Cynthia,
I will say that $226 is pretty expensive. That said, I would pay it in an instant to be at another event with the great Serge Hochar.
I was fortunate to be present at a dinner tasting where the wines were basically donated, so the price (I think it was like $85-ish) was very reasonable, and as it was put together in a relatively short period so not too many participants - we all had nice pours. (the cognescenti of Knoxville was stupid to have missed this!)
Since I am on fairly good terms with the one retailer who was helping organize this, I was allowed to come early and watch Mr. Hochar meticulously decant all his wines for the evening. I was a little intimidated at first to really ask questions at this point... and Mr. Hochar was noticeably occupied with the decanting process anyway. But, I did learn what is probably the best methodology for decanting any great wine.
So, if you have any extra pull or otherwise with the organizers, and the price isn't too much, ask if you may be present when Mr. Hochar does his decanting. For me, watching that process alone was amazing...
Oh - and I'll chime in with the uniqueness of Musar. I definitely fall in the "I like them" catagory, and after his visit, was able to literally steal a bunch of '66, '70 and '72 (my favorite... over the more highly touted '70). I've just about gone through my stash, but I know someone who has a few left...
Oh - if you care to read through my lengthy report on Mr Hochar's visit to Knoxville back in 2001, you can go
read them here.
If perchance you do go, love to hear your reaction.
Oh - and try to get a seat as close to Mr. Hochar as possible... he has a ton of great things to say... and he loves questions (as I found out after getting over my initial intimidation and shyness).
Thanks,
Mike
