Wine Down in the Garden

BLAIR RYAN: The fair is packed front to back with fun for the whole family. Sometimes it's nice to do something just for you, the adult. We found just the thing here at Wine Down in the Garden. 

♪♪ 

Caitlin, tell me about what's going on here this evening.

CAITLIN REMINGTON: So up here in the garden, which is managed by my Bondurant-Farrar students, we are having a live musician here tonight. We have one and Monday night we have a different musician coming up. People can come up. It's free admission for anybody here at the fair. And you can taste and sample some of the Iowa State Fair wine. 

My plant science students got to plan where everything goes, decide where and what to plant. The kids all came up with their ideas during class. Egg plants are cool for them to see. Okra, bell peppers, anything. All of the produce we get from this garden will go to the food bank here in Des Moines.

BLAIR: Tell us about the wine here at the garden tonight.

EMILY WYNN: This is Wine Down in the Garden, our first time that we're doing it. We want people to come up and enjoy, have some samples.

BLAIR: Are you drinking only Iowa wines?

EMILY: We are. We are just featuring our red and white state fair wines. 

BLAIR: Why is this spot the feature for Wine Down in the Garden?

EMILY: Last year, we debuted our garden. It's a beautiful spot up here and secluded. We just want to draw more attention to it and it's fun to come up and hang out in the garden. 

♪♪

BLAIR: What brings you two to Wine Down in the Garden here this evening?

KATIE ADAMS: Well, we love the Iowa State Fair, and this area is new to us. So we wanted to check it out and we love live music.

BLAIR: Another question, which food at the fair is going to pair best with the white you're drinking?

KATIE: Easy. A Pickle Dawg, fried, with pastrami and cream cheese. 

BLAIR: That's is all you need?

KATIE: That's all we need. Especially with this nice, crisp white wine.

JACQUELINE WHITE: We're here to visit the Iowa State Fair for the first time. And we thought it would be lovely to check out the garden, sip on some wine and listen to live music.

RYAN WARREN: There's so much to do, and a lot of great food, which is my favorite part.

BLAIR: Speaking of food, what food do you think will pair best with the wine you're drinking?

JACQUELINE: It's a little sweet. So I don't know, what do you think? I would love some dessert with this.

BLAIR: Are you both avid wine drinkers?

JUDY BALSMAN: We are. So we wanted to try the state fair wine.

BLAIR: And how's it tasting?

MARK ZIMMERMAN: Good. Only had the white so far.

BLAIR: What fair food do you think will pair best with the wine you're sipping this evening?

MARK: I don't know. My pork chop on a stick was really good with the white.

JUDY: I'm going with cheese Kurds.

BLAIR: Can't beat it.

On a warm, summer night, it's hard to top a nice Iowa wine with an atmosphere only the fair can provide. Cheers.