My favorite food discovery at this year’s Expo was To Die For Dips.  These wonderfully delicious dips created by Margaret Hammill were my favorite snack at the show.  With a plethora of options from cheese to chocolate to Alaskan pasta salad, the choice should have been difficult.  However, with one bite of Blue Cheese Dates & Pecans dip, I had found my must-eat snack.  Return to Think Tasty in the coming weeks to learn more about this company.

Being a wine expo, there were almost two thousand wines to sample.  Obviously, I didn’t taste even a fraction of them, but of the wines I tried, there were a few that were quite memorable.  Turtle Creek Wine from Massachusetts provided some of the best local wine I have sampled recently.  Producing 900 cases each year, this small scale winery does a fabulous job.  Another wine of note was Piera Martellozzo’s Blu Giavello line.  The four wines in this line are all sparkling, which makes them even more endearing.  Each of these wines had a varying amount of sweetness but all were light on the palate, which created a wonderful tasting.  These wineries will be profiled on our beverage publication, Parched No More, in the next month.

The quick summary to the Boston Wine Expo: fabulous.  For an afternoon that delights your tastebuds, make sure you attend this event next year.

What you may not know is that the Expo has fabulous offerings for foodies as well.  During the Grand Tastings, fifteen celebrity chefs will display their talents on two different stages.  Not only do attendees have the opportunity to watch the culinary talents of these chefs, but they also receive samples and recipes for these amazing dishes.

Another food highlight is the vast array of food vendors.  In previous years, there have been unique items, such as Tillen Farms pickled vegetables and Wheeler’s Black Label Vegan Ice Cream.  This year nearly twenty restaurants will be attending the show and serving samples of their specialities.  What will make these samples even tastier is that the food is included in the price of admission.

Check your calendar, and clear any conflicts, if needed.  The Boston Wine Expo is an event that you won’t want to miss.  Click here to learn more and purchase your tickets.

This is the 19th annual occurrence of the Wine Expo and looks to be as exceptional as years past.  In addition to the Grand Tasting, at which one can sample wines and speak with winemakers, there are many other attractions.  Visit the Cyber Wine Cafe (a new feature) to learn which retailers in your area carry the wines you have enjoyed at the Expo.  Watch cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs, such as Joanne Weir and David Burk.

My colleague and I attended the 2008 Boston Wine Expo and were amazed by the experience.  Not only were we able to sample a variety of wonderful wines, we also enjoyed some terrific foods, met congenial winemakers, and learned a few cooking tricks.  This year is certain to offer all of these delights.

If you would like to learn more about the Boston Wine Expo or want to purchase tickets for this event, please visit their website.

Fortunately, I was able to visit the Saviez Vineyard booth before the Expo was open to the public.  This gave me more time to speak with Mike Saviez, Sales & Marketing Manager.  After sampling a delicious Cabernet Sauvignon, I asked Mike about his vineyard.

We discussed the wines produced at their vineyard, and I was most interested in the story of a newer wine, Yogi’s Reserve Petite Sirah.    In 2005, seventy cases of this wine were produced.  However, that amount was much smaller than had been intended, due to a local black bear who ate 60-70% of the grapes.  Thus, the wine has been named to reflect the interest of their grape-eating friend.

Saviez Vineyards has many other wonderful wines available.  Their most popular wine is their estate zinfandel.  They also offer Muscat Canelli, a delicious dessert wine.

This vineyard has plans to produce new varieties of wine in the near future.  One example is their Cabernet Franc program which they started in 2007.  That variety should be available in 2009.

Saviez Vineyards not only produces excellent wines, but it also has a great history as a family vineyard.  Visit their Website to learn more about both.

My colleague and I arrived at the Expo at noon, an hour before the event is open to the public. Just having negotiated confusing travel from our hotel to the Seaport World Trade Center, it was a relief to find the check-in to be quick and painless. Once given our badges, we entered the main floor of the exposition.

Standing in the doorway, there was a sea of booths to explore. (About eighty percent of the booths were for wineries, with the other booths displaying related items, such as food, wine gadgets, cooking tools, and food/wine publications.) Looking at the vastness of the expo, we needed to decide how best to conquer this event. We decided to start on the right side of the room and travel to the other so that we would not miss any displays.

The first two aisles on the right were filled with vendors from various food businesses. We were able to view and sample delicious cheeses, mustards, and cookies, among the many food items. We also learned about new technology for wine, publications for the food and wine industry, and events that center around dining and wine.

After having spoken with several vendors and learning about their specialties, we left those aisles and embarked on our world tour of wine. As I mentioned, the expo was overwhelming. With over 1,800 wines to sample, it was hard to decide on a strategy. Luckily, I overheard one vintner telling another person that he thought it best to pick one varietal and sample it from different wineries. This seemed like an excellent game plan to me.

Being a fan of red wines, I decided to explore the world of Cabernet Sauvignon. With so many vineyards from which to choose, we strolled the aisles, choosing wine from different regions. We had the best conversations with company representatives before the expo was opened to the public. With a smaller crowd, there was no rush to leave each booth and more opportunities to ask questions.

By 1:30, the expo had become very crowded. Though there were thousands of attendees, the vast amount of wineries helped to keep waiting times low. However, with 10 people waiting behind me to sample a wine, I often asked fewer questions to keep the traffic moving.

As the afternoon continued, we sampled many wines and made our way to the far side of the room where there were more interesting nonwine booths, including a home water system that provides both plain and “bubbly” water. We also stopped to watch a cooking demonstration at one of the two designated areas.

By 4:00 we had sampled dozens of wines and foods and learned about many new products. At this point we were saturated with wine and food knowledge. Though there were also offerings of seminars and guided tastings, we did not take advantage of these classes, something to add to the list for next year.

The Boston Wine Expo was a wonderful event that will become part of our yearly schedule. We learned an incredible amount of information, met some interesting people, and got to sample delectable foods and wines. A truly amazing experience.

Described in their press release as: “The largest trade and consumer wine event in the country, the Boston Wine Expo offers wine enthusiasts an unparalleled educational and entertaining wine and food experience.The Grand Tasting showcases over 450 international and domestic wineries from 13 countries pouring over 1,800 different wines.“

We will be covering the expo firsthand and will have a report next week!

For more info or to get tickets for yourself, visit or call:

1-877-946-3976 or www.wineexpoboston.com