Everyone is a Winner!

It may be a cliche to say that everyone is a winner, but everyone who was at the 2007 Vendemmia Festival certainly felt like a winner. The Phillies won the division. Michael Nutter led the cheers. And Chubby Checker was doing the twist. What more could you ask for?

With all the excitement, it is easy to forget that there was a winemaking contest going on. For those who missed the announcement, here are the winners for the 2007 Vendemmia Winemaking Competition:

BEST OF SHOW
3rd Place - Frank Valloreo for his Merlot 60 / Petit Sirah 40 blend
2nd Place - Paul Policarpo and Vince Novello for their Brunello
1st Place - Paul Policarpo and Vince Novello for their Amarone

BEST OF CATEGORY
Petit Sirah - Tenaglia / Giacobetti
Charbono/Petit Sirah/Cab - Rich Tenaglia
Carmenere/Cab - Marc Hauad
Cab - Joh Fox
Cab/Petit Sirah - Paul Reott
Nebbiolo - Frank Costabile
Merlot - Gene Pirolli
Pinot Noir - Roberto/Troncone
Peach - Iron Rock Winery
Viognier - Patricia Gammisa
Sauvignon Blanc - Luigi DiPaolo

Don't forget, the proceeds from the Vendemmia Festival go to the Vendemmia Scholarship Fund. The recipients of this year's scholarships are:

8th Graders
Domenic Reda, Stephanie Kelly, Thomas Vasile, Tina Gatta, Charles Fitzsimmons, Krista Muoio, Brittany Malseed, Julianna Pakstis and Natalie Franzini.

High School Seniors
Eric Banecker, Brooke Lord, Eric Funaro, Julia Dunn, Anthony D'Angelo, Anthony Notte, Deanna Tropea, Bianca Innaurato, Natalie Giuffrida and Paolo Di Paolo.

Vendemmia 2007 Tickets Available

For Tickets, call 215.551.3859.

When about 300 people gathered together to eat porchetta and drink homemade wine in the courtyard of St. Agnes Hospital over ten years ago, we thought that this was a great one time event. If you had told us then that the Vendemmia Festival would grow to become an annual event with over 5,000 people attending, there is no way we would have believed you. But that is exactly what has happened.

A year after the first Vendemmia Festival, we were planning a second and bigger Vendemmia Festival and the event has grown and gotten better with each passing year. One of the best improvements we have made was moving the festival to Girard Park. For the past few years, we have held the Vendemmia Festival in this beautiful park, located in the heart of the Girard Estates neighborhood.

Despite the wonderful memories we made in Girard Park over the past few years, the time has come for us to move to a new location in order to make the festival better. The new location will still be out in South Philly. The new location will still feature beautiful, natural surroundings. But unlike Girard Park, the new location will be on paved ground, so no one will trip over a tree root. The new location will be more spacious so everyone will have a little more room to move. And the new location will allow us to offer more off street parking.

The new location is a great opportunity to continue to improve the Vendemmia Festival. The only problem is that the new location does not have a name. Located in Packer Park, the new location is nestled between Broad Street, 20th Street, Hartranft Street and Pattison Avenue. The entrance to the new location is found on Pattison Avenue, just across the street from the entrance to FDR Park. But if you walk out of Holy Spirit Church on Hartranft Street, you can see the new location through the wrought iron fence.

Having a festival in a location without a name is a difficult thing to do. Where do you tell people you are going? I say that we name this location Vendemmia Square. Why? Because this year’s Vendemmia Festival is going to be so wonderful that we’re going to put this location on the map.

I’m confident that this year’s Vendemmia Festival will be the best ever because we won’t be changing much beyond the location. Bob Pantano is going to put together another stellar lineup of live entertainment. The best home wine makers are again going to compete for the top honors. And some of the most amazing restaurants and specialty shops are once again going to provide samples of their food.

But most importantly, you’ll be there. You and your friends and your family will drive south on Broad Street on the morning of September 30th with a car full of food. You’ll turn right on Pattison Avenue and pull into Vendemmia Square, excited to celebrate under the South Philly sun. And you’ll join more than 5,000 people who have gathered together to celebrate along with you.

In the end, that is what makes the Vendemmia so special, it’s the reason why people keep coming back year after year. It’s the community. You arrive with your family and friends and instantly become a part of a larger family. We eat together. We drink together. We sing and we dance together. We celebrate as family, one large South Philly Italian family. And so it is with great anticipation that I look forward to seeing everyone get together for another wonderful Vendemmia Festival.