December 17th - TPF Christmas 2009 Offline

KillerB · Post by **KillerB** » 17:13 Mon 23 Nov 2009

DRT wrote:
KillerB wrote:I've just received the bottle that I'm going to bring - something a little different. I won't say what it is, I think I will leave it up to a guessing game.
Is it a bottle of HP sauce?

Nope - I'm a Heinz man.

Post by **DRT** » 17:27 Mon 23 Nov 2009

Is it a bottle of Gold Top milk from Jersey?

...am I on the wrong thread?

Post by **jdaw1** » 23:24 Thu 26 Nov 2009

Placemats: is the list of names in the first post correct? And who is bring more than one bottle?

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 08:14 Wed 02 Dec 2009

jdaw1 wrote:Placemats: is the list of names in the first post correct? And who is bring more than one bottle?

The list of names is correct, but I would suggest that the format of the evening will be such that the placemats will need to be incredibly flexible. My recommendation would be to assume that there will be 20 bottles in total, but not to assign bottles to people to avoid embarrasment. Tom will likely label each decanter 1-20 so that would be the best reference to use to distinguish one port from another.

Also remember that space at the Bell is extremely limited and we will not have the normal luxury of elbow room or space for note writing - note writing will need to be done on laps.

Post by **jdaw1** » 09:32 Wed 02 Dec 2009

AHB wrote:THRA + 1 (who we think is Cookie)

AHB wrote:AHB + 1

AHB wrote:DRT + 2

????

Post by **jdaw1** » 09:55 Wed 02 Dec 2009

First draft of the placemats. Three pages of numbered glasses: 1→6; 7→12; 13→18. Same for TN pages. Eleven known people, though some with unknown names, plus a spare. No placename pages. No decanter labels.

Post by **DRT** » 21:01 Wed 02 Dec 2009

My +2 are Rute Monteiro (Marketing Manager, Quinta do Noval ) and JoÃ£o Tamagnini Belo (ex-Symington Marketing Executive and Rute Monteiro's Beau).

AHB's +1 is John Ireland (Seckford Wines Cellar Manager).

Leftness of all three is unknown to me.

Post by **jdaw1** » 22:57 Wed 02 Dec 2009

Thank you. Updated draft of the placemats. Everybody except SRG is a rightie. As before: three pages of numbered glasses: 1→6; 7→12; 13→18. Same for TN pages. Eleven known people, though some with unknown names, plus a spare. No placename pages. No decanter labels.

Post by **jdaw1** » 09:06 Thu 03 Dec 2009

A copy-paste error had resulted in the demise of Ben, Jacob and Axel. They have been resurrected. Updated draft of the placemats. People: JDAW; DRT; RM; JTB; AHB; JI; THRA; RC; SRG; BMHR; JGH; AP; ARK; WS; plus a spare.

As before:

Everybody except SRG is a rightie.
Three pages of numbered glasses: 1→6; 7→12; 13→18. Same for TN pages.
No placename pages.
No decanter labels.

Post by **DRT** » 22:31 Tue 08 Dec 2009

Is anyone else getting excited about this yet?

I have spent the past few weeks pretending that Christmas isn't in front of us but it is now well and truely in our face and it's time to pop some fabulous old unkown gems and eat big lumps of cow

benread · Post by **benread** » 22:59 Tue 08 Dec 2009

I ate large lumps of cow tonight. Great!

Post by **jdaw1** » 09:32 Wed 09 Dec 2009

I leave for the UK on Sunday, and am busy with guests from Friday. Please could changes to placemats be requested soon.

Ghandih · Post by **Ghandih** » 14:12 Wed 09 Dec 2009

I have no amendments to make to the placemats, but I can confirm that I'm sinister.

After a far bit of shennanigans, I've got the pass card stamped by Mrs Gh, so I am hereby defo on for it, and getting excited, as I am wont to do.

While I admit it's not large cow lumps, I am chuffed to report that I took the aforementioned Mrs Gh to the home of the best cheese in the world yesterday (twas her birthday), and we have returned with mighty loads of the stuff.

