Technically, still in NC. Final destination is Redmond, home of the evil empire. House hunting trip is 6/15-6/19, drive out starts 6/30. Will be back in the Bay Area 7/10-7/16 and become a permanent WA resident on 7/16 :-D

I'm interested if there is room

I would be interested if room is available.

The three preferred days are highlighted based on the feedback so far (Paul, David and Scott)

October 6
October 13
October 20
October 27
November 3
November 10
November 17

 

Interested Parties
Dave_Tong

Hudamang

Saut

tgenn (TomG)

Joe Barksy (JBWines)

ScottJ

Tanglenet

Paul Soals (S2Kracer)

RandyW

David Sankaran (OrindaDave)

 

Waiting List

Winebrat

Kpak

Drew

PourQue

AlohaJ

Forumites with right of first refusal
Babnik
Dave_Spriggs
DavidN
GATC
GChadwick
Gratification
LC17SMP
MarkNeal
Patrick_L
Paul_H
PaulK
SFWine
Skwid
Stevo
Tanglenet
WineGeek
Winetex

Dave, I would like to go depending on the final date. I only have the '03 Foley and Match at this point. Im not sure yet if my wife would be up for it but Im in desperate need of a home remodeling break.

AAARGH! I HATE THIS EFFING SH!TE EDITOR!!!!!
It's not WYSIWYG, it's WYSIWTF?


Update: The menu will probably be along the lines of what was served last year, which was:

Reception
Chef's Hors d'oevres

Soup and Salad
HOUSE GREENS SALAD Organic Lettuces, Orange Lavender Vinaigrette, Toasted Almonds, Blue Cheese
COMPASS CAESAR SALAD Romaine Hearts, Egg-less Dressing, Parmesan, Garlic Croutons
CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP

Entrees
PAN ROASTED FILET MIGNON, "au Poive Verte" Scallion Mashed Potatoes, Green Peppercorn Brandy Sauce, Asparagus Vegetables
GRILLED SMOKED STURGEON Szechwan Pepper Cabernet Glaze, Yukon Potato Fricassee with Fennel & Celery Root, Grilled Asparagus
HERB ROASTED RACK of LAMB Tomato Fennel Confit, Tuscan White Beans, Sauteed Kale, Rosemary Jus
VENISON STIR FRY in Japanese Plum Wine shiitake mushrooms, pearl onions, garlic sauteed chard, crispy risotto
GRILLED EGGPLANT & POLENTA ROULADES goat cheese, fresh basil, golden peppers, zucchini ratatoulle

Desserts
LAVIN'S CHOCOLATE TORTE
FRUIT SORBET & BERRIES
CHEESECAKE
COMPASS TIRAMISU
CREME BRULEE

Interested Parties
Dave_Tong
Hudamang
Saut
tgenn (TomG)
Joe Barksy (JBWines)
ScottJ
Tanglenet
Paul Soals (S2Kracer)
RandyW
David Sankaran (OrindaDave)
DavidN
LC17SMP
Winetex
Rob Conrad(Gratification)
SCMguy(Dave_Spriggs)

Waiting List
Winebrat
Kpak
Drew
PourQue
AlohaJ

Forumites with right of first refusal

Babnik
GATC
GChadwick
MarkNeal
Patrick_L
Paul_H
PaulK
SFWine
Skwid
Stevo
WineGeek

Dave is there a date yet? Can't commit or decline, maybe I missed the date earlier in the thread. Thanks!

November 17th is looking like the favourite. I already have a babysitter that night ;) Unless there are any strong objections that's what I'll go with.

The restaurant asked that this time we pay up front - not necessarily in advance, just at the start of the evening rather than at the end.
They don't mind us paying individually, though if people prefer to send me cheques in advance I can take care of it.

Apparently there were some negative comments on the stemware last time so they wanted to know if we would like to rent stems.
I said probably not; those who care about such things can always bring their own. But if there's strong interest in renting stems I can pursue that.

Finally if there are any comments on the menu please let me know. I already told them to drop the Piper Sonoma fizz and instead give us more of the appetizers.

