Eve's Wine 101

Garagiste Wine Festival Returns with 50+ Winemakers: Celebrates Tenth Anniversary in Paso Robles, November 12th – 14th

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PASO ROBLES, CALIF. (PRWEB) – The Garagiste Wine Festival, which launched in November 2011, returns to its birthplace of Paso Robles to celebrate its 10th anniversary with three days of events, including the tasting of wines from over 50 small production wineries from California; an exclusive seminar with Tablas Creek Vineyard’s Jason Haas on the past and future of Paso Robles wines, the popular Keep It Rockin’ After Party, and a special event at Atascadero’s Pavilion on the Lake that recognizes 10 of the Paso OGs (Original Garagistes), along with ‘Rare and Reserve’ pourings from 2021 festival winemakers. Tickets are on sale now at https://www.my805tix.com/e/10th-annual-paso-garagiste-wine-festival.

“We are excited to return to Paso Robles and Atascadero with what we believe will be our best festival ever,” said Doug Minnick, Garagiste Festival Co-founder. “We will celebrate the evolution of the Garagiste Festival – and how it has amplified garagiste winemakers and the garagiste movement – as well as the evolution of our birthplace and touchstone, Paso Robles, through a special seminar with Jason Haas of Paso’s Tablas Creek, the iconic winery that almost singlehandedly popularized Rhone varieties in America. But, most of all, we will celebrate reconnecting with our fantastic Garagiste Festival attendees as we introduce them to another exciting group of innovative, micro-production winemakers.”

The Garagiste Festival is the nation’s first and only festival to showcase the wines of micro-production commercial ‘garagiste*’ winemakers. Dubbed “tasting nirvana,” “strange and wondrous,” and “one not to miss” by the LA Times, the Garagiste Festival is renowned for its renegade spirit, passionate winemakers, handcrafted wines, rules-breaking, ‘no snobs allowed’ ethos and ‘just have fun’ approach. The Garagiste Festival features the wines of commercial garagiste winemakers across California, who make under 1500 cases annually. Since inception, the festivals, which include Solvang, Sonoma, Los Angeles and Paso Robles, have showcased over 450 different wineries and over 4,000 wines to over 12,000 wine lovers.

“There’s no doubting the last 18 months have been challenging for all of us. What has always been at the core of the Paso Robles wine region, and by virtue garagiste winemakers, is the ability to adapt and innovate,” said Stewart McLennan, Garagiste Festival Co-founder. “It’s going to be truly special to have the opportunity to celebrate and enjoy Paso and its garagistes once again.”

“At this year’s festival, we will explore what is next for Paso wine, pay tribute to our OGs, who are proof that renegade winemaking dreams can turn into big success – all while showcasing over 50+ winemakers whose wines demonstrate that not even a pandemic can keep garagistes from producing some of the best and most innovative wines our industry has to offer,” concluded McLennan.

The Garagiste Festival 2021 Line-Up

The Paso Robles Garagiste Festival gathers together undiscovered artisan ‘garagiste’ winemakers who are making some of the best, most exciting, handcrafted small-lot wines in the world – all in one location. You’ll never find their wines in supermarkets – and you’ll never find them all in one place like this. Discover the biggest “small” thing happening in the world of wine through three days of exciting events:

Rare and Reserve plus 10 OGs! Friday November 12th – 6:30-9:30pm

Tenth Anniversary festivities kick off Friday evening with “Rare and Reserve – No Repeats’ at the charming Pavilion on the Lake, in Atascadero. The tasting features over 30 of the rarest wines and barrel samples the 2021 Paso Garagistes have to offer (wines that will not be poured at the Grand Tasting) – – along with a Spanish-themed buffet from Trumpet Vine Catering. The event will also feature a tribute to 10 of the festival’s Original Garagistes – wineries who poured at the early years of the Festivals who have gone on to even larger success – including special tastings of their signature wines.

