We happy that Bernard, who has sampled so many wines, has shared his notes with us. We do have, or have had for sale a few of the wines Bernard writes about, and we include a link to our stock page whenever it is a producer we carry (but since the stock page is kept up-to-date and the wines are sold, don't expect any but the newest of wines to show up in our stock!). Mostly though, since we specialize in County of Santa Barbara Wine and Central Coast Wine, we don't carry a lot of the wines Bernard writes about. But we think it is important that you be able to have an idea what they're like in case you are planning to buy some somewhere, or have them in your own collection. Enjoy.

Here are Bernard's notes from March 27, 1999:

93 Justin Cabernet Sauvignon (San Luis Obispo)--Beautiful wine. Nose is dominated by red fruit, cassis. Lush, jammy fruit, moderate use of oak, rather well integrated tannins that support, but don't dominate, the fruit. A really fine, easy drinking cab from this often overlooked producer. Later, with dinner, it developed some brown sugar in the bouquet, but the flavor remained just fine (barely a hint of madeirization).

To start:

Frisee Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette and Fried Chevre

96 Les Champs Clos Sancerre--Very typical Sancerre, floral and mineral driven bouquet. In the mouth, crisp acidity but not tart. Flinty, citrusy, restrained midpalate. Clean refreshing finish. Worked very well with the acidic dressing. A great QPR at $11.

The Main course: Roast Double Loin of Veal with Fresh Sage and Black Truffle Au Jus Savory Bread Pudding with Chantrelles Pan Roasted Root Vegetables Collard Greens Sauteed in Duck Fat

(A Note on the veal: Double Loin refers to the whole section from which the T-Bone is cut into steaks, which includes the tenderloin and the NY strip.)

94 Dom. Laurent Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Amoureuses--Bit cloudy, dark brick color. Huge nose of sweet cherry, violets, maybe some sauvage elements. Absolutely engaging bouquet, just what Burgundy is also about. In the mouth, sweet red fruits, decent integrated tannins, moderate acidity, no evidence of overoaking. Plush, silky, chewy fruit. Really delicious. For an off vintage, this is very fine. Drinkable now and over the next few years.

95 D. Bachelet Gevrey-Chambertin Vielles Vignes--Decanted about 5 hours before dinner. When first opened, very tight, highly acidic, not quite astringent tannins, all providing a strucutral frame for the pure fruit essence that is Bachelet's style. Despite this aggressiveness at first, the finish was quite pure and classy, without angularity or severity. This gave sense to the wine that was to emerge. With dinner, the bouquet had developed floral and black fruit qualities, rather perfumey and focused. The fruit opened up to reveal a rich, yet restrained gem, still dominated by its high acid profile. Very supportive of the veal, with a clean and lingering finish. This is a wine to watch over the next 6-10 years as the acid settles in and the fruit expands. Very good now for those who have a tolerance to acid, it will be so much better to hold until 2005+.

For dessert, one of the guests brought:

Chocolate Bavarois

90 Dow Quinta do Bomfim Port--Beautiful, expansive bouquet. Really showing wonderfully now. Lot of ripe, black cherry, plum, spice aromas. In the mouth, round, balanced, ripe black cherry, relatively soft tannins for young port. Just delicious to drink now, it will easily hold on another decade. This is truly outstanding (QPR-wise, too) from a non-vintage year.