5ive Steak, Jet Blue Terminal 5 at JFK Airport

Once upon a time, I was a ‘professional’ career woman (as opposed to my ‘professional’ lush status now) and spent lots of time going to and fro in airports around America. Much unstructured time in these airports was spent studying dining options on the directory board trying to judge which spot may might pour a decent glass of wine (i.e., something beyond Sutter Home White Zinfandel or Robert Mondavi Coastal Selection anything). On one particular bad day I remember whining to a bartender that all I wanted was a friggin’ glass of Champagne! Geeze, I’ll take a Prosecco!! Is that so much to ask??

He offered to shoot some club soda into a glass of Chardonnay for me.

Anyhootle, imagine how disoriented I was this week to stumble into the sidewalk café-esque scene that is the new Jet Blue terminal 5 at JFK airport. I had less than an hour to grab a glass and a bite, so in lieu of investigating my options (which all looked so grown up anyway), I settled into 5ive Steak because they had a huge artistic display of wine bottles on the wall.

The wine list, while overpriced (eh, it’s an airport) was actually interesting with many solid selections from the old world and a slight emphasis on France and Spain. d’Yquem pre-flight? Perhaps you’re more in a Chateau Trotanoy mood. Maybe a Domaine l’Arlot ‘Clos des Forets’ St. Georges? ’99 Petrus? For real?

There was even a notable selection of half bottles, and the bartender said he’d be happy to sell me a bottle and a go-cup for the flight. I hate to sound so gee-whiz, but how cool is that? I was seriously debating a half bottle of Dönnhoff Schlossbockelheimer Felsenberg Riesling Auslese 2006 for the flight.

Despite about 25 by the glass selections, I settled for a glass of Gruet Brut NV (a nice, simple bubbly, yes, but the CO2 allows alcohol to enter your bloodstream faster, so it was consumed for medicinal purposes).

Away from wine, they provided a good cocktail list with both the recognizable (margaritas) and the less-familiar (that cursed cocktail called Blood & Sand). They also featured four American whiskeys and a domestic rye. All bottle beers offered were well-known.

I didn’t have enough time to check out the other restaurants, but Jet Blue said they the new Terminal 5 has 400 wines available by the bottle, 150 by the half bottle, and 200 by the glass.

We’ve come a long way, baby.

Seven Spice Sour

Togarashi-infused sake (Momofuku private label honjozo), yuzu/lime juice, and simple syrup. Created by the amazing Don Lee for Ma Peche.

While you're there, dig into the Cotes de Porc - pork ribs from Newmans Farms in Missouri with a lemongrass caramel glaze that plays well against the spicy cocktail. Or vice versa.

Cork USB Drive

Ahem, my birthday is next month.




You could also show off your mad skillz and DIY with a cork from the Pol Roger rosé you’re going to open with me.

The Crusher, ‘Grower’s Selection’ Petite Sirah 2008 (Clarksburg) $13, 13.5%abv

Happy Singles Awareness Day.

I was looking through my cellar for something to pair with my special Valentine’s Day chili (it has lots of beans), and I found this guy, brought to you by the same negotiants who bottle Pepperwood Grove and Smoking Loon. Nielsen reported that Petite Sirah is among the four most discussed grapes on the internet, so let’s see what the fuss is all about.

The wine is a saturated inky purple. Aromas and flavors were predominantly dark jammy plums and red liquorice but there was also an intriguing white pepper note. The intensity of aromas was a little shy of medium, even after letting the wine warm up some from cellar temperature. The texture on the palate was medium-bodied and soft finished by a small amount of drying tannins.

So far from being The Crusher I was thinking of (i.e., my last trainer at Equinox), this was a good everyday wine for its interesting aroma profile. I think I might seek out another Petite Sirah in the near future.

The Long Thirst: Prohibition in America 1920-1933 by Thomas M. Coffey

I'm a sucker for used book stores, and I picked up this one on my most recent visit to Paris. Published in 1975, it's the story about prohibition woven from the point of view of a whole (real) cast of characters from both sides of the Volstead Act during it's 13-year validity.

It's written like a novel, the author not getting too deep, so it's a pleasant little read. On the back cover, the Chicago Tribune says "It is a story told in terms of colorful individuals who move in and out of an elaborate gallimaufry of rascality and foolishness."

Yea.

What he said.

What I'm most amused with right now is that I'm drinking a domestic Pinot Noir while reading a book about prohibition!! That almost qualifies as ironic!

Or maybe it's just the 14.5% abv talking...

Meet my latest crush, Tong Magazine

As if I don’t have enough unread wine magazine subscriptions stacked up on the floor (effectively acting as fortresses for my dust bunny army), I gave in to the WSET discount and signed up for this quarterly publication that is Flemish for “tongue”.

I love this magazine.

First off, there is no advertising. There are no wine reviews. There are no lifestyle articles. There is no discussion of hot new chefs. There is no editor telling me what they drank last week. There is no industry news. There are hardly any pictures.

The magazine is a themed journal with well-chosen topics that get back to the basics written by specialists in the field.

The Winter 2009 issue is dedicated to Champagne. The magazine is brief (48 pages), and contributors include two MWs, Champagne-expert Tom Stevenson, and several scientists. My favorite articles were focused on Champagne’s expansion progress, a look at the he trend of single-vineyard Champagne, the mechanics of autolysis, and the science behind CO2 formation (by a cross-disciplinary team of scientists). With no advertising, it’s not cheap (€100 for four issues annually), but there’s a discount if you’re a member of the WSET’s global campus.

This is only their fourth issue, and I’m tempted to buy the back issue on Terroir. Adding to anticipation, I don’t see anything telling me what the upcoming issues will cover, but there’s a free newsletter to sign up for (here) to hold me over in the mean time…

Gristina Vineyards, Merlot 1995 (North Fork), $NA, 12% abv

My friend insists the best burger on the North Fork of Long Island is at Jamesport Country Kitchen. A charming little café on the Main Road, their wine list emphasizes local wines, including the largest collection of library Long Island wine I’ve ever seen. Two local red wines from the mid-90s were even offered by the glass.

I ordered a glass of the 1995 Merlot from Gristina out of morbid curiosity: Gristina Vineyards have had two more owners since this wine was made. I don’t have a lot of experience with older Long Island wine but I’m happy to commit to a glass.

While it was open, Gristina’s wines garnered attention from Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, and Robert Parker. Gallucio Family Wineries bought Gristina in the summer of 2000 and continued to co-opt the Gristina name for a short time. Gallucio planned to expand production but was advised against it by his Bordeaux consultant Michael Rolland right before September 11th happened.

The property was on the market for a few years before Macari Vineyards bought half of it in late 2007 (the other half was sold to the Peconic Land Trust earlier in the year.)


This 15-year old wine was medium (-) intensity of garnet with a little bricking showing on a thin rim. The aromas were medium intensity and included dried plums, raisins, green herbs like parsley, and then a slight dank earth & cinnamon. The aromas didn’t evolve after the first five minutes, though that was partly because the day’s special was a fried flounder sandwich so when that arrived to the table next to me, all I could smell was Long John Silvers.

The flavors were dominated by sour dried plums, cocoa, and bitter espresso beans, with a somewhat short finish. There was a low amount of stalky tannins still in the wine that were a bit distracting. Acid was a little less than a medium amount, so I suspect the tannins from the stalks (or maybe there was some barrel age?) was what was helping to hold this wine together through the years.

The burger was interesting. I had the ‘Jamesport Burger’ which comes topped with Boursin Herb Cheese (the Velveeta of France, no?), a vaguely Dijon-mustard flavored sauce, and served on a pizza-slice wedge of Focaccia Bread. The fries were crisp, hot, and perfect.

A Night of 1988 Burgundies

And so it was, that on a Tuesday a few weeks ago, that yours truly plus eight others descended upon Apiary to help relieve a friend of several 22-year old Burgundies.

1988 was the year that construction on the pyramid at the Louvre began, and also considered an excellent year for Burgundy. Many critics said the weather that year produced healthy grapes overall, though structures were firm and would need time to soften. Perfect! Overall, I think these wines are enjoyable now, and in some cases (choose your producer carefully), have some more time to go.

I’d be negligent to not mention that Apiary runs a free-corkcage on Monday night. The restaurant has a very wine-friendly menu (the chef was brought over from Veritas) and includes a $35, three-course pre-fixe menu too. I think it’s an excellent place to take a first date. Especially if she’s a redhead.

After we dispensed with a bottle of Champagne, here’s what we drank:

Prince de Florent Merode, ‘Le Marechaudes’ (Corton)
Started off slow with a wine that was pleasant enough, but started to shut-down after 15 minutes. It was of medium intensity showing all the characteristics of a red Burgundy (dried cherry, forest floor, some white pepper) before it closed up, never to recover. It was past its prime.

Turns out this house is known for making wines that are meant to be consumed immediately (a restaurant wine). They don’t macerate on the skins and only press gently so that the emphasis is on fresh fruit and no bitter tannins.

About Corton: like Chablis, it’s a Grand Cru divided into a collection of climates (including Marechaudes). When Chardonnay is planted here it’s called Corton-Charlemagne.

Don’t you love Burgundy?

Prince de Florent Merode, ‘Clos du Roi’ (Corton)
This wine displayed much more brooding earthiness, structure, and the fruit was holding up much better than in the Marechaudes. Clos du Roi has a better sun exposure and more lava in the soils.

Comte Armand (Domaine du Clos des Epeneaux), ‘Clos des Epeneaux’ 1er Cru (Pommard)

Medium-intensity with relatively youthful red and blue fruits and a slight amount of wet earthiness. The structure was very well resolved. This wine was a favorite by most of the crowd.

In the 1980s when this wine was made, the domaine only made this one 1er cru (since the 1850s really) and that’s why it adopted the name (kinda like Clos de Tart in the Cotes de Nuits). As they don’t have much to work with, the grapes are harvested by the age of the vine (so, 5-10 years old, 10-20 years old) and vinified separately like that. Later the lots are blended to make their one bottling. Today they own many more properties.

‘Clos des Epeneaux’ is not on many maps because it straddles ‘Les Grand Epenots’ and ‘Les Petits Epenots’.

Marquis d’Angerville, ‘Clos des Ducs’ 1er Cru (Volnay)
Marquis has always sounded more regal to me than king or emperor, and it’s fitting that this is one of the most respected domaines in Burgundy. Most of the domaine’s holdings are in Volnay with this and ‘Champans’ 1er Cru the largest parcels. I see these wines on many restaurant’s lists.

The wine was a little more shy than the last few but had a strong forest floor component that I love, and a gorgeous velvet texture on the palate.

Joseph Drouhin (Latrecieres-Chambertin)
A little dank but otherwise dark fruits, sweet red fruits, and a slight minerality. A touch on the too-advanced side, but not a total waste of time.

Drouhin owns many vineyards throughout Burgundy (and Oregon) and is also a negotiant. I find the wines to be honest and reliable, maybe occasionally exciting, but I think it’s an easy house to buy. Latrecieres-Chambertin is a negotiant bottling.

Domaine Louis Trapet (Latrecieres-Chambertin)
Compared to the Drouhin, this was a more youthful and expressive Latrecieres. Red cherry, earthiness, and even gaminess made this wine complex.

Trapet has been around for many generations, and I find the wines to be a consistently good.

Domaine Dujac (Echezeaux)
Ah, Dujac. I can count on the wines from this house to be rather powerful (for Burgundy). I believe this is due to a combination of waiting for ripe grapes and use of 100% new French oak on all 1er Crus and Grand Crus. At 22 years old, this wine was still singing.

Aromas included strawberries, blackberries, red flowers, wet earth, and baking spices. The length held on to fruit and acid, and went on forever and ever.

Domaine Dujac (Clos de la Roche)
I adore Morey-Saint-Denis, but have been only lukewarm on Clos de la Roche Grand Cru. Despite this, this was one of my favorite wines of the night. This vineyard catches a lot of sun, and, as the name suggests, is on very poor, rocky soils, so we might see more concentrated grapes. Maybe I just drink Clos de la Roche too young?

This wine displayed wonderful red and dark fruits, with baking spices, stones, damp earth, and a savory aspect. Palate is velvetly and still showing bright acidity.

Domaine de la Romanee-Conti (Richebourg)
DRC, the holy grail of Burgundy, did not fail me. Do you know the feeling I’m talking about? If this wine was not spectacular, I probably would have sold my whole cellar for charity and become a bingo-announcer for a retirement community in south Florida.

This wine was just gorgeous. Cherries and figs, exotic spice box, forest floor, roses, soy sauce, a length that went for a long time displaying all those elements again. The structure was a whisper on the firm side, just enough to suggest that this wine still has a long, healthy life ahead of it.

A moment to reflect on happiness please.

OK, last wine of the night:

Mongeard-Mugneret (Richebourg)
Tough coming on the heels of DRC but still a beautifully expressive wine. The difference here was that fruit was more cherry and cranberry, plenty of dank earthiness, and baking spices didn’t seduce the way the DRC did. This wine was still plenty ripe and drinking beautifully, and is worth searching out.

This domaine owns a lot of parcels throughout Burgundy with Richebourg being one of the smallest holdings. We were blinded on the Echezeaux later but I failed to write down any notes. Sorry.


Domaine Leroy (Richebourg)
I lied. We had one more wine. But it was off. Doesn't count, though I have hit-or-miss with Leroy, so I was really looking forward to this one.

Grand Sichuan is one of the finest BYOs in the city, if only because German Rieslings are my favorite wine. The residual sugar and intensity of flavors on German wine are a perfect match to the spicy cuisine (and you can eat a feast without spending more than $40 per person). Only downside: you should bring your own stems. Their glasses are pretty small.

A small gathering of friends descended on the Grand Sichuan in Chelsea last night for pork soup dumplings, smoked tea duck (multiple orders), cucumber with garlic, spicy beef, chicken with pumpkin, beef with spicy green pepper, and a bunch more. Here’s what we drank:

Pierre Peters, ‘Cuvée Spéciale’ Blanc de Blancs Brut 1998 (Champagne), $NA, 12% abv
Just as you start your day with coffee, I support starting your evening with bubbles. This wine was showing loads of yeasty brioche notes with some bruised apple in the background. Very creamy on the palate.


F.X. Pichler, Dürnsteiner Hollerin Riesling Smaragd 2007 (Wachau), $60, 13% abv

I had a sip of this after the bubbly and tried it again later, but, as to be expected, it didn’t show well after the German wines. On first sip this was classic Austrian Riesling: medium (+) intensity lean citrus and a truck-full of minerals. Dry on the palate with juicy acidity and a long finish.

Dr. R. Weil, Kiedricher Wasseros Riesling Auslese 1976 (Rheingau), $NA, 10% abv?

Oh, how I love old German Rieslings! And this was a special treat. There was seepage from the cork, but I find this usually means nothing for a German wine. Intense aromas of tropical and exotic fruits meet wet stones and honey and stone fruits and a touch of petrol. The acidity still keeps this wine very fresh and it still has a long life ahead of it.

Wegeler, Bernkasteler Doctor Riesling Spätlese 2001 (Mosel), $30, 10% abv

This one displayed more primary citrus aromas, florally apricot, peaches and minerals with a lot of zing (maybe a CO2 prickle?) on the palate.

Mönchhof, Erdener Prälat Riesling Auslese 2007 (Mosel), $40, 10% abv?

Youngest German wine in the set still displayed an impressive amount of pretty aromatics: peaches, pears, honeysuckle, and minerals. Off-dry on the palate and a long finish. Really drinking well right now.

Somebody’s Niersteiner Pettental Riesling Beerenauslese 1976 (Rheinhessen), $NA, 8% abv

Oy. You can imagine by the end of the night, note-taking gets a little fuzzy. I failed to write down this name of the producers, thinking I had it captured on the pic (sorry, lesson learned). My friend had purchased a bunch of 1976 German Rieslings at auction from producers neither of us had ever heard of. On to the wine: popped & poured, the wine was showing nothing but botrytis (i.e., new plastic shower curtain) at first but within 10 minutes the mangoes, honey, and pineapple came out to play. Beautiful, silky texture on the palate and a medium-long finish. Not the richest or the most intense BA I’ve ever encountered, but it was a wonderful dessert to go with our lame-advice fortune cookies.