Older Champagne Ruinart Dinner At Chanterelle

[Vinotas]

Recently, I was invited to organize a Champagne Ruinart dinner in New York by the Chef de Caves, Frederic Panaiotis. As you can imagine, I jumped at the opportunity! This wasn't just one of the oldest houses in Champagne, it was also one of my favorites. I'd visited the house on almost all my trips to the region, and it had been the very first one I'd stopped in at during my very first trip. So this was quite the honor!

We decided to do this at the very wine-friendly restaurant, Chanterelle, another favorite of ours. Roger Dagorn, the sommelier there, is amazingly knowledgeable and a big fan of Champagne, so this was an easy choice. With his help, we devised a menu to match the caliber of the Champagnes that Frederic was generously bringing, most of which were aged. Let me just say that the service, the food and pretty much everything at Chanterelle were great, they really outdid themselves. We really felt like we were the only people there this night.

While we waited to be seated, we started off with the regular Ruinart Rosé, full of crisp strawberries and cream and some ruby grapefruit notes. Delicious, and a nice match for our first course, a Timbale of Squab Mousse with Juniper and Green Peppercorns.

Next came two young bottles, the Dom Ruinart 1998 and Dom Ruinart 1996. Interesting comparison, whereas the 1998 was fresh and crisp and rather light on its feet compared to its sibling, the 1996 showed not only a hint of graceful ageing, but was extremely more complex and deep, with a velvety feel on the palate. Smelling it reminded me of some aged Puligny Montrachet, with that light truffled note. This is a real vin de garde, it will age for a long time. And the 1996 was a perfect foil for our 2nd course, Nantucket Bay Scallops in a Lemongrass and Lime Nage. I might add that the scallops were out of this world on their own as well.

Now three glasses were filled, this time with older bottles: Dom Ruinart 1993, 1990 and 1988. What a difference! At first, I was a bit worried that the 1993 was corked, but the funky note I smelled quickly blew off, revealing a nicely aged Champagne. The 1990 was the more powerful of the three, with ripe fruits and a hint of caramelization from its age. But my favorite was the 1988, it was laser crisp and precise, with a ton of minerality and chalkiness from its terroir. As it sat in the glass, it seemed to unfold and become less shy, really revealing its pedigree. Not bad for 20 year-old bubbly. All three went great with our 3rd course, Potato-Wrapped Wild Stripped Bass with Sorrel-Spinach Coulis.

Magnums began appearing, and the room hushed. Dom Ruinart Rosé 1986, 1985 and 1979 were all poured, and we were happy. The 1986 was the freshest of the bunch, with more wild strawberries than I could count on a lively frame. The 1985, however, had power to spare, with tons of dark berries and a hint of yeast, a big body that was rather shy at first and a long finish. Lastly, the 1979 had the most elegance, a real sophisticate that seemed to outshine its peers with class.

There had been some questions as to my choice of 4th course, but I felt in the end that the dish of Berkshire Pork Three Ways went perfectly with these wines. At the end of the evening, Frederic even told me he was happily surprised that the wines and the food had matched up so nicely. Yay me!

More magnums appeared, and I smiled. I like magnums. Especially magnums of older Champagne. We were treated to three more Rosés, the Dom Ruinart Rosé 1996, 1990 and 1988. Again, vive la difference! While the 1996 was fresh and crisp with just a hint of age, the 1990 was powerful and big and voluptuous, and the 1988 a laser beam of crisp light red fruits. Nice foils for the cheeses, though at this point I was just giddy with bubbles.

As the dinner wound down, a last bottle appeared, a Ruinart Blancs de Blanc. And while this is usually one of my favorites, and was quite delicious, it was completely outclassed by its siblings. Relatively light-bodied and crisp, this was still a nice way to end the evening, alongside a Meyer Lemon Chiboust with Lemon Verbena Anglaise and Tangerine Ice Cream. Not being much of a dessert fan, I just curled up with my remaining Champagnes and smiled.

This was what I'd call a great night. Pictures can be found HERE.

Cheers!

Edited January 23, 2008 by Vinotas (log)