Results tagged “wine”

With October's Tour De Vin at Whole Foods and November's Big Reds and Bubblies at The Driskill, fall is already the favored season for swanky wine and food pairing events in Austin. A new entrant to the mix this year is the Austin Cellar Classic, a 2-day event hosted by Max's Wine Dive combining a pairing dinner on Friday with the main event of a grand wine tasting on Saturday. For this post, we're solely focused on the big wine tasting.

As the economic slump continues, Austin continues to see casualties in the food and wine business. Having seen the likes of likable upscale concepts like Taste Select, Starlite, and Castle Hill Cafe disappear in the past year, it's not hugely surprising to see the recession hit the retail end of the wine business. Which brings us to Grapevine Market, the one-time king of Austin's wine and beer selection. A store employee confirmed by phone that the Anderson Lane location intends to shutter by December 15, with some in-store discounts beginning as early as next week to close out their inventory.

Drinking tall boys and eating chicken cones is a fun part of fall, but when ACL Fest ends, Austin foodie season begins to kick into high gear. After allowing for a few days to recover, The Wine and Food Foundation's annual Tour De Vin on the Whole Foods Rooftop arrives on Thursday, October 8th to help introduce you to some favorite new boutique wines and local dishes. While the event is normally priced at $75, the WFFT's fall member drive is offering a limited number of tickets for only $25 with a membership purchase - call 512.327.7555 to see if they're still available.

After so many months of crude summer drinking—$1 beers, jello shots, that new canned champagne at Whole Foods—the Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Festival swoops in just in time to give Austinites a quick shot of taste. Bubbles and Boots, a preview event for the famed Wine & Food Fest, will be held tonight at Kodosky Lounge at the Long Center from 6 to 8 p.m., and while our taste buds may have been dumbed down from far too many cheap mixes and various alcohol-laced popsicles, our eyes still know a quality lineup when we see one.

The "Taste Washington" events held in Austin held during the past two winters here have had a noticeable effect on Austin wine culture. Washington wines are making their way into our stores, restaurants, and wine bars at a rapid clip, which is a good thing for our taste buds. The natural cool climate of Washington lends itself to varietals that California doesn't always do so well like Merlot, Syrah, and Riesling, while also producing some outstanding Chardonnays. As they approach their tenth anniversary, Novelty Hill Winery now represents one of the best values in Washington wine.

Sometime in the midst of an Austin summer, an indoor event with fancy drinks is just what you need. For those looking for indoor wine drinking options in the immediate future, here are three events worth your time and consideration:

The short-lived El Chilito on Congress Avenue recently closed for renovations, and has now reemerged as a full-fledged El Chile restaurant, like its counterparts in North Austin and Manor Road. Best of all, they're offering free beer and wine while they wait for their new liquor license to be officially granted.

Photos by Austinist contributing photographers Steve Hopson and Scott Miller from the Texas Hill Country Food and Wine Festival.

Photos by Austinist contributing photographers Steve Hopson and Scott Miller from the Texas Hill Country Food and Wine Festival event at Long Center.

First and foremost: this is an event based around wine, beer, and snacks. For those more interested in a sip-and-stroll of restaurants, try Stars Across Texas instead. Sunday Fair has always focused on an amazing variety of wine from around the globe, along with fun food items like salsa, jams, dips, crackers, sausage, and pie. You'll be able to snack to your heart's content, and there will even be some limited heartier fare on hand from Maudie's, Max's Wine Dive, The Salt Lick, and Mandola's.

We’ve recently learned that California’s Paso Robles wine region is geographically a lot like the Texas Hill Country, in that in that both have rolling hills and arid soils. The key difference, though, is that the former is close to the Pacific Ocean, and serves as the backdrop for the upcoming reality show, The Winemakers, which begins broadcast this May on PBS.

Domenica Totty now serves as one of the winemakers at the helm of this century-old operation. She'll be in town next week for the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival, representing Beaulieu at Stars Across Texas, Big Dog Reds and Mini Swirlwind. To prime everyone's palates, Totty generously shared with us some of the secrets of her craft.

Moderated by wine maven Jane Nickles of the Texas Culinary Academy, this tasting event will feature three different dishes, each accompanied by two different wines. The dishes will draw from the culinary history of our state, demonstrating a variety of cultural and historical influences.

Starting out as a dishwasher at Kyoto, Cole has made a name for himself in the sushi world beyond the city's borders. In 2005, two years after Uchi's opening, Cole was named one of Food and Wine magazine's prestigious Best New Chefs, and last year the chef took on his idol Masaharu Morimoto in battle ginger on Iron Chef America.

The Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Festival returns in mid-April for its 24th annual celebration of epicurean delights.

This morning, we actually saw some fall weather outside - at least for an hour or two. Celebrate this development and the beginning of red wine season with the Wine and Food Foundation's Tour De Vin, an annual tradition on the Whole Foods Downtown rooftop deck. The event celebrates wine from around the globe, and this year's lineup offers quite a bit to choose from. Our top picks include the lovely new world reds of Montes, the amazing Oregon Pinot Noirs of Archery Summit, Washington rising stars Amavi and Pepper Bridge, bargain priced gems from Santa Ema, and the lush California reds of Turnbull. There are dozens more to try, but these are the wines we'd taste first - a visit to any of these tables should leave you reeling.

