A quite exceptional lunch continued

Having left you salivating, dreaming of what came next, I promise it was worth the wait:

Lamb shoulder, cooked for many hours sous-vide with trompette des morts mushrooms and a sauce from its own juices was utterly delicious and, though fatty, had a lovely melt in the mouth texture and  rich yet delicate taste. Not being a great fan of lamb, especially fatty, I was seriously impressed by this well-executed dish, which played very well with our next two wines.

Clos de Tart is a proper walled clos and a real monopole, belonging to only one owner, the Mommessin family, great Beaujolais negociants and producers. Thirty years ago Clos de Tart seemed a bit neglected and the wine was invariably lighter than its neighbours, but this is no longer the case. We were very fortunate to have two examples to taste, from the 1998 (a difficult vintage) and 1999 vintages.

5. The 1999, tasted first, had everything you would expect including deep colour (which I didn't!) but was a bit subdued, reserved, though very distinguished, full of red berries, excellent on nose and palate and very long; a gorgeous wine with life ahead of it.
6. The 1998 in contrast was more exuberant and up-front, ready, with more acidity and tannin, a complete, big wine but perhaps not as balanced and closer to the end of its life than its sibling, showing better with food than on its own.

The final savoury course was somewhat unusual for Greece - haunch of venison from northern Greece braised and served with fried potato gnocchi and a touch of truffle essence. Venison, local or otherwise, is not a meat that is commonly found in greek restaurants partly due to scarcity and, I think,  partly due to the Bambi effect; on the strength of this lunch it is a pity, as it is a versatile, tasty, healthy (lower fat) meat. Here it was cooked to perfection, soft and tasty, with the slight crunchiness in the gnocchi creating a bit of a texture contrast, and the potato taste complementing the meat nicely. My friend Anthony, sitting next to me, gave me some of his as well, as he felt full whereas I... better stop here rather than reveal my unfailingly greedy nature (as far as food is concerned).

The final red wine of the day ended up being two, as we were obviously appearing a bit underwatered and underprivileged, and they both came from the vineyard exactly next door to Close de Tart at the top of Morey. Clos des Lambrays is an amazing vineyard, to my mind the best in Morey,  that has produced some stupendous wines over the years and I was privileged thirty years ago to work with the last surviving of previous owners the Cosson family, the gentle giant that was Henri Cosson. I have tasted and enjoyed many vintages of this fine property, and was even allowed to sell four - 1958 (light, seductive, nearing the end of its life), 1951 (a big wine and much better than it had any right to be in an indifferent vintage), 1941 (a war vintage, light and insubstantial but still drinking beautifully in the late eighties) and 1938 (big, complex, with deep colour and endless nuances of pinot noir, gorgeous and long). When I opened my last bottle, which had suffered various indignities in transport and storage, in the early part of the 21st century a greek wine merchant present accused me of putting a fake label on it, as it was impossible for a wine that old to be so vibrant, more fool he. But this is part of another story to be told at a later date, perhaps.

7. The Clos des Lambrays 1999, lighter in colour, with amazing strawberry notes on the nose and palate, chewy, tasty, tannic and long was an excellent example from this vineyard, which has recently joined the Moet Hennessy etc. stable, as so many others before them. To my mind it lacks the incredible depth of the best of the Cosson era wines, but perhaps I'm being sentimental... then again, perhaps not.

8. The 2003 was a little extra treat, thrown in at the end of the red flights, just to keep the palate wet and to help the venison go down; it was so much better than a spoonful of sugar (pace Mary Poppins)! Served from a magnum - all the other wines were bottles - this was another cracker. Younger and from a magnum, this was 'darker colour, concentrated red berry nose, incredibly exuberant rich red fruit on palate, good acidity and tannins, long...'

I am very glad we looked at this as well, as it completed an incredible sextet of red wines which, with their similarities and differences - and remember, these vines grow within a few hundred metres around this tiny village, the Tart and Lambrays literally next to each other, use the same grape variety and similar production methods - illustrate why Burgundy is such a fascinating place, its best reds complex, subtle and beguiling. There is nowhere else like it.

If you thought that with the red wines gone we were nearly finished, think again, for it was time for dessert: a ball of passion fruit with

singed merengue, honey and coconut milk. Looking at the description on my menu I was prepared for disappointment, as often desserts in Greece are over-sweet, lacking texture and finesse, but I need not have worried. This little ball was beautiful in both taste and texture, complex but reassuring at the same time and very good indeed with our final wine.

9.  Chateau Yquem in Bordeaux is often referred to as the best or the most expensive white wine in the world, and it is certainly one of them. At its best capable of quite amazing richness, but complex and delicate, fine and never overpowering; our 1997 was inching in that direction. I wrote 'a nose full of complex raisin aromas, sweet, creme brûlée, honey and melon on the palate, long and lively, a unique experience among sweet wines.' To be honest, Yquem at its best - and this came close - is simply mind-blowing, a life-enhancing wine that justifies its very high price. Alas this too has ended up in corporate hands after several hundred years of ownership by one family, joining the LVMH stable like Lambrays. It is to be hoped that Yquem will not just evolve into a soul-less brand in years to come, part of a product portfolio of luxury goods for wealthy people; the 1997, first vintage under the new ownership certainly does not go down that route.

The end, as you probably deduced, was now approaching and we were served impeccable little (I assume homemade) chocolates and coffee - I had a good double espresso in a little glass cup.

10. And with the coffee came a distinguished Marc de Bourgogne (burgundian grappa for the uninitiated) from the next village along (Chambolle Musigny) and the great estate of Comte Georges de Vogue. This was a bit of a brute, with a massive, alcoholic nose, aggressive and coarse on the palate, strong and alcoholic. Marc in Burgundy, with very few exceptions, is coarse but I had hoped for a little more finesse from this estate. Of course by now my palate was also exhausted... perhaps a little tipsy as well, as the blurred photograph of the marc bottle may suggest!

By now you also are in need of a rest, if only from imagining what we lucky people 'suffered' through. I apologise for the missed photographs due entirely to me having too good a time and promise the next piece will not involve wine (or food) though, as always, it will contain bits of my inexhaustible wisdom...