An Evening of PAIRINGS 2017

We hope you enjoyed this years edition! It was amazing for us and thank you all!  Come join us next year as we will leave no Pairing's element to chance and share new insights into the inspirations that drive our great perfumers. New stars with their creations at our selected inspiring venue will mix it with our great sommelier and amazing chef to create yet another new experiential journey through Food, Wine and Scent.

 

Featured Perfumers

Three of our Industries Brightest Stars

Perfumers from different points in their career will guide you through our courses of the evening. By accentuating the ties of the ingredients in their creations, they will enhance the mood and bring vibrance to the food and wine. Intriguing insight into the mind of the perfumer will bring to light the special balance that makes fragrance such a special contribution to our lives.

Ralf Schwieger

Perfumer

MANE

Ralf Schwieger was born in Germany. He studied chemistry and moved to Berlin to specialize in fragrance chemistry before joining a perfumery school in Grasse. He likes to think of perfumery as something almost primary, requiring a highly developed sense of esthetics, yet always playful!

His Inspiration and Universe

•  The dynamic triangle between art, science and industry.
•  The graceful colors, textures and delicacy of fabulous insects.
• The art of cooking, with a weakness for patisserie.
• Contemporary dance (Pina Bausch).
• Nature in its impressive force as simple as rain as well as the gentleness and vulnerability of animals.
• Perfumery raw materials of natural and synthetic origin,  ready to be combined in unforeseen proportions.
• Making jewelry.
• Japanese culture, exemplified in packaging design.

Guillaume Flavigny

Perfumer

Givaudan

“When I was young, I wondered why do we learn to read in school, but never study the alphabet of scents?” says Guillaume Flavigny. He decided to cultivate his own and eventually entered the world of professional perfumery, where his thoughtful, intellectual approach developed further. His sensitivity to scents goes hand in hand with an appreciation for art and music and the ability to find beauty in a variety of contexts--the smoky taste of whisky, the rich color of Japanese ink or the melodic angularities of jazz. Guillaume synthesizes his diverse inspirations into a style that is personal, passionate, original and a little bit provocative.

 

Ashley Wilberding Balavoine 

Perfumer

Firmenich

“I consider myself an olfactive anthropologist. Every day I get to travel with my nose.”

Ashley lived abroad for the majority of her childhood, calling Japan, London, and Saudi Arabia home, a lifestyle that regularly immersed her in a rich and exotic palette of smells. Ashley discovered countries through her nose.

It was not until she traveled to the International Museum of Perfume in Grasse, France, that she realized she could turn her olfactory prowess and passion into a career. Graduating with Honors in Asian Studies from Hamilton College, she was also nominated an All-American athlete. She played professional women’s ice hockey in Sweden for six months and had the opportunity to try out for the U.S. Women’s Olympic team.

Focusing on her first passion, fragrance, Ashley began her career as an apprentice perfumer in 1996 for V. Mane Fils in France.  Perfumery brought her to international postings in Beijing and Mexico City, followed by a return to the US.

Now Perfumer with Firmenich, Ashley creates winning fragrances for body care, home care and fine fragrance.  As she creates, Ashley draws upon the richness and diversity of her life: her fascination for languages (she speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese, French and Spanish), her international travels, exposure to foreign cultures and unique cultural nuances:  these elements are integral to and inspire her creations.

Featured Sommelier

Elizabeth Schneider

Certified Wine Sommelier
Wine for Normal People

After graduating from Wesleyan University, Elizabeth Schneider realized her heart was more in her hobby than her high-tech job. She took a course to learn to taste and appreciate wine, earned her MBA from the University of North Carolina, and embarked on a new career. Schneider is certified as a Sommelier (Court of Master Sommeliers), a Specialist of Wine (Society of Wine Educators) and has worked for the largest winery in the world, launching several successful brands and co-authoring an acclaimed training program for restaurant servers. She hosts an international, award-winning podcast, "Wine for Normal People,” and currently is writing Wine For Normal People, a book exploring wine fundamentals.

 

Featured Chef

Kenneth Trickilo

Renowned Chef

Liberty House

Chef Ken Trickilo started his career in the kitchen early as a high school student. His foray into the culinary arts was initially inspired from his employment at a prestigious country club. This is where he fell in love with cooking. When deciding what to do after college, he could only think of one thing, attending culinary school. This even outweighed his original plan to go to school for architecture, another profession of high creativity.

After obtaining his degree from the Culinary Institute of America, he worked for renown Chef Michael Colemico at his restaurant in Cape May. Afterwards, he went on to work with Ed Stone at the famous Bernards Inn and then the excellent restaurant in New Brunswick, Panico’s.In 1999, he obtained a Sous Chef position at Napa Valley Grill, where he eventually trained to be their head chef. His career flourished as he traveled around the country opening new restaurants for the company. This is where he perfected his “farm to table” technique, using fresh, seasonal and if possible local ingredients to formulate amazing menus and exquisite cuisine.

At Liberty House, Chef Ken uses these same methods to create a dining experience in an unmatched locale. Among his many accolades, Chef’s most recent accomplishment was hosting the esteemed James Beard dinner for the James Beard Foundation. https://www.jamesbeard.org/search?global-search-keyword=Trickilo

 

Your Host

Christopher Diienno

Perfumer and President

American Society of Perfumers

As the 60^th President of the American Society of Perfumers Christopher’s passion runs deep for the expression of beautiful fragrance. Diienno is currently working as a Senior Perfumer Consultant with top tier fragrance companies after curating his Perfumery career working with some of the most renowned and accomplished perfumers, houses and clients in the industry.

He is a native of Southern California and then later moved and grew up in the New York / New Jersey metropolitan area. After graduating from Rutgers College, he began his studies in fragrance with a passion for the art and an emphasis on science of perfumery. His deep love of aesthetics is what drives his creative spirit and inspires his approach to make great scents.

Early in his career he concentrated on research and developed many ground breaking insights into the mystery of fragrance. He later expanded his talents into creative perfumery striving to bring a simple elegance to his work. His tenure at Givaudan-Roure, Quest, Givaudan and drom has given him great opportunity to do what he loves and has given him much pride in his creative work.

Additionally, he has spoken on creativity and the inspiration of perfumery in our lives at multiple venues. Currently, moving on to his own venture with MOCA Fragrances he continues to foster a resurgence of perfumer creativity in our industry. He is always seeking new inspiration and fragrance directions. Through his great working knowledge of fragrance creation, its development, construction and the experiential aspects associated with it, he hopes to foster a greater general awareness of fragrance.

 

More to come in 2018!

 

Our Sponsors

Dessert Sponsor

Main Course Sponsor

Appetizer Sponsor

Signature Cocktail Sponsor

Our Supporting Sponsors

Sampling

Video