sonoma wine country weekend

Sonoma Wine Country Weekend Bring Endless Summer To Sonoma

This weekend brings wine and food fans to Sonoma for the Sonoma Wine Country Weekend running September 3-5, 2010. The centerpiece of the weekend is the famous Sonoma Valley Wine Auction on September 5 at Cline Cellars which features a variety of tempting auction lots. Some of this year's lots include the Francis Ford Coppola Live Lot which offers trips to Italy and Belize, a Coppola film library and signed wine bottles; the St. Francis Vineyard and Winery - Sex and the City package which offers a private dinner with an unnamed "Sex and the City" star at St. Francis Winery & Vineyards, a stay in San Francisco and five cases and four magnums of St. Francis wine; chef camp with tutorials from top Sonoma chefs; as well as plenty of wine lots including "Magnum Force" a collection of prized magnums from Sonoma County vintners.

This year's auction has a California beach party theme with the tagline "Endless Sonoma." In the spirit of the theme the growers and vintners will introduce the lots wearing surfer-style costumes. Hubert Keller of Fleur de Lys in San Francisco and winner of "Top Chef Masters" will team up with Kendall-Jackson executive chef Justin Wangler to present the first course of the auction's meal (an oxtail, fingerling potato and truffle 'cappuccino,') and other regional chefs will prepare the rest of the menu. The menu will include Sonoma-sourced specialties like curried Gravenstein apple miniature grilled cheese sandwiches; eggplant caponata; steak Florentine; pomegranate and herb grill lamb loin; artisan cheeses, breads and more.

A partnership between Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Foundation and Sonoma County Vintners, Sonoma Wine Country Weekend is the area's largest wine and food fundraiser, having jointly donated more than $10 million to local charities that support students, children, farm workers and people in need. Friday winemakers lunches are $85 a person, Friday specialty dinners are $175 and Friday winemaker dinners are $160. On Saturday, the Taste of Sonoma event is $150, the Grand Reserve tasting is $195, the Honorary Chair Dinner: St. Francis Winery is $175 and the Saturday winemaker dinners are $160 each. Tickets for the Sunday auction are $500, half of that is tax deductible.

[via PressDemocrat.com]

Tags: sonoma wine, sonoma wine auction, sonoma wine country weekend, wine auction, wine auctions

Sonoma Wine Country Weekend is Coming Soon...

by Laura Malesich (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Events

Labor Day is almost upon us and as for me I am still firming up my plans. A college football game on television is at the top of my husband's list but not me. If I lived on the same coast as Sonoma County I would be at their event in a heartbeat! Ever tried to cover the wide array of wineries that make up Sonoma wine country? I haven't either but from what I hear it takes a lot more driving and time than most visitors can cover in a weekend. No problem because the Sonoma Wine Country Weekend will bring it all to you in a relatively small area -- no driving required once you arrive.

Tickets range from $50 to $650 depending on how long you can stay and your specific interests. There are Winemaker Dinners, the Grand Tasting, and even an Auction for those of you with deeper pockets. Enjoy wine from Alexander Valley to the Russian River Valley and everything in between. This is the inaugural year for this event and you don't want to miss it! Be there or be...me, with my little football party.

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Tags: grand tasting, GrandTasting, labor day weekend, labor day weekend event, LaborDayWeekend, LaborDayWeekendEvent, sonoma wine country weekend, Sonoma-California, SonomaWineCountryWeekend, wine auction, WineAuction, winemaker dinners, WinemakerDinners