[Prishtina-l] Anthony's Pier 4 reclaims the scene..

[Daqki at aol.com]

On the latest issue  of  Quarterky Wine Rieview .....www.qwr.com.


MICHAEL MONDAVI and his son, Rob, were on hand at Anthony’s Pier 4 to reunite 
with another father-son team, Anthony Athanas and his son, Paul. The occasion 
was called an “Evening with Michael Mondavi,” and it prompted Pier 4 to open 
its war chest of fine wines. And what a war chest it is! There are no 
naysayers doubting the quality and breadth of the restaurant’s wine list. The 
exact number is not known, and Anthony Athanas and the inimitable wine 
director, Peter Holt, are not talking, but the number must be utterly vast. 
In any event, thewines presented for the Mondavi evening were nothing if not 
stellar. Nearly 100 people were on hand, and cases of Robert Mondavi wines 
were hauled out and very generously poured. The night started with Carneros 
Brut Reserve 1991. Bet you didn’t know that Robert Mondavi made sparkling 
wines, or that this was Michael Mondavi’s last vintage before giving the 
winemaking over to brother Tim. The other wines that followed were awesome: 
Robert Mondavi Sauvignon Blanc, Stags Leap District 1996, the Chardonnay 
Reserve 1994 in three-liter bottling (it was served with the restaurant’s 
specialty, Lobster a la Anthony, and was a marriage made in heaven, as was 
indeed the next course: Robert Mondavi’s Sauvignon Blanc Botrytis 1994 and 
fresh foie gras with apple and rhubarb). Anthony Athanas served cases of 
older Robert Mondavi wines that any auction house would die for. First, came 
the splendid 1978 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve offered up in magnums, which was 
unbelievably young and elegant, with big berry and spice flavors. Michael 
Mondavi likened it to a supple “gymnast” in that it had less oak aging, 
prompting a softer and gentler and kinder wine. All this served as 
counterpoint to the mighty 1974 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve in Magnum, a 
“weightlifter,” according to Michael Mondavi, showing great intensity and 
power. The 1974 was younger than the 1978, and actually needed more breathing 
time. After 15 minutes or more, the wine yielded a richness, with mild 
tannins, along with deep berry, spice, oak flavors. The bottle, it seems, 
will age as long and as gracefully as Robert Mondavi and Anthony Athanas 
themselves, who at 86 and 87 respectively are still spry, nimble of wit, and 
raconteurs of the first order. As for Anthony’s Pier 4, it has regained its 
old glamour as a hot wine spot, as it was in the 1960s and ’70s. It’s a place 
where quality and price still mean something, and, as if to prove it, the 
cost for the Robert Mondavi event was only $125 per person. And we almost 
forgot: the price included dessert (chocolate soufflé) and Robert Mondavi’s 
Porto Cinco 1993 Woodbridge Estate port, along with Rob Mondavi’s cigars 
(Michael’s son owns the R. Mondavi Napa Cigar Company), which are well made 
products from Don Diego and H. Upmann.