WTN: I am not a Frankstein. I'm a Fronksteen (& more)
Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2013 2:18 pmTuesday was vegetarian leftovers (pasta, broccoli, etc) with the 2011 Gonon “Les Iles Feray” VdP. Really good stuff for the price- classic peppery Rhone Syrah with bright black berry fruit, a little smokey edge, good length. B+/A-
Betsy grilled spare ribs, plus made sugar snap peas with mint and potato salad. Wine with the ribs was the 2012 Arnot-Roberts “Luchsinger Vineyard” Touriga Nacional Rose. So fresh, so light, so bright and friendly! Get more. B+
With grilled squid on salad, grilled eggplant with a yogurt-mint sauce, & grilled trumpet mushrooms, the 2009 Deschamps "Les Porcheronnes" Pouilly-Fume. Rounder, riper style of Loire SB, peachy fruit with a little citrus, pleasant but not distinctive. B-
With clams and tomatoes over pasta 2010 Manbach "Frankstein" Riesling- I know it’s Frankstein not Frankenstein, but I still ended up with Edgar Winter tunes and Marty Feldman jokes in my head. This wasn’t a great match- I thought we were doing clams with ginger. Wine was a bit blah- pudgy Alsace, fairly dry but could use more zip, and a bit clipped. B-/C+
Saturday started with some oysters on the half shell with leftover SB. Main course was an excellent lamb/lentil combo, served with the 2012 Lapierre “Raisins Gaulois” - hey, this actually says 2012 not MMXII - did they change rules re vin de table? I think 2012 is supposed to be a problematic vintage in Beaujolais, but neither Betsy nor I had any problem with this. Primary, fruity, straightforward honest wine. B+/B
Sunday we went to Betsy’s sister’s home for dinner. The piano trio with Betsy’s brother-in-law’s sister and brother-in-law (is that confusing?) were playing in area, and we came to dinner, as Betsy’s BiL’s BiL went to Juilliard with her. Cal had made a trip to Arthur Avenue, and we had calamari, bruschetta, broccoli rabe, chopped salad, caprese, cheese ravioli with sage butter, chittara spaghetti with vongole, and more. There was fun and wine:
2012 Lancyre Rose
Nice Provencal style pink, full bodied and ripe, herby and redfruited. B+/B
2012 Lenotti Bardolino rose
Soft, flabby, not a lot to incite interest here. C+/C
2011 Box o Birds Sauvignon Blanc
Grass, gooseberry, ok length, not too exciting but drinkable B-
2008 Kistler “Hyde” Chardonnay
Not my usual style, lots of power and oak, but to its credit there is noticable acidity and even a hint of minerality, I like more than the Kistler PNs. B-
1995 Montevertine Il Sodaccio
Mature and classic, dried cherry fruit with leather and smoke. Tannins resolved, acids still lively, fruit still fruitful. Some forest floor/mushroom with time, but holds up well over couple hours. A-
Monday turkey “tenderloin” in a cumin/lime/coriander rub with yogurt sauce and salad, but focus of the meal was a ramp risotto. Wine was the 2010 Cowan Cellars “Isa” Sauvignon Blanc, quite nice, very full, good crispness, tropical fruit with citrus peel and mineral. Nice length. Pretty sure I wouldn’t guess SB blind. B+
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.
Betsy grilled spare ribs, plus made sugar snap peas with mint and potato salad. Wine with the ribs was the 2012 Arnot-Roberts “Luchsinger Vineyard” Touriga Nacional Rose. So fresh, so light, so bright and friendly! Get more. B+
With grilled squid on salad, grilled eggplant with a yogurt-mint sauce, & grilled trumpet mushrooms, the 2009 Deschamps "Les Porcheronnes" Pouilly-Fume. Rounder, riper style of Loire SB, peachy fruit with a little citrus, pleasant but not distinctive. B-
With clams and tomatoes over pasta 2010 Manbach "Frankstein" Riesling- I know it’s Frankstein not Frankenstein, but I still ended up with Edgar Winter tunes and Marty Feldman jokes in my head. This wasn’t a great match- I thought we were doing clams with ginger. Wine was a bit blah- pudgy Alsace, fairly dry but could use more zip, and a bit clipped. B-/C+
Saturday started with some oysters on the half shell with leftover SB. Main course was an excellent lamb/lentil combo, served with the 2012 Lapierre “Raisins Gaulois” - hey, this actually says 2012 not MMXII - did they change rules re vin de table? I think 2012 is supposed to be a problematic vintage in Beaujolais, but neither Betsy nor I had any problem with this. Primary, fruity, straightforward honest wine. B+/B
Sunday we went to Betsy’s sister’s home for dinner. The piano trio with Betsy’s brother-in-law’s sister and brother-in-law (is that confusing?) were playing in area, and we came to dinner, as Betsy’s BiL’s BiL went to Juilliard with her. Cal had made a trip to Arthur Avenue, and we had calamari, bruschetta, broccoli rabe, chopped salad, caprese, cheese ravioli with sage butter, chittara spaghetti with vongole, and more. There was fun and wine:
2012 Lancyre Rose
Nice Provencal style pink, full bodied and ripe, herby and redfruited. B+/B
2012 Lenotti Bardolino rose
Soft, flabby, not a lot to incite interest here. C+/C
2011 Box o Birds Sauvignon Blanc
Grass, gooseberry, ok length, not too exciting but drinkable B-
2008 Kistler “Hyde” Chardonnay
Not my usual style, lots of power and oak, but to its credit there is noticable acidity and even a hint of minerality, I like more than the Kistler PNs. B-
1995 Montevertine Il Sodaccio
Mature and classic, dried cherry fruit with leather and smoke. Tannins resolved, acids still lively, fruit still fruitful. Some forest floor/mushroom with time, but holds up well over couple hours. A-
Monday turkey “tenderloin” in a cumin/lime/coriander rub with yogurt sauce and salad, but focus of the meal was a ramp risotto. Wine was the 2010 Cowan Cellars “Isa” Sauvignon Blanc, quite nice, very full, good crispness, tropical fruit with citrus peel and mineral. Nice length. Pretty sure I wouldn’t guess SB blind. B+
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.