2014 Vancouver International Wine Festival Bacchanalia Gala

Christopher Gaze, Bard on the Beach artistic director/founder; Sophie Lui, Global TV anchor and gala emcee; and Harry Hertscheg, Vancouver International Wine Festival executive director.Christopher Gaze, Bard on the Beach artistic director/ founder; Sophie Lui, Global TV anchor and emcee; and Harry Hertscheg, Vancouver International Wine Festival executive director. Jean-Philippe...

Christopher Gaze, Bard on the Beach artistic director/founder; Sophie Lui, Global TV anchor and gala emcee; and Harry Hertscheg, Vancouver International Wine Festival executive director.

Jean-Philippe Turgeon, Gerard Bertrand export director; Anna Manchon, Torres area manager; and Mikael Falkman, Champagne Taittinger international business developer.

Anthony Gismondi, Vancouver Sun wine writer; and Mark Hicken, chair of the wine committee for the gala.

Nicholas Edgar, Scotia Capital analyst; and Erin Chamberlain.

Christopher Gaze, Bard on the Beach artistic director/founder and his wife, Jennifer.

Jamie Sikorski, Direct Sales Ltd. president; Karen Carmichael, Jai Style founder; Cynda Heward, St. Mary’s Hospital president; and Brenda McAllister, gala chair.

AJ McLean, The McLean Group of Companies portfolio manager; and Jason McLean, The McLean Group of Companies president.

Domingos Soares Franco, Jose Maria da Fonseca VP senior winemaker; and Sheila Whittaker, Philippe Dandurand Wines.

Aaron Kennedy, DMK Design president; and Lejla Karamesic, Silver Wheaton executive assistant.

Bruce Dean, Northam Beneficiaries president; and Jean Remy Rapeneau, Charles de Cazanove proprietor.

Lesley Laudan and Mervyn Gilbart-Smith, retired.

Vancouver International Wine Festival Bacchanalia Gala Dinner and Auction
The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver
February 22, 2014


More than 400 guests attended at the Bacchanalia Gala Dinner and Auction, which is the centrepiece of the Vancouver International Wine Festival and a must-attend event for serious wine collectors. Rare, valuable and unusual wines, donated by some of the world’s top winemakers and private collectors, were up for auction.

A champagne reception kicked off the gala followed by nine wines paired with five courses. A live auction after dinner included once-in-a-lifetime culinary experiences and excursions, featuring chefs and sommeliers from the West Coast’s top restaurants. The amount raised from the auctions alone totalled over $180,000. Top items included a dinner and stay at Chateau Angelus vineyard chateau ($8,000), and a Bearfoot Bistro dinner ($6,000).