At the outset of the 13th annual Festival of Wines, one repeat festivalgoer advised: "Hit the whites for the first hour and the reds in the second." The 1,000 or so who attended seemed to have their own plan -- or no plan at all -- as they roamed the concourse of Dickey-Stephens Park in search of new favorites.
The sunset across the Arkansas River and behind the downtown Little Rock skyline provided exquisite scenery for the Oct. 6 festival, presented by Arkansas Heart Hospital and pulled together by co-chairmen Kaitlin and Chris White. The aroma of lamb chops cooked on a giant grill by the crew at Samantha's Tap Room & Wood Grill seemed to tilt the crowd in their direction.
All wines were donated by Central and Moon Distributors. Importers, winemakers and others in the business came into town to help with the event. Besides Samantha's, nibbles were provided by Arkansas Heart Hospital, Bar Louie, Ben E. Keith, Boulevard Bread Co., Bray Gourmet, Cache Restaurant, Cajun's Wharf/Copper Grill/Caper's, Cheers in the Heights, Ciao Baci, Heritage Grille Steak and Fin, Just Desserts by Zara Abbasi, P.F. Chang's China Bistro, Skinny J's, The Pantry West and Pantry Crest, The Tavern Sports Grill, Two Sisters Catering and YaYa's Euro Bistro.
"Poolboy" (Adam Dunaway) from radio station KLAL-FM, Alice 107.7, and Elicia Dover from KATV were masters of ceremonies for the event, which raised about $140,000 for the American Heart Association.
For those who needed more than wine and snacks, artists Vickie Hendrix-Siebenmorgen and Kimberly Leonard Bingman created art works while patrons watched. A small silent auction was also part of the event.
High Profile on 10/16/2016