Vancouver Playhouse Wine Festival. I guess with my mention it seems the place to be March 23-April 1. See you there.

QOTD: The only one I’ve been to is the Charleston Food + Wine Festival. It’s a lot of fun, this will be our third year going to it next month. The best event was a smaller tasting with winemakers from Melsheimer, Amity Vineyards, and DeLoach.

YUM, I love Zin!

I have not been to lots of events, but I do love the Virginia Wine Festival. I have been a few times and enjoy myself, especially now that I am a more experienced wine drinker and VA wines are getting better!

Since I live in Washington State. I have not tried too many zins but I notice that Wine Spectator rated a zin #10 in their top 100. I am now looking foward to give them more of a try.

QOTD: the best wine events for me are late at night at my friend’s apartments, when we cook dinner and have wine together!

Zap. No other wines? I haven’t watched the show for a few months. My girlfriend tells me she saw you in the movie Dirt, eating dirt. Next time I go to Burgundy, the King of terroir, I may try some. Last time someone offered me dirt, a rancher in southwest Oregon, I refused. Next time I will taste! I wish I had seen the movie, but I worked last night until 7:30 this morning, and the last showing of the movie was at 4:30pm at the Broadway theater here in Salt Lake. I needed my sleep, so I missed it. I am hoping it shows up on DVD. Do you know if it will go to DVD? Jammy and goopy, I love that, but I like a lot of pepper too. Gotta support the cause!

QOTD: OPC 2005!!! (Oregon Pinot Camp). 4 days of seminars, pinot noirs and grand dinners.

I did go to a Paso Robles Tasting (hotel ZaZa in Dallas). Lots of Zins. I do believe many of my fellow Somms forgot, Zins = HIGH Alcohol. One of the most raucous tastings I have ever attended.

The best wine festival (I been) here in Argentina is “Vinos y Bodegas” (translate: Wine & cellar) in Buenos Aires. For like 5.000 people.
Gary: What happend with the “…whether they like it or not.”

I have grown out of Zins. I used to like them a lot, but I find them to be more like cocktails than wines – hot with high alcohol content.
There are certain Zins that I really like – Biale and Elyse – but I steer away from them now.

QOTD – I have only been to one wine event – Boston Wine Expo in 2008 – I met you there!

This one is easy! Wine Festival in Bad Durkheim, Germany. Fall setting, on mountain top, in the middle of a castle ruin. Oh, huge wine cask the size of a mobile home to serve all the guests.

qotd: hoping it will be the Wine Cruise!

That said, I’ve been to several arts and wine festivals that have been fun. Hmm, I went to one in SF at Fort Mason about ten years ago. It might have even been ZAP. It was fun.

The Maui International Wine and Food Festival is amazing! We’ve been to the Grand Tasting twice and have not been disappointed yet! Wines from all over the world and great food.

Santa Fe wine and Chile fiesta every September. Isn’t Zap event in San Francisco?

Getting into zin lately. But my experience is pretty light. I’ve bought a Ridge zin, because I’ve read Ridge is a quality zin producer, but I’ve not tried it yet. QOTD: Smith Mountain Lake, VA, used to have a great wine festival in September right on the lake, and one year we boated in, sampled the wine, picked up a few bottles of chilled Horton Viognier, motored back out to avoid the crowds, and had a great time out on the lake, sipping, swimming, sunning. But I’ve heard they moved it off the lake a year or so ago.

QOTD: 1975 Harvest festival in the mountains of Corfu. Man I didn’t come out my tent for three days after that one.
ZAP is in San Francisco for those asking.

try the four vines zins just wonderful

Disney’s California Food & Wine Festival, held in the spring.

http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/calendar/specialEvents/detail?name=FoodWineLandingPage

How about an Italian white wine show again? Bring back the Ribolla Gialla

I always appreciate a Zin episode so thank you Gary.

Best wine festival for me, although I haven’t been in about 5 years because of babies (hello GV), would be the Paso Robles Wine Festival. Always a great event. You should go and drag Mott out there with the camera!

Simple, 500th Episode!

QOTD thats an easy one, Last August Mollydooker with Sparky Marquis

QOTD: East side wine tasting, and annual fund raiser in Minneapolis.

That’s easy – WLTV Parties at Fort Mason in SF. Two and counting….

The Napa Valley Vitners Association threw a tasting in Chicago around 2004 that is probably my favorite. $20 to get in, held at a bling nightclub on Rush Street, and all kinds of winemakers were pouring their own wines. Great wines from Schramsberg, Storybook Mountain, Mondavi (Carissa Mondavi was pouring and talking), Terra Valentine, Chateau Potelle.

Otherwise, pre-auction tastings are always a great chance to try real benchmark wines. Kensingtons hosted one here around 2003/04 for $50 you could try 40 or so wines, from Ermitage to an ’82 Haut Brion to a 1960s d’Yquem. What an education for that price.

Catching up on some episodes after being in Walla Walla last week.

QOTD: Hands down, the Vayniac meet up after the Taste of Washington at Seattle Wine Storage. Such a good time, great place, and fun people to hang out with. Oh, and just a couple tables full of bottles.