Summer wine magic

Allison Markin - Jun 26, 2019 / 11:00 am | Story: 259730

Photo: Contributed

Summer officially began with solstice a few days ago, and the first of the big events to come.

After this Canada Day long weekend, the B.C. wine season really ramps u or at least that’s how it feels to me, as I look at the calendar days blocked with guest arrivals and departures.

And so, in addition to a short weekly list of events at the end of each Okanagan Taste column, here’s a list of those must-go-to-this-one “signature” events reaching into early autumn.

Many sell out weeks in advance, so get out the Google calendar and start booking tickets.

July 6, Fralik in the Falls — Okanagan Falls: formerly known as Party in the Park, the Fralik (frolic) features wineries from Okanagan Falls, live music from UnCorked! and a buffet dinner by Penticton’s Nest & Nectar. Bonus, a silent auction.

Aug. 11, Feast of Fields — Kelowna: a wandering harvest picnic festival, this year to be held at Caldwell Heritage Farm, the Feast features around 40 different food and beverage stations in a beautiful outdoor setting. Bonus, it’s kid friendly and it benefits the work of Farm Folk City Folk.

Aug. 17, BC Pinot Noir Celebration — Kelowna: if the heartbreak grape is your favourite, this celebration for you. Held at the UBC Okanagan Campus, top chefs, breakout sessions, and 35 of the province’s best pinot wineries. Bonus. Speaker Madeline Pukette, aka Wine Folly, will be there.

Aug. 18, Garagiste North — Kelowna: In search of small producers and their hard-to-find wines? Garagiste is all about these folks, including wineries you may have never heard of. All of the wineries attending produce under 2,000 cases, sometimes way under. Bonus, pop-up store for purchases.

Sept. 14, Tailgate Party — Naramata: Wineries from the Naramata Bench gather for their annual harvest celebration, held at the Naramata Heritage Inn, and featuring tasty creations from Naramata bench chefs. Bonus, costumes along the theme of the Roaring ‘20s are encouraged, with prizes to be won.

Oct. 6, Festival of the Grape — Oliver: An early fall afternoon with dozens of wineries, food trucks, artisan vendors, live music, and the famous grape stomping competition. Bonus, kids zone and an art sale to round out the day.

There are numerous other events, large and small, almost daily until the cold weather returns. A good resource is the online events calendar from the B.C. Wine Institute, found at https://winebc.com/wine-bc-events/, or by picking up a visitor’s guide in just about any Okanagan community.

UPCOMING EVENTS

June 27, Kelowna: House of Rose opens its summer music series with House of Funk.

June 27, Summerland: David Gogo takes his solo show to Okanagan Crush Pad.

June 30, Naramata: Sauvignon Blanc and Oysters at Bench 1775.

Fridays, Oliver: It’s happy hour every Friday at Tinhorn Creek until the end of August.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.

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About the Author

A creative thinker with more than two decades of experience in communications, Allison is an early adopter of social and digital media, bringing years of work in traditional media to the new frontier of digital engagement marketing through her company, All She Wrote.

She is the winner of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association's 2011 and 2012 awards for Social Media Initiative, an International LERN award for marketing, and the 2014 Penticton Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Award for Hospitality/Tourism.

Allison has amassed a following on multiple social networks of more than 30,000, frequently writes and about social media, food and libations as well as travel and events, and through her networks, she led a successful bid to bring the Wine Bloggers Conference to Penticton in June 2013, one of the largest social media wine events in the world, generating 31 million social media impressions, $1 million in earned media, and an estimated ongoing economic impact of $2 million.

In 2014, she held the first Canadian Wine Tourism Summit to spark conversation about the potential for wine tourism in Canada as a year-round economic driver.

Allison contributes epicurean content to several publications, has been a judge for several wine and food competitions, and has earned her advanced certificate from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.

In her spare time, she has deep, meaningful conversations with her cats.

She can be reached at [email protected]

The views expressed are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of Castanet. Castanet does not warrant the contents.

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