Just got home from the third consecutive tsunami-offline (we have named this weekend the Tsunamithon). The wines tonight:


With a different foie gras:
Trimbach 1993 and Kiralyudvar 1999 (leftovers from Friday)

With dinner (horse tenderloin in a portobello cream sauce, young potatoes and green salad):
NV Utrecht tapwater

After dinner:

Gaja 1997 Sperss (Barolo)
Cockburn 1983 Vintage Port
Muller-Catorz 2001 Haardier Mandelring Scheurebe Eiswein (Platz)

What a weekend! Joe and Joe: TNs to follow!

I've editied my post on the second day, because I forgot we also drank the Rosemount GSM 2000.

The tsunami's have just left Utrecht and are on their way to pfalzman now. You and Mandy have fun tonight!

Hey, we made it to 4 pages! Sweet!!!
I'm going to try my hand at tasting notes tonight, so don't make too much fun--it'll be my first "official" (i.e., for the rest of the world to see) reckoning of the beauty of wine . I think we'll be doing a horizontal Shiraz-Viognier tasting, unfortunately with just two bottlings, the 2001 D'Arenberg Laughing Magpie and the 2002 Torbreck The Descendant. Perhaps after that, the 2001 Torbreck The Factor or the 2001 E. Guigal CdP; we'll see...maybe some of the left-for-Pfalzman wines, too. It sounds like a Shiraz night. Maybe we'll finish with a sticky dessert wine, perhaps the 2002 Eitelsbacher Karthaeuserhofberg Riesling Auslese Nr. 33, or J.J. Pruem's '97 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese??? Cheers to the continuation of Tsunamithon and it's many facets .

Soll denn doch getrunken sein,
trinke nur vom besten Wein.
- Goethe

Sounds like another great night! WOW, the magnitute of wines over 3 nights is stunning!

Now you know why the name is "Tsunami" and not "Spilling Breakers"

Pfalzman94: Looks like you have things well thought out and planned! I'm sure Tsunami will not leave disappointed. Have a great evening!

....4 pages! Although I think to get to 5 pages this thread may have to be retitled "Four offlines in Utrecht, Amsterdam & Kaiserslauten!"

It took too much time editing and crosslinking everything, but my TNs are in the Tasting Notes section. Pfalzman94; looking forward to your notes as well!

WOW, what a tsunami-thon is was and WOW 4 pages. I really needed to rest yesterday, was not even in the mood to post TNs. So, they will follow later on today in the TN section.
Pfalzman, I hope you've had a great OL (how can't it be great with Tsunami). Looking forward to your TNs on the wine and diner.

What is this Pfalzman94? Not even a list of wines? You really must have enjoyed yourself!

I hope you're not trying to get this thread to five pages Stevie. You already got more than you asked for. Don't push your luck now!

What are you implying Ronnie?

Whoops, just made another post!

Completely off topic here, but just thought I would bring to your attention the wine of the day for today (14-4) if you haven't looked already!

...and to help Stevie get to 5 pages

Thanks for the tip Joe!
I tried this one on a portuguese wine fair, but I'm not sure it was the same vintage. I know I was impressed by it though!

It's already in the cellar!

Strange, the front page speaks of a 2001 red, but the TN is for the 2000. Ronnie, we tasted it last November.

It's been a full week and nothing posted on this thread....Stevie are you going to let this just drift off into Neverland??

Whatever happed to Pfalzman94? The last we know was he met up with Tsunami over a week ago - now he is missing....Tsunami what have you done to this young man?

Pflazman, Pfalzman, are you out there????

