We ate dinner at Joel Robuchon last night with our good friends Jon and Annett Trail. We were celebrating Jon’s 40th birthday, and this was a good place to do so. We ate on the first floor at La Cuisine (vs. the ground floor’s Atelier) and had a very enjoyable meal. We did the tasting menu, which Carolynn and I always appreciate because we don’t need to make any decisions and get to taste a large variety of items. Highlights included the foie gras with parmesan foam, the langoustines, and the mullet. Drank an ’03 Colgin IX Estate as well as a white Burgundy recommended by the server (can’t remember the name–St. Francois? It was an ’06 Chablis, but, despite holding the bottle, I never really looked at the details). The meal was expensive to be sure, but extremely satisfying, especially when shared with good friends.
Archive for September, 2008
Le Petit Zinc
September 18, 2008This isn’t much of a wine post, but I was struck by something as we ate dinner last night at Le Petit Zinc in Paris.
For dessert we had a soufflé, and it was served with Grand Marnier. A whole bottle. Don’t misunderstand me–the whole bottle was not placed at our table with the thought that we’d drink of. If that was an assumption then I’m sure we would have gotten pre-measured portions to pour on the soufflé. We were a bit confused, since they also brought tiny little glasses, so we asked our waitress if we were supposed to drink it or pour it on the soufflé. She said “either, both, whichever you prefer.” I just can’t imagine this happening in the US, for good reason, but it was a cool experience.
Italian wines at The Don’s
September 12, 2008Pizza (from Pizza Port, courtesy of Charlie Fu), was the best part of the evening for me. I confess to not enjoying Italian wines in general (although I do enjoy an Amarone, even if it’s not served with liver). The bummer tonight was that the ’96 Allegrini Amarone was horribly corked. Even so, the palate showed what a great wine this should have been. It was fun, however, and thanks to Don (and Tracy!) for letting us invade once again.
Chili dogs and…
September 6, 2008Zinfandel! Had an ’06 Turley Juvenile. A very tasty Juvenile, and totally worth the price of admission ($20 IIRC). And, surprisingly, went well with the food! I’m always concerned having red wine with chili, since there’s usually a bad reaction between the spiciness of the chili and the wine, but tonight they meshed well.
Three Wine Wednesday…
September 5, 2008Our friends Todd and Corrine came over last night and we grilled some steaks and opened some wine. Had a ’05 Groth Reserve, which was surprisingly good given the most recent notes I could find online. The ’99 Spottswoode, however, was substantially better, especially given the context of the vintage. I will say that I’ve enjoyed several of the ’99s from the better producers–enough so that I sort of wish I had more ’99s in the cellar. The final wine was an ’06 Martinelli Jackass Zinfandel. Kind of syrupy and not at all complex, completely missing the “bite” that I like to find in Zinfandel. Not as lame as the Vigneto di Evo from a few years ago, nor as so-bad-I-need-to-pour-it-down-the-sink as the ’00 Jackass, but kind of disappointing, especially given the reviews. All in all an enjoyable evening, however, and not often do I get to taste three wines midweek 
