A dim sum extravaganza at Mark’s Duck House began with special orders of shrimp dumplings followed by lobster and scallop dumplings. The remaining items were chosen from the menu. As always, I tend to prefer the shrimp dumplings, but the scallop dumplings can be quite exquisite as well. Even after having a number of dim sum dinners in China, Mark’s remains one of the benchmark restaurants for this cuisine. However, if you want to partake of the scallop and lobster dumplings, they must be ordered in advance. Expect to spend a lot more money than you would for the regular dim sum. In my opinion, they are worth every cent.

The white wines included the very good, pleasant 1997 Champagne Brut from Alfred Gratien. The 1977 Chalone Chardonnay, made during a period when some extraordinary wines emerged from this estate (unlike today’s mediocrities), was still alive, revealing plenty of butterscotch notes, and no hint of oxidation. The flavors were slightly fat, and the wine was clearly tiring, but it is still not ready for the grave. The two Rieslings were completely different. The Egon Müller-produced 2006 Kanta Riesling was very good, steely, and citrusy with plenty of green apple and grapefruit characteristics. However, the 1982 Peter Lehmann Rhine Riesling was totally oxidized and shot. Two other strong whites included an alive, surprisingly intense, mineral dominated, full-bodied 1985 J. L. Chave white Hermitage, and a good, but uninspiring 2002 Dauvissat Chablis Le Clos, which I had brought based on the enthusiasm for this vintage in Chablis. Truthfully, I have been largely disappointed by most 2002 Chablis I have tasted. I will wait a few more years to see if they develop into anything special.

The reds began with a pleasant 2001 Momessin Morey St.-Denis La Forge, which represents a reasonably good value for a Burgundy. We then moved to what was probably the wine of the day (at least it was consumed the fastest), the 1995 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf du Pape. From a relatively tannic vintage that has been closed for a decade, this wine has emerged over the last several years and is showing tremendous complexity as well as such excellent southern Rhône characteristics as garrigue, lavender, and kirsch in its enormous aromatics. Two other Châteauneuf du Papes were also served. The 1998 Bosquet des Papes Chantemerle offered its finest performance to date. At ten years of age, it appears to have hit its plateau of maturity, revealing outstanding complexity, breadth of flavor, balance, and sweetness. The 2001 Bois de Boursan Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvée des Felix was somewhat controversial as there is a definite level of bret that either you like or you don’t. I was right on the fence. Perhaps if I had had it by itself, I would have liked it even more, but in the company of the pure Clos des Papes and Bosquet des Papes, it made the bret even more obvious.

From the New World, we had a bevy of Australian reds, all of which tended to perform very well. The 1998 Torbreck The Steading, a wine that looks like Châteauneuf du Pape, tasted more French than some of the French wines. It exhibited lovely kirsch, raspberry, and pepper notes, wonderful elegance, but, surprisingly, not the power of either the Clos des Papes or Bosquet des Papes. A shocker if you are one of those who is critical of Sarah and Sparky Marquis since they made the wine is the 1998 Fox Creek JSM, a curious, but complex blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Franc. This wine is still very youthful, revealing a deep ruby/purple hue along with notes of menthol, spice box, black fruits, and cedar. It should drink nicely for another 5-6 years. A still young, but civilized blockbuster, the 1997 Véritas Shiraz Heysen was one of the top wines of the day. It has at least two decades of life ahead of it. We also had a promising offering from Santa Ynez, the 2005 Starlane Astral made by David Ramey. It is a Bordeaux blend that one day may give the great wines of Jonata a run for their money. While Shafer’s 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select may not be at the level of their 2001, 2002, or 2003, it is a fabulous success, and to me, one of the strongest wines of the 1999 vintage. The 2002 Martinelli Zinfandel Luigi was a powerhouse, but the fruit is still sufficient to cover the enormous alcohol. We also had a badly corked bottle of Turley’s 2004 Petite Sirah Hayne Vineyard (the second time in a row I have had a corked bottle of that wine - always a bad sign), and a brilliant bottle of the 2003 Clos Erasmus. The latter wine exhibited beautiful black raspberry and kirsch notes intermixed with crushed rocks, spring flowers, and copious spice offered in a full-bodied, pure, elegant style. I also had to give high marks to the 2005 Audelssa Zephyr, a beautiful wine that continues to demonstrate the strength of this producer.