Better late than never...

Haven't written about a last Monday night... here we go... All in all, a very fun evening with friends - Good Wine, Good Food. First wine of the night (Champagne was Veuve Clicquot) was the 2000 Domaine des Malandes Chablis "Les Clos" Grand Cru... first bottle was completely oxidized and undrinkable... the second was only slightly better. Now, Burgundy from the mid 1990s until the early 2000s has had a well documented "cork" issue, with a very high percentage of all wines from nearly all producers experience premature oxidation... I would suspect that this producer with whom I was not familiar with bought into the same bad batches of corks that everyone else did. Honey with wet stones, Granny Smith Apple and a tart pear note in this wine... Good, not great. The 2000 Franck Follin-Arbelet Corton-Charlemagne was fabulous, though... My favorite White Burgundy Grand Cru (apart from the ocassionally stunning Batard-Montrachet, Chevalier-Montrachet (Domaine Leflaive) or Montrachet (Nearly everyone) - but nearly always I'll come back to the Corton-Charlemagne)... this was a baby... kept some until nearly the end. Butterscotch, hazelnut puree, Granny Smith Apple, and a wonderful citrus zest (lemon, lime, tangerine) note... a long, powerful finish... wine of the night. The 1996 Domaine Robert Arnoux Vosne-Romanee 1er Cru "Aux Reignots" was pretty, but while I think this still has life ahead of it, it is ripe for drinking. Turned earth, tobacco, black truffles, sweet rhubarb, strawberries and hints of tar. Elegant and long... NB - Arnoux is one of my favorite producers... if you've never had an Arnoux Vosne-Romanee Les Suchots... The dissapointment of the night was the 1998 Domaine Jean-Louis Trapet Chambertin Grand Cru. Acidic with hints of tar, raspberry and strawberries, this wine was all tannin and not well balanced. I've had much better examples of this wine in the past, so perhaps it was just the bottle (VA maybe?)... expected more. The 2005 Domaine Baumalric Muscat de Beaumes de Venise is not my favorite and I try it all the time, so I'll refrain from comment, though this is probably the best producer of this Vin doux Natural from the Southern Rhone... The 1970 Taylor-Fladgate Port en Magnum was outstanding... deep caramel, black cherries, blueberries, figs and almonds. So nice... gorgeous.