The votes have been counted and yes, Mudgee will be host to a sausage festival - and sooner than you think.
Having just hosted a record 12,000+ attendees at this year's 'Flavours', Mudgee will add another food-based festival to the calendar with a Mudgee Snag Festival coming on November 30.
Mudgee was the winner of travel site Wotif's 'Festival of Wot' campaign, beating Queensland's Festival of Mangoes in Bowen, Festival of Redheads in Maryborough and South Australia's Festival of Wheat, Wool & Wine in Clare Valley.
Wotif Managing Director Daniel Finch congratulated Mudgee on the victory.
"Not only are we excited to create a quirky and quintessentially Aussie festival, but we're thrilled to be able to deliver something meaningful for the Mudgee community, that we hope will provide a boost to the local economy and tourism industry amidst a drought-affected regional area," he said.
"It has been remarkable to see such widespread participation from Aussies far and wide during the short-listing and voting stages. The humble snag has become for many the most hallowed of Australian foods, so it comes as no surprise that the country embraced Mudgee and its fun festival concept,"
Mayor Des Kennedy said they were delighted Mudgee was announced as the winner.
"We're absolutely delighted to have been announced as the winning town of Wotif's Festival of Wot? and cannot wait to host the Festival of Snags in November," Cr Kennedy said.
"Our region is a premier food and wine destination, with some of the best beef producers and butchers in the country who know how to make a good snag. The announcement couldn't come at a better time and will provide our region with a lift as we continue to manage through these tough times of drought,"
"I'd like to thank Wotif for delivering on this fantastic concept to support regional areas and to everyone who lodged their vote. I'd encourage all Australians to head along to Mudgee and experience the Festival of Snags - it's sure to sizzle."
While a 'snag festival' might not seem suited to Mudgee, the region is no slouch when it comes to producing a quality product.
When, where and how much?
The Mudgee Snag Festival is on Saturday, November 30 at Mudgee Showground (entry from Douro Street) from 12pm to 10pm. Entry is free for all attendees, with a full program of events to be released in the coming weeks. For more information visit www.wotif.com/festival
