Lunch with Jeremy Parzen @ Il Buco Alimentari, NYC 5/10/2013

Lunch with Jeremy Parzen & Friends
@ Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria, NYC (5/10/2013)

Jeremy Parzen, who writes one of my favorite blogs on the Internet, was in town for work and I was down in NYC for the Rare Wine Co's Vallana dinner. It took us a while, but Jeremy and I figured out that we could make a Friday lunch work. Mutual friend Jamie Wolff of Chambers Street Wines suggested Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria. It turned out that the GM Roberto Paris is an old friend of Jeremy's. Kismet!

I put together a group of Nebbiolo lovers that could make this unusual time, including a couple of Jeremy's old friends, and we had a glorious lunch of great wine and great conversation. The theme was Nebbiolo, but other great wines of Italy were represented as well. Here is Jeremy's terrific write up of this lunch.

For each image, I have posted a compressed (and possibly cropped) version. Click on it to see the original, much larger image.

The Venu

Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria in NoHo is highly recommended for the food, the service, and the convivial atmosphere and decor. From their website: The first offspring of il Buco on Bond Street, the Alimentari & Vineria is as much a production outpost of the original – specializing in house-cured meats and home baked breads – as it is a casual dining experience in its own right. Here at the original site of the Great Jones Lumber Supply, Donna Lennard set out to fulfill a dream of the last 18 years. … The recuperated joists from the original structure were incorporated into the design: bar paneling, banquette benches, tables, and even the cutting boards used to serve the salumi platters. Traces of the original lumber yard graffiti are still visible on the brick walls, and a plethora of Italian antique furniture, tiles and ceramic ware are juxtaposed against modern artisan steel and zinc touches.

The Entrance to
Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria.

The Alimentari (Market) with Owner
Donna Lennard in the gray t-shirt.

Panini.

Cheese.

Vineria: Restaurant & Wine Bar.

The Kitchen.

The Bar.

A table made from the lumberyard.

The Lunch Menu.

Our Table.

Chandelier above our Table.

Looking up at the Chandelier.

According to their website: Artist friend Warren Muller – whose studio was once the site of the original il Buco - built one of his whimsical chandeliers to hang in the open atrium …

The Wines

The wines were passed around and tasted in whatever order each person chose. It was quite free form, so I just made it all one flight in the order I tasted the wines.

1995 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne - France, Champagne
[Brought by Carl.] Fine, delicate, yeasty, flavorful, complex. An excellent Champagne. (94 points)
2010 Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari) Collio Studio di Bianco - Italy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Collio
[Jeremy brought this and has written this delightful post about its origins.] Wonderfully complex nose of lemon custard, spice and sea shells. Incredibly complex in the mouth. One of the most stunning and complex young white wines I have had. (96 points)
1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
I carried this down to the city from Albany, then left it at the restaurant the night before. Somewhere it got way too shaken. Very cloudy and totally muted and shut down. Too bad. NR
1970 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Pora - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
[Jamie brought this. He had decanted before he came over from the store.] Showed very well. Soaring nose of dark cherries and autumn leaves. Long complex autumnal finish. Just a pristine bottle and a joy to drink. (95 points)
1974 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[I brought this down to the City along with the 89 Produttori. Somehow this one fared much better. Pop & pour.] Tight at first, but opening beautifully. Needed at least an hour of air to show itself. An excellent wine. (94 points)
1985 Giuseppe Rinaldi Barolo Riserva Brunate - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Carl. Decanted at the restaurant.] A riveting wine with even more depth than the 1970 Pora but not as complex. More mature and open than the 1974 G. Rinaldi. This bottle is more advanced than it probably should be, but that only made it show quite well today. A terrific wine. (95 points)
1980 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Joe.] Hard to rate a wine like this. It has definitely started its decline, but the nose is so ethereal. In the mouth, there are hints of maderization, but it is just lovely and still quite alive. A joy to drink. Like a quiet afternoon with your dearest grandmother. (93 points)
1968 Mastroberardino Taurasi Riserva - Italy, Campania, Taurasi DOCG
[Brought by Joe. Pop & pour.] Amazing wine. Still dark tannic and massive. Will these last forever? The depth and complexity are amazing. How many of the world's great wines could shine in this company and not seem out of place? (97 points)
1958 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Jamie as an extra since he could not vouch for the source.] Very light color. Delicate and pleasant, though slightly maderized.
1978 Bartolo Mascarello Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Carl as an extra.] Cloudy. Mildly over the hill. Not a good showing for this wine. Perhaps too shaken up (like the 89 Produttori). NR
1966 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Marc. Original release. Pop & pour.] Opening up slowly. Lovely, mature, but quite solid. (92 points)
1989 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Colonnello - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
[Brought by Marc. Slow-o'ed since morning.] More mature than other recent bottles (some of which were quite young). Still lovely and quite enjoyable today. (93 points)
1961 Ruffino Chianti Classico Riserva Ducale Oro - Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico DOCG
[Brought by Frank. Pop & pour.] Quite mature but still holding together. Elegant and lovely today. An enjoyable change of pace. (93 points)

The Food

The Bread at
Il Buco Alimentari & Vineria
is simply amazing.

Insalata di Bottarga:
Brussel sprout petals, radish,
celery, filone, bottarga.

Ricotta with sugarsnap peas,
pine nut granola, mint.

Fried Rabbit with black pepper,
honey, lemon.

Grilled Sausage with Umbrian lentils, cipolline, sage.

Risotto with forest mushrooms,
parmigiano (Vialone Nano Rice).

Bucatini Cacio e Pepe
(Pasta Gentile).

Tagliatelle alle Fave: fava beans,
pecorino, mint (housemade pasta).

Pizza Bianca with forest mushrooms,
stracciatella [mozzarella].

The People

Not a lot of good people pix since we were all so busy tasting and talking and eating.

Marc DiBella, Frank Butler, Alice Feiring:

Carl K, Joe G, Jeremy, and squinty me:

Roberto Paris and his assistant, Adrian:

At some point during this amazing lunch, Alfonso Cevola stopped by our table. He had been visiting Roberto and having lunch. Alfonso writes a wonderful blog called On the Wine Trail in Italy. He is an old friend of Jeremy's and in fact was the one who introduced Jeremy to his now wife Traci (a fellow blogger). I was not quick enough to snap a photo of Alfonso when he stopped by, but here is a nice one of Jeremy and Alfonso which I stole from Jeremy's site:

The Many Faces of Roberto Paris
Near the end of this long and wonderful lunch, the GM Roberto Paris found some time to come by and chat with us at a point where I had my camera out. Here are some photos of Roberto and Jamie.

Here is blog post about Roberto Paris by Daniel Meyer.

Conclusion

A few bottles, including one of mine, did not show their best due to the hurried shlepping of the wine to the lunch, but all in all there were so many terrific wines and such great conversation that this was a glorious event, and a great way to spend the afternoon.

And a great way to end it, a superb cappuccino:

Tasting notes posted from CellarTracker.