Hurrah! A resounding success! The Brunello has turned out to be alright, and I made a fillet steak (filet mignon or beef tenderloin to you yanks) with caramalised onions and a touch of blue cheese - scrumptious!
The steak: a giant fillet, seasoned, then marinated in oil, balsamic, Dijon mustard and rosemary for 1/2 hour, pan-fried for 6 1/2 minutes per side and then for 1 1/2 on the edges because it was so big, served with stir-fried trumpet mushrooms, mange tout (snow peas) and garlic smashed potatoes. And no, I didn't spend a fortune on the steak in Whole Foods, I bought it in Costco, where it is considerably cheaper (you can buy a whole tenderloin there for around $80), and of a very good quality. And did I mention how big it was too? Hmmm...
1997 Brunello Di Montalcino, Tornesi: I was concerned about this bottle, it had a low ullage, and it had a really bad cork that was basically soaked through with signs that it might be about to to seep had I not opened it at the exact moment that I did... I have to wonder about the quality of the cork though, the wine is only a bit over 12 years old and the cork was already ruined. Over Christmas we had a bottle of a 1966 Meursault-Charmes (Domaine Potinet-Ampeau) - an outstanding wine, amazingly fresh incidentally, and the cork was in unbelievably good condition. I like to think that this bad one could have been a one-off since the producer has an excellent reputation, but you have to wonder. I have one other bottle that has a low ullage too, though not as bad, I'll have to see what the cork is like.
Anyway, after all that moaning the wine was still in pretty good condition, there was a quite a strong funky whiff to it just after opening, but this blew off to reveal a complex nose of leather, cherry, spice and a little well-integrated oak, with flavours of soft cherry fruit, leather, earth and spice again and a little tobacco, with excellent acidity and nice round tannins. The finish was a little shorter than I thought it might be and the wine did lack a little depth, maybe a result of the bad condition of the bottle, but still satisfactory enough. Overall a good wine, though I'd be interested to taste a bottle in perfect condition.
A splendid meal... Well done me (again!)
Why is it that when I go out of town you cook nice meats? When I'm home all I get is Artic Char? Luckily, I had a lovely meal at Sel de la Terre (Scottish Salmon) and enjoyed my fab room at the W Boston.
Posted by: Jbullett | Thursday, 25 February 2010 at 10:12
It is only because I am forced to find some small consolation in food to keep me from withering away in your absence... These times when you are away are so traumatic!
You told me you liked the arctic char anyway!
Posted by: Fatboy | Thursday, 25 February 2010 at 11:11
Just goes to show no hard and fast rules with these things - low ullage on a wine that age is generally an iffy sign and there's no excuse for a cork collapsing so soon, so probably right not going to last into the next decade - but saying that you just can't tell untill you open the bottle - ever - glad the wine turned out good, don't know the producer but it was a stonking year so would be careless not to have sorted out something of interest - at the other end of the point it is very noticible when solid producers do consistently use high quality corks and how that effects their longevity - Potinet Ampeau is a case in point, always flawless corks and their whole range seems to live forever - that 66 was a mighty old white was'nt it, and with slight bottle variation all the ones i've seen - 5 or 6 now of the 66 have all been stunning - hope to write up a more detailed review of the Potinet wines quite soon, though quite happy to keep that producer our little secret - can you find in the States?
Posted by: Nahthern | Friday, 26 February 2010 at 21:06
I guess sometimes truth is stranger
Posted by: Term Papers | Saturday, 24 April 2010 at 04:11
Indeed, Term Papers, indeed...
Posted by: Fatboy | Saturday, 24 April 2010 at 18:25
I would like to say this is an excellent blog that I have ever come across. Very informative. Please write more so that we can get more details.
Posted by: Term Papers | Monday, 16 August 2010 at 05:06
Hi Term Papers. I'm glad you like the blog, your support means a lot to us. Sorry for the serious break in writing, I have been buying and moving house, it's taken a lot of time. I'm going to London tomorrow, and will be meeting with Nahthern to figure out the direction that the blog will be taking. Watch this space...
Posted by: Fatboy | Wednesday, 18 August 2010 at 20:52