Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Lunch with Jeff Leve, Michel Gracia, Catherine Père-Vergès (La Violette, Le Gay, etc..), Barbara and us.

During the meal, Jeff asked us about punching over the cap: why, how... hard to answer if we do not see the work done directly in a cellar. I tried to explain that today, in my opinion, such choice could be a good psychoanalytic argument.
I suffer and its tough. I touch this matter in a carnal way: contact and pain increase the impact caused by the act of creating, but it doesn’t prevent the fact that punching over the cap should only be done with ripe grapes, otherwise the results can be quite damaging: where bad tannins and vegetal flavors would be amplified!

We started with small live gray shrimp from the Gironde estuary, sautéed in olive oil, and paired with a Blanc de Valandraud n°1 2007.

Following, blind, with Pata Négra, Le Gay 2003 and Clos du Mont Olivet 2003 Cuvée du Papet.
Preferred wines : 4 votes for Le Gay and 2 votes (Jeff and I) for this very good Chateauneuf-Du-Pape. Catherine didn’t even recognize her own wine.
Blind tastings should be forbidden…

Then, with beef steaks, fries like at L’Ami Louis and fresh ceps from Corrèze, Gracia 1998 and Latour 1998.
This time, 3 votes for Gracia (modern and silky), 3 for Latour, a bit austere, old style for me.

Still with meat and a great sheep milk cheese, La Dominique 1989 and Troplong Mondot 1989. 5 votes for La Dominique (really amazing) – which I bought in England a few months ago for 70 Euros. Murielle said: Pomerol ? Pétrus ? Goes to show !
Troplong Mondot 1989, firmer. The terroir forces you to wait for more than 10 years before showing well. Terroir, terroir, of course… hard to fight.

Jeff followed with Weinert 1977, tasted blind, which I didn’t like (volatile, acid). Probably a defect, or the bottle, or hard to follow La Domnique 1989. I did enjoy this wine and had bought a case from my friend Adi Werner in Saint Christophe in Alberg (Austria).
The Argentinean wine was, probably, one the best in 1977, made to celebrate birthdays (Virginie)

No comments: