Ready to feast on the latest culinary delights? There’s no better place to taste delicious dishes, learn quick cooking tips from pros and rub elbows with celebrity chefs than at international food festivals. Here are the most exciting epicurean events that will allow you to eat your way around the world. Melbourne Food and Wine Festival In March, this festival unveils a mouth-watering program of more than 250 events bringing food and wine to the streets of Melbourne over a two-week period. One of its most iconic events is the ‘world’s longest lunch,’ where some 900 diners enjoy a three-course alfresco lunch seated at a snaking 1312-foot-long table, the location of which changes each year. While the cuisine is traditional Australian (think surf ‘n’ turf, not Vegemite), the festival has introduced a special focus on heritage and long-lost culinary skills such as preserving, pickling and smoking. Montreal Beer Festival The Montreal Beer Festival is the largest of its kind in Canada, attracting over 80,000 thirsty revelers every June for five days of brewery tastings, beer and cheese workshops, flavor contests, food-beer pairing seminars, musical entertainment and plenty more. Welcoming everyone from curious novices and self-confessed epicureans to the finest beer connoisseurs on the planet, the Mondial de la bière has long been championing the reinstatement of beer’s noble status. There are also food booths offering hearty fare such as boar, ostrich and smoked meats. Taste of London Held in Regents Park every June, the Taste of London is a four-day celebration of food and drink. This is where London’s top restaurants – such as Yauatcha, Theo Randall and The Modern Pantry – serve sample-sized dishes with award-winning chefs revealing their tricks of the trade. You can also take part in wine tutorials and cooking classes, and watch chefs wield their knives in the cookery theater. Expect an eclectic array of cuisines, which make this a diverse and multi-cultural event, representing foods from around the world. Fete de la Crevette (Honfleur, France) The largest seafood festival in France, the Fete de la Crevette is a two-day event with nautical-themed concerts and gatherings of historical old sea vessels near the mouth of the Seine. Indulge on shrimps, especially the little grey shrimp, or ‘petite grise’, a local specialty, plus a variety of seafood including all manner of unusual subterranean dwellers such as sea spiders. There’s even a shrimp-peeling competition for the nimble fingered. Taste of Beverly Hills A relative newcomer to the festival scene, Taste of Beverly Hills is nonetheless an epicurean spectacular worth celebrating. Set on the famous Wilshire Boulevard behind the Beverly Hilton, the five-day event includes cooking demos with world-famous chefs and wine seminars with some of the best vintners in the state. Previous festivals have provided a showcase for celebrity chefs and restaurateurs including Wolfgang Puck, Curtis Stone, Top Chef winner, Michael Voltaggio; French chef Ludo Lefebvre; and Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo of the trendy LA restaurant Animal.
Richard Branson is moving into the cruise space with the all new Virgin Voyages. The first ship (Scarlet Lady) will launch next year and will be notably different than your typical cruise line. It will also include some firsts at sea. Notable Differences
Firsts at Sea
I'm sure there will be more exciting changes along the way as Virgin tries to shake up the cruise industry. Reply to this email with your questions and to find out how to be one of the first to board Scarlet Lady. Click here for a preview of Scarlet Lady. A wine cruise offers the hospitality of traveling with a group of like-minded people with a variety of private events, dinners and tastings scheduled aboard the ship and on land. Keep reading to discover three of the best reasons to book a fall wine cruise!
1. See Europe’s breathtaking landscapes illuminated in vibrant autumn colors. 2. Visit renowned sites and wineries as the locals do, amid less crowds. 3. Save on airfare, as prices are typically reduced during fall. Cruise through highly acclaimed European wine regions, from Austria’s UNESCO-designated Wachau Valley to Germany’s Rheingau and Moselle regions, to France’s celebrated Bordeaux region and beyond. Expert Wine Hosts You’ll be accompanied throughout your cruise by a dedicated Wine Host from a North American winery who will lead tastings and provide trips to private cellars and historic vineyards. You will also enjoy carefully curated food and wine pairing dinners. Are you interested in booking a fall wine cruise? Click here to learn more about river cruising. Contact me today so we can get started planning the perfect wine cruise designed specifically for you! |
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September 2024
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