It is common knowledge that one of, if not my favourite restaurant, is The Pantechnicon on Motcombe Street. I seem to get drawn in by the thought of the superb chili squid and a bottle of good Sauvignon… It was this incredibly relaxed and intimate restaurant that hosted our recent Burgundy dinner. 42 guests descended to enjoy 4 courses and a selection of fine Burgundies spanning the Cote d’Or.
The idea of these small wine dinners is to eat and drink extremely well whilst listening to David Roberts MW educating us with true flair about each set of wines.
12 bottles of our new Pouilly Fuissé from Domaine Parisse 2008 was dispatched within the first 20 minutes of our thirsty guests arriving. Concentrated, vibrant, with a fine streak of minerality coursing through, this was a perfect start and got everyone in the mood.
We sat down to tian of crab and avocado with a Chablis 2008 from Jean-Paul Droin. Youthful, mineral this is a brilliant entry level Chablis from a top Chablis domaine. A terrine of leek and chicken with pickled girolles followed, washed down with St Aubin, En Remilly, Marc Colin 2008 and a weightier Chassagne Montrachet, 1er Cru Les Chenevottes, Bruno Colin 2008.
En Remilly is a top vineyard in St Aubin and in the hands of Marc Colin, who creates a more mineral driven style. This could pass as many peoples Chassagne Montrachet and it is just fantastic! Bruno Colin’s style on the other hand is more opulent. Chenevottes is David’s favourite 1er Cru vineyard in Chassagne. It has the rustic earthy structure of classic Chassagne, yet because there is not a lot of top soil you encounter fine minerality. The wine is still youthful but as it sat in the glass it gathered momentum, building layers upon layers of interest. This will be a wonderful wine.
We paused for breath and were faced with two reds to accompany the fillet of beef – a Nuits St Georges, Domaine de l’Arlot 1998 and a Gevrey Chambertin, Vieilles Vignes, Christian Serafin 2001. Arlot uses whole bunch pressing to maintain the sweet wild strawberry and traditional earthy qualities of the Pinot grape, very refined and elegant. The Serafin was the total opposite, darker, he uses more oak, it had a wonderful velvety texture and excited, a lot.
The finale was a Bonnes Mares, Grand Cru by Drouhin Laroze 2004, to finesse the cheese course. The Bonnes Mares vineyard is known for its elegance and intense finesse, this combined with Drouhin Laroze’s earthy, rustic style of wine making, makes for a really interesting and intense taste sensation. Beautiful wine.
By coffee, everyone was rosy cheeked and not really paying attention!