NEW YEARS EVE PORTS and other wines ...

[Roy Hersh]

It is time to relax the rules ... IN THIS THREAD ONLY ... and allow all who'd like to post, mention the wines they are planning to open, or even after the fact ... what they had the opportunity to taste.

Of course first and foremost we'd prefer to read about your Port, Douro wines & Madeira ... but hey, on this occasion ... anything goes, so please do feel free to share whatever it is you are planning to eat/drink and share with friends, loved ones or even if you are spending the night alone.

Although it is a day early ... I want to wish you all a wonderful celebration and may all of your bottles show beautifully. There's NO TCA allowed on New Years Eve!!!

I hope you all have a fantastic 2011, filled with a plethora of great "buys" and amazing bottles that you'll never forget. But more importantly, I hope you'll all enjoy a year filled with great HEALTH, friends and family. What else matters?

So please do share; this should be fun and the ability to mention that special Claret, or Champagne or whatever you are going to be enjoying ... right here, is going to make for a great read. Have at it ... and have fun!

Best wishes to all of you from the FTLOP Team.

Cheers!

[Roy Hersh]

OK then, I'll go first and hope others will chime in.

I have a 1994 Chalone Reserve Chard to go with cheese and aps.

Moving in to the dining room, we will begin with a first course of broccoli/cheddar soup, followed by a 2nd course of seared scallops. Both will be accompanied by a Magnum of 1988 Henriot Rose Champagne.

The entree is a Rib Eye roast cut into "Delmonico" steaks and adorned with sauteed onions and portobella mushrooms, with a side of greens and my wife's contribution which will be her legendary mushroom bread pudding w/ Port reduction sauce. We are going with a Napa Cab and a WA Bdx Blend to pair with the entree. 1996 Mount Veeder Napa Cabernet and a 2002 Cadence, "Ciel du Cheval Vineyard" Bordeaux blend.

For dessert, good old apple pie and 1970 Taylor's Vintage Port. I chose that because the couple joining us with their daughter (my daughter's best friend) the wife was born in 1970 and ... this is one of my favorite Vintage Ports on earth!

[John M.]

Happy New Year to all! We're going to a party tonight and a few of my port friends will be there...we've got modest port plans with a 2005 Taylor LBV and either a Graham's Six-Grapes or a Niepoort Ruby for the second bottle.

[Moses Botbol]

Been working on a 1968 D'Oliveiras Boal we opened on Wed. We each had a glass, then a glass yesterday. Tonight, there's half a bottle that'll be finished. Not sure what the wine line up tonight is. Could be a 5L Italian wine if there's a crowd. More to come...

[Kurt Wieneke]

My wife and I will be going out to dinner New Years night, and hopefully savoring a bottle of 2002 Louis Jadot Puligny-Montrachet, Domaine Duc du Magenta, Clos de la Garenne.

[Sandy Becker]

We're visiting friends tonight and will be bringing a 1999 Mouton Rothschild, a 2005 K Vintners The Boy Grenache and an Andresen 20 year Tawny.

Happy new year to all of you. I hope 2011 is all you want it to be.

[Chris G]

Started the evening with a bottle of J+B Anniversary Champagne, sadly corked! Onto the next bottle!
Port Pintas 2005

[Andy Velebil]

I'm working tonight and tomorrow night so none for me....sunday though

[Roy Hersh]

Sorry to hear that Andy. I do understand though, as I probably have worked 15 New Years Eve's whilst working in hotel and restaurant management.

Hey, I hope you'll find time to put in your top Ports of 2010. I don't remember seeing your listing. Be safe out on the road tonight ... especially if you're on your motorcycle!

[Andy Velebil]

Sorry to hear that Andy. I do understand though, as I probably have worked 15 New Years Eve's whilst working in hotel and restaurant management.

Hey, I hope you'll find time to put in your top Ports of 2010. I don't remember seeing your listing. Be safe out on the road tonight ... especially if you're on your motorcycle!

Opps, yeah I keep forgetting to add my list in. No small task as this year I think I tasted more wines/ports than any previous years. I've got four tasting books full of notes to search through

[Roy Hersh]

No surprise there. Take your time and have fun compiling your list. I am doing the same but it won't get posted until the upcoming newsletter gets published?

[Eric Ifune]

Also working New Years, so celebrated a few days ago.
Had a 85 Salon and a 83 Guigal Hermitage. Both quite nice, especially the Salon. More like a petillant white burgundy. The Hermitage was fully mature and really opened with aeration.
Will open a 20 year old Ficklin tawny from California and a 25 year old JM Fonseca Setubal later.

[Bob Parsons Alberta]

Was working but finished with Luis Pato sparkling Baga!!

[Richard Henderson]

How about a 1988 Cristal and a 1983 Lafite on New Years Day to celebrate TCU's win in the Rose Bowl!

[Eric Menchen]

At the risk of stretching Roy's leeway past the breaking point:
- An imperial IPA, I don't remember the brand
- Lefthand Brewing Fade to Black #2, a smoked Baltic porter
- Whiskey Barrel Imperial Stout, brewed by me and others
- Unibroue Quelque Chose, a Belgian style with cherries; probably my BOTN
- a Belgian wit, I don't remember the brand
- a Muscato d'Asti

There are sparkling ales with carbonation to the level of champagne, but we switched to the muscato and a cava around midnight.

[Russ K]

here is the list: oh my....

Opened the night off with a crown rocks, standard fair for me, at cocktail hour.
With dinner (lobster tails, morrocan chicken stew, and veggies) we had a Moscato D'Asti, sweetness did well against the spicy / salty olive Morrocan Stew
After dinner, 2000 Niepoort Secundum (tasting notes posted)
After that, se got into the high end liquor in the cellar...small tastes
15 Year Bowmore Darkest
18 yr Jameson Irish
12 yr Glenmorangie D'Or
12 Yr Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban
Crown Royal Black
Crown Royal Cask 16
Goslings Old Rum
14 yr Oban
Finally, we had 2004 Tugwell Creek Meadery Wassail Gold. Beautiful sweet dessert mead.

[Roy Hersh]

OK, I can put up with (just kidding of course) the Ale guy's post, but now we have to deal with MEAD!?!?! Really.

[Daniel R.]

Murganheira Super Reserva 2005 (while cooking)
Quinta das Bágeiras Garrafeira 2000 (with roast stuffed goose)
Ferreira 20 year Duque de Bragança to welcome the new year

[Eric Ifune]

The JM Fonseca 25 year old Setubal, bottled 1978.
Tee-type closure. Both tartrate and fine sediment.
Green-tinged amber color. Sweet, grapy muscat aromas. Sweet and rich on the palate. Simple at first, with aeration gained spiciness and complexity. Good acidic balance and a nice long finish. If Tawny Port used muscat grapes, it would be like this. Not as complex as some other Setubals I've had, but still nice. I'd give it 92 points.

[Russ K]

OK, I can put up with (just kidding of course) the Ale guy's post, but now we have to deal with MEAD!?!?! Really.

hey not your ordinary stuff....take the ferry up to Victoria and see for yourself!
I had to list it all out...cause we didnt drink much wine...

Oh and I forgot , we had a nice chamapgne at midnight from....COSTCO! Kirkland...