Executive Chef Jared Potter Launches  Unique Monthly “Artist Wine Dinner” Series 
Celebrating LI Artist Christopher Engel, Flavors of Tuscany, Wölffer Estate Vintages
Montauk, Long Island, New York, April 2008:  Montauk Yacht Club’s Executive Chef, Jared Potter, announces a unique twist to  the marriage of fine wine and exquisite cuisine:  presenting the Montauk Yacht Club Artists Wine Dinner Series. 

Montauk Yacht Club’s first Artist Wine Dinner in the new series will celebrate the vibrantly joyous and nuanced fine art of East End painter and art educator Christopher Engel, who will be in attendance at the dinner.  Complementing this “feast for the eyes” will be a sumptuous “feast for the palate” – a five course gourmet dinner prepared by Executive Chef Potter.  Each course will be paired with superb wines from Wölffer Estate – the Sagaponack winery with a decidedly classic European tradition.

The May Wine Dinner celebrating Artist Christopher Engel, the Flavors of Tuscany and the vintages of Wölffer Estate will be served in the freshly renovated Lighthouse Grill & Patio Restaurant at Montauk Yacht Club on Thursday, May 29^th.  The evening begins at 6:30 pm with an alfresco reception and art exhibit waterside on the Lighthouse Patio. The reception will present artist Christopher Engel and feature his fascinating art, complemented with exquisite butler-passed Crostini and Wölffer Estate’s Sparkling Brut 2004. 

The Flavors of Tuscany Wine Dinner commences at 7:30 pm.  Throughout the evening, Executive Chef Potter will introduce the unique features of each course, accompanied by comments from noted Winemaker Roman Roth of Wölffer Estate, highlighting the qualities brought forth in each wine when paired with its special course. 

The May Artist Wine Reception and Dinner is $80 per person. The special price highlights one of the many festivities associated with Montauk Yacht Club’s year–long celebration of its 80^th Anniversary.  A special “Artists Wine Dinner Rate of $108 for a standard room and $180 for a guaranteed waterfront room is also being offered for those guests who wish to stay the night, based on availability.  Dinner reservations are required and can be placed, along with guestroom reservations, by calling (631) 668-3100 or visiting www.montaukyachtclub.com.

An Evening in Tuscany - Vintages of Wölffer Estate

The Menu

Reception
Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade and Pesto on Crostini
Vine-Ripened Tomato and Basil Bruschetta

Wine
 Wölffer Sparkling Brut 2004

 Appetizer
Cozze Marinara Mussels, Fennel, Garlic and Lemon in a White Wine Tomato Broth

Wine
Wölffer Rose 2007

 Salad
 Insalata Caprese
Fresh Greens Topped with Roma Tomatoes, Fresh Mozzarella
Tossed in Pesto Olive Oil

Wine
Wölffer Reserve Chardonnay 2004

 Intermezzo
Lemon Sorbet
Served with a Splash of Limon cello Liquor and Fresh Raspberry Wine

Wine
Wölffer Late Harvest Chardonnay 2007

ADVANCE NOTICE: 
Upcoming June Artists Wine Dinner, A Taste of Spain, Thursday, June 26^th, 2008.

About Artist Christopher Engel
Christopher Engel is a painter with a rapidly growing reputation and following among collectors.  He focuses on the face, or masks, of mankind, portraying all of us, bringing the Jungian theory of the Collective Unconscious as his underpinning images from the past that are carried forward generation after generation in our genes.  Colors burst straight from tube to canvas—sun gold, cherry red, ocean blue, pure black, and are layered like onionskins over his palate of gently mixed dusty rose, pale violet, absinthe green.  His rich and varied colors would be interesting alone, (reference Rothko or Diebenkorn).  Tucked and layered over with thin veils of endless color nuances are scattered dozens of those Jungian images—angels in all postures, children, Asian temple figures, flowers, animals, mystical symbols.

Multiple eyes, noses, lips seem double-focused and layered, portraying multiple generations in one family member: i.e, Uncle Fred’s red hair, but Aunt Deb’s nose and Grandmother’s mouth shape.  Many paintings are loaded with numbers flying in all directions.  They pull the viewer into a favorite birth year, date, favorite lotto number, a lucky 7.  Many figures are festooned with pointed caps, reminding one of soothsayers, miracle workers, sages, wizards, or the dunce.  Others are adorned with crowns.  Doesn’t each family have some of these?  Engel has exhibited in New York, Paris, Buenos Aires and the Hamptons, and is represented by Romany Kramoris Gallery, Sag Harbor, New York, (631) 725-2499.  

Christopher Engel also an educator and certified expressive arts therapist.  He currently holds the position of Visual Arts Teacher at the Ross School in East Hampton, New York.  He has worked with children with special needs at the NYC Foundling Hospital Pediatrics Center designing and implementing the first “Expressive Arts Program”.  As Arts & Education Coordinator for the City of New York Parks & Recreation for over 8 years, he designed, developed and taught programs in Visual Arts, Creative Writing & Dramatics as well as facilitated Science/Environmental programs for inner city children.  He has run Creative Arts Programs & Workshops at The Child Development Center of the Hamptons, The Charter School, The Tuller School, The Parrish Art Museum, and the Children's Museum of the East End. Mr. Engel is a member of the Artists Alliance of East Hampton.  He resides with his wife and their two children in Sag Harbor, New York.

