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Mile High Wine & Music presented by Valley First Anchors Silver Star Summer Food & Wine Festival

 Award Winning Year Round Alpine Resort Features Canada’s Highest Outdoor Wine & Music Event

VERNON & KELOWNA – June 29, 2015 – The best moments of Okanagan summers are spent outdoors enjoying local food and wine in the company of family and friends. This year, the third annual Silver Star Summer Wine and Food Festival brings a multitude of opportunities to experience the best of the Okanagan in a three-day feast for the senses, August 7 – 9.

The main event is the popular Mile High Wine and Music - an Okanagan Wine Festivals Signature Event on Saturday, August 8. Famous for serving up an afternoon of mountain-style fun at 5,280 feet above sea level, guests will sample new vintages from more than 20 Okanagan wineries, indulge in great Canadian dairy cheeses from Dairy Farmers of Canada, and dance to the hugely popular band Cod Gone Wild.

“To experience the colours and charm of Silver Star in the summer needs to be on every visitor’s Okanagan bucket list,” stated Blair Baldwin, General Manager, The Okanagan Wine Festivals Society. “This resort delivers an iconic Canadian alpine experience and when you match their great village, shops and restaurants with the Okanagan wine industry, it really is a treat to come up and stay.”

Mile High Wine & Music takes place from 4 to 7 p.m. on Main Street in Silver Star’s picturesque and colourful mid-mountain village. “Mile High is definitely a highlight of the season,” said Ian Galbraith, Summer Business Manager for Silver Star. “It’s always an afternoon of great music and smiles all around. People dance, drink wine and enjoy the company of friends on our beautiful mountain. We’re always pleased to work with the Okanagan Wine Festivals Society to host this super fun event.”

On Friday, August 7, the festival kicks off with an exceptional opportunity to experience the best of Canadian cuisine at the annual Hawksworth dinner. Vancouver Chef David Hawksworth and his team from Canada’s #2 ranked restaurant will prepare a leisurely outdoor feast under the stars, accompanied by perfectly paired wines selected by Bryant Mao, Vancouver’s Sommelier of the Year.

Back by popular demand on Saturday afternoon is the Sparkling Up the Cheese in Your Life wine and cheese pairing seminar with David Beaudoin, the Cheese Poet, and Judie Barta, owner of Meadow Vista Honey Wines. The event is a chance to sample a selection of offerings from seven of Canada’s most skilled cheesemakers, while learning from the experts how to best match wines to achieve a peak taste experience.

Also on tap for the Festival are Wine Masters' Dinners, wine and food seminars, and art gallery viewings. Through the weekend, those with a taste for outdoor adventure can take in Silver Star’s summer activities, which include 85 kilometres of downhill and cross-country mountain biking trails, hiking, wildflower tours, SkyChair rides, and more. New for this year is the Gnome Roam where kids of all ages can take a gentle self-guided forest walk to seek out the mountain’s resident Gnome family tucked away in the trees.

Accommodation and ticket packages are available. Stay two nights and add on any of the Summer Wine Festival events or activities and save 10% on accommodation. Tickets to the Summer Wine & Food Festival events can be purchased online at www.skisilverstar.com.

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[Suggested tweet: Tix now available @SilverStarMR Summer Food & Wine Festival featuring @chefhawksworth + Mile High #BCWine Tasting http://ow.ly/OvrjK]

About Okanagan Wine Festivals Society

The Okanagan Wine Festivals Society is responsible for the development of the wine tourism sector in the interior of British Columbia. It is well known for producing two annual Okanagan Wine Festivals in spring to celebrate the bud break and in fall to celebrate the grape harvest. Its Winter Okanagan Wine Festival is run in partnership with Sun Peaks Resort near Kamloops. It is also responsible for Signature Wine Events and two annual wine judging competitions including the British Columbia Wine Awards. www.thewinefestivals.com

About Silver Star Mountain Resort

Silver Star Mountain Resort is nestled in the heart of British Columbia’s Thompson Okanagan region.  Less than a one-hour drive from Kelowna International Airport (YLW), the year-round mountain destination offers 3,269 acres of varied skiable terrain with a snowfall of more than 700cm of dry British Columbia interior powder annually. Award-winning Silver Star is recognized as one of Canada’s best family resorts.  An intimate, colourful, mid-mountain village provides true slope-side lodging. In summer, the Silver Star Bike Park is ranked as one of the premier downhill mountain bike facilities in North America.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Lori Pike-Raffan, Public Relations Director

Okanagan Wine Festivals Society

604.808.6655 | [email protected]

Anne Haight
Director, Sales & Marketing, Silver Star Mountain Resort
P: (250) 558-6098 | C: (250) 260-0223 | [email protected]

Moragh MacAulay
Media Coordinator, Silver Star Mountain Resort
P: (250) 558-6075 | C: (250) 503-7753 | [email protected]