Lunch and Dinner

John Kapon
- December 23, 2014

Hong Kong is still killing it, drinking as well and more than ever. A recent Friday lunch and Saturday dinner surrounding our December auction were perfect supporting arguments to my thesis. Twelve of us gathered at the recently remodeled Dynasty restaurant on a Friday for a civilized lunch celebrating our ‘Featured Collection of the Year.’

Proof of the Pudding

All civilized lunches begin with a bottle or two of Champagne, and this was no exception. Enter stage right, 1981 Krug. I don’t see too many 1981 vintage Champagne bottles in general, so this was a pleasant treat. The two bottles were slightly different, with one showing a touch more maturity, along with bread and apple flavors. Both had a rusty intensity to their white fruits, and excellent vanilla and game flavors. This was a mature and pleasing Krug (94).

Rare Birds

We didn’t waste much time, as the first flight was all 1961 Bordeaux. The 1961 Mouton Roithschild had a grapy and smoky nose that slinked out of the glass. Smooth and tender, this was erotically good, a ‘so sexy’ Mouton. There was carob balancing out its grape quality in this lovely wine. A refill added more spice, and the wine got richer with more coffee emerging over time. It became creamy and honeyed (95).

Three of a Kind

The 1961 Latour took no prisoners. This was super smoky, thick and very long. Its ‘tannins overshadowed’ the plush polish of the Mouton a bit. This was a bigger, thicker and longer wine with a regal and powerful dryness. This was rock solid, thick and muscly (97).

The 1961 Haut Brion was probably the most exotic of the flight, showing much more mesquite to its also smoky quality. There was more cedar and gravel here, and there was this dirty, earthy quality that the other two didn’t have. Balanced and thick, this was a rich, hedonistic wine. There was good structure and lots of barbecue to our third ’61 beauty (95).

There were six votes for the Latour, and three apiece for the Mouton and Haut Brion, showing both the universal strength of the vintage and also how the human perception of pleasure will always differ.

We went to the modern marvels next, beginning with a classic 1982 Latour. This was a plump, round and cedary wine with lots of signature walnut aromas. There was great smoke to its palate, along with similar long, thick tannins like the ’61. There seems to be two personalities for this wine, one being more forward and lush, and this bottle being the other. Its palate was flat-out great, with nice zip to its long finish. This ’82 certainly seemed more tart and wound than many others of this very same wine (96+).

Young Bucks

The 2002 Mugnier Musigny was an excellent counterpoint to the 2003s, although The Rainmaker prefaced this wine by saying he thought 2001 was a better Red Burgundy vintage. Hmmmm. The nose of the Mugnier had lots of bread and sour cherry, along with honeyed fruit, cream and pheromones. This was a tender and creamy wine, showing lots of soft porn love. It also got better in the glass, stopping right on the border of outstanding (94+).

The 2000 Mouton Rothschild was no slouch, but it was definitely in third place amongst its distinguished brethren. It felt more shut down in its nose despite a flash of ripe cream. The last bottle I had of this felt more open. This bottle was more leathery, earthy and gritty. However, it was shy compared to the previous two wines, perhaps intimidated by the company (95).

There was one more wine for lunch, a 1996 Henri Jayer Vosne Romanee Cros Parantoux. Hello, dolly. I remarked how any time a bottle of Jayer is open, it is a special occasion, and the 1996 was Exhibit A. Its nose was full of vitamins and game along with this rich and pungently perverse fruit. It was like deep purple putting on a pair of hot latex pants. There were great flavors, and a minor delicacy debate broke out. This was jammy, juicy, gamey and ‘super duper.’ It had the slate and the length on its finish. I wanted more (96+).

Always a Special Occasion

It was time for a nap or a massage, or both, I can’t remember. I do remember the dinner the night after the auction the next day, where DRC was the theme, and Kelly’s Heroes gathered together in a fitting tribute to the world’s most important producer. Everyone dug deeply and generously into their cellars for an amazing night of La Tache and a few others.

