On a trip to Napa Valley, Terry Lehman and his wife enjoyed an intimate steak dinner in the iconic carriage house of the Peter Mondavi family’s Charles Krug winery. Their hosts: Mr. and Mrs. Peter Mondavi.
“Here, you have somebody who’s the most visible name in the wine industry in the United States, and they’re spending five hours with you,” Lehman recalls.
Lehman earned the trip through a winning bid at Très Bonne Année, which this year notes its 15th anniversary.
What is Très Bonne Année (other than French for “Very Good Year”)? It’s an annual series of events culminating with a Gala Wine Auction and Dinner at the Hilton Harrisburg. Last year’s Très Bonne Année, where Lehman chairs the board of directors, raised $430,000.
Since the beginning, Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts has been the beneficiary, for a 14-year total of nearly $4.3 million.
“You look at some of the other wine auctions in the country, and they’re in very affluent places, whether it’s Napa Valley or New York City or Naples,” says Lehman. “Our auction grossed $540,000 in one night in auction proceeds, which is phenomenal. It’s Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.”
Wine, Food, Art
The birth of Très Bonne Année was inspired by one of those other auctions.
Jan Rumberger, a local businessman with wine industry ties, attended l’Eté du Vin, Nashville’s “huge, huge wine auction,” says Très Bonne Année President Bill Kohl. (That’s “Summer of Wine,” by the way.) Rumberger approached Kohl about doing something similar in Harrisburg. They convened local wine aficionados, engaged the l’Eté du Vin executive director as a consultant, and devised a Harrisburg-based concept.
This was two years after the 1999 opening of Whitaker Center, one of the nation’s few venues devoted to the arts, science and film. Since a wine auction relies on an honored guest to donate wine and trips, Kohl approached Robert Mondavi Winery to serve as the first honoree, and “conveniently, Mr. Mondavi’s mantra was that wine is an integral part of a gracious lifestyle combining wine, food and the arts.”
Support from Très Bonne Année helps Whitaker Center keep admission fees “less than what they normally would be,” says President and CEO Dr. Michael Hanes. Since 2008, the funds have also supported renewal of the science center, so it continues to draw new and repeat visitors, including up to 35,000 students from 40 to 45 Pennsylvania counties every year.
Whitaker Center is expanding outreach “to a broader spectrum” of its five-county midstate area, says Hanes. One new program introduces young girls to the STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields. More than 100 ticketed events a year present “a whole variety of performing arts.” Its 187 linear feet of gallery space is “open to the public at no cost whatsoever. You can walk in on your lunch hour and take a look at the art we have on display.”
The relationship with Très Bonne Année has “been a great partnership,” Hanes says.
Wine Wave
The hallmark of Très Bonne Année is the trips and events offered for auction—“truly once-in-a-lifetime things,” says Kohl. The late White House chef Walter Scheib “pretty much donated a dinner or two every year since 2006,” including meals in his home and re-creations of White House state dinners.
The items donated by the 2015 Honored Guest, Jackson Family Wines, include a girls’ wine country getaway, guided by one of only 23 female master sommeliers in the world.
“You’re meeting the winemaker and the winery owner,” says Kohl. “You’re having lunch with them. You’re tasting with them. You’re getting a special, behind-the-scenes exposure to the winery that you wouldn’t normally get.”
In addition to his quiet dinner with Peter Mondavi, Lehman has re-created the road trip from “Sideways,” following in Paul Giamatti’s Pinot Noir-guzzling footsteps.
“They’re one-of-a-kind events the general public can’t buy,” says Lehman.
While an in-home dinner might auction in the $7,000 to $15,000 range, Très Bonne Année officials strive to make the event “inclusive, not exclusive,” says Kohl. Bidders might win one or two seats at a dinner, or they can find silent auction lots for a couple hundred bucks. The $75 vintner’s tasting on Oct. 8 offers an “educational tutorial seminar” featuring marquee wines selected by Jackson Family Wines.
“You don’t need to know anything about wine, but the people up there delivering the seminar are so knowledgeable that they can speak to you at whatever level you’re on,” says Kohl.
The 2014 Très Bonne Année was a financial record-setter, and officials are hoping for another in 2015, aiming to raise $450,000. “We’re always looking to improve and get better at what we do,” says Kohl. “It’s really been our board members who drive this every year.”
Over 15 years, Très Bonne Année has “ridden the wine wave in the United States,” says Lehman. “There’s a great appreciation for better wines, and this really exposes people in central Pennsylvania to some very, very good wines that they otherwise might not have access to, or wouldn’t know about.”
Hanes believes that Très Bonne Année is central Pennsylvania’s premiere cultural and charitable event.
“We’re very fortunate to be a partner with Très Bonne Année,” he says. “We intend to continue to be great partners going forward. We’re looking for another 15 years.”
The Très Bonne Année Gala Wine Auction and Dinner takes place Oct. 10 at the Hilton Harrisburg. For more information about the organization and all of its events, visit www.Tresbonneannee.org or call 717-237-6426.
