Wines at the Bistro

Friends and I headed out to Bistro on the Brandywine for dinner a few nights ago. Taking advantage of their BYOB policy, which continues in spite of the recent approval of their liquor license, we carried along a few bottles with a view to ensuring enough versatility to suit the restaurant’s French bistro influenced menu.

Cheverny, Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2006
François Cazin’s low-yield farming shows through in spades in the richly concentrated fruit and slightly unctuous texture of his 2006 Cheverny Blanc, a blend of 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Chardonnay. Given its high alcohol (14.5%) and marked residual sugar, I can’t help but consider this atypical for Cheverny. The herbaceous and mineral edge I expect from the AOC are missing and subdued respectively, replaced by round, ripe lemon and tangerine fruit and aromas of white tree blossoms. Cazin was obviously working with some pretty ripe raw materials in this vintage. The wine stops just short of being fully honeyed. On the up side, its alcohol is not at all apparent. There’s a chalky acidity that stands out on the mid-palate. In spite of all the concentration, its purity of fruit, along with that high-toned acidity, helped to make this pretty satisfying as an aperitif. It also worked well with the daily salad special of field greens, goat cheese and roasted golden beets. $16. 14.5% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Louis/Dressner, New York, NY.

Irouléguy Blanc “Ilori" ("Les Jonquilles"), Domaine Brana 2004
When I learned a few years back that the shop where I spend my days would be dropping the Wine Traditions portfolio, I was dismayed. Importer Ed Addiss brings in a book of characterful wines from a cadre of small estates, with particular strength in SW France. I made sure to snag a couple bottles each of a few of my favorites before they’d no longer be easily accessible. This is one, especially tasting it now, which I wish I’d gone long on.

“Ilori” is Basque, “Les Jonquilles” French, for Narcissus jonquilla, the yellow wildflowers native to southern Europe that grow widely on the terraced hillsides in Irouléguy. This is Domaine Brana’s “basic” white, a blend of Gros Manseng and Petit Courbu, vinified without wood influence. At first sniff, it gave off a cheesy pungency that I’ve noticed before in Jurançon Sec and other Pyrenéean whites. With air, that funk transformed into a much fresher expression of lime pith, kumquat and hay, with mountain meadow floral and herbaceous notes evocative of the wine’s name. Although it’s a tad lower alcohol than typical for Irouléguy Blanc, it still shows the area’s savage power and dryness via its combination of visceral acidity and intense persistence. Lip smackingly good even at first, it just kept getting better right up to the last drop. Spot on with the saffron cream sauce in which our mussels were cooked. $14 on release. 13.5% alcohol. Composite cork. Importer: Wine Traditions, Falls Church, VA.

Barbera d’Alba “Cascina Francia,” Giacomo Conterno 2005
What can I say about this that hasn’t been said before? The wines of the Giacomo Conterno estate are a benchmark for the traditionalist style in Piedmont. They are widely considered to have few if any peers, particularly in the context of their famous Barolo Riserva, “Monfortino.” Though the winery is located in Monforte d’Alba, this Barbera is sourced from the estate’s 16-hectare vineyard, Cascina Francia, located high on the hillsides of Serralunga d’Alba. This is wine that somehow manages to capture the innately rustic personality of Barbera yet express it with elegance, structure and fine balance. The characteristic muscle of Serralunga fruit is all there. Plum and mulberry fruit and dense earthiness are followed by a hint of cocoa-driven opulence and restrained spiciness, the influence of a two-year aging regimen in old botti of Slovonian oak. Hardly every day Barbera, this is profound, a real vino di meditazione. There may not be a better pairing out there for the short ribs and gorgonzola gnocchi served at the Bistro. $30. 14% alcohol. Natural cork. Importer: Polaner Selections, Mount Kisco, NY.

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Notes from a Sunday

Sunday’s seem to be ideal for getting together with friends to relax, cook a good meal and sit back and taste. Our host for the most recent edition of Sunday Evening Tasting was eager to prepare various cuts of the half a lamb he’d procured from a local farm (already “processed,” mind you) and equally ready and willing to sample some bottles he’d recently ordered from Chambers Street Wines. I countered with a few things from my cellar, just to make sure it wouldn’t be a one-importer night. The proceedings:

Champagne “Les Vignes de Vrigny” Premier Cru Brut, Egly-Ouriet NV
“Issu de Vignes de Pinot Meunier situées sur le Terroir de Vrigny”
This one was calling my name from its place on the shelf during my last visit to Chambers Street. I’ve long dug the Champagnes of Egly-Ouriet but I’d never come across a bottle of this, a cuvée made from 100% Pinot Meunier – the decided underdog in the Champagne triptych. Aromas of peach and brioche were carried by a brisk, fine mousse. Fresh apricot, clover blossoms, hay and a hint of orange oil unfurled in the mouth. ‘Twas fruit forward and round, with perfect balance and a long finish. Though not the most elegant Champagne out there, this was damn tasty and represents a solid QPR.

