Glasses were poured, sips were swished, and smiles were donned on Jan. 20 at the Grays Harbor County Fairgrounds.

A sizeable crowd had already gathered in the fairgrounds Mike Murphy Pavilion by 2:30 p.m. The crowd slowly wandered from booth to booth, sipping and chatting with the experts while sampling their products.

While wineries were represented from throughout the Pacific Northwest, local wineries also were on hand for the annual wine festival organized by the Elma Chamber of Commerce. The award-winning Westport Winery and the newly opened Wynoochee River Winery both had their products available for samples and sales.

Outgoing Elma Chamber director Debbie Adolphsen said the crowd seemed to enjoy the event.

“Oh my gosh, it’s a fun event,” she said. “We received a lot of compliments on decorations, entertainment and layout.”

Managers of the wine cellar told Adolphsen sales likely were up for vendors.

And this year, the event saw about 1,675 attendees when the count was totalled. That’s up from about 1,600 in 2017.

“We’re up slightly, but we’re happy,” Adolphsen said.

Few complaints were heard by volunteers, she noted.

“The only thing I heard was we needed a new dance floor,” she said.

(Corey Morris | The Vidette) Caryn Hart, a singer-songwriter of Portland, Ore., performs during the 2018 Elma Winter Wine Festival.