The Auswine Forum

Six of us (MichaelR, TiggerK, Hacker, dingozegan, Mivvy n myself) caught up a few days ago at Watts on Crown for our first offline this year, and the brief was, "bring something decent"

Thanx Mick for organizing!

The food was good, the prices great, and the service absolutely fabulous.

Just a list from me for now to whet your appetites, and I'm sure others will chime in soon, but I'll post at least some impressions later...

1996 Jacques Selosse Extra Brut
2011 Francois Raveneau Valmur Chablis
2010 Domaine Fontaine Gagnard Batard Montrachet
2009 Francois Chidane Montlouis les Choisilles
2006 Domaine Pierre Damoy Chambertin Clos de Beze
2007 Domaine Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze
2009 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia
1989 Jean Louis Chave Hermitage
Henriques and Henriques Madiera 5yo

Cheers, and Happy New Year.

Very nice. Looking forward to some thoughts on the venue as well.

monghead wrote: the brief was "bring something decent"

being, bring something French

How was the Chave? Any one had the 89' 90' comparison?

Nice line up!!

How was the Chidaine?

That's "Cheeky"? I would love to see a rude tasting!

Cheers, Jealous Travis.

Yes, was a great night, thanks again to everyone.
I know a few of you had decent trips to and from the venue, so I’m glad the wines were worth it!

Carl, Watts is a local favourite for me. The food is good, freshly shucked oysters etc, and I’ve only ever received quality service.
Others have been in bigger groups and haven’t been as impressed, so perhaps smaller groups work best. We got out for $100pp, which included shared oysters etc, plus 3 courses, a 15% tip, corkage etc.
We were all very happy with the experience.

My impressions:
The Selosse was great. My first time to try some, but really enjoyed the oxidative style. David suggested this bottle wasn’t showing as well as previous bottles, but I really enjoyed it.
Interesting there was no ‘pop’ when the cork was pulled, but there was plenty of fizz when poured.
Not a style for everyone, Len put a brave face on as it was a 96 , but was a treat to finally try this.

The Raveneau was quite reticent as you’d expect. However the oysters were an obvious but perfect match for it and brought all the flavours (citrus and mineral notes) up nicely.

The Batard showed the riper, oily traits, but unfortunately deep down we could hear the faint whispers of prem-ox. Excellent length, and very enjoyable now, but check in immediately if you have any bottles stored.

The Chidaine had a lovely sweet tinge to it, but certainly not intrusive or cloying. Very balanced. Was served slightly chilled. I imagine this would get rounder with more age, but drinking very well now.

The Clos de Beze flight was wonderful. Slow ox’ing the Damoy for an hour was possibly a mistake with hindsight, probably should have popped and poured (normally would), but both wines drank particularly well. And you could see the vintages in both.
The Rousseau was probably my favourite red wine I’ve drunk in the last 12 months. While everyone enjoyed it, I’m certain the others wont rate it nearly as highly, but so be it. Yes, it will improve with age, and show more complexity, but I quite like the youthful imperfections, and the word ‘sexy’ doesn’t do it justice in terms of instant appeal and lovely mouthfeel.

Onto the Italian rockstar….and my first time trying the famous label. 100% Cab Sav, and the fruit and colour are very vibrant indeed. Gets loads of love on cellartracker, and I can see why. The oak seemed quite prominent at the moment, especially coming after the Burgs, but had fantastic length and got us all excited about its future.

Greg, the Chave had plenty of those secondary Rhone characteristics you like. This example seemed bit jaded unfortunately, the structure somewhat dissipated (i.e. more than was expected), but maybe also suffered coming after the freshness of the Sassacaia.
Haven’t tried the 90 either mate.

Thanks again everyone for a cracking night, and special shout to Len for bringing my red WOTY. Was so good I had to bring the bottle home for the wall of fame

Till the next.
Mick

Great night out with a few friends and wine lovers, cheers for saving me some typing too with the wine names Len! Been meaning to get to this for days!

Watts on Crown was a superb venue for a group this size. As MIck said, I wouldn't really think more than 6 would be ideal here, but the 6 of us had a great table upstairs near the window, and Emma, our superstar waitress (customer service executive?), was so friendly, attentive and fun. We had freshly shucked oysters to start (yum) and a scotch egg each (very nice but pity yolk wasn't runny), while we enjoyed the first few whites. We then ordered from the menu, all the food certainly exceeded my expectations, pity I was too full to eat all of it!

Brief impressions from memory on the wines....

1996 Jacques Selosse Extra Brut - slightly oxidative characters, not for everyone, and not my fav champers style, but nonetheless a style I appreciate (along with Jura!). Superb acidity and length. Cork was soft and well soaked, perhaps a recent leak? Thanks to Hacker for a chance to taste this.

