Wine with spicy foods

I re-tried that experiment yet again this evening. The fresh corn on the cob and steamed broccoli were not the problem; the terriyaki marinated steak with extra garlic and habanero was.

The wines were both 2001 vintage: 2001 Château Pontet Canet 2001 Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon (not the Reserve) Each was ~$30 US.

I tasted these right after opening them, before I lit the BBQ.

They're both good wines. Each is very much stylistically representative of its region of origin. The Mondavi seemed sweeter and fuller to me than the Pontet Canet, which seemed a trifle hollow. That's being really picky though.

With food: Total disaster! Experiment quickly abandoned. Went back to just food. Saved the wines for later.

Later: After my mouth stopped tingling, I re-tasted the wines.

The Pontet Canet is starting to open up. It's showing lead pencil (I love Pauillac for that!), perhaps violets, fennel and a backing of firm, yet reserved, tannins. I'd like to taste this again in 10-12 years.

The Mondavi is still the better of these two - but not by a lot - with plush tannins, sweet fruit, licorice and cigar box intertwined. Between the two, the Mondavi seems to be the better balanced. That could be because 2001 was a better year here in California (Napa, specifically) than it was in Bordeaux.

I may have to go back for a few bottles more of each of these. It'd be interesting to re-taste them again in a decade or so.

Tom S