FTLOP 11th Anniversary Tasting, July 23-24, 2016, Sammamish

[Bradley Bogdan]

Any suggestions for places to book a room? Is the Holiday Inn still the safest bet or is there likely to be another location more convenient this year?


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[Glenn E.]

Any suggestions for places to book a room? Is the Holiday Inn still the safest bet or is there likely to be another location more convenient this year?


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Roy just finalized the venue this afternoon. We will be at the Holiday Inn both days, so that's easily the most convenient place to stay.

[Bradley Bogdan]

Wonderful, thanks!


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[Glenn E.]

I just added a note to this effect to the first post, but in case you're not referring back to that post any more...

If you do stay at the Holiday Inn please let us know. We can use that information in future negotiations with the hotel - "see how much business we bring you!"

[Glenn E.]

Some minor changes in the attendance list. Sandy won't be able to make it on Sunday, and Ruth won't be joining us on Saturday. But chef Steve will be taking Sandy's spot on Sunday so we're still at 12!

Remember to bring $40 for the Nacional. Steve is covering a big chunk of it as his bottle, and we'll split the rest. It was a steal of a deal!

[Edgar B.]

The best rate I could get at the Holiday Inn was $202/night.. I can't believe they have gone up so much. Does anyone know anything about airbnb in the area? I've never used it so know nothing.

Thanks,

Ed

[Eric Menchen]

The best rate I could get at the Holiday Inn was $202/night..

That is a bit shocking, but summer in Seattle is quite a bit more expensive than winter. I remember being shocked last year as I looked for a room for the 10th.

[Glenn E.]

The tasting is fast approaching! Just to reiterate, here's the info:

We have the room each day (Saturday and Sunday) from noon - 8:00 pm at the Holiday Inn Issaquah. We plan to start the tasting(s) at about 1:00 pm. There are people who need to leave promptly both days (7:00 or 7:30) so we will do our best to stay on schedule. Please arrive at noon if you will be bringing your bottle with you. 12:30 is fine if you have pre-shipped your bottles to Roy or me.

We have not made any arrangements for dinner on Saturday or Sunday night, so people will be on their own each evening. People can set something up in the moment if they'd like to. There are numerous good restaurants in Issaquah... just not any that can handle 12-16 people all at once. Thus the "on your own" setup.

Locals who have glasses - please remember to bring them! Also, please show up at noon each day for setup.

If you would like (and I recommend that you do), please bring your 1966 VP to the Saturday event to hand off to Roy or me. That way we can decant it for you for Sunday's tasting.

Holiday Inn Seattle-Issaquah
1801 12th Ave NW, Issaquah, WA 98027
(425) 392-6421
Google Maps

[Andy Velebil]

Really looking forward to seeing everyone. Are we there yet?

[Don B.]

I have reserved at the motel 6 which is about 200 meters from the holiday inn. Half the price. Close enough for a wobbly walk back after the tasting.

[Andy Velebil]

I have reserved at the motel 6 which is about 200 meters from the holiday inn. Half the price. Close enough for a wobbly walk back after the tasting.

Are you sure? There is always Uber

[David Spriggs]

I'm also at the Motel6. It's not fancy, but it has a bed.... so it works! It does have the remodeled rooms, so that's better than the basic old Motel6.
-Dave-

[Bradley Bogdan]

Anyone interested in sharing transport from The airport to issaquah Friday and Monday?


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[Bradley Bogdan]

I'll be arriving Friday morning and leaving mid morning Monday and will have a rental car, so if anyone could use a pickup, let me know. PM me and I'll shoot you an email or phone # and we can work out details.


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[Bradley Bogdan]

If anyone is interested in meeting up for dinner this evening (Friday) shoot me a PM. I'll be free after about 5:30 and am willing to travel to meet wherever.


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[Jeff A.]

Thank you all for a wonderful time today. Samara and I were able to taste some great wines and enjoyed seeing some folks we'd met before, and meeting some new faces. Have a great time tomorrow!

[Glenn E.]

Glad the two of you could join us!

[Bradley Bogdan]

A wonderful weekend. Many thanks to Glenn and Roy for their efforts to bring the event together and the rest of the attendees for bringing some wonderful wines and insights! I can't wait to do this again next time!


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[Glenn E.]

Thanks to everyone who attended and made it a special event. We couldn't put these on without the generosity (and deep cellars!) of the people who attend, because you're the ones who bring the Port!

Some amazing wines both days. Quite a bit of talk on Sunday about the last flight possibly being the best flight of VP that many in attendance had ever had. Swap the Croft for the Graham or Dow from the previous flight, and I suspect even more people would have been saying it.

(For the record, it was 1966 Croft, Taylor, Fonseca, and Nacional.)

This was the first truly amazing Nacional that I've ever had. Finally!

[Glenn E.]

By the way, I've been chatting with Jeff Ghi about the 1977 J.W. Morris, and he recalled seeing an article about early California ports.

It was published in the New York Times in 1981!

http://www.nytimes.com/1981/10/11/magaz ... ornia.html

Of note:
"J.W. Morris made a 1975 [California port] from one-third zinfandel, one-third petite sirah and one-third ruby cabernet."

The 1977 we had was likely a similar blend, though also likely not exactly the same.