2011 Francois Raveneau Valmur Chablis - Closed and tight. Salty, seaspray, subtle citrus. Clean, textural and coiled, oysters were a great match, but obvious vinfanticide (Len was itching to sample one though, no complaints, thanks!). Needs 10 years easy, and should be truly fantastic.

2010 Domaine Fontaine Gagnard Batard Montrachet - More vinfanticide! Lovely wine (thanks Mivvy!), although to me it felt like it really needed some cellar time to bring the components together. A treat to drink however, the potential in this was excellent, and bought a smile to our faces. Prem-ox? Well maybe, others at the table knew their GC white burgs more than me, but I would have said it's a great wine in an awkward phase, give it a couple of years and try again.

2009 Francois Chidane Montlouis les Choisilles - I mentioned to dingozegan that the wines he brings are always very interesting, layered and most of all balanced. No exception here. Young Chenin Blanc can so often be 'bland' to me, this one certainly wasn't. Plenty to like here, such a good producer.

2006 Domaine Pierre Damoy Chambertin Clos de Beze - Onto the reds and this was immediately the nose of the night so far! Starting to develop some of those desirable secondary aged characters, but still with plenty of vigour and length. Happy TiggerK, thanks Mick! In a better place for drinking right now for my taste than the Rousseau, but both superb wines.

2007 Domaine Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze - Monghead decided we should open this. Ah well, twisted our arms, what a generous treat, thanks Len! Showing plenty of class and structure, very alive, fresh, like a sharp shooter. Still primary in it's fruit, yet the length was top shelf and the acidity felt so in tune with the fruit as it flowed through. If I was lucky enough to have any, I would leave it at least 5 years, ideally 10-15 and it will be Off The Charts Good. Memorable wine!

2009 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia - My first Sassy and I loved it (bias aside as I brought it). Great decadence, enough structure to hold the layers of lush fruit and big but very nicely handled oak. Tastes both aged and youthful, both old world and new. Drink now very happily, or wait 5+ years. Was a nice change after the refined and elegant Red Burgs. (85% Cab Sav, 15% Cab Franc)

1989 Jean Louis Chave Hermitage - Another very kind 'backup' treat from Len (as you do ). Happy to see some age on a wine, and it was nearly awesome! Just a bit of metallic brett character was distracting. I don't mind a touch of funky brett, but band aid brett or metallic brett are offputting. Still enough complexity and fruit going on for me to quite enjoy this wine though.

Henriques and Henriques Madiera 5yo - Not enough love for Madiera around I feel. It deserves more. For those not familiar, think like a blend of port, muscat and a slight fino sherry note, all delivered in a fairly light, drier package (although not all are drier of course). Not as big and heavy as a muscat, nor as hot or in your face like many ports. Feels like a classy way to finish a meal, thanks dingozegan.

Another interesting point was a brief glass comparison with the Damoy Clos de Beze 2006 Burgundy. Spoilt by Zalto goodness, and now officially glass snobs, most of us bought our own Zalto Universal glasses, while Hacker upped the ante with a couple of (huge) Zalto Burgundys, both of which raised an eyebrow with the manager (well if you break them, not our issue... yeah it's cool, trust us, we really don't want to break them). I love the Universals big time, and think Champagne, all white wines and all big reds show better in them than any other glass I've tried so far, particularly on the nose. BUT as I found (at least for good red burgundy), the proper 'O' bowl shape of a standard restaurant burgundy glass actually showed better for me on the night, mainly with an improved nose (more depth, perfume, focus and 'plushness') . Didn't have a chance to compare it with the (similarly shaped, yet twice as big) Zalto burgundy glass, but the shape does indeed matter, so I'm now going to get a couple!

Special night indeed, cheers everyone!

2009 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia - (85% Cab Sav, 15% Cab Franc)

Thanks Tim, not sure why i thought i've always thought it was 100% Cab Sav. I should use Google before posting more often!

Thanks everyone for a lovely night, great company, good 'local' food and at times awe inspiring wines. I must admit those universal Zaltos are really good and perhaps more adaptable than my swimming pool sized burgundy Zalto. They seem to cover the whole gamut of wine styles remarkably well.

As to the wines, I found the Selosse distractingly salty and oxidative. His style of course, but his Initial is more restrained and enjoyable for mine. The Chablis and Montrachet were both a pleasure to nurture, especially as they warmed slightly. I would love to revisit in ten years for both of them. The two C de Bezes to me were a significant contrast in similar terroir. Sure they were different years, but Rousseau just does not miss with a full dominant structure yet velvet mouthfeel. I could not help noticing an acidic spine which dominated the Damoy. But put anything up against a Rousseau at your peril.

The others have covered the remaining two wines well, I can only add they were a valuable learning experience to me, especially the Chave. Thank you all for your generosity.

I echo the thoughts on a great night.

I had mixed feelings about the Batard. Given the reputation of the producer I always had prem-ox at the back of my mind so not sure if that impacted what I was tasting but it was certainly very different to another bottle I had about 6 months ago, which was much tighter and more acidity. No doubt that the flavours were there but it seemed a touch advanced. If the bottle was sound I think it would be a great drink in 10 years time.

Sassicaia was the first time for me and I was surprised how smooth and drinkable it was. Even so I think this will develop a lot more complexity and I wouldn't be touching another bottle for a few years.

1996 Jacques Selosse Extra Brut
Caramel and sherry, heavy, angular, oxidative. Just not my style…
Sub Good.

2011 Francois Raveneau Valmur Chablis
Salty oyster shell briny goodness. Not as much acidity as I had expected. Great length.
Very Good.

2010 Domaine Fontaine Gagnard Batard Montrachet
Ripe honey melon, hints of hazelnuts, slightly spicy and buttery. It had flavour intensity, and although it had good length, it was somewhat lacking in focus, seeming flabby and a lot more advanced than I would have expected a ‘10 BM…
Solid Good.

2009 Francois Chidane Montlouis les Choisilles
Zingy and zippy with delicious mouth puckering acidity balancing the residual sweetness nicely. Simple but delectable…
Solid Good to Good Good.

2006 Domaine Pierre Damoy Chambertin Clos de Beze
Initially threw up scintillating aromas of dark cherries and earth, but by the time we poured it, this had dissipated, and the wine had closed down on the nose. On the palate, it was reasonably complex, but I thought it was slightly short, the acidity a little tight and the tannins a touch angular.
Good Good.

2007 Domaine Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze
A melange of dark cherries, dried rose petals, jasmine tea, and hints of damp earth. Layered and harmonious on the palate. Persistent, sultry and evocative. The rare occasion in red burgundy where the seductive aromas on the nose are backed up and accentuated by the profound, yet elegant palate. When this happens, it first haunts you, then bankrupts you while continuing to tease you. Lovely juice this…
Very Very Good to Extremely Good.

2009 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia
Now we’re cooking with gas… Open and delicious. Opulent without being cloying.
Very Good to Very Very Good.

1989 Jean Louis Chave Hermitage
I had to giggle when I poured this. I expected abit of bretty funk, but this was pretty full on. Barnyard, roasted smoky wagyu, hints of dark fruits and antique leather. A lot cleaner on the palate, but I agree that although layered and interesting, it did not have great length or presence. Nevertheless, I actually enjoyed this!
Very Good.

Henriques and Henriques Madiera 5yo
For me, a blend between sherry and muscat. As I have stated however, I do struggle with the more oxidative styles…
Just Good.

Great night, thanks guys.

Just some comments to add to what are already good summaries/notes above:

It was great to try the Selosse (thanks hacker), but unfortunately it wasn't for me. Tom Stevenson was recently pretty damning of the style (too oxidative in his opinion). I like oxidative styles but this was going too far for me for a Champagne - and I also felt the acidity was a little disjointed. There was some discussion about it being a bad bottle IIRC though (and I could believe it).

Raveneau and Fontaine Gagnard: I certainly enjoyed them, and it was nice to have two ends of the spectrum in a sense (Chablis and B-Monty), though to be honest I expected a little more of both producers. Extreme youth and early pre-mox, respectively, perhaps.

Chidaine: Quite some r.s. (well, it was a 2009), but with enough acidity to balance.

Damoy: This may have been overshadowed by the Rousseau on the night - but I thought it was a nice wine - more 'rustic' on the palate than the Rousseau, and had a nice cherried nose (NPI).

Rousseau: Great Pinosity, cherry and some earthen autumn leaves. If only it had had a little barnyard on the nose it would have been perfect . Those lovely velvety tannins of great red Burg, and the length...

Sassicaia: If I'd tasted this blind I think I would have guessed it was modern-styled Left Bank Bordeaux (makes sense I suppose).

Chave: I often find Bretty wines with a metallic character to be stripped on the palate - this fortunately wasn't, and though a bit short, still had some nice fruit on the nose and palate.

The Madeira was the Finest Full Rich label BTW.

On the glasses, I love the Zalto Universal's and think they are great for "aromatic styles", but I agree with TiggerK that a bowl shape is better for Pinot Noir. This was the third time I compared the same Pinot Noir wine(s) in a Universal against a Reidel Vinum Pinot Noir glass and the bowl shape helps express Pinot better IMO. So... Zalto Burgundy's here we come!