Events

At Ottavio we love to have a party! During the summer months, we host four European events: A Day in France, Festa Italiana, Spanish Day & Oktoberfest. Each event is essentially a typical European festival that you might find in France, Italy, Spain or Germany, highlighting the foods, art, music & culture of each country. At Festa Italiana, for example you can hear & watch live opera, eat grilled lamb sandwiches on the terrazzo, check out vintage Vespas & beautiful Ferraris, taste Illy espresso & meet with their Vancouver Island importer, sample from our gelato cart or tasting table of Italian cheeses, meats & olives & sample wines from one of our independent Oak Bay Village wine shops.

Also, don't miss THE BIG CHEESE CUT which rolls around a couple times a year. On this day we bring out the big guns of the cheese world. At Ottavio, we cut all of our cheeses from the original wheels, no matter what the size. At the BIG CHEESE CUT we carve up our largest wheels from the 35 kg Parmigiano Reggiano to the 100kg behemoth, Organic Swiss Emmenthal. Bring the kids & learn about the art, science & culture of artisan cheese production.....& taste some of the world's great cheese, cut right from the wheel.

Throughout the year we also participate in several local food community events including the Feast of Fields in September, the European Food & Wine Festival in February, the Victoria Festival of Wine in March and the VQA Wine Tasting in May.

At our shop we host CHEESE & WINE TASTING EVENINGS in the winter months where Ottavio's cheese experts & visiting wine specialists take a group through a 2 hour educational tasting on the five major cheese styles & complimentary wine pairings. Call 592-4080 to put your name on a list for these entertaining & informative evenings.

Drive Fast. Eat slow