Uncork your palate: What to expect at Richmond's Virginia Wine Expo

RICHMOND, Va. -- The Virginia Wine Expo returns to Richmond on Friday and offers 10 days of delights for wine and food enthusiasts.

Cheryl Felker, the event's wine curator, said the expo will showcase an impressive selection of wines, whiskeys, and culinary delights from local and international vendors.

“Virginia Wine Expo showcases wines and whiskeys and food, smoked foods from all over Richmond and pretty much the wines are international,” Felker noted.

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Beginning on March 2, attendees will have the opportunity to enjoy signature dinners at local restaurants, featuring unique pairings and themes. Some highlighted dinners include a wine and cognac experience at ML Steak, a Bacchanalia dinner at the historic Mill at Fine Creek featuring Eight to Z Winery and a Tequila dinner at Casa del Barco in Short Pump.

In addition to the dinners, the expo will feature a highly anticipated event called SMOKED, taking place at the Dewey Gottwald Center. This experience will allow attendees to taste around 80 whiskeys and distilled spirits, along with 28 different wines, including many from Virginia, all paired with smoked foods sourced from local Richmond restaurants.

The Walk-Around Grand Tastings at Main Street Station will offer a "Sip and Shop" extravaganza, where guests can sample specialty foods and artisan baked goods.

"We're going to have also 16 distilleries here that they can taste and purchase, whiskeys from if they would like, and we have about 35 Virginia wineries that will be here showcasing their wines," Felker said.

For those interested in deepening their knowledge of wine, the Virginia Wine Expo will offer Masterclass seminars focusing on regions such as Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Bartholomew Broadbent, a world-renowned importer, will teach two classes, alongside a saki class that is new to this year’s program.

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The Virginia Wine Expo will once again support the Richmond Metropolitan Habitat for Humanity.

“Any donation we get goes into our home building process... to keeping the home affordable for our future homeowners for the long run," Lauren Marshall, the organization's director of communications, said. "We're grateful for any type of partnership that we can have that gets us involved in the community in a different way and helps expose people to the mission of Richmond Habitat."

With a total of 10 days featuring 345 wines, 140 distilled spirits from nine countries and states, and 24 events, the Virginia Wine Expo promises a wonderful experience for guests to explore the diverse tastes of Richmond.

Click here for more information about the Virginia Wine Expo, Friday, Feb. 28 through Sunday, March 9.

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