Naples Winter Wine Festival Successfully Raises $33 Million for Children’s Charities

The Southwest Florida event maintains its place as the nation’s top wine charity auction

America’s top charity wine event, the Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF), has pushed the bar even higher, raising $33 million—its highest total yet—for children’s charities at its annual gathering on the last weekend of January. The event brought together approximately 650 wine lovers in a tent outside the Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón, to compete for lots combining travel and culinary experiences with rare wines, including many large-format bottles.

This was the 24th iteration of the auction, which benefits the Naples Children and Education Foundation (NCEF). “We are extremely thankful to everyone who contributed this year, which will allow us to further achieve our mission of improving the educational, emotional and health outcomes of underprivileged and at-risk children in our community,” Ralph Stayer, this year’s festival chair, told Wine Spectator.

The Naples event is distinguished not only by the impressive amounts of money it raises but also by the chefs and winemakers it attracts from the world’s most prestigious restaurants and wine regions. This year, notable wineries supporting the auction included Château Cheval Blanc, Staglin Family Vineyard, Marchesi Antinori, Caymus and many more.

The weekend event incorporated a drive for donations, amassing more than $7.8 million to fund early education and mental health initiatives. There was also an online contribution platform which garnered over $1 million. The internet auction items included a special package to an Andrea Bocelli show, bottles of Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon, and a quartet collection of Screaming Eagle.

The event reached its climax with the live auction hosted on Saturday, Jan. 27, which raised over $25 million from 50 available lots, 46 of which were wine-related. Top sell was the lot titled “Sailing the Turquoise Waters of the Mediterranean,” fetching an unprecedented $2.7 million—the highest bid ever recorded for a live-auction lot for this event. The fortunate auction winners will relish in a week-long voyage for twelve people with a full crew of 27 on a 312-foot mega-yacht.

As in former years, the lots showcased opulent travel packages, amazing dining delights, and unique, rare wines—a trio offenses. Features incorporated a set of 39 large-format bottles from each vintner participating in the auction (consisting of Château Pontet-Canet and Opus One), magnums of Antinori Toscana Solaia, magnums of Piper-Heidsieck Brut Champagne Rare (combined with a privy tasting with chef de cave Émilien Boutillat), double magnums of Ovid Napa Valley, six liter bottles of Harlan Estate Napa Valley, amongst others.

For the car enthusiasts among the bidder pool, unique automobiles were also available for bidding. A bespoke 2024 Rolls-Royce Spectre, the brand’s first-class all-electric vehicle, was the prize for a $1.4 million bid, while a 2024 Aston Martin DB12 Volante convertible was won for $650,000.

The weekend kicked off on Thursday afternoon with a pre-festival lunch and tasting event for 40 attendees at the Wine Spectator Grand Award winner Bleu Provence. Pierre Lurton of Château d’Yquem directed the tasting, presenting a 10-vintage vertical of the famous Sauternes that dates back to 1962. In the evening, a launch party took place at the local Campiello establishment where winegrower Véronique Boss-Drouhin (from Oregon’s Domaine Drouhin and Burgundy’s Maison Joseph Drouhin) and culinary artist Paul Bartolotta were recognized.

At the “Meet the Kids Day” event that transpired on Friday morning, participants were enlightened about the NWWF’s significant influence on local underprivileged kids. That evening, guests savored dishes crafted by renowned chefs and complemented by wine assortments, courtesy of the attending winegrowers and sommeliers, at the private residences of festival trustees and other high-end spots.

The NWWF’s efforts fund almost 90 non-profit bodies that aim to improve the lives of at-risk and disadvantaged children in Collier County, encompassing Naples and Marco Island. So far, over 300,000 local children have benefited from their endeavors.

This year’s auction has augmented the total amount contributed to NCEF since 2001 to nearly $302 million. The following year’s festival, set to be its 25th edition, is scheduled to occur once more at the Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón from January 24–26, 2025.

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