Bordeaux tasting: what to expect after 5 years ? Part 1

Bordeaux wines are meant to age.
One could even say that great Bordeaux wines should only be opened after 20 years.
They can sometimes last for a century without losing their texture and aromas.

But people are like children. 
We can't wait. Having a magnificent bottle of Leoville Poyferré in your cellar is like waiting until the morning for Santa to give you your new Nintendo game : it is distressing.
And most of the time, you end up sneaking up in the living room to get of peak of what your presents will be before dawn.
Well it's the same for wine. Most of the time, you want just a little taste. Just that one time.
The problem is: there is no putting the wrapping paper back on. When you're bottle is open: you just have to finish it up.

So that is why people hardly get to try out really old Bordeaux wines.
In restaurants they are unaffordable, and in your cellar, well, in your cellar they just don't make it to that point in time.
Shame.

The trouble is that when they are young, Bordeaux wines can seem a tat too tannic, even austere from time to time. And it is not always easy to make out what their aromas deliver...which is a pity when you paid 50 euros for your bottle.

So here is an introduction to what you can find in a 5 year old Bordeaux wine. You know the one you should keep for 20 more years. 


I will start my tasting with a Saint Julien (Part 1 of this series) and we will go on through the whole Medoc region with tastings of the 6 appellations  (Saint Estephe, Pauillac, Margaux, Moulis, Listrac and Saint Julien).

Château Léoville Poyferré, 2004

Eye: Deep red, with hues of brown and orange. Very bright. 

Nose: Prune, black current (typical of Cabernet Sauvignon) and cherry (Merlot). The secondary aromas revolve around spices (hard to tell which at this point, but I think I can tell their is cinnamon). Then subtle notes of cedar and unsweetened chocolate make their way, translating the aging in oak barrels. 

Mouth: the mouth is fine and subtle. The tannins are soft, round, pleasantly balanced.This is typical of Saint Julien where soft tannins are a signature. 

How to recognize Saint Julien ? 


Go ahead and read my post on how to recognize aromas if you are a beginner at wine tasting: http://alamodeaujus.blogspot.com/2010/05/how-to-drink-wine-recognize-aromas-and.html

1. First try to know what variety you are drinking.
If you taste black current, cherry or prune their is a big chance that their is some Cabernet Sauvignon is your wine.

2. If this is the case and you know you are drinking a French wine, it is very likely that you are drinking Bordeaux. A Californian Cabernet Sauvignon would be very ripe and fruity.

3.  Now you know you are in Bordeaux. But from which appellation comes your wine? Try to focus on the mouth. As is described in my tasting notes, Saint Julien has signature soft tannins yet intense structure. You may also find mineral aromas (because of the gravelly soil). Saint Julien is an area of Medoc on the left bank of river and is formed of gravelly soil. Wines from Saint Julien can be recognized because of their smooth and harmonious nose. They combine a rich and solid mouth yet display subtle aromas.

If this is all in your glass of wine, then you can bet it will be a Saint Julien.
I know, it's easier to say it than to actually get it right during a blind tasting.

An easy razzle dazzle chicken recipe

Yep you got it: this post is a 2 in 1.
A razzle dazzle AND a chicken run.
I honestly didn't even think it were possible!

Thanks to a fellow blogger (actually that's quite an understatement, she's the goddess of cooking blogs in France)I happily succeeded in making my first own chicken "roulé".

Usually when I have friends for dinner, I try something new, something that I would not do just for myself. I've tried a lot of things, had brilliant successes and pretty horrific failures too (fortunately for you guys I don't take pictures of these dishes).

This time I felt like doing something elaborate. Well that looks elaborate at least.

But the truth is, it's ridiculously simple. That's the beauty of it.

A "Roulé" is basically a maki sushi. Only there's no rice. No seaweed and no soy sauce.

You flatten your meat, poultry or fish until it's very thin and then add a layer of something tasty inside and roll the whole thing up. It's a roll-up. And it's delicious.

So here is what I did, a little adaptation from Mercotte's original recipe from her magnificent blog (http://www.mercotte.fr/).

Chicken stuffed with dried prunes

For 2 "roulés" (4 person recipe)

Ingredients

120g of thin italian coppa

4 chicken scalops

10-15 dried prunes

1. Cut a large piece of plastic wrap (film transparent) and set it so it's nice and flat.

2. Use a rolling pin (rouleau à patisserie) to flatten your chicken a little. If you feel angry frustrated you may use a large hammer ; it will work perfectly too and I'm sure you'll be able to let go. Just beware not to break your counter!