I've PM'd everyone with refusal rights. I can't find up-to-date account info for GChadwick, SFWine or Stevo
so unless anyone knows who they are and can tip them off they are likely to lose their status.

Babnik
dspriggs/Dave_Spriggs
GATC
GChadwick?
Gratification
MarkNeal
Patrick_L
phomchick/Paul_H
pkoike/PaulK
SFWine?
Skwid
Stevo?
WineGeek

Nov 17 works for us I am sure...

Now we just need to come up with a list of wines.

Well traditionally we've had a flight of "Friends and family" followed by one or two flights of high-end cabs. Last year I tried to have one each from different regions but unless there's strong pressure I don't thing I'll bother this time.

The Friends and Family traditionally includes Jones, Match, Bressler and Neal. Last year we also had Ladera and it showed very well. This year I'm hoping to tap up a local Santa Cruz winemaker to provide samples of his 2003s. I also know of a couple of other local wineries making cabs that punch above their price point so I may try to sneak a couple of those into the fray just for fun.

For the higher-end flight we always have Insignia, Monte Bello and something by Pride and/or Foley. I'd like to see Quilceda Creek again; that did well last year. With the 2003 vintage being more of a challenge than the previous two I'm hoping that people will suggest other wines that they've tried that might show well.

And of course we'll need champagne and stickies.

I'm in.  Please put us down for 2, as Mrs. Grat would love to join us as well.
See y'all soon!

I'd like to go.  I am SCMGuy - I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains - but was Dave_Spriggs....   well I *still* am Dave Spriggs, but I changed my user name.  Can I bring a guest??
   -Dave-

Guests/spouses/BFFs are fine. I'll take a proper headcount closer to the time. I'm shooting for around 36 - that means around 12 pours from 3 bottles - 2oz each and a bit left over.

Dave, due to the Nov 17th date I am going to officially bow out for this round. It was great fun last year with some excellent wines. We are going to Seattle the weekend before and we can't manage back-to-back wine weekends.

Thanks for all of the planning on what has proved to be a very successful event.

Reception
Chef's Hors d'oevres

Soup and Salad
HOUSE GREENS SALAD Organic Lettuces, Orange Lavender Vinaigrette, Toasted Almonds, Blue Cheese
COMPASS CAESAR SALAD Romaine Hearts, Egg-less Dressing, Parmesan, Garlic Croutons
CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP

Entrees
PAN ROASTED FILET MIGNON, "au Poive Verte" Scallion Mashed Potatoes, Green Peppercorn Brandy Sauce, Asparagus Vegetables
GRILLED SMOKED STURGEON Szechwan Pepper Cabernet Glaze, Yukon Potato Fricassee with Fennel & Celery Root, Grilled Asparagus
HERB ROASTED RACK of LAMB Tomato Fennel Confit, Tuscan White Beans, Sauteed Kale, Rosemary Jus
VENISON STIR FRY in Japanese Plum Wine shiitake mushrooms, pearl onions, garlic sauteed chard, crispy risotto
GRILLED EGGPLANT & POLENTA ROULADES goat cheese, fresh basil, golden peppers, zucchini ratatoulle

Desserts
LAVIN'S CHOCOLATE TORTE
FRUIT SORBET & BERRIES
CHEESECAKE
COMPASS TIRAMISU
CREME BRULEE

Interested Parties
Dave_Tong
Hudamang
Saut
tgenn (TomG)
Joe Barksy (JBWines)
ScottJ
Tanglenet
Paul Soals (S2Kracer)
RandyW
David Sankaran (OrindaDave)
DavidN
LC17SMP
Rob Conrad(Gratification)
SCMguy(Dave_Spriggs)

Waiting List
Winebrat
Kpak
Drew
PourQue
AlohaJ

Forumites with right of first refusal

Babnik
GATC
GChadwick
MarkNeal
Patrick_L
PaulK
SFWine
Skwid
Stevo
WineGeek

Winetex can't go? Darn! Im out too!

j/k. I will miss you! Hope to see you at another event in the future!

Thanks Huda - It would be fun to repeat my "corked wine" party trick. j/k....

It will be a great event!

I sent an email to SFWine with a link to this thread.

Thanks, Eric!