4th Annual Pinot Days 2008 Grand Festival Returns to San Francisco
San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) June 2, 2008
The Bay Area Wine Project is proud to announce the 4th annual Pinot Days San Francisco. Pinot Days brings together more than 190 of the world’s best pinot producers, and over 400 of the best pinots on the market today. A series of educational seminars and special tastings are topped off by The Grand Festival wine tasting Sunday, June 29th, 2008, in the Festival Pavilion at Fort Mason in San Francisco. In addition, the Grand Festival also includes a silent auction offering a number of pinots and pinot-related experiences with proceeds benefiting the Tanzanian Women’s Sewing Project, a trade school for destitute African women, the work of which enables these women to sustain themselves and their families, empowering them for economic independence within a system of poverty and disease. Pinot Days Grand Festival is open to the trade only from 11am – 1pm and to the public from 1pm -5pm. Tickets are and are available at http://www.pinotdays.com or call 415-408-3360 for more information.
Pinot Days is designed to allow wine lovers and members of the wine trade to taste a variety of pinots representing every major growing area, including California, Oregon, New Zealand, Australia and Burgundy. From hard-to-find and the most critically acclaimed pinots, patrons explore new producers, find wines they love and can afford, learn more about terroir, clones, and up-and-coming vineyards, all while broadening their experience with this food-friendly varietal. “If you love pinot noir, and I do, Pinot Days is the place to be,” says Gary Pisoni of Pisoni Vineyards. This is a serious wine event that has no pretense; the environment is casual, showcasing the finest of wines without the attitude.
Can’t get enough Pinot in one day? Pinot Days San Francisco also offers several other intimate wine events to taste and learn more about this noble grape. Events include:
Producer Spotlight Tasting June 25, 2008; 6:30pm-9:30pm Golden Gate Room, Fort Mason. Cost 0. This years Producer of the Year Tasting features a night with Kosta Browne. A rare opportunity to join Michael Browne for an evening to hear how Kosta Browne came to be and taste for yourselves what gives it its rock star status. Space is limited.
Winemakers “Table Hop” Dinners June 26, 2008; 6pm – 10pm Isa Restaurant & Jack Fallstaff Restaurant. Cost 0. Meet the Winemakers as they move tables with each dinner course, and enjoy over 14 highly acclaimed pinots, perfectly paired with a four course, pinot-focused dinner. A unique experience to “go deep” with a few winemakers whose wines and personalities are paired with each dinner course.
Seated Focus Tastings June 28, 2008; Golden Gate Room, Fort Mason. Cost per seating.
Three regional focus blind tastings–each features 16 of the best producers’ efforts within the theme. Winemakers field questions, discuss their own wines and the uniqueness of the regions.
Best of Santa Lucia Highlands, Santa Rita Hills and Central Coast, 1pm – 3pm
Best of Sonoma Coast, Anderson Valley and Santa Cruz, 4pm – 6pm
Best of Russian River Valley and Santa Maria Valley, 7pm – 9pm
Sunday Seminar Series June 29, 2008; 12 noon – 2pm Landmark Building C, Room 235. Cost
Each Sunday Seminar Series has three parts (appellation, vineyard and misto), and each is moderated by professionals well-versed in the topic. Tastings begin with the pouring of 4 wines within the theme while attendees listen to a 10-15 minute lecture, followed by a 10-15 minute question and answer session. Space is limited to 40 per tasting. For complete information and tickets for all events visit http://www.pinotdays.com.
Pinot Days, the first Bay Area wine festival dedicated to Pinot Noir, is produced by the Bay Area Wine Project, a non-profit dedicated to the promotion of pinot noir. Founders Steve & Lisa Rigisich formed the non-profit out of their love for wine, especially Pinot Noir. Joined by friends Eric and Teri White, who help produce Pinot Days, their goal is to create unique and rich experiences for patrons by, featuring Pinot Noir exclusively and involving winemakers and winery owners to do the actual pouring. The Bay Area Wine Project hosts annual wine tasting events in San Francisco, Chicago, & New York. Beyond tasting and events, the organization’s website provides information about and access to wine-related events in the greater Bay Area, wine education opportunities and wine trivia– including articles about outstanding wine personalities, winery profiles, reviews of wine events, restaurant wine lists, formal tastings and more. For more information visit http://www.pinotdays.com.
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U.S. Wine Lovers with a Zest for Travel and Adventure to Get Access to the Majorca Grape Fight and Wine Festival
Miami, FL (PRWEB) May 05, 2011
Wine lovers with a zest for adventure will have the opportunity to experience a unique travel experience when they attend the Grape Fight and Wine Festival of Majorca Sept. 15 through 26.
