The Wooden Floor, one of the nation’s leading creative youth development nonprofit organizations, celebrates the 20th anniversary of its signature wine tasting fundraising event, Keep the Promise, on Thursday, Sept. 24, at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach.
As in past years, the event features a dozen of the world’s most exceptional wines, all with an average rating of 97 points or higher, from regions such as France, Italy, Germany, South Africa, Argentina, and Australia, as well as California.
At last year’s Keep the Promise event, The Wooden Floor grossed over $400,000 for the organization, bringing the organization’s total gifts raised throughout the benefit’s history to over $4.4 million.
According to The Wooden Floor, the generous gifts provided at this event enable perpetual progress in the organization’s programming in dance education, academics, college and career readiness, and family services for The Wooden Floor’s students.
“We are grateful for the outpouring of community support over the years for our mission to inspire and transform the lives of young people through the power of dance and access to higher education,” said The Wooden Floor CEO, Dawn S. Reese. “Our students gain life-changing experiences with a focus on social, emotional, and academic wellness, which have been increasingly important in recent years. Due to the stalwart commitment of our community of supporters, 100 percent of our students who have graduated from The Wooden Floor have enrolled in higher education since 2005, with the Class of 2026 being our 22nd consecutive graduating class.”
Here’s how Keep the Promise works: Guests are given a wine glass and a list of the wines being tasted. They then stroll around the room sampling the wines at tables numbered one through 12. The wines are poured blind so guests cannot see the labels. Guests mark on their score sheets which wine they think they just sampled, then turn in their score sheets before the wines are unveiled. Whoever guesses the most wines correctly wins a collection of wines.
Big Canyon’s Master Sommelier Steven Poe works with Chef Craig Strong to perfectly pair the outstanding wines with signature small plate dining options.
This year’s wine selections are truly impressive and should excite any oenophile.
Whites include 2019 Markus Molitor Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese (100 points, Wine Advocate), 2020 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne (James Suckling 97 points), 2021 Paul Hobbs Chardonnay Edward James Estate (Jeb Dunnuck 97 points), 2020 Boekenhoutskloof Semillon (James Suckling 93 points), 2021 Catena Zapata White Bones Chardonnay (James Suckling 99 points), and 2023 Muller-Catoir Haardter Burgergarten Im Breumel Riesling Grosses Gewachs (James Suckling 99 points).
Red wines include 2017 Uspallata Malbec (Tim Atkin 98 points), 2020 Glaetzer Amon-Ra Shiraz (Wine Advocate 97 points), 2020 Le Clos du Caillou La Réserve (Wine Advocate 100 points), 2021 RAEN Sea Field Pinot Noir (Jeb Dunnuck 99 points), 2021 L’Aventure Estate Cuvee 20th Anniversary (Jeb Dunnuck 100 points), and 2018 Shafer Hillside Select (Jeb Dunnuck 100 points).
In addition to the superb wines and delicious dishes, guests will hear success stories from students and can participate in activities for select prizes, including the crowd-favorite blind tasting competition, opportunity drawings, and a silent auction.
Keep the Promise begins at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 24 at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach. Tickets are $400 per person, with $250 tax deductible. Sponsorships are also available. Visit www.thewoodenfloor.org/winetasting.
Founded in 1983, The Wooden Floor is one of the foremost creative youth development nonprofit organizations in the country. The organization inspires and transforms the lives of young people through the power of dance and access to higher education. In Orange County and through national licensed partners, they use a long-term approach grounded in exploratory dance education to foster the confidence and gifts within each child to innovate, communicate, and collaborate—skills necessary for success in school and in life. Every student who graduates from The Wooden Floor enrolls in higher education.
