March 27, 2008 issue
Blue Ridge Food & Wine Festival Organizers Looking for Festival Volunteers
Third Annual Event Set for April 10 to 13
Story by David Brewer
Blowing Rock’s 3rd Annual Blue Ridge Food & Wine Festival will take place Thursday to Sunday, April 10 to 13, and festival organizers are encouraging local oenophiles and food fanatics to get involved.
According to Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Charles Hardin, Saturday will serve as the festival’s busiest period, and volunteers are needed for a variety of tasks throughout the day, including morning setup, ticketing, gate keeping, manning the food tables and afternoon breakdown.
For its third installment, festival organizers are giving the Blue Ridge Food & Wine Festival a fresh vibe by bringing in non-North Carolina wineries and emphasizing Blowing Rock’s many fine dining options.
Local eateries will again offer succulent Vintner Dinners designed to pair fine foods with fine wine and the popular Fire on the Rock chef competition will return to the Hayes Center. Crippen’s will offer another installment of its Cooking with Chef James series alongside food and wines pairing seminars with faculty members from the Charlotte campus of esteemed culinary school Johnson and Wales.
According to Hardin, the Chamber’s efforts to broaden the festival’s horizon beyond its traditional North Carolina wineries are based on the festival’s growing popularity and expanding horizons. Wineries from New Mexico and California will add a West Coast flavor and bolster the American offerings, while wineries from Argentina and Germany will give the Blowing Rock Food & Wine Festival its first international participants.
Hardin also advised wine lovers interesting in kicking off the weekend’s proceedings at Thursday’s casual “Uncork” the Festival event to buy tickets now. Set to take place at Crippen’s Country Inn, the event is limited to 100 participants and slots are filling up fast. Other limited ticket events likely to sell out include Vintner Dinners and Saturday’s V.I.P. Wine Gala.
Although tickets for all events can be purchased online, local residents can save on processing fees by picking up tickets at the Blowing Rock Visitor’s Center located on Highway 321.
For more info on events, ticketing, or volunteer opportunities, click to www.blueridgewinefestival.com.
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