Downtown Geneva turned into a three-day showcase of wine, food and live music this past weekend as the 44th annual Festival of the Vine took over the streets around the historic Kane County Courthouse. The festival ran Friday, September 11, through Sunday, drawing residents and visitors to the Flavor Fare tent near James and South Fourth Streets, where local restaurants dished out signature plates alongside wine tastings at downtown businesses.
The event has come a long way from its roots. Today, the festival features a broader culinary, craft beer and wine showcase. This year’s iteration, covered by Aurora Beacon-News freelance reporter Linda Girardi, leaned heavily on the Flavor Fare tent as an annual stage for Geneva restaurant chefs to share their signature dishes with the crowd.
Penrose Brewing served as a sponsor for the 44th festival, offering white grape sangria slush-ups and craft beers with municipal grant and in-kind support from the City of Geneva, according to Shaw Local. Admission to the festival grounds was free, but samples inside the Flavor Fare tent required $2 tickets sold in $20 increments, with 12 local food vendors serving from noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and until 4:30 p.m. Sunday, the outlet reported.
A Restaurant Owner’s Return After the Flames
For Stockholm’s Restaurant & Brewery owner Mike Olesen, this year’s festival carried extra weight. Olesen has participated in the festival for 24 years and also chairs the Geneva Chamber of Commerce board, per the Beacon-News report. His restaurant served up Dijon salmon, a pulled pork sandwich and grilled artichokes to festivalgoers this year, but the road back to the Flavor Fare tent wasn’t a given…