Wine ‘N’ Hop returns, overcomes hydro outage

By Ron Giofu

Amherstburg Community Services (ACS) held its annual “Wine ‘N’ Hop” fundraiser last week and there were a few added components, some planned and some not.

ACS reported that 95 of 100 tickets were sold for the event last Wednesday night. It was the 11th “Wine ‘N’ Hop” presented by the non-profit agency, and it is in its eighth year. In previous years, there were two “Wine ‘N’ Hop” events held.

Ticket holders met at Royal Canadian Legion Fort Malden Br. 157 before being divided into teams. Participating restaurants included Burger 67, the Artisan Grill, Lot 10 Brewing Co. and Chicano’s Tacos and Tequila. They returned to the Legion afterward. ACS executive director Kathy DiBartolomeo said the event is a way for people to not only support ACS, but to try out and support local restaurants as well. She said it has proven to be a popular annual event.

“People keep asking for this every year so we keep doing it,” said DiBartolomeo.

The Wine ‘N’ Hop is capped at 100 participants to keep it manageable for restaurants and their capacity limits. DiBartolomeo added a new twist this year was the inclusion of a trivia contest, which was done in conjunction with the agency’s 50th anniversary. The Marsh Historical Collection was credited for helping to come up with information and history on the buildings the restaurants are in.

An added, but largely unwelcome, challenge this year was a power outage that impacted the downtown core last Wednesday night. Restaurants had difficulty serving food due to the power outage, which temporarily impacted almost 3,000 Essex Powerlines customers in Amherstburg and LaSalle, but it was restored as the evening went on allowing the “Wine ‘N’ Hop” to resume its usual format.

There are some new faces that attend the “Wine ‘N’ Hop” each year, but there are many returning faces as well, DiBartolomeo pointed out.

“We do find we have a lot of people who keep coming back,” stated DiBartolomeo. “I think it’s just a great event. It’s a nice way to support ACS. There’s a sense of community and it’s a relaxed atmosphere. People can sample local cuisine and meet other people in the community too.”

Sponsors for the most recent “Wine ‘N’ Hop” included Bornais Insurance, Dollars and Cents Investments, Tech It Easy and the Remax realty team of John D’Alimonte, Kim Wheeler and Jayci Wigle.

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