A HUGE SUCCESS!
Malibu, CAÂ (August 29th, 2009) A beautiful Malibu summer day greeted over
800 food and wine lovers at the 2009 Malibu Wine Classic held Saturday,
August 29th on the terrace at the Malibu Civic Center. Guests sampled
hundreds of wines offered by 70 wineries from California’s central coast, as
well as gourmet creations from over 15 chefs from Los Angeles and Malibu
restaurants. The event featured a silent auction benefiting Childhelp, the
largest non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention, education,
advocacy and treatment of child abuse, and all told, tens of thousands of
dollars were raised for the charity.
White tablecloths and umbrellas dotted the portico and interior grass lawn
of the Malibu Civic Center, where guests and volunteers enjoyed top wines
from boutique winemakers in the glass, and gourmet samplings on the plate.
The event has become an eclectic gathering of many tribes, including
winemakers, chefs and their fans; entertainers and Malibu locals; and the
in-crowd who has learned word-of-mouth about this 7-year old event which has
become a can’t-miss feature on their calendars.
Winemakers from critics’ choice wineries such as Linne Calodo, L’Aventure,
Jaffurs and Villa Creek joined crowd favorites like Kaena, Stolpman, Casa
Dumetz, Laetitia, Consilience, Demetria, Foley and Beckmen in pouring over
300 wines. In addition, Malibu’s top micro-wineries poured their very
limited production offerings, providing guests with a taste of things to
come from these local producers.
Critically acclaimed restaurateurs from Water Grill, Michael’s, SaddlePeak
Lodge, Four Seasons, and STK, and chef Dakota Weiss of the Shangrila, joined
local favorites Charlie’s, Moonshadows, Barrel Malibu, Beachcomber Café, The
Sunset, Casa Escobar as well as big draw Joe’s Pizza of Bleeker Street , and
others in offering pairings of over 20 foods dishes to accompany the wines.
Malibu Wine Classic founder John Selman of Malibu Village Wines said,
“Locals say, ‘This is exactly the kind of event Malibu needs.’Â Winemakers
say, ‘We always love coming down for this event.’Â Chefs say. ‘We’re in
again next year.’ The charity, Childhelp, says ‘Thank you for another great
event,’ and 800 guests show up and have a great day. It’s a good recipe.”
Charity co-chair and Malibu vineyard owner Tony Griffin noted that, “Many
winemakers and owners look forward to personally presenting their wines in
Malibu, and top chefs join in, too. That helps make this a unique event -
meeting the chefs and the winemakers in an intimate environment.
Childhelp’s founders Sara O’Meara and Yvonne Fedderson were on hand for the
event, which is one of several key fundraisers that mark the 50th Anniversay
of Childhelp’s founding. “Childhelp is grateful for the organizers and
volunteers, the participating wineries and restaurants, and generous local
donors, who make the Malibu Wine Classic work, and we also thank the auction
bidders and the guests, whose purchase dollars fund our programs,” said
Sarah Rodriguez, Director of Corporate Marketing and National Events for
Childhelp.
Ian Blackburn, Founder of LearnAboutWine.com has acted as the coordinator
and manager of the event for 6 years and said “this was the biggest yet†and
we were all surprised how many guests came out the day of!  The promotion
of the event paired with perfect beach weather drove people to select our
event over other options this weekend, and I’ve never seen such last minute
demand!   Even in a recession, this is a value – especially when you can
add perfect beach conditions to the list of great attractions. Lucky for
us, we have 40 volunteers from the Cordon Blue and the LearnAboutWine
Volunteer Army all gave extra time and helped us cover the demand.
