(published in the Santa Barbara News-Press on 2/15/14)
The
bar’s been raised as high as the stakes: a record-setting $1 million.
Organizers
of the upcoming Santa Barbara Wine Auction say a sell-out crowd should help
them reach an ambitious goal at what’s become one of the country’s premier
culinary fundraisers. “It’s definitely
one of the most prestigious parties in town,” admits Frank Ostini, President of
the Santa Barbara Vintners Foundation, the fete’s organizer and the
philanthropic arm of the Santa Barbara County Vintners Association. “There’s a strong urge to hang out with the
vintners, but it’s also about Direct Relief.”
Set
for Saturday, February 22nd, from 5pm at Bacara Resort, this now
eight biennial event has benefitted the Goleta-based charity since day
one. In fact, when the Foundation hosted
the premier auction in 2000, the $125,000 raised that year allowed the nonprofit
to meet a six-figure fiscal shortfall, and to remain solvent. Direct Relief’s portfolio of giving is
legendary within the charities industry, notably leveraging relationships with
pharmaceutical and shipping companies to translate every donated dollar to
approximately $30 in medicines and services that are distributed locally,
domestically and around the world.
“Do
the math,” says Mr. Ostini. “We’ve
raised $2 million with our auctions so far and are hoping to raise another
million this year. That’s $90 million
worth of goods and services distributed all over the world. It just makes us feel good.”
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| Winemaking duo Steve Clifton and Greg Brewer at the 2012 Santa Barbara Wine Auction (credit: Isaac Hernandez) |
Famously,
the Santa Barbara Wine Auction has done that – it has met and even surpassed monetary
goals every time – by focusing on the wow factor. The dial is cranked up to spectacular. And the energy among the bidders is fierce,
thanks to auction lots that are, really, once-in-a-lifetime experiences.
Among
the star attractions on this year’s live auction roster:
- The Sideways 10-Year Reunion: On the 10th anniversary of the Oscar-winning film that helped put Santa Barbara pinot noir on the map, Chef Frank Ostini is hosting a multi-course dinner at his famous Hitching Post II restaurant in Buellton, which was featured prominently in the movie. Wines featured in the film (and mostly unavailable now), like the 2001 Hitching Post pinot noir, will be poured. Key players from the movie will be there to share moviemaking memories, including director Alexander Payne and actress Virginia Madsen. And guests take home a limited-edition commemorative Sideways Reunion wine, a joint effort by Mr. Ostini and Au Bon Climat winemaker Jim Clendenen. Tables of 10 to this dinner will go to the five highest bidders.
- A Blending Weekend with Beckmen and Qupe: These two Santa Barbara wine powerhouses farm their wine grapes biodynamically and are offering this unique lot as a weekend to remember for four. Two nights at the Beckmen Vineyard Estate Cottage in the Santa Ynez Valley includes meals at Bell Street Farms, the gourmet Qupe/Au Bon Climat winery kitchen and the Hitching Post II. But the clincher here is the opportunity to blend your own barrel of wine – 264 bottles. And mastering the blend makes the winner an instant star, since the wine will then be featured at the 2016 Santa Barbara Wine Auction.
- VIP Catalina Island Getaway: Ballard Canyon’s Rusack wine label has stirred up quite the buzz with its ambitious winemaking project on Santa Catalina Island. This lot whisks four people to Long Beach to board a private helicopter for the famous island 26 miles across the sea. Two nights’ deluxe accommodations come with most meals, a zip line experience and a private Hummer tour of the exclusive Rusack Santa Catalina Vineyards. The parting gift is a case of the chardonnay, pinot noir and zinfandel made under this coveted label.
- Luxury Mexican Escape: The award-winning Esperanza Resort is, easily, one of the most desirable properties in Cabo San Lucas. This auction item locks in a week-long getaway here for eight, with accommodations in a magnificent four-bedroom, 5000-square-foot Ocean View Villa, complete with full-time butler service and access to the resort’s private beach, infinity pool and daily yoga classes.
And
the awe-inspiring list goes on, with options to win Skybox seats to an April
bout between the Lakers and the Clippers at Staples Center, a week-long
culinary extravaganza in Nantucket and VIP seats to the Project Runway Season
13 Finale, live at New York’s Lincoln Center (an experience that includes
airfare, hotel stays, makeup and hairstyling sessions before the event and a
meet-and-greet with show star Heidi Klum).
Bidders
need not be present to wine, actually.
Absentee bidding forms can be downloaded from the event’s web site -- www.sbwineauction.com -- and are due February 19th.
Dozens
of silent auction items – also one-of-a-kind wine- and lifestyle-driven
experiences – will also be up for grabs.
And
the brio continues on the floor, with Chris Harrison, host of TV’s popular The
Bachelor, taking on emcee duties (local vintner Andrew Firestone, one of the
original bachelors on the show, will also be there) and star chefs Vinny Totolo
and Jon Shook, the celebrated duo behind hot L.A. eats like Animal and Son of a Gun, matching Santa Barbara’s best wines throughout the
night.
The
event’s move to Bacara Resort this year allows for a bigger capacity crowd –
close to 600 people; the 2012 Auction took place at Four Seasons The Biltmore
Resort’s Coral Casino and was emceed by actor and Montecito resident Billy
Baldwin.
 |
| Thomas Tighe, President and CEO of Direct Relief (left) with "Glee" actress Jane Lynch and Billy Baldwin, actor and emcee of the 2012 Santa Barbara Wine Auction (credit: Mark Semegen) |
“This
is the biggest event that we put on, and we’re thrilled with the auction items
this year,” says Hannah Rael, media relations associate at Direct Relief. The group was established locally in 1948 and
has done outreach in the form of medical supplies and services to need people
in 70 countries. Its biggest
international project currently is a response to Typhoon Haiyan, which struck
The Philippines in early November and left more than 6200 people dead and
millions homeless. Three months in,
Direct Relief has made 20 deliveries – 120 tons of medicines worth more than
$10 million.
Its
domestic efforts have grown dramatically, too, especially recently. So much so, that the organization tinkered
with its name last year – Direct Relief International became Direct Relief – to
better mirror its locally-driven efforts.
The group is currently the only nonprofit in the United States licensed
to distribute pharmaceuticals in all 50 states.
And when Ms. Rael spoke with me last Friday, volunteer teams
inside the S. La Patera Lane warehouse were shipping out dental kits for
families in need throughout Santa Barbara County.
Proceeds
from this year’s auction are specifically earmarked for maternal and child
health projects around the world, “to pay for safe births, emergency obstetric
care and midwives,” says Ms. Rael. “It costs
$25 to help ensure a safe birth [in third world countries], so raising a
million dollars will equal quite a few healthy moms and babies.”
And “that’s
why our work with this auction is so important,” adds Mr. Ostini. “Leveraging relationships with their
partners, and in the intelligent way that Direct Relief does it – they’ve done
so well with the money we raise.”
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