In honor of Black History Month, Liteworks Events will host “The Black Label: A Toast to the Culture” affair on Feb. 28 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. The gathering will be “an elevated tasting experience featuring over a dozen Black-owned wine, spirits and specialty beverage brands all in one room.”

The event will be at Hibernian Hall, 184 Dudley St.; attendees will explore many premium wines and spirits, along with having opportunities to have meaningful connections with young professionals and local tastemakers.

Liteworks Events founder Farrah Belizaire said that this is the first year hosting the event in this format.

“It’s an opportunity to feature a wider variety of Black-owned producers, winemakers [and] distillers, who have products that don’t always get as much visibility and promotion as some of the larger brands in the spirits category,” she said.

She also shared why it is important to host events like this, especially during Black History Month.

“We’ve certainly come a long way as a community and a culture, and still, the current political and economic climate also reminds us that there’s still a lot more progress to be made as well,” she said.

Supporting the Black community for Belizaire includes being intentional about where she hosts her events, especially since her events are primarily for young Black professionals.

“I’m always thinking about ways to promote, supporting the Black dollar. So, where possible, I host a lot of my events, either at Black establishments or in the community. Hosting this event at Hibernian Hall, we know that Roxbury itself is a huge part of the Black American legacy,” she said.

The organization is also partnering with the local nonprofit Love Without Violence, which does a lot of advocacy to promote healthy relationships within the Black community and culture.

“Unfortunately, we do know that people sometimes abuse or overuse alcohol. … Part of it for us is also being able to promote healthy consumption and having a conversation around, while we’re enjoying the wine and spirits culture, promoting a culture of healthy engagement around [alcohol use],” she said.

Belizaire also talked about what she hopes attendees will carry with them from this event as they continue to navigate their journeys as young Black professionals.

“First and foremost, Liteworks Events is about creating a sense of community and connection. So, if nothing else, being able to be in community with each other as part of Black History Month while also doing something fun and engaging — that’s a core element of each and every experience that we produce,” she said.

She also said she hopes attendees will support the beverage brands throughout the year —as she wanted to promote Black businesses in the beverage industry and equip people with the information to choose to put their dollars there — to keep the Black dollar circulating in the community. Each beverage vendor will have a QR code that will direct attendees to where they can purchase their product in the city or online.

“Within the [Black] culture and in the Black community, we sometimes have a further distance to travel, in terms of reaching success that is on the same level as our counterparts from other communities and other cultures,” she said. “It’s part of our responsibility if we want to actually see these brands, be successful and sustainable, the support has to come from within.”

ON THE WEB

Learn more at eventbrite.com/e/the-black-label-a-toast-to-the-culturetickets-1980782475706