Although the first Wind Down Wednesday at Top of the Park was interrupted by rain, the second week's event had little trouble making up for that unruly weather and then some — and who knows what the third Wednesday, slated for July 7, will bring. Last week, the second weekly wine tasting was populated within minutes of opening, quickly filled with a variety of locals and out-of-towners vying to get a taste of the featured wines from France.

For $10 admission, attendees are able to enter and sample up to three selected wines from the night's featured spread, with wine experts on hand to offer their knowledge and advice on the selections as well as answer any questions. While the initial fee grants access and the standard three samples, a red ticket handed to the public upon entering promises additional premium wine samplings for a lowered price of $5.

Many of the patrons milling about the wine stand last week had also joined in the Wind Down Wednesday festivities last year. One such couple, Scott and Martha Larsen, live minutes away from Ingalls Mall and said that, just as they thought last year, there's no better way to spend a beautiful summer's evening than wine tasting.

Steve and Mary Ann Camron, Ann Arbor residents for six years, mentioned the perks of getting to "learn a little something" as they enjoy their wine, a sensibility shared by Camille Hudson, an Ypsilanti resident who ventured to Top of the Park last week for the event.

While those participants had experienced both years Top of the Park has featured the Wind Down Wednesday attraction, Michael and Joanna Cox of Ypsilanti recounted showing up last year and not quite being able to beat the hordes of people doing the same.

"We were only about 15 minutes late last year, and there were already so many people that they had run out of wine," Joanna said. This year, though, the pair knew better.

"It's nice to come here and not feel overwhelmed by wine, to just be able to enjoy it," Joanna said.

For Mark Waters, an Ann Arbor resident for two years, the wine event was the perfect platform to revisit a topic he once studied as an undergraduate here at the University of Michigan.

"I took a wine appreciation course while still in school," Waters said, "where we studied the different regions of Europe and what types of wine they respectively produce."

"It's always nice to try different wines," he continued, "especially since there are many people who believe that, like beer, all wines taste the same — but they certainly don't."

This Wednesday, July 7, the event features wines from Argentina, offering another opportunity, as Waters said, "to be able to know and appreciate wine on a new level." The event, open to those 21 and over, runs 6:30-8 p.m. No reservations are necessary — just look for the attraction in The Grove area at the Top of the Park festivities (off East Washington Street east of Thayer), a place sure to be bustling with even more wine tasters come Wednesday night.

Courtney Rabideau is an intern for the Entertainment section of AnnArbor.com.