I'm no slouch negotiating a fork or a wine glass, but posting pics is beyond me! Festiva and comet, put down the matches and give PH a hand

I think the Kodak site (which I've used to do this before) has changed their procedures to require anyone who wants to see an album to log on with an e-mail address. I'm looking into alternatives, but am hammered in the office today. Suggestions are appreciated. I don't want to use Kodak if they're requiring e-mail addresses. Just seems annoying to me....

PH

PH,
Just use Yahoo Pictures. Easy to upload, and doesn't require an account to view.

I'll get on it. Thanks!

PH

Ok, here we go........again!

Pictures of the MD Offline #3 should be here.

I couldn't figure out how to sort the shots, so the sequencing is a little off, but what the hell......

What a great night, with a great group!!

PH

Very nice photos.

great job on the photos, PH.
We consumed 3 champagnes, one chard, two pinots, a Zin, a Vintage Port and a dessert wine. 9 bottles with 7 people, and Ms. BH doesn't drink much.

Take that, Board-O.

Great pics, although from the looks of me I really do need to become a vegetarian!

Here's my take on the wine and the food pairings:

NV Piper Heidsieck Champagne. This is a really nice wine to start the night off with. Rich and full-bodied, but with enough finess and elegance to prep the tastebuds for the meal to come. I need to get some of this and make it my house sparkler. BTW: Hat's off to the staff for the quick dash to Pottery Barn for stemware! That's going the extra mile.

Warm Smoked Salmon
with Potato Custard and Osetra Caviar
1985 Charles Heidseick "Champagne Charlie"
This was my pairing of the night. The mild saltiness of the caviar and salmon counterbalanced the custard, sauce, and the Champagne perfectly. The Charlie was delicate as could be, with a creaminess that reminded me of toast. Light acidity and small, velvety bubbles really counterbalanced the delicate flavors of this dish. Great together.


Chilean Sea Bass "en Barigoule"
with Parmigiano Reggiano
2000 Chateau de Chamirey Chardonnay Mercurey
This pairing also really worked well together. The Mercurey was bright and crisp without being overbearing. Lots of wet stones, a little citrus, and a nose to die for. Lots of subtle flavors going on in the glass. Very lightly oaked? I gulped this wine down before I had a chance to fully enjoy it. Also, I'm glad we had this wine before the Zin!


Seared Foie Gras with Oxtail
and Candied Root Vegetables
2002 Carlisle Zinfandel
This was my WOTN. Wow! I didn't know Zin could reach such levels. Reminded me of a first growth Bdx. Huge aromas and tastes of red and black fruits, leather, mild wood, and spice. Velvety tannins and a finish that went on and on. I need to wrangle a few bottles out of Cometspider or at least buy into his allocation! It paired very well with the Foie Gras, but not as well as the Sea Bass or the Salmon. BTW, the Foie Gras was cooked to absolute perfection. The Oxtail really kicked it up a notch. A BIG shout out the chef on this. This was my dish of the night.


Medallions of Venison
with Chanterelles, Pears,
Gooseberries, Pine Nuts and Turnips
2001 Nuits St. Georges, Saint Clos de Marc Premier Cru
2004 Le Cadeau Pinot Noir
I was rather disappointed in the venison, but probably because it followed the superb foie gras. Both wines, however, were wonderful. The Clos Ste Marc was full of blackberries and earth - with just enough barnyard to keep my nose in the glass. Very nicely integrated tannins. I realize I may sound like a brown-nosing idiot, but I really, really liked the '04 Cadeau Bergstrom. The rest of the group found it to be a split between the well balanced '02 and the very ripe '03. I found it be completely different. While this wine was in balance, with great acidity, moderate tannins, and ripe fruit, I found this wine to express more of the land it comes from. It's a much more 'serious' wine than the other two I drank. I'll be lining up to by this 'en primeur' and drink it over the next 15 years. With any luck, I'll be able to talk Mr. & Mrs. BHV into personally autographing a bottle for me!

Selection of Cheeses
1985 Fonseca VP
Infanticide in a 20 year old wine?!?!? This was some great juice. It tasted as ripe and fresh as it probably did when it was first bottled. This must have been stored in truly perfect conditions. Ripe, fruit forward, no heat to speak of. I noted a beam of freshly cut cedar on the nose, too. This paired wonderfully with the aged provolone, but even better with the warm chocolate cake to follow.