Egly-Ouriet is to be saluted for noting the lees-time and disgorgement date (respectively 36 months and July 2006 for our bottle) on the back of every one of their wines. If only every house would follow suit, especially with their basic NV bottlings. But then everyone would know how much stale bubbly is floating around the market….
$42. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Michael Skurnik Imports.

Cour-Cheverny “Cuvée Renaissance,” Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2004
I had just read about the 2002 vintage of this wine on Brooklynguy’s blog, so I was pleasantly surprised when the 2004 showed up in our line-up for the evening. “Cuvée Renaissance” is Cazin’s demi-sec bottling, produced only in vintages which give adequate ripeness, helped along by either botrytis or passerillage. The wine’s sweetness is both forward and graceful, delivering guava, limestone and lemon curd, all cut through by bright acidity. A little whiff of lavender emerged as the wine’s aromas curled up through the sinuses. This is not terribly complex at the moment but is still showing very youthful structure. It should be interesting to revisit in another three to five years.
$18. 13% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Cour-Cheverny, Le Petit Chambord (François Cazin) 2006
I’ll be more than happy to make due with Cazin’s regular Cour-Cheverny while waiting for the “Renaissance” to come into its own. The sec cuvée is nervier in feel and more subtly perfumed than its semi-sticky brother. Bananas, golden delicious apples, honeysuckle and acacia all emerged on the nose, supplemented by distinct and racy minerality on the palate.
$15. 14% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Rouge Gorge,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
Pinot what? That’s Pineau d’Aunis, baby! This is idiosyncratic juice; varietal Pinot d’Aunis from the northern Touraine AOC of Coteaux du Loir, where Eric Nicolas’ Domaine de Bellivière occupies nine hectares of the tiny CdL and Jasnières vignobles. Black pepper – unmistakably – jumps from the glass, along with what strikes me as the scent of fresh haricots verts. One of my companions also noted a certain air of the auto shop; I couldn’t argue. Rustic, oddball and absolutely delicious. I’m usually pretty tuned in to alcoholic strength, but the 15% this was packing snuck right by, a virtue perhaps of its slightly cool serving temperature.
$23. 15% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Coteaux du Loir “Hommage à Louis Derré,” Domaine de Bellivière 2005
“Hommage à Louis Derré” is Bellivière’s more ambitious bottling of Coteaux du Loir, again a varietal expression of Pineau d’Aunis. It has a more tannic structure, bolstered by a bit of oak that lends aromas of baking spices. The black pepper and string beans still come out to play, joined by thyme and black cherries. There’s a bit more nuance, along with deeper concentration, but the alcohol, even though labeled as lower than the “Rouge Gorge,” displays some heat on the finish. Wide-knit tannins provide a seriously mouth wakening charge.
$33. 14.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Louis/Dressner Selections.

Graves, Château du Grand Bos 1997
I’ve noticed bottle variation with the ’97 Graves from Grand Bos in the past; this bottle fell on the down side of the curve, I’m afraid. I kept thinking there was a background whiff of cork taint but nope, it just wasn’t showing well. Red cassis and a leathery, herbaceous character were all wrapped up in a damp, clay-like sense. I’d hoped this would be a great match with our final course of pan-grilled lamb chops, as a bottle on the up side of the curve should have been. No such luck. But hey, it led us on to a good red Burg which might otherwise have gone unopened.
$23. 12.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Wine Traditions.

Chassagne-Montrachet Premier Cru “Les Macherelles” (Rouge), Jean-Marc Pillot 2000
I picked this up during a visit to Rosenthal Wine Merchants back in the spring. I was taken by surprise by this bottle, not because it didn’t show Chassagne typicity but because it wasn’t nearly as rich and forward in style as earlier vintages of the same wine from Pillot. The 2000 was lively and tight, with dried sour cherry and pronounced sous-bois aromas. Still very solid, even a bit shut down at the moment.
$40. 13.5% alcohol. Natural cork closure. Importer: Rosenthal Wine Merchant.

