Red and White Wine and Jazz Festival. April 12, 2013.

Friday April 12^th capped a week of travel: the Sloan emerging technology conference in Vegas, then back to host the Board meeting at the College on Thursday, to Harris Ranch for a two-day conference with the Central Valley CEOs and trustees. It’s been almost a month, but there’s a major event that I wanted to be sure to blog about. I left the conference at Harris Ranch early that Friday to be present for the Red and White Wine and Jazz festival. This a major annual fundraiser that the Foundation has organized since 2008 in support student scholarships, and I didn’t want to miss it for anything.

I was impressed from the start with the level of attention to detail and organization – everything from the parking shuttles to the staff at the entrance, to the layout of booths and food. The Culinary program did an outstanding job of providing a tasty and creative variety of food to complement the wine, and the students were great at serving the guests and creating a festive atmosphere. There was an abundant selection – far more than was possible to have more than a sampling. My personal favorite was the pastas rellenas… The students, Chef Coyle and Chef Gomez were all in fine form.

Red and White Wine Festival April 12 2013 (3)

Nan Gomez-Heitzeberg serving wine for the evening.

The wines were excellent, I was told, a broad selection including Zinfandels, Cabarnets and Chardonnays that paired excellently with the food. There were six tents with wine stations, at least 54 participating wineries including Fresno State Winery (which I’m told is the first commercial winery operated by a university) and, for the second time, wines from around the world.

The experience was complete with the sounds of the BC Jazz Ensemble’s music floating across the event, and as the event wound down the crowd transitioned to an audience for a closing performance of wonderful jazz tunes.

What a great way to serve students and welcome our community to the campus and see old friends.