UPCOMING EVENTS
What: Zoo Brew
When: 6:30 p.m. Oct. 4
Where: Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, 3400 Vine St.
Cost: Individual tickets: $40; Designated Driver: $25
More info: (513) 281-4700
What: Wild About Wine
When: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 16
Where: Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, 3400 Vine St.
Tickets: sold out
More info: (513) 281-4700
Fans of the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden will be sipping wine while having a close encounter with a bearcat or maybe an alligator on Thursday.
In fact, so many people are “Wild About Wine,” that the popular wine tasting event of that name has sold out. It’s part of the zoos, A Toast to the Wild Series, now in its seventh year. About 900 people are expected to attend.
Throughout the five-part series, zoo-goers sip martinis, wine or beer while enjoying light food, music and animal encounters. Some tickets remain for, “Zoo Brew,” the beer-tasting event Oct. 4.
The series sells out earlier and earlier each year.
“It’s definitely in a unique setting,” said Chad Elton, the zoo’s director of marketing. “There’s a lot of other tastings in town, but none of these tastings are going to have a bearcat, nor can you either sip on a beer or wine and watch elephants or feed a giraffe.”
Being at the zoo in the evening, he said, is a completely different experience than daytime.
“It’s cooler. There’s a set amount of people and a set event. People feel like they can relax and walk around, really take in the zoo, enjoy the botanical garden and enjoy the animals.”
It’s an experience they think didn’t think they’d find at a zoo.
“A lot of people maybe don’t have kids or they’re just out of college. You maybe thought you had to have three kids, ride the train and buy cotton candy. They didn’t realize this was a way to get involved. It’s a good social event for young professionals.”
Individual tickets for each event are $40; designated drivers pay $25. All participants must be 21.
Proceeds from the events benefit the Center for Conservation and Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW), where scientists work on research projects to benefit animals and plants.
“It’s one of the hidden secrets of the zoo that a lot of people don’t really understand or know about,” Elton said. “It’s not on your normal zoo visit. … It’s all dedicated to saving endangered plants and animals from extinction. It’s a great asset that the Cincinnati Zoo has that not every zoo has.”
To learn about next year’s series, Yelton suggested checking the zoo’s website, www.cincinnatizoo.org in January and February. Once you attend an event, you will receive future notices about the series via e-mail.
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