Editorial
Front Page - Friday, October 16, 2009
Blind wine tasting to fund cystic fibrosis research
David Laprad
Wine aficionados, as well as those with less experienced palates, will have the opportunity to taste a variety of spirits at the first Three Blind Wines fundraiser for cystic fibrosis, to be held Thursday, Oct. 29, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Loose Cannon Gallery on Rossville Avenue. All proceeds will go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
Those in attendance will be able to compete and vote in Chattanooga’s first blind wine contest. To take part in the event, participants should come in teams of two, each of which must contribute three bottles of the same kind of wine. During registration from 6 to 7 p.m., each team will submit its selection. Two bottles will be placed in a bag to cover the label and assigned a voting number; the third bottle will be set aside for the winners of the contest. From 7 to 8:30 p.m., everyone will have the chance to taste the different offerings and vote for their favorite selection. The team with the most popular wine will take home the collection of third bottles.
Karen Dees, a CPA at Decosimo and one of the coordinators of Three Blind Wines, says the prize could be sizable, depending on the turnout.
To make sure participants aren’t drinking on an empty stomach, several local caterers and restaurants are providing light appetizers. In addition, The Ben Friberg Trio, a local jazz group, will be performing live. A silent auction will take place as well.
The cost to attend is $40 per team, plus the three bottles of wine.
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system of about 30,000 children and adults in the U.S. A defective gene and its protein product cause the body to produce unusually thick mucus that clogs the lungs, leads to life-threatening lung infections, obstructs the pancreas and stops natural enzymes from helping the body break down and absorb food.
“If a man and woman have the defective gene, then there’s a one in four chance their child will be born with cystic fibrosis,” says Dees. “What a lot of people don’t know is that one in 20 adults is a carrier.”
In the 1950s, few children with cystic fibrosis lived to attend elementary school. Today, advances in research and medical treatments have enhanced and extended life for children and adults with the disease. Many people with cystic fibrosis can now expect to live into their 30s and beyond.
Dees says raising awareness of cystic fibrosis is a challenge because few people know what it is. That’s partly because, unlike breast cancer, the disease hasn’t touched nearly every person in the U.S. Regardless, being diagnosed with cystic fibrosis can be devastating for the patient as well as his loved ones.
For that reason, the CFF exists to ensure the development of the means to cure and control cystic fibrosis and to improve the quality of life of those with the disease. The organization currently has 115 treatment centers in the U.S. and 80 branch offices.
To purchase tickets to Three Blind Wines or for more information, call the Knoxville office of the CFF at 865-583-0355 or visit knoxville.cff.org.
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