Why crawl when you can walk?
It was a question Wardell Junius had in 2009 that would go on to become the slogan for his popular event, Wine Walk Wednesday.
In 2009, Junius, 47, a longtime Baton Rouge entrepreneur and currently a filmmaker, and his business partner went downtown every day for work.
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Looking for something to do in the evenings, the pair decided to visit different bars and restaurants each night to enjoy themselves. They’d spend about 30 minutes to an hour at each.
“One time we had a friend come in town and we wanted to show her everything we possibly could about Baton Rouge,” Junius says. “So we walked from venue to venue, tasting different wines and we ended up all over downtown. She said ‘Wow, you should do tours. I didn’t know Baton Rouge had all this.'”
As a wine lover, Junius began seriously considering tours, and he approached nearly every downtown business asking if they would participate in his wine walk, Junius’ version of a pub crawl. Because—as he posed the question to them at the time–why crawl when you can walk?
Junius asked the businesses what night of the week was their toughest for customer turnout and least profitable. The answer was always Wednesday. And so, Wine Walk Wednesday was born.
“Everything’s been grassroots,” Junius says. “I started out with having five people show up. Then it got crazy with about 250 people showing up in 2010, and that was just too much for the businesses. And now, it’s steady with up to about 50-80 people a night.”
Every Wednesday, Baton Rougeans can walk through downtown, going to a new establishment every hour, enjoying wine and specials put together by the restaurants and bars for the event while meeting and networking with other locals. All that for only $10 per person.
“I have always had a passion for wine,” Junius says. “Now I get to share that with other people and give downtown some motion because the city is not just alive on Friday and Saturday, it’s alive every day, and it needs motion every day. I love Baton Rouge, and I believe in it. And I know we can be a progressive city.”
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Check out the lineup for tonight’s Wine Walk Wednesday:
5:30-6:30 p.m. Blend Wine Bar
6:30-7:30 p.m. The River Room
7:30-8:30 p.m. Restaurant IPO
8:30-9:30 p.m. Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar
9:30-10:30 p.m. Draft House Bar
Register for tonight’s Wine Walk Wednesday here.