Those who know good wine sampled varieties from around the globe Saturday at the CSRA Wine Festival in Evans.
Area wine distributors provided about 150 fine vintages for patrons who whetted their appetites with tapas and entrees from several local restaurants.
The annual event serves as an educational experience for most wine drinkers, said festival organizer Pat Goodwin.
"They're quality, quality wines ... lots of different wines that you wouldn't know what they tasted like unless you buy," she said.
In its second year, the festival moved from the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame Botanical Gardens to the Evans Town Center Park field near the Evans courthouse. Mrs. Goodwin said moving the event to Evans brought it closer to most of the festival's patrons.
Harry Weigle, of North Augusta, said he enjoyed his first trip to the wine festival and learned about fine wines without having to purchase them.
"If you like wine, this is the place to learn, not the wine store," he said.
Mrs. Goodwin said about 250 tickets were pre-sold to the event and she expected about 500 patrons to attend. Proceeds will benefit Columbia County Arts Inc. and the Greater Augusta Arts Council, Mrs. Goodwin said.
Reach J. Scott Trubey at 706-868-1222, ext. 109 or jeffery.trubey@augustachronicle.com.
SPOTTED AT THE FESTIVAL
View our Spotted gallery of dozens of photos from the CSRA Wine Festival in Evans at spotted.augusta.com.
WINE TASTING
The three steps in wine tasting are look, smell and taste.
Look at it: You can tell a lot about a wine simply by studying its appearance. You can also guess the age of a red wine by observing its "rim." Tilt the glass slightly and look at the edge of the wine. A purple tint may indicate youth while orange to brown indicates maturity.
Smell it. Swirl your wine. Take a quick whiff and formulate an initial impression, then take a second deeper whiff or take only one deep whiff. Sit back and contemplate the aroma.
Taste it. Take a swallow of wine. Slosh it around and draw in some air. Examine the body and texture of the wine. Is it light or rich? Smooth or harsh? After swallowing it, contemplate the aftertaste: How long did the taste last? Was it pleasant?
Source: www.taste-wine.com
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