EyeOnWine: Sala Lunch: Tuesday, 19 May '09.

This past Tuesday lunch at Sala Fine Dining was supposed to be just the Doc, Stockbroker and myself - reminiscent of the wine lunches we used to have very often (around once a week) where we would open special bottles for one another. I think those lunches among just the three of us tapered off since the Doc just got busier and busier.

Nowadays it's not even 50-50 that he'll show up for lunches, and, even if he does, he, more often than not, gets called back to the hospital. That happened again this past Tuesday, Doc notifying us via text shortly before noon that he'll just try to catch up, if ever. Having our wines ready, however, the Stockbroker and I pushed through anyway.

I simply couldn't help but yet again order the Twice Baked Prawn and Feta Soufflé with Dill as my first course. The Stockbroker probably had the same thing in mind, since, for our white, we had...

2005 François Cotat Sancerre Les Monts Damnés - The Stockbroker's bottle - yet another Sancerre after the the superb 2001 Vatan Sancerre Clos La Néore he shared over lunch a few days before at the same restaurant.

Right after the 2001 Vatan, it was impossible for me not to compare the two. This Cotat was an obviously riper, lusher, more open and indulgent style of Sancerre than the Vatan: softer and more white flowers, forward fruit (quite vibrant), broader mid-palate, displaying more forward grassy gooseberry lead and topnotes over white grapefruit, minor ripe white peach, with a touch of lemon cream added in. The minerality (cold limestone, little flint, not steely), purity and acid balance were good, but nowhere near that of the Vatan. As far as definition and focus go, the Vatan was far ahead.

Its seemingly over-done softness/ripeness (for a Sancerre) could, perhaps be attributed to the vintage. Well, either that or Cotat makes it a point to pick their fruit comparatively very late. Maybe both. In any event, though, in my opinion, it couldn't hold a candle to the Vatan, this Cotat was very easy to drink and enjoy. I noted that the label stated "Vigneron à Chavignol" - and imagine that its forward ripe fruitiness and lusher personality would make it a pronounced foil for the area's specialty Crottin de Chavignol.

With my main course of Grilled Australian Bobby Veal Tenderloin with Green Pea Risotto and Braised Veal Cheek with Smashed Root Vegetables and, continuing with a small cheese plate...

1990 Marquis d'Angerville Volnay Champans 1er Cru - My bottle; pristine, I virtually begged Bernie to sell me some bottles of this. I've had this wine twice before from Bernie Sim - and I loved it from the start - even more than the Volnay Clos des Ducs and Taillepieds (both 1er crus as well) from the same maker and vintage. Volnay is a red wine producing village in the Côte de Beaune, beside Pommard, the former enjoying favor of Louis XI and le Roi Soleil, Louis XIV. Where Pommard is known to produce relatively hefty, masculine, somewhat rustic reds, Volnay is famous for producing generally refined and graceful reds - often spoken of as the counterpart of the Côte de Nuits' Chambolle-Musigny.

D'Angerville was a pioneer in Volnay for many reasons (they were the first in the area to estate bottle their wines) and, then as now, regarded as one of very best producers of the area. Of the 11.19 hectare 1er cru climat Les Champans, d'Angerville owns 3.8 hectares. Champans wine are known to be comparatively (with regard to other 1er cru Volnay vineyards) richer, fuller, more structured and, in youth, more tannic.

I left the bottle opened for approximately 30 minutes before pouring in glass - no decanting for aeration (due to its near 19 years of age) or sediment (since I stood it up for 15+ hours beforehand and transported it with utmost care). At first whiff, I knew the bottle to be a good one - as were the others I had, in the past, enjoyed courtesy of Bernie (my bottles came from the same batch).

Its bouquet was deeply complex with mixed scents of damp earth, dark red meat, whispers of compost, ripe, dark red fruit, raisined cranberry, dried dates, old/pressed violets and undertones of vanilla cream. On the palate, it was slightly over medium-bodied, discreetly hefty mid-mouth, suavely rounded, lushly fruited, with soft, velvet tannins. Well structured yet, but warmly mellowed with age.

All its flavors were finely laced with the oh-so-difficult to describe meaty/compost-touched Burgundy decay. Exquisitely and seamlessly layered; its depth and complexity lending it a contemplative character. I haven't been this captivated by a wine in a long time.

The sadly nostalgic decay took me back 35 years, when my brother and I would bicycle around Marikina on hot and humid afternoons towards the tail end of summer breaks - the heat of the overly-long summer sun exhuming scents of remnants of summer rain trapped in the still damp earth, underneath long, razor sharp grasses and thorny makahiya.

Incredible wine. The usually energetic Stockbroker was unusually quiet when he was drinking this. I believe he liked it as much as I. Wrapped up in my own memories, I failed to ask him then what thoughts the wine evoked from him.

By around 2:40pm, the Doc called. He was just finishing up. Sensing he needed a drink, and we had virtually finished the bottle by then, the Stockbroker told him to meet us at PWX for a bit more. We three were to to meet that day after all, albeit later than planned and under different circumstances.

The Stockbroker was right that Doc needed a drink, as the moment the latter arrived, while we had just begun exchanging pleasantries, he, wearing a light jacket over his scrubs, began opening a bottle of...

1999 Château Canon-la- Gaffelière - Doc's bottle. I've had a few of these in the past, probably a year and a half ago, so welcomed the opportunity to re-taste it. I had visited this estate, arranged by the Vigneron, and, together with my wife and friends, were toured around the vineyards, winery, cellars and poured for by no less than the brilliant and passionate Comte Stephan von Neipperg.

This bottle was much better than those I previously tried. A bit of a modern slanted St-Emilion, it showed no material weakness for a wine from what is perceived as a middling vintage. Medium-bodied, secondary notes of faint anise, asphalt, orange rind, cedar and oak laced dark the adequately ripe red plum, cherry, raspberry and, underneath, touches of mocha and tobacco leaf.

Conversation led to an up-coming blind wine dinner to be hosted by the Stockbroker. I was trying to extract hints of what the reds would be - even just a general idea. All he would yield was "northern hemisphere", gee thanks. Things then started getting a little rowdy as the Doc started teasing the Stockbroker (shrewd buyer that he is) that he paid too much for (a) certain bottle(s) of wine. That drew a semi-violent reaction and a lot of laughs (ok, so maybe one has to be at least half wine geek to find that funny).