Long Island Wineries to Celebrate HARVEST This Fall September 23, 2010

Whether you’re a wine lover or a passionate locavore, you’ll want to clear your calendar for September 24-25, 2010. That’s when the first-annual HARVEST: Wine Auction and Celebration of Long Island’s East End takes place. Join us for the wine-and-food bounty of our world-class wine region.

WHAT:
Presented by Wine Spectator, HARVEST: Wine Auction and Celebration of Long Island’s East End takes place September 24-25, 2010, at Wölffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack and at vineyards across the Twin Forks. It offers several ways to savor our region’s Fall harvest:

Friday, September 24
• 7 p.m. – 11 p.m. 10-Mile Dinners. Single ticket $350.
Ten dinners at 10 private locations—homes, yachts, gardens—with an unforgettable, locally sourced meal, each hosted by a top East End winemaker and regional chef.

Saturday, September 25
• 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The Wine Salon. Single ticket $25.
Educational and intellectual programs spanning wine-making and tasting; cooking; sensory explorations and more. Programs will be held at wineries across the East End.

• 4 p.m. – 7:30 p.m., Festival Tasting of Long Island’s Bounty. Single ticket $125.
Grand tasting of Long Island wines, including wines to be offered at auction. Small plates of local, seasonal dishes by East End chefs partnered with farmers and food artisans. Silent auction of regional treasures. Held at Wölffer Estate Vineyard.

• 7 p.m. – 11 p.m., Gala Dinner & Live Auction of Long Island Wine. Single ticket $275.
Ticket includes entry to the Festival Tasting.
A world-class, farm-to-table dinner created by premier East End chefs Keith Luce, Gerry Hayden and Claudia Fleming. A live auction of Long Island wines and extraordinary experiences. Live music and dancing. Held at Wölffer Estate Vineyard.

Ticket packages available:
• Table sponsorship $3500, includes reserved seating for 10 at the Gala Dinner & Live Auction and tabletop signage
• All-access event pass $625, includes single entry to one 10-Mile Dinner, Festival Tasting and Gala Dinner & Live Auction, and two Wine Salon programs.
• Saturday pass $300, includes single entry to one Wine Salon program, the Festival Tasting, and Gala Dinner & Wine Auction.

WHO:
Organized by the Long Island Merlot Alliance and Long Island Wine Council, with support from the New York Wine & Grape Foundation, HARVEST benefits East End Hospice and Peconic Land Trust. The event is presented by Wine Spectator.

At press time, participating wineries include: Baiting Hollow Farm Vineyard, Bedell Cellars* + Corey Creek, Castello di Borghese*, Channing Daughters Winery, Clovis Point*, Croteaux Vineyards, Diliberto Winery, Gramercy Vineyards, Jamesport Vineyards, Lieb Family Cellars, Macari Vineyards, Martha Clara Vineyards, McCall Vineyards*, Palmer Vineyards, Peconic Bay Winery*, Pellegrini Vineyards*, Pindar Vineyards, Raphael*, Roanoke Vineyards*, Scarola Vineyards, Sherwood House Vineyards*, Shinn Estate Vineyards*, Sparkling Pointe*, The Grapes of Roth, Waters Crest Winery and Wölffer Estate Vineyard*.
*Wineries contributing lots to the live auction, at press time.

Mistress of ceremonies is Angela LaGreca, comedian and producer of NBC’s Today show.

Chefs for the Gala Dinner are: Keith Luce of the new Jedediah Hawkins Inn (formerly of The Herbfarm, the White House), and North Fork Table’s Gerry Hayden (formerly of Aureole and Amuse) and Claudia Fleming (formerly of Gramercy Tavern).

Restaurants participating in the Festival Tasting include: 1770 House, A Mano, Almond, Amarelle, Estia’s Little Kitchen, Foody’s, Fresno/Beacon/Red Bar, The Greenporter/La Cuvee, Jamesport Manor Inn, Love Lane Kitchen & Café, and Nick & Toni’s, Noah’s.

WHERE:
Wölffer Estate Vineyard, 139 Sagg Road, Sagaponack, NY. Programs also will be held at wineries and other locations across the East End of Long Island.

Complete event information is available at www.harvesteastend.com.

WHEN:
Friday, September 24, starting at 7 p.m., and all day Saturday, September 25, starting at 10 a.m. Tickets go on sale June 1.

Official Website: http://www.harvesteastend.com