<a target="_blank" href="http://elevenmadisonpark.com/">Eleven Madison Park</a> 

11 Madison Ave,

New York,

NY 10010

Tel: (212) 889-0905

My wife and I returned to Eleven Madison Park for a second
night of fabulous food and wine, this time in the company of dear friends from
North Carolina. Once again, everything we ate and drank was superb.

We stared with a bottle of André Clouet’s NV Brut Un Jour de 1911, a bottle I had been first
introduced to by Eleven Madison’s Wine Director John Ragan a few months prior.
Ever since then, I have done my best to deplete the restaurant’s inventory. The
wine was once again simply brilliant. A blend of 1995, 1996 and 1997 Pinot Noir
from Bouzy, the Un Jour de 1911 soared from the glass with silky layers of
perfumed fruit. This exuberant, boisterous Champagne got the evening off to a
rousing start. I am generally not a big fan of foams, cappuccinos and other
excessively whimsical preparations, but how could I not love the sea urchin
cappuccino? It was utterly divine and full of intense yet delicate flavors.

At a time when the age worthiness of so many white
Burgundies is being questioned, Bonneau
de Martray’s 1999 Corton-Charlemagne reminded us of the reasons we cellar
these wines in the first place. Sweet, nuanced and intensely mineral, the
Corton-Charlemagne continued to develop in the glass, gradually revealing
subtle fruit on a large-scaled, expansive frame. This was a great bottle, and
the wine paired beautifully with a rich preparation of poached egg, mushrooms
and frogs legs.

We were treated to an extraordinary bottle of Roumier’s 2002 Bonnes Mares, another
wine that was utterly mesmerizing. Yes, it was far too young, but that didn’t
diminish our enjoyment at all. Sweet, ripe and generous, the wine flowed from
the glass with an endless array of mineral-infused dark fruits, showing
remarkable clarity, inner perfume and transparency. Readers fortunate enough to
own this wine should be giddy with joy. The 2002 Bonnes Mares worked
surprisingly well with the hare, a modern, re-invented version of a classic
dish that in Humm’s hands reached an unprecedented level of finesse.

Bruno Giacosa’s 1986
Barolo Riserva Falletto was superb, even if it didn’t quite make up for the
heartache of a corked 1989 Barolo
Riserva Collina Rionda. The wine showed the classic notes of Serralunga;
iron, tar, licorice, menthol and dark fruit, all of which were wrapped around a
powerful, masculine frame. The 1986 Barolo Riserva Falletto remains one of
Giacosa’s greatest under-the-radar achievements. The bone-marrow crusted Black
Angus beef was more than up to the challenge, in fact it was magnificent!&nbsp;

Food:

Sea Urchin Cappuccino with Peekytoe Crab

Knoll Krest Farm Egg, Slow Poached with Matsutake Mushrooms
and Everglades’ Frogs Legs

Wild Hare Braised in Red Wine; Foie Gras, Black Truffles,
Potato Mousseline

Black Angus Beef; Bone Marrow Crusted with Saffron Soubise
and Braised Shallots

Selection of Artisan Cheeses&nbsp;

Wine:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 NV
 </td>
 <td>
 André Clouet Brut Un Jour de 1911
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1999
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine Bonneau de Martray Corton-Charlemagne
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 2002
 </td>
 <td>
 Domaine Georges Roumier Bonnes Mares
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1989
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Collina Rionda
 </td>
 <td>
 ?
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1986
 </td>
 <td>
 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Falletto
 </td>
 <td>
 96
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>--Antonio Galloni

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