The Cincinnati bailliage celebrated its summer Mondiale event at the Transept Event Center in the revitalized Over the Rhine district just north of the city on 6/15/26.

The Transept is a renovated 150 year old Unitarian church that is utilized by the DelightMore Catering group for private events ranging from small intimate gatherings to large weddings. Upon entering the historic venue, members were taken upstairs where they were enveloped in a grand gothic structure complete with 50 foot vaulted ceilings, original uniquely carved wooded beams, exposed brick, and ornate stained glass windows. They were handed glasses of 2023 Double Diamond Sauvignon Blanc which they enjoyed with appetizers including ahi tuna skewers, garlic herb chicken meatballs, and beef tartare crostinis.

Following the reception, Bailli George Elliott asked all 58 in attendance to take their seats. At artfully decorated round tables, guests were introduced and relevant announcements were made. Mr. Elliott then welcomed Echanson Provincial Midwest Mary Horn to present Brianne Guist, our speaker for the evening and the Senior director of Enablement, Training and Education for Constellation’s twenty-nine brands.  Brianne shared an overview of her background followed by a fascinating historical account of Schrader Cellars. Ms. Guist then led a tasting of four Schrader cabernet sauvignon wines – Double Diamond 2023, Wappo Hills Vineyard 2023, TKS To Kalon Vineyard 2023, and Monastery Block To Kalon Vineyard 2023. As you would expect with Schrader wines, all were exquisite yet unique as they expressed subtle differences based on their specific vineyard.

Following the tasting, DelightMore catering and their diligent staff served a delectable three course dinner. First, a strawberry burrata salad with pistachios, arugula, cornbread croutons and balsamic dressing was paired with another glass of the Schrader sauvignon blanc. The main course consisted of a grilled flat iron steak with smoked red chimichurri, parsnip puree and broccolini which was expertly paired with a 2022 Double Diamond Proprietary Red Wine. The final course of the evening was a decadent dark chocolate tart covered with strawberries and white chocolate.

At the conclusion of the evening, Bailli Elliott thanked Echanson Provincial Midwest Mary Horn who once again “hit the ball out of the park” by combining legendary cult wines and a fascinating speaker in an amazing setting. Once the applause for Ms. Horn died down, Ms. Guist and the hard-working Delightmore staff were thanked and given another round of much deserved applause. It’s hard to see how a Mondiale event, or any other food and wine event could get any better than this.

Graig Smith, Vice Chargé de Press