Alright, I know we have not yet had tasting #4, but we planned two at a time the last go 'round, and it seems to have worked. In fact, I wonder if we want to just recommend a regular schedule since there is at least a core group who seem interested in doing this regularly. We can arrange and announce details as the time gets closer, but at least we would know the schedule to plan against. I'd recommend "last weekend of odd-numbered months" and look at bumping forward or backward a week if there is a holiday conflict.

Anyway, Since we appear to be on a two-month rotation, Here are dates in the right time frame (and my availability)

7/19
7/26
8/2 - JW (?)
8/9 - JW (?)
8/16 - JW

We need a host (Loweeel and Hershelk have been graceful hosts for the first 4 -- anyone else want to step up?)

Do we need a theme?

jwhite6114 wrote:Alright, I know we have not yet had tasting #4, but we planned two at a time the last go 'round, and it seems to have worked.

you guys need a 12-step program.

themostrighteous wrote:you guys need a 12-step program.

Well, if we meet every other month, it will only take us two years to cover all 12 steps. Are you suggesting we do it faster?

jwhite6114 wrote:Alright, I know we have not yet had tasting #4, but we planned two at a time the last go 'round, and it seems to have worked. In fact, I wonder if we want to just recommend a regular schedule since there is at least a core group who seem interested in doing this regularly. We can arrange and announce details as the time gets closer, but at least we would know the schedule to plan against. I'd recommend "last weekend of odd-numbered months" and look at bumping forward or backward a week if there is a holiday conflict.

Anyway, Since we appear to be on a two-month rotation, Here are dates in the right time frame (and my availability)

7/19
7/26
8/2 - JW (?)
8/9 - JW (?)
8/16 - JW

We need a host (Loweeel and Hershelk have been graceful hosts for the first 4 -- anyone else want to step up?)

Do we need a theme?

I am happy to host 7/12 (6 weeks is fine by me!), 7/19, or 7/26. I am out of town for 8/12, 8/9, and 8/16, and will be unable to either attend or host on those dates.

Theme could be "Branching out" aka "Woot siblings" -- other wines from woot.producers or other vintages of the same wine that we've had. Could also set up some nice verticals.

Loweeel wrote:Theme could be "Branching out" aka "Woot siblings" -- other wines or other vintages of the same wine that we've had. Could also set up some nice verticals.

Nice! I like this "branching out" idea.

Once again I am going to suggest that we limit the bottles we pop for tasting. It not only helps with driving, but also with tasting (so we don't get so much that we cannot distinguish or remember the differences).

That's all!

jwhite6114 wrote:Nice! I like this "branching out" idea.

Once again I am going to suggest that we limit the bottles we pop for tasting. It not only helps with driving, but also with tasting (so we don't get so much that we cannot distinguish or remember the differences).

That's all!

seriously, SPITTING is your friend, man! THAT helps w/ the driving more than limiting the number of bottles & it certainly does NOT limit the fun. i cannot speak for you or your palate, but i think that most CWWT#2 attendees had no trouble distinguishing the 20+ wines that we tasted that evening, and most everybody was spitting. for your consideration.

I just wanted to introduce myself to the DC / NoVA group. I'm a big lurker but don't post often. I'm looking forward to being able to come to tasting #5 and can make any of those weekends.

Unbelievable. I live so close to Loweel that I could crawl back to my Satellite of Love if necessary...and yet I've missed every single tasting due to conflicts.

Sadly, this tasting is no exception - I'll be out of town for the weekend. What a shame! Sparkling wines are my absolute favorite. And I've just received my Schramsburg wine club shipment: a very promising 2001 Reserve and a 1997 Late Disgorged Blanc de Blanc.

I'd volunteer them for tasting #5, but there's NO WAY that they'll make it through the end of July - I follow the Tour de France fanatically, and habitually mark the big mountain stages by sipping champagne and yelling at the television.

The up side of this devotion to the Tour is that I politely decline all invitations for out-of-town travel during the month of July, so if the tasting is the 19th or the 26th, I'll probably be here. And will gladly bring a sparkler, or something else if you prefer.

Regretfully, I'l be out of town for all dates in August.

themostrighteous wrote:seriously, SPITTING is your friend, man! THAT helps w/ the driving more than limiting the number of bottles & it certainly does NOT limit the fun. i cannot speak for you or your palate, but i think that most CWWT#2 attendees had no trouble distinguishing the 20+ wines that we tasted that evening, and most everybody was spitting. for your consideration.

Ain't nobody spittin' in DC.

kkv123 wrote:Unbelievable. I live so close to Loweel that I could crawl back to my Satellite of Love if necessary...and yet I've missed every single tasting due to conflicts.

Sadly, this tasting is no exception - I'll be out of town for the weekend. What a shame! Sparkling wines are my absolute favorite. And I've just received my Schramsburg wine club shipment: a very promising 2001 Reserve and a 1997 Late Disgorged Blanc de Blanc.

