The 2008 Tom Low Memorial Dinner

The Fourth of December, 2005 was a very sad and tragic time for many people in my immediate peer group, when good friend and mentor for most things vinous passed away, way, way too young, after a long and brave fight against the terrible asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma.

After his funeral, I invited all the pallbearer’s - past and present members of our twenty-two-year-old wine tasting group - to my place for a hurredly convened extended wake after the family-arranged formalities concluded mid-afternoon. It was a most moving and emotional night for all of us; the highlight being the bottle of 1978 Leoville Las Cases Tom had given to very close friend and fellow wine lover, Bruce, only a matter of a few weeks before his death - as his final parting gift for his wine buddies at his wake. It was decided by all present that evening that each year on the date of his passing we would assemble and share fine food and wine in memory of Tom, a tradition which has continued with great commitment from everyone who was there in 2005. One of the group, Michael Chin, flies in from Darwin every year for the event and other old friends from Queensland have attended on occasion - namely, Eric Wallace and Paul Heimburger.

This year I’ve been off work for two extended periods with a debiltating rib injury and a serious balance disorder, no doubt, experiencing only a fraction of what it would have been like for Tom with his far more serious condition. This has prompted me, now that I can finally work again and function normally, to put extra effort into the planning and organisational aspects of the 2008 dinner, and just this afternoon, finalised the menu with my friend Peter, the owner and chef of the very classy Ridge Organic Restaurant in Farrer, a nearby suburb of Canberra.

With the wines and degustation menu now, all but, set, all there is to do, is to clean and polish the Riedels and decanters, gather a few odds and ends for the night - screwpull, fine filter etc, and pray that the cork gods are smiling down at us.

The Wines -

Fritz Haag 1983 Juffer-Sonnenuhr Auslese Riesling Gold Capsule* - Exceptional, as good as it gets. Incredibly fresh and vibrant with untold reserves of wonderfully resilent citrus/stonefruits and cleansing acidity. Will last for yonks and all this just over 7% A/V? Bravo! 96 points

Pol Roger 1996 Vintage Brut - A very polished, youthful example in terrific form with bucketloads of complex yeast autolysis and indelible acidty. Nicely honed and beautifully balanced. 92 points

Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2005 - A steely example; reticent and still tight and way too young to be fully appreciated at this juncture. Lovely minerality though. Patience required here. 90 points

Hardy’s Eileen Hardy Chardonnay 2004 - Screwcap. Full of So2. Seemingly has potential if you can get past the sulphur that just wouldn't blow off. NR with a serious doubt on whether this will ever shed its shroud of chemical poisin. A major miscalculation by the winemaker(s) on the sulphur regime, methinks.

Mount Mary Chardonnay 2004 - Mildly corked. Bugger. NR

Mongeard-Mugneret Vosne-Romanee Grands Echezeaux 1986 - reasonably good earthy/bing cherry/mushroomy nose but a scalped palate with an excess of acid and too little fruit. Lean. Disappointing. 82 points

Chateau Figeac 1982* - wonderfully youthfully with great structure, still needing time to soften and fully integrate. Wonderful fruit, acid and tannin balance. Will improve over the next decade or more. 93 points.

Chateau La Conseillante 1982* - Horribly corked and undrinkable. NR

Penfolds St Henri 1986 - very good but a little volatile on the nose and quite simple but reasonably fruity on the palate. 86 points. Not a patch on the last bottle I tried of this about 5 years ago. Shite happens.

Penfolds Bin 707 1983 (magnum) - very lovely wine showing a wealth of complexity of fruit and secondary characters. Varietally correct even with the obvious new American oak input. Seamless, extremely well balanced, terrific structure, long, savoury finish. 92 points. 11.2% A/V!

Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1962* - a little worrying va on the nose at first but everything thereafter was near perfect. Probably marginally past its peak but what a wine for where its at after 46 years. Probably one of the greatest Grange's. Max Schubert should be made a saint. 95 points.

Penfolds Special Bin 7 Cabernet Shiraz Coonawarra/Kalimna 1967 - a robust example that if served blind would be picked as something around 14-18 years old. Surely one of Penfolds best ever bottles and if as well-cellared as this beauty, would rival the 60A, 63 Grange and 63 Bin 61 as the best Australian red wines I've ever had the pleasure of trying. 97 points and with plenty of time to spare.

Bourillon D’Orleans Vouvray Moelleux 1990 Big, lush, fully blown and of a similar standard to a more elderly Sauternes but otherwise hard to fault from start to finsh. Seriously good example of aged Chenin Blanc. 92 points.

Chambers Special Liqueur Muscat N/V (Old Bottling) - Outstanding but just lacking a little in the complexity department compared to the "Rare" Muscats of the top Rutherglen producers. 91 points.


The wines with an asterisk are/were originally from Tom’s cellar - the list looks breathtakingly stunning - here’s hoping both the old grange and the bin 7 are holding up ok. They both have good cellaring histories, so fingers crossed.

Copy of the menu and final serving order -

The 2008 Tom Low Memorial Dinner

Canapés On Arrival
Tasmanian smoked salmon, egg, sour cream, chives, capers and freshly ground black pepper
Fritz Haag Juffer-Sonnenuhr Auslese Riesling Gold Capsule 1983

Bruno's Farmer’s bread served with extra virgin olive oil and rock salt
Pol Roger Vintage Brut 1996

Entrées
Vietnamese rice paper spring rolls
Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2005

Seafood terrine
Hardy's Eileen Hardy Chardonnay 2004
Mount Mary Chardonnay 2004

Mains
Crispy spiced duck breast
Mongeard-Mugneret Vosne-Romanee Grand Cru
Grands Echezeaux 1986

Loin of lamb and macadamia crumbed lamb cutlet
Chateau Figeac 1982
Chateau La Conseillante 1982

Beef eye fillet medallion – with a teriyaki reduction sauce
Penfolds St Henri 1986
Penfolds Bin 707 1983 (magnum)

Cheese Plate
Penfolds Grange Hermitage 1962
Penfolds Special Bin 7 Cabernet Shiraz Coonawarra/Kalimna 1967

Desserts
Individual apple tart served with an option of home-made vanilla ice cream
Bourillon D'Orleans Vouvray Moelleux 1990

Coffee & Bruno's Truffles
Chambers Special Liqueur Muscat N/V (Old Bottling)

First of all, David, I am glad to hear that your health problems are now behind you. What a tremendous way to celebrate the memory of a friend. (Not to mention, what a lineup of wines!) I can only hope to inspire my own friends to the extent that Tom inspired you. Philosophers have argued that one of the attractions of scientific research is the pursuit of immortality in the form of having one's name associated with one or more key discoveries. In the end, though, I'll take the form of immortality that Tom has achieved: the fond memory of friends, and their desire to celebrate your life and influence with an event such as you have conceived of.

Good luck with it all,
Mark Lipton

Mark, thanks ever so much for your most empathetic and thoughtful post. I agree, it would be a great honour to be remembered by your friends and family in such a way.

While I've got the chance, I forgot to mention the post will eventually become a tasting note, so it'll be somewhat of a "work in progress" until after the actual event on 4 December.

David
I hope this and subsequent events keep alive not just the memory, but the spirit of the man.
regards
Ian

Bump. All done and dusted now. I've inserted my scores and a few thoughts into the original post if anyone's interested. A wonderful night even if several wines were faulty - the two old Penfolds certainly made up for it! The food was of a very high standard. Servings were generous, too. Petrified to go anywhere near my blood sugar machine for a day or three.