There may be no better use of wine (other than drinking) than to entice people to attend a charity event.
And there may be no better charity wine event than The Wooden Floor’s “Keep the Promise” Wine Tasting Benefit, to be held on Thursday, Sept. 19 beginning at 6 p.m. at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach.
Founded more than 40 years ago, The Wooden Floor is one of the foremost creative youth development nonprofit organizations in the country, transforming the lives of young people in low-income communities through the power of dance and access to higher education.
This is the 18th year that The Wooden Floor has hosted a wine tasting event, but not with average wines. A specially curated collection of a dozen wines considered among the world’s top one to three percent.
These exceptional wines have an average rating of 97 points and above, from regions such as France, Italy, Germany, and Austria as well as California.
The wines were selected by John Markley, The Wooden Floor CEO Dawn S. Reese, and Greg Koslosky, Owner of Envoyer Fine Wines. The wines were purchased by The Wooden Floor, and generously underwritten by John and Janice Markley, longtime patrons of The Wooden Floor and wine connoisseurs.
At last year’s Keep The Promise fundraiser, The Wooden Floor grossed nearly $410,000 for the organization, bringing the total raised over the event’s 17 year history to $4.3 million.
According to information from The Wooden Floor, the generous gifts provided at this event allow for perpetual movement forward in the organization’s programming of dance, academics, college and career readiness, and family services provided to The Wooden Floor’s students over their 10-year journeys.
“We are grateful for the outpouring of community support over the years for our mission to inspire and transform the lives of young people through the power of dance and access to higher education. Our students gain life-changing experiences with a focus on social, emotional, and academic wellness, which have been increasingly important in recent years. Due to the stalwart commitment of our community of supporters, 100 percent of our students who have graduated from The Wooden Floor have immediately enrolled in higher education since 2005, with the Class of 2024 being our 20th consecutive graduating class,” said CEO Dawn S. Reese.
In the richly appointed space of Big Canyon, guests sample the exceptional wines in a friendly blind-tasting competition, with the wines poured at 12 different stations.
Big Canyon’s Master Sommelier Steven Poe perfectly pairs the outstanding wines with signature small plate dining options prepared by Chef Craig Strong.
Strong is a familiar name on the local restaurant scene. He earned a Michelin star in 2008 and 2009 while he was chef de cuisine at what is now The Langham Huntington, Pasadena before bringing his modern French cuisine to Studio at the Montage Laguna Beach.
Strong left Studio to open his open restaurant, Ocean at Main. He closed that restaurant in February 2020 to move down the street to become the executive chef at the Hotel Laguna restaurant, Larsen. Then in August 2022, he accepted an offer from Big Canyon Country Club to helm their culinary facility.
In addition to wine and food, the event includes opportunity drawings, a silent auction, and listening to success stories from students.
In previous opportunity drawings, guests have won such gifts as a $1,000 South Coast Plaza Gift Card and a selection of the evening’s wines. Previous silent auction items included: one week stay at a luxury residence in Los Suenos, Costa Rica, as well as rare vintner-signed wines, and sports experiences.
Tickets to the Keep The Promise Wine Tasting event are $350 each, with $250 tax deductible. Sponsorships start at $1,500. Tickets are available at www.thewoodenfloor.org/winetasting.
The Wines
If you need more of a reason to attend, here are the wines being poured:
- 2019 Famille Perrin / Perrin & Fils Gigondas Domaine du Clos des Tourelles / Red / France.
- 2018 Henri Magnien Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Les Cazetiers / Red / France
- 2016 Fattoria di Fèlsina Berardenga Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Colonia / Red / Italy
- 2018 Markus Molitor Graacher Himmelreich Pinot Noir trocken / Red / Germany
- 2015 Château Client / Red / France
- 2016 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain / Red / USA
- 2019 Hartford / Hartford Court Chardonnay Four Hearts Vineyards / White / California
- 2008 Romano Dal Forno Amarone della Valpolicella / Dessert / Italy
- 2017 Louis Jadot Corton Charlemagne / White / France
- 2019 Wayfarer Chardonnay Wayfarer Vineyard / White / California
- 2021 Huet Vouvray Sec le Mont / White / France
- 2016 Trimbach Riesling Cuvee Frederic Emile / White / France
About The Wooden Floor
Founded in 1983, The Wooden Floor is one of the foremost creative youth development nonprofit organizations in the country. We transform the lives of young people in low-income communities through the power of dance and access to higher education. In Orange County and through national licensed partners, we use a long-term approach grounded in exploratory dance education to foster the confidence and gifts within each child to innovate, communicate, and collaborate—skills necessary for success in school and in life. 100 percent of students who graduate from the Wooden Floor immediately enroll in higher education. Our students become change agents and beacons of hope within their own families, their neighborhoods, our community, and our world. Visit www.TheWoodenFloor.org.
