Had a very interesting dinner last night. It was at new wine-focused London restaurant 28-50 (website here), and was hosted by Francisco Baettig, chief winemaker at Errazuriz in Chile (pictured above).
Alongside the excellent food (which was really, really good) we tasted a number of pairs of wines. Francisco had chosen to pair an Errazuriz wine with a wine that had inspired him during his career.
Course 1: Salmon Confit
Errazuriz Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc, Casablanca 2009 RRP: £9.99 Stockists: Majestic, Booths, Harrods, Stone, Vine & Sun
Château Couhins 2006 Pessac Leognan, Bordeaux – RRP: £50
Course 2: Pig cheeks, with pork belly, topped with some crackling
Errazuriz ‘The Blend’ 2007, RRP: £16.49 Stockists: Waitrose
Eben Sadie Sequillo Red 2005 Swartland, South Africa – RRP: £20
Course 3: Lamb shoulder on mashed potato
Errazuriz Single Vineyard Sangiovese 2007, RRP £15.99 Stockists: T. Wright & Co, The Real Wine Company, D Byrne and Co, The leamington Wine Co
Frescobaldi Chianti Rufina Montesodi 2005 – RRP: £42
Course 4: Cheese
Errazuriz Don Maximiano Founder’s Reserve 2007 RRP: £32 Stockists: Waitrose, Berry Bros
Chateau Gruaud Larose St Julien 2005 – RRP: £60
The wines were all superb, and the comparison was really interesting. I’ll write them up in full in due course. Gruaud Larose and the Montesodi were both drinking beautifully, and were probably the wines of the night. The Errazuriz wines were all very good, with the Sangiovese being a real surprise: this is the first decent Chilean Sangiovese I’ve had.
2 Comments on Dinner at 28-50 with Francisco Baettig
I am quite surprised the 2005 Gruaud Larose was considered anywhere near drinking.
I was surprised, too. Obviously, this wine from a good vintage is a wine for the long haul, but having said this it was delivering quite a bit of pleasure even at this early stage. It wasn’t at all closed. I really enjoyed it, but I wonder whether this will actually turn out to be a mid-term rather than long-term wine.