FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, April 7, 2008

For more information contact:
Bill Clary

(502) 564-4696

COMPETITIONS, FESTIVALS SHOWCASE TOP KENTUCKY WINES

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky wines will be put to the test by experts and casual enthusiasts alike in five upcoming competitions and four festivals.

Wine competitions will take place in Nicholasville, Bardstown, Highland Heights and Danville, and a festival will follow about a month after each competition. The Kentucky State Fair will hold its first commercial wine competition in August.

 “Kentucky’s wine industry is growing in quantity and quality,” Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer said. “A generation ago, Kentucky had no wineries; now we have 47. Some of our wineries are good enough to compete with the biggest and best winemakers in the world. These competitions will give our winemakers a chance to measure themselves against their peers, and the festivals will provide visitors the opportunity to taste some great Kentucky Proud wines.”

The schedule of events includes:

• Nicholasville – Kentucky Winegrowers Commercial Competition, April 12, and Nicholasville Wine & Vine Fest, May 8-10
• Bardstown – Kentucky Wine Fest Competition, April 19, and Bardstown Rotary’s Wine & Cheese Tasting, May 31
• Highland Heights – Northern Kentucky Commercial Wine Competition, May 10, and Northern Kentucky Wine Fest, June 7
• Danville – Central Kentucky WineFest Competition, May 25, and Central Kentucky WineFest, June 13
• Louisville – Kentucky State Fair Commercial Wine Competition, Aug. 10.

Seven Kentucky wines brought 20 medals home in February from the Florida State Fair International Wine and Grape Juice Competition, which attracted more than 1,600 entries from 36 states and 10 foreign countries.

 “The growth of our wine industry is generating economic activity in our rural communities,” Commissioner Farmer said. “It’s also creating demand for grapes, which helps Kentucky farmers. The Kentucky Department of Agriculture, the University of Kentucky and the Kentucky Grape and Wine Council are working together to expand the industry and make the Commonwealth a producer of great wine.”

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