The group Louisville Uncorked is not your average brown-paper-bag crew — and its potation is not the usual wine one would expect lurking under the wrapper. The assemblage is the brainchild of five friends — Andrew Fleishman, Josh Hartlage, Christopher Jones, Casner Wheelock and Brett Gumlaw — who had been getting together for tastings and discussions, but wanted something bigger that involved the public, charity and an outlet that would add some energy to downtown.
A venue was selected, e-mails were sent and more than 200 guests attended the first event, featuring Chardonnay, which was held at Glassworks in March 2006 and benefited the Council on Mental Retardation. Many corks later, a Pinot Noir get-together, held this past February at the renovated Henry Clay building, drew over 600 wine-lovers, with the Louisville Orchestra as benefactor.
“With each event we are constantly evolving,” says Wheelock. Potential tasters can now register for invites via a website, and silent auctions and music have also found their way to the party. “We even think about decor now,” he says.
Here’s how the tastings work: Attendees team up in groups of typically three or four and select a varietal label to present. The team brings three bottles of that wine, two of which are opened for tasting; the third is placed in the pot. The wines are presented in brown paper bags for anonymity and tagged for scoring. Guests are provided a scorecard to rate wines on a 10-point taste scale, with one being the lowest. At the /files/storyimages/of the night scores are tallied and the team with the highest scoring wine goes home with the pot — all except for the losing wine, which is returned to its owner. The results are then posted on the website.
“There is a real competitive aspect to the event — people want to win,” says Wheelock. “In the end, though, it is really about helping the community. We’re not wine experts — it’s not a stuffy event. We have fun and meet people.”
The next event will be held at the Mercantile Gallery Lofts June 14 and benefits YMCA Safe Place Services. More information is available at www.louisvilleuncorked.com.
