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November 2006
Domaine de Mourchon: Big Wines From a Small Place
Posted: 03:53 PM ET, November 30, 2006
Outside of the glamour appellation of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, there are numerous domaines in the southern Rhône that produce wine in relative obscurity. Many of these lie in the broad Côtes du Rhône and slightly more specific Côtes du Rhône-Villages appellations. Read more
Writing Laws for What We Eat
Posted: 12:20 PM ET, November 27, 2006
If I wanted a politician to legislate what I eat, I wouldn't live in the United States.
The suddenly trendy concept of banning foie gras seems to be gaining steam—now a New York City councilman is considering introducing a bill to ban the delicacy. Read more
Turkey Day Wine Picks
Posted: 11:29 AM ET, November 21, 2006
It's become my favorite holiday of the year. An unabashed, fully approved, four-day eating fest. And enough wine to accompany it all, of course.
At my house, the menu is fairly traditional—turkey, with a cornbread and chorizo stuffing. Read more
Chili and Côte-Rôtie
Posted: 12:16 PM ET, November 17, 2006
Well, after we finished eating at our favorite local sushi joint last night, we stepped outside into a driving rainstorm. So we bagged it and called it a night without shleping over to the movies.
I think we're leaning toward Borat though, as the wine flick is getting roundly drubbed everywhere . Read more
Date Night Role Reversal
Posted: 04:53 PM ET, November 15, 2006
Every Thursday is my "date night." Nancy and I keep the nanny late, and we go out just by ourselves, no kids.
More often than not, it's dinner and a movie. Since our cinematic tastes are rather different, we used to alternate choices as a compromise. Read more
La Beaugravière, Then Pic, and Now Waiting for My Flight
Posted: 08:35 AM ET, November 11, 2006
La Beaugravière delivered fine back-to-back performances. A gateau de foie gras with truffle sauce to start, followed by an egg soufflé with truffles and a ’96 Paul Coulon & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Domaine de Beaurenard white—a perfect match. Read more
Clos des Papes for Breakfast, Truffles for Dinner
Posted: 01:24 PM ET, November 09, 2006
Spent the day in Châteauneuf-du-Pape again today. Unlike the chilly north, the weather down here is almost summer-like—the temperature was over 70 degrees today, and the terrace at La Mere Germaine was filled up for lunch.
But before that, I had a vertical of Clos des Papes for breakfast, as Vincent Avril graciously poured me 10 vintages of his red, back to ’88 (and including the monstrous ’90), and 11 vintages of his far-too-often overlooked white, back to 1986. Read more
From Condrieu to CdP
Posted: 11:43 AM ET, November 08, 2006
I left Condrieu and drove down south this morning to Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The drive is a bit of a drag—a little less than two hours and no vineyards from Valence until you hit CdP itself. You know you’re close though when you see Mornas, the ruins of a rugged, 11th-century castle that sit atop a striking white cliff face. Read more
A Ghost Wine, Great Condrieu and More Côte-Rôtie
Posted: 05:30 PM ET, November 07, 2006
All this Côte-Rôtie is hard work. So I started my last day in Ampuis with a visit to some white wine producers—Château-Grillet and André Perret.
Château-Grillet is a bit of a ghost wine. A property that is its own appellation (à la Romanée-Conti or Coulée de Serrant), it sits in a perfect spot in the heart of Condrieu, with ideal exposure and fine-grained, sandy, granite soils that every vigneron in the appellation drools over. Read more
Tasting the La La Wines and Other Côte-Rôties
Posted: 04:01 PM ET, November 06, 2006
Sigh. Just another day in Côte-Rôtie.
I started at one of my favorite domaines, R. Rostaing. And for the first time, I actually preferred the Côte Blonde cuvée to La Landonne—in the 2004 vintage). René Rostaing threw up his hands in relief. Read more
Impressions of 2005 in Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu
Posted: 03:07 PM ET, November 06, 2006
The last two days I have been in Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu, with a few more days still to come.
The 2005 reds are superb young wines, with big tannins and lots of ripe fruit. It’s going to be a great vintage for cellaring. Read more
The Moment of Truth
Posted: 09:42 AM ET, November 04, 2006
I guess you could call it a journey of self discovery, even though it only took less than two hours.
It was the end of a long day, and I was sitting alone in the dining room. The object was to have a quick bite and finally get some rest for a change, as opposed to the five or six hours of very restless sleep a night I’ve been getting on this trip. Read more
Truffles and Crozes-Hermitage
Posted: 04:55 PM ET, November 03, 2006
I finally got my first real truffle fix of the trip, with a gouda soufflé topped with black truffles at Pic. That definitely moves the needle up a touch.
How's the wait for truffles going on that side of the pond? Do any of you have any special plans for when they get there?
The weather here was beautiful my first two days—warm and dry with little wind. Read more
An Old-School Lesson in Cornas
Posted: 06:37 PM ET, November 02, 2006
We were rummaging around in Jean-Luc Colombo’s cellar, trying to find something to go with the grilled entrecote du boeuf that was being served for dinner. Well, I was in Cornas, so why not an older Cornas, I suggested?
I should’ve bit my tongue, since Jean-Luc decided to go old-school on me, and show me a bit of Cornas history. Read more
More Cornas and Hermitage, and the Buzz in the Valley
Posted: 03:55 AM ET, November 02, 2006
Today was another day of Cornas and Hermitage. I started at Domaine Courbis whose ‘05s are looking very good—in particular, Laurent Courbis’ Cornas La Sabarotte, a plush, smoky powerhouse filled with iron, olive and spice flavors. Read more
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