The annual “over the top” lunch

Yesterday I went to a friend's annual "over the top" lunch in NY. I'm not sure how long he's been doing it, but I've been going since 2000. It's evolved a bit; originally it was two bottles per person, one "excellent but unheralded" and one baller, with the only requirement that everything be classic in style. TBH I don't love this kind of event. It's a fun social event, but with 15 people you can't follow the wines over a few hours. I hadn't planned to go but after helping the organizer with some cellar management work he offered to have me come as his guest and I wouldn't say no to that!

Consensus favorite was the Cheval Blanc '82, which is pretty much fully resolved now, complex and elegant. Chevalier Montrachet 2020 from Niellon was my 2nd favorite, but very young; it was one of the first wines poured, and I left mine to be the last thing I tasted other than Yquem, and it really benefited. I also thought the RSV 2008 from Hudelot (Charles van Canneyt's first vintage, so a real inflection point for that domaine), the 70 Tondonia (one of the best bottles of this I've had) and the 2008 VR Malconsorts Cuvee Christiane from de Montille were excellent. The '45 Olivier blanc and '82 Haut Bailly (a storage facility error, it was supposed to be Haut Brion) were blind throw-ins and both good, especially the Olivier, which I identified correctly as white Bordeaux but thought was 70s or so.

On the negative side of things, the 2018 Palmer was an overextracted disaster that, served blind, we all thought was a bad Cali cab or super Tuscan. I thought the '70 Unico was kind of boring and one-dimensional but other people enjoyed it. Lynch Bages '89 continues to be a wine that rarely delivers, although I have had good ones occasionally, and this (also served blind) didn't impress anyone. And the Valmur 2016 from Raveneau, admittedly a poor Chablis vintage, tasted like a mediocre New Zealand sauvignon blanc.