Seventy wine lovers packed the cellar of Restaurant Veneza in Paderne on Saturday to learn about the wines of Herdade da Maroteira, enjoy a meal and raise funds to help autistic Portuguese children have a special summer break next year.
Organised by the Rotarian Wine Appreciation Fellowship and Lions International, there were Rotarians from clubs in Porches, Silves, Almancil and Estoi present, together with members of the Loulé Lions Club and other guests.
Producer Philip Mollet presented his wines, with assistance from head of sales Anthony Doody. Philip and his distributor Rui de Morais from Aviworld each donated €0.25 for every bottle of wine purchased. Two others present matched that offer, bringing the total per bottle to €1.
Following a rousing raffle for bottles of premium wine, Philip then offered a weekend for four at one of his tourist cottages near Redondo as an additional raffle prize, setting off another raffle-ticket-buying frenzy. Jan Edjeback was the lucky winner.
As the final proceeds were being counted, the owner of Restaurant Veneza, Manuel Janeiro, stepped forward and made a cash contribution, bringing the total raised to over €2,000, an amount that will sponsor six children for summer camp.
Photo: From left: Luís Cardoso, President of Lions of Loulé, Philip Mollet, Herdade da Maroteira, Claire Larson, Rotary E-club Porches, and Anthony Doody, Herdade da Maroteira
Photo by: ANA MARIA CARDOSO
