Enjoy jazz and wine in Prosser
You’ve read about the morning crowd at my gym before, including die-hard regular Vince. He’s one of the handful of guys almost invariably sitting on the sofa in the entryway, all showered up and ready for the day, when I drag myself through the door.
Now, I get up at what I deem an ungodly hour, but there they are, already on girl patrol. I have no idea how they do it.
The other day, Vince greeted me with this suggestion: “You should go wine-tasting in Prosser.”
It’s not enough that he’s all smug, finished with his workout. No, he has to present an undeniably more appealing alternative to me, as well. First thing in the morning.
How in the world am I supposed to gear up for the elliptical trainer in the face of such affront?
And then, not two days later, a news release about – yes, you guessed it, the wonders of Prosser, Washington – shows up on my desk.
Fate has spoken. I guess there’s nothing for me to do but give up exercising and fill that time with drinking. It’s actually sort of a relief to just concede defeat.
I can start my new lifestyle at the Wine and Hot Jazz Bash from April 19 to 22. The festival marks the opening of Prosser’s wine season and corresponds with spring “pre-barrel” weekend.
Organizers expect thousands of visitors looking to “leave the winter blues behind and welcome in the joys of spring and summer” with ragtime jazz dating from 1886 to 1917, jazz from the 1917 to 1935 golden age, and Chicago jazz of 1930 to 1945.
Solo artists and eight participating bands from as far away as State Center, Iowa, and Denver will alternate every hour among five locations. The $60 ticket admits you to all festival events, including a “pianjorama,” school concerts, jam sessions, dance, costume and umbrella contests, and more.
The wine part of the event seems to involve getting a jump on the hordes of drinkers who will descend upon the Yakima Valley the following weekend, April 27 to 29, for spring barrel tasting.
Because when it comes to wine, getting there first is everything.
So “pre-barrel” gives you your big chance to win the wine drinking game with samples right out of the barrel. And you can do it on the cheap, too; most of the 15 wineries along the valley’s Rattlesnake Hills Wine Trail forgo a tasting fee.
There’s more information about participating wineries at www.rattlesnakehills.com or (888) 375-7498. To learn more about the Wine and Hot Jazz Bash, call (509) 786-7977, ext. 195.
Drift on over
I’ve made no secret of my love for Barry Cranberry, the cutest cartoon mascot ever. So you can imagine my disappointment when I received word of the Cranberry Coast’s 45th annual Driftwood Show and fourth annual Glass Float Round-Up – and Barry was nowhere to be found.
It’s hard to work up the will to write on.
Nevertheless, you probably want to know that the aforementioned events take place March 17 and 18 in Grayland, Wash.
The driftwood half of the extravaganza features just about everything you might imagine a piece of driftwood can do: serve as a medium for carving or painting, hold up a floral arrangement, take its place in a collage and so on. You’ll also find artists’ demonstrations about driftwood, driftwood displays, and handcrafted driftwood items for sale.
On the glass side of things, you can look forward to beachcombing for a “Lucky Sand Dollar” exchangeable for a hand-blown glass float, complete with certification of authenticity. Your hunting license costs a whopping $2.
And it wouldn’t be a community festival without a pancake feed on Saturday morning.
Find out more – and get a look at Barry himself – at www.2thebeach.org. Or call (800) 473-6018.
Regional events
•Annual Snow Rodeo, March 17-18, Essex, Mont. Organizers promise “hilarious” events for the whole ski-wearing family, like bareback bronco riding on an inner tube horse, roping a wooden goat while traveling downhill, playing a horse in the chuckwagon race and more. Bribing the rodeo judges for better scores is encouraged. ( www.visitmt.com/ 406-888-5700)
•Astoria-Warrenton Crab and Seafood Festival, April 27-29, Astoria, Ore. They’re expecting 20,000 visitors at the 25th annual event and you can be one of them. You’ll find a traditional crab dinner, other seafood offerings, varietals from more than 50 Oregon wineries, craft beers, music, 200 booths’ worth of artisan wares and more. ( www.oldoregon.com/ 800-875-6807)