Weapon Club Japan

Weapon Club Japan, hosted by Tim L. The theme behind this event was to share a few Japanese dishes that I encountered whilst travelling in Japan last year.

Appetiser of citrus and umeboshi plum marinated fish with apple and wakame.

Tim: Rihaku Tokubetsu Junmai Shu (Sake). A smooth sake with a hint of pear, long lingering sake taste. Probably better than the sakes i had in Japan.

1^st Course: Sliced Duck breast with whole grain mustard

Cam: Kyeema Vineyard 2008 Merlot Reserve. Dusty, dark fruit, drying tannins, nice mouthfeel. Cam reckons Merlot is a forgotten variety at Weapon clubs, I agree this was a nice representation of the style.

Cam: Great Western 2010 Young Vine Pinot Meunier.  Red berry, Strawberrys,  soft cool climate medium weight wine. Well integrated, light tannins, good acid balance. My stand out wine for the night.

Jan: Bourgogre Mousseux Rouge. Jan’s educational piece. Rose petals, sweet glace cherrys, deep  ruby colour. A burgundy wine made into a sparkling wine using the traditional method.

2^nd Course: Grilled chicken skewers over coals, a mix of yakitori and salt seasoned skewers.

Mark: Houghtons  Jack Mann 2000. Dark fruits, oak, well balanced with enough acid to live a few more years.

Mark: Cullen Diana Madeline 2001. Black cabernet fruits, harmonised oak. Cullen wines remind me of French reds, i don’t know if it is the Bordeaux blend or the bio dynamic practices but it just seems to taste foreign.... particularly after its been unmasked.

3^rd Course: Saikyo Yaki – Miso Marinated fish. Dish of the day, the miso and ginger flavours penetrated the baldchin grouper. The slightly charred skin added complexity to the fish.  

Dave: Grosset 2000 Polish Hill. Old Riesling, I enjoyed this wine.  The acid had softened and the wine fully integrated. Went well with the fish

Jan: Cremant de Bourgogne Loise Bouillot Rose. Rich, Moussey, off dry finish, very impressive. At $25 it is a steal, the perfect Wedding bubbly.  

4^th Course: Sukiyaki  - Beef, mushrooms, tofu, chinese cabbage braised in a broth of dashi, soy & mirin. (needs proper fatty Japanese beef)

Tim L: Mosswood 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon. Hints of diesel , nicely textured, tannins still evident. Good expression of Cab Sav but I missed the freshness of it had it been drunk 2-3 years ago.  Did not match well with the food, but a better wine.

Paul: Glorioso 2007 Rioja Crianza Soft, generous, a better weighted wine for the food. I found myself searching for Rioja’s to go with pizza last night.

Dessert: Strawberry meringue with homemade tiramisu ice cream. (Thanks Mark)

Paul: Nobel one 2008 750ml bottle. I swear this was a sauternes. Intense honey, pear and citrus.

Membership matters: Members have decided that committed weapon club members are required for the club. Sadly Alex D will have his membership downgraded from fully paid member to special guest to make way for new blood.

Other discussions during Weapon Club Japan. It was discussed that the character of Weapon Club is partly made by the changing focus brought by each hosting member. In recent times, more emphasis has been placed on matching food and wine. Ideas were discussed:

Cam who is hosting the next event introduced the idea of a “scientific experiment” for the next club meeting.

Boozy flagged a return to the traditional Weapon Club of old where the focus is on the wine.

It was agreed that the beauty of Weapon Club is its focus can and does change over time and I am looking forward to a new direction.  

Vintage 64 - Manning

2 Iconic Red Wines were tasted on the night

1997 Hill of Grace - Juicy red fruit & ribena nose. Medium weight red wine, soft tannins, hint of pepper and spice. Fruit driven and fresh.

1997 Mosswood Cab Sav - Aged dust, red dirt and wood. Strong mouth drying tannins, dark fruits with in your face french vanillin oak. Very different to the 98.

The BBQ

Predrinks

95 Pol Roger - Alcholic/chemical nose, intense mid palate with a long finish, apples, small bead. 

No 8 Sparkling Pinot Chardonay - Dry grass, straw, hint of pear. Less intense than the Pol Roger, well balanced wine. 

Prawn Gyoza - partly steamed, soft on one side, crispy on the other. 

96 Marc Bredif Vouvray - Green citrus and apples, good length with a slightly sweet finish. 

86 Marc Bredif Vouvray - funky tropical fruit, the oak was more forward in this one, a slightly buttery note led me to suggest Chardonay 

Marinated Sardines with salad - Fremantle Sardines are very underated

09 Grosset Polish Hill Riesling - Complex but not overly fruit driven nose, zesty palate leaving some fizz on the tongue. Picked early as an Australian Riesling, the acid cut right through the sardines.

05 Frankland Estate Poison Hill Riesling - out of whack, undrinkable. 

Scallops wrapped in prosciutto 

95 Marc Bredif Vouvray - Restrained fruit on the nose. At this stage, i was a little over Vouvray, but having tasted 3 different vintages, it did highlight Vouvray's versitility with food.

08 Pouilly Fume - Perfume rose petals, flowers and tropical frut nose. This wine smelt amazing, but dissapointed with a short finish compared to the Vouvray.

Drunken Mushrooms

08 Felton Rd Central Otago Pinot - Dark cherry's and raspberrys, fine tannins, a lighter style of pinot compared to the Craggy Range.

08 Craggy Range Te Muna - Funkier heavier nose, black cherry's and predictable palate. Hotter, bigger with more alcohol and tannis, but not out of balance. Prefer softer expression of Pinot.

Meatballs - Though hotter than anticipated, i did like this dish and tonight i will be  making a meat sauce with sausages, ground pork & beef + Weapon sauce, to bake with par cooked pasta.

04 Tabula Ribera Del Duero - Alcoholic, hint of diesel suggesting good age, tannic. Drinking nicely.

06 Roda Reserva Rioja - red fruit jube perfume, tannic but well balanced.

There is a school of thought that suggests tannic spanish varieties don't soften up much over time, it would be interesting to test this hypothesis. For the record, the table voted unanimously for the Roda.

Lamb Cutlets and Sausages - awsome cutlets.

02 Holy Trinity GSM - Jammy nose, a classic & technically correct GSM, went well with lamb.

98 Cims Solanes - Strong diesel notes when decanting made me think i had a wine that was past it, but on tasting it was drinking nicely. The grenache & humble carignan blend is new to me and appeared to strip out some of the overripe fruit characteristics found in some GSM blends.

Lemon Tart with Cream and Ice Cream.

07 Chateau Fihot - a light & young and enjoyable sauternes. 

Tokaji Aszu 4 Puttonyos - burnt honey, some flor characteristcs.  

09 Peterson House Botrytis Semillon (sparkling) - a simple wine, sexed up with carbonation.

06 Inniskillin Icewine (sparkling) - honey & orange marmalade, almost like an old sauternes.

I found myself enjoying the Fihot & the Icewine.

Thanks to Steve and Dave for hosting the meeting.