Denver Food and Wine Festival

Your 2026 Guide To The Denver Food and Wine Festival

The Denver Food & Wine Festival stands as Colorado’s premier culinary and wine celebration, bringing together hundreds of wines, acclaimed chefs, and passionate food lovers for a weekend showcasing the best of Denver’s culinary scene alongside exceptional wines from around the world. Whether you’re a serious wine collector, casual enthusiast, or foodie seeking extraordinary culinary experiences, this festival delivers tastings, seminars, and celebrations that make it worth attending.

After attending the festival and exploring Denver’s food and wine scene for years, we’ve learned what makes this event special—and how to make the most of your festival experience. This guide covers everything you need to know: dates, ticket options, what to expect, insider tips, and how to continue your wine discovery beyond the festival through wine club subscriptions.

Denver Food & Wine Festival

Festival Dates

The Denver Food & Wine Festival typically takes place in September, though exact dates vary year to year. Check the official festival website for confirmed 2025 dates as they’re announced (usually early spring).

Typical schedule: Weekend festival running Friday through Sunday with various events throughout

Location: Multiple venues throughout Denver, with main events often at Civic Center Park and downtown locations

What Is the Denver Food & Wine Festival?

This multi-day celebration features:

• Grand Tastings: Massive events with 100+ wineries, breweries, and restaurants offering samples
• Seminars & Classes: Wine education, cooking demonstrations, industry expert talks
• Chef Dinners: Multi-course meals prepared by acclaimed chefs paired with exceptional wines
• Competition Events: Chef competitions, mixology contests, culinary showcases
• VIP Experiences: Exclusive access, premium pours, meet-and-greets with winemakers and chefs

The festival attracts national attention, featuring both Colorado culinary talent and nationally recognized chefs, winemakers, and food personalities.

Denver Food & Wine Festival Tickets

Ticket Types & Pricing

Grand Tasting Tickets:

• General Admission: Typically $75-125 per session
• Includes unlimited tastings from participating wineries, breweries, and restaurants
• Access to main tasting area
• Souvenir tasting glass

VIP Tickets:

• Premium pricing: $150-250+ per session
• Early entry (one hour before general admission)
• Access to VIP lounge with exclusive pours
• Premium wine and spirit selections
• Enhanced food offerings
• More space, less crowding

Seminar & Class Tickets:

• Individual pricing: $40-100+ per session
• Wine education seminars
• Cooking demonstrations
• Expert-led tastings
• Limited capacity (advance booking essential)

Special Dinner Tickets:

• Premium experiences: $150-400+ per person
• Multi-course dinners with wine pairings
• Celebrity chef experiences
• Intimate group sizes
• Sell out quickly

When to Buy Tickets

Early bird pricing: Tickets typically go on sale several months before the festival with discounted early pricing

Our recommendation: Buy tickets 4-8 weeks before the festival for best selection and reasonable pricing

Last-minute risks: Popular sessions sell out, especially VIP tickets and special dinners. Don’t wait if you have specific sessions in mind.

Where to buy: Official festival website (avoid third-party resellers to prevent counterfeit tickets)

What to Expect at the Festival

Grand Tasting Experience

The Grand Tastings are the festival’s centerpiece—massive outdoor (weather permitting) or indoor events featuring:

Wine selection:

• 100+ wineries pouring samples
• California wines heavily represented (Napa, Sonoma, Paso Robles)
• Colorado wineries showcasing local production
• International wines (French, Italian, Spanish, etc.)
• Range from affordable to premium bottles

Food offerings:

• 50+ restaurants providing tastings
• Denver’s top chefs and restaurants represented
• Range of cuisines and styles
• Small plates, samples, signature dishes

Atmosphere:

• Lively, social, celebratory vibe
• Live music and entertainment
• Crowds (especially peak hours 2-4 PM)
• Outdoor elements (sun, wind, weather)
• Standing room mostly (some seating areas)

Seminars & Educational Sessions

Beyond tastings, the festival offers learning opportunities:

Wine seminars: Regional deep-dives, varietal explorations, blind tasting workshops

Cooking demonstrations: Watch acclaimed chefs prepare signature dishes with techniques explained

Industry panels: Winemakers, chefs, and experts discussing trends, sustainability, innovation

Pairing workshops: Learn food and wine pairing principles with guided tastings

These sessions provide value beyond simple tasting—real education that enhances your wine knowledge.

Special Events & Dinners

Premium festival experiences include:

Chef dinners: Multi-course meals at restaurants or special venues featuring collaborative menus from multiple chefs paired with exceptional wines

Winemaker dinners: Intimate events where winemakers present their wines alongside courses designed to complement them

VIP receptions: Exclusive gatherings with premium pours, passed appetizers, and access to featured personalities

These events command premium prices but deliver memorable experiences if budget allows.

Denver Food & Wine Festival Tips

Strategic Planning

Arrive early: Whether general admission or VIP, arriving at session start means fresher food, less crowded booths, and better conversations with pourers

Prioritize your targets: Review exhibitor lists before attending. Hit must-visit wineries and restaurants first before crowds build

Pace yourself: This is a marathon, not a sprint. With 100+ wineries, you can’t taste everything. Choose quality over quantity.

Use dump buckets: Provided at stations for wine you don’t want to finish. Dumping is smart strategy, not waste.

Stay hydrated: Drink water constantly. Festival staff provide water stations—use them frequently.

What to Bring

• Sunscreen and hat: Outdoor events mean sun exposure (Denver sun is intense)
• Layers: September weather varies—warm afternoons, cool evenings
• Comfortable shoes: You’ll stand and walk for hours on various surfaces
• Small notebook or phone: Track wines and restaurants you loved (memory fails after 20+ tastings)
• Cash for tips: Some vendors appreciate tips for exceptional service
• Light jacket: Evening sessions or indoor venues can be cool
• Water bottle: Refill at water stations throughout event

What NOT to Bring

• Large bags (often prohibited or inconvenient)
• Excessive perfume/cologne (interferes with wine aromas)
• Children (most sessions are 21+ only)
• Expectations of seated, quiet tasting (this is a social, energetic event)

Maximize Your Experience

Talk to pourers: Winery representatives and winemakers love sharing their stories. Ask questions, show genuine interest, learn.

Try unfamiliar wines: Festivals are perfect for exploring outside your comfort zone without committing to full bottles

Balance wine and food: Don’t just drink wine—the food offerings are substantial and enhance the experience

Take breaks: Find seating areas to rest, process what you’ve tasted, and give your palate a break

Note your favorites: If you discover wines or restaurants you love, write them down. You’ll want to follow up later.

Join mailing lists: Many wineries offer tastings or discounts for signing up. If you love their wines, join their lists or clubs.

After-Festival Strategy

Follow up on discoveries: Research wineries and restaurants you loved. Many offer wine clubs or special allocations.

Share the experience: Festival provides conversation starters. Share discoveries with friends and wine-loving colleagues.

Continue education: If seminars sparked interest in specific regions or varietals, dive deeper through books, classes, or focused tastings.

Transportation & Logistics

Getting to the Festival

Don’t drive: You’ll be tasting wine for hours. Plan alternative transportation from the start.

Rideshare (Uber/Lyft): Most convenient option. Budget extra time for pickup after sessions end (everyone requests rides simultaneously).

Light Rail: If festival location is near stations, public transit eliminates parking and traffic concerns

Walk: If staying downtown Denver, many festival venues are walkable

Designated driver: If friends are attending, rotate who stays sober

Where to Stay

Book Denver accommodations early—the festival attracts visitors and hotels fill up:

Downtown Denver hotels: Most convenient for festival access, restaurants, nightlife

LoHi/Highlands: Trendy neighborhoods with restaurants, walkable to downtown

Airport area: Budget option if driving, though requires transportation to festival

Timing: Book 2-3 months ahead for best selection and rates

Making a Weekend of It

Beyond festival events, explore Denver’s wine and food scene:

• Urban wineries: Visit Denver’s tasting rooms and urban wineries (complete guide)
• Restaurants: Denver’s culinary scene extends well beyond festival participants
• Breweries: Denver is beer city too—combine wine and craft beer exploration
• Cultural attractions: Art museums, galleries, music venues for non-wine activities

Is the Denver Food & Wine Festival Worth Attending?

Who Should Go

Wine enthusiasts: If you love discovering new wines and meeting winemakers, the festival delivers excellent exposure to diverse producers

Foodies: Access to Denver’s top chefs and restaurants in concentrated format provides exceptional culinary experiences

Social wine lovers: The festival atmosphere is celebratory and social—perfect for those who enjoy wine as communal experience

Learners: Educational seminars and demonstrations provide real value beyond simple tastings

Couples or groups: Shared experience creates memories and conversation

Who Might Skip It

Those seeking quiet tastings: This is a lively, crowded event—not intimate winery visits

Serious collectors only: While some premium wines appear, this isn’t primarily a rare/allocated wine event

Budget-conscious: Tickets aren’t cheap, and temptation to purchase wines/experiences adds up

Crowd-averse: Popular sessions get packed—if you hate crowds, you’ll be uncomfortable

Our Take

The Denver Food & Wine Festival provides excellent wine discovery opportunities and showcases Colorado’s culinary talent alongside national producers. The Grand Tastings offer tremendous variety, educational sessions deliver real value, and the social atmosphere makes wine exploration fun rather than intimidating.

It’s worth attending if:

• You approach it strategically (arrive early, pace yourself, prioritize targets)
• You’re open to discovering new wines and restaurants
• You appreciate the social, celebratory aspects of wine culture
• You see value in concentrated exposure to many producers at once

Budget wisely, plan transportation carefully, and remember: this is wine exploration and celebration, not necessarily wine education in the academic sense. Enjoy it for what it is.

After the Festival: Continuing Wine Discovery

The Denver Food & Wine Festival offers a concentrated weekend of wine discovery, but what about the other 51 weekends of the year? This is where wine clubs become invaluable for continuing your wine exploration at home.

Why Wine Clubs Complement Festival Experiences

Year-round discovery: Festivals deliver intense but brief exposure to wines. Wine clubs provide ongoing monthly discovery between festivals.

Curated selections: Just like festival organizers curate which wineries to feature, quality wine clubs employ experts who select exceptional wines for subscribers.

Better value: Festival tickets + travel + accommodations + wine purchases add up quickly. Wine clubs deliver quality wines at better cost-per-bottle.

Educational content: The best wine clubs provide detailed tasting notes, winemaker stories, and regional information—bringing festival-style education to your home monthly.

Supporting small producers: Many festival wineries are small, family-owned operations. Wine clubs often feature similar producers with limited distribution.

Convenient exploration: No tickets to buy, no crowds to navigate, no transportation concerns—wines arrive at your door with information to enhance enjoyment.

Following Up on Festival Discoveries

If you discovered wines you loved at the festival:

Join winery mailing lists: Many festival participants offer wine clubs or allocation lists. Sign up at the festival or follow up online.

Research similar styles: If you loved a particular region or varietal, find wine clubs specializing in those wines.

Explore wine clubs: Use festival discoveries to guide your wine club selection—if you loved Napa Cabernet, find Cab-focused clubs; if you enjoyed Oregon Pinot, seek Pinot specialists.

Best Wine Clubs for Festival-Goers

After testing 100+ wine club subscriptions, here are our recommendations for those who love festivals like Denver Food & Wine:

For diverse discovery: If you enjoyed the festival’s variety across regions and styles, clubs featuring wines from multiple California regions and beyond deliver similar exploration. See our best wine clubs guide.

For small producer focus: Festivals introduce you to family-owned wineries. Clubs emphasizing boutique producers with limited distribution bring that discovery home. Browse our California wine clubs guide.

For specific varietals: If festival tastings revealed your love for Cabernet, Pinot Noir, or other varietals, specialized clubs deliver focused exploration. Check our Cabernet wine clubs page.

For educational value: If you loved festival seminars, wine clubs with comprehensive tasting notes and winemaker stories extend that learning. Start with our best wine clubs page.

Other Denver Wine Events

Beyond the main Food & Wine Festival, Denver hosts wine events throughout the year:

Urban Winery Events

Denver’s urban wineries host release parties, winemaker dinners, and special tastings. Check individual winery websites for calendars.

Wine Bar Tastings

Many Denver wine bars organize themed tastings, regional explorations, and educational events throughout the year.

Restaurant Wine Dinners

Top Denver restaurants regularly host winemaker dinners featuring multi-course meals paired with featured wines.

Seasonal Celebrations

Holiday wine events, harvest celebrations, and seasonal tastings occur throughout the year at various venues.

Staying Informed

To discover Denver wine events:

• Follow Denver urban wineries on social media
• Join wine bar mailing lists
• Check local event listings
• Visit our Denver wine tasting guide for ongoing resources

Start Planning Your Festival Visit

The Denver Food & Wine Festival offers an exceptional opportunity to discover hundreds of wines, experience Denver’s culinary talent, and connect with winemakers and chefs in a concentrated, celebratory weekend.

Ready to attend?

• Check dates: Visit the official festival website for confirmed dates
• Buy tickets early: Secure best pricing and ensure access to desired sessions
• Book accommodations: Reserve Denver hotels 2-3 months ahead
• Plan transportation: Arrange rideshare, transit, or walking routes
• Review exhibitors: When lists are published, identify priority wineries and restaurants
• Explore wine clubs: Find subscriptions to continue wine discovery year-round
• Discover Denver wine: Visit our complete Denver wine tasting guide

Whether you’re a Colorado local or traveling to Denver for the festival, this celebration of food and wine provides memorable experiences, educational opportunities, and the chance to discover wines and restaurants that become long-term favorites.

See you at the festival—look for us exploring the tastings, taking notes, and discovering the next great wine to share with you!

Cheers to great wine, exceptional food, and unforgettable Denver experiences! 🍷