It s impossible not to get caught up in the excitement even when you re dumping red wine down the front of your white blouse. Events like vineyard dinners, winemaster presentations and mass consumer tastings are a blast even for industry staff. Festivals are the only time of year a quaint wineshop best resembles the scene of a Boxing Day door crasher. Wineries that take home medals at a judging event one evening are deluged by crowds the next day. People claw their way to the racks in search of the prized bottles.
Wine goes out the door by the case, hoisted high above the head, clear of the teeming masses.
I recall the sinking feeling I would get when yet another bus pulled up to the door. It wasn t that I resented people coming to the winery, it s just that a tour loses a lot of its charm when the guide has to scream to be heard. Yet, wine festivals remain one of the Okanagan s best kept secrets, especially from locals. I remember conversing with people from all over B.C., other provinces and countries, but relatively few participants were actually from the Valley. It s a classic case of taking for granted something that is in your own backyard.