Deep-fried Burgundy

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It's the start of the year (well, it's still January!) and time for the MNSC boys' first gathering.  Due to scheduling conflicts Gayliao did not manage to host a dinner last year, so he offered to host the very first tasting of 2016.

We haven't been back in Megan's Kitchen (美味廚) with the gang in a while, and the food is always good there... although not exactly complementary with red wines.  We started with a series of 10 appetizers:

Deep-fried Bombay duck (炸九肚魚) -  deep-fried fish fillets that melt in your mouth?  With deep-fried garlic on top?  Yes, please!

Deep-fried cuttlefish (椒鹽鮮魷) - more deep-fried seafood with more garlic?  Bring it on!

Pan-fried eggplant (醬燒茄子) - pretty nice.

Sliced pork with garlic and cucumber (蒜泥白玉) - one of my favorite things to eat, with just thin slices of steamed pork wrapped around cucumber sticks, with some soy sauce and a pile of garlic.  Yum.

Pan-fried pork patties with lotus (煎蓮藕片) - the patties were surprisingly soft and fatty, with a slice of lotus root underneath.

Marinated jellyfish (蔥花海蜇)

Braised beef shank (鹵水牛腱)

Deep-fried tofu cubes (黃金豆腐)

Century eggs (溏心皮蛋) - not exactly wine friendly...

Cucumber with chili sauce (手拍青瓜)

Deep-fried taro and duck croquettes (芋蓉香鴨酥) - this is a variation on one of my favorite dishes, only there's less duck and more taro mash.

But I'm not gonna complain too much.  Deep-fried food rules!

Pan-fried prime ribeye steak (香煎頂級肉眼扒) - actually this was pretty decent, and came with plenty of salad for balance.

Stir-fried mushrooms and pea shoots in abalone sauce (鮑汁北菇扒荳苗) - this was very, very tasty... The pea shoots were pretty tender even though they weren't only the tip (豆杯).

Crispy chicken (當紅脆皮黃油雞) - pretty good, but I couldn't stop munching on the deep-fried prawn crackers.

Pan-fried rice vermicelli with minced beef in satay sauce (沙爹免治牛肉煎米粉) - pure awesomeness.  Crispy, crunchy vermicelli pan-fried in loads of oil... soaking up all of that fatty goodness... then you've got the beef in that really tasty satay sauce, with diced pineapple, onions, and green peppers.

On top of the delicious food, our host served up a pretty awesome lineup of red Burgundies - with a ringer thrown in.

1995 Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millénaires - pretty fresh, slightly ripe on the palate but with a short finish.

First flight: decanted 1½ hours prior to serving.

1996 Latour - very young and alcoholic, a little sharp.  Nose was a little exotic, with vanilla notes and sweet, ripe fruit, along with earthy, smoky, and lead pencil notes.  96 points.

1996 Dujac Clos Saint-Denis - really sweet fruit, with strawberries, a little forest.  A little bitter on the palate, but otherwise just a a really beautiful and stunning wine.  97 points.

1996 Comte de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - pretty fruity, a little muted at first, and kinda like cherry-flavored cough syrup.  A little chalky, and a little bubble gum.  92 points.

Second flight: opened 45 minutes prior to serving without decanting.

1993 DRC La Tâche - showing cool fruit, a little minty, slowly opened up, with nice sweet fruit.  93 points.

1993 Mugnier Musigny - nose was a little weird and a little dirty.  92 points.

Third flight: opened three hours prior to serving without decanting.

1991 Mugnier Musigny - rich, ripe, a little sweet, and some minty notes.  95 points.

1991 Comte de Vogüé Musigny Cuvée Vieilles Vignes - a little sharp on the nose, pretty ripe, a little sweet, and a little toasty.  93 points.

1991 Dujac Echezeaux - really open and absolutely beautiful.  Very clean with floral notes.  97 points.