Inaugural Wine Walk planned for Saturday

Boulder City doesn’t have the reputation of Sonoma, Calif., or Mendoza, Argentina, when it comes to wine country, but residents will soon have the opportunity to indulge in the wine of their choice during the city’s first monthly Wine Walk that is set to precede Movies in the Park June 14.

At least 25 businesses have signed up for the event, and coordinator Julie McAnany said promoting local business is the ultimate goal of the Wine Walk.

She brought forth the idea of a Wine Walk, an event she coordinated several times when she lived in Elko, to the Chamber of Commerce. In a smaller town like Boulder City, promoting local commerce is imperative.

“Back home, Wine Walks got you out to see different stores and what they had to offer,” McAnany said. “Some of them turned into my favorite stores. You get to know the owners, and you wanna go in and shop there. It gets people out to shop locally.”

Each Wine Walk will be held from 4-7 p.m. before each Movie in the Park. Participants can purchase their wine glass at the Chamber of Commerce where they’ll receive a map of participating businesses, as well as a wrist band that shows they have been approved to drink alcohol.

Each map has a checklist on the back for every participating merchant to sign when the participant stops at their store. Each store will also have a rinsing station for people to clean their glasses.

After participants fill out all of the boxes, they can stop by the Movie in the Park to turn in their completed map for a special drawing where a winner will be picked for a wine gift basket. The drawing will be held right before each movie.

Chamber of Commerce CEO Jill Rowland-Lagan said she’s hopeful that the Wine Walk will spark a greater interest in Boulder City.

“I think that this being the first (Wine Walk) is kind of exciting. You get to learn about those businesses you might not have heard of before,” she said. “It allows businesses to stay open later, and it allows us to drive traffic into those areas that may not have been able to before.”

McAnany suggested that some businesses choose white wines, while others choose red so participants have some options to work with. She said Ste. Chapelle was the favorite wine when she coordinated Wine Walks in Elko.

Each participating business will choose which wine it serves, but McAnany noted that not all businesses will serve wine. Some will serve water and appetizers instead.

“Some people don’t want to serve alcohol but still want to participate in the event,” she said.

McAnany said all participants can expect enough wine to fill the bottom of their glasses when they go to each station. She isn’t worried about rowdiness or safety concerns during the Wine Walk.

“People here can walk home because it’s so small,” she said. “I don’t see safety being an issue. We never had them back home, and I don’t see it being a problem now. It’s a lot smaller in Boulder City.”

Rowland-Lagan also said she’s not worried about safety issues, saying that if the Wine Walks are successful, the Chamber will eventually look for ways to offer rides home to participants for future events.

“But that’s down the road, so we’ll see how well this goes first,” she said.

Glasses cost $25 each or $45 per couple and are good at all participating businesses.