Photos by Jeff Laydon, Pagosa Photography. Article by Pagosa Chamber Director Mary Jo Coulehan.
Another year of ColorFest activities has come and gone… and as with every year, there were some highs and challenges.
Starting off with the Passport to Pagosa Wine and Food Festival on Friday, September 20, the big winner goes to Sage Eatery who participated for the first time this year. They walked away with 4 of the 6 awards including Best Vegetarian for their Mac & Cheese, Most Flavorful for their Brisket Mac & Cheese, Best Decorated Booth – it was a food truck! — and People’s Choice.
The winner of the Most Original food was Black Bart’s, another first-time contender, for their Korean BBQ Chicken and Waffles.
The Best Sweet award went to Farrago Events — yes, Todd and Kellie are back, catering events — for their spiced peach mini trifle layered cake.
There were many VERY close 2nd place winners including the Archuleta Seniors, Inc in the Most Original category for their lavender blackberry cheesecake bites, Farrago Events in the Most Flavorful category for their jerk smoked pork street tacos, Black Bart’s in the Best Sweet category for their liege waffle with Belgian chocolate, and Pagosa Springs Medical Center for their Best Decorated booth.
Rounding out the evening was the amazing performance of Maxwell Miller as attendees listened and danced to his classic songs. All in all, it was a stellar event with delicious wines, pairing with the fantastic food.
On Saturday, September 21, the Bands and Brews event was dampened somewhat by the rains that plagued the area for most of the day. However, hundreds of hearty souls dealt with the weather, hunkered down in the tent and enjoyed the music of CW Ayon and SolOverLuna.
Turtle Mountain Brewery, out of Rio Rancho, NM, swept the beer honors with both the Brewer’s and People’s Choice awards.
Non-alcoholic sparkling water by HOP WTR, was a well-received new addition to this year’s tastings as were the hard cider’s that were on hand.
Unfortunately, the weather prohibited an evening balloon glow typically held in the park. The pilots also had a little trouble with winds on Saturday, so the full contingency of attendees did not ascend.
However, Sunday morning was stunning and almost 29 balloons took to the skies.
All in all, it was a wonderful weekend with a little moisture that we always need, the beautiful backdrop of Pagosa Springs scenery to complement the colorful hot air balloons, the continuous discovery of our local food establishments and the culinary skills that they possess, and the generosity of the breweries that come and share their special quaffs.
Most importantly, A weekend like this does not happen without all the volunteers that participated. From set up and break down to decorating, pouring wine, registration and even selling merchandise, please know your help is so greatly appreciated. Look for our ‘thank you’ ads!
Pagosa Springs photographer Jeff Laydon shoots people, places and products — on location and in his studio. Learn more at PagosaPhotography.com