Wine offers include a forty-dollar donation to the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund
HEALDSBURG, CA – AldenAlli Winery, founded by food and wine lifestyle pioneers Dan Kosta and Alden Lagasse, is extending an invitation to “help them help the hospitality industry” through continued enjoyment of ultra-premium wines while sheltered in place. Under the program, curated AldenAlli wine packages are paired with virtual tastings led by the winery’s co-founder, Dan Kosta, live on Instagram every other Saturday. Forty dollars of every package sold are donated directly to the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund, which supports hospitality workers throughout the country impacted by COVID-19. In effect, AldenAlli members receive wines to enjoy at home, while making a donation to protect our nation’s hospitality industry. Live Instagram tastings with the winery’s co-founder are the icing on the cake, but also provide an important tie-in with the brand’s ethos.
“So many of us have been affected by the current state of the world but hospitality workers, most of whom live paycheck to paycheck, are especially vulnerable to an economic shutdown,” said AldenAlli co-Founder Dan Kosta. “We in the wine industry work side by side with these great friends and we believe we are in a unique position to assist in their time of great need. We’re asking our customers to help us help the hospitality industry.”
This cause is most personal to Dan Kosta and his business partner Alden Lagasse, both of whom have spent their careers in food, wine and hospitality leadership. By offering an innovative way for their winery members to give back, they are hopeful that many will take advantage of a win-win-win opportunity.
AldenAlli debuted the program with an offering creatively titled, “The Big DIP”, an acronym for Drinking in Place. The package– which includes a six-bottle assortment of Russian River Valley Rosé, Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, and two limited-production vineyard-designate wines– is available for $240. It’s worth noting that in normal times, these wines are highly allocated, and retail for $304. As an added bonus, UPS Ground shipping is included in the price of the wine.
The special offering is unprecedented for an ultra-premium producer like AldenAlli, but this intentional approach has already inspired more than $5,000 in donations to support hospitality workers. That number is rising daily, with AldenAlli’s first virtual tasting coming up on Saturday, April 11th, and a promise of more wine offers “to come” via Dan Kosta in a video posted today on Instagram.
One hundred percent of donations raised will go directly to the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund, which is backed by Food Network star, Guy Fieri. So far, the project has raised $9 million — 100% of which will be distributed to impacted restaurant workers in one-time checks. For more information, visit rerf.us.
About AldenAlli
AldenAlli Winery is the culmination of a long-lasting friendship between co-founders Dan Kosta and Alden Lagasse, who share a passion for combining exceptional food, wine and hospitality into a lifestyle. Since 2013, AldenAlli has crafted terroir-driven wines from cool climate regions to share with their extended wine family all over the world, with a focus on philanthropy. For more information visit aldenalli.com.
About Restaurant Employee Relief Fund
The Restaurant Employee Relief Fund (“Fund”) was created to help restaurant industry employees experiencing extraordinary hardship in the wake of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. Through this Fund, grants will be made to restaurant industry employees who have been impacted by COVID-19, including a decrease in wages or loss of employment. Grants will be awarded as soon as possible to those individuals who meet the prescribed eligibility criteria, as reviewed and verified by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NRAEF). This Fund is operated by the NRAEF, whose mission is to attract, empower and advance today’s and tomorrow’s restaurant and foodservice workers.
