The Portland Indie Wine and Food Festival took a sabbatical last year, but founder Lisa Donoughe recently pulled the veil back a bit on plans for its return to the Rose City on May 9-13.
Her Indie Wine Festival blog referenced that while much has been penciled in rather set than in stone, the lineup looks to include:
- An interactive blind tasting with regional and national judges showing patrons how to be a wine judge
- Craft Beer vs. Craft Wine symposium featuring Katherine Cole, wine columnist for The Oregonian, as well as regional charcuterie and cheeses
- Wine Writer for a Day, where folks can get a sense for what it takes to land a position as a wine scribe (suggestion, invite The HoseMaster of Wine to serve on that panel)
- Indie winemaker dinners involving restaurant partners Metrovino, Nostrana and Toro Bravo
By Donoughe’s definition, an “indie” or craft winery has an annual production of 2,500 cases or less.
For those who don’t know, Donoughe owns Watershed, a food and restaurant marketing agency with offices in PDX and New York City. Her group also works with some “A list” and iconic wineries beyond the indie ranks — Chehalem Wines, Montinore, Penner-Ash — and Saffron Fields, a young project in Yamhill shepherded by winemaker Tony Rynders.
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