300+ beverages from more than 70 vendors will be poured for tasting at the 34th Annual WGBY Wine Lovers Weekend fundraiser inside the Tower Square Hotel.
SPRINGFIELD, MASS. — A tasty 30-plus-year tradition continues, as Springfield once again hosts what’s being billed as “the region’s largest benefit wine, craft beer, and food tasting event.”
The WGBY Wine Lovers Weekend is a two-part fundraiser for local nonprofit PBS television station WGBY. The first part is a large-scale wine, craft beer, and food tasting on Friday, March 15. The second is a fine seven-course gourmet meal with expertly paired wines. Both are held this year on the sixth floor of Tower Square Hotel in downtown Springfield.
“Public television matters,” explains WGBY General Manager Anthony V. Hayes. “It’s teaching us about history, science, and the arts — and in a way that’s interesting and entertaining. For 34 years now, greater Springfield viewers have recognized the value of WGBY’s content, and they have turned out again and again to this event to proudly raise a glass in support of our mission.”
According to wine expert Michael Quinlan of Table & Vine, a major sponsor of the WGBY Wine Lovers Weekend, the back-to-back fundraisers represent “western New England’s greatest wine event.”
“Table & Vine is proud to sponsor and work together with WGBY to create this year’s Wine Lovers Weekend,” Quinlan states. “With support from our many winery and brewery partners, we will hold an amazing tasting that will be all in good taste for a good cause — our local public television station.”
AN EVENING OF WINE, CRAFT BEER & FOOD TASTING
On Friday, March 15 from 5–8 p.m., WGBY and Table & Vine present more than 300 wine and craft beer samples from more than 70 different vendors.
There will be plenty to eat as well. Hearty bites will be served by more than 20 local chefs and food artisans. Participating restaurants include The Bistro at Gateway City Arts, Center Square Grill, Good Stock Farm, Holyoke Hummus Company, Nadim’s, The Red Lion Inn, Spoleto, and others. Participating chefs will be celebrating the region’s diverse food culture under a unified theme of “The Edible Pioneer Valley.” Each of their culturally inspired dishes will be paired with wines for the tasting.
Each guest at the Friday night event will be given a “Tasting Program” that lists each item available for sampling (and all wines and craft beers will be available for purchase through Table & Vine). Guests are encouraged to make note of grape varietals, vineyard designations, appellations, and styles — and vendors are always eager to talk about each wine.
Marie Waechter, WGBY’s director of community relations and events, considers WGBY’s Friday night “Evening of Wine, Craft Beer and Food Tasting” to be a premiere tasting event as well as a social outing.
“Folks from up and down the valley come in to Springfield for the evening to learn about wines, share some laughs, and celebrate public television,” Waechter says. “This year, we’re really adding something special by encouraging our participating chefs and restaurants to serve foods inspired by various cultural backgrounds and experiences. Leave it to WGBY and PBS to make a wine tasting even more meaningful!”
General admission tickets to the Friday night tasting are $49. A “Connoisseur” ticket ($79) adds exclusive access to a special selection of finer wines hosted by Quinlan’s team of Table & Vine sommeliers.
Tickets are available at wgby.org/tasting. Group discounts are available. Tickets will also be available at the door the evening of the event while supplies last. Offline ticket sales are available by contacting Waechter by phone at 413-781-2801, Ext. 1547 or by e-mail at mwaechter@wgby.org.
WGBY WINE LOVERS DINNER
On Saturday, March 16 from 6–10 p.m. at the same location — on the sixth floor of the Tower Square Hotel — a special culinary talent takes center stage. Local James Beard Award-winning chef Sanford D’Amato presents a specially crafted seven-course menu — and each course will feature expertly paired wines by Quinlan of Table & Vine.
D’Amato’s culinary theme for the WGBY Wine Lovers Weekend is “The Edible Footprint of the Pioneer Valley.” His menu is inspired by the cultures of those who formed and found themselves a part of today’s Pioneer Valley. For D’Amato, this theme squares with his philosophy and style of food, which he began labeling as “Contemporary Ethnic” some 35 years ago.
“The immigrants, when they moved to the Pioneer Valley, would have to adapt the food that they knew to the products of this country,” D’Amato says. “Not always having the exact ingredients that they grew up with, their food changed into a new style that was at times not recognizable to visiting relatives of their country. Yet, all it took was their first mouthful for it to become completely recognizable as it had the tastes, aromas, techniques and flavor memories of their specific country. This style of food, contemporary ethnic, is the blueprint for modern American cuisine.”
D’Amato’s menu will feature dishes inspired by Native American, Italian, Mexican, Latin American, English, and Polish food cultures. As his cuisine is prepared by award-winning Tower Square Hotel chef Bill Rounds and his culinary team, D’Amato will share with guests his personal philosophies and journey.
For his part, Table & Vine’s Michael Quinlan will present two paired wines per course and explain the characteristics of each selection. Guests will enjoy a fine dining experience with a wine appreciation lesson built in.
Tickets to the WGBY Wine Lovers Dinner experience are $175 at wgby.org/dinner with proceeds benefitting public television in western New England. Offline ticket sales are available by contacting Waechter by phone at 413-781-2801, Ext. 1547 or by e-mail at mwaechter@wgby.org.
The WGBY Wine Lovers Weekend is sponsored by Big Y and Table & Vine. The Wine Lovers Dinner is sponsored by The Dennis Group. BusinessWest and The Republican are media sponsors. AM Lithography is a donor of print services.
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ABOUT WGBY
WGBY (wgby.org) is a community-supported public broadcasting organization connecting the people of western New England to events, ideas, and each other through national PBS programming and locally produced content. With four digital television channels, video on demand, podcasting, and streaming video, WGBY is one of the region’s most accessible community institutions. WGBY is available over the air on digital channel 57-1 and on cable throughout western Massachusetts and northwestern Connecticut and can be seen in high definition in western Massachusetts at Comcast 857, Time Warner 1807, Charter 782, and over the air on channel 57.
