Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬

Alumni Raise a Glass For Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ (and Dionysus)

By Marina Muñoz de Martínez | June 12, 2017

Like a cluster of grapes, alumni of all vintages gathered last week to drink wine, celebrate Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ vintners, and raise money for Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬.

More than 70 alumni converged on the second annual Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ies Drink Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ie Wine for Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ event, where they enjoyed a profusion of reds, whites, and rosé from seven Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ winemakers:

  • Peter Gladhart ʼ62 from
  • David Polite ʼ78 from
  • David Autrey ʼ89 from
  • Matt Giraud ʼ85 and Bram Wessel ʼ90 from
  • Rob Coleman ʼ92 (from his own special collection)
  • Travis Bonilla ʼ03 from

The real highlight of the evening may have been a presentation by recent grad Nicolette Sutherland ʼ17 on her thesis, Cross-modal Perceptual Learning: A Novel Shape-Tasting Method for Sensory Discrimination of Wine.

Held in a chic Ducati dealership in Portland, this year’s event was hosted by and the and and raised $2,513 for Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬.

Organizer Dylan Rivera ʼ95 launched the event after his class coordinated a wine tasting at its 20th Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ reunion. He thought this should happen more often, but with a philanthropic component. “Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬ was such a life-changing experience for me, I see it as my duty to give back  as much as I can,” Dylan says. “I benefitted from financial aid, and by giving to the Annual Fund every year, I help give a new generation access to the education that has enriched my whole life.”

Special thanks to the following alumni, who helped make this event happen: Stephany Watson ’82, Dylan Rivera ’95, Andrew Schpak ’01, Katherine Woods-Morse ’01, and Caroll Casbeer ’10.

Tags: Alumni, $_EscapeTool.xml($tag.getChild('title').text), Giving Back to Å·ÃÀÒ»¼¶Æ¬