Indianapolis Offline - Feb 1, 2024

Franklin_R · January 28, 2024, 11:26pm

No food restriction for us.

Patrick_Taylor · January 29, 2024, 11:02pm

Thanks for asking. No restrictions.

Patrick_Taylor · February 1, 2024, 4:53pm

Looking forward to seeing everyone tonight. I am bringing a Pinot from California; my friend Alex is bringing one from Oregon.

Charles_Perry · February 1, 2024, 7:41pm

My second wine will be a cool climate pinot from Argentina.

Charles_Perry · February 2, 2024, 10:30pm

Thanks to everyone who attended our Indianapolis offline yesterday. It seemed like everyone had a good time, so I’m going to chalk it up as a success. It was nice, especially, to finally meet @Patrick_Taylor who drove in from Western Indiana with his friend Alex.

The theme was “Pinot Noir from Around the World”, and we ended up with an interesting selection. No one brought a Burgundy, and I think 5 of the 10 bottles were from Oregon. (As usual, I lacked the foresight to snap a photo of the wine lineup, but I know that @Franklin_R got one.) I had the dubious honor of bringing one of the group’s favorite wines (a 2011 Matello “Souris” from Willamette Valley) as well as one of the group’s least favorite wines (a Manos Negras “Red Soil” Select from Argentina). By the end of the night, not a drop was left of the Souris, but probably 3/4 of the Manos Negras remained. (The Manos Negras really wasn’t great. )

Two other wines that stood out for me was a Bergström that I thought was really nice, and a 2013 Pinot from California (sorry, can’t remember its name). This was the first Bergström I’ve had, and it makes me want to seek out others in the future. I loved the California Pinot because it defied my expectations. I’m used to California Pinots being big and jammy, and this definitely wasn’t. It was restrained with a nice balance of fruit and acidity, and it made me realize that I need to reexamine some biases.

Overall, I think everyone had a lot of fun, and everyone present agreed that we need to schedule another one soon!

Patrick_Taylor · February 2, 2024, 10:35pm

Yes, that was really fun!

The 2013 was from Occidental, and that was my fave of the night. It was really cool to compare it with the 2019 Kistler.

Re: Bergstrom, I think you mean Bjornson? (Bergstrom is also an Oregon producer but I don’t think anyone brought one.)

Charles_Perry · February 2, 2024, 10:39pm

Yes! I knew it started with an “O”, but I couldn’t remember the name.

You’re probably right. Whatever that WV wine was that started with a “B”, it was a good one!

I really need to start taking photos so that I can remember what the heck I was drinking.

Patrick_Taylor · February 3, 2024, 11:49pm

By the way, I stopped at Vine and Table in Carmel this afternoon. It was pretty picked over but there is still some good Champagne.

Charles_Perry · February 4, 2024, 2:18am

I drove by on Friday around lunchtime and it was a madhouse! The whole parking lot was full, as well as every parking space on both sides of the building. I decided that I didn’t need a bargain that badly and just kept driving.

Franklin_R · February 9, 2024, 3:34pm

Finally digging out from a busy week…

Thanks, Charlie, for hosting! We had a lot of fun. The format and wines were great, and it was especially nice meeting your wife and the other guests. Here’s pic:

I really liked the Bjornson and Ponzi. The Matello had the best nose!

Looking forward to next time!

Franklin