There will be bottles aplenty at this weekend’s Rotary Wine Festival, with 28 wineries confirmed to attend.
Presented by the Castlegar Sunrise 2000 Rotary Club, the 12th annual event takes place on Saturday night at the Castlegar Complex.
Rotarian Alexia Turner said the event has grown substantially over the years.
"It started out as a fairly small event and we held it at the Sandman,” Turner said. "It was simply a wine festival. We didn't have any sponsors, we didn't have a silent auction or anything like that."
After a few years, the festival grew so much in popularity that the club moved it to the Complex to accommodate the extra people and wineries.
Originally, 16 wineries were involved. Turner said the biggest year was 2008 when 32 wineries participated — and she has no idea how they all fit into the room.
"With 28 this year it's a full house,” she said.
Six new wineries are joining the line-up at this year’s festival, and some old favourites that haven’t been around for the past few years are returning.
With most of the wineries coming from the Okanagan, Turner said she makes sure she pays her dues when visiting the region.
"We make sure that whenever we go over to the Okanagan or the Oliver region, we always sign the guest book and say we're from Castlegar,” she said. “We're basically promoting the festival throughout the year."
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and Turner said each person can sample every kind of wine.
“There are no drink tickets,” she said.
The Interact Club will be providing rides home all night so people don’t have to worry about not being able to sample all the wines they’d like.
"Not only do they drive you home, but a second person will drive your car home,” Turner said.
If you need to leave by a certain time, you can sign up for what time you’d like to go when you first arrive, she added.
Each winery has a table and people can see where the wines they like are offered, but it’s OK to try something new and not like it, Turner advised.
"They'll tell you about their wines and you can sample what they're pouring,” she said. “If you don't like it, you can pour it out and they will not be offended. When you're doing a wine sampling that is totally expected."
Appetizers will be served all evening, including bread, cheese and vegetable trays, as well as another eight or nine appetizers throughout the evening.
Entertainment will be provided by Brie Faulks and Denise Ford on violin and keyboard.
The door prizes and silent auction will be great too, Turner said.
"We like to give a prize that takes people back to the Okanagan,” she said of the one-night stay at the Super 8 in Kelowna, which is one of the prizes.
There is also an opportunity to win a diamond ring from Simone Jewellers.
"The businesses in this town are so incredible with their donations,” she said.
Other silent auction items include a stay at Ainsworth Hot Springs, various baskets from area businesses such as Avenues and Bubblees, an area rug from NuFloors and John Deere collectors toys.
The money raised from the evening will go towards Rotary projects like the green gym, Rotary youth exchange and Stanley Humphries Secondary School scholarhips.
Tickets are $45 and are available at Oglow’s, Bubblees or by calling Turner directly at 365-7578. There will be no tickets available at the door.