"chain, chain, chain, CAHAAAAIN ........."

"chain of tooOOOOls .... "

(with apologies to aretha)




"Redhart" > wrote in message
. ..
> Dale,
> I think you are pulling our chains.
> "DaleW" > wrote in message
> oups.com...
> A group gathered Monday night in the Red Hook/"Columbia Waterfront"
> area of Brooklyn to welcome Robin Garr and Mary Johnson to NY. Brad
> Kane arranged a nice back room at Bouillabaisse 126. Nice service,
> friendly group. And the wines:
>
> 2000 Alvear En Ramo Fino
> I'm not a big dry sherry person, but even so the nasty blast I got from
> first whiff was shocking. Palate actually was rather neutral. Then
> someone mentioned that one of the bottles was off, and I gave another
> try from a frsh bottle. Ok, still a volatile nose- the word "paint
> thinner" was being thrown around a lot,. but better. Some nuttiness
> underneath the solvent. Not my cuppa, a C- (first bottle was a solid
> D), but I'll admit my anti-fino prejudices.
> .
> 2002 Alice & Oliver de Moor Bourgogne Aligote
> Light and easy, but some underlying stones and good acidity. Not
> compelling, but pleasant enough. B/B-
>
> 2001 Francoise and Denis Clair "Les Murgers des Dents de Chien"
> St.-Aubin 1er Cru.
> A wine I've posted plenty of notes about. Some oak, but
> well-integrated. The ripeness of the pear fruit makes it almost seem
> off-dry, but there is some clean acidity balancing that. Good finish.
> When my delicious seafood chowder came I went back for more of this.
> B+/A- (with obvious grade inflation for my own wine)
>
> 2003 Verget "Cuvée de la Butte" Chablis
> All about fatness and wood. Lots of new oak here. The redeeming feature
> is a somewhat minerally finish, but this isn't for me. B-
>
> 2004 de Parenchon Bordeaux Clairette
> This makes me reach for the Chablis. Just off-dry, watermelon flavored,
> blech. C
>
> There was a corked CdP Blanc, but I didn't care enough to note
> producer.
>
> 2002 Ravines Riesling (Finger Lakes)
> I admit to not being the greatest Finger Lakes fan, but Joe Moryl
> always manages to bring good ones. Dry with good fruit ripeness, maybe
> not a showpiece of Riesling typicity but a very nice wine. B+
>
> 2002 Luneau-Papin "Le L d'Or" Muscadet
> Yum yum yum. Some chalk and seabreeze, great acidic backbone, fresh
> citrus and apple fruit with a little yeast and a lot of rocks on the
> finish. A-
>
> 1997 Ferret "Cuvée Hors Classe" Pouilly-Fuisse
> By the time it got to me the over-the-hill tag was being tossed around,
> fair amount of vinuous derision. Definitely oxidized, and past it's
> prime. But not quite as bad as the chatter. A bit too much oak, but
> there's a hint of some nice macIntosh apple fruit, and an interesting
> flintiness to the finish. Wish I'd tried couple years ago. B-/C+
>
> On to the reds
>
> 1998 Rapsani Reserve Epilegmenos
> This Greek wine got a lot of approval around the table, but it didn't
> ring my bells. Soft and a tad hot, a little oak, some tarry aromas, but
> I found it a bit short. B-
>
> 2002 Catherine and Pierre Breton Bourgueil Clos Senechal
> This I expected to like a lot. There was a slightly weird note here
> (Jeff pegged it as green olives, not sure that's exactly what I'd call
> it, I think I'll stick with weird). Too bad, nice structure underneath.
> B-
>
> Next up, a pair of magnums:
> 1991 Pesquera (Ribera del Duero)
> This earned catcalls for oakiness from some, but I actually liked.
> Leather, easrth and tobacco around some dark fruit. B+
>
> 2003 Moulin-a-Vent (Pacalet?)
> Kirsch/cooked cherry fruit, very ripe, definitely has some love
> handles, I'll stick to '02 Beaujolais. B-
>
> Next, a mystery wine brownbagged:
> Soft, yet with a prickliness (secondary fermentation?). Stewed-fruity
> nose. Dark fruit, attenuated finish. I'm guessless. It's the
> Smith-Berry Norton (from Kentucky, but using Arkansas fruit). I love
> Wendell Berry as a poet (Manifesto- Mad Farmer Liberation Front is one
> of my favorite contemporary poems), I'll forgive him his vinuous
> trespasses. C
>
> 1999 Chatenoy Menetou-Salon Rouge
> Lighter bodied, I assume Pinot but am told its Cab Franc.
> Cherry/raspberry fruit, some earth and mushrooms. Pleasant enough. B/B-
>
> 1995 Mastroberardino "Radici" Taurasi (Campania)
> Very tight upon opening, gave it a couple hours before it went around.
> Warm red fruit, some oak, a bit of tar and mushrooms. Still needs time.
> B (apparently Mastroberardino changed importer/distributor, and '95 &
> '97 are being dumped for $20 on East Coast)
>
> 2000 Treanna (Central Coast, CA)
> Apparently I spilled some of the berry sauce from my duck on my notes
> here. Unremarkable meritage from memory, at least without the
> dilution/greenness of some 2000s (though I'm probably extrapolating
> from Napa, oops). B/B-
>
> (food note: Lots of folks got the bouillabaisse or other fish dishes,
> guessing it would come during the reds I ordered the duck. Nice sides,
> but the roast duck could have been better seasoned, and it was a bit
> overdone. Next time, seafood).
>
> 1998 Ogier Cote-Rotie
> Yippee-yi-yo. This is good. Plenty of deep rich blackberry Syrah fruit
> and a dash of pepper. Needs time, but very tasty. Develops some bacon
> fat/game aromas in the glass. A
>
> 1999 Les Pallieres Gigondas
> Very nice. Lots of dark berry fruit, Rhonish nose of herbs and
> underbrush.Ripe but not overfat, some nice earth and cedar with the
> Provencal herbs. A-/B+
>
> 1996 Rene Renou "Cuvee Anne" Bonnezeaux
> Much better than the '96 Renou Beuregard I had at mini-offline in
> Laguna last month. Honey, apricots, superripe nectarines. Good acidity,
> good finish. B+/A-
>
> 1999 Texier Noble Rot
> Botrytized Chardonnay. Others like more than me, I find it charmless
> next to the Bonnezeaux. B-
>
> 1960 Fonseca Vintage Port
> I had been holding this birthyear port for a couple years. When I
> discovered Jay Miller and Jeff Grossman were also '60s, I vowed to open
> one offline when we were together ( and when it wasn't August or
> something). Jeff took on the challenge of getting out the old squishy
> cork. Definitely showing it's age, but still rather graceful, with
> fully resolved tannins. Showing a bit too much heat for some. Not a
> big port, showing mostly plummy fruit, with just a hint of chocolate.
> Probably realistically a B on my scale, but I'll give a B+/A- because
> it's a birthyear wine. Kevin, who joined the party late, turned out to
> be a 1960 babe too, so that was a bonus.
>
> Kevin brought a 1985 Crusius Traiser Rotenfels Riesling Spatlese
> (Nahe). After two botrytis stickies and a VP, my tastebuds were shot,
> but this held some interest despite some oxidation. B
>
> Good night, good people. The problem with these big offlines of course
> is that you can only really converse with a few, but I enjoyed my
> neighbors.
>
> Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent
> wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't
> drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no
> promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency
>
>