Bay Area foodie friends, today, I get to share with you a new wine festival coming to San Jose! The Festival of Undiscovered Grapes (FOUG) has expanded to Northern California after two years of success in Los Angeles.
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Image courtesy of FOUG
Check it out at the Rotary Summit Center on Saturday, January 31. Already know you want in? The direct link to tickets is here, and if you use the code THE GOURMEZ10, you’ll save $10 off the price! General Admission is $75 and VIP is $125.
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Image courtesy of FOUG
One of my wine friends co-runs this festival and I love the concept! Why? Because as an average consumer with a special interest in wine, I relish hearing about new-to-me grape varieties. The first few years of wine exploration introduce folks to merlot, zinfandel, chardonnay, and the handful more grapes that most vineyards devote their plantings to and most consumers drink. But I quickly found myself intrigued by the unfamiliar grapes in a blend, the ones that add smoothness or boost the floral notes but rarely get their own time in the spotlight. Learning about the history of field blends and the Sonoma wineries that feature them impressed on me the value of these overlooked grapes.
A vineyard full of lesser known grape varieties on that Northern Sonoma trip
The Festival of Undiscovered Grapes gives us the chance to sample more of them, as they are difficult to find in your local wine shop. And you can purchase the wines at the event, while you still remember what you loved about them! That’s a surprisingly rare feature for a wine festival.
Over 60 different wineries will be there, pouring grape varietals that chances are, you’ve never tried. Teroldego? Roussanne? Valdiguie? You’ll likely find them at the Festival of Undiscovered Grapes! Maybe it’ll bring out your inner hipster again, let you fall in love with one before it bursts onto the wider wine scene. 😉
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Image courtesy of FOUG
General Admission tickets ($75) include a 3-hour tasting window of 2:00pm – 5:00pm, a commemorative wine glass, and the opportunity to purchase a case of wine for a low shipping price of $20. More than a case? It’s free! Plus you’ll get a detailed guidebook to the wineries and a chance to win a $500 stay in Paso Robles.
Feeling VIP? For $125, at 12:00pm, you’ll have the opportunity to attend a talk from Lodi Wine on the many fantastic undiscovered grapes grown in that essential California wine region. Then your tasting window opens at 1:00pm for a bonus hour. Plus, shipping charges for any wine purchases are free, and you’ll get a free food item from the event’s food suppliers, a festival T-shirt, and everything else included for General Admission attendees. Honestly, it’s a rather good deal for an afternoon of wine tasting with those perks!
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Image courtesy of FOUG
Is the Festival of Undiscovered Grapes calling your name? Let me repeat the essential details here:
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Where: Rotary Summit Center in San Jose
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When: Saturday, January 31. Beginning time is either 12:00pm or 2:00pm depending on your ticket category.
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Tickets: Get ‘em right here, and if you use the code THE GOURMEZ10, you’ll save $10 off the price. Or you can scan this QR code to apply the discount automatically:
I’m hoping to make this event and find myself new wine grape besties. It’s always fun to hunt for a new experience in my glass. At a wine festival like this, you can do so among friends.
Image courtesy of FOUG
