11th Annual Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival Raises $3 Million And Still Climbing for McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine at UHN
TORONTO, Nov. 4, 2015 /CNW/ - The 11th annual Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival, Canada's premier wine and culinary fundraiser for medical research and innovation, presented by BMO Wealth Management, raised $3 million net and still climbing for the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine, University Health Network (UHN). Since its inception in 2005 the Festival has now raised over $21.2 million.
Co-Chaired by Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation (TGWHF) Board members Todd Halpern (Grand Cru Founder) and Cheryl McEwen the 11th annual Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival took place from October 29th – October 31st. Guests came from Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Halifax, L.A., New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Texas and even from as far as London, England.
On Thursday, October 29th, 1500 guests attended the biennially held Halpern Portfolio Wine Tasting and 550 attended the sold-out Grand Cru Live Auction at the Allstream Centre. The auction included 19 rare wine lots, 12 unique experiential and luxury lots and 5 art lots. Highlights included: a 2016 F-Type Project 7 Jaguar, the most powerful production Jaguar ever made and only 7 in Canada, sold for $200,000.00, donated by Grand Touring Automobiles, a dazzling diamond bracelet donated by Royal de Versailles sold for $22,500.00, a Jéroboam wine lot which included one 5 litre Château Mouton Rothschild 2001, one 5 litre Château d'Armailhac 2003 and one 5 litre Château Clerc Milon 2005 sold for $24,000.00, a luxury stay at Fogo Island Inn, one of the four corners of the world, sold for $25,000.00 and an original Mr. Brainwash Silkscreen of Einstein sold for $45,000.00.
VIP guests attending the Grand Cru Live Auction included Hollywood It Couple Goldie Hawn (The Banger Sisters, Town & Country) and Kurt Russell (Backdraft, Poseidon) and Daytime's handsome leading man Eric Braeden (The Young and the Restless). Charming guests as the Grand Cru Live Auction emcee was Canadian businessman, philanthropist and television personality Kevin O'Leary (Shark Tank, Dragon's Den).
On Friday, October 30th, 800 guests attended the Grand Cru Exclusive Wine & Dine Experience dinners which took place in 30 spectacular private homes and venues across the GTA. Each home featured menus prepared by top chefs, accompanied by extraordinary wines and a senior UHN clinician or researcher. Guests learned about the latest discoveries and life-saving breakthroughs at UHN.
Celebrity chefs participating included, Mark McEwan, David Hawksworth, Lorenzo Loseto, Arpi Magyar and Michelin 3 star chefs Daniel Boulud and Gilles Goujon. Participating Wine Estates included Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Burgundy, France, Romano Dal Forno, Veneto, Italy, Château Margaux, Bordeaux, France, Silver Oak Cellars, Napa, California, Cliff Lede Vineyards, Napa, California, Remoissenet Père et Fils, Burgundy, France, Antinori, Tuscany, Italy, Château Mouton-Rothschild, Bordeaux, France, Peter Michael Winery, Sonoma, California and Hugel & Fils, Alsace, France, to name but a few.
The annual Grand Cru Appreciation Party, attended by 350 guests, took place on Saturday, October 31st at the Capitol Event Theatre. This year's event was a Halloween Spooktacular affair. The Appreciation Party is a celebration to thank Grand Cru chefs, wine estates, hosts, UHN scientists, VIP guests and event sponsors. Attendance is by invitation only.
New this year Grand Cru hosted two additional wine tastings, the first an Antinori Solaia Vertical Tasting on Thursday afternoon, prior to the Grand Cru Live Auction, hosted by two of the most dynamic authorities in Italian wine, Renzo Cotarella, President and Master Winemaker of Antinori and Antonio Galloni, Wine Critic, Vinous Media. 30 guests participated in the $2,000.00 per person ticket event. The second, a wine tasting with Domaine de la Romanée-Conti conducted by Aubert de Villaine and Antonio Galloni and luncheon with Chef Daniel Boulud at Café Boulud, Four Seasons Hotel, Toronto, took place on Saturday afternoon, October 31st. 30 guests participated in this $10,000.00 per person ticket event.
