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The second night in Vegas was a smaller gathering at Guy Savoy. a close friend of mine had to leave after dinner the night before, and Gil and Krissy were tied up at a big charity event, although they joined us later. Guy Savoy was in town but also at that same charity event; we would see him later as well. We were still hungry, and of course again thirsty, and on this night Big Boy carried the torch of fine wine all by himself.

We started with a gorgeous magnum of 1971 Dom Perignon. It had a vanilla sugared nose, baked brulee if you will, and was hazelnutty, toasty and fresh. Its palate was also fresh and zippy with hints of Dr. Brown’s celery soda. The palate was delicious; meaty, rich and fresh with great focus, a long finish and singular in its drive. It grew on me more and more, and hints of Asian orange blossom rounded out this immensely pleasurable Dom (95M).

A curiosity and veritable antiquity was next, a magnum of 1937 Geissman (Champagne). The color was incredible, and the nose was divine and full of complexities. Aromas of green dried apple fruit, spice and thinly carved white meat right out of the pan with a decadent sauce made up its undeniably great nose. The palate was delicious, make that absolutely delicious, full of caramel and apple flavors. Exotic musk and honey took over both the palate and the nose, and the Geissman became more and more wine-like with time in the glass without losing any of its deliciousness. What a treat, and what a find that only Rob could unearth (96M).

I had bought a couple of whites off the list, a pair of young Ramonet Batards. The 2002 Ramonet Batard Montrachet had a great nose full of huuuuge acid, alcohol and spice. Additional signature aromas of menthol, butter, corn and citrus all lined up accordingly. Its combination of white fruits and minerals galore cleared my sinuses. It tasted like mint city with its decadent white fruit tropicality, and its acidity was insane. Delicious, sweet, sexy and lush, this was a white wine easy to appreciate, and admire (95+).

The 1999 Ramonet Batard Montrachet was more shut down and square by comparison, even though the nose was unmistakably a sibling of the ’02. There was an almost cedar-like edge to the ’99, which also had ‘insane’ minerals and acidity. Shut down yet solid, slate flavors dominated this brute of a Batard (93).

Rob started paying attention again when his magnum of 1929 Mouton Rothschild was served. There must be something about ‘Vegas’ and ‘insane’ as I kept writing it all weekend in my notes. The ’29 had an insanely good nose full of menthol, old book, chocolate and super sexy citrus (there’s another frequent Vegas vocab word ”“ super sexy lol). Plum, nut, more old book, cedar, wax, pencil ”“ this nose had everything. Secondary aromas of garden, beef and Asian spices also joined the party. Rob keenly observed, ‘very Burgundian yet so Bordeaux.’ Soft cherry flavors were present on its milder palate, but the acidity was still there and hanging on. Someone observed, ‘finished basement’ in the wine, and I totally understood. Paul noted, ‘old bookshelf, ink and wood.’ I have always liked the ’29 Mouton, and while the palate may be starting to trail its aromatics, this was still very special (95M).

Can we get some Burgundy already? 1969 Rousseau Chambertin, that’s more like it. It is no secret that Rousseau made the wines of the vintage in ’69, wines that have transcended beyond the usual scope of the vintage into legendary status, and this bottle lived up to that fact. The Rousseau had an incredible nose full of iodine, that ’69 rust and the red fruit orgasmatron. It smelled so good, I wanted to wear it as cologne, and I never wear cologne. The Rousseau had additional, sumptuous aromas of beef bouillon, lit match, Versailles garden and a pinch of poivre sauce. Wow. Rob hailed it as ‘perfumed.’ It was so tasty, deliciously good nectar and full of rust, citrus, earth, bouillon, ‘sous bois’ and BBQ goodness flavors. This was sheer catnip. Here kitty kitty (97).

It was not a Vogue weekend, as a bottle of 1929 Vogue Musigny Vieilles Vignes was maderized. Bummer (DQ).

It was a Romanee Conti weekend, however, and the bottle of 1929 Romanee Conti was another incredible bottle of old RC. ‘What a nose,’ my note began. It was decadently saucy and musky, full of menthol, beef, exotic lychee and garden. It had a hint of kinky overripe fruit to it, but that did not mar the wine in any way, shape or form. The palate was so rich, so long and so lush. Nutty and tasty beyond belief, there was an unreal earth component that could only come from the terroir known as Romanee Conti. Rob put it in terms that he understands, ‘740 Park. Unreal.’ Told ya. Decadent steak sauce flavors emerged. My next notes were ‘wowowowowowowowow”¦.ni hao.’ The ’29 RC was so good it made Rob confess, but I wouldn’t be a good wine priest if I told you lol. The ’29 had enough energy to power up the Vegas strip. It was then that Guy Savoy returned, and for those of you that don’t know, he is arguably one of the top ten chefs in the world. He has my vote. He came into our private room to say hello and thank us, etc., and Rob quickly gave him a glass of 1929 Romanee Conti. Chefs usually have pretty good palates, and I would imagine that Guy’s would rank up there pretty highly. He was emotionally moved by this glass of wine; you could see his eyes widen as the wine swirled around his mouth. Our sense of joy soon became his as well, and he savored his glass religiously. Once finished, I offered him a glass of 1969 Rousseau. ‘No no no!’ he insisted. ‘Guy! This is 1969 Rousseau Chambertin! You must try it, c’est incroyable!’ I insisted back. I will never forget his response as long as I live, ‘Je veux garder le gout de la Romanee Conti dans ma bouche toute la nuit.’ Translation: he wanted to keep the taste of the Romanee Conti in his mouth for the rest of the night. He wouldn’t dare put anything else on his palate after that; it was that good. You just can’t make this stuff up! While I have had other bottles of ’29 RC that were more mature and advanced, this was as good as it gets, but it still ain’t the ’45 lol (98).

A couple of Champagnes wrapped up our evening, a pair of Clos du Mesnils, the Romanee Conti of Champagne (I am talking terroir here not producer, although I suppose you could make both arguments!). The 1980 Krug Clos du Mesnil had a perfectly toasted nose with dried yellow and white fruits. Creamily good, it had a baked honey glaze to its aromas, along with white smoke and ‘urine’ per Big Boy. The palate was beautiful and delicious, all the more so considering the vintage, possessing edgy and gamy flavors of yellow fruits (93).

Last but not least on this legendary weekend was another 1989 Krug Clos du Mesnil. The weekend had come full circle and ended where it started. This was identical to the first bottle, buttery, nutty and with an ocean of acidity”¦make that deep ocean. Check my last article if you missed it (96).

Not much to say except thank you, Rob. Check out the catalog when it comes out tomorrow – you can end up thanking him too!