It'll be spot on by Christmas, but how are we going to wait? Perhaps the bonus chunk of Waterloo provided by our hostess as a pressie will tide us through? AND I've got a week off work. No wonder I'm smuggo.

See you all on the 17th...

Ghandih

KillerB · Post by **KillerB** » 18:13 Wed 09 Dec 2009

Ghandih wrote:I have no amendments to make to the placemats, but I can confirm that I'm sinister.

...
Ghandih

Is being a left-hooker important?

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 19:37 Wed 09 Dec 2009

Dropped by the The Bell just now to confirm numbers etc..

Some questions:

12oz fillet steaks for everyone OK? If anyone wants something different please let me know ASAP

Veg to go with the steak - chips? or new potatoes?? Onion rings? Mushrooms? - more or less anything is possible, so suggestions please...

Do we want a starter? Soup perhaps??

A cheese board will be prepared for us, I have asked for strong flavours to be avoided. Other desserts will be available for those who want them.

Glasses - The Bell does not have a huge arsenal of these, so if anyone can bring supplies, that will make life easier.

I have a plentiful supply of decanters, so everything can be properly presented. Double decanted bottles can be transferred to decanter at my house, or on site.

I have several interesting old bottles, should anyone be struggling for a contribution..

Tom

Post by **DRT** » 20:25 Wed 09 Dec 2009

Jacob will require a veggie 12oz fillet.

Suggestions for veg to go with 12oz Fillet: another 12oz fillet?

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 22:06 Wed 09 Dec 2009

Hi Tom,

all your suggestions are fine with me. If possible I would like to have soup as a starter. Also i will be able to bring some glasses. Can I kindly ask you to decant the port I left with you for the event (Croft believed to be 1960)?

Hope i find the venue and do not get lost.

cu

WS1

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 22:44 Wed 09 Dec 2009

12oz filet sounds good to me - mushrooms and chips sounds ideal, but I'll pass on the starter.

I'll bring plenty of glasses. My only concern is the number of people who are staying in the Saffron Hotel - we may need more than one taxi!

Post by **DRT** » 23:10 Wed 09 Dec 2009

I will pack lots of glasses in the car too.

Tom, is the team minibus available?

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 01:08 Thu 10 Dec 2009

I will call our team minibus provider tomorrow, and warn her that a double run may be needed.

Wolfgang, your bottle will be carefully decanted.

Will advise The Bell that one veggie meal is needed.

I will be away from my 'puter from 1pm tomorrow for four days walking (in training for the big day..

)

Any urgent messages, please txt 07721 567870

Tom

Post by **DRT** » 02:23 Thu 10 Dec 2009

uncle tom wrote:I will call our team minibus provider tomorrow, and warn her that a double run may be needed.

By the time the appointed hour arrives I think we will all fold neatly into one minibus-load quite easily

Post by **DRT** » 10:52 Sun 13 Dec 2009

I have just placed 50 glasses in the dishwasher in preparation for Thursday.

We need 196.

Please bring what you can.

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 11:44 Sun 13 Dec 2009

After checking with Alex I will bring only six glasses. Due to the limited space in the pub he said more would not make sense.I can bring more if required. Please let me know.

Axel P · Post by **Axel P** » 21:14 Sun 13 Dec 2009

Please bring 6 for me, too.

Axel

benread · Post by **benread** » 09:30 Mon 14 Dec 2009

Are those staying at the Saffron Hotel planning a taxi to the Bell? If so, is it organised, or shall I do so? (Tom: I believe you have a friendly cabbie with a large vehicle! Could you let me have details please.)

Post by **DRT** » 09:37 Mon 14 Dec 2009

benread wrote:Are those staying at the Saffron Hotel planning a taxi to the Bell? If so, is it organised, or shall I do so? (Tom: I believe you have a friendly cabbie with a large vehicle! Could you let me have details please.)

I'm taking my car from the hotel to The Bell and planned to leave it there and get a taxi (or a lift from a kind person) to pick it up on Friday. I already have 4 passengers (Rute, Joao, AHB and JDAW) and about 100 glasses booked on board.

However, if the team minibus is being ordered to take others to The Bell I could leave my car at the hotel and we could all share the cost?

