Commanderie de Bordeaux
à Providence
50 South Main Street
Providence, RI 02903
Tel: 401-272-5050
Fax: 401-521-4080
2010 ANNUAL REPORT
The Providence Chapter membership remained stable through 2009. There have been no resignations and one recruitment who will be inducted by the Grand Maître at the Board meeting weekend in January, 2011, along with previous recruits not yet formally inducted. Our current Chapter membership is 27, plus three honorary who are members of other chapters but are occasionally in Rhode Island.
As is our custom, we held a total of five events comprised of four formal parlements and a more casual technical tasting.
The first parlement of the year was held on February 12th at the Hope Club with co-presidents Commandeurs Greg Benik and Curt Richardson. The Hope Club’s atmosphere and inventive cuisine prepared by Chef Jay Hollen make this a favorite venue.
Perhaps the most ardent discussion of the evening concerned the 2005 Larrivet-Haut-Brion Blanc. Whether because of the unusually high proportion of Semillon or other tricks of nature, this wine had a richer, more perfumed taste than the typical Pessac-Léognan blanc. This enhanced the flavor of the poached cod loin in pea broth with which it was served, but some present said they preferred the more classic Bordeaux whites with a higher percent of Sauvignon Blanc.
The main course was a stuffed loin of lamb matched with a 1988 Mouton-Rothschild. This wine proved to be a lighter version of the typical Mouton-Rothschild, yet it stilled showed very well and was the top wine of the evening. Pairing this medium-bodied wine with its long finish with lamb instead of beef proved the correct choice.
Our next event was the annual technical tasting, held on April 9th at the University Club, presided by Régent David Rickard and Commandeur Dan Potter. Dress was blazer and patch. This popular event aims at raising the ability of participants to recognize taste profiles of various communes in Bordeaux and to increase understanding of how varying amounts of aeration before service affects various Bordeaux wines. This was done in three stages:
· First, six glasses for each participant were filled with tasting quantities (2.5 ounce pours) of each of six wines: a Côtes du Bordeaux, Ch. L’Enclos du Lezongars 2005; a Côtes de Castillon, Ch. d’Anguilhe 2001; a St. Émilion, Ch. Cheval Blanc 1989; a Paulliac, Carruades de Lafite 1998; a St. Estèphe, Ch. Calon-Ségur 2001; and a Pessac-Léognan, Ch. Smith Haut Lafitte 2001. Each wine was tasted in turn, evoking comments from the group on what they noticed or experienced variously for the color, the nose and the taste. Relevant comments from Robert Parker were added to the discussion.
· Next, wines from a group of three bottles, bagged to eliminate label detection, were poured for each participant. These wines, presented blind, were from among the first six tasted. It was further explained that in the group of three, two were duplicates and one was unique. The challenge was to identify which was the single wine, then to name it.
· Following dinner, each participant was poured two versions of one of the wines originally tasted, with the difference being that one glass came from a bottle that had been double-decanted six hours before, and then the other that had been double-decanted only three hours before. The exercise here was to identify which was the three-hour version, and then to name the wine. Once that was completed, a second set of two pours was presented, the same stipulations made, and the same objectives set out.
The Chapter’s second parlement was held on June 4th at the highly rated Café Nuovo. Co-presidents for this event were Commandeurs Bob Pike and Bruce DiPietro. Providence is known for its Water Fire Nights, where bonfires are lighted in braziers set in the middle of the river flowing through downtown while many hundreds of spectators mill around, listen to music and buy from itinerant hawkers. It happened that June 4th was a Water Fire night, and the restaurant is on the river's edge, giving a special zing to the evening.
Two of the wines served, Ch. St. Pierre 2001 and Ch. Gloria 1996, were produced by Henri Martin, one-time mayor of St. Julien and president of the CIVB. But Martin was also the founder of the international version of the Commanderie de Bordeaux. So discussion of the wines also permitted a review of the Commanderie's history. The Gloria was the standout of the evening, with the St. Pierre a bit thin yet still enjoyed by many.
The third parlement was held on October 19th at the New Rivers restaurant, long a favorite venue for our Chapter because its owner, Bruce Tillinghast, is a talented wine connoisseur himself and, with his superb chef Bo Vestal, has a deep commitment to ferreting out the best of locally grown products. Co-presidents for the evening were Commandeurs Ellen Brown and Sarah Denby. Sadly, the restaurant had suffered a fire some months before. Its extensive renovation increased the reception space and so there was adequate room for the apéritif gathering and for the provisional induction of Joe Chazan, our newest member.
The co-presidents made some very well-received decisions to vary the usual wine and food routines. Instead of champagne, three traditional French apéritfs were offered, including a Lillet rouge, a Pineau de Charantes blanc and Kir, with the hors d'oeuvre selections featuring homemade charcuterie. Then a Loupiac 2004 was served as the dessert wine, with several present tasting this appellation for the first time and finding it very acceptable. All three reds gave cause for comment: Ch. Bernadotte 2003 because of its being a Cru Bourgeois that had survived the heat of that year admirably, a Fort de Latour 1999 that provoked lots of discussion about price-value ratios for second wines, and a donated Ch. Mouton-Rothschild 1975 that was in remarkably good condition and represented for some their first experience tasting a First Growth of that age. In sum, the evening fully met the twin goals of the Providence Chapter: to enjoy and to learn.
Our final parlement for the year was held on December 20th at the University Club. Co-presidents were Commandeurs John Harpootian and Bob Pike.
The University Club remains a top venue for Providence with respect to both the quality of the food and the skilled service it offers. This is our traditional holiday parlement and is always well attended, this year with 42 Commandeurs and guests. The champagne reception was particularly delightful with a donated Dom Pérignon 2002 being paired with a selection of different raw oysters and passed canapés. White Bordeaux from outside the Graves area are always of interest, and the Lynch-Bages 2005 blanc paired well with the roasted cod. The Ch. Cantermerle 1996 showed how wines from outlying appellations still had staying power. Then a duo of rack and loin of lamb suited well a duo of St. Juliens: Ch. Gruaud-Larose 1996 and Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou 2001. The Gruaud-Larose was clearly in its prime and showed itself well against the Ducru. However, as the meal progressed, the Ducru began to open up and declare itself as the master selection of the evening.
Lessons Learned
The following notes come from the experience of the Chapter's program chairman.
· Finding venues with suitable food is not such an issue, but it remains difficult to find restaurants in Providence with sufficient private space to hold our events comfortably. It is desired to have an entire restaurant devoted to our group. When considering restaurant venues, we believe that whether or not the restaurant will be closed to the public should be a factor in the decision as to booking the event.
· Careful collaboration and attention to chef suggestions are almost always required to adjust selections to insure wine-kindly parings. Chefs, seeking to grab the diner's attention, too often propose dishes with too strong flavors.
· Access to the seating plans from the last three parlements is helpful so presidents can arrange seating to allow attendees to sit with different groups at successive events.
· It is important that co-presidents negotiate event costs on an all-inclusive basis (taxes, gratuities, corkage, etc.) so there are no surprises, and the goal of having the event break even is met.
Respectfully submitted,
Nicholas Brown
Maître, Providence
4 January 2011
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