Vinoculation

Every month the wine store I work at here in Vancouver takes inventory; a long and laborious process. Nonetheless, the rewards are apparent upon completion of said task. The whole team finishes up and then goes to one of the staff members’ houses for a meal and copious amounts of liquid libations. This Monday did not dissapoint.

My Taiwanese colleague Yiha and her long-time partner Tom, who is a travel writer amongst many artistic talents, had put together a fine spread. We had pig’s feet, which were gelatinous and superb, ox tail soup with a kick to it, a Taiwanese beef stew with tofu (which rocked), among other things. If nothing else this meal completely wiped the slate clean between me and tofu; it is delicious if done correctly by an expert. The real curio factor of the meal came in the form of the century eggs; opaque, red albumin, with the yoke showing hues of green-to-grey-to-black. They looked decidedly unappetizing. My stomach turned as I tried to build up the courage to try one. Alas, the texture was like boiled egg and the flavour was like fine blue cheese; I enjoyed it but I won’t be rushing to Chinatown for cartons of the stuff.

The wines we drank with the meal were as enticing and mouthwatering as the food we shared:

2001 Zilliken Kabinett Riesling
From the Mosel, this was a lovely combination of fresh lemon acidity and a touch of residual to balance. The nose consisted of wet moss and stones with a touch of floral apple blossom and kaffa lime. The finish was delicate and lipsmacking at the same time.

2006 Felton Road Block 1 Riesling
Again this wine had minerality, with a slight petro-diesel kick. Fresh tropics filled the bouquet. The wine was fleshier than the previous and a touch sweeter; slightly spritzig too. It was slighty candied - almost like a toffee apple made with a granny smith - the finish lingering and fresh, leaving us salivating, wanting more.

2005 Neudorf Moutere Reisling
This was slightly more petrol and a little musty/reductive straight out of the bottle. This mustiness cleared and what took place was a wonderful transformation into a wine that expressed what riesling can do on clay in New Zealand. Not as sweet as the Felton, it exuded delicate class and fresh acidity with impeccable balance. I loved it, but the room was split, half prefering the Felton and half the Neudorf.

1993 Zilliken Spatlese
This wine was a step up entirely. On the nose, it was like opening a fresh can of tennis balls that were soaked in kaffa lime pie and fresh currents. The wine drank like it was only in bottle a few years. Zilliken have by far the deepest wine caves in the Mosel. Because of this their wines are kept very cool and at an extremely even temperature all year round. The result are wines like this one, with great minerality, balance and playfulness which makes them delightful throughout their considerable lifespans. This one will go 20+ years under the right conditions.

We then moved on to some reds starting with:

2004 Woodward Canyon Syrah
Woodward are known for highly priced and excellent Cabernet from some of the oldest vines in the Napa Valley. They also make a great syrah with fruit from the Columbia Valley. Lush and full on the palate with dark fruits and fine black pepper on the nose, this wine exuded class and was simply delicious. Gives great Aussie shiraz a run for its money though in a more restrained style, with excellent oak integration and balancing acidity to cut any jamminess. Yummo.

There were other wines, including a corked Seven Hills Merlot from Washington State and a 1997 Aliagnico from Tuasai which was stunningly grippy and playful but I stopped taking notes and just enjoyed the world of wine alongside the company.

Cheers!