For a moment, it was as if the entire room held its breath. Then a hand went up, four fingers raised. “Sold!!!” boomed gala chairman Tom Black. Mr. John T. Amend of Dallas, Texas, had just bought the star auction lot of the evening: the entire collection of Médoc wines from the 1855 Classification, all from the 2003 vintage. Sixty-one bottles donated by 61 different châteaux were his for $40,000. The room burst into enthusiastic applause.
    Mr. Amend’s generous bid, made with his business associate David Haemisegger, was the high point of an evening that showed an outpouring of support for the French-American Cultural Foundation. Held at the Residence of the French Ambassador on December 3, 2008, France Magazine’s “Vintage Bordeaux” gala brought together some of Bordeaux’s most famous grands crus, the talents of celebrity chef Thierry Marx, distinguished guests of honor and wine enthusiasts from throughout the United States. It was a magical evening of great food, great wines and great company—truly the best of French art de vivre.