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| Photo by Rebekah Peace |
February 20, 2013
On Thursday, February 7th, over 350 elegantly-dressed attendees were treated to a celebrity style entrance into the prestigious
Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa for the
3rd Annual San Diego Wine Affair. After being greeted with a buffet of gourmet sliders and a red carpet reception decorated by a luxury car display, guests were led to the sophisticated and luxurious La Jolla ballroom, which had been transformed into an enchanting escape for a wine tasting fundraiser that was truly exquisite.
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| Risotto Bar! |
Estancia's ballroom was redesigned with decorations of branches and vines, rustic wood, over-sized sofas and structured chairs, as well as bold iron candelabras and white lights strung about the room as if the event was outdoors. The evening began with guests sampling some of California’s finest vintages from 30+ Caifornia wineries and hour d’oeuvres including pork tenderloin crostini’s, mouthwatering crab cakes, and beet and goat cheese toasts. There was also a risotto bar where guests lined up to create their own concoctions, a makeshift creperie, a gourmet cheese spread and a slider station featuring beef, chicken, pulled pork, and crab cake sliders.
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| Just a glimpse of the silent auction |
Guests perused the fabulous silent auction items and suspense grew as the live auction neared. Among the silent auction items were signed memorabilia from some of pop music's most popular musicians including Taylor Swift, One Direction and many more. An emotional and courageous account from a mother who’s son was saved by doctors at Rady Children’s Hospital inspired the start of the live auction, demonstrating to guests how important the fundraiser was to so many lives. Top live auction items of the evening were a Portico Luxury Vacation to Maui, Hawaii and a Corum Admirals Cup watch.
Musical performers
Dawn Mitschele accompanied by Jonni Aguilar on the violin entertained throughout the evening. Guests laughed, drank and chatted with old and new friends as pours continued to generously flow into the night. Outside the ballroom, guests relaxed in an area outfitted with furniture repurposed from wine and bourbon barrels from Gustaf Booth's
Barrelly Made It.
The intimate venue presented a unique opportunity for guests to chat at leisure with winemakers, mingle among friends and build worthwhile connections between wine enthusiasts, philanthropists and business associates alike.
Zaca Mesa Wineries featured a rare and exquisite Rossano White wine that had people talking along with notable selections from local San Diegan
Paris Driggers' SiKa wine and
Landy Vineyards' Christina Landy. For those craving the bubbly, there was also a champagne bar hosted by
Pantherella Specialty event planning company that poured
Perrier-Jouet Champagne throughout the evening.
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| President of the San Diego Wine Affair, Wade Hansen |
Organized by the
Cabrillo Advisors Foundation, proceeds from the third annual San Diego Wine Affair benefitted
Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego and
San Diego Social Venture Partners. Proceeds from the San Diego Wine Affair event directly support the Rady Children's Hospital facility’s emergency services funds. San Diego Social Venture Partners is a 501(c)3 organization that invests in local non-profits to help build their capacity, scale their impact, and serve more people in need.
“Putting an event together of this caliber has been a labor of love,” said Wade Hansen, founder of the Cabrillo Foundation and the San Diego Wine Affair. “Our organization has truly been inspired by how the San Diego wine and business community has come together for our third annual event, and we are grateful for the opportunity to continue to serve children in need across the county through our work with Rady Children’s Hospital and Social Venture Partners.”
For more information on the San Diego Wine Affair fundraiser, visit
www.SDWineAffair.com.
