Paulee 2019

Just exchanged emails with the organizers. Tickets to go on sale 25th with AMEX pre-sale on Jan 10th. They updated the website with updated list winemakers. A few names I was most looking forward to are no longer coming (Faiveley, Duroche), but still a few names I am looking forward to. Am told pricing is ~$350 for the Grand Tasting and $450 for the Verticals Tasting.

FYI: This is up for Amex holders.

I just looked at the list of winemakers and I am extremely disappointed. I didn’t attend last year but I remember tasting at the 2017 verticals: Roumier, Rousseau, d’Angerville, Lambrays, Bize, Lafarge, Faively, Bonneau du Matray all of which will not be attending this year. And this is off the top of my head. I’m probably forgetting some!!!

I’ve gone to every La Paulee for about the past 15yrs. I think this year’s Verticals has taken a significant step back. In the past, I always thought NYC drew a stronger field of producers than SF due to the travel challenges. This year the first thing I noticed was basically ‘where have all the grand cru gone?’ In 2017 Rousseau poured CdlR 2010-12, Roumier Bonnes Mares 2006-08, Bonneaud du Martray was Corton Charlie 2008/9/11, Mugneret-Gibourg Ech 2006/10/12, Drouhin Bonnes Mares 2002/9/11, Clos Lambrays 2008-10, d’Angerville Clos des Ducs 2006/9/11, Perrot-Minot Mazoyeres Chambertin 2010-12, Faiveley Latricieres 2007/10/12, Duroche Charmes Chambertin 2005/06/08

I will still go this year, and next year will be interesting since it will be back to back in NYC, but I am disappointed with this year’s lineup. Frankly, had I not been so many times I don’t know that I would be really set back, but the tastings in the past were at a higher level. It seems like the in the past few years the price has gone up and the length of the tasting has gotten shorter so it is tougher to taste the room.

Some of the dinners look pretty epic, but the freight is pretty epic as well.

One small correction here-Lafarge was not there in 2017. But you are totally on point.

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I always look forward to attending the Grand Tasting in NYC and have done so for the last 4-5 NYC based Paulees. I was coming here to make the exact same comment regarding the Grand Tasting. The tasting will probably sell out and I’ll probably end up pulling the trigger, but $375 feels pretty steep for this line-up. Maybe I just need to look at it as an expensive opportunity to try some producers I’m less familiar with.

Probably 2015 although seems more recent. Verticals are a definite pass for me this year.

Where did you hear that SF won’t be hosting next year? What a bummer for us west coast folks if that is indeed true…

pretty sure 2020 is the 25th anniversary so they were going to do it in NYC. That is what a few regular vigneron told me. I gave up the Sat dinner a long long time ago as I had a hard time with the BYOB price. Back then I had thought the funds went to charity, but I’ve been told since then I was mistaken. If it was a $1,500 charity dinner that would be one thing, but since it is not I’d rather attend a smaller dinner/offline bring great wines and have the evening to explore them rather than the gang bang on Sat night. All that said, I may do it in 2020 for posterity sake.

The trend is no doubt due to the rising value of these bottles. Just a couple years ago it seems like DRC and Roumier were about half the price they are now. Ditto for shares of Amazon. They’ve kept the grand tasting and verticals pricing increases fairly modest, but because of that, quality had to go down. It doesn’t make much financial sense (let alone effort) for the top domaines to be there when their wines are selling out briskly anyway.

Mugneret-Gibourg, H. Lignier…not so shabby. I admit, no GC in the verticals, at least not with these producers, but I still look forward to quietly checking out what is on offer. (Drouhin is doing Griotte, no?)

$450 to taste 06, 08, 16 Chaignots and 07, 11, 13 Combottes vs MG Echezeaux and Lignier Clos de la Roche last time. Yeah…I don’t think so.

Robert, that argument would make sense if it were the organizers buying the wine-but I’m pretty sure they do not. To your point about wines selling out briskly-it is pretty remarkable that they still get the number of high-quality producers to attend as they do. It is not like MG or Hudelot-Noellat need any help in selling their wines.

As I said, this year I’m still in for both the verticals and the grand tasting. If I were local it might be a different matter, but if I am going to get on a plane for it then the time at the Verticals is still worth for me…but just barely. Another modest complaint is the Verticals session is now at 10am, in the past I believe it was in the afternoon, then they added the am session, then they got rid of the pm session. When it was in the afternoon I could fly in that am, now with the morning time slot, you have to come in the night before. Also, I’d rather be tasting wines at 1-4pm than at 10am

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I wonder if some producers are not attending because the grand tasting is for the 2016 vintage and so many producers have so little to sell. Also, while it is true that a number of excellent producers are not coming, they do have some new big names (at least for NY) in Lignier, Leflaive (who has come to NY before but not in a while) and Bernard Moreau.

wow, grand tasting already sold out? that was fast.

I’d like to attend the verticals but that time slot means I need to take a full day off from work and I’m not sure that’s worth it to me.

I was vacillating since other than Lignier I don’t buy any of the producers that are coming, so I suppose the choice is made for me. That was fast (and I don’t even have an Amex anymore)!

As of 7PM still look available to me. $375/per

The grand tasting is still open. The LeFlaive dinner has sold out.

Same reaction here. Verticals in past years were compelling. This year, not so much. Still in for the Grand Tasting though.

How does the gala dinner work? Do they serve wines with dinner or do you bring your own? How does the whole sharing thing play out?