Booth operator Michelle Collupy of Collupy Glass talkes with customer Doug Green about her vases and other items created by her husband.

Marcus Larson
NewsRegister.com

Visitors flowed through the entrance gates as quickly as wine flowed into glasses as Sip!, the McMinnville Wine & Food Classic, got under way Friday afternoon.

Among the first through the door Friday afternoon were Bev Spencer of McMinnville, her sister and brother-in-law, Becky and Rod Brummett of Tigard, and his sister and brother-in-law, Becky and Rick Bell of Longview, Wash.

Spencer had been to events at the Evergreen Aviation Musuem, but was making her first visit to its twin, the Evergreen Space Museum, where Sip! is being held this year.

She and her party said they were excited about the new venue, which intersperses wine, art and food booths with rocket planes and space capsules, a soundtrack of tunes by local musicians and the patter of guest chefs demonstrating their skills.

“We bumped into Ken Till, the museum director, and he gave us a private tour of the Titan II missile,” Rick Bell said, thrilled.
Rod Brummett said they were sure they would enjoy the rest of their visit to Sip!, now in its 16th year as a fundraiser for St. James School.

“It’s hard to say what we like best,” he said. “What’s not to like?”

The Brummetts, the Bells, Spencer and other Sip! visitors had plenty to see as they strolled down main aisles labeled “Cabernet Runway” and “Chardonnay Air” and side aisles labeled “Rielsing Wing” and “Pinot Alley.” Around each corner, they found a new collection of booths, offering everything from wine tours to balloon rides, organic hand creams to handmade handbags, and breads to brie.

And wine from 62 different wineries, along with brews in all hues from the Golden Valley Brewery and Saké One.

Jackie and Pat Dukes were pouring pinot named after their daughter, Alyssa, and son, Thomas. It was the first time the small family winery from Amity had taken part in Sip! In fact, it was their winery’s first major event ever.

“We’re happy to have won a bronze medal,” Jackie said, referring to the wine judging that precedes Sip!

She and her husband said they had a simple goal for the weekend. “We hope to meet new people, have them try our wines and have fun,” Pat said.

At the Bar-Maids booth, owner Kismet Andrews-Cowin, who hails from Brush Prairie, Wash., was making a return visit. She last took part a few years ago, when the event was held at Linfield College.

“I’d always heard this was a great show,” she said.

This year, Andrews-Cowin brought her No. 1 helper, mother Joann Andrews, to help sell her lip balms, hand creams, moisturizers, exfoliating salts and other products, all made of natural, organic ingredients.

Joann said her favorite product is the face pudding, available in day and night formulas. Made with emu oil, it does a great job of keeping skin smooth, she said.

“Kismet uses her grandmother’s recipes,” she said. “Her grandmother made her own moisturizers, and her skin was soft as a baby’s bottom even when she was 92.”

Around the corner, Deborah Hilleary also was selling something soft and supple: handmade purses, totes and throws. Her booth, Deep Pockets Designs, was filled with the bags and small blankets, each made from a different fabric and color.

Hilleary also was making a return visit.

“I liked the food and wine combo when I was here before,” she said, “and I love the museum venue. It’s fun to see all the food, the wine, the art and the people.”

First-year vendors Dave and Jane Hensley, manning a booth called Unique Coinage, agreed. Early in the festival, the Sheridan couple already was attracting a crowd with hand-painted currency fashioned into jewelry and keepsakes.

The Hensleys have been painting coins since 1976. Their skills have been commissioned by private parties, the 1984 Olympics, the Oregon Trail celebration, corporations and numerous other organizations. They made the official Sheridan city medalion, for instance.

“It’s fun to see people’s reactions,” Jane said as passersby did a double-take at a display of colorfully painted state quarters.
The Hensleys said they enjoy their work and find it rewarding. However, it’s not without its hazard.

“We didn’t need to use magnifying glasses when we started,” Dave said. “Now we do.”

On the far side of the building, enticing aromas wafted up from booths offering meals of Caesar salad, oysters, Asian food, loaded baked potatoes and other delicacies.

At the Canby Asparagus Farm and Casa de Tamales booth, Brandon Maes and crew were offering deep fried asparagus and Mexican specialities loaded with asparagus. He said the best-seller was chile rellenos stuffed with grilled asparagus and Dungeness crab.

Maes said he started selling fried asparagus and asparagus tamales as a way to promote the product of his Canby farm.
“They were so successful, we made other dishes,” he said, noting nearly all of the vegetables come from his place and that of neighbor Marvin Winters.

The Canby Asparagus Farm has been coming to Sip! for five years.

“This is an absolutely wonderful show,” Maes said. “It’s so unique, because people can come and see the museum, too.”
It’s also a great show for vendors.

“They take care of us extremely well,” he said. “We’re well-accommodated with ice, a hospitality room, change, a bus shuttle,” he said. “It’s a pleasure being at a show where the organizers go beyond the call of duty and bend over backwards for us.”