JacobH · Post by **JacobH** » 11:35 Mon 14 Dec 2009

uncle tom wrote:A cheese board will be prepared for us, I have asked for strong flavours to be avoided. Other desserts will be available for those who want them.

Presumably by "other desserts" Tom means "second steak"...

Thanks for placing the veggie order for me

What sort of time should we congregated at the Bell?

Post by **DRT** » 16:36 Mon 14 Dec 2009

uncle tom wrote:I have a plentiful supply of decanters, so everything can be properly presented. Double decanted bottles can be transferred to decanter at my house, or on site.

We have 14 confirmed attendees so I think decanters will only be useful for looking good rather than attempting to pass and pour. The result of which would be some very disappointed people who would get little or nothing

Tom, will it be possible to have a side table that we can use to pour 14 equal measures of each wine?

JacobH · Post by **JacobH** » 16:40 Mon 14 Dec 2009

DRT wrote:Tom, will it be possible to have a side table that we can use to pour 14 equal measures of each wine?

From my memory of the room last year, it might be possible, as long as they don't mind us knocking down a wall...

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 22:40 Mon 14 Dec 2009

AHB,

coming back on your suggestion can you please pick up my key at the Saffron Hotel for me? Will try tomorrow to call them to let them know. Have again a crazy time at work

Will come direkt to the Bell; according to http://www.streetmap.co.uk it looks not too difficult. Hope i do not mess it up similar to when picking up Port in Brixton from Chris yesterday. Though there are mitigatings factors, I have again a tooth infection which requires me to drink lots of Port just for antiseptic purposes. In addition the pain becomes more bearable

I hate getting a bit long in the tooth!

Also i need to get back at one stage to the Saffron Hotel that night and would like to join you in the "big Cab ride"

regards and cu Thursday

WS1

P.S. Will bring 12 glasses (6 for Axel)

Post by **DRT** » 22:49 Mon 14 Dec 2009

Wolfgang,

Unless you are drining with a good SatNav the only way you will find your way from the Saffron Hotel to The Bell is by taxi. There are a few miles of dark English country lanes between the two locations so there is no other way to get there.

There are lots of us heading back to the Saffron Hotel so hopefully no one will get lost

Derek

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 22:55 Mon 14 Dec 2009

Hi Derek,

thanks a lot for the warning, but I want to walk from Audley End train station to the Bell. This should be fairly easy. Please correct me if i am wrong. To get the next morning from the Saffron Hotel to the train staion i am not sure yet. Do you have any suggestions?

regards

WS1

JacobH · Post by **JacobH** » 23:02 Mon 14 Dec 2009

WS1 wrote:thanks a lot for the warning, but I want to walk from Audley End train station to the Bell. This should be fairly easy. Please correct me if i am wrong.

That bit is quite easy; I did it last year and will probably be doing it again this.

When you come out of the station’s main entrance, you are facing East so you have to turn left and walk up to a T-Junction where there is one of those painted roundabouts in the road. You then turn left onto Station Road and keep following it. It will swing to the left and then to the right which is where the Bell is. Be aware that it will be dark and there are no streetlamps! It takes about 10 minutes if you don’t get lost.

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 23:08 Mon 14 Dec 2009

Hi Jacob,

thanks a lot for the advice/help/info, hope to see you Thursday.

regards

WS1

KillerB · Post by **KillerB** » 00:22 Tue 15 Dec 2009

Who else is at the Saffron? A minibus maybe required or two cars abandoned at the Bell.

Post by **DRT** » 01:30 Tue 15 Dec 2009

KillerB wrote:Who else is at the Saffron? A minibus maybe required or two cars abandoned at the Bell.

There are 14 people attending this tasting. I think at least 37 of us are staying at the Saffron: the odd one out being Tom.

Ghandih · Post by **Ghandih** » 22:45 Tue 15 Dec 2009

Friends,

I'm at the Saffron Hotel, and hoping to join in on team transport home. I think I'll be arriving sufficiently late by train to merit walking directly to The Bell, so would appreciate it if someone could do the key honours for me (by which I mean collect them and bring them along for me). I'll be catching a train up from The Big Smoke - it sounds like others might be on the same one potentially, but I'm not going to nail my whatsit to the doobrey by saying which train I think it will be.

