Pre-New Year's Eve Dinner

30 Dec 2010: It's quite an achievement that Richard and I finally managed to find an evening in between the last two cricket tests to have dinner by ourselves (not quite joking!).  We managed to get a last-minute table at the lastest addition to the food scene in HK, Gold by Harlan Goldstein. 

2010 has been a rather destabilising and challenging year in many ways, so many developments and changes, bringing some times joy and elation and other times despair, sadness and frustration.  The comparison to a rolling stone resounds well and leaves me with emotions of under-achievement and frustration.  Anyway, we got "here" and to mark the year coming to an end, we thought we would drink a bottle of one of our favourite wines: 1988 Vosne-Romanée Cros Parantoux, Henri Jayer - a wine that would evoke memories of a wonderful holiday in la belle France.  We last drank this wine at the restaurant Michel Bras in the Auvergne, a long time ago.  We decided to try it again to relive those magical sensations that we felt when we last drank this wine.  We probably should have decanted it to let some of the old bottle mustiness escape and let the wine pull itself together in the decanter.  Richard thought it was just as "imperial" as he remembered it.  I rather thought there was just a very faint hint of bretty character in this bottle, which over the course of the dinner, became less and less evident.  I also thought the wine tasted perhaps a little fragile on this occasion.   I should hasten to add that perhaps my food was not a good match for the wine and such a great wine deserved a more appropriate match and perhaps more importantly, a more intimate setting.    

My tasting note: A garnet ruby core.  After a bit of aeration to refresh the bouquet (and shaking out some of what I thought was bretty character) and to give the wine time to recover from the shock of pulling the cork, we were treated to an intense and mesmerizingly enchanting bouquet of animal saddle, farmyard hay, leather, earthy and rose petal notes, complemented by some soft red cherry character.  On the palate, the wine tasted very fresh and full of energy.  An elegant and balanced wine, made in a classic style, showing a very fine structure and silky texture, this wine could still be evolving for another 3 -5 years to reach its absolute peak.  Drinking very well now, and will be drinking well for another 10+ years.  19/20

Christmas Day!!

25 Dec 2010: Christmas Day!  We went round to Patrick and Debra's for a "casual" lunch.  We knew it wouldn't be quite so casual, with Patrick in charge of the stove and wine cellar!  We started with some smoked trout on blinis (with a touch of orange zest) and a glass of Cristal 1996, which tasted rich and well-matured.  Then we sat down for a dish of angel hair with anchovy-flavoured bread crumbs, lightly garnished with chili and oregano.  Such a simple dish, and yet so full of flavours and texture!  This was accompanied by a 2001 Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet.  A pure expression of terroir and vintage.  Elegant, very poised, mineral, citrus peel, with some guava and melon.  Drinking well now and for next 5+ years. 17.5/20

The star of the lunch was the 1990 Chambertin, Rousseau.  This wine just tasted so "à point" and drinking at its peak now and for the next 5+ years.  Ripe red fruit, complemented by aromas of leather, earth, herb and spice. Extremely well balanced, structure holding well with silky tannin and a good level of acidity.  Exceptional length.  19/20 A fabulous wine that went so well with the rouladen dish!  "Rouladen" is a German dish consisting of bacon, onions, mustard and pickles, wrapped with a thin slice of beef.  Patrick made two versions, one the traditional way with veal and the other a deviation from the tradition, with string mushrooms with beef. Deliciously served with a rich mustard and mushroom sauce!  So yummy!

Pre-Christmas Celebration Dinner

23 Dec 2010: Year-end "grande bouffe", a perfect excuse for a bit of indulgence!  We did not have time to prepare elaborate dishes as it was a work day!  Nevertheless, I congratulated myself on my home-made blinis (which I made beforehand)!  Starter was a composition of balik salmon and Richard's fabulous smoked trout pâté!  For main course, Richard cooked a very tasty dish of pork chops served with parsnips, apples and a rich meat jus, intensely flavoured with some leftover vin jaune, madeira and white burgundy!  This was followed by a cheese platter of Isle of Mull cheddar, coulommiers, vacherin and stilton.  Dessert was a combo of Christmas pudding with brandy sauce, berries and ice cream doused with aged PX!  I just adore PX - its richness is so intoxicating! We were rather spoilt by the array of fine wines (all in magnums, except the last two wines): 1999 Pierre Gimonnet Millésime de Collection, 1998 Haut Brion Blanc, 1961 Château Mouton Rothschild, 1959 Château Mouton Rothschild, 1990 Château Lynch-Bages and 1955 Graham's. 

Perfect Match: 1989 Château Margaux and Stir-Fried Glutinous Rice, with Chinese Sausage

20 Dec 2010: Inaugural VV Monday Supper Club.  Each invitee brings a bottle of wine based on the chosen theme.  The theme for this Monday was "First Growth or Grand Cru" and I hosted it at the China Club.  I thought it would be fun to see how the wines paired with the various Chinese dishes.  Most of the wines of the evening had been double-decanted:

2002 Chablis Grand Cru Bougros, Côte de Bouguerots, William Fèvre
2006 Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, Faiveley
1990 Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, Bonneau du Martray
2006 Clos Saint Denis Grand Cru, Pascal Lachaux
1989 Château Margaux
1983 Château Mouton Rothschild

Commanderie de Bordeaux Dinner

17 Dec 2010: Debra and I decided to join the annual BYO Commanderie de Bordeaux dinner, at the Grand Hyatt function room.  Each guest was greeted with a lovely pink glass of Delomotte and some really delicious amuse-bouches.  As ususal the GH team did a great job with the food and service, kudos to my neighbour, the hotel's F&B Manager who himself was gettting inducted on the same evening.   Each table was allocated a bottle of 2007 Cos d'Estournel Blanc and a bottle of 2003 Cos d'Estournel Rouge.  However, we were all encouraged to bring a bottle each and what fun we all had in sharing and enjoying the wines at our table! 