One doesn't have to be a wine snob to love wine – or in the case of Ron Wight and Jill DiCuffa, to own a wine restaurant. The couple recently opened Uncorked, a cozy spot on the East side for friends to enjoy wine, food and conversation without worrying about whether they swirl their glass correctly. "The whole pretentious aura that surrounds the wine industry is totally irrelevant and ridiculous," says Wight.

In an effort to further educate local wine professionals, The Wine and Food Foundation of Texas and the Texas Sommelier Association sponsor a two-day conference every year to educate Texas sommeliers on trends, vintages, and regions. This should, in turn, increase both the quality of wine lists seen at Texas restaurants and the knowledge said restaurants have about the wines they're presenting to the public. While this conference is primarily designed as a trade event, it's a little-known secret that many sessions are open to the public for a nominal fee.

The weather is warm, the wildflowers are out, and it's nice to get out to the park. To that end, the Wine and Food Foundation is starting a new Spring tradition at wedding hot spot Zilker Park Clubhouse. On Wednesday, four wine distributors will pour over 100 of their new release wines at the first annual Spring Fling from 6 to 9pm. Distributors Prestige Cellars, Ambiente Importing, Pioneer, and Horizon Wines will show off a literal world of wines designed for spring and summer sipping. This all takes place in the comfy confines of Zilker Park, where you can relax after a long work day and concentrate on choosing your new favorite vino for the season.

While the cultures may be somewhat divergent, the climate and landscape of the Texas Hill Country have been compared to the winemaking giants of central Italy, Spain or the South of France, and Mediterranean wines like Grenache, Syrah, Viognier, Tempranillo and Sangiovese are becoming more common (especially since they can better deal with Texas' extreme weather and the need to dig deep for nutrients.)

One of our favorite Washington wineries is J. Bookwalter, a family-owned Columbia Valley producer who began making wine in 1983. The winery was started by Jerry Bookwalter, and his son John assumed the helm as winemaker in 2000 along with consultant Zelma Long. John's decade of experience on the sales side of the wine business has led him to make big changes during his tenure with everything from branding and packaging to the winery's tasting room experience. Mr. Bookwalter has also poured his efforts into focusing the winery on top-flight reds, and the success of his results will be clear to everyone that tries his Merlot or Cabernet at the Hill Country Wine & Food Festival. The wines are approachable, elegant, and complex, yet represent solid value compared to many of their Californian counterparts.

With less than a month before four of the best food-focused days in Central Texas, now's the time to figure out the best strategy for maximum consumption. Click through for an entire event listing and links to purchase tickets.

While many of you may be feeling an aversion to adult beverages following your SXSW shenanigans, rest assured that by Thursday, you'll be ready to go out again. And what could be better than doing so in style with a wine tasting featuring Rob Mondavi? The Wine and Food Foundation is sponsoring an event this Thursday at The Four Seasons featuring the global wines from Folio, which is a Mondavi-run company featuring over 25 wine labels from California, New Zealand, Spain, Italy, Austria, and Argentina. Over 40 wines will be available to sample at this tasting event.

Designs from Stella McCartney, Dolce & Gabbana, Ralph Lauren, Zac Posen and Eskander will be showcased, but our interest level is definitely leaning towards mojitos, champagne, Italian cocktails, and snacks from The Steeping Room, North, Jaspers, The Daily Grill and Viva Chocolato.

Join the Foundation tomorrow at the One World theatre as they partner with the Washington Wine Commission for a grand tasting of more than 62 Washington wines and gourmet appetizers. Read on for more information about featured wineries at the event.

It's been a big year for local acts. Big name bands like Spoon, Iron & Wine and Okkervil River made a huge impact on the independent music scene world-wide, while up and coming acts like White Denim and Moth!Fight! captured our attention at the indie rock water cooler all year long. As rising hopes and swelling egos swept the town alongside buzz and bravado, we parted ways with bands like SOUND Team and Clap!Clap!.

For the next two weeks, the fancy wines flow more often in American households than during any other time of the year. Everyone even moderately nerdy about wine splashes out by opening "special" bottles that they need an excuse to pop, and wine retailers throw all their best stuff on the endcaps, because they know you'll spend more than usual on your holiday purchase. Unfortunately, when it comes to Champagne, Euro exchange rates have thrown even basic non-vintage bottlings into the $35 and up range. And while those Moët & Chandon White Star and Veuve Clicquot bottles are perfectly enjoyable, it should be noted that American sparkling wines of equal (and often much better) quality can be purchased for far less money. That said, why not spend less, try something new, and impress your holiday visitors with a domestic bubbly? Here are our picks for your varied taste profiles and budgets.

Austin's Whole Foods Market has been named Wine Retailer of The Year by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. Winners were chosen for their contributions to the world of wine and spirits (with special consideration given to winey accomplishments and innovations made in 2007.) Does Whole Foods truly deserve this award? (Because, seriously, Spec's is 100% unapologetically falling-down boozey. Just sayin.)

Logo from Edible AustinEdible Austin’s first annual Eat Local Week celebration runs from Saturday December 8th through Saturday December 15th. While you’re nourishing body and soul with locally-grown and handmade foods from an extensive list of participating restaurants and markets, a portion of proceeds will go to Urban Roots, a program which teaches sustainable agriculture fundamentals to East Austin youth. 15-20 participants aged 14-18 will be awarded a paid internship to grow food on an...