Oh my!

[Florida Jim]

With cheese:

1997 Dom. Leflaive, Bienvenues Batard-Montrachet:

Aromatically youthful but still expansive with deep, ripe chardonnay fruit accented with smoke, stone, spice and earth tones, good complexity; incredible on the palate with an initial burst of fresh grape juice that is still a part of the rich, viscous, stony flavor profile, completely harmonious yet still firm and intense, immense concentration, precise balance, marvelously complex and a spectacular finish, both in length and flavor complexity. Both steely and fat at the same time and my new standard for chardonnay.

A life list wine.

With a salad of mache, gorgonzola, walnuts and fresh pears:

2000 Raveneau, Chablis Clos:

A leaking cork foretold a wine that started out dead on the nose but lovely on the palate; once decanted, it began to open up and by evening’s end was true to its grand cru lineage. Strongly flavored with good depth and ripeness and exceptional length, however it never was as impressive as the preceding wine nor a 2000 Dauvissat, Preuses tasted earlier this week. I suspect a cork/storage/shipping problem and, as good as the wines from this house can be, I find more damaged bottles of Raveneau than any other top Chablis producer.

With vegetarian lasagna with fresh sliced truffles:

1999 Pio Cesare, Barolo:

Very ripe on the nose and palate without much development or complexity but it tasted of fruit and not wood which is more than I expected of such a young Barolo. Good concentration, intensity and length bode well for its future.

After hours:

1999 Dugat-Py, Gevrey-Chambertin VV:

Also young but showing a velvet texture, ripe tannins and mouth-filling flavors of fruit and earth. And an amazing finish that keeps pumping out flavors long after one has swallowed. Not many village wines live at this level.

Best, Jim

["T"]

Jim, was the Barolo decanted at all?

Where would you put the level of tannin?

[Florida Jim]

Jim, was the Barolo decanted at all?

Where would you put the level of tannin?

←

It was; about an hour.

Noticeable but not intrusive and pretty ripe.

Best, Jim