<a target="_blank" href="http://www.aifiorinyc.com/">Ai Fiori</a>

400
5th Avenue 2nd Level/Langham Place Fifth Avenue

New
York, NY 10018

+
1 (212) 613-8660

Wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2002+Bollinger+Vieilles+">2002 Bollinger Vieilles Vignes Françaises</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 98
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank">1996 Bollinger RD</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2011+Miani+Friulano+Buri">2011 Miani Friulano Buri</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2011+Borgo+del+Tiglio+Sauvignon+Selezione">2011 Borgo del Tiglio Sauvignon
 Selezione</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 93
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2005+Kongsgaard+Chardonnay+The+Judge">2005 Kongsgaard Chardonnay The
 Judge (house)</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 98
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2009+Kistler+Pinot+Noir+Occidental+Catherine">2009 Kistler Pinot Noir Occidental
 Station Vineyard Cuvée
 Catherine</a> &nbsp;&nbsp;
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2009+Lato+Syrah+Padrino+Nacido">2009 Paul Lato Syrah Il Padrino
 Bien Nacido Vineyard</a> 
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2009+Futo">2009 Futo Proprietary Red</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 97
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=1985+Bartolo+Mascarello+Barolo">1985 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo
 (magnum)</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 95
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1985 Paolo Scavino Barolo Riserva
 (magnum)
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=1990+Bruno+Giacosa+Barolo+Riserva+Collina+Rionda">1990 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva
 Collina Rionda</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2001+Giacomo+Conterno+Barolo+Riserva+Monfortino">2001 Giacomo Conterno Barolo
 Riserva Monfortino</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 98
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=1993+Giacomo+Conterno+Barolo+Riserva+Monfortino">1993 Giacomo Conterno Barolo
 Riserva Monfortino</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/wines?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;q=2001++Quintarelli+Recioto">2001 Giuseppe Quintarelli Recioto</a>
 </td>
 <td>
 98
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>

Food:

Crudo
di Passera; flake crudo, sturgeon caviar, Meyer lemon

Marubini;
pork shoulder ravioli, cacio e pepe

Vitello;
Amish veal chop “au four’ new potatoes, prosciutto, sage

Cheeses;
Pecorino Foglie di Noce, Castelmagno

This recent
dinner at Ai Fiori provided an opportunity to check in a number of cellar favorites,
both old and new. I take a look at some of the wines in this <a target="_blank" href="http://vinousmedia.com/multimedia/ai-fiori-champagne-california-and-italy-feb-2014">short video</a>, shot
just before dinner.&nbsp;

Over the last
year Ai Fiori has become one of my favorite spots in New York. The food is
incredibly wine-friendly, the service is superb and overall ambience is
welcoming. Everything on our menu is out of this world. The flake crudo,
covered with a nearly obscene amount of caviar, is delicious. The flavors are
intense, but not overpowering. I also love the pork shoulder ravioli, which are
rich yet not at all heavy. Veal chop is one of my favorites dishes. Ai Fiori’s
version is fabulous, with intense flavor and texture that marries beautifully
with our wines. 

<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1393007808176-FioriFluke.jpg"> Crudo di Passera; flake crudo, sturgeon
caviar, Meyer lemon

I confess I have a weakness for
Bollinger’s 2002 Vieilles Vignes Françaises,
which I always look forward to drinking. On this night, the VVF is superb.
Seamless, resonant and inviting, the 2002 VVF captivates all the senses with
its exceptional balance and total class. The 1996 RD is surprisingly fresh, vibrant and beautifully expressive.
This is one of the best bottles of the 1996 I have ever had.

Our flight of whites is
extraordinary. All of the wines pair beautifully with the flake crudo, each in
their own way. Miani’s 2011 Friulano
Buri is the most textured of the wines, both because of the vintage and its
youth. Still, there is plenty of Buttrio minerality underpinning the fruit.
Enzo Pontoni’s wines usually need a few years to come together. We drank this
wine too young, but it was still beautiful. Varietal Sauvignon notes scream out
of the glass in Borgo del Tiglio’s 2011 Sauvignon
Selezione. Here aromatics and minerality cut right through the richness of
the caviar. What a gorgeous wine this is. Kongsgaard’s 2005 Chardonnay The Judge is absolutely stellar. This bottle is
even fresher than a bottle I had a few months back. Readers who own the 2005
should be thrilled. This is one of the best-ever vintages for one of
California’s most iconic Chardonnays. 

<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1393007838675-FioriAgnolotti.jpg"> Marubini; pork shoulder ravioli, cacio e
pepe

Steve Kistler’s 2009 Pinot Noir Occidental Station Vineyard Cuvée Catherine is
a drop-dead gorgeous beauty and a huge crowd-pleaser. Today, I have a slight
preference for both the 2010 and 2011, but the 2009 is fabulous for its
immediacy and juiciness. Paul Lato’s 2009
Syrah Il Padrino Bien Nacido Vineyard appears to be going through an
awkward stage, as it is less expressive than normal. Over time, the 2009 opens
up a bit, but I am going to wait at least another year before opening another
bottle. Much the same is true for the 2009
Futo Proprietary Red, which remains incredibly primary and unevolved. There
is a lot to look forward to here, but the wine’s best days are off in the
future.

Bruno Giacosa’s 1990 Barolo Riserva Collina Rionda is superb. Laced with the
essence of dried rose petals, anise and hard candy, the 1990 is a total
turn-on. So much so that we go through two bottles without any problems. The
1990 might not reach the celestial heights of the 1978, 1982 or 1989, but it comes
awfully close. The 1985 Bartolo
Mascarello Barolo, from magnum, is delicious, but also rustic and a bit
rough around the edges. I have had the 1985 several times recently, and I am
starting to think the wine has begun its move towards full maturity. Scavino’s 1985 Barolo Riserva (magnum) is a real
rarity. I have never seen this wine, much less tasted it. For four vintages in
the 1980s Enrico Scavino made a Riserva from a rented vineyard in Bussia he
subsequently lost access to. The 1985 was the first vintage and it was bottled
only in magnum. As fate would have it, our bottle was corked! I hope to have a
chance to taste the 1985 Riserva again, but I know that will require a good bit
of luck.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1393007869902-FioriVeal.jpg"> 

Vitello; Amish veal chop “au four’ new
potatoes, prosciutto, sage

A stellar flight of Monfortinos
rounds out the red. The 2001 Barolo Riserva
Monfortino shows just how much finesse and total elegance this great site
in Serralunga is capable of. The 2001 boasts striking inner sweetness and more
than enough depth to drink well for several decades. Today it is simply
magnificent. Conterno’s 1993 Barolo
Riserva Monfortino is a more rustic, earthy wine laced with ferrous notes,
iron, minerals and smoke. The 1993 remains powerful and brooding. My sense is
that the 1993 will be a relatively early maturing Monfortino that is also
likely to remain a bit rough around the edges. Over the last two decades
Monfortino has become a much more polished wine, as these two vintages
poignantly demonstrate.

Quintarelli’s 2001 Recioto is a marvelous conclusion to this delicious dinner.
Impeccably layered and sensual on the palate, the 2001 brings back so many
memories of tastings in the cellar and of the time I was privileged to spend
with Giuseppe Quintarelli, the master of Amarone. 

<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1393007894381-FioriWines.jpg"> A fabulous
lineup of cellar favorites at Ai Fiori

-- Antonio Galloni

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