Wine lovers are taking over Watkins Glen International this weekend for the 20th annual Finger Lakes Wine Festival.Our Tina Yazdani explains why officials are expecting a record crowd this year.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. -- Despite the huge crowds, the wine glasses here will never run dry.
"This is the best wine festival,” said Gabe D'Alessandro, festival participant.
“I love the variety, I love the different vendors,” said Allison Dipietro, festival participant.
Nearly 100 wineries from across the state are spending the weekend here at the Finger Lakes wine festival.
"It gets our name out, our brand out there; it's a chance to see a lot of people instead of being in the winery,” said Leroy Hurlbut, Partner in Ashley Lynn Winery.
It’s a chance to see 40,000 people, that's how many are expected to attend over the course of the weekend, the most the festival has ever seen in its 20 years.
This year, they've added something new.
“This year we have these massive tents, we air conditioned them. So you can get out of the heat, we've put out more tents, we've added more entertainment and more music,” said Michael Printup, WGI President.
Though all the wineries are from New York State, the people aren't. They come from near and far with an appreciation for this region's wine. It’s going make New York another place on the map aside from downtown city
"They have really sweet wines like we like. New York State has great wines,” said one resident.
The festival has become a tradition for some for others, a chance to celebrate.
"It's her bachelorette party, It's awesome a great place to go with a group of friends, hang out, be together,” said one group of friends.
People here said their favorite part has been the unlimited wine.
All they need is one of these glasses and then they can try as many wineries as they want, giving them a good sense of what this region has to offer.