Wine Club at UBC's Wine Library

Today our Wine Club met again for lunch, as we have for some 30 years, to sample more excellent wines with appropriate food. Although we have enjoyed all of these meetings, this one was special in its own way. Over the decades, Bob has been making scrapbooks for us, including labels from our wines, notes on costs, who provided the wine, who attended, and what we said about each wine. Since nobody really knew what to do with these clearly invaluable resources, he contacted the UBC's Wine Library and Vinothèque (you may click here for more pictures). They were indeed interested in adding our books to their Library, so today's feast celebrated our handing the beautiful scrapbooks over to UBC (sorry, no tax write-off). Hennie kindly arranged for his caterers to provide our lunch in the Wine Library's private underground Tasting Room.


First, we were given a brief tour of a few of the aisles of the Wine Library. The shelving is constructed from redwood, which apparently gives off less ordour than other woods when milled. The Library's temperature and climate are carefully controlled and absolutely ideal for long-term storage.


Hans was heard to mutter, "Why did I have to be a music librarian!" This shows him standing beside his favourite B.C. wines, Burrowing Owl.


Each person contributed a bottle of French wine to the luncheon, though Hans and I jointly purchased a half bottle of German dessert wine (out of this world).









The afternoon's wines:







I seem not to have taken an individual photo of the excellent 1983 Saint-Julien, a Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, which you see on the far left, below. Note that the two history professors emeriti seem to have enjoyed the ordeal.


From the club's inception, our founder has shown true leadership.



A final opportunity to leaf through the scrapbooks, together, and reminisce. Amazingly, we (namely Allen) could sometimes recall not only the wine, but also the event and something special that happened around that time in our lives.