Dinner at Home

March 2008

My March trip to Napa Valley was fantastic. I visited
several estates and attended La Paulée in San Francisco. Although I had a
number of terrific meals, none gave me more pleasure than the dinners I enjoyed
at the gorgeous St. Helena home of dear friends. For the sake of simplicity
both dinners are listed below.

One of the things I enjoy most is drinking great wines but
in a casual, relaxed setting. And so it was that we drank these two beautiful
bottles of Krug around the kitchen table as we snacked on light hors d’oeuvres.
Both wines were fantastic. The 1985 Krug
was delicate, perfumed and lithe on the palate, with superb freshness and a
more compact frame than the 1988. I came back to it often and never failed to
be seduced by its mesmerizing personality. The 1988 Krug was decidedly more intense and full-bodied. It had
everything; gorgeous fruit, acidity, texture and loads of complexity. In short,
it was stunning. Domaine de la
Romanée-Conti’s 1978 Romanée St. Vivant was incredibly beautiful. Still
fresh, vibrant and layered, it continued to evolve in the glass, revealing
notable detail in its sweet fruit, spices and menthol. The 1980 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti’s Romanée St. Vivant, on the other
hand, was fully mature and perhaps slightly past its peak. The color was faded,
and the wine presented a tertiary expression of sweet, perfumed fruit, autumn
leaves and baking spices, with resolved tannins and a medium-bodied,
soft-textured personality. Though pretty, I probably would have enjoyed it more
at an earlier stage in its life. I also noted that the wine was considerably
less fresh than recent bottles of the Grands-Echézeaux and La Tâche of the same
vintage.

Our second dinner began with Jacques Selosses’ NV Substance, which had acquired much complexity,
volume and breadth since its disgorgement
in 2001. It was sweet, full-bodied and simply luscious. Domaine Leflaive’s 1989 Puligny-Montrachet
Les Pucelles was elegant and refined. Initially somewhat slender, it
continued to put on weight in the glass, showing notable personality and lovely
balance. The 1992 Domaine Leflaive
Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles was decidedly richer. This full-bodied wine
revealed notes of tropical fruits with elements of botrytis-like sweetness.
Despite its size, it showed incredible detail, polish and balance. It was
stunning. Both of these wines from Leflaive were mature, but didn’t show any
noticeable signs of decline. The 1971
Domaine Comte de Vogüé Bonnes Mares was sublime. Despite being fully
mature, this was a wine that seemed frozen in time, as the fruit was still
fresh and vibrant for a 37 year-old Burgundy. Strawberries, raspberries, dried
cherries, cloves and spice cake wafted from the glass with remarkable elegance.
The tannins were fully resolved and the wine was at peak or perhaps slightly
past, but it was beautiful in every way. Domaine
de la Romanée-Conti’s 1971 Romanée St. Vivant was sweet and layered, with
more stuffing than the Vogüé Bonnes Mares. Though pretty, it wasn’t the
greatest bottle I have had of this wine. Still, it was a rare treat to enjoy
these two pristine 1971s together and watch them develop over the course of the
evening.&nbsp;

Food (Dinner 1):

Grilled lamb chops with potatoes au gratin and roasted
vegetables

Artisan cheeses

Food (Dinner 2):

Grilled Ahi tuna

Grilled beef tenderloin

Artisan cheeses

Wine:&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 1985
 </td>
 <td>
 Krug
 </td>
 <td>
 93
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1988
 </td>
 <td>
 Krug
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1978
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant
 (Marey-Monge)
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1980
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant
 (Marey-Monge)
 </td>
 <td>
 91
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 NV
 </td>
 <td>
 Jacques Selosse Substance (disgorged 2001)
 </td>
 <td>
 92
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1989
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles
 </td>
 <td>
 90
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1992
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1971
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine Comte de Vogüé Bonnes Mares
 </td>
 <td>
 93
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1971
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Romanée St. Vivant
 (Marey-Monge)
 </td>
 <td>
 93</td></tr></tbody></table>

--Antonio Galloni

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