the worst

lyle fass pulls no punches:

The worst wine in the world has to be really bad Pinot Noir from Burgundy. Thin, stewey, vegetal, green, almost like drinking a puddle, with no finish and weedy. Truly like they got all the dirt, hay and moss and liquified it and added like one small cherry, dyed it red, slapped a label on it and that was that.

it is a good thing to have an opinion.

the miller's grape

thierry puzelat's wines have always pushed my boundaries pleasurably outward. the 2010 le rouge et mis is 100% pinot meunier, a grape i have hitherto knowingly encountered only in champagne. the scent of ripe strawberries and red dates (also characteristic of the olivier cousin grolleau that i've been drinking a lot of) rises from the bottle as soon as it is opened. though low in alcohol and with not much in the way of tannins, it is surprisingly intense. there is much ripe (possibly even overripe) fruit and, most notably, a powerful but not overpowering vinous acidity. unredeemably cloudy but still limpid in the mouth, it is worthwhile to serve it chilled to start and to pour generously. nor would a decanter hurt. a refreshing, joyous, remarkable wine.

maximum capacity

over-proof rum should be consumed judiciously, he observed.

in the mail

from sandra and brad, some fruits of natural advantage: golden sweet apricots and crimson lady peaches from frog hollow farm. a box to make you miss california.

asta

the cooking is smart, idiosyncratic, and skews sweet with carefully hidden acid balance. as often as not the kitchen brings your food to you. there are no uniforms and the playlist is dominated by ... well, you can hear for yourself.

generous and comfortable in its own skin, asta is worth a visit.

after service

L: many rum punch.
R: a simple burger with foie gras terrine scraps and pickle chips.

the straggler

last night, we opened a bottle of cédric bouchard's inflorescence (a blanc de noirs from a single parcel in the val de vilaine). golden and only lightly effervescent, with compellingly mellow and vinous yet lively acid and none of the harsh carbonic acidity of sparklier champagnes and cremants. a remarkably beautiful champagne of depth, grace, and lightness that i actually want to drink—preferably in quantity and after (heresy i know) it has warmed up a little and gotten a bit of air. why did four half-glasses of it get sent off the table to be poured down the drain? at the end of the night, we found a micropour left in the bottle and gave it a good home.

the perils of variance

Now, he says, "Dominique Saibron is one of the best three or four bakeries in France, but there are so many different factors involved in baking bread. It's different each time." ... When asked to sample one of Dominique Saibron's baguettes, Professor Kaplan turns somber. "I worry about tasting because I want it to be good and on many occasions, it's disappointing."

lennox morrison, "the best baguette in paris"