For the third annual Boys' Night Out fund-raiser, held Thursday in support of Prostate Cancer Canada and the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation, the Lifford Wine Agency filled the Fermenting Cellar with traditional boy's toys—think sports cars and motorcycles—along with multiple food and wine stations. "Ninety per cent of our audience will be well-heeled men that support the cause," said event planner Pauline Fortier of the Lifford Wine Agency. "We will have cars, boats, golf, steaks, oysters, burlesque dancers, multiple food stations, and lots of great wine."
The wine agency returned to the Fermenting Cellar for the third year because, as Fortier put it, "It is what it is. We put nothing else in there [in terms of decor] because it's a guy event. It's brick and concrete and pillars." She filled the space with food stations catered by the likes of the Perfect Steak Company, Bloom Restaurant, and Lone Star Texas Grill among others.
The event, which attracted more than 700 mostly male guests, included silent and live auctions where guests had the chance to bid on a Broil King barbecue and Muskoka and Nascar weekend getaways.
Menswear retailer Harry Rosen, the event's presenting sponsor, held a V.I.P. reception prior to the event in the Hästens luxury bed showroom a few doors along from the Fermenting Cellar. Mannequins dressed in fashions from Z Zegna—available at Harry Rosen's flagship Bloor Street store—were positioned throughout the showroom. Guests could also have their photo snapped for a take-home picture resembling the cover of Harry Rosen's magazine.
"We've added a whole bunch of different elements this year," Fortier said. "We've never had an aerialist or a comedian before, so we've tried to add new elements in terms of the entertainment. We've also tried to add some new guy food. We've never had wings before."
Additional event sponsors included Audi, AstraZeneca, Ecco, Screwpull, Pride Marine Group, Zegna, Broil King, Krups, Longines, The Globe and Mail, and Maclean's.