Tasting Seminar – The Past and Future of Paso Robles: In Depth with Jason Haas* November 13th – 11:00am-12:30pm — Paso Robles Event Center

Saturday begins with an exclusive tasting seminar with Jason Haas, second generation proprietor of pioneering Tablas Creek Vineyard, which was founded in 1989 by the Perrin and Haas families in what would become the Paso Robles Adelaida District. In addition to their delicious wines, Tablas Creek is renowned for importing 19 different grape varieties into the United States and making them available to the broader community through their grapevine nursery. In this seminar, Jason will take attendees through Tablas Creek’s journey from an idea between friends to the search for the perfect spot to create its famous grapevine nursery, vineyard, and winery. He will also share his insights into what the future of the Paso Robles wine region holds. The seminar will include tastings of some of Tablas Creek’s rarest varietal bottlings, as well as the new vintage of the Esprit de Tablas.
*Only available with VIP Ticket or Weekend Pass

The Main Event – The Grand Tasting – Saturday November 13th – 2:00pm – 5:00pm, Paso Robles Event Center

Discover your favorite (and new favorite!) small production wineries from among the over 50 winemakers who will be pouring over 200 different wines. The day includes unlimited tastes, complimentary cheese and charcuterie, artisan food samples and a souvenir Stolzle crystal wine glass.

Keep it Rockin’ After Party |- November 13th, 5:30-8:30pm – Paso Robles Event Center

Mingle with the winemakers, grab a cold brew and rock out with live music.

Covid Update: The Garagiste Festival has adapted its protocols to foster a safe environment that will not detract from the festival’s signature attendee camaraderie and one-on-one interaction with the winemakers (winemakers, not tasting room personnel, always pour at The Garagiste Festival). This includes using more outdoor space and greater table distancing, as well as adherence to the current county mandates. For more information and updates on festival Covid protocols, click here.

Participating Wineries include:
Alma Sol Winery, Arianna Wines*, Ascension Cellars, Bolt To Wines, Bushong Wine Company, Caliza Winery, Copia Vineyards, Demeter Family Cellars*, DeWitt Vineyard, Dilecta Wines, Dusty Nabor Wines, Etnyre Wines, Familia Hicks Wines*, Ferguson Family Wines, Gary Kramer Guitar Cellars, Greyscale Wines, Hayseed & Housdon Wines, Hoyt Family Winery, Kaleidos Wines, Kimsey Vineyard, Marin’s Vineyard, Mastro Scheidt Wines, MCV Wines, Ondule Wines, Powell Mountain Cellars, Quench + Temper, RF Wines, Seagrape Winery, Seven Oxen Wines, Torch Cellars, Two Moons Cellars and Volatus Winery.
*New to Paso Festival

Tickets: To preserve an intimate experience and one-on-one interaction with winemakers, tickets are very limited for the Garagiste Festivals and always sell out. Tickets are available at http://garagistefestival.com. For special discounts and updates on The Garagiste Festival in Paso Robles, Taste of Garagiste mini-tastings and other Garagiste Festival events and news, sign up for The Dirt at http://garagistefestival.com/sign-up/, or follow us on Twitter (@GaragisteFest) or Facebook (http://on.fb.me/1rgBC80).

Festival Sponsors include:
Travel Paso, Visit Atascadero, G3, ETS, Glenn Burdette, mWEBB Communications

Sponsor Hotels: For “Garagiste” weekend deals.
Adelaide Inn, La Quinta Inn & Suites, Paso Oaks Hotel

For sponsorship info, email info@garagistefestival.com.

About The Garagiste Wine Festival
The Garagiste Wine Festival (http://www.garagistefestival.com), named “Best of the Fests” for 2019 by Fest Forums and the ‘Best Wine Festival in the US in 2018 in USA Today’s 10Best Readers Choice Awards, is the first and only wine festival dedicated to the undiscovered and under-recognized American artisan ‘garagiste’ micro-wineries who are making some of the best, most exciting, handcrafted small-lot production wines in the world. Founded by fellow garagistes Stewart McLennan and Douglas Minnick, the Garagiste Festivals are committed to discovering the best and most innovative limited-production winemakers and promoting and showcasing them to a broad audience of discerning wine consumers. In addition to its flagship annual festival in Paso Robles, CA, the Garagiste Festival line-up includes Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure, featuring Santa Ynez Valley garagistes; the Garagiste Festival: Urban Exposure, in Los Angeles; the Garagiste Festival, Northern Exposure, in Sonoma; winemaker dinners, a newsletter, garagiste profiles and more.