Trio of Banana Tart,
Warm Chocolate Cake
and Malt Panna Cotta
1999 Philippe Delesvaux Coteaux du Layon Sélection de Grains Nobles
By the time this course hit our plates, I was pretty well buzzed, but PH's Delasvaux kicked me back into gear. A close second for my WOTN. An ethereal experience. Intense, sweet, fruity, and full of botrytis. Huge nose that hit me while it was being poured from across the table. Finish of well over a minute. I'm on a mad search now to find more of this wine. After I finished my port with the chocolate cake, I didn't bother eating the rest of the dessert. The Delasvaux was perfection by itself.


We keep topping ourselves with these dinners. Each one gets better than the previous one. I can't wait to see what Irwin and his posse come up with for our next event. I'm much obliged to be seen in public with such great company. Thanks!

festiva,

If PH can not find, let me know and I will see if I can still get it.

I will try to get it to PH before your offline #4

Let me know...

wine + art,

You need to leave your tropical paradise down there and come up and have a glass with us Yankees. It's Italian night next month. Osso bucco & barolo, my friend!!

PH

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
wine + art,

You need to leave your tropical paradise down there and come up and have a glass with us Yankees. It's Italian night next month. Osso bucco & barolo, my friend!!

PH

I do indeed have a "few" barolo's

I hope your group have a few with a little age on them

quote:

I hope your group have a few with a little age on them

Do you mean wine with a little age or our group with a little age? I'm sure we have both!

quote:

If PH can not find, let me know and I will see if I can still get it.

Wine+Art. Thanks for the offer. PH already sent me a link to a store that stocks it and I placed an order. Much obliged!

Great pics. The food looked terrific. Glad a good time was had by all. wineismylife better watch it or BHVineyard might dethrone him as the offline king.

Festiva,

Too late to get in on the order?

Gf,

Check your inbox!

PH

To all the Baltimore offline folks:

Thanks so much for letting the BHV's crash your party. We very much enjoyed our evening with all of you; and it goes without saying that the food and wine were fantastic.

Irwin,

You're selection of the Rooster, and Mark's menu / preparation, made the food portion of the evening a real treat. Mrs. BHV has been talking about that meal ever since we left there. Wonderful dining.

Festiva,

Great notes; I'd pretty-much agree with all that you've said. I especially liked the part about lining up to buy the '04 Le Cadeau... just kidding.

Mrs. BHV and I loved the Champagne and food pairing. The combo was exceptional.

The crisp white Burgs showed beautifully with the foods.

The Nuit St. George '01 Burg and the '04 Le Cadeau provided an interesting comparison of two different styles of pinot. Both very nice within their respective worlds, but quite different wines. And, both too young. If Irwin can keep his paws off his other bottle(s), it would be fun to bring these two wines back together again in 2-years, or so. (Please note that my comments here are, as much as possible, as an "impartial taster", not the Le Cadeau owner).

The Fonseca was a surprise to me. I didn't expect it to be as inky as it was. Clearly still very young. As for the "perfect storage conditions"... like all my wine, it is parked in my passive Minneapolis basement. The assorted vintage ports-- now down to 11-bottles or so-- sit in a corrugated / foam shipper on the floor. The temperature fluctuates slowly and seasonally between 59 and 66 degrees, with the average around 62-63. What to conclude from this: The '85 Fonseca is "bulletproof"!

Finally, I thought the nose of the dessert wine was beautifully highlighted by the smokiness of the napkin flambeau. What a truly exciting and exotic presentation!

Again, thanks for having us. Hope we can make the contemplated April event.

Cheers all,

Nice pictures. Thanks for sharing.

VM

Nice pics. I ordered some.

PH,

I just got around to looking at the pics. Nice job! Now if I can just learn to open my eyes! (Perhaps that's Board-Os fault as a result of feeding me too much wine and good food on the night before!

BHV,

Funny! There were several others I didn't include which also had you blinking!! I like your idea to blame Board-O! If anyone wants copies of any of these, I'll gladly e-mail them to you. Just let me know.

PH

http://www.roostercafe.com/whatpeoplesay.htm

Mark, at the Rooster, has posted Gentleman Farmer's review on his site.

Supporting a fine restaurant and a great chef is a good mission.

Let's all resolve to eat there again, and bring some other friends.

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
I like your idea to blame Board-O!

Hey, he was no Strasbourg goose!