Third Annual Chocolate and Wine Festival

Gateway Committee's Food and Coffee Booth

On Saturday, Hilary, Luz and I attended the Chocolate Wine Festival at the Gateway Harbor, organized by the Gateway Committee of the Tonawandas with the North Tonawanda Recreation Department. This is only the third year of this festival, so the organizers are still tweaking the formula, but each year is better than the last. It was a charming way to spend an afternoon.

Vendors included the Canalside Creamery, Platter's Chocolates, Willow Creek Winery, Shulze Winery, and Chateau Buffalo. There were a few non-food visitors to the festival, like Christian Academy, which had a bake sale fundraiser. The Gateway Harbor is a beautiful site for small events like this; the lush landscaping alone is worth a visit.

The wineries could get crowded at times!

The activities were simple, but entertaining. A Mary Kay booth gave "chocolate makeovers" for 50 cents. The festival provided a variety of activities for children, including chocolate finger painting, a "make your own ice cream" station, and crafts.

Each of the wineries attracted crowds of interested people. I managed to get tastings of several great wines from Schulze and Chateau Buffalo. Chateau Buffalo is a particular local favorite of mine. Carl Schmitter, the owner, has a tent most weeks at the North Tonawanda Farmer's Market, selling unusual fruit and honey wines. I took home Schulze's Lake House Red and Crackling Niagara, and Chateau Buffalo's Honey Mead (a favorite among the renfaire crowd) and cherry wine.

This festival is a wallet-pleaser. None of the activities cost more than 50 cents, and some were free. The wine tastings were free. The Gateway Committee ran a food and coffee booth with reasonably-priced drinks, sweets, and snacks. Hilary and I each got a large cup of chocolate-flavored coffee for $1. Other than purchasing bottles of wine, we each spent less than $5, and got something from every booth!

Platter's Chocolate

We had a great time at the Chocolate and Wine Festival! That said, if anyone at the Gateway Committee is reading this, here are some things I'd love to see next year.

• At least one chocolate and wine pairing booth, with reasonably-priced small servings of wine and a dessert. Other than tastings, no one was serving wine at the wine festival! Maybe a winery could pair up with Platter's Chocolates or a bakery to bring us a flavored truffle and Cabernet Sauvignon pair, special-edition ice-wine flavored chocolate, or gourmet Black Forest cupcake paired with cherry wine. Wine could be glazed on a chocolate dessert, or blended into ice cream. Get creative! Are you listening, vendors?
• Restaurants along Webster getting in on the action. Since Webster is right next to the festival, why not extend the festival to the small businesses there? If serving wine at the festival is a legal problem, serve it at Crazy Jake's like last year - but unlike last year, no dress code, please!  Maybe Lauranda's Bake Shop could create a signature pastry, or Romeo's Ristorante could serve chocolate espresso. This would require a concerted effort and signage to guide people to Webster.
• A live band. A pair of guys played guitar at the festival, but they were situated off to the side, and the sound didn't carry. There was already a stage set up at the festival, but it sat empty most of the time. Festivals are so much better with live music! How about some jams from local bands to attract people and keep the wine flowing?

Thank you, Gateway Committee and NT Recreation Department, for a lovely time!