In addition to being named the US’ Best Wine Festival, the Garagiste Festival was named one of the ‘Top Nine Incredible Epicurean Vacations’ in the world by ABC News, “one of the premier wine events of the year,” by the LA Times and “Best Festival” by Sunset Magazine’s ‘Best of the West.’ The festivals are produced by Garagiste Events, a non-profit dedicated to furthering the education of future winemakers and those training for employment within the wine industry. Proceeds from the festivals support the Garagiste Festival Scholarship fund of the California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo Wine and Viticulture Department.

*Garagiste (garage-east) is a term originally used in the Bordeaux region of France to denigrate renegade small-lot wine makers, sometimes working in their “garages” (anything considered not a chateau), who refused to follow the “rules,” and is now a full-fledged movement responsible for making some of the best wine in the world. The Garagiste Festivals were the first to shine a light on the American garagiste winemaker in 2011.

Garagiste Wine Festival Turns ‘21’: Showcases Over 60 Artisan Winemakers

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PASO ROBLES, Calif. (PRWEB) – The Garagiste Wine Festival marks its 21st festival, and 8th anniversary, at its home base in Paso Robles, November 9th through the 11th, with three days of events, including a Grand Tasting that showcases over 60 micro production winemakers, 20% of whom are pouring at the festival for the first time. Tickets are on sale now at http://californiagaragistes.com/buy-tickets/.

In addition to its signature range of over 200 wines, over 20 different grape varieties and new and iconoclastic blends, this year’s festival pays tribute to the increasing influence of Spanish grape varieties in California. This includes a Rare and Reserve tasting matched with Paella and a seminar dedicated to Spanish varieties – from Albarino to Graciano – and how today’s artisan winemakers, including Enrique Torres of Diablo Paso, Louisa Sawyer Lindquist of Verdad and Jeremy Leffert of Croma Vera Wines, are crafting trail-blazing wines from them.

“We are turning ‘21!’ This doesn’t necessarily mean crossing into adulthood (we’ll never grow up!); but it does mean we’ve hit on something that both dedicated wine drinkers and the growing micro-winery community find valuable,” said Garagiste Festival Co-founder Doug Minnick. “It feels great to have helped so many wineries find their audience, while helping new audiences find exciting new winemakers. We’re like a matchmaking service where everyone ends up getting married!”

Dubbed “tasting nirvana” ‘strange and wondrous’, and “one not to miss” by the LA Times, the Garagiste Festival is renowned for its renegade spirit, passionate winemakers, handcrafted wines and rules-breaking, ‘no snobs allowed’ ethos. Launched in Paso Robles in 2011, the festival features the wines of commercial garagiste* winemakers who make under 1500 cases at festivals across California, including Solvang, Sonoma, Los Angeles and Paso Robles. Over 350 different wineries have poured over 3,000 wines for over 10,000 wine lovers at Garagiste Festivals since inception.

The festival takes place at the Paso Robles Fairgrounds and other area locations and includes Thursday’s Industry Night, featuring the Garagiste’s annual Winemaker Shootdown; Friday night’s ‘Rare and Reserve’ event, and Saturday’s seminars and epic Grand Tasting, followed by the Keep It Rockin’After Party, featuring special 8th Anniversary guest, Stephen Rowe and the Lonely Loners, who played at the very first Garagiste Festival in 2011. On Sunday, Garagiste Paso Passport Day returns, which offers festival attendees discounts and events at garagiste wineries throughout the area.

Saturday morning’s VIP tasting seminar on Spanish varieties, ‘The Rise of Spanish Varieties: Classic Grapes find a home in California,’ is moderated by Garagiste Festival co-founder, KRUSH radio host and Golden Triangle Wines winemaker, Stewart McLennan.

Said McLennan: “The festival is a Paso wine-tasting tradition. Big, bold and badass. So if you’ve never been to our Paso festival, you need to come join the fun.”

“And it is all for a good cause – the festivals have raised over $125,000 for The Garagiste Scholarship at Cal Poly. So, as you broaden your exposure to some of the most innovative winemaking in California, you are also supporting winemaking’s future generations,” concluded Minnick.

