Seattle area tasting, January 29, 2011

[Edgar B.]

thank you, Glenn, thank you. Drinking a 1970 croft now while watching LSU beat A&M...GO TIGERS!!!! I have to consol myself tonight after breaking a 2000 Fonseca today while looking for an '85. Cellar smells mighty fine, tho. Is the theme "best of '80's"?
A victory in the Cotton Bowl will help my disposition a lot.

See y'all on the 29th.

ed

[Glenn E.]

Yup, the theme is "Best of the 80s" as suggested by Melanie. I have a list of Ports I'd like to see at the event and there are a couple of holes that still need to be filled in, so I'll send you a PM in case you have one of them.

[Glenn E.]

If you're out of town and would like to ship your bottle to Seattle ahead of time (hint hint), you can send it to either Roy or me. Sending your bottle ahead of time will allow it to settle back down from the travel and also allow it to be decanted properly ahead of time. If you need an address, PM me.

Also a note for people who are local - bring your own glasses!

We need over 200 for this tasting, and Roy and I don't have that many between us. Even if you can't bring a full set of 15 for yourself, every class you can provide will help.

[Roy Hersh]

This is going to be a very fun Port tasting.

I am not sure how you all feel about this, but we will have 15 people and if you won't be overwhelmed by it ... do you think we should cap the number of bottles in the flights to 16, 20 or 24 VPs?

The more wine, the longer the evening will take. We could always put the extra open bottles on a table for people to try after the main event.

What are your thoughts about this?

[Glenn E.]

The room will be open around 4, but we don't technically have access to it until 5. We're supposed to be out by midnight, so that gives us a max of 7 hours. If we plan to have pizza delivered at some point in the middle, which was a popular spontaneous decision at the last tasting, we might be able to handle 20 or 24 bottles.

We have one convenient set of bottles that would make a nice 6-bottle flight (3 years x 2 producers). If things go well and I can locate one particular bottle, we could end up with a second set of 4 bottles for another 2x2 head-to-head comparison. The remaining bottles, whatever they end up being, could be a 3rd flight.

Headcount is currently at 16 including Andy, who won't know for sure whether or not he can make it until closer to the date. But I'm keeping him on the list until he says otherwise! Given 16 people I think we can handle 20 bottles, especially if a few of them are "extras" set aside for people who still feel the urge later in the evening.

Don't be afraid of the bottle count - with 16 servings coming out of each bottle they'll be smaller-than-normal servings. We're still looking at a pretty normal 1 bottle per person total, or if you taste the extras maybe 1.25 bottles. Over 7 hours and including a meal that's not even difficult. And I'm a relative lightweight, so if *I* think it's not too difficult then anyone can do it!

[Roy Hersh]

No pizza in the middle! We didn't do it last time and definitely not this time either. Maybe an hour before departure, but not in the middle. Have you been drinking Madeira again?

Is there going to be another pre-event dinner at the Cucina, Glenn?

[Glenn E.]

That weekend is actually getting rather busy for me, so I probably won't be able to make it to a pre-event dinner at Cucina Cucina. My goal is just to make it to the Holiday Inn at 5:00 at this point! I'll grab something to eat on my way... hopefully.

That doesn't mean that it can't be done, though. It's just a short walk (as you know) and reasonably quick.

[Roy Hersh]

Please make sure that a pizza company is alerted and folks know that they can eat AGAIN towards the very end of the night. There are several people who won't have been to the last tasting and have no idea about the area either.

[Glenn E.]

A couple of clarifications and other information:

The room will be open at 4, but it won't be set up. Don't expect to be able to enter the room until 5, but if you want to drop off a bag and/or your bottle before you head to a restaurant for dinner that will be fine. We don't take possession of the room until 5, at which point I'll be doing our part of the setup - getting placemats in place, setting up glasses, getting the bottles in order, etc. The actual tasting will start at 6, or maybe a little bit earlier than that if everyone's in place. I've allowed for some extra time in there so that people can arrive, meet, and chat before we actually start.

There are a couple of small fast-food types of joints in the immediate area (walking distance) as well as two larger restaurants - Red Robin and Cucina Cucina. Please make sure to eat dinner BEFORE we start - the pizza isn't meant to be dinner, but more of a recovery aid.

The Holiday Inn has a cab company that they work with, but at midnight on a Saturday they might not have one instantly available unless it is pre-arranged. If you plan to use a cab after the tasting - which I highly recommend - either let me know via PM and I'll set it up at the hotel for you, or of course make your own arrangements on the side. But in all seriousness, don't plan to drive after the tasting. You won't be in any shape to drive. My wife will be dropping me off before and coming to pick me up after.

