WCC Châteauneuf-du-Pape @ Café Capriccio, 10/5/2023

WCC Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blind Dinner
@ The Chef's Table in Café Capriccio,
Albany, NY (10/5/2023)

My Albany group met in the private dining room (aka The Chef's Table) in Café Capriccio to taste Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The wines were blind to the group, but not to me and one other person who had had organized the flights.

Chef/Owner Jim Rua and his staff prepared a fabulous meal in his open kitchen. Those who know the Capital District dining scene know that Jim Rua has run Café Capriccio as one of the very best restaurants for almost four decades. Dinner started around 7pm and ended around 10pm.

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Chef Rua sets up our first course:
Grilled Autumn Vegetables (under foil) and Fregula.
Fregula is a type of pasta from Sardinia.

Flight 0: Mystery Wine
Brought in a brown bag as a mystery wine.

1981 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Pop and pour. Brought as a mystery wine, but the owner said it was the worst of the bottles he owns. I would hope a sound bottle of this would still show well.] On the first pour, this was dead, but by the end of the evening, it had come alive, if only briefly. Still, not a good bottle. (NR/flawed)

Flight 1: 2000 Châteauneuf-du-Pape
With Grilled Autumn Vegetables over Fregula.
This was so tasty. I had never had fregula before.

2000 Le Clos du Caillou Châteauneuf-du-Pape Domaine du Caillou Les Quartz - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted at 12:30 pm; left bottle uncorked until 3:00 pm.] Muted nose. Rich, complex with a long finish of red fruit and spice. (93 points)
2000 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted around noon; left bottle uncorked until 4:30 pm.] Big red fruit nose. Lovely, complex. The most elegant in this flight. Medium length. (93 points)
2000 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted for one hour around 3:30pm.] Lovely nose of red fruit and spice. Mature, but no sign of fading. Rich, long tasty. (93 points)

The name of another great local chef, Andrew Plummer, came up.
Andrew had one of his first chef's jobs at Café Capriccio.
Jim brought out a painting of he and Andrew working side by side in this same room.

Flight 2: Château Beaucastel
With Risotto with Fresh Porcini Mushrooms and Truffle Cheese.
This was exquisite. The fresh porcini exploded with flavor.

2003 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted for 30 minutes around 5:30pm.] Nose of red and black fruit. Huge, young, but balanced. Long and delicious. Should drink well for at least another decade. (94 points)
2006 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Slow-O for 16 hours, then 2 hours in a decanter.] Big smoky nose of red fruit. Rich and complex in the mouth. Big but balanced. Long life ahead. My #2 WOTN. (95 points)
2004 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Hommage à Jacques Perrin - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted for one hour around 5pm.] Wow! Gorgeous nose black fruit and licorice. Expansive and rich. The complexity and length are stunning. My #1 WOTN. Group #3. (97 points)

Dishing out the lamb shanks:

Flight 3: Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin
With Lamb Shanks over Mashed Potatoes with Root Vegetables.
One of Jim's classics. It never disappoints.

2005 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted for 35 minutes around 5:30pm.] Bright cherry nose. Rich spicy red fruit. The acidity is a bit high for me. Group #1 WOTN. (92 points)
2009 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted around noon. Bottle left uncorked until 4:30 pm.] Muted nose of red fruit and spice. Long finish of red fruit, but again the acid is a bit high for my taste. (92 points)
2010 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Decanted for 3 hours at 11am.] Similar to the rest of this flight. Bright red fruit. Good length. But I'm getting higher acid that others don't seem to get. Still good. Group #2 WOTN. (92 points)

Flight 4: Domaine Saint Préfert Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier
With Cheese & Fruit.

2006 Domaine Saint Préfert Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[2 hours in a decanter.] Big spicy black fruit and tar nose. Big and rich in the mouth. Long rich fruit finish. My #3 WOTN. (94 points)
2007 Domaine Saint Préfert Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[2 hours in a decanter, then open for 45 minutes.] Muted nose. Big and rich. Similar to the previous wine [2006], but much more backward. Needs at least another 5 years. (93–?? points)
2009 Domaine Saint Préfert Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
[Double-decanted around noon; left bottle uncorked until 4:30 pm.] Tart, muted nose. Even more backward than the previous wine [2007]. Definitely needs more time. Hard to judge. (92–?? points)

Chef Jim shows us the label for the cheese in the middle of the plate above.
Pecorino di Montalcino is a cheese made with an infusion of wine must.
It is made with 100% sheep's milk and the must from grapes on the same farm.
Part of the grape skins are left on top of the crust for decorative purposes.

Here is the label for the other cheese on that plate, Moliterno al Tartufo,
which is a moderately sharp, aged cheese with intense truffle flavor.
It is made of sheep and goat's milk in Sardinia, which is aged and then
injected with black truffles followed by more aging.

Conclusion

Another wonderful dinner with Chef Rua and the WCC gang!

WOTN Voting (3pts each for #1, 2pts for #2, 1pt for #3)

Rank	Pts	Wine
1	19	2005 Janasse Cuvée Chaupin
2	16	2010 Janasse Cuvée Chaupin
3	9	2004 Beaucastel Hommage à Jacques Perrin
4(tie)	7	2006 Saint Préfert Réserve Auguste Favier
4(tie)	7	2009 Saint Préfert Réserve Auguste Favier
6	6	2009 Janasse Cuvée Chaupin
7(tie)	2	2000 Le Clos du Caillou Les Quartz
7(tie)	2	2000 Vieux Télégraphe La Crau
7(tie)	2	2000 Beaucastel
7(tie)	2	2003 Beaucastel

People Pix

My tasting notes posted from CellarTracker.