Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts

As most know Alfred and Melanie Tesseron of Pontet Canet purchased Robin Williams house and vineyard in Napa. I wonder if we could rent it out for the Saturday event and carter the dinner? Don't we have connections with him? We could also have a PC vs. Califorina opening event. Just a thought.


Bill

Yes we have considered that and will follow up on it, although I think Alfred will be in Bordeaux that time of year.

You stole my idea from previous post.

And I feel we have to do this, even if it is Thursday or Friday instead of Saturday.

Nic

I'm curious about travelling cross-country with bottles of aged Bordeaux.
Won't they need to rest for up to a week after such vigorous shaking as is bound to occur?
I'm thinking of picking up something from the Merryvale cellar instead of bringing bottles along with me.

Chris, we've had a few west coast conventions and traveling with older Bordeaux didn't seem to be a problem from the bottles I tasted.

The other option you have is to ship the wines you are planning to bring to someone out in Cali that is planning on attending the convention provided that we are still able to ship into Cali and then you can allow for the desired settling time. Might also help to frequent a store that ships as that is what I would do if I was concerned about that.

I remember when we drove cross country from Maine to SF for the Napa '02 convention, we brought a number of bottles that seemed to survive the trip quite well.

jckba wrote:The other option you have is to ship the wines you are planning to bring to someone out in Cali that is planning on attending the convention provided that we are still able to ship into Cali and then you can allow for the desired settling time. Might also help to frequent a store that ships as that is what I would do if I was concerned about that.

My local store might be able to ship for me, and I know people in the general area who could probably receive it for me.
But I'm not taking the chance on shipping it myself.

Or you could buy something from various brokers/firms who have big operations in Napa, and just take delivery locally.

Benchmark, Milton Road Trading Co., WineBid, BPW, etc. are just a few of the wine brokering operations right there with deep Bordeaux selections.

There's probably more but those names off the top of my head.

While it sounds like a great idea, we should be conscious that it is really a residence, not a chateau designed for accommodating large groups.

Here is a video of the property.

https://vimeo.com/114632759

A 1991 Napa Cab vs 1989 or 1990 Medoc would be fun to do. Something like that. We've got nearly 5 months to plan! Exciting.

I like it!

I think the oldest bottle currently in my cellar is a 2007 vintage Napa Valley Bordeaux blend.
If my friend with the cellar of 80's Bordeaux comes thru I'll have something else good.

I got confirmation last night from my liquor store owner. He'll ship a box to CA for me if I want.
He thinks bottles of good wine should rest at least a week or two after a plane ride.

You're right Tim, probably not suitable for a dinner. Oh well.

RC,

Bottle shock much talked about but I must say I've taken bottles around the world and have not expeienced a sigificant difference. Sediment may be an issue and shaking it up during travel for some may pose a problem with a cloudy wine and yes it would be nice to allow bottle to stand upright for a few days before opening but not a big issue. Heat I'm more concerned about than anything. I think it's way over blown. How many hundreds of bottles have been shared over the previous 16 BWE conventions alone with wines coming from everywhere and has there been a noticeable compaint. I think not.

I think bottle shock is a myth.
We have been bringing bottles to BWE conventions from out of state for 17 years, it has never been an issue.

I guess I should plan on getting a Winecheck during the next Berserkerdays then.

Bordeaux is quite robust to travel in my experience too. Old nebbiolo is another matter, however-- those wines can have so much super fine sediment that the wine turns to mud when stirred up and it can take weeks to settle.

Personally I think the younger wines travel better, but Bordeaux is tough stuff.

Agreed on the nebbiolo, taking them to tastings is vexing.

I much prefer to open really old wines at home where they'e been able to be stood up and have been still for a few days.

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I can't say that I love the place, but most of the time when we go to wine country for fun or industry conferences (Its popular for that in NorCal) we stay at the DoubleTree - Rohnert Park. Hotel prices in that area are out of control, but that's one of the safer plays for a bad hand. One ends up doing a lot of driving when visiting the area no matter what so I don't think its that big of a deal to be outside of the Sonoma Sq. or fanciest Napa towns. And if you are a Hilton Gold or Diamond level member, their breakfast buffet is gratis, and its out of control.

What about arranging a group rate somewhere and encouraging the participants to all stay at the same hotel?
It looks like the off-season room rates go thru the end of March.

If we were going to Tahoe, I know someone who owns a small hotel.

Tahoe is certainly closer for me but March is still snow season.

How many people can stay at the Robin place? Would it take all of us? Can anyone ask Alfred?

I have a friend that owns a big house (with a pool) in Napa that he rents out for a week (or maybe even 3 day weekend). It might only take 10 people but I'll ask for details.

Michael-P

Bottle shock has been an issue for me, but only for really old bottles. I brought a 1937 Beaune from Bouchard to a tasting via plane, and the bottle was completely destroyed by the time it landed. The sediment was terrible. Would have needed a week to settle. (Plus it leaked from the difference in pressure). I've learned that a) don't bring bottles that have thrown a lot of sediment and b) don't bring bottles that have large ullage.

That being said, the 1950 Lynch Bages that I brought to one of the Washington conventions ended up stellar.

Most of us stayed at the Jack London Lodge one year. It was basic but good. We also had the Saturday dinner there if I remember correctly.

Yes that was Sonoma '06, that was a fun trip.
The accommodations were rustic but nice.
I remember we had 75 people at that convention, I seem to remember they accommodated us well for that Saturday night dinner.

For those that want to see how the Tesseron estate wines in Napa were before he starts working on them, the grapes in them were bottled up in Robert Craig's Howell Mtn bottling. Not the Affinity nor base cabernet wines, but their special Howell Mtn one. I've not had it but its is out there. Usually something like $80 or so.

I don't like how old wines perform after international travel. I am very reluctant to take pre 1986 wines abroad. I have had problems even with 1982s.

At the Decanter tasting I had a chat with Phil Ross at Diamond Creek. His 2013 cabs were sensational.

I discussed BWE with him. He would be very amenable to a visit.

Here's what my friend said about his house in Napa (within the Napa Valley Country Club area). Although it makes things very easy, I wonder if enough of us to take it, would want to be so close to each other for 3 days straight!

My house has 8 bedrooms. One of the larger bedrooms has 2 beds, so a total of 9 beds. I have a 2 bedroom guest house and a 1 bedroom guest house with a total of 3 beds. So 11 rooms 12 beds. Would be $3000.00 per night. We have had dinners for 22 to 24.

Michael-P