Ghandih

KillerB · Post by **KillerB** » 23:17 Tue 15 Dec 2009

Uh oh - train off-line. Don't forget the pizza.

Axel P · Post by **Axel P** » 07:48 Wed 16 Dec 2009

I am hopefully picked up by Tom tomorrow and would very much like to join the transport-club after the tasting to the hotel, too. I guess we would be needing more than one cab, more like a bus.

Axel

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 10:19 Wed 16 Dec 2009

A large cab has been booked for midnight, with a brief to expect a double run..

Tom

JacobH · Post by **JacobH** » 15:15 Wed 16 Dec 2009

What seems like several hundred pages of place-mats have been printed at the request of AHB and JDAW1; now I just have to remember to bring them...

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 17:47 Wed 16 Dec 2009

OK, stood up downstairs I have bottles for:

Me
Cookie
Ben
Ghandih
Jacob

- average age of bottles roughly 70 years..!

Have I forgotton anyone?? - I have several interesting candidates..

Tom

benread · Post by **benread** » 17:59 Wed 16 Dec 2009

Thank you. I hope they are well insulated with the weather we seem to be having and due in the next day or so! Weather and traffic permitting I hope to drop by on my way to The Saffron around 6pm or a bit earlier.

For anyone who is interested, I do have a taxi booked but could only get space for 4 of us. Should be leaving the hotel about 6.50pm. PLease PM if you want a seat so I know to wait for you!

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 18:02 Wed 16 Dec 2009

I hope they are well insulated with the weather

Yes, cellar temperature currently 10.5C - which is much warmer than the kitchen

Tom

Post by **DRT** » 19:35 Wed 16 Dec 2009

uncle tom wrote:- average age of bottles roughly 70 years..!

Please re-work that average by adding an 89 year old unknown shipper

Axel P · Post by **Axel P** » 20:13 Wed 16 Dec 2009

... though mine is much younger.

Axel

Post by **Alex Bridgeman** » 20:38 Wed 16 Dec 2009

WS1 wrote:AHB,

coming back on your suggestion can you please pick up my key at the Saffron Hotel for me? Will try tomorrow to call them to let them know. Have again a crazy time at work
Will come direkt to the Bell; according to http://www.streetmap.co.uk it looks not too difficult. Hope i do not mess it up similar to when picking up Port in Brixton from Chris yesterday. Though there are mitigatings factors, I have again a tooth infection which requires me to drink lots of Port just for antiseptic purposes. In addition the pain becomes more bearable
I hate getting a bit long in the tooth!
Also i need to get back at one stage to the Saffron Hotel that night and would like to join you in the "big Cab ride"

regards and cu Thursday

WS1

Happy to pick up your key. Anyone else who wants this service, please post so here.

Anyone walking from Audley End station to the Bell is strongly recommended to bring a torch with them.

P.S. Will bring 12 glasses (6 for Axel)[/quote]

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 21:41 Wed 16 Dec 2009

Re. Decanters, bottles, dividing by 14..

I will present the bottles in my care in decanters, and will bring some spare decanters plus neck tags..

..there isn't really space for a side table to divvy up bottles, so can we all be well aware that measures need be very modest, so that all may enjoy..
- there will be at least one more bottle than participant, so we won't go thirsty!

If my spies tell me true, then one very venerable contribution will be in magnum format, so such restraint may be cast aside - in one instance!

Tom

WS1 · Post by **WS1** » 00:57 Thu 17 Dec 2009

Hi Alex,

thanks a lot. Will try to go without a torch assuming my eye light is good enough. If I fail please rescue me.

regards

WS1

uncle tom · Post by **uncle tom** » 09:45 Thu 17 Dec 2009

Weather warnings

Patches of light snow are expected from dusk, with more substantial falls expected after midnight. We rarely get heavy snow here, and usually less than is forecast. At this point I would guess the potential issue is not getting here, or getting back to the Saffron Hotel - but getting home tomorrow. However, there are plenty of pubs with nice big fires in and around Saffron Walden..

Suggest people bring warm coats and hiking boots - just in case..

Tom