Friday night surprise

We had an impromptu get together with Mick and Amy on Friday night. They came by to drop off a couple of things and brought by some dessert. Mick and Amy had picked up a selection of chocolate cake slices.

The dessert wouldn’t have been complete without a bottle of wine to go with it. Cabernet Sauvignon is generally a good match for chocolate. I looked over the rack for something interesting and found a bottle of 2001 Château Batailley from the Pauillac region of Bordeaux.

"The Wine"

Upon opening the bottle, I was greeted by the distinct smell of black currant, which had me drooling in anticipation of trying it. We left the wine to breathe for a bit and did a tour of the house to show Mick and Amy what we had done so far with the renovations.

"A wee bit of sediment."

Once the tour was completed, we divided up the desserts and I picked a Rocky Road cheesecake slice… hey, I’m a sucker for marshmallows (and caramel and chocolate doesn’t hurt either!). I poured out the wine and gave everyone a glass.

Black currant was the dominate aroma of the wine, with green pepper a close second. There was also a note of tar and an earthy smell to the wine which none of us could nail down any more specifically than that.

"One of the desserts."

The first sip of this wine caught me a touch off guard, with the aroma of the wine being very strong I was expecting a big wine. The 2001 Château Batailley was more of a medium bodied wine and seemed almost light for a Cab blend. It was nicely balanced, very smooth and the finish didn’t linger. This was definitely a French wine, as it didn’t have the typical fruit forwardness of a California or another new world wine. It had a vegetal/herbal type of taste which was quite pleasant.

The Château Batailley was an ideal match for the cheesecake I was having. Mick had the same dessert and liked the pairing. The ladies had Truffle Royale slices which was a much darker and richer chocolate than the chocolate in the cheesecake. They thought the pairing was OK.

Mick was curious on how the wine would go with plain dark chocolate. I had some individually wrapped Lindt 75% dark chocolate squires and broke them out. This was a mistake as the pure dark chocolate killed this wine; it created a very nasty taste combination that even after a couple of mouthfuls of wine still lingered. Oh well, you don’t know until you try these things.

Here is the group rating for the wine –

Mick – 84, Mark – 91, Kathy – 86, Amy – 87, Overall – 87

Here is the LCBO Information for this wine –

CHÂTEAU BATAILLEY 2001

VINTAGES 920231
750 mL bottle

Price: $ 56.50

Wine, Red Wine,

12.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : XD

Made in: Bordeaux, France

By: Borie-Manoux S.A.R.L.

Release Date: Dec 8, 2007

Description -Château Batailley is one of Bordeaux's 'traditionalists'. These wines usually require at least five years to open up. This 2001 perfectly demonstrates the evolution of a great Bordeaux wine.

Tasting Note - Fascinating aromas of blackberries, plums and smoke. Medium- to full-bodied, with plenty of silky tannins and a medium finish. Best after 2007. Score - 89. (James Suckling, www.winespectator.com, March 31, 2004)

I enjoyed this wine but at a $56 price point, I'm not sure that I’m going to rush out and buy more of it.

Cheers!

Mark