The 2006 Grand Wine and Food Affair
Montesquieu participated in The Grand Wine and Food Affair last spring in Houston, Texas. The event was a huge success with five days of perfect weather and an assortment of award-winning and renowned winemakers, including Montesquieu. The event also featured famous chefs from all over the globe, who offered the public their best and most delightful food samplings, which brought out the depth of the greatest wines present, including some of Montesquieu's world class wines. Chef Sara Moulton was the featured celebrity host of the event. She, along with some of the world's most wonderful chefs and sommeliers, spent five days giving food and wine demonstrations. The event included cooking classes, wine seminars, vintner dinners, and tastings of reserve wines, to which Montesquieu brought some of their premier wines and best wine authorities. The Grand Wine and Food Affair adds to its event schedule every season, drawing increasing amounts of celebrated chefs and innovative winemakers every year, making it one of the best food and wine celebratory events on the west coast.
Sara Moulton is the Executive Chef for Gourmet magazine, as well as an author of cookbooks and the host of a cooking show. She served as the Grand Ambassador and the celebrity personality of the food and wine event. During the event, Moulton demonstrated her culinary skills through numerous cooking demonstrations and participated in a book signing of her latest cookbook, Sara's Secrets. Her genius created a wonderful blend of the two worlds of food and wine as she brought them together in some of her finest recipes.
One of the highlights of the event is the lively Sienna Sip and Stroll, a section of the event where only reserve wines or better can be offered for tasting. Montesquieu, along with 50 other wineries, was proud to be a part of this unique and crowd-drawing event in which we were able to offer the public samples of our premier wines. Some of the Sienna Sip and Stroll activities included live Jazz and Latin dancing, as well as cooking demonstrations from Texas' award-winning restaurants. In addition, Texas' top winemakers had a panel discussion on Mediterranean style wines at the Domaine du Vin, a haven for food and wine lovers alike.
The Grand Wine and Food Affair was the first of its kind to be established in the region, and Montesquieu was proud to represent their wines during the five-day festivities. The food and wine presented was unparalleled in quality and originality, and the event received national attention for its success. The Grand Wine and Food Affair was delighted by the positive reviews and acclaim it received and was proud they could provide an opportunity where world class connoisseurs and brilliant talent from around the globe could unite as a culinary community for five days.
A portion of the funds the Grand Wine and Food Affair raised during the event went towards a scholarship set up at the Conrad N. Hilton College of Restaurant and Hotel Management for students with a promising talent in a career in the hospitality industry, which included hotel and restaurant management to culinary and spirits artistry. The Grand Wine and Food Affair was a celebration of talent, passion, and love for the industry coupled with the uniqueness of Texas. Montesquieu found the Texan event entertaining and full of style, complete with world-class varietals.