Spring is in full bloom (that is, if it ever stops snowing), and that means Durango’s food and libation festival season is right around the corner. The first, our local wine experience, will kick off in just a month, so it’s a perfect time to start planning your foodie festivities.
May 3-6, various times, events, prices and locations; Grand Tasting is located at the Smiley Building festival tent; Grand Tasting tickets $85 in advance, $100 at the door; durangowine.com.
Durango is a beer town, but that doesn’t mean we ain’t refined. We drink wine. The Durango Wine Experience is exactly that; The Grand Tasting from 3 to 6 p.m. May 5 is expected to have about 2,000 attendees and more than 600 varietals represented. The stacked program will includes seminars, a restaurant walk-about, dinner pairings and more.
“It’s just quietly grown over the past 13 years,” said event organizer Mandi Davis.
She said this year she is looking forward to the bubbles and brunch seminar May 6 at El Moro. But in terms of wine, Davis said what was once uncool is cool again. More people are pouring old school wines like merlot and cabernet.
“Since ‘Sideways’ came out, those were on a downward trend,” she said.
“I am not drinking any (expletive) merlot!” is the famous line in delivered by Paul Giamatti that doomed the delicious drink – for a few years at least.
And while they are still loved, imbibers are now stepping away from (expletive) pinots. This is the first year in recent history DWE is not offering a pinot seminar. New to the event this year will be participation from 10 distilleries, including Woody Creek Distillers, Peach Tree Distillers and Gem & Bolt Mezcal and Damiana.
11 a.m. to 4 p.m., May 19, downtown on Main Avenue between fourth and 11th streets; tickets went on sale Monday; tasteofdurango.com
Taste of Durango is the unofficial summer kickoff for many locals. The event features about 45 different food and drink vendors that serve a variety of bites and booze on Main Avenue, which is closed off so attendees can eat and drink in the street. True freedom.
“Some people say it’s their favorite holiday,” said Dave Woodruff, president of the Durango chapter of the Colorado Restaurant Association.
This year is similar to past TODs, but the footprint is shrinking one block and there will be an extra hour of food service (drink service will stop at 3 p.m.). There are four different stages set up at the intersections and bands will rotate every hour, so there will always be a new experience as attendees sip, snack and meander. Woodruff said the goal this year is to focus more on local restaurants. The vendor list is not yet finalized.
“We want to make it true to Taste of Durango,” Woodruff said. “All these restaurants and vendors are giving you a sample of what they are all about in one dish.”
That said, regional favorites, such as Mancos’ Fenceline Cidery and Bayfield’s Bottom Shelf Brewery, will be there too.
11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. June 16, outside the Smiley Building; $25, $10 for kids, free for kids under 5; wrcdurango.org/events/men-who-grill/
On Father’s Day weekend, about 15 to 20 teams will go head-to-head to grill the most delicious carnivorous dish at Men Who Grill to support the Women’s Resource Center. The teams will be judged in various categories such as best beef, best pork, most creative, people’s choice, judges’ choice and others. Teams must bring their own grills and make enough samples for about 500 to 600 guests, but they have free rein over what they serve. Ticket prices include food samples, but the beer is sold separately.
Competitors will vie for the taste bud approval of an all-women judging panel. Winners get bragging rights and a trophy worthy of year-round display – even if it means having to remove their kid’s photographs to make room on the shelf.
But children don’t have to be completely forgotten in the presence of savory meats. This year, event coordinator Kelly DiGiacomo said they are incorporating family-friendly activities. She said they want to replicate elements similar to the old Who’s Your Daddy event, a street festival with vendors, food and live music.
“In the past, there hasn’t been a big draw to keep the kids there, but there is are a reason to stay there a little bit longer this year,” DiGiacomo said. The details are still being decided.
The registration deadline is May 16 and can be found on the fest’s website.
1 to 5 p.m. (noon entry for VIPs) Aug. 24, Buckley Park, GA $40, VIP $80, sanjuanbrewfest.com.
San Juan Brewfest is of legal drinking age this year. And like most 21-year-olds, the largest beer festival in the Southwest is celebrating with an abundance of crisp, bubbly brews.
VIPs get to go to a brewers party from 8 to 6 p.m. the Friday before.
“We are also adding educational and fun ticketed-events on Friday and Saturday,” Walsworth said.
The event typically sells out each year, so it’s best that craft beer appreciators purchase tickets in advance. Designated-driver tickets are also available for $20. Proceeds from the beerfest go to United Way of Southwest Colorado, which allocates those funds to 22 local programs in education, health, and financial stability.
