excited to own both. The RSV for its guile and finesse with a core underneath (think Philippe Sella), the Rousseau for its grit and savoury decadence whilst still being charming (Richie McCaw).

And so to the Rhone next. Hermitage 1991 from Chave was an absolute masterclass in how this producer belongs at the top of any table of wine estates. Rich yet weightless, a little armpit and grunt with a sweet fruited then saline palate the sombinationof elegance and almost light texture with much flavour was staggering. This was followed by Barbaresco Rabaja 2000 from Giacosa, 2000 being warm it was a better vintage in Barbaresco than Barolo due to the cooling effect of the river. It had a degraded, flattering nose of sweet bruised nebbiolo fruit that made it easy to enjoy and decadent. Just a lovely wine for right now. 

Then after the diversion from Burgundy to Rhone and Piedmont we were back with a cracking pair of 1999's both of which had been decanted:

Richebourg Grand Cru 1999 from Anne Gros was very good, a rich fruited nose of mulled, almost Christmas, fruits, this had a darker more powerful side to it, a wine that shows massive promise. There is a balance about it that makes it appreciably enjoyable now, brooding is too crude a word but probably as close as I can get.

Musigny VV Grand Cru 1999 from de Vogue is a wine I know rather well and is also a wine that, when I last had it, was still firmly in a sulking phase. This was all about coiled minerality, saline, iron and a wonderful rich yet not heavy texture. I, sadly, had to taste rather than drink these last two (its not often work has to get in the way but sometimes), I can well imagine they both came out more and more in glass and strutted their stuff. From a tasting perspective they were just how I wanted them to be...

A splendid luncheon with a really good crowd of wine lovers, lots of good chats…at one point I overheard a good, if not directly relevant to this, quote about Martinis (or Negronis in my case)…"One martini is all right. Two are too many, and three are not enough." from James Thurber…too true.

Happy Birthday Irish Pete...

Croquettes of Mangalitza Pork with Smoked Yolk, Glazed Salsify and Black Pudding

Thinly Sliced Smoked Eel with Grilled Mackerel, Golden Beetroots and Sweet Mustard

Fillet of Cornish Brill, Delica Pumpkin, Chestnuts, Trompettes, Turnip Tops and Red Wine