MEMORANDUM FOR: Anchorage AMS Members and Affiliates

FROM:  Lisa Reed, Anchorage Chapter Vice President.

SUBJECT: Minutes, Anchorage AMS Chapter Meeting/Annual Christmas Dinner,
                    Dec. 15, 2007  

Call Meeting to Order: The meeting was called to order by Kristine Nelson, President, at 6:15  p.m. The meeting was held at Villa Nova Italian Restaurant in Anchorage.

Treasurer’s Report: The treasurer was not in attendance to give a report

Old/New Business: No business was discussed as the main reason for getting together was for the holidays and to collect toys for our annual Holiday Toys for Tots drive.

Main Events:   

Our first main event of the evening was to count up the amount of toys our members and affiliates brought to donate to the Toys for Tots charity.  A total of twelve toys were graciously donated to this wonderful cause.  A great big thank you goes to all who brought in a toy.
Our second main event was a talk given by Larissa Wilhelmi, a wine expert from Specialty Imports, Inc.  She spoke on how weather affects wine growing, tasting, and making, and also graciously donated 6 bottles of assorted wines and champagne.  She started out with how champagne was started.  In the European countries where wine was being produced, the Champagne region of France had a problem…it became too cold in the winters to make the standard version of wine.  The cold caused the yeast to become dormant and keep sugars from converting to alcohol.  Then, in the spring when temperatures warmed, dormant yeast would generate carbon dioxide and “fizz”.  A monk by the name of Dom Perignon liked this fizz and elevated it to a celebratory drink…hence the link to the brand name.
Larissa then went on to talk about wines, specifically Washington state wines.  She explained that many good wines come from the eastern side of the state all because of past and current weather.  A long time ago, glacier-dammed lakes in Montana melted and a massive flood carried fertile soil into Eastern Washington State.  This side of the state was prime for growing of grapes since it was very dry, all the Pacific moisture being wrung out by the Cascade Mountains to the west.  Grapes do not like rain as water can make its skin mold or absorb water and ruin the fruit inside. Another factor in the region being so good for vineyards is that its water table is so low, and therefore the vines have to go very deep for its water source.  Every 7-10 years, a deep freeze spreads over the region, but with the roots extending so far down, most plants won’t be completely killed off, just the top and the bugs.  However very hard freezes, like the one they experienced in 2006 killed off 2/3 of the crop.  A way to help protect this from happening is to locate vineyards at higher elevations to escape very cold drainage air where it will be warmer at ridges than in the valleys below. 

Her presentation included a Riesling, a Chardonnay, a Merlot, a Syrah and a Cabernet Sauvignon and she gave us little facts on each including what meals each goes with best.  We then followed up the presentation with a delicious meal and more conversation about the relationship between weather and wine…a very interesting and tasty relationship I might add!

The "Weather and Wine" talk

Our Guest Speaker and wine expert, Larissa Wilhelmi, and our President, Kristine Nelson.

The graciously donated bottle of wine to our Chapter by Larissa!

Our next meeting will be announced at a later date.

Adjournment:  
The meeting did not have a specific ending time.