Essex County Wine Society

                  WINE PRESS

                          ESSEX COUNTY WINE SOCIETY

September 14, 2009

The first event of our 37^th season was yesterday – the fall dinner at Fascino. It was a fabulous evening and it was wonderful to see everyone after the summer hiatus.

We started with the Duval Leroy Brut Champagne NV accompanying hors d’oeuvres including taleggio arancini with black olive aioli; endive spears with red beets and goat cheese; pomegranate chicken skewers, and Jonah crab cakes. The first course was yellowfin tuna Rollatini, served with the 2005 Thierry et Pascale Matrot Meursault. The second course, wonderfully light ricotta gnocchi with sweet sausage Bolognese paired well with the 1999 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino from the ECWS cellar. The wine showed very well this evening. The next course, tangerine honey-glazed rack of lamb with garlic-braised broccoli rabe and fingerling potatoes with a mustard-truffle sauce, was paired with 2000 Ridge Monte Bello (also from the ECWS cellar). Though 2000 is not considered such a good year in most of California, this wine also showed very well, especially with the lamb. With dessert, we had the 2005 Domaine des Baumard Coteaux du Layon Clos de Sainte Catherine. While young, the balance of sweetness and acidity worked perfectly with the apple crumble. Thanks again to Stacey Rudbart for all her work in organizing this wonderful dinner. As a point of record, this may have been the first ECWS dinner with two screw-top wines. The world is changing.

Our first tasting of the season will be October 8^th, when Gary Schwarz will present the 2006 Chateauneuf du Papes, arguably France's most successful appellation that year.  Gary’s most recent tasting (March of this year) sold out, so be sure to send your check in early, and in any case, by Friday, October 2^nd.

Chateauneuf has had so many good to excellent vintages recently (every one since 1998, with the exception of 2002), that 2006 is easily lost in the crowd.  Yet, to quote Thierry Sabon of Clos du Mont Olivet, "in an earlier generation, it would have been the best of a decade."  These wines show ripe tannins and early accessibility, and their impeccable balance will insure that they age well. 

The lineup showcases some of Chateauneuf's top producers, including:

Beaucastel (95 from both Parker and Wine Spectator: “Powerful, with a round, almost creamy core of blackberry and raspberry fruit all layered with cocoa, sweet toast, mesquite and fig paste. Long and rich through the finish.”),

Clos des Papes (98 from Parker: “The 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape is one of the two or three candidates for the wine of the vintage. An extraordinarily great wine, the 2006 is far superior to the 2005, which was amazing, and while made in a different style, is as great as the 2003, and such legends as 1990 and 1978. Fashioned from a minuscule 21 hectoliters per hectare, and tipping the scales at 15.2% natural alcohol, the 2006 boasts a dense ruby/purple color to the rim, in addition to an extraordinary bouquet of melted licorice, spring flowers, raspberries, black currants, spice box, and earth. In the mouth, it is utterly profound – full-bodied and multidimensional with astonishing purity, length, equilibrium, and intensity” and 95 from both Tanzer: “Highly expressive aromas of raspberry, cherry, lavender, smoked meat and minerals. Racy and sharply focused, with juicy red and dark berry flavors, silky texture and a gentle candied floral quality. Impressively pure and balanced, with outstanding finishing clarity and lingering sweetness. Does this ever really finish?” and Wine Spectator: “This has terrific purity, with a stunningly pure beam of cassis holding sway over fruitcake, melted licorice and incense notes. Shows impressive density for the vintage, but this is suave, elegant and seamless through the finish, with terrific underlying minerality.”),

and six other producers all rated in the 90s, including Vieux Donjon, Vieux Telegraphe, Charvin, Ferrand, and the "Auguste Favier" cuvee from St. Prefert.  In addition, to give us an idea of how these wines age, there will be two older vintages of Vieux Telegraphe, the 2000 and the 1998, the latter considered to be the best Chateauneuf vintage since 1978 (although early reports indicate that 2007 may be as good).  Join us in what should prove to be a most enjoyable and educational tasting.

The cost for the tasting will be $72 for members, $86 for guests.

Our next event will be a red Burgundy tasting on November 3, 2009, led by Howard Menaker and a representative from Drouhin.

De gustibus non disputandum est,

~ No nation is drunken where wine is cheap, and none sober where the dearness of wine substitutes ardent spirits as the common beverage. Wine brightens the life and thinking of anyone."

- Thomas Jefferson

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