About Wölffer Estate
Located in the heart of the Hamptons is Wölffer Estate www.wolffer.com, a winery like none other on the east end of Long Island.  Owned by Hamburg-born Christian Wölffer, the 55-acre winery, situated between Southampton to the west and Easthampton to the east, is at once an American winery but with a decidedly European character, both in its spirit and its wines.  The winery currently produces 13,500 cases annually. 

 Under winemaker and general manager Roman Roth’s meticulous care, Wölffer Estate wines embody the region as well as a classical style of winemaking, with a rich concentration of fruit and lively acidity born of the unique terroir of these Sagaponack vineyards, similar in some respects to conditions in Bordeaux.

The German-born Roth, together with his American vineyard manager, Richard Pisacano, spare no effort or expense in tending to the vineyards and grape production, all to exploit the full potential of the terroir and microclimate, which is constantly bathed in cooler breezes from the Atlantic, only 2.6 miles away. It is this winning combination of climate and soil that ensures the ripeness and acidity necessary for producing elegant wines. 

The Wölffer Estate award-winning wines include Wölffer La Ferme Martin Chardonnay, Reserve Chardonnay and Estate Selection Chardonnay, La Ferme Martin Merlot, Wölffer Merlot and Estate Selection Merlot, Pinot Noir, Rosé, and Wölffer Cuvée (méthode champenoise) Sparkling Wine. These consistently well balanced wines offer an innate elegance that makes them the perfect complement to a wide range of foods. 

The multimillion-dollar 12,000-square-foot Wölffer Estate winery, completed in 1997, transports one to some enchanted Old World locale, quite removed from the Hamptons. The architecture is Tuscan in style, with exterior walls of sun-bleached ocher and casement windows framed with shutters in a vibrant Provençal blue. Conifers dapple the landscape. Junipers and hemlocks carpet the grounds. A circular, coin-filled fountain greets visitors just below the massive, wooden front doors.

About Executive Chef Jared Potter
An immensely talented chef, Jared Potter has cooked for such distinguished quests as the Queen of England and the President of the United States.  He trained under the award-winning, Culinary Institute of America graduate, Chef Anthony Frank.  In his role at executive chef at Montauk Yacht Club, he oversees the entire culinary operations for historic resort, including its restaurants, catering and banquet functions.

Chef Potter was previously the executive sous chef of Virginia Crossings Resort, a Four-Diamond property located in Richmond, Virginia.  Earlier in his career, hr held culinary positions with Hilton Hotels and at restaurants in Virginia and Daytona Beach, Florida.  He has received numerous awards and honors, including being named the NBC Dream Wedding Chef for 2006/2007, and participating in the Richmond March of Dimes “Dish of the Year for 2005.”   Chef Potter served as part of the culinary team for the Royal Visit of HM Queen Elizabeth II on the occasion of the 400^th Anniversary of the Jamestown settlement.  Also a guest was President George W. Bush.

Jared Potter began his culinary career at the young age of 14, and worked his way up within the culinary industry with hard work and dedication, including training under award-winning, Culinary Institute of America graduate, Chef Anthony Frank. Chef Potter is a self-taught ice carving specialist, as well as a world-class garde manger technician. He is noted for putting his contemporary twist on classic dishes.

About Montauk Yacht Club Resort Hotel & Marina
Founded in 1928 and situated along a 22-acre waterfront, the historic Montauk Yacht Club Resort & Marina has long been a perennial favorite playground for those who frequent the shores of Long Island's South Fork East End. The Resort actually began as three separate estates. The original club building was built by entrepreneur Carl Fisher, the master builder who turned Miami from a sleepy backwater town into a thriving resort city. Fisher had dreams of replicating his success with the small seaside village of Montauk by creating a playground for the rich and famous.  The club's original membership included Vincent Astor, J.P. Morgan, Jr., Nelson Doubleday, Edsel Ford, Harry Payne Whitney, Thomas Eastman, John Wanamaker and Harold S. Vanderbilt. Among the many guests was famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, who often flew his seaplane into the harbor to dock at the Marina.

Today, the Resort offers 107 comfortably-elegant guestrooms with views of Lake Montauk, including 23 Villa accommodations.  The Resort features superb dining in the Lighthouse Grill and lighter fare within the casual ambiance of Breeze’s Café.  Social and corporate groups are accommodated within flexible event space, including four conference rooms and a newly renovated ballroom, as well as extensive outdoor space.  Recreational offerings include a private beach, the Montauk Yacht Club Spa, tennis, outdoor and indoor pools, and golf at the nearby Montauk Downs, however the highlight is the property’s 232-slip marina -- recognized by Yachting magazine as a “Top Ten Marina Destination in North America, Mexico & the Bahamas.”  Home to the Brits vs. Yanks, Redbone, and Whitewater Challenger Montauk Yacht Club fishing tournaments, the marina accommodates vessels 250+ feet with a maximum 12+-foot draft, and features comprehensive on-site amenities, as well as signature Island Global Yachting services.  For reservations or more information, please call 888-MYC-8668 or visit www.montaukyachtclub.com.  Montauk Yacht Club Resort & Marina is an Island Global Yachting destination (IGY) www.igymarinas.com.

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