On June 8-12, Westchester Magazine held their 6th annual Wine & Food Festival . It was “five days of fun!” that included 100+ local restaurants, 200+ world class wines, dinner tastings, chefs demos and seminars.
The signature event of the festival was the Grand Tasting Village which was held on Saturday afternoon. It was an outdoor event held under tents that featured 50+ local restaurants and over 200 wines and spirits.
The event was held in the bucolic Westchester hamlet of Valhalla which is a 40 minute train ride north from Grand Central Terminal and then a ten minute walk from the train station to the Kensico Dam Plaza where the event was held.
I noticed there were more food vendors this year than last which made for some good eating to go with all the wines. I was able to get into the Connoisseur tent which was a separate area that poured some extra special juice. Unlike many other food events, the crowds were much more manageable at this event which meant that lines for food and wine were comparatively short and that made for an enjoyable experience. Overall, this is one of the best wine and food events of the year.
Some of the wines I sampled:
NV Ruinart Blanc de Blanc (Champagne)
2015 Chateau Minuty “Rosé et Or” Rosé (Provence)
2015 Domaine Ott “Clos Mireille” Rosé (Provence)
2015 Chateau du Ronet Rosé (Provence)
2013 Merry-Edwards Sauvignon Blanc (Russian River Valley)
2012 Matanzas Creek Sauvignon Blanc (Knights Valley)
2014 Flowers Chardonnay (Sonoma Coast)
2013 Jean-Louis Chavey Pugliny-Montrachet (Burgundy)
2011 Aurelie Verdet Morey St-Denis (Burgundy)
2012 Domaine Antonin Guyon “Les Cras” Chambolle-Musigny (Burgundy)
2012 Angela Estate Pinot Noir “Abbott Claim” (Yamhill)
2014 Angeline Estate Pinot Noir “Reserve” (California)
2013 Truchard Pinot Noir (Carneros)
2011 Pio Cesare Barberesco (Piedmont)
2010 Castigilon Del Bosco Brunello di Montalcino (Tuscany)
2012 Mt Brave Cabernet Sauvignon (Mt Veeder)
2010 Stags’ Leap Cabernet Sauvignon “Audentia” (Stags Leap District)
2012 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Private Reserve” (Napa Valley)
2012 Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)
2011 Caymus Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)
2012 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon (Rutherford)
2013 Clos Du Val Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)
2012 Beaulieu Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon “Rutherford” (Napa Valley)
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