I'd volunteer them for tasting #5, but there's NO WAY that they'll make it through the end of July - I follow the Tour de France fanatically, and habitually mark the big mountain stages by sipping champagne and yelling at the television.

The up side of this devotion to the Tour is that I politely decline all invitations for out-of-town travel during the month of July, so if the tasting is the 19th or the 26th, I'll probably be here. And will gladly bring a sparkler, or something else if you prefer.

Regretfully, I'l be out of town for all dates in August.

Well, July it is then!

jwhite6114 wrote:Ain't nobody spittin' in DC.

Well, it DID work pretty well in Chicago....

kkv123 wrote:Unbelievable. I live so close to Loweel that I could crawl back to my Satellite of Love if necessary...and yet I've missed every single tasting due to conflicts.

Sadly, this tasting is no exception - I'll be out of town for the weekend. What a shame! Sparkling wines are my absolute favorite. And I've just received my Schramsburg wine club shipment: a very promising 2001 Reserve and a 1997 Late Disgorged Blanc de Blanc.

I'd volunteer them for tasting #5, but there's NO WAY that they'll make it through the end of July - I follow the Tour de France fanatically, and habitually mark the big mountain stages by sipping champagne and yelling at the television.

The up side of this devotion to the Tour is that I politely decline all invitations for out-of-town travel during the month of July, so if the tasting is the 19th or the 26th, I'll probably be here. And will gladly bring a sparkler, or something else if you prefer.

Regretfully, I'l be out of town for all dates in August.

Also, feel free to invite yourself over (or at least inquire what I'm doing) on other nights. I hate drinking alone, but I like wine enough that I do it a lot anyway

Loweeel wrote:Well, July it is then!

I may have trouble making July:
7/12 is the eve of my wife's b-day, and we leave for a camping trip on 7/14 (so we'll be busy)
7/19 we'll just be getting back, but on 7/20 (7:00AM) I'll be on a plane to SFO for the RPM Mystery Tour
7/26 I'll just be back from CA, and SWMBO won't likely be happy if I skip out again on Sat evening

If it is July, I may have to miss again.

jwhite6114 wrote:I may have trouble making July:
7/12 is the eve of my wife's b-day, and we leave for a camping trip on 7/14 (so we'll be busy)
7/19 we'll just be getting back, but on 7/20 (7:00AM) I'll be on a plane to SFO for the RPM Mystery Tour
7/26 I'll just be back from CA, and SWMBO won't likely be happy if I skip out again on Sat evening

If it is July, I may have to miss again.

You can sleep on the plane to SFO. I'll even give you an Ambien

jwhite6114 wrote:Ain't nobody spittin' in DC.

that sounds more manly man than it really is. at the end of the day, it's a simple choice: drink less of more wines or more of less wines. it all depends on what your goal for the tasting is. for me, it's pretty clear: i'd rather walk away w/ an impression of more wines (ie the former) to add to my tasting memory. but YMMCV.

Loweeel wrote:Also, feel free to invite yourself over (or at least inquire what I'm doing) on other nights. I hate drinking alone, but I like wine enough that I do it a lot anyway

How very neighborly! Thanks, I'll have to do that. None of my current neighbors are particularly into wine...a fact I discovered when I opened an ancient Zin that was so wondrous that my enjoyment of it could be enhanced only by sharing. Open bottle in hand, I knocked on the nearest two doors and inquired if anyone wanted a glass. No takers. Inconceivable!

Loweeel wrote:You can sleep on the plane to SFO. I'll even give you an Ambien

Were I single this is exactly what I'd do (sans Ambien). On the night before I leave on a solo four-day vacation though, I am afraid I will not be able to slip away from the family. Especially hard to say, "before I go visit a dozen CA wineries I need to go taste some wines here in VA."

Alas, July will just not work for me.

themostrighteous wrote:that sounds more manly man than it really is. at the end of the day, it's a simple choice: drink less of more wines or more of less wines. it all depends on what your goal for the tasting is. for me, it's pretty clear: i'd rather walk away w/ an impression of more wines (ie the former) to add to my tasting memory. but YMMCV.

Manly nuthin'. Just haven't seen anyone do it in DC. Maybe they did at #3, and we're on the path to Righteousness ().

jwhite6114 wrote:Manly nuthin'. Just haven't seen anyone do it in DC. Maybe they did at #3, and we're on the path to Righteousness ().

why, grasshoppa', the path to greater understanding of the fruit of vitis vinifera & the path to Righteousness are one & the same.

Loweeel wrote:Well, July it is then!

My schedule is open for any of those dates in July.

jwhite6114 wrote:Manly nuthin'. Just haven't seen anyone do it in DC. Maybe they did at #3, and we're on the path to Righteousness ().

