In Review: Recent News Events, and Happenings
Early in February L’Acadie Vineyards’ 2015 Vintage Cuvee went sip to sip with ten other Gold Medal Plates Best of Show wines in the finals of the Canadian Culinary Championships in Kelowna, BC. The certified organic, traditional method sparkling was awarded Best of Show at Gold Medal Plates Halifax in October 2017. This is the fourth time L’Acadie Vineyards has earned Best of Show in the five years that the wine competition has been held in Halifax. “We are very proud of our wines and are looking forward to showing them at the championship in British Columbia, where I started my winemaking career†said Bruce Ewert, owner and, winemaker of L’Acadie Vineyards. Gold Medal Plates is celebrated in eleven cities across Canada, and features local premier chefs in each city in a competition to crown a gold, silver, and bronze medal culinary team, along with Best of Show Wines for each city, and subsequently nation-wide, at the Canadian Culinary Championships. Founded in 2003, the goal of Gold Medal Plates is to raise substantial funds for Canada’s high-performance athletes, while celebrating Canadian excellence.
Barrelling Tide Distillery in Port Williams has won 10 medals in the Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition, including three gold, and Best in Class for their Raspberry Liqueur. Fifty-four distilleries across Canada participated in this year’s awards. The Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition is Canada’s only national spirit competition reserved exclusively for micro-distilleries.“We are honoured, and very proud to have won 10 medals in the 2018 Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition,†said Russ and Colleen Murphy, owners of Barrelling Tide Distillery. “Since opening our distillery in the spring of 2016, this recognition validates our commitment to the quality products we produce.†Barrelling Tide has now produced a line of over 15 spirits and liqueurs.
Uncommon Common Art has announced the artists selected for the 2018 summer outdoor temporary exhibition. A jury of Nova Scotian art professionals selected 17 artists from the region.“We received an overwhelming response to our call for expressions of interest and I am impressed by the talent of the artists†said Kate Ward, curator. “Exhibiting artists include nationally recognized established artists such as Ericka Walker and Kim Morgan, emerging conceptual artists Lorraine Albert, Jessica Winton, and Carrie Allison, and traditional artists with popular gallery followings: Marla Benton, Miyoshi Kondo, and Bonnie Baker, to name a few.†Along with the art installations exhibited June through October, UCA presents a full season of programming, offering a series of four artist talks at Acadia University in July, two weeks of summer camp in July and August, four hands-on art workshops in September, and art education in the schools in October. This year they will be rounding off our programming with an art exhibit of past UCA artwork at the Charles Macdonald Concrete Museum during the month of August.
—
The Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) is a non-competitive 5km/10km Winter walk fundraiser that supports Canadian charities who serve the hungry, homeless, and hurting in cities across Canada. Participants get the opportunity to experience a hint of the challenges faced by the homeless during a cold Canadian night while raising money for a local homeless mission or shelter in their region. On February 24 people from throughout the Valley will be joining more than 20,000 others from across the country for a fundraising walk in support of organizations who address poverty, homelessness, and hunger. In our region Open Arms, a Kentville drop-in centre for people in crisis will be supported. “We expect more than 400 people on the day of the event and of course there is always more room for more people to sign up. This is a terrific opportunity for a group of friends or co-workers to support a great cause,” says Open Arms Chaplain John Andrew. Opens Arms benefits greatly from the community support of the event. “As a Registered Charity relying entirely on community support, Coldest Night Of the Year has certainly increased the capacity of Open Arms to deliver the programs and services they provide for people in crisis,” says Andrew, “While operating Drop-in Centers, Food Programming, Housing Helps, Emergency Shelter and more, our daily focus is to assist people in need towards the tools and resources they need to achieve healthy independence. In addition to our focus as a Resource Centre, we serve approximately 30,000 meals each year.” For more info, visit: cnoy.org/location/annapolisvalley
