Eggs Benedict @ ABC, Napa

[Melanie Wong]

Yesterday I headed to Soscol Cafe for the first meal of the day. But I got there too late --- it closes at 1pm on Sundays. Next I drove west to ABC, where the blackboard offered up Eggs Benedict ($13.95) for brunch. How could I not order the dish of the moment?

The poached eggs were perfect with tender whites and just enough ooze to the yolks. Instead of Canadian bacon, thickish slices of grilled ham provided the meat layer. The thick hollandaise sauce was golden yellow, nearly orange in color, with a rich flavor that spoke of unadulterated egg yolks and butter. The unique part of the composition was the thick housemade English muffin, dense and moist with many voids to catch the hollandaise. Home fries made with sweet and waxy red potatoes were crusty and so good. With a bottle of french lemonade, this repast set me back $21 with tax and tip making it a splurge financially as well as calorie-wise.

Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/35224#160680

Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melaniewon...

[WLA]

Thanks a lot Melanie. Now my keyboard is starting to short out due to the copious amounts of saliva running into it. (g)

[Chino Wayne]

Mmmmm, the description and the picture are killing me, and look at those hunks of ham, much, much better than skimpy, tasteless Candadian bacon. Wonder what wine pairing Melanie would recommend with this?

[Melanie Wong]

Chino Wayne, the reason I was in Napa was to attend a tasting of sparkling wines followed by botrytis non-fortified dessert wines later that afternoon. The open binder I was studying at the table was my copy of Tom Stevenson's fizz guide (see link below for a free download). When my eggs were served, I was wishing that I had a glass of an elegant and crisp champagne at hand at that moment to enjoy with my brunch. But I had to make do with the cold sparkling lemonade. Ordered because Sunday was so warm, it turned out to be a good selection because the heavy and rich style of hollandaise sauce had very little lemon juice. It benefited from an acidic lift.

Eggs tend to kill wines unless there's enough acid in the dish or in the wine. Therefore, I'd pick a citrusy and acidic glass of bubbly to go with it. Of the ones tried later that day, I think the 1999 Roederer l'Ermitage Brut from Anderson Valley would have been the best match. Some brief notes for the Roederer and the other wines follow.

1999 Roederer l'Ermitage Brut Anderson Valley ($32, JV Liquors, Napa), 55% Chardonnay/45% Pinot Noir - Very fast and fine bead, aromas of spring flowers and candied lemon peel, sweet impression on entry (1.2% residual sugar) but carries very long on the palate with clean acidic cut and crisp ending, green apple and citrusy flavors, more fruit than Champagne would have, additional depth and complexity from reserve wine blending, excellent balance and precision, finesseful. EXCELLENT

NV Domaine Chandon Reserve Blanc de Noir California, 98% Pinot Noir, 14% Pinot Meunier, 8% Chardonnay, 3 years on the lees - Pale salmon tint, immediate forward fruity aromas, medium-low acidity, goes flat soon in the glass, upfront fruitiness, little autolytic character or depth, very clean impression. GOOD plus

NV Ferrari Brut Italian Spumante Trentino ($25, Weimax, Burlingame), 95% Chardonnay, 5% Pinot Noir, 24 months on the lees, estate grown - Medium straw hue, moderate mousse, weighty on the palate with ripe chardonnay character of peach/pear fruit, moderate yeast character, rather blockish in the middle, fat and not that crisp, round finish. VERY GOOD plus

1999 Yarrabank Cuvee Sparkling Brut ($20, The Jug Shop, SF), 88% from Yarra Valley, remainder from four other Australian regions, 53% Chardonnay and 47% Pinot Noir, more than three years on the lees, reserve wines from 1998 and 1997 - Initial richness of aroma is lacking on the palate, some ripe character and good length but marred by a green vegetal streak, slight bitterness of excess phenolics and grittiness in texture, lacking finesse of Champagne. GOOD plus

NV Louis Bouillot "Perle de Vigne" Grand Reserve Brut Cremant de Bourgogne ($11, Plumpjack, SF), 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Chardonnay, 24 months on the lees - Coarse bead, excessively candied amylic aromas, little autolytic character, lemon pledge flavors, low acidity, clumsy, gummy and overtly sweet finish. GOOD minus

1999 Louis Bouillot "Perle d'Or" Brut, Cremant de Bourgogne ($16, Wine Club, SF), Chardonnay and Pinot Noir - Moderate bead, aromas of spice cake and biscuit, better balance with crisper acidity, riper impression, round middle with good length and persistence, creamy finish. VERY GOOD

NV Deutz Champagne Brut Classic, 375ml with no indication on the label of fermentation in the bottle, classic cuvee with 1/3 of each varietal, aged on the lees for over 30 months - Fast disappearing bead, earthier character with broadness at mid-palate, flatter flavors and structure. GOOD plus

NV Paul Bara Champagne Brut Reserve Grand Cru Bouzy ($37, Kermit Lynch, Berkeley), Pinot Noir dominated cuvee - Beautiful mousse, powerful nose of toast, vanilla and earthy fruits, many dimensions of flavor and texture, mouthfilling, weighty presence with broad midpalate, great carriage, crisp and fine finish. EXCELLENT plus

NV Agrapart Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut Grand Cru Avize ($25, Vin Vino Wine, Palo Alto), 100% Chardonnay, partial maturation in oak casks, partial malolactic fermentation, aged on the lees for 3 years, cellared for 1.5 years after purchase - Green glints in light straw hue, fast but long-lasting bead, some oxidation and honeyed notes in the nose, surprisingly sharp structure with piercing acidity, some vegetal notes, good length, finishes very dry. VERY GOOD minus

1996 Pierre Peters Champagne "Cuvee Speciale" Blanc de Blancs Brut Grand Cru Les Mesnil-Sur-Oger ($55, Vin Vino Wine, Palo Alto), 100% Chardonnay, cellared for 1.5 years after purchase - Langorous bead, medium straw hue with yellow core appropriate for age, surprising notes of toasty new French oak in the nose overlaying ripe fruit and some butteriness, intense green apple flavors and tartness on the palate mingle with vanilla and cream, weighty yet well-supported with excellent focus and definition, uniform expression of single vintage year, impressive length with edgy, sharp finish. Not ready yet. EXCELLENT plus

Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/294460#1615032

Image: http://home.earthlink.net/~melaniewon...

[Chino Wayne]

Thanks for the detailed response, Melanie. Although you know that my level of wine sophistication would need an electron microscope to detect, as compared to that vast storehouse of knowledge and scholarship you possess, your posting did validate one thing for me.

That every time I went to Sunday brunch at the golf club with mom and my late step-father, that those Mimosa cocktails that my step-father proffered and which I enthusiastically accepted were the appropriate libation for the meal. I will always be a wine-hick, but now a little happier at Sunday brunches because I will know that even us wine-hicks have got some inate sense of propriety.

Thanks for the great, comprehensive list, I am going to cut and paste it and put it in to my special Chowhound folder.

[Melanie Wong]

I had the leftover second half for lunch today. (g)

Fyi, ABC stands for Alexis Baking Company.

Link: http://www.alexisbakingcompany.com/

Image: http://www.alexisbakingcompany.com/im...