We started with a perfect bottle of 1976 Dom Perignon. This bottle was super fresh with zippy and long white fruits and less vanilla than usual, but that was quite alright. Still young and ascending while also showing some of those mature nuances, this ‘76 DP was in a great spot (95).

We started the procession of LT’s with a magnum of 1976 DRC La Tache. Gil noted, ‘tea,’ and there were also aromas of blood, rose and menthol. There was lots of cedar and forest underbrush here as well. Bitter leather and black pepper made their way out of the glass, paving the way for a palate with decent acidity. It was long and dry but quickly became all about the orange and grilled vegetables. There was autumnal flesh, honey and citrus to this acidic and decent La Tache (91M).

Golden Oldies

The 1969 DRC La Tache had gorgeous color and nice rose and citrus aromas. There was more fruit than usual for this vintage, as well as cola and ‘quince’ per Jennie. It had a round, plush palate with pleasant, soft fruit. It was leathery and long with nice, autumnal flavors (94).

The 1978 DRC La Tache was a killer bottle, gracefully brought by The Historian, and also gracefully acquired at an Acker Hong Kong auction. Gil started making horny tiger sounds as he dug his nose into the glass. There was a lot going on. Bouillon, meat, animal fat, chrysanthemum, earth, sandpaper and cherry could all be found. Its autumn and wafer qualities were great, and there was a nice kiss of cola to its finish. Kelly likened it to a ‘belly dancer’ (97).

The 1980 DRC La Tache actually took it up a notch for me. This was menthol city, and ‘lilac’ came from Jennie. There was great mint to this rich wine. Gil noted how it put on ‘sick weight with some oxygen.’ There were beef, cream and more menthol flavors, and its acid was superb. This secretly great Red Burgundy vintage was more of a ‘ballet dancer’ to Kelly. Oh yeah, this bottle came from Acker, too J (98).

Twin Killers

The next wine was an impressive 1985 DRC La Tache. At first, there was a touch of tutti frutti, which blew off into redder fruits and vintage leather. Its acidity was ‘strong,’ but its palate was more soupy. The tutti frutti officially left the building, and root beer and exotic fruit emerged. It got tasty in a rusty way as it got better and better in the glass. There was nice leather, and caramel emerged in this outstanding bottle of 1985. I couldn’t help but notice the Acker sticker on the back of the bottle lol (95).

Ok ok, I’ll stop the self-promotion already, you know I can’t help myself there. Next up was the 1988 DRC La Tache. This was smoky and saucy with lots of tight elements in its nose. Jennie noted a ‘chalkiness,’ and there was also cream and icicle. Its palate was dry and dirty with a thick, gritty finish. Citrus was the dominant flavor (93).

Teenage LT

The 1993 DRC La Tache that followed was very primary compared to everything else so far. It was almost jammy by comparison, a ‘fruitcake’ per Gil. It was very ripe and a great bottle that almost tasted a decade younger than it should have been. There was nice flesh and a lot of fruit for a ’93, and its bright ‘cranberry and rhubarb’ flavors combined with some ‘red Twizzler,’ all per Mr. Wine Vegas. Some ’93 DRCs can be very cedary and tight, but this bottle was all about the goodies (95).

We went back to ’88 with a 1988 DRC Richebourg, whose nose was weirdly milky, also possessing yeasty red fruits. Its palate was better with nicer, red fruit flavors and light dust (91).

It’s Good to be Riche

The 1989 DRC Richebourg had a much deeper nose with blacker fruits, iron and vitamin aromas. It was richer than I thought it would be, and it had a nice kiss of forest and milk. This was a great ’89 and a pleasant surprise. It had nice thickness to its finish as well (94).

The 2008 DRC Romanee St. Vivant had bigger fruit, but it was a bit drier and more square. While it had more potential, it felt unrealized by comparison (93+).

There was a Friday dinner in between with a few Lafites and some friends, but I’ll save that for another day. When in Hong Kong, always make time for lunch and dinner.

Last Call

In Vino Veritas,
JK

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