Community members in Jessamine county are gearing up for a weekend of food, fun and lots of wine. 

The festivities begin on May 11 and run through May 13 for the annual Kentucky Wine and Vine Festival in historic downtown Nicholasville. 

The festival will feature a farm-to-table dinner that will have an appetizer, salad, entree and dessert. Each decadent morsel of food will be paired with the Kentucky Wine Associations’ 2016 Award-Winning Wines. The festival will also offer Kentucky Equine and Wine Tours, a 5K and a 1K, winery tours, cooking demonstrations an art walk and much more. General admission for the event is $25. For more information and other ticket prices, visit their website at http://kywineandvine.com.  

The annual Taste of Jessamine sponsored by First National Bank will celebrate its 20th year on Friday, May 12. 

The event will feature chefs from the first Taste of Jessamine, such as Dan Bowling from the Nicholasville Animal Hospital and Christopher Horne from Horne Engineering. The event will also highlight some new dishes from cooks such as Thelma Johns with Gourmet Goodies and Hanna McCauley from McCauley Catering.

Last year, the event raised around $2,100 for AdventureServe Ministries, The Jessamine County Food Pantry and Revive Ministries, said Chuck Canter an employee of First Southern National Bank.

This year, all the proceeds will go to AdventureServe Ministries, Revive Ministries and Lord’s Legacy Life Ministries, Inc.

“We are so proud to play our part in the 20th anniversary of the Taste of Jessamine County this year,” said Sam Lee, First Southern Community president, in a press release. “We’re counting on having the most successful year yet, and can’t wait for folks to give with their hearts once again, and help make our community even better.”

Taste of Jessamine will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the R.J. Corman Hangar 2 in Nicholasville.

Tickets are $10 each for adults and $5 each for children, and may be purchased from any First Southern National Bank team member, at a First Southern location, at the door on the day of the event, or by phone at 859-885-1222. Bank hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays and from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturdays.