Big News About Robert Parker

For nearly three decades, Robert Parker has been the most influential wine critic in the world. And no matter how much flak he occasionally takes for his overall preference for big, fruit-driven, intense wines, his power (and talent) as a taster are unarguable, even if your palate doesn’t necessarily agree with his. (And it has to be said that, as the San Francisco Chronicle’s Jon Bonné put it in his excellent article, “Parker and his palate have provided far more nuanced criticism than he gets credit for.”)

Now, this past weekend, word got out that he is no longer going to be the main reviewer of the wines of California for The Wine Advocate. And while this may seem like a small thing, it has the potential to reverberate throughout the wine world.

There have been thousands of words written since the announcement, endless prognostications about what this means. The best I’ve read so far--the one that covers all the ground that needs to be covered--was posted on the San Francisco Chronicle’s web site. It’s linked up right here, and more than worth the time it takes to read.

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What Robert Parker Drinks, Two Food-Friendly Wines, and a Massive Party on Friday

A couple of quick food-and-wine notes on a Tuesday...

This past weekend, none other than Robert Parker himself took a road trip to Philadelphia and dined at the city’s spectacular Bibou, a French BYOB that locals have known for a long time is one of the best restaurants not just in the city, but in the entire region and beyond. You can always tell the quality of a BYO by the bottles dotting tables around the room: If guests respect the food enough, they’ll dig deep into their cellars and pop the corks on the good stuff. And at Bibou, there’s always a jaw-dropping selection of great wines being enjoyed and--often--shared among complete strangers. Parker, as is to be expected, drank pretty well that night; he also loved the meal, referring to the food as “as great a bistro fare as one can imagine.” The list of bottles (there were others in addition to these) from his table is below. It’s a pretty amazing selection. Wouldn’t you be disappointed if Robert Parker drank poorly?

Marcassin estate chardonnay 2000
Leeuwin Estate 2004 chardonnay
Guigal 1990 white Hermitage
Dagueneau 2006 Silex
Beaux Freres 1994
Haut Brion 1982
Vina Tondonia 1976
Catena Alta 1997 Malbec
Rostaing 1991 Cote Rotie La Landonne
Guigal 1991 La Landonne
Guigal 1985 and 1988 La Mouline
Guigal 1989 La Landonne

And last night, at the press unveiling for a number of new, fantastic seasonal dishes at The Fountain Restaurant at The Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia (also one of the top restaurants in the region...and beyond), I was yet again reminded of the versatility of pinot gris and a good syrah. The white, from highly regarded producer Trimbach, worked as well alongside the seared tuna with a walnut puree, juniper oil, and a light-as-air pumpkin souffle as it did with a heady potato leak soup with duck confit pierogi and foie gras butter. And the syrah, a 2005 from Carneros standout Truchard, sang with heartier preparations of veal porterhouse and a grilled venison saddle in a cabernet sauce. Even at the best restaurants, great wine pairings don’t have to cost a fortune.

Finally, a reminder: This Friday is the blowout launch party of UncorkDeals.com at Wine Chateau Piscataway. The party will feature everything from Sassicaia, Oreno, Duckhorn, Cakebread and other top wines to single malt Scotches, beers from all over the world, a former White House chef, live entertainment, and great food. Get there early! (It runs from 5:00 - 10:00.)

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The Bordeaux 2009 Barrel-Tasting Reviews Are In

The preliminary reviews of the much-anticipated 2009 Bordeaux have finally been filed by all of the major players in the field: Robert Parker, Wine Spectator, Decanter, and Jancis Robinson. (Take a look at this chart for an overview.) And while there are some real areas of disagreement, the overall impression is that the ‘09s will live up to all the hype surrounding them.

Earlier this week, Parker released his preliminary scores and impressions of the wines, and, as Decanter.com put it, his “ringing endorsement of Bordeaux 2009 shows the vintage has brought together American and European palates as never before...In his assessment of the vintage, published [earlier this week], the influential American critic says 2009 'may turn out to be the finest vintage I have tasted in 32 years of covering Bordeaux.’”

Of course, not all the critics agree on all the wines, and, as always, there is some debate about what, exactly, a great Left or Right Bank Bordeaux is supposed to taste like. And predictably, much of that debate centers on the amount of alcohol or ripeness that a wine possesses, with the parties falling into their predictable camps (Parker of the more-is-better bent and Robinson less so; the Cos d'Estournel is one of the wines causing a fair bit of controversy).

All of these scores, however, are just impressions at this point: The wines, after all, still have a significant amount of time to go in barrel, and their blends will continue to be altered before they are finally bottled. As such, they’re still quite young, and different from the final form they will ultimately take. (Check out this excellent piece, from the Wall Street Journal, about the nature of tasting these wines so early.)

Despite all the drama and small-scale disagreements, though, most of the big critics seem to concur that 2009 was an extraordinary year, and that the wines have the potential to be among the greatest in recent memory.

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