August 19, 2019 Lunch – Cappo’s
Ristorante. Dinner – Grilled Filet Mignon
and Artichokes with Ratatouille
I loved today’s food. Suzette used the PPI baked salmon from
Saturday night’s Shell Club meeting, red bell pepper, tomato and cheese omelet
and toasted pieces of French baguette to make a sumptuous breakfast.
After breakfast, Suzette rode
bike around the lakes at Tingley Beach and I rode to Marquez.
I then puttered until 11:45
when I went to lunch with Jim and Willy at Cappo’s at the corner of Central and
8th. The decision to eat at Cappo’s was driven by my desire to try
their Monday lunch special of lasagna. I
really liked it. It was vegetarian, filled
between the layers of lasagna macaroni with ricotta cheese, so it was really
light and tender. It was sauced with a light tomato marinara sauce that was
also fresh and pleasant and served with either a cup of minestrone or a small
salad. I was completely pleased with
lunch, especially since it cost only $6.00.
The other reason for lunch
was to have Willy and Jim meet and discuss some of their planning issues and
that was very interesting for me, especially when they discussed a project they
worked on sequentially.
After lunch, I went home,
thawed out three small filet mignon steaks, and slept for a couple of hours
while Loyda cleaned the house.
I went to the bank at 4:30
and Suzette came home at 5:00.
We called Willy and
determined that he would come over for dinner at 7:30.
I read my new book, March by
Geraldine Brooks until Suzette called me to the kitchen at 7:15 to help her
prepare dinner. There was very little preparation
needed for dinner. Suzette cut the four
artichokes in half and she prepared the steaks and filled and heated a saucepan
of the PPI ratatouille.
I went to the garden and
picked five or six stalks of chives and a handful of basil and made a dipping sauce
for the artichokes with about 1 cup of mayonnaise, ¼ cup each of sliced chives
and basil and a tsp. of olive oil and the juice of ½ lime.
I decided that a special wine
was needed to grace our table so I opened the bottle of 2012 Chateau Le Grand
Faurie, an Appellation Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Controlee, a blend of 60%
Merlot, 35 % Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec grapes. It was smooth as silk. Even Willy liked it and drank two
glasses. It is $16.95 at Trader Joe’s
and worth every penny and worthy of a special occasion. I will definitely buy
more bottle of this one. Grand Cru is a
step down from Premier Cru, but a big step up from plain Saint-Emilons.
Here is a commentary
describing the classification process for Saint-Emilion wines.
When the classification of St. Emilion was
initially created in 1955, only two chateaux earned the coveted Premier Grand
Cru Classe A status, Chateau Cheval Blanc and
Chateau Ausone. For
many Bordeaux wine
lovers, that was how it was, and how it was going to stay… forever.
Few people anticipated other chateaux would
also be classed with Premier Grand Cru Classe A status. That changed in 2012,
when the Saint Emilion appellation completed their supposedly, once in a decade
classification and Chateau Angelus and
Chateau Pavie were
both reclassified as Premier Grand Cru Classe A.
Chateaux with Premier Grand Cru Classe A
status are considered in the same league as the First Growths in the Medoc, who
were classified in 1855. Because of the extraordinary high level of esteem
awarded to First Growths, it’s easy to see why this is such a big deal.
If the selling price for the wines were the
sole determining factor, I could see their point as Cheval Blanc and
Ausone sold for close to 300% more money in many vintages, on release and in
the secondary marketplace as well. But unlike what took place with the 1855 Classification,
there were other elements in the equation.
To apply and achieve Premier Grand Cru Classe A status in the 2012 Saint
Emilion classification, the Chateaux were judged on a multitude of criteria
including price, reputation in the marketplace, terroir and their wine.
Chateaux were judged on a 20 Pt scale. For First Growth status,
meaning Premier Grand Cru Classe A, the chateaux had to score a minimum of 17
out of 20 points.
The
scoring was looked at on a category by category basis. The quality of the wines
were 30% of the overall score. For chateaux hoping for Premier Grand Cru Classe
A status, chateaux were obligated to provide samples from the 20 most recent
vintages for tastings.
The vineyards were also a factor weighing in
at 30% of the score for their Terroir and soil of St.
Emilion. An estate’s reputation was 35% of the score. Many
things went into the estates reputation, including the selling price, the
chateau and reception area.
Chateau
Angelus and Chateau Pavie both completely rebuilt their chateau from top to
bottom. Chateau Pavie completed construction in 2013, Chateau Angelus finished
their renovations in 2014. Both estates became showpieces for Saint Emilion.
Last, and least, the estate and their practices were worth 5% of the score.
The
marketplace and Saint Emilion did not know what to make of the change taking
place in the classification status at the top of pyramid for the new chateau
elevated into Premier Grand Cru Classe A status. The change at that level of
classification was instantly controversial.
The new, showy, extroverted chateau and cellars of Chateau Pavie immediately
caused controversy. Both Angelus and Pavie raised prices for their wine as soon
as their level of classified status changed. This stunned the marketplace
because the wines became instantly more expensive with the 2012 Bordeaux
vintage.
The reason the price increases surprised
merchants and collectors alike was that 2012 Bordeaux is considered a moderate
year, with some good wines, especially on the Right Bank.
For that reason, there was light demand for most wines. Skipping ahead just 12
short months later, back vintages of Chateau Angelus and Chateau Pavie were now
selling for new, record setting high prices! You cannot argue with the voice of
the marketplace.
It was not only consumers that were confused
or unhappy with the new, changes in the 2012 St. Emilion classification. For
decades, the First Growths of the 1855 Classification, along with Cheval Blanc,
Ausone and Petrus met
once a year to taste their
wines. The group became known as the group of 9.
Following the upgrade of Pavie and Angelus,
the group of 9 refused to add the two, new First Growth estates, expanding the
group to 11. In St. Emilion, traditionally, all the Premier Cru Classe St.
Emilion chateaux arranged for a tasting of
their wines for the press.
When the
new Classification was announced, that tasting was cancelled. The reasons given
was, that Pavie and Angelus were not willing to include their wines in the
tasting because Cheval Blanc and Ausone did not also include their wines.
The remaining Premier Cru Classe B wines were thus not willing to show their
wines as they did not want the market to think there were two levels of First
Growths in St. Emilion. I understand that way of thinking. What I and others
did not understand was the cancellation the Premier Cru Classe of St. Emilion
dinner held during VinExpo.
Perhaps,
I should flesh out my comment. The event was cancelled because previously all
the First Growth of St. Emilion participated or attended. Following the change
in the Classification of 2012, some of the Premier Cru Classe A estates refused
to participate, which in turn meant that all four of the Premier Cru Classe A
chateaux would not participate or attend.
In turn,
the Premier Cru Classe B chateaux, either one by one, or mutually, also refused
to participate as they did not want to give the impression of multiple levels
of First Growth wines in Saint Emilion.
History will look at this differently in
time. When Chateau Mouton Rothschild was
upgraded to First Growth status in 1973, there was an equal uproar. 40 years
later, they are considered a First Growth in all manners. As they should!
Regardless
of where someone stands on the merits having four chateau at the level of
Premier Grand Cru Classe A; Angelus and Pavie are two consistent and exciting
Right Bank chateaux. Both estates have a 100% commitment to producing the best
wines possible.
We ate outside and the night
air was beginning to get a bit cooler so we sat and talked about the building
project and other things until after 9:00, when Willy left and we went to bed.
I woke up at 3:00 and wrote
this blog entry.
Bon Appetit
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