A South 91原创 winery is becoming a little piece of Down Under for a day, hosting the Australian Cultural Festival on Saturday, Aug. 26.

鈥淐onsidering how there are over 50,000 Aussies in the [Greater Vancouver area] it鈥檚 surprising that our Aussie friends and their heritage has not been celebrated before on this side of the world,鈥� noted Teresa Townsley, with Festina Lente Estate Winery.

So family-owned winery that makes mead (honey wine) decided to hold the festival, and people snapped up tickets.

鈥淲e were surprised and delighted at the overwhelming response, and the 1,400 tickets were claimed in the first two days of ticket availability,鈥� she noted.

They are planning on welcoming about 2,000 people over the seven hours of the festival.

鈥淎s a result, we have added a second stage and two more musical acts for the day and increased our parking space to accommodate the extra volume,鈥� Townsley explained.

Admission is free but people require tickets. And organizers recommend people carpool or ride hail to get to the winery at 21113 16th Ave.

There they will be able to check out vendors, live entertainment, Australian food, beer, and more.

鈥淲e will be giving out treats to all the Aussie shepherds who join us,鈥� she said.

Townsley noted the event is non-smoking due to the fire risk, and no outside alcohol is permitted.

鈥淭he impetus for the idea began when we held a market earlier in the summer, and the vendor organizer mentioned that she had Australian heritage,鈥� Townsley said. 鈥淚 asked her if she had ever considered showcasing that in a market and the idea took wings from there. As a business, we support our community in many ways. We were the first 91原创 company to host a Pride event. This is just another way we can support local musicians and small businesses, and have fun at the same time.鈥�

The winery has never held an event of this magnitude before though.

This first festival鈥檚 success bodes well for the future.

鈥淒ue to the short timeline we had to prepare for this event, this first event will be a bit of a learning curve, but we already have plans for next year in the works,鈥� she said.

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