Lastly - if you are local, PLEASE BRING GLASSES! Every glass you can bring to use yourself will help. I have 9 dozen on order (3 of us are splitting them), but they're backordered and aren't expected to arrive in time. Which means we're very short on glassware and can use everything you can bring. We might get lucky with the glasses I have on order, but I'm really not counting on it. I don't think it's going to happen.

The lineup of Ports is coming together and really looks great! We're going to have a lot of fun on the 29th!

[Roy Hersh]

Thanks Glenn. Great job!

I am planning to write about this tasting for the February issue of the newsletter and will reinvent the name for this event as:

The 1980’s Vintage Port Retrospective with tasting notes and photos (none embarrasing those that fall asleep half way through.

[Steve Pollack]

Does anyone want to meet for dinner before the tasting?

[Roy Hersh]

I hope lots of people say YES to that offer! Whatever you do, make sure to eat dinner first.


On a separate note on topic, avoid GARLIC (Glenn).

[Glenn E.]

Several people have asked about dinner beforehand, but unfortunately I won't be able to be there so it would be difficult for me to coordinate it. I suggest that you all meet at the hotel around 4:30 and walk to one of the nearby eateries - Red Robin and Cucina Cucina are both just a 5-min walk. The hotel can easily point you the way if no one has been to either before. There's also a Thai place and a Vietnamese place that are slightly closer, but smaller.

I probably won't be able to get to the hotel before 5:00 and I will have already eaten. I'll start setting up then and will have everything ready (I hope!) by the time you guys get back from the restaurant!

[Roy Hersh]

It would be great if Glenn could have all bottles in his hand BEFORE everyone goes to dinner. There is a lot of pouring to be done. Also if for any reason you can not decant your bottles ahead of time, please get in touch with Glenn to let him know. Maybe he can arrange to get them or have them dropped off even the day before so they can be decanted properly.

PS ... do not even think of eating Thai food, it will kill your ability to taste properly, even if you get to brush your teeth and tongue before we begin.

Thanks!

Roy

[Eric Menchen]

PS ... do not even think of eating Thai food, it will kill your ability to taste properly, even if you get to brush your teeth and tongue before we begin.

And remember that brushing your teeth right before a wine tasting isn't a good idea either.

I recommend Mexican or Indian food.

[Glenn E.]

It would be great if Glenn could have all bottles in his hand BEFORE everyone goes to dinner. There is a lot of pouring to be done. Also if for any reason you can not decant your bottles ahead of time, please get in touch with Glenn to let him know. Maybe he can arrange to get them or have them dropped off even the day before so they can be decanted properly.

Yes absolutely, excellent points, thanks Roy!

I already have 5 bottles that people have shipped/dropped off (including my own) and I know of 3 more that are on their way to me via FedEx. I also know of arrangements that have been made for the decanting of 4 more bottles. I'll contact the owners of the remaining 4 bottles and see what can be arranged if they don't already have plans to decant them ahead of the event on Saturday.

As far as last minute drop-offs go, yes please do drop off your bottle at the hotel (if I don't already have it) before you go to dinner. I'll make sure that Jason (the catering manager at the hotel) is aware that people might need to do that so that he can make sure there's a good place to leave them in our room while he's getting it ready.

As Roy said, there's a lot of pouring to be done!

I recommend Mexican or Indian food.

Bad Eric! Bad! Bad!

Oddly enough, my go-to meal before a big tasting is... McDonald's. It's bland and it digests easily. There's one relatively nearby, too, about a 10-15 minute walk south on SE 56th St / NW Sammamish Road at East Lake Sammamish Parkway.

[Eric Ifune]

I'd go with a Wendy's triple cheese and a frosty afterwards.

[Eric Menchen]

McDonald's, Wendy's? No Dick's close by for the Seattle local burger?

[Roy Hersh]

Unfortunately not any of 'em over on this side of the lake, Eric.

Everybody, please do your best (unless you are traveling from out of state) to bring as many Port glasses as you can! Also bring your notebook for taking cogent notes to add after the fact. I will be doing an article on this tasting, fwiw.

[Glenn E.]

Also bring your notebook for taking cogent notes

Or, if you're like me, cogent notes on the first 6-7, then less cogent notes on the next 6-7, then pretty much gibberish on the last 6-7.