The Rochester Area Heritage Festival announces a new strategy to raise funds for the 33-year-old festival.
In conjunction with Rochester’s Fieldstone Winery, the festival is selling bottles of private-label Rochester Red and pinot grigio at $12.99 plus tax. Fifteen percent of each sale benefits the festival.
“It’s a new direction for us,” said the festival’s event coordinator, Alexis Shull. ‘We’re raising funds and helping support the local business community.”
Jordan Southard, manager of the 8-year-old Fieldstone Winery, said this is the first major signature label for the winery. “It’s our standard bottle price for both of these wines. If someone buys the wine with the private label, there is no additional fee. We’re just helping the festival by giving part of the proceeds.”
Fieldstone makes all of its wines on premises from grapes, juices and fruits from around the world. The pinot grigio grapes are from Italy. “It’s a very nice pinot grigio,” Southard said. “It’s got the standard citrusy note. It’s a dry white.”
The Rochester Red is made from a blend of California cabernet, merlot and red zinfandel grapes and is Fieldstone’s house red. “It’s quite dry,” Southard said. “It’s got a lot of fruity tones to it. It’s a balanced mix of oak and tannins. It’s our most popular red. Blends are very popular in the United States right now. It hits that trend.”
The festival’s bottles carry a distinctive label designed by Rochester Hills resident Lois Golden. The label features a painting of the historic Eddy farm of Rochester Hills. Local artist Margaret Glinke, whose son once lived in the farmhouse, created the painting during last year’s festival and has donated the right to its use to the festival. Prints will also be for sale.
The wine is available at Fieldstone, 223 South Main Street in downtown Rochester, during business hours, (Tuesday-Thursday, noon-9 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, noon-11 p.m.; and Sunday, noon-5). Stop by for a bottle during downtown Rochester’s Girls Night Out on Oct. 6 from 5-9 p.m.
Vouchers can also be purchased from festival board members, but due to laws governing alcohol sales, the wine must be picked up at the winery.
The vouchers will be available Saturday, Sept. 24 at the Rochester Junior Women’s Club’s 13th annual Lobster Boil. For those who have already ordered lobsters, the lobsters will stay hot for up to two hours, plenty of time to swing by Fieldstone just a few blocks away and pick up some wine.
About the festival
The Rochester Area Heritage Festival is a 501c3 nonprofit, volunteer-run community event which receives no government funding. The festival strives to promote the appreciation and preservation of local heritage; to create a free, family-oriented festival atmosphere; and to provide unique fundraising opportunities for community not-for-profit organizations. For more information visit info@rochesterheritagefest.org or call (248) 601-0394.
