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"Fancy a private dinner party for two with a Michelin-starred Chef and an overnight stay at a resort in Auberge du Soleil, Napa? At $800 a head, that's a really fair deal. But if you've got $100,000 to spare and want to visit Bordeaux, Napa, Mendoza, South Africa, Italy, Spain, Germany and Portugal, why not partake in &amp;quot;Seven Weeks of Wine and Indulgence in an Unforgettable Around-the-World Adventure&amp;quot;?\u00A0You can order both experiences on sale right here\u00A0in Lot18's new Experience section.\r\n\r\nLot18 is oft referred to as &amp;quot;the\u00A0Gilt Group\u00A0of the wine industry.&amp;quot; Similar to the fashion startup's sister companies Jetsetter, Gilt City, and the newly launched direct competitor\u00A0Gilt Taste, Lot18 is expanding its brand into more than just a flash sales platform for wine. Lot18's new Experience section\u00A0offers wine and gourmet-themed travel excursions, exclusive dinners at Michelin-starred restaurants and other local and national packages designed to help Lot18 members indulge just a little bit more.\r\n\u201CWhen people travel to wine country, they create emotional connections with the specific vineyards, wines and gourmet foods that make such a visit memorable,\u201D said Philip James, co-founder and President of Lot18. \u201COur goal is to help our members build even more meaningful relationships with the food and wine brands they enjoy, whether it\u2019s by traveling for a private tasting and tour of the vineyards or by visiting a nearby restaurant for a five-course dinner with a winemaker and well-known chef.\u201D\r\nThe launch of Lot18 Experiences coincides with the company\u2019s one-year anniversary. In 12 months of operations, Lot18 has attracted over 550,000 members and sold more than half a million bottles of wine. This summer, Lot18 also added a\u00A0Gourmet section for products such as olive oil, chocolate, caviar and coffee\u00A0to complete its Dionysian quest. Lot18 Experiences will soon offer similar special engagements in Chicago, Los Angeles and other major cities through a network of partner sites, to be announced at a later time.\r\n\u201CAs Lot18 continues to grow, our aim isn\u2019t simply for more people to discover food and wine. It\u2019s that they\u2019ll make them a part of their special nights out \u2013 even their vacations,\u201D said James.\r\nIn just one year, the New York City startup has grown to 90 employees, poaching some of the finest wine\u00A0connoisseurs the city has to offer. In May, Lot 18\u00A0raised $10 million in a Series B funding round led by\u00A0NEA Ventures\u00A0and\u00A0FirstMark Capital, who also led the $3 million Series A round."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://thenextweb.com/insider/2011/10/19/introducing-lot18-experiences-a-travel-site-for-epicurean-adventures/>