Our Festivals
Willamette Valley, USA
2-6 May 2023
What a tremendous success this five-day festival was. Based in the heart of the Willamette Valley 120 guests from around the world tasted their way around the many premium wines of the region as well as a number of top wines from Burgundy. Some of the best wines from Pinot Noir featured highly in the itinerary. There were dinners were beautifully prepared by chef Jack Strong, at the Allison Inn & Spa; chefs at The Art of Catering; and chef Carmen Peirano; and their dishes were carefully matched with the wines from leading producers such as Résonance and wines from Maison Louis Jadot, Archery Summit, Ken Wright Cellars, Ponzi Vineyards and our gala dinner with the wines from Domaine Drouhin Oregon and also Maison Joseph Drouhin – what a treat it was. Plus there was the opportunity to learn with a lecture from leading authorities on the wine region (Ken Wright and Professor Scott Burnes), a visit to the wineries in the Jackson Family portfolio (thanks to the assistance of Eugenia Keegan) plus a Grand AVA tasting to have the opportunity to taste for themselves the different nuances of many of the wines from the different Oregon AVAs. It wasn’t all tasting though – there were visits to other attractions nearby – a Durant Olive Oil tasting, a SakéOne tasting, a visit to the nearby Evergreen Air and Space museum (home of the Spruce Goose) and a visit to the historic downtown McMinnville. A full report on the festival will be available in the Summer edition of Wine Food & Friends kindly written by John Trickett of the Arkansas branch. And last, but certainly not least, thanks need to be recorded to Steve Greenwald for leading the management of this outstanding festival along with the key support of Andrew Jones and Rose Clemson.
DO Emporda, Catalunya, Spain
23-27 May 2023
Forty members of the Society were treated to an immersive Spanish cultural experience and also enjoyed life in Spanish time! Upon arrival in Barcelona they enjoyed a wonderful evening at the private Club Liceu, next to the famous Liceu ballet theatre. Here they enjoyed an evening of culture with a piano recital, a tour of the art in the club and rounded off with a fine dinner and wines. Next day they moved to Perelada in Alt Emporda (known to many as the Costa Brava). Here they enjoyed visits to a number of wineries, dinners at Michelin starred restaurants, olive oil tastings, visits to the Perelada Castle and Museum and a lunch at the cliff top private summer villa of the Suqué-Mateu family, the owners of the Perelada estates. During the festival we enjoyed wine tastings and accompanying wines from this lesser-known wine region of Spain. There were many quality wines using local and international varietals with grapes harvested on various terroirs and from vines of many different ages including some more than 100 years old. On their return trip to Barcelona, they stopped for lunch (those Spanish timings!) at a 2-star Michelin restaurant owned and managed by a female chef, Fina Puigdevall, and her 3 daughters. The festival closed with a Cava and tapas reception on the rooftop of the El Palace Hotel with views over Barcelona. The organisers of the festival, Elina Selin and Wendy Levitt, members of the Zurich branch but resident in Barcelona, were thanked by all and formally presented with the IWFS Europe Africa excellence award and a certificate for all their efforts.
More details will be published in Food and Wine in October, including links to photographs and details of the wines, as well as the events.
