Tell me about the first Berserkers offline you attended

[David_Lewin]

My first event was a dinner to celebrate Christine Huang’s birthday in December 2004. The theme was Bordeaux, 90 and older and Parker 95 and higher and had flights of 82 and 89 and a Latour vertical. A dozen people there including Rudy Kurniawan who brought the 89 Lafleur (if it was a fake nobody had an inkling) and later bought a bottle from Campanille’s wine list and served it blind. Turned out to be the Guigal La Mouline. In August 2005 I went to a dinner organized by Gregg Greenbaum and have been part of that group ever since.

[Poppy_Davis]

@Merrill Lindquist

I have done many, many dinners with people I have met in the last 10 years on wine boards. The only true large group offline I ever went to was at Russell Bevans’s house in Sonoma Valley, and that was a long time ago. I swore if I ever got out and home alive, I would never do that again. I think Poppy was there!

Ha! I’ve been to two parties at Russell’s and I can’t tell you much about them!

My first eBob offline was at Cafe Bizou in Sherman Oaks and I met Bruce L. that night. I don’t know which offline was my first Berserkers offline, but the most epic one was held at the In-n-Out Burger in Las Vegas.

[Ken_V]

One of my earliest was at Montrachet in honor of a visit home by Roy Hersh. It was a quite a group: Michel Abood, Mark Hirshorn, Victor Hong, Jamie Kutch, Jay Miller, Dan Myers, Steve Sharoff, Chris Wilford, and James Wright. And a most excellent time:

http://www.finewinegeek.com/tn/2004-05-17_BB_Roy-Hersh_Italy_Montrachet/

They had a no-corkage Monday back then.

[Merrill_Lindquist]

@Poppy Davis

@Merrill Lindquist

I have done many, many dinners with people I have met in the last 10 years on wine boards. The only true large group offline I ever went to was at Russell Bevans’s house in Sonoma Valley, and that was a long time ago. I swore if I ever got out and home alive, I would never do that again. I think Poppy was there!

Ha! I’ve been to two parties at Russell’s and I can’t tell you much about them!

Poppy - I think this one might have been 2002 Napa Cabs or something. The table was covered with wines - covered - and there was stuff being opened everywhere. I just remember a 2002 Shafer HSS, and someone showed up with a bottle of mine! That was particularly strange, as I only made 25 cases back then. Anyway, I got out alive and said no big events again. Yikes.

[Jay_Miller]

My first offline was organized through Robin Garr’s WLDG at the old Minetta Tavern in, I think, 1999. Met a lot of great people I still know today.

[Dave_Butner]

@Peter Shurman

@Dave Butner

BerserkerFest Seattle - The Trailer - YouTube

hey winestein, how come you didn’t produce one of these when you visited the dirty jerze?

I did Pete. Episode 999.

[Ken_V]

That video is great, Dave. I can’t believe I haven’t seen it before. Are there more?

[ToddFrench]

@Ken V

That video is great, Dave. I can’t believe I haven’t seen it before. Are there more?

+1

I don’t recall seeing it, but would like to see more!

[Ken_V]

@Todd F r e n c h

@Ken V

That video is great, Dave. I can’t believe I haven’t seen it before. Are there more?

+1

I don’t recall seeing it, but would like to see more!

I say if he makes at least one more, we can refer to you as “Movie Mogul Todd”.

[Dave_Butner]

Yeah, I did a few…

Berserkerfest Friday Steve & Leo Bromance

Berserkerfest Friday - Ed Murray and Bryan Flannery

Berserkerfest Saturday - Steve Saxon

Berserkerfest Saturday - Eric LeVine

Berserkerfest Saturday - Todd French

[Roberto_Rogness]

“What ever happened to Sara Warner?”

John, she was here about a week ago. Says she is working in hi tech now…

[Ken_V]

Those are great, Dave. I love Steve’s impression of Leo.

[Steve_Saxon]

@Ken V

Those are great, Dave. I love Steve’s impression of Leo.

Who doesn’t’ love Leo? One of the nicest guys on the planet.

[Paul_Jaouen]

@J a y H a c k

My first was the LI Wine Shootout at Michael’s. I think it was the summer of 2005. I had a few starters and then 42 glasses of wine for the “competition.” I hadn’t learnt the merits of pacing myself and spitting. It was a miracle that I made it home that night, using all public transportation. The true miracle was that I was able to get the key into the front door lock to open it. I had a nuclear stress test the following morning and my wife had to drive me to the doctor’s office because I was still not street legal at 8 am.

I still see at least half the people who were at my table that night.

Oh boy! I remember that one. You were not in good shape.

[ToddFrench]

@Ken V

Those are great, Dave. I love Steve’s impression of Leo.

That was supposed to be Leo? I figured The Count

Seattle BerserkerFest was a fantastic time. Steve and Ed and all those who helped did an amazing job.

We need to do that again.

[Steve_Saxon]

@Todd F r e n c h

@Ken V

Those are great, Dave. I love Steve’s impression of Leo.

That was supposed to be Leo? I figured The Count

Seattle BerserkerFest was a fantastic time. Steve and Ed and all those who helped did an amazing job.

We need to do that again.

Actually we were thinking about this May, Don bought a yacht so lets do a Seafoodfest Cruise.

[ToddFrench]

@Steve Saxon

@Todd F r e n c h

@Ken V

Those are great, Dave. I love Steve’s impression of Leo.

That was supposed to be Leo? I figured The Count

Seattle BerserkerFest was a fantastic time. Steve and Ed and all those who helped did an amazing job.

We need to do that again.

Actually we were thinking about this May, Don bought a yacht so lets do a Seafoodfest Cruise.

Nice, Don!!! You mean we don’t have to go out on that dingy that almost went underwater???

May would not work for me, as we’ve got our trip to Spain/France for Jen’s birthday, so if there’s any other good month, I vote for that!

[Steve_Saxon]

May is seafood month on Hood Canal but…

[LMD_Ermitano]

Technically, my first offline with Wineberserkers was with a single Berserker - Clem Nieto - I and a few friends took him and Loidy to dinner in Manila on the 8th September 2010. We’ve had many more over the following years - during Clem’s annual visits to Manila.

Aside from those with Clem, I’ve had the pleasure of meeting several members in two separate offlines in San Francisco on the same day (17th July 2011): brunch at The Foreign Cinema, and dinner at Café Claude.

[Jay_Miller]

@J a y H a c k

@John Morris

It was a very sedate Volnay tasting in the West Village the Jay Miller organized. I sat next to Keith Levenberg, who I’d never met before. He was very shy. Hard to believe, isn’t it?

Technically, I think it was in eBob offline, before Berserkers was created.

Was that the one at Montrachet? Or some other place down there with a French name? It was not my first, but close. I didn’t know Volnay from a hole in the ground so I had to go buy one because I was curious.

I think it was Inside, a nice place that used to be on Jones St. but closed some years ago.