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Dozens of Local Wineries to Be Featured at Lodi Event

Posted on: Friday, 24 March 2006, 12:00 CST

By Keith Reid, The Record, Stockton, Calif.

Mar. 24--LODI - At least 3,000 people are expected to taste wines poured by more than 40 local wineries at the Spring Wine Show today and Saturday in Lodi.

From large winemakers like Mondavi and Gallo to smaller, family-owned wineries such as the Olde-Lockeford Winery and Jesse's Grove, organizers say the Spring Wine Show allows consumers to compare locally made wines and meet the people who make them. The event also features music, entertainment and hors d'oeuvres.

"The nice thing about the wine show is you have owners pouring their wines, and people can ask them questions about the wine," said Grape Festival Fairgrounds general manager Mark Armstrong. "We consider the event to be classy but casual, meaning you don't have to be a wine aficionado to enjoy this event."

The wine show atmosphere has been compared to a high school reunion, with many people traveling to Lodi to meet family and friends and socialize with fellow wine connoisseurs.

Among the regulars at the show are Corky and Jan Hassart, who have traveled to Lodi in each of the past 20 years from their home in Vancouver, Wash. The semiretired couple said they travel to Lodi to visit relatives, but the main event of their trip is the wine show.

"You can't beat the price, for one thing. You can't go anywhere for $25 and drink and taste all of these wines," Jan Hassart said from her cell phone as the Hassarts stopped in Ashland, Ore., on Thursday. "We don't do this anywhere else, just Lodi. We like the wines, the different foods, talking to the vendors, and we're always curious to find out what the theme is every year."

The show also offers a forum for the booming Lodi wine industry. With 63 wineries dotting the Lodi wine trail and fledgling plans to develop a downtown scene of boutique hotels, restaurants and tasting rooms, local vintners are welcoming an influx of new clientele.

Steve Borra, owner of Lodi's Borra Family Winery, said his wines have been poured at the Spring Wine Show since the inaugural event in 1980. He said the show brings him success with a marginal sales and traffic boost at his Armstrong Road tasting room.

"It gives us the opportunity to present our wine to a lot of people in one place," said Borra, who will personally pour a merlot, a chardonnay and his popular Fusion, a blend of red wines.

"And that gives you a chance to make a connection. People like your wine for different reasons. They could just like the wine, or they could like the winemaker, or they might just like the building they walk into. But you have to make a connection," Borra said.

Contact reporter Keith Reid at (209) 367-7428 or kreid@recordnet.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Record, Stockton, Calif.

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Source: The Record

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