Seventh Annual Wine Tasting at grapestompers.com
 grapestompers.com
held its seventh annual wine tasting event at the Burgiss
Barn in Laurel Springs, NC on Sunday, October 3, 2004.
The event was attended by over 200 people, and offered tastes of
31 varieties of wine made from kits sold by grapestompers.com, as
well as homemade wines made by local wine enthusiasts. Mountain
craftsmen showed off their wares, and a wonderful selection of heavy
hors d'oeuvres was catered by Jimmy Benge of Jiff Catering for all
participants.
grapestompers.com would like to thank Monty Combs for taking
the photos during the wine tasting.
You can scroll down the page to see all the pictures from our wine
tasting, or simply make your pick from the list below:
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grapestompers.com's 7th annual wine tasting took place
on Sunday, October 3, 2004.
This photo shows Brant Burgiss, middle son of Crazy Tom,
pouring a sample of red wine for a couple of wine tasters.
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Brant Burgiss pours red wines at his tasting
table
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PHOTO 1
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Wine tasters from as far away
as Georgia enjoyed sampling over 31 varieties of wine. The
majority of wines served were made from the kits sold by grapestompers.com,
but several other local vintners were pouring samples of their
homemade wine. Rex Dixon's rhubarb wine and blueberry port
were a big hit!
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| Wine tasters share a smile
as they enjoy fine wines
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PHOTO 2
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While enjoying the wine and food,
the crowd was treated to the craft talents of several craftspeople,
such as Wade Caudill (shown at left), who makes ceramics.
Other crafters brought products ranging from handmade baskets
and quilts to hand-painted glass and carved bowls and trays.
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Wade Caudill shows off his craftsmanship
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PHOTO 3
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In this photo, Candy Porter is
pouring sweet wines for some folks from Alleghany County,
the home of grapestompers.com.
Betsy Dillon and Rita Woodruff of Sparta, NC were just two
of over 200 people who attended the festival.
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| Betsy Dillon and Rita Woodruff
enjoying wine
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PHOTO 4
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We set up several different tables at this year's wine tasting:
- Dry Reds (3 tables)
- Dry Whites (2 tables)
- Sweet Wines (2 tables)
- Homemade Wines (2 tables)
- Wine "doctoring" table
This photo shows guests enjoying a sample of Old Vine Zinfandel.
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Have a sample of Old Vine Zin!
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PHOTO 5
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Folks came from all over the world - literally - to enjoy
the wine served during our 7th annual wine tasting.
In this picture, Hugo Baggio,
our winemaking intern from France, offers red wine and French
lessons all at the same time!
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How do you say "Vieux Chateau du Roi"
in French?
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PHOTO 6
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Always ready with a smile, Hugo Baggio explains the origins
of the red wine he is pouring.
Originally from Brest, France, Hugo participated in an internship
program sponsored by ESA
Purpan, the agricultural university he attends in Toulouse,
and spent the summer as our winemaking intern.
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Hugo Baggio pours a wine sample
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PHOTO 7
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One of the tables at the festival
showed tasters how to sweeten wine to accommodate their taste
buds.
At left, Virginia Van ("Ginny") Hampton explains
how to doctor wine to a wine tasting participant.
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| Ginny Hampton explains how
to "doctor" wine |
PHOTO 8 |
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The crowd loved the wines made
by Rex Dixon of Laurel Springs.
Rex makes wine from fruits and vegetables he grows in his
garden. Everyone loved the blueberry port and his rhubarb
wine.
Thanks for sharing, Rex! |
| Rex Dixon pouring wine |
PHOTO 9 |
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Sometimes life places you in
the right place at the right time. In the case of a wine tasting,
you gotta love being served when the wine bottle is nearly
empty.
Many times there isn't enough wine to pour another full sample
for the next person, so some folks get the extra wine as a
bonus!
Mmmm, c'est bon!
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| The last of the bottle! |
PHOTO 10 |
Be sure and join us for next year's Wine Tasting, scheduled for
Sunday, October 2, 2005. Remember, our annual event is always the
first Sunday in October.
All photos on this page were taken by Monty Combs. Thank you again,
Monty!
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