For the first time, access to the Festival, which hosts the only Grape Fight anywhere, is officially being opened to residents from outside, Binissalem, a small village (pop. 7,000) with limited access. Local officials and festival organizers have made arrangements to accommodate travelers who make advance reservations to attend the festival through the eventâs travel partner.
For guaranteed Grape Fight and Wine Festival event access, which includes joining the townâs residents at their homesâ curbside festivities, the trip must be booked through Mena Travel Agency, the exclusive official travel partner for this year’s Festival. The agencyâs phone is 1-800-327-4514. The travel website is http://www.grapefightmajorca.com.
âWe are very proud to be offering an opportunity to participate in a unique wine adventure experience in a largely undiscovered corner of the world of wine,â said Roberto Fabricio, a globetrotting former journalist for The Miami Herald. âI discovered this corner of exotic Majorca earlier this year in a personal trip and the grape harvest festival fascinated me. And the wine will flow throughout the festival.â
Majorca is the largest of the Balearic Islands, an autonomous region of Spain that is 130 miles from Barcelona. The flight from Barcelona is 25 minutes. The flight from Madrid is one hour.
Every year the village of Binissalem in north central Majorca celebrates La Festa des Vermar (also known as Sa Vermada), which marks the end of their grape season in mid-September. The fiesta includes a grape-treading competition, the grape-throwing fight and huge amounts of food and wine. A huge wine barrel is positioned in the town square. The townâs residents pull their dining tables to the street where there is a village-wide communal dinner.
One of the highlights of the Festival is the Battle of the Grapes. Reminiscent of the tomato fight (La Tomatina) in Buñol (Valencia), Binissalem has its very own annual fruit-throwing battle, La Gran Batalla de Raïm. A bell is rung at the townâs city hall and throngs of âcombatantsâ rush to the two huge mounds of grapes at a designated âbattlefieldâ. The free for all is both colorful and fun, to say the least. And it is as fun for the majority that chose to watch as for those âbattlingâ.
After the grape fight, fight participants get an opportunity to get cleaned up and get the grape seeds out of their hair and then are invited to the plaça de l’Església (church square) to ‘eat and party’! It is obligatory for all participating in the events to dress in traditional ‘trepitjador’ (grape-treader) attire, which consists of all white clothing with a purple neckerchief saying ‘Festa dels Trepitjadors’. The neckerchiefs can be bought in the square for about 3 Euros ( dollars). The square is lined with tables and paella and other dishes prepared in huge vats and portions served to each attendee.
Those traveling from outside Majorca will be able to have their meals with the townâs families, which set their dining tables on the streets in front of their homes.
As much as the Festivalâs myriad of fun events such as the Grape Fight, Stomping of the Grapes and other festivities, there will be numerous gourmet meals, and travelers will be able to interact with the local wine community and will visit local wineries where there will be wine tastings and the opportunity to meet the local vineyard owners.
Fabricio, president of GlobalVision Strategies, an international business development company, partnered with Mena Travel Agencyâ http://www.menatravelagency.com — to make the Grape Fight and Wine Festival available throughout the United States.
FOR MORE EVENT INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Roberto Fabricio
GlobalVision Strategies
roberto(at)glovist(dot)com
Phone: (305) 205-9463
FOR TRAVEL INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Hilda Maria Mena
Mena Travel Agency
hilda(at)menatravelagency(dot)com
1-800-327-4514
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©Copyright 1997-
, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.

AMGEN Tour and 29th Annual Wine Festival Provide Four Days Of Fun In Paso Robles, CA
San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) March 24, 2011
A burgeoning California destination nestled in the Santa Lucia Mountains of Central California midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, Paso Robles offers a stunning retreat for both cycling and wine enthusiasts. From May 19-22, Paso Robles will host two consecutive high profile events â Stage 5 of the AMGEN Tour of California on May 19, followed by the renowned 29th Annual Wine Festival taking place May 20-22. One lucky winner will have the opportunity to experience three days of both cycling excitement and wine tasting by entering the âCome for the Race, Stay for the Wine Sweepstakes,â hosted by the Travel Paso Robles Alliance (TPRA). From April 7-28, consumers are encouraged to enter this social media sweepstakes for the chance to win a pair of VIP AMGEN Tour tickets, RESERVE tickets to the Paso Robles Wine Festival and a complimentary two night stay (a total value of 00).
