Food and wine fanciers are on the countdown for Sunday’s Edesia Food and Wine Extravaganza from 11 am to 4 pm at Wine Country Inn in Palisade. They still have time to get tickets to mix and mingle with movers and shakers in the local wine industry.
With a theme of New Kids on the Wine Block, Edesia is sponsored by FCI Constructors, Inc. with Alpine Bank to benefit MarillacHealth, which provides medical, dental and behavioral healthcare for uninsured and underinsured patients in Mesa County
“Our theme reflects the explosive growth in the industry and our neighborhood over the past couple of years,” explain Wine Country Inn GM Ian Kelley. “Edesia is be an ideal venue for locals to catch up early in the season.”
To illustrate the changing of the guard, Nancy Janes and her husband John who have retired and sold Whitewater Hill, will be guests of Wine Country Inn so that they can say goodbye to their many patrons and friends and introduce the new owners Melanie and Jeff Wick.
New wineries include Ordinary Fellow. Sauvage Spectrum, Carboy and Vines79, to name a few. Besides Whitewater Hill, there also have been changes in ownership at Maison la Belle Vie, Mesa Park and Grande River Vineyards. Meanwhile, established wineries like Plum Creek, Colterris, Talon, Red Fox, and Talbots have continued to introduce inventive new wines to their lines.
“This is an exciting time to be in the Grand Valley. Our wines just get better and better, and so does the food, ” Kelley emphasizes. “The same terroir that produces great wines enriches our local crops and creates an unparalleled field to fork cuisine here.”
Popular local musicians will entertain guests all day. The From the Top duo Thomasina Russell and Terry Flanagan, with kick off the early set in the courtyard, while Tony Rosario will handle the second half of the day. Mike Gazdak will perform on keyboard in the Vineyard Ball room.
Along with the wines, Edesia will offer tastes of beer, spirits and ciders and samples from new food vendors who are also populating the wine scene. Participating wineries include Carlson Vineyards, Colterris, Centennial, Grande River Vineyards, Maison la Belle Vie, Mesa Park Vineyards, Peachfork Orchards & Vineyards, Talon Wines, The Ordinary Fellow, Red Fox Cellars, Savage Spectrum, Varaison Vineyards & Cellars and Vines79 Wine Bar. Peachstreet Distillers will pour its spirits products.
Culinary vendors include Colorado Q and Bakers Boutique, Blaine’s, Caroline’s Restaurant & Tapestry Lounge, Decadence Gourmet, Enstrom Candies, Gumbo Love, Maison la Belle Vie, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Pali Thai, Palisade Peach Shack, Pear Blossom Farms, White Bison BBQ & Grill and Willy’s Wild Carvings.
Paintique Painting & Handymen will provide a photo booth.
Because of its great popularity, the organizers have expanded Edesia components into separate events later in the year. Instead of staging a luncheon preceding the food and wine exposition, WCI Executive Chef Chad Griffith will design a special wine dinner menu around the participants’ wines at the Inn on July 16, while Grande River Vineyards and Talon Wine Brands will co-host a Live in the Grapevines Concert on August 20.
“By making this a stand alone dinner, we can slow down the pace and take our time exploring the nuances of the wines and how the flavor profiles of the food enhance the whole tasting experience,” Chef Griffith reasons.
More details about the New Kids Wine Dinner and the Live in the Grapevines Concert will be available closer to the time of those events. Check the website and social media later.
In addition to FCI and Alpine Bank, other sponsors include Whitewater Building Materials, Dufford Waldeck, Joanna & Jim Roland, Rocky Mountain Health Plans, DalbyWendland and Company, Office Outfitters, Bank of Colorado, Absolute Prestige Limousine, Community Hospital, The Town of Palisade, the Palisade Chamber of Commerce, Alexander United, Country Elegance Florist, Your Sign Company Patton’s Printing, CRNCommunity Resource Network, Hoskin|Farina|Kampf, BG+, JC Photography, Ryan/Sawyer Marketing, Drs. Ashley Ford Rottman and Randy Rottman, and Wine Country Inn.
Media Sponsors for Edesia 2022 include KKCO11News, Magic 93.1, The Vault 100.7, The Business Times, Eagle River Assoc. and Suzi Productions. Other sponsors will be listed on the website.