Photo Credit - Andy Castro (Flickr)
We are starting a new tradition here at Wine+Food Travel. It’s called “Raise your Glass” and on the first Monday of each month, we will feature a list of wine festivals from everywhere and anywhere we can find. We don’t profess perfection here, however we will attempt to feature local festivals that we find with info, locations and key highlights. This month features a few festivals in the local California area and even a few a little farther north. If you are travelling locally or want to make a weekend getaway of it, perhaps these festivals will give you the excuse and the inspiration to “raise your glass.”
July 7-15 2012: Okanogan Wine Festival
Location: Kelowna, BC Canada
Events: Over 30 events, 10 days; Outdoor wine tastings, wine and cheese parties at the beach, poetry, biking through the wineries and more.
July 19, 20 & 21 2012: The California Wine Festival – Santa Barbara
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Events: Spanish wine nights, beachside wine tasting, sunset reserve wine tasting, gourmet foods and more.
www.californiawinefestival.com
July 13-22 2012: Festival del Sole
Location: Napa Valley, CA
Events: 10 day musical event, wine tastings at local vineyards and featured dinners on the vineyards including a gala and auction.
July 21-22 2012: 26th Annual Connoisseur’s Marketplace
Location: Santa Cruz, CA
Events: Known as a “Feast for the Senses”, this year’s will feature organic, health and “eco-friendly” products, enjoy wine sampling, food demonstrations and contemporary fine art.
July 27 & 28,2012: The Cleveland Wine Festival
Location: Cleveland, OH
Events: Sample over 270 wines from around the world while enjoying live music, food demonstrations and meet local chefs and food artisans.
July 28: California Wine Tasting Championships
Location: Philo, CA
Events: Wine tasting challenge that allows guests to sample and guess the names of up to 8 different wines, chocolate and cheese tasting, gourmet dinner parties, and a wine tasting “Boot Camp”
With so many events to choose from, there is almost no excuse to miss a glass this summer- Enjoy!
Note: Some of these festivals were located on on gayot.com‘s food and wine calendar.
Vinnie recently joined the team at Wine and Food Travel as Editor in Chief. We are very excited to have her culinary experience and artistic background to draw from here at WAFT. Vinnie brings a wealth of experience in the culinary arts, professional writing and marketing. Her passion, expertise and her willingness to share her learnings with readers is a welcome contribution to the WAFT team. Vinnie also maintains a food blog where she shares many of her recipes, food experiences and adventures, 
Our port on this day was Lopez Island – and a visit to 