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Travels: Good Life Wine Collective

NEWS RELEASE ~ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Joel Quigley, Vice President Marketing Communications
The Good Life Wine Collective
(707) 495-0831 | joel@tglwc.com



(Napa, CA, March 16th 2015) — In 2014, Humanitas Wines joined the Good Life Wine Collective with Jessup Cellars and Handwritten Wines after Judd Wallenbrock took the helm as President and CEO of the family-owned wine group in 2012. It was during this integration process that Wallenbrock realized his tiny one-man show was on path to surpass a quarter-of-a-million-dollars in donations to charitable projects. Latin for philanthropy, character and human nature, Humanitas embraces two simple ideas — craft the best vineyard designate wines possible while creating good in the world.
“After running solo for more than a decade, and now finding a home with The Good Life Wine Collective, this transition has allowed me to reflect back on my journey,” said Wallenbrock. “I’m humbled at what Humanitas has accomplished and where it can now go with a full team behind our mission. Our dream is to get enough people Drinking Charitably to raise this kind of revenue for worthy causes on an annual basis.”
Founded in Wallenbrock’s backyard shed (The Shed-Teau) in 2001 as a way to give back to those less fortunate, Humanitas donates seven percent of all revenues to charity. It’s what Wallenbrock calls, “The Seven Percent Solution.” Specifically, the monies go to solution-based organizations in health, hunger and affordable housing, with a focus on regional giving. Currently, Humanitas has fundraising partnerships with SightLife, whose mission is to eliminate corneal blindness, The Edith Sanford Breast Cancer Foundation, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and many regional food banks and community foundations.
At the Humanitas Tasting Annex in southern Napa, the winery offers appointment only Pay it Forward tasting experiences that feature exclusive tours of its winery facility, along with molecular gastronomy spoon bite pairings developed by master instructor and cookbook author Chef MikeC. Wine lovers who wish to Drink Charitably may order wines online or join a Humanitas Wine Club at www.HumanitasWines.com or by contacting its hospitality team directly at (707) 253-1405.
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Travels: Save Some Money

A little advance planning might save you some money when you travel.

Face it, you can’t see everything on one visit. Decide what is a must see or a must do and work those into your trip. Know how long you will be in a place and plan accordingly.

If you’re of the age to use senior discounts…don’t be afraid to ask. It may save you some real money.

Instead of booking your hotel or airfare from a third party site, go directly to that hotel or airline. That way you can ask if there are any additional discounts or specials available.

When you check in to a hotel, ask if there are any activities or special events in the area. Many times they offer coupons or deals.

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Travels: Safety

I’ve posted safety tips before but always seem to have questions about these. Think about these when getting ready to travel and when you’re in a different place.

Check in with the State Department before you go. Did you know the State Department provides updated safety information for every country in the world? You can find things like what vaccinations you need to travel warnings. While you’re on their website, www.state.gov, also check out the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) page. You can register your travel plans. This is a good idea for you as well as people at home in case of a disaster as they will be able to get in touch with you.

Scan your passport and email it to yourself. Take a photo on your phone. It just makes life and travel easier if it gets lost or stolen. And, if it’s locked in the hotel safe…you still have the information close at hand.

Find out what the local emergency number hotlines are in the country where you will be. Save them on your phone. Remember, 911 isn’t the number to call in other countries.

Check the U.S. embassies or consulates in that country and save those numbers and addresses on your phone as well.

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Travels: Event for Book Lovers, Children, and all Readers

BookFest Solano, April 11-12, 2015 in Vacaville, CA

BookFest Solano, a free-to-the-public, family-friendly festival, will be held on April 11-12, 2015 at the Hampton Inn & Suites in Vacaville, Ca. The hours are 9:00 to 4:00 on Saturday and 10:00 – 4:00 on Sunday.  This festival is hosted by the Solano County Library Foundation, a nonprofit  corporation.  It is for readers, aspiring writers, and for sharing ideas with the theme “Growing Readers, Growing Writers.” An exhibit hall will feature booksellers,  authors, and people with book-crafting and marketing skills showcasing their products and services.  Local and regional authors will be recognized, have opportunity to network, improve their skills, gain knowledge, and promote their work.  Funds raised through BookFest Solano will aid the libraries and their literacy programs.

