Crested Butte Land Trust Wine & Food Festival 2010

Swirl and sip your way through an incredible weekend in the stunning surroundings of Colorado’s most charming mountain town during the third annual Crested Butte Wine & Food Festival. Scheduled for Wednesday, July 21 through Sunday, July 25, the festival will feature wines from around the world, amazing cuisine cooked up by award-winning chefs and more than 20 different wine-themed parties and events.  

Tickets are now available and may be purchased at crestedbuttewine.com or in person at the Crested Butte Land Trust office (308 Third Avenue, Crested Butte).  Telephone orders are accepted at 303.809.0404.

CELEBRITY CHEF TOUR benefiting the James Beard Foundation
Friday, July 23 at 6 p.m.
New this year, the Crested Butte Wine & Food Festival is excited to welcome the Celebrity Chef Tour. Hosted by Chef Eric Jaeger of Crested Butte Mountain Resort, the evening will feature an incredible multi-course dinner prepared by guest Celebrity Chefs Ryan Hardy of the Little Nell’s Montagna (Aspen) and Richard Sandoval of The Modern Mexican Restaurants. This amazing event will be staged in the famous Uley’s Cabin, situated midway up the mountain of Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Limited seating, and one of only 20 scheduled stops in the United States. Tickets are $200/person or $375/couple. Buy tickets!

GRAND TASTING
Saturday, July 24 from 2 to 5 p.m.
Awaken your senses during the festival’s signature event, the Grand Tasting. Held at the base of the world-class Crested Butte Mountain Resort the event will feature 250 different wines. More than a dozen local restaurants will also be on hand offering hors d’oeuvres to accompany the wine.  Best yet, master chefs including Elise Wiggins of Panzano (Denver) and Kurt Boucher from The Butcher’s Table (Salida) will offer culinary demonstrations. Tickets are $70 in advance and $80 day of event. Proceeds from the event benefit the Crested Butte Land Trust. Buy tickets!

CHEF DINNERS
In addition to the Celebrity Chef Tour, this year’s festival will offer a Chef Dinner from Andrea Frizzi of Il Posto and Dave Wooding of Maxwell’s and a Celebration of Conservation benefiting the Crested Butte Land Trust featuring Chef Kurt Boucher and Chef Eric Jaeger. Event dates are Thursday, July 22 and Saturday, July 24. Tickets start at $100. Click here for more details! 

SEMINARS & EVENTS
What better way to brush up on your wine knowledge than to learn from expert winemakers and master sommeliers!  Each of these events is hosted in one of the area restaurants.  With more than 15 options to choose from, there is something for everyone! Click here for a complete list of events and to purchase tickets.

Home prices rise for first time in 7 months

Case-Shiller home price index posted a 0.8 percent gain for April

by Associated Press updated 6/29/2010 10:36:18 AM ET

NEW YORK (MSNBC.com)

Home prices in April rose for the first time in seven months as government tax credits bolstered the housing market. But the rebound may be short-lived now that the incentives have expired.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index released Tuesday posted an 0.8 percent gain. It had fallen in each of the past six months.

Eighteen of 20 cities showed price increases in April from March. Washington, San Francisco and Dallas each posted gains of 2 percent or more. Eleven cities reversed declines from the month before. Only Miami and New York recorded price declines. New York hit a new low for the index.

Nationally, prices have risen 3.8 percent from their April 2009 bottom. But they remain 30 percent below their July 2006 peak. The overall price gains highlight the impact of the federal tax credits for homebuyers. Buyers rushed to purchase before the tax credits expired at the end of April. The numbers are likely to drop in the next report.

Click here to read the full story...