"We are so very grateful to all our participants in this year's Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival. The proceeds will help our McEwen scientists translate their discoveries into safe, effective therapies for our patients," said UHN President and CEO Dr. Peter Pisters. "A big thank you to Todd Halpern and Cheryl McEwen for co-chairing this successful event."
VIP transportation for the three day event was provided by returning sponsor Grand Touring Automobiles, Official Luxury Vehicle of Grand Cru.
Additional Festival sponsors included Miele, Rogers, Royal de Versailles and Halpern Enterprises.
For a complete history, photos and further information about Grand Cru, including a full list of sponsors, participating hosts, chefs, wine estates and UHN scientists, please visit www.grandcru.ca.
You can also follow the Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation on Twitter at @tgwhf or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/tgwhf. For Grand Cru-related communications please use #GrandCru2015.
ABOUT McEWEN CENTRE FOR REGENERATIVE MEDICINE
The McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine is a world-leader in regenerative medicine research, facilitating collaboration, driving forward discovery and promoting awareness of stem cell research. The McEwen Centre includes 15 senior scientists and their teams of postdoctoral fellows and students, representing UHN, Mount Sinai, SickKids and the University of Toronto. These scientists are accelerating research to deliver more effective treatments for heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disease, osteoarthritis, liver diseases, diseases affecting loss of vision, and spinal cord injury. The scientific expertise at the Centre enables the ability to replicate patient specific disease in a petri dish and test and identify new therapies to treat disease, delivering personalized medicine solutions for patients. www.mcewencentre.com
ABOUT TORONTO GENERAL & WESTERN HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
TGWHF raises funds for research, education and the enhancement of patient care at Toronto General Hospital and Toronto Western Hospital as well as for their respective research arms, Toronto General Research Institute and Toronto Western Research Institute. The Foundation's vision is to enable global leadership and innovation in healthcare by developing and sustaining strong relationships with University Health Network stakeholders. www.tgwhf.ca
ABOUT UNIVERSITY HEALTH NETWORK
UHN consists of Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. The scope of research and complexity of cases have made UHN a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada with major research in cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, infectious diseases, and genomic medicine. UHN is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. www.uhn.ca
SOURCE Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation
Image with caption: "Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn join Ellen Halpern and Grand Cru Founder Todd Halpern at the 11th annual Halpern Portfolio Wine Tasting and Grand Cru Live Auction in support of McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine, UHN on Thursday, October 29, 2015 at the Allstream Centre. (CNW Group/Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151104_C4085_PHOTO_EN_536806.jpg
Image with caption: "Tennys Hanson, TGWHF President and CEO, Eric Braeden (The Young and Restless) and Dr. Peter Pisters, UHN President and CEO join Todd Halpern, Founder of Grand Cru at the 11th annual Halpern Portfolio Wine Tasting and Grand Cru Live Auction on Thursday, October 29, 2015 at the Allstream Centre. (CNW Group/Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151104_C4085_PHOTO_EN_536808.jpg
Image with caption: "Rob McEwen, Canadian businessman, Chairman and CEO of McEwen Mining Inc., Linda O’Leary, Kevin O’Leary, Canadian business man, philanthropist and TV personality (Shark Tank, Dragon’s Den), Cheryl McEwen, Grand Cru 2015 Co-Chair at the 11th annual Grand Cru Live Auction on Thursday, October 29, 2015 at the Allstream Centre. (CNW Group/Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151104_C4085_PHOTO_EN_536810.jpg
Image with caption: "Hollywood It couple Kurt Russell (Backdraft, Poseidon) and Goldie Hawn (The Banger Sisters, Town & Country) show their support at the 11th annual Grand Cru Live Auction benefitting the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine, UHN. (CNW Group/Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151104_C4085_PHOTO_EN_536812.jpg
Image with caption: "One of the many rare wine lots featured at the Grand Cru Live Auction on Thursday, October 29, 2015 was the Five (5) vintages, one (1) Imperial (6L) of Antinori Tignanello 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 which sold for $26,000.00 in support of McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine, UHN. (CNW Group/Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151104_C4085_PHOTO_EN_536814.jpg
For further information: For sponsorship and media inquiries please contact: Megan Goldwell, Senior Manager, Corporate Partnerships and Event Public Relations, Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation, (416) 340-5240, [email protected]
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