The Day I Drank Too Much @ The Red Tavern

Just a small group of us celebrating K's birthday in this small restaurant.  The wine theme tonight was to simply 'drink better'! 

Ch. La Gomerie 2001, St. Emilion GC:  Always said I am not a Right-Bank drinker, but this one tasted so good.  Aromatic, fruity and forward without being cloying.  Slips down the throat effortlessly.  Quite memorable.

Opus One 1998, Napa Valley:  If the previous wine was dominated by red fruits, this one was by black ones.  Plenty of tobacco leaf and cedar wood too.  Medium body and nicely matured.  Irresistable now.

Ch. Rieussec 2001, Sauternes was inserted in the middle of the meal to complement the foie gras.  Medium golden colour.  Plenty of honey on the nose.  Sweet and thick but balanced by good acidity.  It was a pleasure to drink, but the secondary aromas had yet to evolve.

Descendientes de J Palacios Corulon La Faraona 2003, Bierzo:  Heard that K was reading stuff about Spanish wines, so I brought this one.  Same winemaker as l'Ermita in Priorat, but using traditional Mencia grapes in cooler NW Spain. 

Nicely perfumed with a medium to full body.  Plenty of ripe tannin, but need more time to mature.  One of the weaker wines tonight, but it was the rarest: only 49 cases plus a few magnums were produced!

Clarendon Hills Astralis 1994, South Australia:  The debut vintage of this legendary wine.  Aromas of ripe tomatos and quite vegetal.  Plenty of meatiness came through a while later which reminded me of Bolognaise sauce!  Dry with quite a full body and lowish acidity, the tannins had completely integrated with understated power.

One of us was not drinking much tonight, so I helped myself to generous portions of these lovely wines.  Didn't notice the alcohol while I was drinking, but it hit me quite badly when I got back home.   But at least I got drunk on good wines!