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La Soiree des Grands Crus
On January 27th, 2011, seventeen young and vibrant Bordauex chateaux owners came to NYC to share their love of wine with Americans. Some vineyards and owners that were showcases include:
- Basile Tesseron of Château Lafon-Rochet
- Stephen Carrier of Château de Fieuzal
- Jean-Jacques Bonnie of Château Malartic Lagravière
- Emilie Gervoson of Château Larrivet Haut-Brion
- Jean-Michel LaPorte of Château La Conseillante
- Ronan Laborde of Château Clinet
- Mathieu Cuvelier of Château Clos Fourtet
- Laurence Brun of Château Dassault
- Jean-Antoine Nony of Château Grand Mayne
La Soiree des Grands Crus was a lovely evening of wine tasting and fashion with a French flair. Located in a Soho lofted event space wine enthusiasts strolled around, sipping and sampling all different varieties of wine from all different regions of France while socializing with one another. As the evening progressed and more guests filled the space the music took a quick turn from classical to modern day dance tracks. I found that interesting and a lot of fun! Those working at the event tried to get attendees to dance, but I don’t believe guests were too into that idea while they were trying to focus on each bouquet. I, however would have loved if more people busted a move on the dance floor!
Throughout the space Sponsors has their own installations advertising their brand. They include; Hugo Boss, Breitling, Born, HSBC, and OpenSkies. Hugo boss had a lounge area that showcased some of its latest collection for men and women along with a TV screen rotating slides from its most recent fashion shows and ad campaigns. Breitling showcased their latest collection of watches. HSBC had a contest where guests plugged their information into an iPad where they randomly selected a winner to receive a bottle of Crystal Champagne.
The best giveaway of the evening was presented by OpenSkies, a 2 year old airline, that flies only business class with tweny-seven passengers total. When looking at their brochure, the seats looked more like first class – comfortable and spacious and purple! The airline’s prize was 2 round trip tickets to Paris, Ooh La La…! Of course I immediately entered, but unfortunately, did not win. Oh well, better luck next time right? Right!
A highlight of the night was catching up with my close friend Ross J. Brill and casually turning my head, only to see actor Penn Badgley standing right next to me chit-chatting with his friends who turned out to be the writers of Gossip Girl! They were all very nice and surprisingly down to earth – just seemed like I was talking to one of the guys!
Later in the evening I stumbled upon a curtain that only guests with a golden wristband could enter. For me, this was like receiving a golden ticket, for behind this curtain was a large champagne bar. To my surprise the bubbly was only being supplied by one company – Charles Heidsieck. Charles Heidseick was started in 1851 and was the first champagne to ever be brought over from France to the Unites States. It was très délicieux! By far the best champagne I have ever tasted!
Overall, Fraiche PR did an outstanding job putting this whole event together and I can’t wait to attend next year’s tasting!
For more information on the French Vineyards please go to www.lasoireedesgrandcrus.com
– Dara Senders