The finale to (my) Vancouver Wine Festival Experience was an excellent lunch at Le Gavroche. I sat with Pascal Apercé, the export director for Lurton.
With albacore tuna tartare, smoked salmon on a mini-blini, and honey mussel in a saffron sauce:
The Vancouver International Wine Festival is a wonderful opportunity to meet the principals of many wineries and discuss the wine, how they are made, how they mature, and new directions for the wineries. I gritted my teeth, took 2 days off from the office, giving my secretary instructions to advise clients trying to find me that I was on a study session, and headed out to study for all I was worth. There are more than 500 wineries in South Africa today, and I was keen to add some new and interesting finds to my list of old stand-bys.
Very pleasant briary nose, big sweet fruit on palate, backed more by acidity than tannin, long sweet finish. Great with rare rack of lamb.
Lunch this month was as interesting as ever.
1998 Devil’s Lair Margaret River Chardonnay – this one fooled many of us into thinking it was something else. Bit of citrus in the nose and some vanilla, medium body and quite crisp at the end. Not exactly what you expect in an Oz Chard.
Notes from a very enjoyable dinner-tasting of Bordeaux of the 1990 vintage. These wines have always seemed to me to be more fruit forward and ‘Californian’ in approach, if you will, than the more classic and arguably more austere 1988 and 1989 vintages that together make up this wonderful triptych of Bordeaux.
Notes from a recent dinner with friends:
With amuse-bouches:
1996 Pol Roger Blanc de Chardonnay – nice and yeasty, with a fresh lemony presentation. I tend to prefer Champagnes made with the usual red varietals as they tend to have more character, but this blanc de blanc was very good and drinking well now.
