Wine & Food Fest takes over DeVos

For the second straight year, DeVos Place has turned into a full blown winery. Featuring over 100 wines and spirits, the Grand Rapids International Wine & Food Festival includes wines from all over the world, in addition to food samples from 10 local restaurants.

The event, which is expected to draw over 10,000 people, is the largest food and wine festival in the state. It features wines from The Hess Collection, Trinchero, and even the wineries on Old Mission Peninsula in Traverse City. Samples usually range from 1-3 tickets (50 cents each). There’s also food samples available, for a few extra tickets, from Bistro Bella Vita, Cygnus 27, Gill’s at the B.O.B., Huntington Club, Leo’s, Louis Benton Steakhouse, Melting Pot, San Chez, Tre Cugini and Wildfire Grille.

During my time at the Wine & Food Festival, I tried about eight different wines and sampled food from Louis Benton and the Melting Pot. Because of my Traverse City background, I was immediately drawn to the samples available from Brys Estate and 2 Lads, both on Old Mission Peninsula. I opted for the Pinot Noir from Brys, and decided we would finish the night with a wine from 2 Lads.

I had to branch out though; I wasn’t going to stick in Traverse City forever. Not being a big wine drinker, I looked to a friend to lean me in the right direction. After one more Northern Michigan wine, I went towards Don Sebastiani & Sons, which makes the Smoking Loon line of wines. I tried its chardonnay, which seemed to be a perfect fit with meat.

After a few other wine samples, we went towards the food. We started out at Louis Benton, and had barbecued pork sandwiches. Though small, they were quite possibly some of the best I’ve had. They were cooked perfectly, and the bun wasn’t overpowering. We got just the right amount of flavor. Once we finished, we moved on to the Melting Pot for some desert. We had samples of strawberries, rice krispie treats and brownies dipped in chocolate. The chocolate was wonderful; it seemed to be the perfect combination between milk and dark chocolate. Though I was disappointed in the store-bought rice krispie treats, the overall experience was quite good.

Following our meal, we tried out Trinchero, where I had a Mary’s Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc. My only single-varietal wine of the night, the sauvignon blanc has a crisp taste with somewhat of an exotic flavor to it.

Our final wines included the Folie a Deux Menage a Trois red wine, which is perfect with a lot of meals and deserts. It seemed to be perfect after our chocolate treats, but the winery had it paired with pizza, hamburgers, roasted chicken and grilled meats. And finally, we made it to 2 Lads, where I opted for the Cabernet Franc. While my leaning goes towards 2 Lads for the overall winery experience, I have to say that the Pinot Noir edged out the Cabernet Franc. Having been at both wineries, Brys caters to a more rich experience, while 2 Lads gives you a modern take on wine tasting.

Overall, the Wine & Food Festival gave me some great tastes of wine and food. In addition to the wines, there are drinks available from local and national breweries, including New Holland Brewery, Samuel Adams, and Bell’s Brewery. Several booths had experts from the wineries, while others had students from Ferris State helping out, who seemed to have an overall lack of knowledge in the wine department. I would’ve liked to see more experts.

But what about the best wine? While I love my Traverse City wines, I have to go with the Menage a Trois red wine from Folie a Deux. It’s perfect for during and after dinner, and it goes great with some dark chocolate. It’s been a long-time favorite of mine, and you can’t go wrong with it.

All in all, the Wine & Food Festival was an absolute success. For $15, you can get admission, and for a few dollars more (or however much you want to spend), you can sample a plethora of wines and foods. It’s a great addition to the Grand Rapids fall environment, and I hope to see it continued for years to come.

The Grand Rapids International Wine & Food Festival runs through Saturday. Friday’s hours are from 3-9 p.m., and Saturday is open from noon to 9 p.m. For more information, visit grwinefestival.com.