Journalists and Founders Have a Bunch of Fun at CRV’s Annual Beaujolais Bash

By Krista Canfield McNish

Despite the rain (which always wreaks havoc on Californians) and people throwing their keys off the Bay Bridge and abandoning their cars earlier that same morning, CRV’s second annual Beaujolais Bash was a smashing success.

Last year was the first year we kicked off the newly minted event which offers us the chance to whisk our hard working founders and members of the media away from their desk, so we can take their taste buds on a rendez-vous to the vineyards of France.

CRV general partner Anna Khan welcomes Liz Garone (a freelance journalist for The Wall Street Journal and TIME) to the event. Zip’s Aleene Webber and Flair.ai co-founder Mickey Friedman are also shown.

The third Thursday of every November, Beaujolais Nouveau Day celebrates the first wine of a new vintage.

CRV’s Krista Canfield McNish Greets Zip’s Aleene Webber While CNBC’s Jordan Novet Mingles in the Tasting Line

This wine is bottled a few weeks after harvest and is meant to be enjoyed immediately upon release.

Iterable’s Co-Founder and CEO Andrew Boni Chats With Standard AI Founder and CEO Jordan Fisher and CRV General Partner Max Gazor

Beaujolais Nouveau is often described as fresh, vibrant and approachable… just like the talented entrepreneurs and founders CRV partners with early on in their startup journey.

Doppler Founder and CEO Brian Vallelunga Joins the Discussion as Iterable’s Lauren Kopulsky Speaks With CRV General Partner Max Gazor and Krista Canfield

This year’s fête honored CRV’s 53rd birthday. Fun Fact: CRV is one of the longest-running venture capital firms in the world.

Cheese and Charcuterie Were Served at the Event Alongside Grilled Veggie Panini and Mission Bay Italian Finger Sandwiches, Dips With Crudité, Olives, Hummus and, of Course, Fresh Baguette

Our Beaujolais Bash serves as a wonderful excuse to explore wines from Beaujolais while connecting with familiar esteemed faces from across the Bay Area media landscape and the early stage tech industry.

San Francisco Business Times’ Sara Bloomberg and Silicon Valley Business Journal’s Andrew Mendez Chat with Arena’s Henry Ngo

Nearly two dozen attendees joined us including CRV backed companies like Iterable, Postman, Zip and many others.

Postman’s Rebecca Johnston-Gilbert shakes hands with Iterable’s Lauren Kopulsky. Meanwhile Forbes’ Kenrick Cai engages in a discussion with Iterable’s co-founder and CEO Andrew Boni. Standard AI founder and CEO Jordan Fisher is shown on the far left and CNBC’s Jordan Novet can be seen behind Kenrick Cai having a chat with Doppler founder and CEO Brian Vallelunga.

One of our favorite parts of the evening was when Jordan Novet of CNBC first met Jordan Fisher, the founder and CEO of Standard AI. The ensuing, “Wait, you’re Jordan too?” left our attendees in stitches. In addition to CNBC, media guests represented outlets like Forbes, Silicon Valley Business Times and San Francisco Business Times and we also had some awesome freelance writers pop by.

Grape Colored Attire was the Perfect Accessory for the Evening’s Wine Themed Festivities — Liz Garone (a Freelance Journalist for The Wall Street Journal and TIME) Catches Up with CRV Investor Vivian Cheng and Krista Canfield McNish

​Since 1970, CRV’s investment team has been leading rounds in Seed and Series A companies like Airtable, DoorDash and Vercel. Among our attendees were Arena founder and CEO Paulo Martins (CRV led Arena’s Series A last year) and top technical talent like Jitender Aswani, the VP of engineering at StarTree (CRV led StarTree’s Seed round in 2019 and also backed StarTree during both its A and B rounds) and Northspyre’s CTO Matthew Phinney (last year CRV led Northspyre’s Series B).

CRV General Partner Anna Khan Meets With Guests Including Standard Founder and CEO Jordan Fisher and Employees of Arena, CNBC, Doppler and Iterable

Iterable’s COO Jeff Samuels also popped by. (CRV first partnered with Iterable all the way back in 2015, when we joined the board and led the company’s Series A. CRV also backed Iterable during the company’s B, C, D, E and E-1 rounds.) We also had a chance to catch up with Standard AI’s Alex Plant. (CRV has been partners with Standard AI since 2017. CRV sits on Standard AI’s board and backed Standard AI during its Series A, B and C rounds.)

CRV General Partners Jon Auerbach and Max Gazor Check in With the Sommelier About the Evening’s Flight Which Consisted of Four Different Beaujolais Wines

Our team hopes you have a restful and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday as we ease into the end of 2023.

Our Dedicated CRV Staff Says Goodnight to Iterable’s Lauren Kopulsky

We look forward to seeing you at our Beaujolais Bash next year or hosting you sometime soon in CRV’s San Francisco offices, so you too can mix and mingle with the perfect blend of entrepreneurs from across our more than 600 companies, talented media friends and colleagues.