Lunch with Rob Lloyd

Fellow Vinous member, Rob Lloyd, was in town visiting (along with his lovely wife, Alice, his mother, Patricia, and his father, Bob).  Steve Russo attended as well.

Here are Rob's notes:

Yesterday my family and I had the pleasure to meet Steve and his friend at Restaurant Zebra for lunch and a few bottles of wine. The venue was quite good and the staff did a reasonable job preparing the wines. Meeting up was less about the wines and more about getting to know a fellow board member but we did open some interesting bottles! Steve brought a white Rioja and an 04 Quintarelli which was a real joy to drink - I rarely get the opportunity to try these. I brought a PYCM Embrazees which I posted on before (as did Mark) and a Nuits Saint George which showed rather nicely. All in all a fantastic lunch and a real pleasure to meet yet another friend from the board!

2011 PYCM Embrazees 
Good tension of fruit and minerality and definitely fine to drink now. Agree with Philippe that the 11 whites are good wines across the board. 

2008 Meo Camuzet NSG Murgers

Darkish color, nose had cherries and strawberries with some vanilla and on the palate there was a nice balance of red fruits and some oak sensations as well as turned soil. I felt the wine had muscular tones without being overly ripe. 

2002 Vina Tondonia Blanc Riserva

Very intriguing wine and if tasted blind would have no idea what it was. Color was crisp gold and there was an oxidative sweetness on the nose as well as some honey orange peel alongside a dry Reisling petroleum smell. The palate showed an interesting blend of some mineral characterics with darker tropical flavors such as sliced papaya and mango. A real pleasure to taste an aged white from Rioja!

2004 Quintarelli Rosso Ca' Del Merlo

Double decanted for an hour or so. Dark color and youthful aromas of dried cranberries, dry chocolate, and rosemary herbs. The palate was still very big and powerful. Secondary flavors included a hint of gravel, dried tomatoes and kale with an underlying sweet blackberry character. I assume this unique wine will last for an incredibly long time. 

Here are my notes:

The '08 Méo-Camuzet NSG Murgers held my rapt attention throughout lunch (and was my overall favorite). I thought it was very accessible.  It kept opening up and revealing more depth. Rainier cherry fruit with an ethereal sweetness  (in a good way as opposed to tartness often found in a young red Burgundy), complemented by notes of roses, sandalwood and hint of anise. Loved the nose... lilting, yet still somewhat shy, florals ....
A hauntingly beautiful elegance in this wine. It very much embodied what I love about red Burgundy.  

'02 López de Heredia Vina Tondonia Reserva  Blanco is mostly Viura with a dollop of Malvasia Riojana.  It spent two hours aerating in a decanter before I brought it to the restaurant. This is a white wine that really benefits from lots of air. I look forward to visiting LdH this fall in Rioja.

Your notes on the '04 Quintarelli Ca del Merlo very much capture the spirit of this wine. While it was very tasty, it still has a ways to go before reaching maturity. I aerated it in a decanter at home for about 3 hours before bringing it to the restaurant . This is is first time I've tried the '04. IMHO, the '03 vintage is more open for business at this point.