Ian has been playing with his water bath and was making us 18-hour
sous vide veal rump. He'd been experimenting with times, and last
time he did 30-odd hours, but Jacquie had found the meat too soft,
so this was a substantial adjustment downward. Ian asked me for my
opinion, and I, knowing nothing about sous vide, suggested 20 or
so. The plan was to accompany it with a cream sauce, boiled new
potatoes, and creamed Swiss chard, this last being in Jacquie's
charge. Some time in the later afternoon, I heard a timer go off
at length, so I moseyed to the main house and found the chard,
having been set to braise in cream, sticking to the pan and
beginning to scorch, the liquid having boiled dry. At the same
time, Ian smelled the beginning of a disaster and had clattered
down the stairs. We doused the pan with water, and all was more
or less well. Turns out Jacquie had popped out for a sec to tend
her garden, a minor whoopsie that could have become a major
annoyance. There were somewhat cross words exchanged.

The veal turned out tender and just pink in the middle, very mild
of flavor; its collagen had gone into the juice, which served as a
base for the sauce, which was thus of a luxurious texture. The chard
had benefited from a large amount of dairy products as well (cream
upon cream upon butter, well, we were in France after all); the
unwitting caramelization might have given the dish a bit more character
than otherwise it would have had. I was encouraged to try the potatoes,
which I hadn't been inclined to do. My sampling of one was good -
better than almost all potatoes I've ever had; turns out they were
products of their own garden, boiled gently, and soaked in butter.

Meursault-Genevrieres 09 (Mikulski) was flavorful and balanced, not
too old despite what one tends to say about white wines, and not
overpowering the veal. I've been partial to an acidy Burgundy with
cream since being introduced to this combination at La Caravelle in
1972 I think it was.

The meal had been constructed to come to a high point here - a 500
of Tirecul la Graviere Cuvee Madame 01 (Monbazillac), which on release
the hated Parker had given 100 points to, which made the price zoom to
E80 the half (it has aged atypically and now rates just in the mid-90s
and costs E130, for those who care about such things). It pours a rich
gold, with aromas of marmalade, honey, apricot, and plenty of Botrytis;
great legs, unctuous on the tongue, very sweet but well balanced with
citrusy acid notes. Swisher found it cloying; the rest of us would
have genuflected if our knees worked better.

Ian brought out his pride-and-joy bleu des Causses, a creamy moldy
cheese that he and others think highly of. I had a fragment of it
by itself and another with the wine. I couldn't stand either taste.

Maid of Honor (or Honour, I guess) - aka jam tart had a great buttery
crust and was miraculously not too sweet (Jacquie does great baked
goods). I had a few bites and returned to the wine.
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