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WFSO Ch. Talbot Vertical
Davis Street Tavern
April 17, 2010
Chateau Talbot is located in the commune of Saint Julien in Bordeaux, France. Its vineyards dwarf the surrounding estates of the Medoc surpassing over 100 hectares. The estate has remained in the hands of the Cordier family since the early 1900's garnering Fourth Growth status in the 1855 Classification. Many experts, however, opine that it easily competes with many of Saint Julien's Second Growths.
The estate is planted primarily with Cabernet Sauvignon followed by Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, along with some Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Of special note is that all grapes are hand picked during harvest. This attention to detail speaks volumes about Talbot's desire to produce exceptional wine year after year.
To share wine from his cellar, Greg Bunnell called upon Christopher Handford, owner and General Manager of Davis Street Tavern. Greg has previously worked with Christopher for family celebrations and private wine tastings. Greg provided the list of wine to Christopher and wine steward Gretchen Wilcox early on. They both studied the list with Chef Gabe Kapustka and came up with a very traditional French menu for the event leaning heavy of foie gras.
Eight members of the Wine & Food Society joined Greg on a beautiful Saturday evening. Those attending included Jim Galbraith, Mara Kershaw, Richard Stinson, July Erdman, Karl Mantei, Nora Berwick, Mark Lindau and Margot Murphy.
When we arrived, we came upon a beautifully set table in the back of the restaurant just below the mezzanine. Each place was adorned with four pieces of stemware, each slightly larger passing left to right. The idea behind smaller bowls was to protect the aging Bordeaux as we sometimes find that the older vintages might disappear rather quickly. As we mingled and discussed the benefits of paying taxes (just kidding), we enjoyed a NV Baumard Cremant Carte Corail Brut Rose, a sparkling wine from the Loire Valley comprised of 100% Cabernet Franc grapes, and Chapoutier's Les Granits Blanc, a 100% Marsanne from Saint Joesph. With this juice we sampled on fresh Oregon Kumamoto Oysters topped with cucumber, pickled shallots and steelhead roe, Salmon Mousse, and Fig Jam and Marcona Almond. Chef Kapustka's attention to detail was evident from the start of the dinner. Sadly, Greg forgot his camera so all of the following pictures were taken on his phone (apologies to all).
As we settled in to our seats, Gretchen was busy carefully opening the first flight of the Talbot. Without hesitation, she opened the older vintages first, here a 1983 followed by the 1978 and, finally, the 1964, a vintage older than Gretchen, Mara and Greg, but sadly not the others (think smile). Each wine was decanted and sampled prior to pouring. Both the 1978 and 1983 corks were in perfect condition without any evidence that the wine had seen any air. The cork from the 1964 was crusted on the top and never felt like completely leaving the bottle it had shared for over forty years. The nose on the 1964 smelled of an older vintage Port, but with time and air softened. Believing this might be the case, Gretchen and Chef Kapustka added a small amount of Madeira to our second course, a Wild Mushroom Cappuccino served over truffled foam. The soup, as with DST's classic Dungeness Crab Bisque, was poured over the foam. The earthy flavors from the soup married exceptionally well with both the bouquet and flavors of the Talbot. This course was a match made in heaven.
From comments around the table, the 1978 probably stood out as the best wine of the flight although the 1983 continued to improve and evolve with time. The 1964, frankly, needed both decanting and some oxygen and when that perfect balance was met it was drinking as one would expect of a wine that was made when Malta gained independence from Great Britain and Lenny Kravitz was born.
With everyone's palate primed, we moved on to our second flight of Talbot from the 1985, 1988 and 1989 vintages and a foie gras stuffed Quail surrounded by a Chestnut Puree, bedded on top of sauteed escarole, and drizzled with Hazelnut Butter. This flight, as one would expect, displayed more classic Bordeaux terroir with hints of toasted oak, leather and dark spices. Gretchen was quick to point out that the hints of spice were courtesy of the small portions of Cabernet Franc used in the final blend. Not one of these wines, or the quail, disappointed.
After another short discussion about which wine was showing the best or whether Jim Galbraith had actually been served (think significant evaporation), we prepared ourselves for the final flight of Talbot. For this flight, we sipped and snorted the offerings from the poorly understood 1993 vintage, an underrated 1999 vintage and an overshadowed (compared with the 2000) 2001 vintage. These wines were absolute fruit bombs when compared with the earlier vintages. With this Chef Kapustka plated a Grilled New York Strip slathered in a wild mushroom demi glace and served over a potato leek pastry and sauteed escarole (sorry no picture was taken).
And not to be outdone, Chef Kapustka's final course, our dessert, was a Foie Gras Ice Cream accompanied by a Hazelnut Tuile. This was wonderfully paired with a 2001 La Tour Blanche Sauternes rated 97 points by Robert Parker. Although some were skeptical that it would work most came around and enjoyed something a little different. Everyone should try Foie Gras Ice Cream once in their lives, right?
When all was said and done, everyone agreed that it was pretty special to sample wines from such an historic estate over the course of nearly 50 years. And the manner in which the food pairings accentuated the flavors did not go unnoticed. Gretchen's wine service and knowledge of Talbot, discussed throughout the evening, was phenomenal and appreciated. It was not over the top or in your face - it was, well, perfect.
A special thanks to everyone at DST for making this year's Bordeaux experience one we won't forget anytime soon.
Salud!
The full Wine and Food Menu can be found here.
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