-Oscar Winner Marcia Gay Harden Wins Taste Challenge-

Walnut Crest wines handed a $1 million donation over to the California-based Dream Foundation after Oscar winning actress Marcia Gay Harden took the Walnut Crest Million Dollar Celebrity Taste Challenge last night and singled Walnut Crest Merlot out from 49 other more expensive competitors.

In what wine experts called a nearly impossible task, Ms. Harden had to blind taste all 50 wines and make her choice in a 75-minute time frame. The pouring of the wines and the identification of the glass holding the Walnut Crest were conducted under the strict supervision of Lloyd’s of London, which insured the wager. The event, held at New York City’s W Hotel on Lexington Avenue, was the fourth time that Walnut Crest wagered $1 million dollars in such a challenge, but the first time with a celebrity taster and charity recipient – and also the first time that the Walnut Crest was successfully identified.

“The point of this challenge was to show that price should not be the sole, or even a primary factor in choosing a wine,” said Lars Leicht, a spokesman for Walnut Crest. Walnut Crest Merlot sells for a national average retail price of $5.99 per bottle. The 49 other merlots in the tasting were all priced higher than Walnut Crest, some by four times as much.

“One Million dollars will make a lot of dreams come true,” Ms. Harden said, thanking Walnut Crest for its generosity.

 Ms. Harden said that to prepare for the challenge, she bought a case of Walnut Crest Merlot and tasted it each night with dinner. “I really got to know the aroma and flavor of the wine, but it was Walnut Crest’s rich, lingering finish that I remembered most,” said Ms. Harden. “I’m not a real connoisseur, but I know what I like in a wine and that led me to single out the Walnut Crest Merlot.”

 Ms. Harden was cheered on throughout the tasting by roughly 200 supporters of the Dream Foundation, a national organization granting wishes to adults battling terminal illnesses. Guests, including actors Dan Aykroyd and his wife Donna Dixon, Jay Thomas of Murphy Brown and Joe Pantoliano of The Sopranos, took a more limited 5-wine Cabernet Sauvignon challenge, to earn an additional $25 per winner donation to the Dream Foundation.

 Marcia Gay Harden captured the Oscar for her outstanding performance as Lee Krasner, artist and wife of artist Jackson Pollock (Ed Harris) in the film, Pollock (2000). She has several films scheduled for release this year, including Mona Lisa Smile and Mystic River.

 
 The mission of the Dream Foundation is to enhance the quality of life for individuals and families battling terminal illnesses. The goal is to ensure that no adult whose life will end prematurely due to a terminal illness must pass from this earth without realizing one final wish from the heart.

 
 The 2003 Walnut Crest Consumer Taste Challenge featuring the Walnut Crest Merlot is currently underway and is accepting entries through to May 15th. Visit the www.walnutcrest.com website or local retailers for details.

 Walnut Crest wines today rank as the second most popular Chilean wine in the U.S. and one of the country's top imported wines. The producer, Bodegas y Viñedos Santa Emiliana of Santiago, Chile, uses grapes grown in its own vineyards, 3,500 acres in Chile's Maipo, Casablanca and Rapel Valleys. Along with the Merlot, the Walnut Crest line features Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay.