The Auswine Forum

Hi all,

Just wanting some advice regarding a small dinner party i'd like to host with a focus on several 389 vintages. I am unsure about what format the dinner should take. I have the '92, '95, '97, '00, '04, '05 and '06 available, but don't necessarily have to use them all.

My thoughts were
* to hire some glasses and present everyone with a taste of each for discussion... (serve this with a plate of ?something to refresh our palates from time to time). Then serve a main course, during which we can drink the rest of the wines...

is this appropriate, or is there a better way to showcase the wines given that i'm prepared to cook a few courses?

QUESTIONS:
* what food should i serve? i was thinking some homemade pasta with a lamb/deli scrap ragu as a main but am unsure about food for while we're tasting the wines.
* is there a better format for this?

suggestions much appreciated
tim

Tim, sounds like a cheeky little vertical of 389's.

I think the taste of each prior to food, if you can would be instructive, and then see if impressions change with food.

As to food, I think your suggestion of a rich lamb pasta would be absolutely delectable and a great match to the 389's. Perhaps a cheese board to mop up the remaining wines.....

Cheers,

Monghead.

Sounds like a good list although it's a shame you don't have the 'classics' in there... 96 and 98 (and the 94 is no slouch either).

yep it had occurred to me to lean on some of the guests to chip in for a 96/98
cheese plate sounds like a good idea though choice of cheeses which would complement rather than overwhelm the wine may be a challenge.

would the 389 stand up to a chocolate dessert? i'm thinking little self saucing puddings...

any more suggestions re format would be appreciated too

I think the idea of the tastings beforehand is a great idea. The only question I have is...wheres my invite?

Tim, looks like a fun tasting, Bin 389s spanning 14 years.

The way I would conduct the dinner/tasting would be to seperate the wines into two flights, the first flight being the younger wines ('00, '04, '05) and the second flight being the more mature ones ('97, '95, '92). I would also serve a different course for each flight. This way you save on the number of glasses on hand and you can match each course to the intensity of the wines. Serving the wine in two flights also has other advantages. Fewer glasses on hand prevents confusion over which wine is in which glass (happens very easily and is very disruptive), and allows the tasters to focus on each wine, tasting them and being able to immediately compare it with food.

I've discovered that Chainese BBQ duck works well with vigorous young wines, the rich fatty duck playing off the tannins. Picking up the duck in Chinatown also saves time spent in the kitchen. For the second course I would try roast beef or lamb.

Also, to start the evening off I would serve a chilled sparkling wine and cheese to the guests as they arrive. This way the early guests have something to drink as they wait for all the guests to arrive. For dessert I would serve a sticky or port, and pick the dessert accordingly.

Just my thoughts, hope it goes well,

Cheers.................Mahmoud.

Tim, sounds like a great night, and I'm drooling at the food suggestions!

Don't know how formal your intention is, but if you'd like tasting notes for any of the wines, just let me know. Cheers, Moira

Can you guys give me an idea of how the 94, 04 & 06 stack up against each other.
I've got a couple bottle each oft he 04 & 06, along with a magnum of 94 & 06 which I recently got 1/2 price from Penfolds CD.

cheers

With the glassware - you could request people BYO their own rather than hiring?

richie32 wrote:Can you guys give me an idea of how the 94, 04 & 06 stack up against each other.
I've got a couple bottle each oft he 04 & 06, along with a magnum of 94 & 06 which I recently got 1/2 price from Penfolds CD.

cheers

I would be interested in how the '94 is travelling. I think it is a bit of a sleeper, overshadowed by '90 & '91 before it and '96 & '98 after.

I have 4x94 magnums sleeping in the cellar plus some '96 & '98 bottles.
I think there might be a '95 magnum too.

tim1210 wrote:yep it had occurred to me to lean on some of the guests to chip in for a 96/98
cheese plate sounds like a good idea though choice of cheeses which would complement rather than overwhelm the wine may be a challenge.

would the 389 stand up to a chocolate dessert? i'm thinking little self saucing puddings...

any more suggestions re format would be appreciated too

A good, aged pecorino, medium-shaved, with 1cm slices of lightly toasted ciabatta, almond kernels roasted with skins on, good prosciutto or parma ham, roasted fresh red capsicum, chilled/frozen seedless white grapes, perhaps fresh, ripe figs and/or dried apple marinated in sweet cider. If Tom Cruise isn't coming to dinner, sheep meat could be replaced by a beef stroganoff or osso bucco.

Forget chocolate desserts until coffee and port, muscat, perhaps tokay or even an old highland scotch.

Have a great time!

Cheers

daz

G'day Tim

I like most of Daz's suggestions. Slow-cooked meats like osso bucco or lamb shanks would definitely do the trick, and there's no reason you can't do 'small plates' (sort of tapas) of a couple of different recipes (extra work in the kitchen, however).

I endorse Daz's cheese suggestions - pecorino would be fabulous, and even a fig paste with the cheese might work. Other harder cheeses with a bit of bite should also work - Grana Padano or Parmesan. Keep the crackers wafer-thin if you can.

Don't try to match 389 with dessert - a waste of a good wine

Please let us know what you decide, and how it goes.

Cheers

Allan