In Oregon:

Oregon Classic Wines Auction is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2009. The recent Appreciation Dinner for this year’s Honorary Winery Ambassadors, Board of Directors and successful high bidders, was held at Domaine Serene, situated in the Dundee Hills southwest of Portland, Oregon.

Pictured at left are Stuart Bryan of Pride Mountain, Honorary California Winery Ambassador and National Sales Manager for the winery, with his daughter Elizabeth Bryan, a student in the Architecture Department at University of Oregon, Eugene. With them are Kathleen and Allen Shoup of Long Shadows Vineyards, Honorary Washington State Ambassador in 2009.

Stuart pictured with Honorary Oregon Wine Ambassadors, Grace and Ken Evenstad, owners of Domaine Serene Winery and hosts of the Appreciation Dinner. Each course was paired with wines from the Honorary Wine Ambassadors with cuisine of the Chef Pascal Chureau of Portland’s Lucier and Fenouil restaurants.

In Costa Mesa, California:

At the recent Winemaker Dinner at Charlie Palmer’s at Bloomingdales, in Costa Mesa, California, Chef Amar Santana (left) joins Stuart Bryan, National Sales Manager at Pride Mountain, Sally Johnson, Winemaker, Ahmed Labbate, General Manager of Charlie Palmer, and Michael Frumin, Sommelier for a tour of the Cellar Room. The reservations-only event was attended by 48 people and featured a four-course dinner paired with five Pride Mountain wines on January 19.

Enjoying conversation and meeting guests before the dinner at Charlie Palmer's are Sally Johnson, winemaker for Pride Mountain, and Carla King, founder of wine brokerage firm, Free Run Juice.