Wine wunderkind Jesse Katz has done it again. The exceptionally talented winemaker of Aperture Cellars, Devil Proof Vineyards, and The Setting Wines broke a world record this month when a six-liter bottle of 2019 The Setting Glass Slipper Cabernet Sauvignon earned a bid of one-million dollars to benefit the Emeril Lagasse Foundation.
The foundation’s 19th annual Carnivale du Vin was held in New Orleans on November 6th, raising a total of $3.75 million to support its mission to create opportunities to inspire, mentor, and enable youth to reach their full potential through culinary, nutrition, and arts education, with a focus on life-skills development.
The Emeril Lagasse Foundation provides capital and programmatic support to eligible non-profit organizations across the nation through its Community Grants Program. Recent grant recipients include Covenant House New Orleans, Second Harvest Food Bank, Arc Broward, Food for Thought, and NOCCA.
This record-breaking wine was sourced from Glass Slipper Vineyard in Napa’s Coombsville AVA, the first wine ever to be released from this vineyard, which is owned by Paul and Suzie Frank. Just 75 cases and this one six-liter bottle were produced.
The Setting Wines was founded in 2014 by Katz, Jeff Cova and Noah McMahon, intended as a luxury brand that sees philanthropy as a transformational act. Katz says, “It is such an honor to have set the world record for most expensive single bottle of wine ever sold and raise $1M for a cause that is so close to my heart: The Emeril Lagasse Foundation. Knowing how many children’s lives will be changed for the better by this single bottle is a joyful reminder of why we founded The Setting Wines. I’m still pinching myself.”
While the six-liter bottle that sold at auction is a pièce unique, you can buy a 750-ml bottle for $185 through a membership in The Setting Society.