The annual Garagiste Festival will take place November 7th – 11th, 2013 in Paso Robles California where 66 garagiste winemakers will be pouring their remarkable wines. The Garagiste Festival is the first and only festival dedicated to the undiscovered and under-recognized artisan producers making some of the best, most exciting, handcrafted small-lot wines in the world. Over 50% of 2013’s participating winemakers are new discoveries, pouring at the festival for the very first time.
A term originally used in the Bordeaux region of France to denigrate renegade small-lot wine makers, sometimes working in their garage, who refused to follow the “rules.” Now a full-fledged movement responsible for making some of the best wine in the world. Who’s laughing now, Francois? Syn: Rule-breakers, pioneers, renegades, mavericks, driven by passion.
The Garagiste Festival, the first and only festival dedicated to discovering and promoting artisan ‘garagiste*’ winemakers, announced that local chef, Charles Paladin Wayne, will create the winemaker dinner for the third annual Garagiste Festival. The dinner, “Undiscovered Treasures of California’s Central Coast,” kicks off the festival on Thursday November 7th, and highlights local producers, as well as garagiste winemakers who are pouring at the festival. The dinner will be held at another hidden gem of the Central Coast, the historic Carlton Hotel in Atascadero. Wineries featured at the dinner are Bodegas M, Caliza, Clos Solene, Cutruzzola, Paix Sur Terre and The Farm Winery.
Chef Charlie has been a chef on the Central Coast since 1983, working at numerous restaurants including Sea Venture, Olde Port Inn, Café Roma, Inn at Morro Bay, and Rhythm Creekside Café. He was one of the first chefs in the area to focus on creating menus from the emerging local artisan food movement, showcasing local organic produce, seafoods, cheeses and sustainably ranched meats, then, when there were only nine wineries in business in the area, expanding his focus to matching local foods with local wines.
He created the first wine dinner in 1987 for Eberle and went on to serve as chef at several of the areas early flagship wineries, including Edna Valley, Justin Vineyards and Summerwood Winery, where he developed a following and a reputation as the go-to chef for creative and perfectly balanced food and wine pairings. Today, Chef Charlie is one of the area’s most in-demand event chefs, bringing his unique flair with local wines, foods and service to private events.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
