I have been remiss in chronicling my wine and food activities lately, so here is the first entry intended to remedy the situation:
"Mark NYC" posted a message on the Parker/Squires message board that he would be in San Francisco for a few days and would like to get together with some San Francisco wine collectors for an informal dinner. Bob K from Boston, saw the message and chimed in that he would also be interested in such an event. After some nudging, Gene K and I said we'd be happy to meet the prodigal duo at Fringale for an evening of wine and food. One thing lead to another and Mark NYC said his client wanted to go out to dinner at Michael Mina so he was going to have to back out of sipping wine with strangers at Fringale (imagine that! we were jealous), and Gene K was overwhelmed with work and also had to back out. It was looking dark and stormy.
Fortunately, Jim H and Ken E jumped in at the last minute to fill up the reservation for four. Bob K graciously and generously purchased a bottle of '92 Montelena at retail. Jim H brought along a bottle of Melville Pinot Noir from the stash at the office, and I supplied the chardonnay and the '94 Montelena. Ken E, who is widely admired for his generosity at offlines got to sit back this time and enjoy the show. At 7:00 p.m we were off.
We ordered off the menu and ended up with three courses, starting off the libations with some ABC chardonnay which I have been drinking with great pleasure over the last year:
- 2000 Au Bon Climat Chardonnay XX Anniversary Passant des Nuits-Blanches au Bouge - USA, California, Santa Barbara County, Santa Maria Valley
Sparking and clear inviting the connoisseur to stare into its eyes. Nose showed a bit of funk which blew off over 20 minutes or so leaving ripe and melony chardonnay fruit with the barest touch or oaky vanilla. Big and mouthfilling, but with the acid to balance. Long, long, long and sweet finish. There was some comment at the table that it "tasted corked." I think the consensus after a hour or so was that the wine was fine. This was a really good effort by ABC. I have had serveral bottles of this and truly enjoyed each one.(91 pts.) - 2002 Melville Pinot Noir 115 Indigene - USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Rita Hills
Very youthful and dark, but showing a clear and classic pinot color. Nose show ripe fruit and a hint of stems. Very integrated and balanced with acidity, tannin and fruit in balance. Mouth filling with a medium full body, but refreshing on the palate. Excellent wine showing well now. (Not decanted, but left in glass over an extended dinner).(91 pts.) - 1994 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
Deep and dark red, appearing very youthful. Nose of cedar and ripe fruit. The palate showed great concentration and balance with dark fruits, and a backbone of balancing acidity. Showed a medium-full body on opening and it kept improving with air and time. Tannins were smooth and contributed to the long finish. Obviously quite youthful still with a long life ahead, but a great wine that can be enjoyed right now.(95 pts.) - 1992 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon The Montelena Estate - USA, California, Napa Valley
Not decanted, but left in the glass over the course of a three-hour dinner. Still looking quite dark and youthful with a deep red color and no bricking or thinning at the rim. Nose was immediately obvious and very reminiscent of a left-bank Bordeaux, with unmistakable earthiness, and smoke mingling with the fruit. The palate also showed like Bordeaux from a ripe year, having a fine medium-full body and a European-like backbone of acidity. Good long finish and a real pleasure to drink now, although there are still many years of life ahead for this wine. More than one of us at the table figured we'd have problems identifing this as a ringer at a Bordeaux tasting. The wine would have been more impressive had it not been compared to the '94 Montelena at the same table.(93 pts.)
We finished up with some yummy chocolate truffles and some complementary port when we helped close up the restaurant at 10:30 or so. With all of the wines solidly in the 90-point range, and with the entertaining company of fellow wine and food lovers, it ended up being a very fine dinner indeed. But as much as I love food and wine, I think I like the Internet, and how it can bring folks together, even more. There will be more of these events.
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