A Generous Pour with Darioush

Word of mouth can be especially effective when the right voices whisper into the right ears—which seems to be a big key to the success of the Naples Winter Wine Festival (NWWF), the annual event that raises millions for Naples Children Foundation (NCF). Recruiting new donors, including vintners, chefs, guests, and bidders, has resulted from an ever-growing grapevine of influential and passionate supporters and board members. Case in point: Darioush Khaledi, winery owner, entrepreneur, and this year’s Honored Vintner along with his wife, Shahpar. More than a decade ago, Khaledi was invited to the festival by his friends Bob Clifford, now an emeritus trustee of NCF, and Jeff Gargiulo, past festival chair and NCF board member.

Khaledi is substantially involved with five charities, but NCF is the only one outside his home community in California. The festival’s rallying cry, “It’s All for the Kids,” is what keeps Khaledi returning, now with a lead role in his twelfth year. When remembering his first Meet the Kids Friday, he admits, “I cried through half of the program.” Being moved in such a way has led him to donate multiple auction lots that have raised more than $2.3 million to date.

The beautiful homes in Naples are what struck him initially. “I was thinking, why can’t I move here?” says Khaledi, high praise from a man who lives in a top U.S. luxury tourism destination. Each year, 50,000-plus guests visit his striking Napa Valley winery, which was designed to resemble the ancient city of Persepolis, a tribute to his Persian heritage.

When asked what his hopes are as the featured vintner for the twenty-sixth annual Naples Winter Wine Festival to be held January 30-February 1, Khaledi gets right to the point. “Whatever we raised last year for our live auction lot, I want to make more,” he says. Khaledi and Shahpar are digging deep into their cellar for rare back vintages. The couple recently became members of Exclusive Resorts, a luxury vacation club, specifically to enhance their auction offering. The centerpiece of the lot is a stay at a private villa bordering the emerald jungle and white sand beaches of Mexico’s Riviera Maya at Rosewood Mayakoba. The NWWF team is further enhancing this prize by adding private air transportation on a Cessna Citation Sovereign and a yachting excursion.

About his giving strategy, Khaledi quips, “I’ve never had a strategy in my life.” He explains his goal in both business and philanthropy is continuous improvement, “to every day do better than yesterday.” Feeling inspired heading into this year’s festival, Khaledi adds, “We are really changing the lives of so many people; I’m all for it.”

While there can be only one winner of the Khaledis’ live auction lot, a privileged group of VIPs will attend a Friday night vintner dinner where Darioush wines will be served. During the live auction at The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón January 31, attendees will raise glasses of Darioush signature Viognier and Cabernet Sauvignon. 

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