Nugget rocks Saturday for "Winter, Wine and All That Jazz"

The Carson City Nugget's convention room was packed and jumping Saturday night as about 600 people gathered for Winter, Wine and All That Jazz.

The annual event is hosted by Carson Advocates for Cancer Care to benefit their programs in rural Nevada.

Vintners poured more than 30 wines from as far away as New Jersey and as close as California's Sierra Foothills. A finger food buffet was available and guests danced to the tunes of Russ Lindquist and his Orchestra.

"We've had a lot of great wineries show up this year, better than in the past," said Mike Hautekeet, a wine judge at the event and a Carson City resident.

A silent auction topped the evening, offering everything from fur coats to golf packages and a reconditioned International Games Technology slot machine. When local brothels, the Bunny Ranch and Kit Kat Ranch got wind that a privy seat from a 1950s Virginia City brothel had been donated, each donated monogrammed bathrobes.

"It's great to get out of work and do something good for the community and attend an event like this," said Al Lim, of Carson City.

Carson Advocates is a group of about 35 local volunteers dedicated to providing everything from financial assistance to pharmaceuticals for cancer patients in Nevada's rural counties. They currently help 55 patients, including some from Churchill County's leukemia cluster, in every county excluding Clark and Washoe.

Nevada Appeal photographer Brian Corley contributed to this story.