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My Favorite Baltimore Haunt

Happy Halloween! In celebration of today’s ghoul fest – and my 100th blog post – I thought I’d write up one of my favorite old neighborhood haunts.

I grew up in the Baltimore/Washington corridor and still have strong sentimental and family attachments to Baltimore (aka, Charm City, Mobtown). Baseball has never seemed the same since going to see the Birds play in Memorial Stadium, with Boog Powell on first, Brooks on third and Paul Blair out in center field. Those were good days to go to a game, carry along the glove (just in case!) and eat some peanuts or a frank while dad took advantage of the Schaeffer or Natty Boh (depending on the season) being hawked by the roving vendors. I also kick started my education in food by going as a young lad to many of the ethnic heritage festivals peppered around Baltimore’s Inner Harbor area.

Well, the Orioles have never rediscovered the glory of the 1970s and I haven’t made it to the Polish festival in many a moon. However, I do still make the trip to Baltimore on a semi-regular basis to visit family and take in the feel of a different city. Baltimore is an easy two-hour drive south from Philly and, while it shares a touch of the “small town in a big city” vibe that can be found in Philadelphia, Mobtown otherwise has a completely different look and feel. And as Memorial Stadium, not to mention my interest in baseball, is no more, I’ve had to find a new haunt.

Peter’s Inn is just the place. Founded in its current iteration by Bud and Karin Tiffany in the early 1990s, Peter’s Inn is a former biker bar reborn as Baltimore’s strongest bastion of gastro-pub cuisine. At its heart, Peter’s is still a neighborhood tavern. If you can find a seat at the bar, there’s no problem with making it your shot and a beer haunt for the evening. Over the years though, the space has morphed slowly into more and more of a destination restaurant, in spite of never having shed its barroom feel. Diners now migrate in from the ‘burbs, especially on Friday and Saturday nights, to enjoy the Fells Point scene along with plates of good value and seriously tasty food.

While tables are now set with white linens and the couches and arm chairs once found in the back room have been replaced with more practical seating, you’ll still find plenty of the original ambience of the old Peter’s as well as evidence of the big personalities of the Tiffany’s. There’s a pile of atomic fire balls on offer on the ledge under the chalkboard menu. A CD collection and space for a DJ to set-up on the occasional Friday night can be found behind the bar. Fetishist photos by local artist Sam Holden adorn the bathroom walls. And in those bathrooms, at least in the men’s room, you’ll still find holdovers from the biker bar era: an old condom dispenser, industrial hand scrub, and a jar of Listerine along with a stack of Dixie cups for that pre-departure breathalyzer sanitization.

It’s not just the comfortably gritty atmosphere and local feel but also the great food that makes Peter’s such a worthwhile stop. From a tiny kitchen, Bud, Karin and their small staff turn out a small menu – usually just six or seven choices – of hearty yet creative dishes. Any single plate is enough to make a meal of, particularly when paired with the house’s signature salad and huge hunk of potent garlic bread. A hungry solo diner or small group could just as easily sample or share a couple of dishes to get a greater feel for the range of the menu. Steak, along with the aforementioned sides of salad and garlic bread, has a permanent spot, anchored at the end of the menu. The rest of the selections change regularly, according to season and availability of interesting ingredients from the kitchen’s favorite purveyors. On my most recent visit, I enjoyed a plate of pristinely fresh, Hawaiian tuna served two ways: blackened, rare medallions of loin set atop rich, creamy wasabi aioli on tortilla wedges; and a generously heaped martini glass full of highly seasoned tuna tartare.

I don’t know too many other bars that sell as much if not more wine as they do beer and cocktails. There’s a short yet eclectic and fairly well chosen list of vino on hand, nearly all of it available by the glass or bottle. A few of the more surprising gems on the current list include Eric Texier Côtes du Rhône, Cheverny from François Cazin, and the Nussberg “Alte Reben” from Vienna’s Weingut Wieninger. Of course, there’s also some good whisky on hand, a decent selection of bottled beers along with a small set of craft beers on tap, and of course the ubiquitous – at least in Baltimore – cans of, you guessed it, Natty Boh.

Peter’s Inn
504 S. Ann Street
Baltimore, MD 21231
410-675-7313

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