Workshops, presentations, and activities will nurture readers and writers of all ages. In the Jan Brett Corner for Kids there will be story times and activities based on her picture books.  Local children’s authors will read aloud from their books.  Peter Blueberry, children’s poet, will share his work and talk about illustrating his books.  A session for people who want to write children’s books will have opportunity for would-be authors to ask their questions. 

The schedule of workshops and author presentations includes Jennifer Basye Sander, author of The Complete Idiots Guide to Getting Published, and many other nonfiction books.  Her presentation will be entitled  “Could Hemingway Get a Book Deal in Our Time?”  Michael Stribling, Art Director at LeapFrog Enterprises, and well-known comic book artist will lead a session on “Working with Illustrators” and another on comic books.   Judith Michaels Simon leads a workshop on “Writing Memoirs.”  Author Jeff Dwyer, Ghost Hunter series, will talk about his books, including  Ghost Hunter’s Guide to the Wine Country.  He will also talk about his latest book, Passages Home, a novel about an Iraq war veteran and his struggles to overcome PTSD.  David Corbett will speak on his latest crime novel, The Mercy of the Night.  Writers will benefit  from the “Workshop on Editing”  by Wendy VanHatten, author and editor.  From the Bok-In-Hand Roadshow there will be two presentations: “How to Win a Book Award” and “Miffed by the Book Parts” on book layout.  Kathryn Reiss will lead a session on “Writing Suspense Fiction.”  The schedule is subject to change.  Look for the full schedule in mid-March on our festival website at www.BookFestSolano.com. 

Although BookFest Solano is free to the public, it does incorporate two activities with admission charges.  On Saturday afternoon from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., there will be Read and Romp activities.  The $10 charge for kids (adults are free) will benefit the national program “Reach Out and Read”.

On Saturday night, April 11, “An Evening with Todd Borg” will feature this author of twelve Tahoe thriller / mysteries featuring Owen McKenna, detective.  It starts with a wine and cheese reception at 6:00 p.m.  There will be book signing and opportunity to talk with Todd.  This will be followed by Todd’s presentation.  This event is ticketed and will be held at Epiphany Episcopal Church, located at the corner of Buck and West Streets in Vacaville.  Tickets ($15 for Foundation Members, and $20 for nonmembers) are available through the Foundation website, www.SolanoLibraryFoundation.org.  BookFest Solano Book Contest winners will be announced during this evening.

Even then the fun doesn’t end.  Barnes & Noble is doing a Book Fair in their Fairfield store on April 18-19 in conjunction with BookFest Solano and the Solano County Library Foundation.  During this weekend they will donate a percentage of their sales to the Library Foundation to benefit the libraries and literacy programs.  To make this happen, mention at the checkout when you make your purchases that you want to support the Library Foundation. 

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Travels: Amador Four Fires Wine and Food Festival

This new concept of a wine and food festival is being celebrated May 2 at the Amador County fairgrounds in Plymouth.

What is it? The Four Fires refer to the four wine making regions which inspire Amador winemakers and winegrowers: Southern France, Italy, Iberia, and heritage California. This event will be spread out across a 10 acre site, divided into those regions.

Star chefs will showcase spectacular dishes cooked over an open flame…hence the Four Fires. Everything from a whole pig roasted over an open spit to huge paella pans to barbecue.

Tickets and more information can be found at www.amadorfourfires.com.

Sounds like a good time…

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Travels: Hints

Do you check airline seating? If you haven’t, check out Seat Guru.

When getting ready to stand in the security line, do you check to see which is the shortest line? What if it really isn’t the quickest line? Instead, check to see how the security screener is working. Is that person in training or is he or she zipping right along?

