Berkshire Museum to hold wine gala and auction
Van Shields, executive director of the Berkshire Museum, said, “The Berkshire Museum Wine Gala and Auction only happens every other year and the wine lots and lifestyle packages at the auction have been have been attracting collectors and enthusiasts for nearly two decades. It’s a classic kickoff to summer in The Berkshires.”
With the auction less than a month away, it is time to consider attending Berkshire County’s premier event.
Tickets start at $100 per person and according to Jim Nejaime, owner of Spirited Wines of Lenox, “This bi-annual gala wine auction event is the major fundraiser for the Berkshire Museum’s children’s programs, which are provided at no charge to our area schools.
“The event offers an opportunity to support the museum, taste great wine and food and bid in silent and live auctions, all followed by a gala dinner. The museum has gathered incredible wines from generous winemakers, collectors and friends of the museum, as well exceptional lifestyle auction lots.”
The list of all auction lots, in catalog form, is available on the Berkshire Museum’s website.
Lesley Ann Beck, director of communications at the Berkshire Museum, puts a simple spin on the gala evening: “May 18 is an evening of superb wines, fine dining and exceptional auction lots.”
This fundraiser for the museum’s educational program provided more than 16,000 educational experiences in 2012 for students and teachers from The Berkshires. Sponsorships and tickets are now available by calling (413) 443-7171, extension 37, or by visiting BerkshireMuseum.org/2013winegala.
Auctioneer Marie Keep of Skinner Wine Auctions will lead the live auction of more than 30 lots of rare and fine wines, unique vacations and exclusive dinners.
The evening’s guest of honor is Ricardo Illy, owner of the Mastrojanni Winery in Tuscany (Italy), and president of the Illy Coffee Company in Europe.
The evening’s festivities begin at 5 p.m. in the Ellen Crane Memorial Room with a silent auction. More than 40 lots of wine, travel, dining, spa days, sporting events and merchandise will be offered in the Silent Auction. Hors d’ oeuvres and wine will be passed to the attendees while participants bid on items.
At 6:45pm, the live auction will take place in the theater, accompanied by a Champagne reception.
Some of the items auctioned off in the Live Auction include: a four bottle lot of 1983 Chateau Margaux, a 12-bottle case of Gran Cru Burgundy and a three vintage vertical set (nine bottles) of E. Guigal “Cote Rote,” La Landonne, La Mouline and La Turque. Other choices include a Rhone river cruise through Burgundy and Provence to the Cote d’Azur; courtside tickets to the 2013 U.S. Open Tennis Championships; and sumptuous wine dinners at Wheatleigh, Blantyre and the Old Inn On The Green.
The Auction is followed by the celebratory wine dinner in the galleries, catered by Chef Michael Roller of Savory Harvest Catering. The featured wine includes Brunello di Montalcino from Mastrojanni Winery.
Nancy Edman Feldman and Mike Chefetz are the honorary chairs of the 2013 event. Wendy and Peter Gordon are the chairs for the gala. Courtney and Mike Addy and Heidi and Jim Nejaime are the wine committee chairs.
Honorary Chair, Nancy Edman Feldman said, “The wine auction is always a very special evening that only The Berkshires can provide. All the better that it does so much to support the Berkshire Museum’s ongoing work with students throughout Berkshire County.”
Weekend accommodation packages areavailable exclusively at Wheatleigh in Lenox, a member of the “Leading Hotels of the World.”
The Berkshire Museum was established in 1903 by Zenas Crane and integrates art, history and natural science in a wide range of programs and exhibitions that inspire educational connections between the disciplines.
If you go
What: 2013 Wine Gala & Auction
Where: Berkshire Museum, 39 South St. in Pittsfield
When: Saturday, May 18 at 5 p.m.
Posted by Phillip Kampe
on May 2, 2013. Filed under Columns,Food,Opinion,Wine and Beyond.
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