Mark and Laurie Smith

"I think this is a laughing night!"  Gabrielle Doughnut

Mark Smith’s 
Birthday Celebration

With Beringer Chabot Cabs 
and more…

Little Munchkin Doughnut Gabrielle Overberg put it best when she exclaimed, "I think this is a laughing night!"

We got things started with a couple of New Zealand Chardonnays.

1997 Cloudy Bay Marlborough Chardonnay (14 % alc.): This medium straw shows nice pineapple/tropical fruit/mineral with a hint of asparagus on the nose; Birthday Boy noted some grapefruit. These echoed on the palate, where the mineral really came on and the asparagus lingered on the long finish. The ‘Deauxnut commented that "it smells like it would be fat and buttery, but it’s more steely and mineral." There is subtle rather than overt oak here, and more than enough acidity to keep it "zippy," as Mr. Smith put it. Very nice indeed!

1997 Kumeu River Kumeu Chardonnay (13.1 % alc.): Just a little lighter than the previous selection, the bouquet here drew a variety of impressions. Mark S. thought it is "more woody to me," and Mark O. said, "They’re both steely, flinty," while I found the aroma to have a certain herbal quality, with pineapple and asparagus again, and added cream and mineral. As we continued to sip the two back and forth, it became obvious that this has a vegetal streak that the Cloudy Bay doesn’t, which explains why we all clearly liked the first wine better. We also agreed that we all liked the Cloudy Bay better than 90 % of the California Chardonnays we’ve had. It was a fine accompaniment to Teresa’s breast of chicken strips and peanut sauce and Kim’s roasted wine-sauced portabella mushrooms topped with gorgonzola and walnuts.

We then sat down to a wonderful dinner of Chateaubriand with accompanying Béarnaise sauce, steamed asparagus, tiny roasted potatoes and a green salad. The Beringers came right from Mark Smith's cellar, and continued to open with air and as they came up to temp.

1990 Beringer Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard (13.3 % alc.): Still a dark garnet, with no noticeable rust, the reticent nose gradually showed more and more cassis/cedar/cigar box, and what the Overborg described as "candied red licorice." These impressions follow through on the palate, where Mr. O also said that it is "plummy without being syrupy." This is not a "big, concentrated" wine, but rather an elegant one, with good finesse and no overt oak to speak of. It seemed to get more tannic as it opened, and should only improve over the next two to five years or so. A beautiful California claret.

1990 Chateau Montelena Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Estate (13.5 % alc.): The Bored Doughnut wanted to compare this with the Chabot from the same vintage, so there was an interlude of sorts in the vertical. Every bit as dark a garnet as one would expect, we had to agree with Kim when she opined, "It smells poopy." This attribute didn’t stick around all that long though, and was replaced by cassis/black currant/black tar, and added cigar box on the palate. The tobacco element continued to expand, and if it didn’t quite dominate, it came close. This wine has plenty of grip, and a long life ahead of it. It’s still a baby, but what a beauty!


1991 Beringer Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard (14.1% alc.): Returning to the Chabot lineup, we found a denser, heavier, more concentrated model than the ’90. A clean dark garnet, with sleek black and purple fruit, according to the ‘deauxnut; these include cassis and plum accentuated by notes of olives and chocolate. Mr. Overberg remarked admiringly, "It’s got legs," which of course drew the obligatory reply from this taster, "…and it knows how to use them!" This has a long finish, and despite its ravishing charms, it’s still quite young, and should rest for another five years minimum.

1992 Beringer Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Chabot Vineyard (14.1% alc.): This is yet another dark garnet that has years to improve. It’s somewhere in between the ’90 and ’91 in terms of density and concentration, and of course, it has more tannins than either of those. It shows sweeter fruit than the others, with cassis/plum/red currant flavors and aromas, and it shows more herbal characteristics as well. Another beauty with a long life ahead of it.

1997 Folie a Deux Napa Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (13.5 % alc.): The Overborg brought this along as a mystery wine, to see how it stacked up against the biggies, and while it held its own, more or less, it was clearly out of its league. Dark garnet, with big sweet chocolate/red currant/licorice/maple syrup character, it has a big tannic grip and seems chunky and clunky when compared to the Beringers. It’s a solid wine and no doubt, especially considering the $26 price tag that Mark paid, but certainly not worth the $37 I’ve seen it going for in shops around Day-twah.

(back label shot -- oops............)

To say that we had another great time at the Smiths’ house would be an understatement. Mark and Laurie have become great friends, and like so many others, we owe it all to the Internet.

Happy Birthday, Mark!