ATHENS, Ga. – Tickets are on sale now for the tenth anniversary of Athens Wine Weekend, scheduled for Friday and Saturday, February 1 and 2, at The Classic Center in downtown Athens.
The event is a benefit for The Classic Center Cultural Foundation, which provides resources to entertain and educate the community by supporting diverse performing, visual and culinary arts programs, while also offering scholarships to upcoming students of the arts.
The weekend begins with an Amuse-Bouche, or “A Little Surprise,” on Friday evening from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m., featuring several of the most skilled and talented chefs from Northeast Georgia, who will each provide a sampling of their cooking artistry, all paired with the perfect wine to arouse the palate. Attendees are also invited to take a chance at this year’s Wine Pull during the Amuse-Bouche, where participants will play for top notch bottles of wine from around the world. Amuse-Bouche tickets include seven tasting coins and are $50 per person.
Wine enthusiasts are invited back on Saturday for the Grand Tasting from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., which will feature hundreds of wines from all over the world. Each attendee will receive a complimentary wine glass for tasting, with various distributors on hand for three hours of sipping and sampling. Guests will also enjoy the return of the popular Bourbon Pull, where every player is a winner and will have the chance to go home with a top shelf bottle of bourbon or whiskey. Grand Tasting tickets are $30 per person.
Take your love of the grape to the next level by attending a wide variety of seminars from some of the most knowledgeable experts and sommeliers in the industry, including Simone Bergese from Chateau Elan Winery, Ariel Padawer from Kaya Vineyards & Winery, Carol Crumley from CeNita Wintery, Eduardo de Velasco from VIP Southern Tours and more. Seminar tickets are $5 per seminar or $15 for the premier seminar.
Saturday’s festivities conclude with an elegant six course, gourmet Italian dinner. Each course is exquisitely crafted and created by The Classic Center’s in-house caterer, Levy. For a full menu, including wine pairings, please visit ClassicCenter.com/AthensWineWeekend. Tickets to the Gourmet Dinner are currently sold out.
New to this year’s Athens Wine Weekend experience will be three separate silent auctions, one at every Wine Weekend event. Silent auction winners will be announced at the conclusion of each event. Combined with the money raised from each silent auction, a Golden Ticket Raffle is also available for purchase, with all funds donated to The Classic Center Cultural Foundation’s scholarship program. Tickets are $100 and only 500 will be sold. Three lucky winners will win one of the following grand prizes:
- Two reserved spots on the 2019 Classic Center Cultural Foundation’s trip to Scotland
- Two reserved spots on the 2020 Classic Center Cultural Foundation’s trip to New York City
- Two 2019-20 Broadway Entertainment Series Season Tickets, two 2019-20 501 Series Season Tickets, one week stay at a beautiful home on Lake Burton and two reserved seats to the 2020 Athens Wine Weekend Gourmet Dinner
Two Athens Wine Weekend packages being offered for guests who want the complete weekend experience: the Full Bottle Package and the Half Carafe Package. The Full Bottle Package includes hotel accommodations for Friday and Saturday evening and two tickets to the Amuse Bouche, Grand Tasting, Gourmet Dinner and the Premier Seminar. The Half Carafe Package includes hotel accommodations for Friday evening and two tickets to Amuse Bouche, Grand Tasting and the Premier Seminar. Currently, the Full Bottle Package is sold out, but Half Carafe Packages are still available for purchase.
For more information, including ticket purchasing, visit ClassicCenter.com/AthensWineWeeekend or call 706.357.4444.
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The Classic Center Cultural Foundation’s mission is to provide resources to entertain and educate the Athens community by providing and supporting diverse performing, visual and culinary arts programs, while working to maintain The Classic Center in a state-of-the-art condition.
For more information contact:
Ashley Crain
Media Relations Manager |The Classic Center
Ashley@ClassicCenter.com