Cheesecake Details and more

So what is the Cheesecake Festival all about? Well, before we opened we visited many wineries and asked them about many things, including promotional events. Wilson Winery in Delaware County mentioned their BIG EVENT was their own cheesecake making contest, we liked the idea and set up our own the second year we were open.

It was well attended and everyone liked sampling the home-made cheesecakes and the commercial entries as well. The next year I sent a press release out to the surrounding newspapers a few weeks before the event, hoping to get a mention so we could get more entries. The Kokomo Tribune has a very nice entertainment section every Friday (called “Friday” interestingly enough) and the editor is a bright and delightful young lady named Erin Shultz. She called us and came out for an interview and brought a photographer and told us they’d run “a bit” in the Friday newspaper about the event.

They ran a front page “teaser” on both Wednesday and Thursday; then had a large photo of wine and cheesecake on the cover of the section. The article was several pages and clearly, people read it. Over 400 people showed up for our second cheesecake festival. We had people waiting to get in line; to get in the door; to get in line for a taste of cheesecake and wine. We had customers who saw we were swamped and pitched in and helped service cheesecake. I think this big turnout was what helped make this event so big.

I still send out press releases, but we don’t get a quite the response from newspapers these days we did then and honestly, I am glad. Our little building can’t really handle 400 people and that many stresses me and the staff out.

Saturday is also Converse Homecoming Days, a nice town festival in its own right with a parade, vendors, contests, etc. Check it out at:
http://townofconverse.com/homecoming-flyer-2009.pdf

Oh, the entries, yes. If you want to enter the contest, commercial entries can be dropped off Friday or Saturday by 2 pm (open 1-6 both days). Amateur entries can be dropped off Friday all day and Saturday by 4 pm. We suggest you use disposable pans, but we will have any non-disposables ready for pick-up by Monday. There will be a form to fill out and all award winners will be contacted, grand prize winners will have their photo taken and posted in the winery for a year.

I must mention we have Chad Shrock coming by to perform his wandering minstrel show of celtic-to-elvis music from 2-to-5 pm. Come buy and enjoy his show, like all special events at the oak hill winery, its free!