3. First place the coppa on your plastic wrap so that it is nice and flat and covers the whole surface evenly. Just leave a few inches on each sides so you will be able to roll the whole thing up. Then add the chicken on top. Finally add a line of prunes around 1/3 of the plastic wrap. Add salt and pepper.

4. Roll every thing up as tight as you can. Then close the two endings and knot them.

5. The best way to cook these little chickens is to steam them up. It will keep them nice and moist. I used my Lekue mini steam case for 15 to 20 minutes at 200°C (400°F).

If you really want to show off (which of course I did) don't forget to prepare some sauce without which your chicken might seem a bit dry.

For the sauce I heated chicken broth (not home-made I must admit), added prunes cut into small pieces and a Tbs of corn starch to thicken it. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes.

The last bit of my recipe was a sweet potato purée(with a tad of vanilla) which I found went very well with the sweetness of the prunes and tender poultry.

As for the wine, I chose a delicious Coteaux-du-Layon, the Loire Valley's Sweetheart (http://alamodeaujus.blogspot.com/2010/05/loires-sweethearts.html) whose rich and fragrant aromas blended perfectly with the luscious prunes and potato purée).

How to drink wine, recognize aromas ... and impress your friends !

It was a few years ago, in a fancy restaurant in Paris. The sommelier delicately poured a crimson colored wine in my glass. The moment was tantalizing. The beauty of terroir. I leaned forward to taste the wine and tell him it was great. Everyone was looking. Waiting. Expecting me to sigh with ecstasy. So I did, of course.


But it was corked.
And I thought it was just a very heavy smell of mushroom. Or someone's bad cologne. Or my nose. Hell, I didn't have a clue.

Now I'm pretty sure this could happen to anyone who doesn't have any experience in wine tasting. And it's ok. It happens. It would just be a shame for you to spend 200$ on cork juice for your wedding day.
That's why I decided to deliver my experience of and show you with a little "how to" post, precisely HOW TO drink wine, recognize aromas... and impress your friends !

1. The first and most important thing you need to do is train your nostrils.
Nowadays our noses have just about all their core functions. They are meant to smell, whiff, sniff, snivel, inhale, and mostly identify. But that last action takes practice. You need to learn what a food or flower smells like and memorize this scent. It should be a game really. Each time you go out in a garden or stand in your kitchen (or someone elses !) just try to deeply inhale and sniff everything you can get your hands on.
Ok so you may look a little dumb if your friend stumbles upon you with your nose stuck in a jar of mushroom.
But remember one thing, it is for the greater good: you may have lost your dignity, but next time you drink a 10 year-old Burgundy, you'll know there's truffle in there.


2. The second thing you should consider is, well, cheating.
Fumbling around your friends kitchen may be fun once or twice, but what will happen if people start thinking your a kleptomaniac, or a utensil fetishist? There must be another solution.
Well, there is my friends, and I, in my immense generosity, will promptly deliver it to you. It is a well kept secret. The secret to learning quickly how to recognize different scents without loosing all your friends.
Here is my secret weapon to shine in society and impress my friends with my super smelling skills (I know it sounds very sexy):
Le Nez du Vin, by Jean Lenoir.
A kit of 54 aromas captured in little flasks (the basic fragrances you can find in wine)so that you can train your nostrils until they die. I do not work for Mr Lenoir, nor do I have shares in his business, but I still really recommend anyone who wants to learn how to taste wine to buy it.






3. Drink and taste as much as you can.
But mostly don't just drink, take the time to reflect and think about what you are drinking. Why do you like it ? or not ? What aromas are predominant. Do you smell fruits, flowers ?



So next time you sit in a fancy restaurant, and the sommelier comes up to you and asks you to taste, don't be scared, if the wine is corked, you're allowed to say so. Just think about your little flask and try hard to remember if it corresponds to the same smell. Before you know it, it'll come naturally and you won't even have to think about your magic kit !

Bourgogne mon amour

Today I went to Fouquet's for lunch.

To tell you the truth although it's a real institution in the world of French Brasserie, I had never actually eaten at Fouquet's before.
A diet coke for 15 euros; I can live without that.