Local Wine Experts Select Fine Wines for Montessori School Benefit

Tracy Todd, Jessica Haug, and Heather Ryan at the 2009 event

By Alyson Stephens, Orcas Montessori School Board Secretary

Wine lovers on Orcas know that any wine tasting involving Autumn Ryan Boehm and Chimo Boehm is not to be missed. Islanders remember the popular party they hosted in June of 2009 to raise money for a resident who was battling cancer. Next month brings the annual Montessori school auction, this year featuring the Boehm’s special touch.

Autumn and Chimo have selected ten delicious premium wines from California for a special wine tasting experience. A big hit from the 2009 party, the 2006 Zinfandelic Amador Old Vine Zinfandel, will be making a command performance. As the winemaker says, “Amador County yields a bold Old Vine Zinfandel with rich, bright raspberry and black cherry fruit complemented by hints of earth and spice that add to its complexity.”

Chimo and Autumn are both 1993 graduates of Orcas High School. Chimo has worked for 12 years in the wine industry, and is currently Director of Fine Wine and Sales for Wine.com, the nation’s top internet wine retailer. Autumn is passionate about sports as well as wine, and is currently coaching the AAU 5/6th grade girls’ basketball team. The two wed in 1997 and lived in Sonoma and then the Seattle area before moving back to Orcas is 2008 with their four daughters. Payton is 10, Olivia is 7, and the youngest are their three-year-old twins, Myra and Ryan, who attend Orcas Montessori School.

The wine tasting and auction will be held April 30, from 6 to 9 p.m., at Emmanuel Episcopal Parish Hall. Tickets are available at the Montessori school, at Darvill’s Bookstore, or online at www.OrcasMontessori.org, for $35 each, or $20 without the wine tasting.

Partygoers will enjoy music from local musicians, and finger food from Orcas restaurants. A silent auction, and a live auction by Joe Gaydos will provide opportunities to bid on services donated by the school families. Childcare will be available onsite by prearrangement.

Orcas Montessori School, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, provides a dynamic three-year educational program for 2 ½ to 6-year-olds. The school was founded in 1988 and is dedicated to helping children develop self-motivation and independent thinking skills.