The Daily Mail: 9th Annual Rip Van Winkle Wine Fest 2015 a Success!

 

Posted: Sunday, May 10, 2015 12:30 am

Fine vintages abound at 9th annual wine festival By Ryan Anglim Columbia-Greene Media thedailymail.net

CATSKILL — The ninth annual Rip Van Winkle Wine Festival, hosted by the Fortnightly Club of Catskill, went off without a hitch Saturday.
The event brought together a plethora of wineries, breweries, cideries and distilleries from all parts of the Hudson Valley and Capital Region.

 

Hundreds of people from as far away as New York City grabbed a tasting glass and sauntered in and out of the Freightmasters Building at The Historic Catskill Point. Wine enthusiasts approached vendors for a splash of a chardonnay from Adirondack Winery, or perhaps a sauvignon blanc from Hudson-Chatham Winery, to compliment the quality cheeses provided by some of the food vendors.

 

If wine wasn’t the drink of choice, then one could bask in the opportunity to try some of the area’s finest micro-brewed beer, including Honey Hollow Brewing Company from Earlton, Chatham Brewery, the Cask and Rasher in Coxsackie, or the new Rip Van Winkle Brewing Company in Palenville.
 

Unique options were offered by Dutch’s Spirits from Pine Plains, which served samples of moonshine — that’s right, moonshine — blended to perfection with lemonade.

Of course, it would be a shame to leave out the hard ciders that were represented on Saturday. Nine Pin, a craft cider company based in downtown Albany, poured samples of four various ciders. The company sources all of its apples from the Capital Region and Hudson Valley orchards to ensure customers receive an entirely local and quality product, according to the Nine Pin website.

Stu Kessler and Nancy Davis-Kessler both of Port Jervis, could be seen sampling the wines of Hudson-Chatham Winery.

“We’ve been to a lot of wine festivals, but this is, by far, one of the best ones we’ve been to,” Davis-Kessler said after describing the near-perfect day and the picturesque waterfront of the Hudson River.

On the patio at The Point, many seats and tables were occupied by people at leisure, including Fortnightly members Kelly Cummings, Christa Dedrick and Ellen Shook, who were enjoying the beautiful day and reaping the rewards of all their hard work organizing the event. Accompanied by Diane Weiss, of Florida, the four sipped chardonnay.
 

The band John Pinder & Crooked Toe, featuring John Pinder on acoustic guitar and vocals, Andrew Wheeler on electric guitar, Jack Edwards on bass, and Anthony Vescio on percussion, filled the outer deck area with well-heeled notes while listeners wined and dined in the sun — and all for a good cause.

 

Fortnightly Club member Brenda VanDermark said all proceeds from the wine festival will go towards new equipment for Catskill’s parks and playgrounds.

“This year, we’re focusing on more playground equipment for kids who are handicapped,” VanDermark said. “We also have an adult fitness center that we’re going to put in over at Dutchmen’s Landing.” The equipment is expected to go in this summer.

“Everyone is having a great time here and that’s a nice thing to see in the village,” VanDermark added.

 

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