Wine flowed freely at Cheers to the Valley event to kick off Ramona Country Fair

Ramona Valley wineries helped kick off the Ramona Country Fair Thursday night at the Cheers to the Valley wine-tasting festival.

Guests had unlimited pours from nearly a dozen wineries and food samples from Something Delicious Catering and The Good Seed Food Company. The event under the pavilion at the Ramona Outdoor Community Center also included vendors for the first time this year.

The gathering of 83 guests signals the start of the Country Fair, held Friday, July 29 through Sunday, July 31.

Ramona resident Kalyn Froehlich came with her mother-in-law Valorie Froehlich, who was visiting from Redding. Kalyn Froehlich said she didn’t know about the event until they were invited by her step-mom, Kelly Schwartz of Lakeside, who joined them later.

“I had no idea about these wineries,” Froehlich said. “I didn’t know they existed.”

Froehlich said she was having an evening out in a trade-off deal with her husband, James Froehlich. The following day, her husband was going to take their school-age children to the fair, she said.

It was the first time Marc and Teresa Hobbs of Ramona have attended Cheers to the Valley. They said they wanted to support the community.

“It’s really nice,” Teresa Hobbs said. “There’s some great wine here.”

Rachel and Garrett Adelman said they are industry insiders who were curious about what their competitors had to offer. The Adelmans work in La Finquita Winery & Vineyard’s wine-tasting room in Ramona.

“It’s nice to taste new things and refresh our palates,” Rachel Adelman said. “We don’t always get around to try new wineries because we work. There’s a lot of good wine here tonight. It’s nice to see the valley has such a variety of grapes that produce a great quality of wine.”

Pamo Valley Winery owner Jennifer Lane and Vina Ramona owner Benjamin Payne were toasting a new business arrangement at Cheers to the Valley. Pamo Valley Winery is set to move from its longtime location at 603 Main St. to Vina Ramona’s 636 Main St. location across the street in September.

Lane said she is waiting for approvals from the Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), and then should be able to open in the new spot during Ocupación Day weekend, Sept. 3-5.

Payne said he will be opening his winery soon at his vineyard at 657 East Old Julian Highway.

Lane said her lease was not renewed after 11 years at her former Main Street location. She moved out at the end of July.

“However, it was a blessing in disguise as we had outgrown the location we were in and needed to be able to do more things to allow our business to grow,” she said.

Lane and Payne agreed that Pamo would move into Payne’s space and they would operate as a joint tasting room for three to six months or until Payne is ready to move to his new tasting patio on his vineyard and winery property in Ramona.

“We are excited about all the forthcoming opportunities we will have such as live music, food trucks and fun events in a bigger and better space,” Lane said. “We are also excited to be so close to neighboring eateries, coffee shops, and clothing and antiques stores.”

Hatfield Creek Vineyards & Winery Barista Terrie Lopez said Cheers to the Valley is a great place to mingle with vendors and winery staff and owners.

“I love it,” said Lopez, who was a return guest at the event. “It’s a nice evening out and it’s a fun place to explore.”

The handful of vendors included Ramona artist Lyn Feudner, who was selling fused glass jewelry and plasma cut metal. Other vendors included Rockin’ P Studios, with glass artisan Carin Pratt selling windchimes, platters and decorative glass items. Others were Rising Dale Woodworks, Couture by the Sea and Charmed by the Glass.

Participating wineries included Cactus Star Vineyard at Scaredy Cat Ranch, Castelli Family Vineyards, Correcaminos Vineyard, Hatfield Creek Winery, Mermaid Valley Vineyard, Pamo Valley Winery, Principe di Tricase Winery, Rancho San Martin Winery, Scenic Valley Ranch Vineyards, Three Hills Winery and Vineyard Grant James.