Foodie cruise to Italy with GourmetFest Founder David Fink
Carmel, CA (PRWEB) February 18, 2015 -- David Fink, Founder of Relais & Châteaux GourmetFest in Carmel-by-the-sea, Owner of Fink Family Estate Winery, Founder/Owner of Mirabel Restaurant & Hotel Group and board Member of Relais & Châteaux North America, is inviting travelers to join him on an Italian Odyssey aboard Silversea Cruise Line’s Silver Spirit, visiting renowned restaurants and wineries along the way. Receptions, dinners, lunches and exclusive tastings at Antinori’s Guada Al Tasso and Frescobaldi’s Ornellaia and Masseto Estates in the Bolgheri wine region will all be available.
Silversea is the only cruise line partner of Relais & Châteaux. Mr. Fink and guests will be on Silver Spirit for seven days from Civitavecchia (the port city of Rome) and will visit Portofino, Livorno, and Sardinia before heading towards the islands of Mallorca and Majorca off the coast of Spain and ending in Barcelona. During the cruise, Mr. Fink’s guests will participate in a number of private onboard receptions, tastings and dinners, and can anticipate an invitation to taste Super-Tuscan wines (fee) at wineries not open to the public (Guada Al Tasso, Ornellaia and Masseto). An additional optional excursion for a wine lunch at the Relais & Châteaux property Son Brull in Mallorca will also be available exclusively to guests of David Fink. Silversea cruise fares are from $3,850 per person and include a choice of complimentary shore excursions daily; there are additional fees for Mr. Fink’s shore excursions to Son Brull and Bolgheri wine region.
Facilitating Mr. Fink’s travel plans is Michael Mastrocola’s MillenniuM (online presence is MmMmTravel) as part of their 2015 Taste of Life travel collection. MmMmTravel has a great deal in common with a glass of world-class wine. The finished product is the culmination of years of work and one precise moment. It can never be recreated exactly, but one understands that good vines, knowledge and craftsmanship are indicative that the next vintage will be stellar. A travel artisan, Michael Mastrocola has extensive international travel experience and over 30 years in the industry.
As participants in A Taste of Life, guests become members of a social club that offers fine dining, delicious wines and added exclusive activities and amenities. Lead by wine and culinary professionals, guests are encouraged to expand their experience via small group discussions, tastings and demonstrations, elevating their vacation enjoyment while taking the journey at their leisure and shunning the traditional tour group feel.
MmMmTravel’s renown hosts - vintners, restaurateurs, chefs and winery owners, bring their wines and skills onboard to share with not a thousand or even one hundred, but your intimate group of 18 to 50 A Taste of Life members. These luminaries of the culinary and wine world may lead receptions, vertical wine tastings, winemaker dinners, cooking demonstrations and optional shore excursions, all exclusively for MmMmTravel clients. For luxury travelers, this translates into unparalleled culinary and wine experiences at no extra cost.
About David B. Fink, Founder / CEO, Mirabel Hotel & Restaurant Group
For more than 30 years, Mirabel Hotel & Restaurant Group CEO, David Fink, has been associated with some of Northern California’s finest luxury resorts, hotels and restaurants. Fink’s “heart of a servant” philosophy, and constant focus on guest satisfaction, has ensured success of all properties under the company’s direction.
When Fink opened his first restaurant, Bouchée in Carmel in 2002, it quickly became the region’s premier choice for fine dining. With the 2004 opening of L’Auberge Carmel, a member of Relais & Chateaux, a luxury inn and restaurant in the heart of Carmel-by-the-Sea, Fink cemented his reputation as a dedicated and innovative hotelier. It was also the beginning of Mirabel Hotel & Restaurant Group, the management company, Fink started with the dual purpose of managing a growing list of properties as well as exploring possibilities for new acquisitions. The group’s third real estate acquisition resulted in the concept and design of Cantinetta Luca (Carmel) opened in 2006. The popular Italian eatery offers authentic Italian cuisine in a casual, modern setting, and consistently receives critical accolades and awards.
Fink acquired a development permit and land in 2008 and oversaw the development and construction of Hotel Luca in 2009. The 24-room luxury hotel, spa and restaurant is located in Yountville, in the Napa Valley. The same design team that created L’Auberge Carmel, restaurant Aubergine and Cantinetta Luca, brought their vision to Hotel Luca, a classic two-story Italian design featuring contemporary Italian decor and Tuscan cuisine.
In 2010, Fink partnered with William Foley, a highly successful entrepreneur and wine estate owner to purchase Hotel Les Mars, a Relais & Chateaux member, located in the Sonoma Wine Country. Mirabel managed the 16-room hotel which evokes the charm of a French maison, located one block from Healdsburg’s historic town square from 2010 to 2013.