The Garagiste Festival was the first event to define, and shine a spotlight on, the American “garagiste*” wine movement and has introduced outstanding California artisan winemakers to thousands of passionate wine consumers, members of the trade and media, helping to ignite the awareness, business and reputations of hundreds of artisan winemakers.

For full schedule details, go to http://californiagaragistes.com/2018-paso-fest/

Among the over 60 winemakers already scheduled to pour are:
Adron Wines*, Alta Colina, Armitage Wines*, Artisan Uprising, Ascension Cellars, Bevela Wines, Bolshoi Family Wines*, Caldera Cuvee, Caliza Winery, Circle B Vineyards, Cloak & Dagger Wines, Copia Vineyards, Corner Cellars*, Cutruzzola Vineyards, Decroux Wines*, DENO Wines, DeWitt Vineyard*, Diablo Paso, Dusty Nabor Wines, Gary Kramer Guitar Cellars*, Golden Triangle, Hoi Polloi Winery, Hoyt Family Vineyards, Jardesca*, Kitson Wines*, Last Light Wine Co, Leverage Wines, Lost Blues, MagnaVita Cellars*, Marin’s Vineyard, Mastro Scheidt*, MCV Wines, Merisi Wines*, Montage Russe, On Your Left Wine Co., Powell Mountain Cellars, Saint K Wines, Seven Angels Cellars, Seven Oxen Estate Wines, Sea Shell Cellars, T. Berkley Wines*, Tlo Wines, TOP Winery, Torch Cellars, Transmission Wine Co.*, TW Fermentations, Ultima Tulie, Vandella Vineyards*, Vigo Cellars*, Vinemark Cellars, Vino Vargas, Volatus Wines, and Willow Creek Wine Group*.

*First time pouring at the Paso Festival.

Tickets: To preserve an intimate experience with one-on-one interaction with winemakers, tickets are very limited for the Garagiste Festivals and always sell out. Tickets are available at http://californiagaragistes.com/buy-tickets/. For special discounts and updates on Garagiste Festival events and news, sign up for The Dirt at http://garagistefestival.com/sign-up/, or follow us on Twitter (@GaragisteFest) or Facebook (http://on.fb.me/1rgBC80).

Sponsors include: Travel Paso Robles Association, ETS Laboratories, Farm Credit, G3, Glenn Burdette, Hanover Insurance, mWEBB Communications, Digital Dogma, Laffort USA, WiVi Central Coast, The Oaks Hotel, La Quinta Inn and Suites. House Copper

For sponsorship info, email info(at)garagistefestival(dot)com.

*Garagistes (garage-east) is a term originally used in the Bordeaux region of France to denigrate renegade small-lot wine makers, sometimes working in their “garages” (anything considered not a chateau), who refused to follow the “rules,” and is now a full-fledged movement responsible for making some of the best wine in the world. The Garagiste Festivals were the first to shine a light on the American garagiste winemaker in 2011.

About The Garagiste Wine Festivals
The Garagiste Wine Festivals (http://www.garagistefestival.com) are the first and only wine festivals dedicated to the undiscovered and under-recognized American artisan ‘garagiste’ producers who are making some of the best, most exciting, handcrafted small-lot production wines in the world. Founded by fellow garagistes Stewart McLennan and Douglas Minnick, the Garagiste Festivals are committed to discovering the best and most innovative limited-production winemakers and promoting and showcasing them to a broad audience of discerning wine consumers. In addition to its flagship annual festival in Paso Robles, CA, the Garagiste Festival line-up includes Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure, featuring Santa Ynez Valley garagistes; the Garagiste Festival: Urban Exposure, in Los Angeles; the Garagiste Festival, Northern Exposure, in Sonoma; winemaker dinners, a newsletter, garagiste profiles and more.

The festivals were named one of the ‘Top Nine Incredible Epicurean Vacations’ in the world by ABC News, * “one of the premier wine events of the year,” by the LA Times and “Best Festival” by Sunset Magazine’s ‘Best of the West.’ The festivals are produced by Garagiste Events, a non-profit dedicated to furthering the education of future winemakers and those training for employment within the wine industry. Proceeds from the festivals support the Garagiste Festival Scholarship fund of the California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo Wine and Viticulture Department.