The two VIP AMGEN Tour tickets include special reserve seating, passes to the AMGEN Tour VIP tent, access to the VIP post-race party and AMGEN gift bags. The two Wine Festival RESERVE tickets include access to the RESERVE wine tasting event on Friday, May 20 featuring a special tasting and auction of library and reserve wines, power whites/rosés and futures; access to the Winemaker Seminar on Saturday, May 21; and early admission to the Grand Tasting on Saturday, May 21.
Cyclists will delight in Paso Roblesâ serene natural beauty and seemingly endless miles of quiet roads ideal for riding. With more than 200 wineries, wine lovers can choose from endless options to taste the areaâs 40+ wine grape varietals and blends – from Spanish to Italian to Bordeaux and Rhône, including the areaâs heritage variety, Zinfandel. As Californiaâs fastest-growing wine region, Paso Robles boasts six different wine regions to explore, each with their own distinct microclimate and terroir including the Back Roads Wineries, Far Out Wineries, Pleasant Valley Wineries, Downtown Wineries, 46 East Wineries and 46 West Wineries. For those who wish to combine cycling and wine tasting, Highway 46 West offers spectacular scenery and some of the areaâs top wineries.
The âCome for the Race, Stay for the Wine Sweepstakesâ entry window is open from April 7-28, 2011. To enter the sweepstakes, consumers are asked to âlikeâ Travel Pasoâs Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/TravelPaso. Then, click on the Travel Paso âSweepstakesâ tab and follow the simple sign up process. The sweepstakes closes on April 28, 2011 at 11:59 a.m. (PST). The TPRA will announce the winner on April 28 at 3 p.m. (PST) via Travel Pasoâs Twitter http://www.twitter.com/travelpaso and Facebook http://www.facebook.com/TravelPaso accounts and on http://www.travelpaso.com. The two night stay is valid on Thursday, May 20 and Friday, May 21, 2011 only. The winner will be responsible for all transportation and any additional accommodations. Must be at least 21 years of age to enter. Limited to one entry per person.
About the AMGEN Tour of California
The largest cycling event in America, the 2011 AMGEN Tour of California is a Tour de France-style cycling road race presented by AEG that challenges the worldâs top professional cycling teams to compete in a demanding course from May 15-22, 2011. The Stage 5 finishing line of the 2011 AMGEN Tour of California is located in downtown Paso Robles. For more information, visit http://www.amgentourofcalifornia.com.
About the Paso Robles Wine Festival
Now in its 29th year, the Paso Robles Wine Festival, taking place May 20-22, 2011, celebrates Paso Robles wine country by bringing more than 90 area wineries to the Downtown City Park. In addition, local artisans and chefs will be found throughout the weekend engaging their cuisine in a dance that highlights the best of both food and wine. RESERVE, held on the evening of Friday, May 20, will lead consumers through an exploration of library, reserve, power white/Rosés and futures. On Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22, the Grand Tasting will feature more than 400 wines, local culinary artists, chef demonstrations and live music beneath the oaks of the Paso Robles Downtown City Park. For more information, visit http://www.travelpaso.com.
About Paso Robles, CA
Nestled in the Santa Lucia Mountains of the Central California Coast midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, Paso Robles is an affordable and welcoming retreat that offers the authentic California experience. An extensive variety of activities and experiences offer something for everyone including untouched natural beauty, a bounty of farm fresh cuisine supplied by local organic and specialty farms and the nearby Pacific Ocean, more than 200 wineries, renowned cultural attractions, first-class shopping, golf and entertainment, and much more. Visitors can choose from a wide selection of accommodations, from luxurious resorts and boutique inns to leading brand hotels and affordable, family friendly motels. For information on how to make the most of your stay in Paso Robles, visit http://www.travelpaso.com or contact (805) 227-PASO, tourism(at)prcity(dot)com. For the latest news on the area, visit http://blog.travelpaso.com, join us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/travelpaso and follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/travelpaso.
About the Travel Paso Robles Alliance
The Travel Paso Robles Alliance (TPRA) was founded in 2008 by a group of 19 area hoteliers with the mission to help business, leisure and group travelers discover the Authentic California⢠experience of the Central Coast. The alliance offers information for the 1,100 luxury, specialty, value, and budget room choices available to visitors. The organization consists of owners and operators of luxurious resorts and inns, leading brand hotels, quaint bed and breakfasts, motels and budget accommodations. For more information on the TPRA, visit http://www.travelpaso.com or contact (805) 227-PASO, tourism(at)prcity(dot)com. For the latest news on the area, visit http://blog.travelpaso.com, join us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/travelpaso and follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/travelpaso.
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©Copyright 1997-
, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
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