In the summer of 2011 Fink and Chef / Partner Balestrieri opened, as part of Cantinetta Luca, an authentic Italian deli and bakery Salumeria Luca in their Cantinetta Luca building. The Salumeria features a wide selection of cured meats, Italian cheeses, olives, sauces, fresh-baked breads, wine, pastries, desserts and gelato. And in 2012 Fink and Balestrieri also opened 400° Gourmet Burgers & Fries located in the Carmel Plaza.
Fink’s strengths lie in building successful teams by bringing together talented people. He is particularly passionate when it comes to food and wine, having his interest piqued in the subject at an early age. At Highlands Inn, in 1987, Fink was one of the original architects of the now-famous international Masters of Food and Wine event. As food and beverage director at Highlands Inn, he oversaw development of the Inn’s wine cellar collection from 57 bottles to over 1200, and prestigious Wine Spectator “Grand Award” in 1991. In 2014 he founded the Relais & Châteaux GourmetFest in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
Previously the general manager of The Lodge at Pebble Beach in 2001, Fink designed and implemented new five-star hospitality standards for Pebble Beach Resorts, and was responsible for $60 million in annual revenue.
From 1984 thru 2000, Fink was with Coastal Hotel Group (CHG), a Chicago based hotel management company. He began his career with CHG as food and beverage manager at Highlands Inn, rising quickly to general manager, vice president/general manager, and later regional vice president. As regional vice president he was responsible for operations at some of their finest properties, including Salish Lodge and Spa, in Seattle, Washington; and the Orchard Hotel in San Francisco.
A native of Virginia, Fink is a graduate of the prestigious North Cross Preparatory School, and has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Roanoke College. He is a founding member of the American Institute of Wine and Food Monterey Bay Chapter, founding member and past president of the Monterey County Travel and Tourism Alliance, board member of the Monterey County Hospitality Association, wine judge at the Los Angeles County Fair and Dallas Morning News Wine Competition, board member and past president of the Big Sur Land Trust, and was selected in 1997 as “Monterey County Hospitality Professional of the Year”. He is also a director on the Board of Relais and Châteaux, the finest collection of independent Hotel and Restaurants worldwide.
Fink has three children, and enjoys tennis, skiing, mushroom hunting and cooking. In 2000, he developed the Fink Family Vineyard, dedicated to the production of vineyard designated Pinot Noir.
About Michael Mastrocola’s MillenniuM
Michael Mastrocola has developed worldwide contacts in the luxury travel industry for over three decades, working with many high-end hotels, restaurants and tour groups. Michael Mastrocola’s MillenniuM Travel (online presence MmmmTravel.com) are experts in creating theme cruises. His tours specialize in Culinary and Wine exploration while shunning the traditional tour group feel. Guests are encouraged to expand their experiences via discussions, tastings and demonstrations and to take their journey at their own leisure.
Michael has worked with many prominent wineries, restaurants and organizations, pairing them with the finest cruise lines in the world to stimulate the senses and the mind and offer a rewarding bonus to a well deserved vacation for the savviest of international travelers. Customers include Heitz Cellars, the Escoffier Family, Domaine Carneros, Hall Winery, Frank Family Vineyards, Shafer Vineyards, and PlumpJack Winery. He is also a past member of the AIWF Board of Directors, Monterey Bay Chapter and is Director Emeritus of American Musical Theater of San Jose. http://www.mmmmtravel.com
About Silversea Cruises
Silversea Cruises which is chaired by Manfredi Lefebvre d’Ovidio, is recognized as an innovator in the ultra-luxury cruise line industry, offering guests large-ship amenities aboard it’s intimate, all-suite vessels: Silver Cloud, Silver Wind, Silver Shadow, Silver Whisper and Silver Spirit – all designed to offer an atmosphere of conviviality and casual elegance. With the inclusion of the expedition ships Silver Explorer, Silver Galapagos, and Silver Discoverer, Silversea Cruises’ itineraries encompass all seven continents and feature worldwide luxury cruises to the Mediterranean, Caribbean, both polar regions and over 800 fascinating destinations in between.
In the US, Silversea has been voted “World’s Best” by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler (nine times) and Travel + Leisure (seven times), and awarded “Best Luxury Cruise” by TravelChannel.com (2014), “Best Luxury Cruise Line” by CruiseReport.com (2014), and “Best Small Ship Cruise Line” by Global Traveler (2014). International awards include “Best Small Ship Cruise Line” in the Readers’ Choice survey conducted by Britain’s Condé Nast Traveller magazine (2014); “Best Expedition Cruise Ship” by Australia’s Cruise Passenger magazine (2013); “Best Small Luxury Cruise Line” by China’s Travel + Leisure (2013); and “Star Luxury Cruise Company” according to UK’s Travel Bulletin (2014).
Media Images Available at http://www.silversea.com/media/images/
Candace Lutian, MmMmTravel, http://MmMmTravel.com, +1 (831) 659-0151, [email protected]
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