New Year's Eve
I was still feeling sub -par so we had Pekin Duck from a local restaurant. I was able to get the whole duck so I could carve it. We also had dumplings, ribs and sauteed bok choy. We had the NV Champagne Lallier Champagne Brut Grand Cru $27 which I bought from WTSO Champagne and chocolate for dessert. I scratched the souffle. The Champagne was big and dry. It is mostly Pinot Noir which I find gives Champagne an earthier flavor.
I was so tired that I did not see the ball come down, a first.
New wine discoveries
My new find for 2012 is a Spanish wine 2010 Espelt Garnacha Empordà Old Vines $10. The WA gave it a 92. The wine is Granache and is imported by Eric Solomon who had something to do with making the wine. It a big wine but it has tannin to give the wine good balance. It is an excellent bargain and I intend to buy some more.
We went to the Borgata in AC again. The food and wine choices there are really good. We ate at the tavern of the the Wolfgang Puck Restaurant. We shared pork Wiener Schnitzel and a margerita pizza. Apparently Wiener Schnitzel is made with veal. If you use pork, you must explain that you have used pork. The food was very good and there was lots of it.
We drank a bottle of Evening Land Vineyards Seven Springs Vineyard 2009 Oregon Pinot Noir. This is a very well regarded wine that was $84 at the restaurant. The wine retails for about $35 and it is hard to find. The wine was very good. It had terroir, a nice bouquet and was great with food. It is not fruit forward. I really enjoy this style of wine. It was a little more austere than other 09 Oregon Pinot Noirs that I have tasted.
The Borgata restaurants have excellent wine lists that make eating there a treat. While they have 50 wines under $50 I have found that the best values are in the $50 to $100 range. While this is usually bit much for me when eating out, sometimes you want a treat.
Recent wine shopping included more bottles of the Espelt Garnacha (above), La Maialina Chianti $8.99 ( I have had there Chianti Classico Reserva, which I like alot), 2008 Tenuta Monteti Caburnio Toscana IGT $15,(I tasted this at the Wine Library and it is a good Cabernet Sauvignon blend) 2011 Belle Glos Pinot Noir Meiomi,
2011 $16( the WS went ga-ga over this wine so I thought I would try it. I did not like the 2010.), Badenhorst Family Wines Chenin Blanc, South Africa $13 (Seemed interesting, Chenin Blanc can be good from South Africa.)
Travel
I am planning a trip in the next few months. Anguilla, Hawaii, California, Bangkok, Hong Kong and New Zealand are on the short list. Stay tuned. Any ideas are appreciated.
Enjoy 2013.
