Trisha Shanks
Arrow Lakes News
The K2 Rotor Lodge was abuzz with laughter, chatter and wine-swilling Saturday night in celebration of Rotary Winefest, the second annual shindig hosted in collaboration with the Arrow Lakes Grape Growers Society. Given an empty glass upon entry and from there, revellers enjoyed the flowing vino and gourmet vittles aplenty.
Eight separate stations were peppered throughout the lounge, dining room and party room of the restaurant, each representing a different winery or wine merchant. The selection was 100 per cent British Columbia wine, and at each station, samplers could try reds, whites and other varieties plus speak directly to the vintner or wine rep. Dozens of wines were available to taste, and not limited to the Okanagan: Trail merlot, Wynndel pinot gris, Creston gewürtztraminer, Kelowna gamay noir and a spicy Oliver aperitif with a chili pepper in the bottle.
Guest Jodee Zinselmeyer commented, “What a treat to have such a unique venue in our village.”
Margaret Basaraba, whose husband Dave is the co-owner, winemaker and vineyard manager at Wynnwood Estates Winery in Creston, said, “Such a nice group of people here. The set-up with different rooms for people to mingle and move around and what a nice touch to have the cheese on each table.”
Guests dressed in semi-formal attire paid $50 a head for unlimited samples, an array of cheeses with crackers and an assortment of chef-made original hors d’oeuvres. There were also 50/50 draws, a silent auction and a door prize. All proceeds go to supporting Nakusp Rotary and their on-going projects such as Polio-Plus, local scholarships and the waterfront lighting project. In addition, many local businesses were involved in sponsoring the evening.
Troy Watson, one of the organizers with Rotary was thrilled with the turnout. “People are raving about the food, so we are really pleased.”
The event was held last year with a limit of 100 tickets to gauge the interest, and it sold out raising $5000 for local causes supported by Nakusp Rotary. This year with 151 tickets sold, the organization hopes to do even better. Organizer Kees van der Pol explained, “The organizing committee was a fine group of people, just a pleasure to work with. And we are really grateful for the volunteers too.”
Burton resident Liz Gillis enjoyed the evening and wanted to recognize the efforts that were made to include Nakusp’s neighbour to the south. “I wouldn’t have attended without the safe ride program.” A volunteer drove a number of Burton residents both to and from the event in a minibus to allow them to join the festivities and not have to worry about transportation 35 km each way.
Lynn Sorenson, owner of Winemates & More said, “This is our second year, and we love to support the community. I’ve been working this territory for 22 years and am very passionate about Okanagan vineyards. We’ll be back next year.”