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Colorado Mountain Winefest named Best Wine Festival

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Vintage Ohio, Virginia Wine Summit, Finger Lakes Wine Festival and Chicago Gourmet also winners

Calling all wine lovers! These 10 events, nominated by a panel of wine experts and voted the best in the U.S. by our readers, celebrate wine through eclectic tastings, live cooking demonstrations, innovative food pairings and celebrity appearances, all at some of the nation's most beautiful venues. 

  • Colorado Mountain Winefest
    Palisade, Colo.

    Each September, the town of Palisade in Colorado's wine county hosts the Colorado Mountain Winefest – four days of food and wine pairings, wine and chocolate tastings, wine tours, a grape stomp, live music and unlimited sips from 50 Colorado wineries.
    Photo courtesy of Colorado Mountain Winefest

  • Vintage Ohio
    Kirtland, Ohio

    More than a dozen Ohio wineries join forced during Vintage Ohio each August. Two stages host live music, while attendees sip wine, browse the assortment of craft and gourmet food vendors and participate in wine-centered cooking classes and demonstrations.
    Photo courtesy of iStock / sophia_yartseva

  • Virginia Wine Summit
    Charlottesville, Va.

    In April, the Virginia Wine Summit celebrates the great wine and food culture in the state of Virginia by bringing together winemakers, writers and beverage professionals from around the country. Intimate tastings and seminars explore the wide world of Virginia wines.
    Photo courtesy of Thinkstock

  • Finger Lakes Wine Festival
    Watkins Glen, N.Y.

    For three days each July, some of the best Finger Lakes wineries come together in Watkins Glen for a weekend of fun in the sun, live music, cooking demos and the largest showcase of wines from New York state. More than 80 wineries attend the event at Watkins Glen International.
    Photo courtesy of Finger Lakes Wine Country / Bill Bauman

  • Chicago Gourmet
    Chicago

    The name says it all. Chicago Gourmet celebrates the best bites and sips in the Windy City in Millennium Park each September. The festival's tenth anniversary is in 2017, and the event will feature plenty of celebrity chefs, wine and cocktail seminars, 15 Master Sommeliers in attendance, tastings and special parties at 10 iconic Chicago locations.
    Photo courtesy of Chicago Gourmet

  • Hawaii Food & Wine Festival
    Honolulu

    Created by the 50th State’s two most famous culinary personalities, Chefs Roy Yamaguchi and Alan Wong, the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival is unusual in its breadth and scope. The festival spans three weekends and multiple islands, with a calendar full of wine tastings, culinary experiences with 100 master chefs and wine producers and unique excursions around the state.
    Photo courtesy of Hawai'i Food & Wine Festival

  • BottleRock Napa Valley
    Napa, Calif.

    What's better than stellar California wine? Stellar California wine served to the sound of live tunes. Each May BottleRock Napa Valley features rock 'n' roll, food and wine from some of the best producers in California and the world. Only in Napa does a music festival have a staff of sommeliers!
    Photo courtesy of Steve Jennings/WireImage

  • Taste of Sonoma
    Sonoma, Calif.

    One of America's greatest wine regions – Sonoma County – hosts one of America's greatest wine festivals – Taste of Sonoma. This Labor Day Weekend event connects wine enthusiasts to growers and producers through tastings, sommelier tours and talks, a Grant Tasting event, blind tastings and more.
    Photo courtesy of Taste of Sonoma

  • New York City Wine & Food Festival
    New York

    The Big Apple puts on a big festival, with more than 100 events throughout the city and over 500 participating wineries, restaurants and food suppliers. Large events such as the grand tastings are intermixed with intimate specialty dinners, demos, seminars and hands-on classes, all held at various locations and famed restaurants throughout the city.
    Photo courtesy of New York City Wine & Food Festival

  • Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest
    Rhinebeck, N.Y.

    The best of the Hudson Valley is on the tasting table at the Hudson Valley Wine and Food Fest in September. Festival-goers can sample wines from the region's best producers, attend educational seminars or watch cooking demos hosted by regional celebrity chefs. A Gourmet Food Truck Corral keeps everyone satisfied between sips.
    Photo courtesy of iStock / Pam_Ferderbar

The top 10 winners in the category Best Wine Festival are as follows:

  1. Colorado Mountain Winefest - Palisade, Colo.
  2. Vintage Ohio - Kirtland, Ohio
  3. Virginia Wine Summit - Charlottesville, Va.
  4. Finger Lakes Wine Festival - Watkins Glen, N.Y.
  5. Chicago Gourmet - Chicago
  6. Hawaii Food & Wine Festival - Honolulu
  7. BottleRock Napa Valley - Napa, Calif.
  8. Taste of Sonoma - Sonoma, Calif.
  9. New York City Wine & Food Festival - New York
  10. Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest - Rhinebeck, N.Y.

A panel of experts partnered with 10Best editors to picked the initial 20 nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote. Experts Jill Barth (L’occasion), Jil Child (Wine Tours of the World) and Karen MacNeil were chosen based on their deep knowledge of the American wine landscape.

Congratulations to all these award-winning wine events!

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AlertThe Experts

Jill Barth

Jill Barth

Jill Barth

Jill Barth

Jill Barth is a contributor for Forbes digital and USA Today 10Best. She’s also a Provence Wine Master Level through the Wine Scholar Guild, a Symposium for Professional Wine Writers Fellow and the founder and author of the award-winning blog, L'Occasion.

Jil Child

Jil Child

Jil Child

Jil Child

Jil earned a B.A. in Economics, with an emphasis in business wine, from Sonoma State University and is a certified Sommelier. She is a partner and co-owner of Wine Tours of the World, a full service global wine tour company specializing in custom wine vacations. She has worked with and consulted with wineries and is an expert in many different positions including sales, distribution, education, events and private wine tasting tours. She teaches Tasting Room Management at Sonoma State University and is a professional wine judge for various wine competitions throughout the U.S.

Karen MacNeil

Karen MacNeil

Karen MacNeil

Karen MacNeil

Karen MacNeil is the only American to have won nearly every major wine award given in the English Language. These include the James Beard award for Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year and the International Wine and Spirits award as the Global Wine Communicator of the Year. In a full-page profile on her, TIME Magazine called Karen, “America’s Missionary of the Vine.” In 2018, Karen was named one of the “100 Most Influential People in Wine.” Karen is the author of the award-winning book, THE WINE BIBLE, the single best selling wine book in the United States praised as “A masterpiece of wine writing.” THE WINE BIBLE has sold more than one million copies.

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