The Top 5 Reason to Attend the Taste of Vail

Update March 2024:

The Taste of Vail is April 3-6, 2024, and I won’t be there. Yes, I am sad about it. I will be speaking at IN THE GAME in Durango, a conference by Downtown Colorado, Inc. This is the first time we’ve missed this amazing event in many years. You should go, though. It’s the best!

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It is considered one of the nation’s premier food and wine festivals, however, that’s not the reason you should go. Here’s why you should attend the Taste of Vail this year.

1. Pick your own adventure at the Taste of Vail

You get to pick and choose what to do. It’s like a Pick Your Own Adventure Game for foodies and wine lovers. The signature events are Debut of Rosé, Aprés Tasting on the Streets of Vail (formerly The American Lamb Cook-off and Niman Ranch Pork Challenge), The Mountain Top Picnic, and The Grand Tasting. You can attend all four or simply cherry-pick the events you’d like to attend.

See the full schedule and start planning your Taste of Vail adventure today.

Wine on ice at the Mountain Top Picnic at Taste of Vail. The top 5 reasons to attend the Taste of Vail. HeidiTown.com
Wine on ice at the Mountain Top Picnic at the Taste of Vail.

2. Learn stuff at the Taste of Vail

In addition to the four signature events that will tickle your taste buds, there are a variety of seminars to attend. Plus, this year, there’s a whiskey cocktails seminar. I am aware this whiskey is not wine, however, I am a bit of a whiskey, whisky, bourbon connoisseur, so this should be a good one (and sadly, I am missing it).

They will bring back A Taste of Colorado Wine, which I highly recommend. It IS my favorite seminar because I am a Colorado wine advocate. You can also learn about various types of wines or wine regions, caviars, wine glasses or join in an in-depth discussion about the wine industry.

3. Meet the winemakers at the Taste of Vail

One thing that sets this event apart from others is that you rub shoulders with some of this country’s top winemakers.

RELATED: Find the Soul of Colorado Wine

If this sounds intimidating, it isn’t. When I attend each year, I find every winemaker to be approachable and more than willing to chat about their wine. These folks are not wine snobs, they are wine lovers and there’s a big difference between the two. In the past, I have found that the best place to shoot the breeze with winemakers was at The Mountain Top Picnic.

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4. There is so much wine at Taste of Vail (so, so much)

With more than 50 of the country’s top wineries bringing all their wine to Vail, the town becomes an ocean of wine during this festival. I triple-dog dare you to try to taste them all.

5. The food at Taste of Vail

Vail is a foodie’s delight and you won’t find a bad meal in this town. More than 30 of Vail’s restaurants participate in this event. That means a delicious morsel is always just a food station away.

Tasty Bites from Taste of Vail 2019 & My Thoughts on Greek Wine (2)
Beano’s Cabin – Apres Lamb

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Perhaps the sixth reason would be that the Taste of Vail is in Vail and this place rocks. While best known for skiing, Vail has an amazing food scene. It makes a great weekend getaway even if you aren’t a skier. Be sure to read my post, “Things to do in Vail when you’re not skiing“ before you head up.

Tasty Bites from Taste of Vail 2019 & My Thoughts on Greek Wine (7)

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