The 2021 Austin Food + Wine Festival opened its gates again to the hundreds of foodies on the first weekend of November 2021 which was perfect timing for the more temperate Austin weather. We couldn’t have been more excited to once again immerse ourselves in to this three day event located on the grounds of Auditorium Shores.
We were excited to again roam around the grounds and experience the demo tents, book signings, tasting sessions, meet the maker, the fire pits, Rock Your Taco and Grillin & Chilln with Chef Tim Love over this food and cocktail-loving weekend.
From Friday event to Sunday evening, this week was packed full of every food related event possible and the chefs that make it possible.
Check out Part 2 to see what you’ll experience at the festival. I had so much material I split it up into two posts!
On Friday night Grillin’ and Chillin’ kicked off the weekend with celebrity Chef Tim Love (Lonesome Dove Western Bistro) under the big Texas sky. All-in ticket holders meet up to grill and chill with Chef Tim Love after dark. Check out my article about our adventure cooking over live fire under the stars with steak wine and a shot of tequila.
Almost ready for Grillin and Chilln to begin. Check it out here!
Zephyr Gin, an ultra-premium gin with added influences of elderberry, offered two craft cocktails to showcase the adventurous and modern spirit. The Southside is a classic gin cocktail pairing Zephyr Gin, citrus and mint and the Earl Grey Collins is a carbonated draft cocktail combining Zephyr Black with Earl Grey tea and lemon juice. The cocktails featured were made-from-scratch to highlight the natural flavors of the gin.
If you are a fan of gin you will love refreshing cocktails made with Zephyr Gin. Check out my article for more photos and recipes.
One of the highlights of our three day adventure at the festival was learning all about the wildly popular Ooni Pizza oven and eating hot, hand-made pizza cooked before your eyes by pizza chefs from around the country.I was so impressed how well and quick it made pizza, I immediately ordered the Karu 16 multi-fuel oven with all the bells and whistles. Check out my article here.
Hey Austin, let’s make pizza! Catch New York’s Bryan Ford (@artisanbryan) and Miriam Weiskind (@thezareport) and California’s Jonathon Schuhrke (@santabarbarabaker) manning the Ooni booth. It’ll be a daylong battle of the coasts as they help us serve up unique and inventive pies, so stop by for a bite and stick around for some Ooni chat.
Ryan Pera and Morgan Weber from Eight Row Flint Houston, Texas featured an amazing taco creation
The Maker’s Mark Camper was open for Makers Hour for refreshing cocktails featuring their awesome Kentucky Bourbon.
“Kick back, grab a Deep Eddy Vodka cocktail and enjoy great music aboard our tricked-out 1946 Timeless Spartan Trailer—where strangers are just friends you haven’t met yet. ” That’s their motto!
Austin’s own Deep Eddy Vodka mixed up three different refreshing cocktails are good all four seasons! Check out Green Dream, Ramble On and Frozen Hot Chocolate.
Select Brand Ambassador Christina Berardi was on hand to share with us this very special and authentic Venetian spritz. We enjoyed hanging out, learning about and sipping on this most refreshing cocktail made for all seasons! Perfect for the warmer summer months and holidays as well, its unique flavor profile and brilliant red color is delicious and intriguing!
Select Aperitivo is the spirit of the Spritz. Comprised of 30 botanicals from around the globe and it’s as lively as the city sit it was born. Since 1920 in Venice, the Select Spritz is not just a drink, it’s the Venetian Lifestyle. You should taste this wonderfully versatile Aperitivo, and the Spritz that started it all, the Select Spritz!
Follow the Smoke to the Fire Pits!
One of the many highlights of the festival is the massive Fire Pit area. Watching and inhaling the smoked and grilling goodness in the air is intoxicating in a very good way. This year the chefs featuring their creations were John Bates InterSteller BBQ, Lance Kirkpatrick Stiles Switch BBQ, Marco Oglesby The Switch, Ryan Pera Eight Row Flint, Sonya Coté Storehouse Market & Eatery, and Tom Micklethwait & Ren Garcia Micklethwait BBQ.
Follow the smoke to the Fire Pits!
Frankly Vodka is one of my favorite locally created vodkas but how they are made is what’s so unique and alluring. Headquartered in Austin with a mission to craft a conscious cocktail through label transparency, organic ingredients, and sustainable agriculture practices to protect our environment. We are proud to be Austin’s First Organic Vodka! Custom created cocktails were created by the Frankly team. You can taste the difference! Each flavor is delicious and fun. My absolute favorite is strawberry! Try them all!
On Saturday night, the wildly popular Rock Your Taco Event took place where twelves chefs duke it out for the best taco chosen by the crowd of hungry foodies. Along with the tacos, we got to drink lots of tequila cocktails made with Casamigos Tequila.
Here’s the list of taco talent! All the tacos were delicious and we ate our fill. But there could only be one winner and that was Shion Aikawa of Ramen Tatsu-Ya. Check out the photos of some of the taco creations below!
Jason Dady makes Big Red & Barbacoa tacos
Dawn Burrell creates a puffy taco.
And, the winners are Shion Aikawa Ramen Tatsu-Ya!
Another local brewery shines at the festival! We love our Twisted X Brewing Company !
Oak & Eden hosted a Bourbon tasting for attendees to experience the efficacy of their in-bottle finishing process. Attendees had the opportunity to taste their flagship expression – Bourbon & Spire, their seasonal Cabernet finished bourbon – Bourbon & Vine, and sample one of their signature cocktails called the Mr. Evans. By tasting these bourbons side-by-side, guests will have the opportunity to experience the impact in-bottle finishing makes on the final flavor profile of the whiskey.
How about amazing pizza! Backspace Pizza that has a mobile catering service!
Backspace can bring the party to you with our catering options, sometimes even same day! Want even more of a unique dining experience? Check out our incredible mobile pizza oven – where we bring the oven straight to your neighborhood, office, or wherever you are hosting. Their catering team does all the work so you can sit back and enjoy the party!
Criterion Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand is a beautiful, crisp wine from New Zealand. Their soil, climate and water in this area create a notable and distinctive white wine like no other.
Walking around the tents you will quickly realize there are so many wines to sample it’s literally dizzying! So, you have to pace yourself and enjoy the food along with all of the amazing wines featured at the festival. One of my favorite varietals is Sauvignon Blanc and here is a great example of how fantastic this grape can be!
There’s a new whiskey in town and it’s Landry Distillery!
Home of Oaks Rye & Stakes Bourbon and Bred in Austin, Texas. Check them out on Instagram!
Gorgeous Santa Ema wines from Chile near perfect wines because the terroir where the grapes are grown in this area are near perfect conditions for optimal growth, flavor and character. We love Chilean wines!
California-grown wines from Prescription Vineyards are beautiful and bold representations of what a great Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon can be! Pair up your next seafood, chicken or steak dinner with these awesome California wines!
WOW! I love mezcal and was excited to experience Dos Hombres Mezcal.
A unique blend of the finest Espadin agave, hand-selected from the hillsides of a small village in Oaxaca. Dos Hombres presents an appealing fragrance and a rich taste that engages the palate, ensuring the distinctive smoothness of our brand.
Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul We found the best Mezcal we’ve ever tasted.
“We started Dos Hombres to create a Mezcal that we thought was perfect. A unique blend of the finest Espadin agave, hand-selected from the hillsides of a small village in Oaxaca, Mexico.”
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