On this trip to Korea I had two wine meetups. The first was about trying some pretty geeky wines, and the second was themed around wines that anyone, wine beginners included, would agree are delicious. In Drops of God, Echezeaux gets introduced as exactly that kind of wine, but Echezeaux and Burgundy in general are tricky to pair with food (read: drinking snacks -_-), so no matter how pricey they are, they fall a little short for a proper wine dinner.
I’ve introduced 2chef a few times already, so I’ll skip the details and go straight to the course photos.
Bread
As I said in an earlier post, it’s good. But one of our group had a cashew allergy, and after trying it their face went red. I should have checked for things like that; as the organizer I was far too careless.
Melon and prosciutto
It would have been better if the prosciutto had been saltier or the melon sweeter.
Rosé demi-sec Champagne
This is the Champagne I brought as an aperitif. It’s a boutique Champagne from a small French domaine, and the quality is excellent for the price, so I took it along to the meetup. As expected, everyone said it was delicious. Being demi-sec it has a touch of sweetness, the quality is high, and on top of that it’s a rosé! There’s no way anyone wouldn’t be happy drinking this. Sure, with enough money you could gulp down Cristal or Dom Pérignon Rosé, but for an ordinary guy like me those pricey wines are out of the question, so the only way is to use my head and hunt down wines known for being cheap and good. Besides, Champagne has always been a drink with really poor value for money. There are plenty of cheap, tasty reds and whites, but only a small number of houses make Champagne, so it rarely comes cheap. That’s why I was really pleased to have found a Champagne this good at a reasonable price.
White fish tempura
I’ve already forgotten what fish it was, but anyway tempura and Champagne are a perfect match. Good Champagne and good white wine really are a must in a course with lots of different dishes. Good red goes without saying ^_^
The Champagne bottle
Like a true boutique wine it’s not easy to find, but it isn’t that expensive either. Wines like this are best enjoyed quietly among people in the know ^_^ Some people fall for show-off labels like the five First Growths, legendary vintages or critics’ scores, but real wine lovers enjoy collecting delicious wines nobody knows about, from names nobody’s heard of, and sharing them. Real sommeliers are the same.
White wine
This one was a sponsored bottle, and it tasted a bit tight and austere.
Gorgonzola penne
The pasta was not bad, I guess? Pasta takes a lot of work to make really well, so it’s too much to expect top quality from a place that isn’t a pasta specialist..
The real main wine of the day: Pavillon Rouge 2002
If I had to sum up my image of a wine anyone can easily appreciate, it would be wine from Margaux in France. Deep, elegant, and delicious even when young. Château Margaux in particular, one of the five First Growths, is described by some as the queen. At only eight years old it’s a young vintage, but I still got a little taste of that dignified queen, inky-dark and never losing its elegant grace. It would have been better a few more years on, but opening it at a fun foodie gathering like this beats waiting any day..
Rockfish, if I remember right..
I’ve gotten tired of steak, so I often pick fish for the main, and this came out carefully and nicely grilled.
Whale bacon
I brought this one. It would have been nice as a starter, but it seems the timing came a bit late. It tastes like whale meat..
Dessert
It was good. The desserts change little by little too.
Castella
This is the dessert I brought, but it was less impressive than I expected. Even if it’s a bit harder to get, I should have brought Takasago castella.
Macarons
These macarons were sponsored. They’d go well with coffee or tea, but I’m not really on friendly terms with those drinks.
On top of all that we were also given a bottle of dessert wine, and it was a lovely dinner. I should set up more chances like this from now on.