NICE – The third annual Festival of Tulips will be held March 31, from noon to 4 p.m. at Tulip Hill Winery in Nice. The event will feature wine, food, and entertainment set amid the winery's gardens blooming with 30,000 tulips imported from Holland.

Entrance to the Festival of Tulips includes a Tulip Hill wine glass for unlimited tastings, sumptuous hors d'oeuvres from five upscale Lake County restaurants, live rhythm 'n' blues music by Bill Noteman and the Rockets, winery tours, lectures, and ballroom dance and other demonstrations.

During the event, tours of the winery will be given to attendees once per hour beginning at 12:30 p.m. with the last one at 3:30 p.m. The tours, given by a member of the Tulip Hill collective, will take eventgoers from the crush pad to the cellar to the bottling room and everywhere in between.

In addition, the tour guide will give an overall view and explanation of the winemaking process – from the grape to the bottle. Grapevine pruning also will be demonstrated throughout the day.

A raffle will be held on the day of the Festival of Tulips for a gift basket of Tulip Hill wine and other Lake County products that are sold in the winery's gift shop. There also will be special deals on wine and wine-related products during the festival, and the gift shop will be open, as well.

Last year, guests of the Festival of Tulips came from as far south as Palm Springs, as far north as Oregon, as well as from Lake and nearby counties.

Tulip Hill Winery opened in 2004 on the site where the Bartlett Springs Water Bottling Plant once operated. The first owners of Bartlett Springs began bottling as early as the 1870s, claiming the mineral water cured all sorts of ailments, including their own.

Revered in Europe as well as the United States, the famous plant, which had changed hands over the years, closed down in the late 20th century. It wasn't until the Brown family arrived that the historic site would once again have a purpose – this time for wine.

According to Loretta Byrne, chief operations officer of Tulip Hill Winery, "When the Brown family discovered the property, they fell in love with the area. They completely landscaped the grounds and remodeled the facilities to become the winery and tasting room."

Tickets to the Festival of Tulips are $30 per person and may be purchased over the phone or at the winery on the day of the festival; tickets purchased in advance will be sold at the discounted price of $25 per person.

Tulip Hill Winery is located at 4900 Bartlett Springs Road. For more information about Tulip Hill or the Festival of Tulips, call (707) 274-9373 or visit www.tuliphillwinery.com.

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