Friday, September 14, 2007

The Lauras’ guide to GrapeFest 2007

By Laura Evans , Laura Seewoester

This is a big weekend for the city of Grapevine, celebrating its 21st Annual GrapeFest. Pegasus staffers Laura Evans and Laura Seewoester visited the event Friday afternoon to give the scoop on what to expect. So here it is, your very own guide to getting the most out of this year's festivities.

First things first: Wear shorts. It's still freaking hot outside. We parked in the allotted grass parking spots and took the shuttle to the festival; shuttles are free and not too much of a nuisance. Bring some cash. The festival is on the ticket system for food and drinks, so we marched up to the ticket booth and got a bunch of tickets first thing, thinking we could use them for our wine. However, the Taster's Choice wine tasting was a separate deal and cost $18. We paid with a credit card, which left us with a pocketful of extra coupons at the end of the day.

We participated in the wine-tasting first thing (priorities, people, priorities). There was quite the presence of Texas wineries. Some of our favorites included the Llano booth and the Lone Oak booth. Another one we enjoyed was the Purple Possum Winery, whose specialty is mead, which is wine made from honey rather than grapes. I've never been a fan of spiced mead, however they have an Apple Cyder which was extremely tart, but quite refreshing compared to some of the heavy reds we were tasting (we happen to be cab/merlot gals). One thing we did learn as we were out "wining" is that it is possible for wine to smell and taste like nail polish remover. Aside from a couple off selections though, the wine was pretty good.

I don't know what we expected food-wise, but I figured a wine festival would offer tasty treats for the discriminating palate. Oh how wrong we were. Aside from a booth specializing in Cajun cuisine, all they had to offer was "fair food". If you're a foodie, health nut, or vegetarian, eat a big meal before you go and/or smuggle in a few PB & J sandwiches. The healthiest fare was probably the kettle corn. Speaking of kettle corn, what did we do with all those extra coupons, you ask? Well, we took home the World's Largest Bag of Kettle Corn. Seriously, this bag of kettle corn was actually the size of Laura E's whole torso. And, of course, after the bag of kettle corn was sitting in the heat all day and stuck together, we soon realized we had also acquired the world's largest ball of popcorn.

The festival also provided arts and crafts 'o plenty, many of them wine-themed. They think of everything to store wine, keep it fresh and advertise on your walls that you are a wine lover.

Last, but not least, the grape-stomp was a pretty big hit. Fairgoers can volunteer to participate in a grape-stomping contest. They have barrels filled with grapes, and one person stomps while the other holds the measuring cup under the spout at the bottom. Then you switch places. Whoever stomps out the most juice wins. They hold the contests starting at 2 p.m. We suggest stopping by to either to stomp or just to watch. Either way, it's pretty entertaining.

Despite a few disappointments (namely the cuisine selection and the heat that we were duly unprepared for), the day was an overall hit. I know, I know, you're telling yourself, "Ugh, but I have to drive way the hell out to Grapevine!" But if you're looking for something interesting to do this weekend, pack up the kids and truck it out there.

See more stories in:

• Festivals
• Food and Drink > Wine

Comments

Mike Orren Staff

Here's a Flickr gallery from the Fest:

And a musical performance:

1 year ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )

Susan Thornton Verified

I just heard the most hilarious story (okay - for foodies). A chef friend went to Grapefest and was checking out the olive oil tasting. She says that all the olive oils were what you could buy at Walmart. Hmmm... which is fruitier - Bertoli extra virgin or Rachel Ray EVOO?

1 year ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )