New Orleans Wine and Food Experience

Envision, if you will

1,000 different wines
175 wineries
75 of New Orleans’ top chefs
38 restaurants
5 days

All serving the finest vintages and cooking up culinary delights in one grand extravaganza that celebrates the joys of the palate.

Put them all together and you have the 16th Annual New Orleans Wine & Food Experience. If you are an oenophile with a taste for fine varietals, a viticulture aficionado or an epicurean with a fancy for haute cuisine, this is the event for you!

Internationally renowned as one of the top wine and food festivals in the world, NOWFE uncorks its epicurean extravaganza between May 20 and May 24 at various locations throughout the French Quarter and downtown New Orleans.

Highlights of this year’s NOWFE include

Grand tastings, seminars, food and wine pairings at more than three dozen of the New Orleans area’s most famous restaurants
The “Royal Street Stroll” through the heart of the historic French Quarter
The Second Annual Vinola Tasting and Auction, bringing together 200 wine enthusiasts and notable vintners sampling 40 elite wines from around the world
A premium fine wine dinner featuring the cuisine of world-renowned chef and cooking school namesake, John Folse
A special appearance by celebrity vintner Kix Brooks, of the award-winning Country & Western duo, Brooks & Dunn
Other celebrity chefs including “Iron Chef” finalist John Besh, Rene Bajeux, Donald Link and Susan Spicer, and wine expert Ziggy “The Wine Gal” Eschliman

“Vintner’s dinners” bring chefs and vintners together to plan a menu incorporating the best wine and food pairings, and the vintners are on hand to explain the intricacies of their winemaking craft, as well as share some of their secrets.
New this year, the Vinola auction will offer for bid all-inclusive trips and VIP perks, including packages with notable artists, athletes or musicians. Lots of fine wines are up for bid at the accompanying silent auction.

The Royal Street Stroll starts in the 400 block of Royal Street and is led by the Krewe of Cork, a New Orleans marching club dedicated to celebrating the joys of “wine, food and fun.” With the sounds of real New Orleans jazz in the air, strollers will find themselves surrounded by the 200-year-old architecture and fabulous balconies of iron lace that make the French Quarter world-renowned.

“Grand Tastings” will be held in the Louisiana Superdome on the final two days of the festival. One of the highlights of every NOWFE, this is a truly "Grand" experience for both foodies and wine connoisseurs, pairing extensive offerings from New Orleans' finest chefs and selections of wines from around the world. Parking and transportation to the site are available.

For information, schedules, event prices and to make reservations, call (504) 529-WINE (9463) or visit www.nowfe.com.

by Dean M. Shapiro