There's something missing in the world of wine, and Megan Duma, aka founder of WineforBlondes.com plans to fill it on Thursday.
The way Duma sees it, there are wine snobs, and then there are "wine blondes, those of us who don't know a lot of wine" but want to learn about it in a "young, hip sort of way."
So make room for Miss Wine Country, a monthly modeling competition, the first to be held Thursday at 57 Degrees Wine Bar. There will be 15 contestants, with the winner receiving $500 and a trip to Napa Valley for a vineyard photo shoot by noted photographer Jon Nordling. Duma will be the VJ for the night's event.
The owner of 57 Degrees, Russ Kindom, came up with the idea of the competition and even built a runway for it. The wine bar, which is celebrating its grand opening with this event, is a combination wine bar, wine storage, wine shop and soon-to-be opened tapas bar.
The event is also being seen as a way to make a big splash with the millennial, the 23- to 37-something crowd whom Duma said are underappreciated when it comes to the wine industry.
Every month a different winery will sponsor the competition, with the Hill Family Estate signed up this month. Duma said they understand the importance of the new younger generation of wine drinkers. Ryan Hill, who belongs to the younger generation of the family, teamed up with professional surfer Kyle Knox and stained Knox's surfboard with wine. As a result, Hill wines attracted a loyal following of young surfers to its label.
Duma, whose full-time job is as an associate at a law firm, focuses part of her practice on alcoholic beverage law, but said one has nothing to do with the other.
The event will include live entertainment, "live art" painting and, of course, wine from Hill Family Estates. For more information, go to WineforBlondes.com.
