Superb Wine & Food at Braidwoods, Dalry
On the eve of the SuperBOWL wine event in Glasgow, a group of ten wine enthusiasts, fortunately including me, met for dinner at the Michelin-starred Braidwoods restaurant just outside the small town of Dalry.
Amuses of bacon and mushroom mini vol-au-vent type
things.
Seared, hand-dived Wester Ross scallops on a bed of leek,
beurre blanc and crispy Parma Ham
Huge, meaty scallops. Delicious leeks - among the best I've had.
All nicely cooked - a very good dish.
Warm tart of Parmesan on a rockette salad with red pepper
coulis
Fabulous, really fabulous tart. Utterly ethereal pastry. The red pepper
coulis, while in itself
superbly done, didn't really work that well for me. I thought tomato
would have worked better, or even something that you might more
associate with parmesan, say some diced pear. But I think I was in the
minority.
Roast loin of highland red deer with a Jersusalem artichoke
puree, baby spinach and wild mushroom jus
Gorgeous
deer, perfectly cooked and rested. Superlative artichoke
purée. Very
good gratin dauphinoise. There was a flavour in the spinach that I
couldn't quite identify - it felt slightly fishy, but the only texture
I could identify (other than the spinach itself) appeared to be bacon.
Overall though, a superb, beautifully balanced dish.
A small taste of three British cheeses from Iain Mellis
Expressions of horror about the word "small" from the New Zealand
contingent unfortunately fell on deaf ears.
Chilled caramelised rice pudding with warm Agen prunes in
Armagnac
or
Dark chocolate truffle cake with an espresso anglaise and maple syrup
ice cream
After representations, and weeping and imploring from Mr Wilkie, the
"or" was replaced by an "and" ...
Has
anyone had a better rice pudding? God, it was good. The chocolate
truffle cake was so light, it was remarkable. I particularly liked the
espresso anglaise too, and wished there had been more of that. The ice
cream was beautifully made, but I'd have preferred more of that custard.
We took our own wines:
1999 Bollinger
Disgorged
April 2007. Fairly rich on the nose with quite forward black fruit and
slightly orangey brioche notes. Remarkably bubble-less. Fairly rich on
the palate - it feels just a touch sweet, with mixed peel character,
without actually being sweet. Fairly low acidity, I thought. Very long,
but overall it didn't seem particularly special to me. 88/100
1981 Cristal, Champagne Roederer
A
deepish gold. The nose is quite creamy with strawberries and candied
orange. Lovely full palte - nicely evolved. Great depth. Creamy in the
mouth with soft, slightly sweet fruit and a touch of cashew nuts. Very
integrated, fine acidity on the finish. Very long indeed. This is a
lovely drink and quite a treat. 94/100
1992 Chablis Grand Cru Blanchot, Jean-Marie Raveneau
A
deepish colour. Fairly vivacious, buttery nose with some nutty
savouriness. Open, wide palate, feeling fairly old, but not at all
unduly so. It has great balance, nice depth, and finishes with very
good length. 91/100
1966 Meursault-Charmes 1er Cru, Domaine Potinet-Ampeau,
13.5%
A
bright yellow gold. Fairly - nay remarkably - slight nose: it feels
quite tight and lemony and remarkably fresh. A lovely wine that for
most of the time it's in your mouth feels really quite young, until
right and the end of the finish, when it quite suddenly starts to make
its age felt. 94/100
1986 Corton Charlemagne Diamond Jubilee, Remoissenet
Père et Fils
Bottle number 666.
A
mid gold. Rather closed on the nose with vanilla initially, then with
time a mushroomy edge is revealed. It's quite forward. Then there's a
nice, stylish edge. Spicy oak on the finish. Nice depth on the finish
too. Very good length. 90/100
1993 Vosne-Romanée au Cros Parentoux, Domaine
Méo-Camuzet
A
very big nose: very meaty with a wild, gamey edge. I could be fooled
into thinking this was syrah, or at least contained syrah. Big meaty
palate with lots of sandy tannins. Good depth. Everyone else is wetting
themselves over this, but in my blissful state of Burgundy ignorance, I
just don't get what the fuss is about. For heaven's sake it doesn't
even smell or taste like pinot noir, let alone Burgundy. Is this an
attempt by Méo-Camuzet to win Keith Prothero's custom?
Sorry, and I
know it means I'll be spending tonight's dinner on a table by myself,
but I just don't get this wine. 89/100
1978 Gevrey Chambertin Clos St Jacques, Domaine Pernot-Fourrier
A
lovely nose with feral red fruit and a slight lift. Nice wide palate.
There's a really engaging spicy, leathery feel to this. I find this
quite an exciting wine which seems to me far more like what red
Burgundy is all about than the Parentoux. 94/100
1955 Château Pape Clément,
Pessac-Léognan
Virtually label-less. A bottle that had, it transpired, been in the
hands of more than one of those around the table.
It's
a remarkably vibrant, bright colour that's far more youthful than it
should be. What a glorious nose! It's difficult to write a note on the
nose, as it's changing all the time. A lovely savoury character. Pure
hedonism in a glass on the nose.
After that build up, thank heavens
it doesn't disappoint on the palate: really lovely and mature. Very
gentle and restrained, with some sweetness, perhaps from a touch of VA.
Gravelly galangal notes. The palate doesn't quite live up to the nose,
but it is a superb wine. 95/100
1964 Château Canon, 1er Grand Cru Classé
St Emilion
Re-corked 2004.
This almost looks young:
Fabulous
nose with sweetish, very concentrated black fruit, verging on the very
intense. There's almost a hint of cherries there too.
A really good
palate. Mature, but lovely with huge elegance. A superb, fascinating
mouthful. Very clean and almost refreshing. A slight feel of a
chocolatey richness on the finish. Huge length. 95/100
1985 Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol
A
youngish, bright colour (young in comparison with other wines tonight -
there's not apparent youth). Lovely nose. Very subtle, integrated
fruits. Very good palate - it's yet to integrate fully and actually,
certainly in tonight's company, feels a little youthful. Nice finish
with a touch of fresh acidity. Very long indeed. 90/100
1973 Unico, Vega Sicilia
Laymont & Shaw labelling.
A
very bright nose. Red fruits, mushrooms, truffles, citrus, a slight
hint of VA. Lovely! This is very much in a Burgundy mode. Gorgeous
palate. There's quite a ripe feel to the fruit. Very high acidity.
Gorgeous finish. A fabulous wine. 95/100
NV Unico Reserva Especial Lot 006/01, Vega Sicilia
Corked.
Damn!
1990 Château Coutet, Barsac
A
deepish gold. Orangey, botrytised nose. Very fresh, perfectly balanced
nose. Gorgeous palate. Very fresh and open. Lovely drink. 93/100
NV Maury 12 Ans, Les Vignerons de Maury
Lovely
nose with nutty red fruits and a gentle oxidation. Nice palate: good
dried fruit and orangey notes. Just a little spirity on the finish.
88/100
A great night. Thanks to Toby Bailey, Tom Cannavan and Bryan Collins
for their organising.
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Last updated: 13 March 2009