We did it at 3, and I think it was much more manageable. Most of us also skipped a wine or 2 on the first go-round. I think between that and CWWT#2, I actually prefer it that way. You sort of mark what you want, and then come back to it. It also gives you a chance to see how the wine has evolved since your first sip, and offers the opportunity to savor and have with food rather than merely taste.

Loweeel wrote:Well, July it is then!

I can do any weekend in July. I was going to go to the SuperLiga game on the 19th but haven't heard back from Rec Services if they are going to get tickets. So this becomes priority #1.

I will also be doing the N.V. Taltarni Brut Tache (i.e., Rose) as well. Perhaps my favorite QPR sparkler (as I will almost always prefer a rose to a white, and a blanc de noirs to a blanc de blancs)

Is there anyone in the NoVA region who would be willing to accept a package of this week's wine.woot offering for me? PM me if possible. I didn't even look before I leapt into ordering, and it turns out they aren't shipping to DC. Please help! I know this isn't really the right place to ask, but I figure this is all people from our area. I can't make this tasting, I have work.

phillica78 wrote:Is there anyone in the NoVA region who would be willing to accept a package of this week's wine.woot offering for me? PM me if possible. I didn't even look before I leapt into ordering, and it turns out they aren't shipping to DC. Please help! I know this isn't really the right place to ask, but I figure this is all people from our area. I can't make this tasting, I have work.

Wow, they must have changed it. I was in initially, because DC was originally a ship-to state, and my order went through. JWhite might be the logical bet (as he's NoVA -- CJ's a bit further afield); I would, but I work in DC and live in a NoVA townhouse, so there's no package service for me during the day.

I can.

I live in Clarendon, just off the metro, in a condo building whose management staff takes grate care of my wine shipments. Unbeknownst to me, when a full case was delivered to a neighboring building by mistake at mid-day, they hoofed on over to retrieve it rather than having me wait for redelivery the following day. When I arrived Satellite of Love, my package was waiting.

I'm at work now and hopping into a meeting, but if you PM me I'll get back to you this evening.

phillica78 wrote:Is there anyone in the NoVA region who would be willing to accept a package of this week's wine.woot offering for me? PM me if possible. I didn't even look before I leapt into ordering, and it turns out they aren't shipping to DC. Please help! I know this isn't really the right place to ask, but I figure this is all people from our area. I can't make this tasting, I have work.

Count me as a backup if necessary, but it sounds like KKV has you covered. L -- you, too if for some reason your order bounces back.

KKV, JW -- Thanks! You guys r0x0r.

So I'm not starting another thread, yet, but I am bummed that we just started planning #5 and already I am not going to be able to make it.

Is everyone sure that they can't go for 8/2 timeframe instead of July? I'm currently scheduled to be travelling for work during July - no dates as of yet, but it will be at least 10 days and it will be in Europe. I think that 8/2 is a more realistic do for me.

cjsiege wrote:Is everyone sure that they can't go for 8/2 timeframe instead of July? I'm currently scheduled to be travelling for work during July - no dates as of yet, but it will be at least 10 days and it will be in Europe. I think that 8/2 is a more realistic do for me.

Absolutely sure I cannot do any of the first 3 weekends in August. I will be on the west coast.

I was among those who got "the call" today informing me that Penfolds can't be sent to DC where I work and live. So I too need a goodhearted Virginia wootlegger. I live on Capitol Hill so someone in Arlington or Alexandria (or other close-to-DC locale) would be ideal.

If anyone would be kind enough to volunteer to receive my order for me, I'd greatly appreciate it!

smartheart wrote:I was among those who got "the call" today informing me that Penfolds can't be sent to DC where I work and live. So I too need a goodhearted Virginia wootlegger. I live on Capitol Hill so someone in Arlington or Alexandria (or other close-to-DC locale) would be ideal.

If anyone would be kind enough to volunteer to receive my order for me, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Although I don't live in Arlington or Alexandria (I live in Woodbridge but work in Crystal City), I am a certified wootlegger and be happy to help anyone out. Just pm me if interested.

Loweel, Philica78, and Smartheart

Please check your PM, where you'll find my wootleging contact info.

Also a willing wootlegger, I get mine delivered here at work in Tysons Corner.

jwhite6114 wrote:
Once again I am going to suggest that we limit the bottles we pop for tasting. It not only helps with driving, but also with tasting (so we don't get so much that we cannot distinguish or remember the differences).
That's all!

On the contrary, let's do Magnums.

Thank you, kkv, for helping with my Penfolds. And thank you to the others who volunteered. We have a g r e a t community here on wine.woot, don't we?

I may be available for some of these, depending on family stuffs. I'm already planning on being in the area in August, just unsure which weekend at this point.

tripgrad wrote:On the contrary, let's do Magnums.

Heh! I say Jeroboams!