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Travels: Getting Ready to Leave

Before you leave home, combine the addresses of places you will be, such as hotels, museums, restaurants, etc. Then send yourself an email with these addresses. That way, you will have them all in one place. No wi-fi? Send yourself a text message.

Before you walk away from your parking place at the airport, take a photo of it with your smart phone. You could also leave a voice mail for yourself or a text.

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Travels: Travel Documents

Here are some tips regarding your travel documents.

Make copies of all your travel documents, including passports, tickets, license, credit cards, etc. You can keep a copy of these in the cloud using a service like Dropbox or Google Drive. This will protect your information as you travel, yet allow you to access it when you need it.

Here’s another idea when writing credit card numbers…break up the numbers and call them something else.

You could call the first four numbers a password, the next three numbers a name, and the last numbers a phone number…or something like that. Whatever makes sense to you but not to someone else would work.

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Travels: Check out this Event

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Joel Quigley, Jessup Cellars
(707) 495-0831 / joel@jessupcellars.com
Jessup Cellars’ TasteMaker Forum, Featuring Acclaimed Photojournalist George Rose’s Rock ‘n’ Roll in Black & White, Launches March Exhibition
 Exhibition Runs February 28 – March 31 in Celebration of the Inaugural Launch of the Yountville Live! Music Festival Happening March 19 – 22
(Yountville, CA, February 5, 2015) — The Jessup Cellars2015 TasteMaker Speaker Series kicks-off on Saturday, February 28 from 7:00pm to 9:30pm with acclaimed photojournalist George Rose’s Rock ‘n’ Roll in Black & White forum and exhibition. During a prolific 17-year career as a photojournalist in the ‘70s and ‘80s, Rose developed a remarkable and historic body of photographic work focused on popular culture. Images from this era are collected in the 2008 book Hollywood, Beverly Hills & Other Perversities by Ten Speed Press. Guest host Monique Soltani of Wine Oh TV will use her investigative prowess as a television broadcaster to extract Rose’s true-life stories behind capturing the greats of rock ‘n’ roll…in black and white. Tickets are $35 each at CellarPass.com and include interactive forum, meet-and-greet, wine tasting and nosh.
Rose is a recipient of a 1987 World Press Photo Award for news, and was named California Newspaper Photographer of the Year in 1976 by the University of Missouri, School of Journalism. The Los Angeles Times twice nominated him for a Pulitzer Prize. He served six years as a staff photographer for the Los Angeles Times. His independent assignments have been published in USA Today, Time, Newsweek and Rolling Stone. For the past twenty-five years, Rose has held four high-level public relations positions in Northern California’s Wine Country.
Rose’s Rock ‘n’ Roll in Black & White  exhibition runs February 28 through March 31 in celebration of the inaugural launch of the Yountville Live! Music Festival happening March 19 through 22. Festival headliners include O|A|R, Colbie Caillat, Matt Nathanson, Aimee Mann and Blue October. Presented by Volvo with supporting sponsor Sunset magazine, Yountville Live! combines the very best in music, wine, and food with the small-town lifestyle and sophisticated ambiance of Yountville. In its role as a supporting sponsor, Jessup Cellars will be hosting a series of intimate eventsfeaturing artists Scars on 45 and Jon McLaughlin during the festival. Visit YountvilleLive.com for complete details and to purchase tickets.
High-resolution photographs and interviews are available upon request.
About The TasteMaker Series
The TasteMaker Series presents thought leadership forums staged in the Jessup Cellars Tasting Gallery in Napa Valley’s village of Yountville, just a block north of the famed The French Laundry. Each event is integrated with the launch of a thematic art exhibition, bringing together Jessup Cellars wines, food, art and people into fully realized sensory forums. Jessup Cellars Tasting Gallery is located at 6740 Washington St., Yountville, California. To learn more about Jessup Cellars and the TasteMaker Speaker Series visit Jessup Cellars or call 707.944.8523.

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