The expression “The hurrier I go, the behinder I get” fits me well. Appointments become a blur and sometimes I end up at an event a day or a week early or and hour or
two late. Fortunately, last week I arrived at the 2nd Annual Miami International Wine Fair in downtown Miami’s Hyatt Regency about 15 hours too early. The Inauguration Ceremony
took place on Thursday at 10 a.m., but I was unexpectedly present at the private function (no press allowed) at 8 p.m. on Wednesday evening.
Founder and organizer David Bernad was generous enough not to send me away when he realized that my mistake was really an oversight. The fortunate
part of my error was that I got to sit down with wine connoisseurs who “lifted my spirits” so to speak.
David Bernad – all of 28 years old – decided a few years ago that he wanted to do something really enjoyable with his life and ultimately figured out how to get paid
for it. He contacted winemakers from all over the world, convinced them to bring their wares to Miami and voila! Not bad for a 28 year-old.
This 2nd Wine Fair brought in over 1,000 wines from 15 countries to be paired with exquisite tapas over a 3-day period. Lushes, oops, I mean connoisseurs
massaged their palates with low-yield vintages nearly impossible to find in Florida. Visitors to the Fair were taught the intricacies of wine appreciation and given introductory courses
and tastings. For the lucky ones, the Collectors’ Club featured almost 100 premium, rare wines that are, at best, difficult to acquire in many states, but were accessible during this
special event only.
The Fair’s success was apparent at Sunday night’s Award Ceremony. Wine distributors and invited guests toasted sponsors, restaurants that participated, the staff, the
organizer and pledged support for next year’s celebrations. What can I add except “bottoms up to a cheers-full affair”!
Art Fuses onto N.E. 40th Street
Wanted to see the newest art gallery opening last week on 40th Street in the Design District. The invite said “come celebrate our grand opening” which most
galleries usually print up, but THIS was REALLY a GRAND OPENING!
Art Fusion Gallery held an artist’s reception for William Braemer (Cuba) and Carla Fache (Chile) on October 4th. Apparently their
public relations machine managed to get the word out exceedingly well because over 700 people attended on a night when most of the District showrooms were closed. More than 1,000 servings
of sushi were served, 350 bottles of Champagne uncorked, 400 bottles of Perrier and approximately 500 bottles of Polar beer were consumed. The best part was that 6 paintings were sold
between the two artists and that makes it a very sweet and GRAND opening. Even sweeter, William and Carla were invited by Galleria Gora to exhibit in Barcelona and Montreal. An exhibition
in Italy is in the works and William will be showing his paintings at the Amsterdam Whitney Gallery in New York City from October 10 – November 4, 2003. For more information, call
305-573-5730.
Send your Upper East Side, Design District, Downtown Miami and Brickell arts and entertainment information for consideration to megs@gate.net.
