Tickets are now on sale for the 32nd Annual Winesong
event — a spectacular weekend of award-winning wine, fabulous food, fine art,
music, merriment, and charitable giving. Produced by the Mendocino Coast
Hospital Foundation, the main event – featuring a grand food and wine tasting
and a live and silent auction – takes place at the gorgeous Mendocino Coast
Botanical Gardens on Saturday, September 10th, and on Friday, September 9th,
the nearby Little River Inn will host ‘A Pinot Noir Celebration’ showcasing
local winemakers. Proceeds from both events go towards supporting the local
Mendocino Coast District Hospital that serves so many in the area.
Sponsors are a vital part of any event - they help offset
costs of production, provide auction lots, and add value to the attendees’
experience. Some sponsors have been with
Winesong for years, while others are new to the family, but all contribute to
helping to raise essential funds for the rural Hospital. This year, there is a
wonderful mix of local, national, and international sponsors that will assist in
making the 2016 Winesong our best event yet!
The main sponsor, Celebrity Cruises, is proud to support
Winesong and the Mendocino Coast Hospital Foundation for the second year as
part of their commitment to enhancing the life of the collective community here
in Northern California. Celebrity Cruises is also excited to participate in
such a unique food and wine tasting event, as the modern luxury experience they
offer on their ships is focused on culinary excellence and an extensive
selection of wines and handcrafted cocktails.
A host of additional local and national businesses will also
be sponsoring this year’s event, including Harvest Market, North Coast Brewing
Company, JetBlue, Mendo Lake Credit Union, The Coast FM – KOZT, Savings Bank of
Mendocino, Mendocino Winegrowers, Inc., Safeway, CalStar, Air Ambulance, and
Birchware Compostable Utensils. For further information the 2016 Winesong event
sponsors, please visit http://winesong.org/sponsors-2/.
In addition, Winesong recently announced the revered artist
and long-time Winesong supporter, the late Lowell Herrero, as this year’s Artist
of the Year, and named Grace Family Vineyards as the 2016 Honored Winery.
Further details regarding the Winesong events:
A Pinot Noir Celebration: Meet the Winemakers
Friday, September 9, 2016 | 1 to 4 p.m.
The weekend kicks off with a prestigious Pinot Noir tasting,
presented by Winesong and hosted by Little River Inn. Attendees will enjoy
Pinot Noir from renowned Anderson Valley, along with wines from other
award-winning pinot regions, alongside tastes of Little River Inn’s finest
culinary offerings. General Admission Tickets for A Pinot Noir
Celebration: Meet the Winemakers are $75 per person.
Wine & Food Grand Tasting in the Gardens
Saturday, September 10, 2016 | 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Stroll through the lush Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens
while enjoying vintages poured by world-class wineries from Mendocino, Sonoma,
Napa, and beyond. You can sample beer, spirits, and food from 50 of Mendocino County’s
finest purveyors. The tasting is accented by various musical groups performing
a variety of styles including jazz, classical, blues, calypso and folk rock.
General Admission Tickets with festival seating at auction and access to wine
and food tasting are $150 per person.
Silent & Live Auctions
Saturday, September 10, 2016 | SILENT: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.;
LIVE: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The centerpiece of Winesong weekend is the Charity Auction,
featuring both a silent and live auction. More than 200 lots will be on
offer, featuring spectacular wines from the world’s most prestigious wine
producers, rare vintages, large format bottles and special vertical and
horizontal collections, as well as original art from acclaimed California
artists (including Lowell Herrero) and highly coveted international and
domestic vacation packages. Auction Reserve Tickets with assigned
seating under the auction tent (w/catered lunch) and access to wine and food
tasting are $250 per person.
About Winesong & the Mendocino Coast Hospital Foundation
Winesong is produced by the Mendocino Coast Hospital
Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds for the
Mendocino Coast District Hospital. Its mission is to help the small rural
Hospital provide the best possible medical care to residents as well as the
many visitors to the Mendocino Coast. Winesong proceeds have enabled the
Hospital to purchase chemotherapy equipment, portable ultrasound machines for
the Emergency Room as well as a state-of-the-art Diagnostic Imaging Center,
Cardiology Equipment, and most recently, a Bedside Medicine Verification
System.
Kelly
and Rick have always loved wine and a few years ago Steve Burman of 3 Steves
winery suggested that she try to make her own wine. They jumped at this chance and found that
winemakers of Livermore Valley are a family with a passion for making wine that
reflects the great style and variety of Livermore Valley. Several winemakers were there to help her
produce her first Chardonnay. Besides
the Steve’s of 3 Steves, she had help from Mark Clarin, the award winning
winemaker at McGrail, plus Collin Cranor of Nottingham Cellars and Rhonda Wood of
Wood Family. They all provided her an
education in winemaking and in crafting her wines. They have grown from a half of ton of
Chardonnay that first year to 5, 8, 12, and now 18 tons of grapes, resulting in
over 1000 cases. They have also picked
up several barrels of wine from the Thomas Coyne Winery estate, especially some
of the great Rhone style grapes that Thomas used to produce. 
Their
2013 GSM with 50% Grenache, 35% Syrah and 15% Mourvedre, a very nice Rhone
style blend wine. I hope you enjoy the
nice blend of fruit on the nose and the palate with cherry and blueberry,
combined with the spice of the Syrah and backed up by the earthiness of the
Mourvedre.
