A Very Special Wine Competition – 2010

This past weekend (March 27th and 28th), the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition (www.fliwc.com) was held once again in Rochester, NY.  This was the 10th year for the competition.  The competition has grown each year, despite the economy, and people cutting back.  It is certainly because of its outstanding reputation along with the fact that it is a fundraiser for a very special cause.  This year there were a total of 3,010 entries from 666 wineries.  The entries came from 15 countries, 9 Canadian Provinces, and all 50 states. It is the first time in history that a competition had entries from all 50 states.  There were 56 judges from 10 countries and 10 states.

This competition is very special in that all of the proceeds from both the competition and the subsequent wine dinner and auction, go to Camp Good Days and Special Times (www.campgooddays.org).   This is primarily a camp where children with terminal or life threatening cancer get to come and be with kids who have similar problems and understand what they are going through.  They get to spend two weeks, at no cost to the families, doing all sorts of exciting activities that kids love.  In many cases they discover that they really CAN accomplish things they never would have tried.  One of the things that impressed me considerably when I was there was the swimming pool.  Imagine being a child in a wheel chair and being able to ride your wheel chair right into a swimming pool and then be able to float free from it.  This is just one of the many wonderful opportunities that abound.

The camp is located in Mendon, NY, next to a beautiful lake, which they also utilize for their activities.

On May 1, 2010, there will be a formal dinner and auction taking place at the Rochester Plaza Hotel (www.rochesterplaza.com) that will include a fabulous auction.  This is a spin off of the competition and brings much needed funds to the camp.  It is very expensive to have all the special equipment needed as well as medicines, a medical facility, and, of course, the upkeep.  The whole concept here is to not add any more financial burden to the families involved.  It also helps that there is a tremendous group of volunteers, including medical staff that donate their time to this camp.

This auction will not only include wine, but fabulous trips, specially set up tours of various wineries, winemaker dinners and more……….all donated for the sake of the children and their families by caring wine industry people.

Tickets may be purchased through the FLIWC site (www.fliwc.com).  If you are unable to attend this event but would like to support this wonderful charity, they accept donations on the Camp Good Days Site (www.campgooddays.org), and, of course, it is tax deductible.