VIPs got a taste of good things to come last Friday at a Best of Fest event at the Heritage Center to promote the second annual Vero Beach Wine + Film Festival, which returns June 8 to 11.
More than 125 guests sipped their way through old and new world wines at a VBWFF Best of the Best: Great Wines for Grand Dinners wine tasting curated exclusively by Rob Wayne of Varietals and More. As an added bonus, guests could purchase their favorites at extensive discounts at a Wine Pop-Up Shop.
“Tonight was super successful because our pricing for our wine is well below the average retail by 20 to 30 percent,” said Wayne. “We have a good core community and when it’s a good cause, they come out and join the fight. I’m part of the community, so I want to give back.”
“It’s a WOW! I’m so jazzed by the world of wine our VBWFF wine partners have created for tonight. Look at everyone ‘Sip! See! Shop for Suncoast!’” exclaimed Jerusha Stewart, VBWFF founder. “We’re giving our Vero in-season crowd a taste of the award-winning Vero Beach Wine + Film Festival in June and we welcome them back.”
After the wine tasting, the crowd adjourned to the green for a picnic supper and watched a double feature under the stars, viewing a sample of the high-quality films vetted for the festival.
First up was a screening of “Somm,” providing a peek behind the scenes as four sommeliers attempt to pass the prestigious Master Sommelier exam, which over the past 40 years in North America has passed only about 140 applicants.
After a brief intermission, the VBWFF 2016 Audience Award Winner, “Between Sea and Land,” was presented. The Columbian drama, set in an open-air stilt shack over a swamp, follows the life of a bedridden man with a form of muscular dystrophy and his wish to feel the warm waters of the ocean just across the street.
Proceeds from the evening benefited the Suncoast Mental Health Center, whose mission is to provide community-based and family-centered care for children and families with emotional health issues.
“VBWFF is so proud to support this organization through film and shine a bright light on mental health and the positive side of it in terms of what’s available to help people,” said Stewart.
“Not enough people are aware of what mental health is,” said retired Suncoast CEO Art Ciasca. “One in five people have a mental-health disorder. These are real medical conditions like diabetes, cancer or heart disease. Just as you can’t get over diabetes or cancer, you can’t just get over being depressed or having anxiety. These are real medical conditions that can negatively impact or even end a person’s life.”
Debra Scuderi, Suncoast acting CEO, said the festival theme, A Life Worth Living, ties in beautifully adding, “That’s what Suncoast does; save and change lives.”
For more information visit VBWFF.com.