Pauillac

This is an exciting day as we are on the left bank. These wines are more my style.

Another brain fart and I didn't take pictures of breakfast. It was mainly fried eggs and toast. We head out to tour the area. 

Bus pictures have glare so I won't post a lot.

I think this is part of Chateau Mouton Rothchild. 

Eventually we make our way to Chateau Lagrange. 

A long story short, this place went down hill and was bought by Suntory. 

They still need to pick the grapes by hand but the rest of the operation is quite modernized including an optical sorter for the grapes. 

Now this brings me to another thing about Bordeaux wines. There was the classification of 1855. You can read about it but basically the house that met certain criteria were classified as Grand Cru in 5 levels set in stone to this except for some lobbying by Philippe de Rothchild to have Chateau Mouton Rothchild reclassified as first growth from second. Unlike St Emilion that reclassifies every ten years. Anyway back to the Chateau Lagrange. We taste three wines. 

This was good. You notice the cab in the wines here compared with St Emilion that is merlot dominant. 

They also produce wines that are not Grand Cru since those wines come from newer blocks that were not part of the original classification. 

We head back to the ship for lunch. The lunch buffet has a different roast meat and pastas. 

I've been eating a ton of beef lately so I even it out with some mushrooms and veggies. I'm not sure the mushroom sauce was meant for the pasta but I'm a rebel. 

Vegetable soup

Local quiche like egg custard but very light. The seared tuna wasn't good. 

After lunch we wander Pauillac. It's a sleepy town and a lot of shops close at 1p. 

I like the lighthouse styled bell tower on this church. 

I'm starting to get shaggy. I find a place to get a haircut but he doesn't speak English. He tells me "pas de place". By the time I figure it out he motions me to sit and squeezes me in. 15 Euros seems like a good deal considering what haircuts are in the US. It's not my $3 Asia haircut though. At least my hair will look good for our dinner at a Chateau tonight. I feel a little awkward since I didn't bring a sports coat but I'm not the only one. 

We get back to the boat. 

Locals playing bocce ball down by the water front. 

Small shrimp they catch off the dock. Apparently you eat them whole. 

We relax in the lounge before dinner. I'm talking to someone else and Aparna strikes up a conversation with Burt. 

She feels guilty that it should have been me but I tell her I will have my opportunity and I do. 

I'm going to get fat on this part of the trip (cruise), we go to chateau for our dinner. The grounds are very nice. 

All dressed up in my new shirt from Thailand, khakis and loafers. This is my cocktail dress. That's as good as it will get for me. 

Salmon

Foie gras

Even a zucchini skewer. 

Wines of course. 

Eggplant and goat cheese

I have the lamb. Some people don't like it but I thought it was really good. 

Aparna has the fish. 

Cheese course of course 

Dessert. 

We sit at a table with Burt and his son James. James is a designer and lives in Vietman. He currently makes bamboo bikes. It's an interesting night learning more about James. As the night winds down there is a little wine left in two different red wine bottles. Burt goes ahead and mixes them. He then goes on to tell a story how he was with a wine critic who said wine makers blend wines and so do I. So Burt feels free to blend. Everyone has a different palette so drink what you like. 

The night goes on a little later than expected. By the time we reach the boat it is late and no one is staying up. It's probably a good thing we don't either.