
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 30, 1994                   TAG: 9411300036
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

WHAT'S HAPPENING AROUND THE VALLEY

Here are some classes and events offering ideas for entertaining, food- and drink-sampling opportunities and good old fellowship with friends, old and new:

Provisions Gourmet, Roanoke, has a new newsletter; a new chef, Alexis Hinchey, specializing in delectable pastries; and an assortment of new pastries and other products. The store is taking orders until Thursday for fresh, fragrant bay leaf wreaths, suitable for decoration or cooking. The cost is $19.95 prepaid.

Upcoming classes and events include:

Festive Brunch, Sunday, 1-3:30 p.m. featuring make-ahead items from the winter larder that add up to a festive and fabulous spread for family and friends. $25. Instructor, Nancy Maurelli.

Lunch and Learn: Soup & Salad Supper, Dec. 9, noon, demonstrating a quick but satisfying winter meal including a lean Roquefort salad dressing. $15. Instructor, Nancy Maurelli.

Wine Tasting, Saturday, noon-3 p.m., with Beth Crittenden of Roanoke Valley Wine Co. presenting a French country white wine, a Cabernet Sauvignon and an American sparkling wine.

Wine Tasting, Dec. 10, noon-3 p.m., with Pat Brady of Blue Ridge Beverage presenting an assortment of wines for the holidays.

For more information or to get on the newsletter mailing list, stop by the store in Hunting Hills Plaza or call 776-3264.

"Champagnes & Sparklers" is the theme of the Roanoke Valley Wine Society's tasting party, Thursday, 7-9 p.m., upper room Corned Beef & Co., Roanoke. If you'd like, bring an appetizer to share, and/or nonperishable food items for donation to RAM House day shelter. $7.50 RVWS members; $10 nonmembers and guests. Call 992-3285.

The Virginia Vegetarian Society potluck, Friday, 7 p.m. in the small sanctuary of the Unitarian Universalist Church, Grandin Road and Brandon Avenue, Roanoke, marks the first gathering in a while of this loosely knit organization. Bring your favorite meat-free dishes along with their recipes (extra copies, if possible) and enjoy the casual camaraderie. The event is free and children are welcome. For more information, call 380-2820.

Country-style steak dinner with all the trimmings, Friday, 5:30, 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. raises funds for restoration of the Old Brick Hotel in New Castle. The hotel, dating back to the 1840s and purchased by the Craig County Historical Society in 1983, is actually a compilation of individual mini-museums existing within separate rooms. Fourteen of the hotel's 20 rooms have been restored to date.

For this special event, the New Castle Garden Club will provide Christmas decorations typifying traditional late 1800s Victorian style. Tours of the hotel will be offered at no additional charge. Free tours and light refreshments will also be offered Saturday, starting at noon and Sunday from 2-4 p.m.

Adult admission for the dinner is $7; children, $3.50. Advance ticket sales are required and must be ordered by noon Thursday. For more information or to order, call Wanda Lee, 864-5436 or Jane Johnston, 864-5457.

by CNB