Project Self-Sufficiency sponsors wine celebration

Project Self-Sufficiency will sponsor the second local celebration of the international “Open That Bottle Night,” an event created for wine-lovers nine years ago by professional wine critics, which takes place each year on the last Saturday evening in February. This year’s event will take place on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. at the Hudson Farm Club, a 3,000 acre hunting preserve located in Hopatcong. The occasion will include rare wines, food from Krave Café and Caterers, and the expertise of local sommelier George Delgado, owner of George’s Wine & Gourmet Gallery in Branchville. Participants are required to bring their own bottle of wine along, so that they can share their story about its origin with the other invited guests. Delgado will be on hand to conduct a wine seminar and tasting. A frequent guest on television and radio programs, Delgado creates cocktails, wine menus and beverage programs for restaurants and cocktail lounges around the world. He writes for Bartender magazine as well as for The Milford Journal, conducts spirits and cocktail seminars throughout the country, and works as a consultant for the world’s top beverage and alcohol producers. George and his wife Frances Delgado, who is a professional chef, worked together at the New York City restaurant, Windows on the World, and both obtained their sommeliers credentials there after a year of intensive training. At Open That Bottle Night George will present a selection of rare wines and share his expertise in a question-and-answer session. Some wines which are available only in limited release will also be offered to patrons for purchase at a later date. “Open That Bottle Night” was created in 2000 by Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, authors of the Wall Street Journal’s “Tastings” column. The concept encouraged those who had been saving a special bottle of wine to gather together with other wine-enthusiasts to share their own bottles and create a memorable wine-tasting experience. The bottles of wine brought along to the event did not have to be particularly expensive. Since then, the popular event has been celebrated around the world, in countries from Canada to Russia to Japan. “The second annual ‘Open That Bottle Night’ is an important component of our annual campaign, and we are looking forward to celebrating it for years to come,” commented Deborah Berry-Toon, Executive Director of Project Self-Sufficiency. “Now more than ever, this community is in need of the services provided by Project Self-Sufficiency. This event gives us the opportunity to celebrate with friends and family as we raise the funds necessary to continue these essential services for our neighbors in need.” As part of Project Self-Sufficiency’s annual campaign, the agency hosts several events to bring in financial support for the growing number of programs and services it offers. Attendance at Open That Bottle Night is one way for benefactors to help raise funds for the agency. Bev Gordon, president of Project Self-Sufficiency’s Board of Directors, notes, “At Open That Bottle Night, the experience of trying so many different and rare wines is amazing. And listening to the stories of how, where and why these wines mean so much to the owners is just great. Of course, the best part of the evening is the opportunity to raise funds for Project Self-Sufficiency.” Project Self-Sufficiency’s mission is to provide the services necessary for single parents, teen parents, displaced homemakers and two-parent families to improve the quality of their lives and those of their children by attaining economic self-sufficiency and family stability. Since 1986, over 16,000 low-income individuals have participated in one or more of the programs offered by the organization. Tickets for Open That Bottle Night are $250 per person and select sponsorships are available. For information about the event, to purchase tickets, or to inquire about sponsorships, call 973-940-3500.