Local sommelier Erica Archer announced Tuesday that she’s launching Portland Wine Week this summer, a summer wine festival that will be held June 18-24.
Archer is the owner of Wine Wise, a wine education events company, and the festival will include her signature sunset wine sails, wine education walks in the Old Port and wine education classes. Archer also plans to take advantage of Portland’s reputation as a great restaurant town by featuring restaurant wine dinners and a “passport tour” of local restaurants and their wine lists.
Among the 17 events in the works are six wine dinners: a night of rosé at Sur Lie; a focus on the new release and library wines of Channing Daughters winery at Hugo’s; a southern Italian white wine and seafood pairing at Scales; an evening of natural wines at Piccolo; a tour of Burgundy at Lolita; and an exploration of Spanish wines at Chaval.
Archer is also planning a meet and greet with an Austrian wine expert at Central Provisions; a pasta-making and wine pairing class at Solo Italiano; a wine pairing lunch with Bangs Island Mussels at Scales; and an historical wine list exhibition and talk from Don Lindgren of Rabelais Books.
The week will end with a gala: Cabernet & Cabaret: a Celebration of Red. Five local female chefs, including Ilma Lopez of Chaval and Piccolo and Krista Kern Desjarlais of The Purple House, are on board to create the food for the event, while Circus Maine is scheduled to provide entertainment. Proceeds from the gala will benefit Portland’s Preble Street Teen Center. Find updates and more information at www.portlandwineweek.me.
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