I used to be a sort of “regular” at the NYC tastings.
Then I got tired of all the crowding and disorganization.
The NYC tasting is Friday. I think there’s one in SFO on Wednesday.
Curious, anyone going?
NEW YORK: February 18th, 2011
Friday February 18, 2011 from 2:00 PM to 7:00 PM EST
Metropolitan Pavilion | 125 West 18th Street (between 6th and 7th avenue) | NEW YORK, NY 10011
Nope, stop going to those years ago, too crowded and they run out of best stuff.
The last one I went to…about 3-4 years ago…turned me off permanently to those kinds of tastings, of any theme. Crowded, hurried, quick mini-tastes of wines too young to appreciate, for the most part. And, way too many things to try and keep track of, even trying to spit and take notes.
What Leo said…
The pictures on the website look downright serene. Smiling young ladies and gentlemen standing behind a clean table with lots of full bottles. Maybe the “wine press” gets to see it like that but it has never looked like that for the general public. Of course the first years I went, it was in the Puck Building and we got to taste some amazing stuff. I’ll never forget the Avignonesi Vin Santo Occhio del Pernice. A wonderful endless aftertaste. Amazing that they were giving that stuff away.
The Aviognesi and the Dal Forno used to disappear very fast.
I’ve never been but am scheduled to go for work. I would be getting there towards the end of it, but it sounds like I might miss a bunch.
Here’s the year they did it in LA and the wine did not show up! Thankfully, Francesco Soletta of Tenute Soletta IS the importer and is based in LA so HE had juice…
Except for Tenute Soletta, evidently. Those guys must have BYOB’s.
I have press credentials but there were so many fakers and “friends of the family” that even the press hour was chaotic.
I keep forgetting to renew my Slow Food membership, so I haven’t gotten the invites. Can’t say I’ve been heartbroken.
Frank, Francesco Soletta (brother of winemaker Umberto) is their US importer and is based in Long Beach so he just drove up with some inventory while all the rest was stuck in a truck in the freezing mountains of Nevada (sent from NYC) and arrived about 7PM and COLD. It was a clusterf*&k of epic proportions…