Wine of the Year already?

[wondersofwine]

We are only a few weeks into the year but I may have experienced one of my wines of the year already. St. Jacques Restaurant in Raleigh had their annual "Open That Bottle Night" (bring your own wine--no corkage fee) Tuesday, Jan. 25. I planned to share with others at my table and the owner and server so took a half bottle of Olivier Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet and a regular bottle of 2001 Domaine Robert Chevillon Nuits-St.-Georges Les Saint Georges 1er Cru.
The white Burgundy was very nice but the red Burgundy was, as restaurant owner Lil said, "amazing." The N-S-G,imported by Hart Distributing Inc., Weaverville, NC, was a fairly typical Burgundy color with semi-transparency in the glass. Nice fruit aroma but the wow factor is in the mouth. While most CellarTracker notes speak of cherries and dark cherries, I got an overwhelming impression of raspberries. Saturated raspberry in a silky coating with submerged tannins and a little sous bois to counterbalance the fruit. Drinking superbly right now--the decade has been kind to this wine. Slips down the throat easily and brings great pleasure without a lot of assertiveness. (The remaining wine did appear less fresh the second day.) It paired okay with the beef carpaccio and melted bleu cheese dish, the smoked salmon with light horseradish/mustard sauce, and the veal cake topped with scallop in a reduction sauce with some cognac at the restaurant. I would also suggest pairing it with roast fowl (chicken, Cornish hen, or duck in a fruit sauce.) I enjoyed sharing this wine with others, yet didn't want the bottle to end. Outstanding!



[This message has been edited by wondersofwine (edited 01-27-2011).]