Everyone,

Yes, yes--I am here, and about as worn out as a man could be. I've been at work literally non-stop since Tsunami and Andrea left. It was great, I must admit, but I think they brought with them some sort of "Work until you pass out" bug, a disease no pathologist has yet come across. Strange. What a wonderful night it was, though, and to be quite honest, certain portions of the night have faded from memory. I didn't even have time to write notes because I spent most of the night sitting in astonished amazement at Tsunami's extensive, seemingly limitless knowledge of the wine world. Oh, by the way, he's an incredible cook, too. The lamb we had was simply indescribable, and the white asparagus--straight from a particular French village that sounds like Clarion (I can't recall the exact spelling, but apparently it's the site where the greatest white asparagus is grown...and I believe it wholeheartedly.) I must apologize, though, because this massive shift of responsibility at work has stolen a large majority of my free time, in fact, all the free time I usually spend reading/writing within the confines of our favorite hobby. But I was having withdrawals, so here is some of the "meat" of, uhh, last Tuesday was it? I can't even remember the day...wow, I need a break badly. The wines: Well, I can not express how grateful we are to have had Tsunami and all of you set aside a portion of the wines you tasted so we could indulge as well. 1955 Port, 1989 Gewuerz, 1990 Riesling (Trimbach, no less), and all the others...what can I say. My notes couldn't compare to all the others, but I should say this: My tastes are getting more and more expensive, and oddly enough, I don't mind. In fact, it seems it was meant to be, as Mandy has just been hired into a permanent part-time position starting at nearly $10/hour. Hmmmm, a sign perhaps, direction from above to purchase that 1977 Fonseca for $155.00 and not flinch. Eh, we'll see. Tsunami was kind enough to open a 2000 Henry's Drive Shiraz for dinner, a true testimony to Sparky and Sarah Marquis' future as Australia's preeminent winemakers. I correctly identified the varietal, but I guessed the origins in Barossa Valley. The Henry's Drive is, however, a Padthaway marvel, but at least I got the first part right; I'm making progress. I opened the 2001 Laughing Magpie from D'Arenberg, and boy was it a monster, tannic and youthful to the core with absolutely zero oxidation. I would definitely find this wine (we got it at Henri Bloems) and taste for yourself this monster in its many dimensions, and perhaps buy a second and third bottle to open 5 and 10 years from now--will it even have evolved by then, who knows? But it sure was delicious even on the third day it was open, with really marginal signs of oxidation on the surface and palette both. Well, again, I can't thank you enough, Tsunami and Andrea, and all of the Utrecht/Amsterdam gang for allowing us a peek into the wonderful time you all had in Holland. We also had a wonderful time, and can't wait to visit Switzerland soon and Utrecht/A-dam, too. Unfortunately, I must get ready for another crazy day, but I think I see the light at the end of the tunnel--or is that a train. Who knows, either way, there's always wine. And if this job kills me, I heard they're serving '82 Mouton in Heaven. Hope to see you all soon! Oh, almost forgot--foie gras rocks!!!!!!

Soll denn doch getrunken sein,
trinke nur vom besten Wein.
- Goethe

ohhhhhh,
i see what you ment with:

"pfalzman" dos it"

Pfalzman, It seems like you just had the time of your life (What else can you expect if Tsunami is in the house).
It doesn't really care you don't have TNs, I can read that you enjoyed it very much and that's what count.
Maybe I will drop by at Henri Bloem onces to buy that laughing magpie.

Good for you (and your hobby) that Mandy is earning some more money now. Did she enjoy the day with Tsunami as well???

Pfalzman, glad to hear that you had a great time

Sorry to hear work is keeping your schedule so tied up lately....for a while there I thought Tsunami may have mixed up some of those pharmacutical bottles and gave you something else besides wine

Joe: LOL!

Pfalzman94; glas to see you survived, enjoyed yourself, and that you got to taste some of the great wines we had as well! That d'Arenberg doesn't sound so bad either...I guess I'll have to get me some now! Oh, and congratulate Mandy with her new job for me:

And soooooo, let's discuss the NEXT offline, shall we?

Alright, I'm sneaking in a late night post 'cause that's the only time I've got to fulfill my insatiable need for all things wine.
I am ready to discuss the next OL. Please, of please, pray that it falls on one of my days off.
May 9th is Day of the Open Door at one of our favorite wineries in the Mittelrhein region, Weingut Weingart, which is run by an amazing chap named Florian. Anyway, point being that May 9th happens to be a miracle day as it's the first day of a three-day weekend for me, the first and only substantial time off for me in the whole month of May. And I didn't even have a chance to take the day off; it just happened to be that I had the day off ALREADY! Can you say DI-WINE INTERVENTION (yeah, I came up with that one all by myself: Aren't you proud!?) So, hopefully the streak continues and we'll be free for whatever OL is coming up next...Did someone mention a Cos D OL? Who was that...?

Soll denn doch getrunken sein,
trinke nur vom besten Wein.
- Goethe

If my friends who wear wooden shoes can find some Laughing Magpie, I suggest you buy lots -it is exactly what you guys like in a New World red - big, chewy, mouthfilling, wonderful. See my and others' TNs.

This is an imperfect analogy, but think of Rosemount GSM on steroids!

Bruins rule! (please!!!!)

Horse?

Not that there's anything wrong with that but....... Is it any better than beef/lamb/deer, etc. ???

Feining ignorence, but I have yet to see any butcher in Canada selling horse.....

Stevie, I knew you would keep this thread alive somehow Of course, another OL!

Pfalzman, unfortunately I won't be around the week of May 9th - I'll be in Greece . But don't let that stop you and the others from getting together for an OL if it can be arranged!

I think we were going to try the Cos OL sometime later this year when I should be able to add a couple more vintages to the lineup. We could do it sooner rather than later but it would probably not be as thorough as if we wait.

Baird: It was the first time I tried horse. I must say I didn't know what to expect, but was quite suprised how good it was (of course Tsunami has great sources for food). It was very tasty and extremely tender meat, with no unpleasant flavors - with a great Port reduction sauce. A lot like the Impala I had a few years ago in Africa.

i have to have an impala!!



btw,
we have time this weekend

tsunami, unfortunately a bit too short notice...don't think I'll be able to make it to the Dark Side on time!

Joe, I agree: let's keep the CdE-offline sometime later (I'd like to get some other vintages as well). And we still have to have a German and a Spanish offline, now don't we?