Auction Napa Valley, the American Wine Classic hosted by Napa Valley Vintners, will showcase “Sweet Home Napa Valley” with its extraordinary wines and a complement of culinary talent that will bring ingredients from Napa Valley’s vineyards, farms and forests to a three-day feast for the senses. This year’s annual community fundraiser will be held June 5-7, 2014.
In what otherwise might take years of long-awaited reservations to experience, Auction Napa Valley attendees will savor in just in one weekend culinary creations from a wide range of Napa Valley’s finest and most sought-after chefs.
Saturday’s Live Auction on the fairway at Meadowood Napa Valley will be a culinary convergence of Napa Valley chefs transforming ingredients born of the same sun and soil as the appellation’s famous wine grapes into meals that express a sense of place.
Lunch is a casual, al fresco affair, created by Napa Valley “Masters of the Savory” (Stephen Barber, Michael Chiarello, Curtis Di Fede, Thomas Keller, Cindy Pawlcyn, Richard Reddington, Brandon Sharp and partners Hiro Sone and Lissa Doumani) with “Masters of the Sweet” (Tracy Wood Anderson, Chris Kollar and Wendy A. Sherwood) adding their artisan confections throughout the afternoon. Once the Auction bidding has come to a close, an elegant dinner by Christopher Kostow, The Restaurant at Meadowood’s three-Michelin-star chef, will celebrate the dynamic community of Napa Valley’s winemakers, growers, foragers, hunters, millers and purveyors in a serene setting under the stars.
“The flavorful synergy between Napa Valley’s wines, its abundance of world-renowned chefs and the rich bounty of ingredients grown and raised here is a perfect expression of this special place,” says David R. Duncan, honorary co-chair of this year’s Auction Napa Valley and president and CEO of Silver Oak and Twomey Cellars. “Our Auction chefs’ generosity in sharing their immense culinary talents is a testament to the collaborative nature of our community.”
New this year, Thursday’s Vintner Welcome Parties will show Auction attendees Napa Valley’s relaxed, down to earth side and the casual camaraderie and deep agricultural roots for which the region’s vintners are known. Slow, spit-roasted pig, wood-fired pizzas and garden inspired-creations are just a sampling of foods that will grace tables set by groups of vintners working in partnership to host these events at six different locations spanning the valley, from Carneros to Calistoga.
During the Napa Valley Barrel Auction and Marketplace on June 6th on the grounds of the historic and recently renovated Charles Krug, dozens of Napa Valley wineries will pour current releases alongside more than 40 of the region’s most acclaimed restaurants and food purveyors.
Vintners open their homes and wineries for Friday’s Vintner-Hosted Dinners: intimate, artfully arranged and one-of-a-kind meals with such renowned culinary talent as Thomas Keller (The French Laundry and Bouchon in Napa Valley), Daniel Boulud (DANIEL in New York City) and from nearby San Francisco, Corey Lee of Benu and Joshua Skenses of Saison, to name just a few of the chefs who will be creating meals designed with Napa Valley wines in mind.
A limited number of three- and single-day packages to Auction Napa Valley are still available. To purchase tickets, visit auctionnapavalley.org.
Auction Napa Valley is Napa Valley Vintners’ annual community fundraiser that for more than 30 years has utilized the worldwide reputation of Napa Valley wines and the scenic beauty of the region to raise funds to enhance the health and wellbeing of the Napa Valley community. To date, Napa Valley Vintners has invested more than $120 million from Auction Napa Valley proceeds in Napa County nonprofit organizations.
Photo by Jason Tinacci
