That sounds fantastic. Nice way to welcome the New Year!

Happy Holidays.

Dick

"Mike Tommasi" > wrote in message
...
> Not exactly a typical NYE dinner neither for an italian nor for a
> french resident, but at my place I can do what I want ;-)))
>
> For appetizers, a Champagne by our AFW colleague, my friend Francis
> Boulard. This wine normally needs to be accompanied by a great dish,
> but for the 31st of december you can be crazy, so we enjoyed the grand
> Comete 1986 cuvee (disgorged in 2000) on it own, with its small subtle
> bubbles and this imposing complex vinous matter. Served in the tulip
> shaped champagne Spiegelaus, we found these glasses to also be great
> for tasting sweet wines. Too bad there is no Comete left at Francis'
> cellars, but do taste his new barrique-aged Petraea, since september
> it has become very open and expressive.
>
> To start, thin slices of whole foie gras on toast with a small salad
> and a Savennieres, the Coulee de Serrant that I have been bad-mouthing
> for the last while, I take it all back at least for this 1995: Nicolas
> Joly has made a dry (maybe) wine of golden hue that evolves in your
> glass in an incredible way, with an initial impression of sugar and
> oxidation at first subtle, then increasing to the point of being
> almost disagreable after one hour, and then suddenly disappearing
> altogether to give way to a complex aromatic charge dominated by
> honey. Very long persistence. But two hours later the wine seems tired
> (good thing I did not open it 24 hours ahead of time as sugggested on
> the label). The next day the few remaining drops seemed to have
> regained some composure.
>
> Next a tajine of guinea-hen with mandarines served with Laubenheimer
> St. Remigiusberg 2002 Riesling Trocken Spaetlese by Tesch (in the
> Nahe), fruity, mineral, nno signs of petrol, went very well with the
> meal.
>
> Friends brought cheese, and as no french meal can be without cheese,
> and since there were ten different cheeses, I did not even attempt
> matching wine. A Bourgogne by Domaine Buisson-Charles went with some,
> the Savennieres did a good job with the banon, and the rest of the
> riesling went well with the St Nectaire.
>
> Chocolate dessert, we served a "vin de glaciere", an experimental
> "icebox wine" made with local vermentino grapes by our winemaking
> friends Dupere Barrera, gives an eiswein impression but it has 15
> degrees of alcohol! Aroma reminiscent of the wonderful late harvests
> of Antoine Arena in Corsica, but more concentrated. Only half a bottle
> is available, so we open a Maury Mise Tardive by the Preceptorie de
> Centernach 2001 of Marc Parce', cuvee Aurelie Pereira de Abreu, very
> nice perfume, none of the cooked aromas of most fortified wines.
>
> At midnight, the superb methode traditionnelle Vouvray 1995 by Foreau.
>
> Happy New Year to all
>
> Mike