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
We started the meal with a Californian Chardonnay, 2008 Peter Michael "La Carrière" recommended by Chef Harlan. It was an intensely flavoured wine, with a full body, but lacked depth of character, a little weak on middle palate and the length. On the nose, intense aromas of lemon curd, marzipan, macadamia nuts, guava, ginger flower, acacia, honey and warm spices, packed with toasty and buttery character. A delicious wine, balanced but rich (a bit too rich for my personal preference), not a hugely complex wine. Drinking well now, and for the next 4 - 5 years. 16/20
Gold, as the name suggests, has a very bold decor and it is the perfect setting for group dinners, not so recommended for romantic (third date) dinners. It has a very cosy private room, with a very impressive cellar, which Chef Harlan attributed to his partner for furnishing this inner cellar list! Outdoor is also a great venue for a party and there was a birthday party on this evening.
We definitely did not do so well with the food ordering. I had a classic arugula salad to start with and Richard had the mushroom cappuccino. Richard then went for a rib eye, which in my view was definitely not a good match for the rather delicate Jayer Cros Parantoux and my intensely flavoured pasta with Spanish prawns, though tasty, certainly was a terrible match. In fact, I decided to leave the wine till after I finished the pasta! In any case, we only have ourselves to blame for not giving the Cros Parantoux the perfect setting to show its full glory!
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