BIG SUR

FOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL

BIG SUR FOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL STORMS COAST NOVEMBER 4th –- 7th

In early 2009, a small group of friends came together with a vision to promote Big Sur
as a culinary destination, and raise funds for the community's three essential services: 
Health, Education, and Safety. In its first year, the Big Sur Food and Wine Festival
helped raise nearly $20,000 for the Big Sur community.

Join us this year at the Highlands Inn, a Hyatt Hotel for a stunning new opening evening: Gateway To Big Sur on Thursday November 4th. The weekend follows with many more meals and events such as the popular Hiking With Stemware at various unique Big Sur properties. Also, California’s propensity for producing sublime Pinot Noirs, has inspired the Pinot Walk-About at the Restaurant at Ventana on Friday afternoon, featuring over 20 of our very favorite Pinot-producing friends.

Dinner With Friends on Saturday night at the Restaurant at Ventana will feature top wines along with the culinary talents of Chef Truman Jones of Ventana, Arturo Moscoso of Peppoli at Pebble Beach, Ted Walters of Passionfish, Cy Yontz of the Rio Grill and our dear friend from the Central Coast Wine Classic, Frank Ostini of the famed Hitching Post

There are two extremely exciting additions to this year’s festival: The Gateway to Big Sur – an opening night extravaganza to be held at the Highlands Inn in Carmel on Thursday November 4th from 6 – 9pm. “We’ll have over 20 of our favorite wineries and 10 chefs showing off their skills, says festival president Toby Rowland-Jones. “There is no better way to throw open the doors to the weekend than with our friends and neighbor s at the Highlands,” He says. “This is one of the loveliest hotels in all of California, and has a great history of food and wine celebrations, most notably the Masters of Food and Wine.”

The other important and profound moment will occur when OPUS VINO, the largest and most comprehensive wine reference guide to date, will be released on the West Coast, Saturday, November 6th, at the Big Sur Food and Wine Festival. On hand to sign copies, will be the Editor-in-Chief, Jim Gordon. Coming in at 800 pages, and with information on every single imaginable wine-growing region, including 4,500 different varietals, OPUS VINO (November 2010; 800 pp.; $75 HC) will be the go-to book for anyone even remotely interested in wine. Opus Vino is unusual in that it combines elements of an encyclopedia and atlas with thousands of individual wine recommendations.

Tickets for the 2010 Big Sur Food and Wine Festival went on sale September 10thand almost immediately sold out one of the unique Hiking With Stemware events. There is another on one of the loveliest properties in Big Sur, coincidently also where the 2008 Basin Complex Fire started, so it has special poignancy. Hardly anyone except the firefighters has ever been up there!

Some of the finest winemakers in California will be present for the weekend, including Tim Mondavi, who will present his latest wine, Continuum along with an array of wines made for his father Robert as well as during the Mondavis’ collaboration with famed Super Tuscan house Ornellaia. On hand will be: Randall Grahm of Bonny Doon, Paul Draper of Ridge, Jim Clendenen of ABC, Rob Talbott and Dan Karlsen of Talbott Vineyards, Gary Pisoni, David Ramey, John Alban, Morgan Clendenen, Emmanuel Kimiji of Miura, are just a few of the over 60 wineries appearing in some form or another for the four day event.

The Grand Public tasting, featuring 32 wineries and five or six chefs from the area, will be held at the stunning, redwood grove of the Henry Miller Library. “This particular event is going to be unique, we feel,” Rowland-Jones says. “We are adding in local authors who have written books about food and wine or about their experiences living on the coast.

For more information on the 2010 Big Sur Food and Wine Festival, visitwww.bigsurfoodandwine.org or call 831-667-0800

The event is sponsored by Ventana Inn and Spa, Highlands Inn and Park Hyatt Hotels, Henry Miller Library, Mercedes-Benz, J & L Wines, Monterey County Bank, Post Ranch Inn, HobNob Monterey, Toyota, Big Sur River Inn, TreeBones Resort, Big Sur Lodge, among others.

The Big Sur Food and Wine Festival raises funds for the Big Sur community to promote and continue Health, Safety and Education. The 2009 Festival raised $20,000 for various nonprofit organizations in the area including the Volunteer Fire Brigade, the Health Center and the Gazebo school at Esalen.