I thought the 2007 Cos d'Estournel Blanc (80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon) while displaying charming aromas of pineapple, mango, figs, honey, toast, nutty and faint buttery character with refreshing acidity, was a little weak on the palate and the finish was rather short.  Perhaps the Semillon content needed more time to fill out?  I gave it 15.5/20 on this occasion.  The 2003 Cos d'Estournel tasted a little fruit forward for me.  I found the rich palate of stewed fruit, blackberry preserve, warm spices with a hint of cedar and tobacco a little tiring, and I was looking for a bit more energy and character in the wine.  I scored this wine 16/20.  It was also perhaps not that well complemented by the lobster starter, which was delicious, but probably would have gone better with a white burgundy in my view!

Around the table, we sampled these wines: 1990 Ducru Beaucaillou (brought by me), 1989 Pichon Baron, 2003 Pavie, 2001 La Conseillante, 1983 Montrose, 2005 Talbot and 1994 Vieux Chateau Certan. A brief comment on the wines:

2007 Oreno and 2005 L'Ormarins Optima

13 Dec 2010:  Our "not so regular anymore" wine tasting group finally got together again for dinner before the year end.  We went to Gong Guan, a modern Shanghainese private kitchen. The restaurant has 3 private rooms (cleverly partitioned by satin curtains) and minimum booking for each room is 8 people (we just about made this minimum number after a few last minute dropping out!).  The restaurant offers consistent quality food at very reasonable prices, albeit based on a fixed menu.  The only disadvantage is the lack of wine-serving ware - decanters are actually water jugs and glasses are a little limited.   So best to come as couples, so you can optimise the use of available glasses to try a few wines at the same time!  On this evening, the spare ribs and the chicken were the best dishes....and we even sent Pui Hong and Anita to go and get ice cream as the Chinese dessert soup was a little too herbal and medicinal to go with the Tokaji Aszu 6 Puttonyos!  (Next time I know better to check with the restaurant what desset they're serving so we can be better prepared!)

I was a little disappointed by some of the wines of the evening but the two wines that I found interesting and delicious were: 2007 Tenuta Sette Ponti Oreno and 2005 L'Ormarins Optima. 

1990 Grão Vasco Garrafeira

12 Dec 2010: Richard cannot even remember how he acquired this wine.  I have been intrigued by this bottle for a long time, mainly because of the lack of attention we have given it.  1990 Grão Vasco Garrafeira from Dão, a DOC region from Portugal.  Probable grape variety mix would be Jaen, Alfrocheiro, Touriga Nacional and Tinta Roriz.  Garrafiera would mean  a minimum requirement of 24 months in cask followed by 12 months in bottle before release.  I thought it would be amusing to open it on a Sunday night with our simple supper - tonight it was simply roasted chicken, served with a tomato-ketchup based sauce, an adaptation of the recipe from Marco Pierre White's latest book.  "Gobsmacked" would be an appropriate description of how we were taken by surprise by the quality of this wine!  Garnet ruby.  An intense and complex bouquet of red fruit, plums, overlaid with cloves, liquorice, wild herbs and wet leaves.  On the palate, coffee and chocolate came through to add to the complexity of this wine.  An elegant display of complexity and character, with a velvety texture of softened tannin but still firm acidity, finishing very long.  Beautifully matured, gloriously showcasing ripe and characterful fruit quality and cool climate complexity.  A marvellous effort.  I was only vaguely aware of the potential in winemaking of this region - Dão, but after this bottle, I was left in no doubt that there could be some really gorgeous wines coming out of this region, from the right hands.   These indigenous varieties are naturally blessed with a high level of acidity and with the right amount of ripening, they could be material for very ageworthy wines.  Sadly this was our last bottle and a great experience indeed!   18/20 

2000 Raveneau and 2002 J.J. Confuron

11 December 2010: Just finished an afternoon of teaching to find a glass of 2000 Chablis Vaillons, Raveneau waiting for me.  Compared to 2001, which showed more roundness and richness, 2000 was a year marked by more austerity and firmer acidity.  Rain came late, just before harvest, after a warm summer, and the vines soaked up the additional moisture rather rapidly, and this in some way might have played a part in diluting the flavour concentration of the wines.  This Chablis Vaillons showed a character of fennel, green fruit, mineral, with just a hint of nutty, toasty and brioche notes.  Light in body, racy acidity, and lacking in concentration of fruit character, this wine tasted as though it could do with just a little more stuffing out.  Will further time in bottle help this wine round out the texture and soften the acidity?  15.5/20 

2002 Romanée Saint Vivant Grand Cru, Jean-Jacques Confuron.  Garnet ruby.  Nose of red cherry, red fruit, wet leaves, saddle leather, dusty earthy minerality and a very faint hint of tobacco.  Balanced, elegantly textured, but somehow lacking in intensity, depth of character and length that one would expect for a Grand Cru.  A little disappointing. Wonder if the wine is going through its shut-down phase, while waiting for more tertiary character to come through to fill out the wine.  16.5/20