Inaugural Austin Food and Wine Festival: April 27-29, Austin, TX

The quantity and quality of food and wine events in this country continues to improve with leaps and bounds. Once upon a time there were only one or two major (as in the kind of events that involve A-list celebrity chefs) food and wine festivals in the country. Now there seems to be a great event in most of the country's culinary capitals.

This year we get to add Austin, Texas to that list, as Austin hosts its first annual Food and Wine Festival. In typical texas fashion, it's not only big, but better. Because what could make your usual food and wine festival with celeb chefs, wine personalities, classes, tastings, and parties even better? Why, world class music, of course! Knowing a trip to Austin would never be complete without music, the organizers have gotten Lucinda Williams and Mayer Hawthorne on board to give concerts during the event.

What's not to love, then? Three days of eating, drinking, learning, listening, and rocking out in one of this country's coolest cities. The festivities kick off Friday April 27th with a big event in Republic Square Park. Saturday features a bevy of seminars, tastings, and the grand tasting tent, where scores of food vendors, wineries, and spirits manufacturers will let you sample their wares. And there's more of the same on Sunday the 29th.

Put on by the folks at Food & Wine Magazine, this event is a Tex-ified version of their Aspen Food & Wine Classic that is sure to go down well in the Lone Star State. Check the event web site for all the details.

The Inaugural 2012 Austin Food &Amp; Wine Festival
April 27-29, 2012
Auditorium Shores (map)
Republic Square Park (map)
Austin, Texas 78701

Tickets come in two varieties, the Weekender, which allows access to the grand tasting and seminars, at $250, and the VIP pass, which gets you into all the more exclusive parties, etc. for $850. Both are a decent value, if my experience at the Aspen Food & Wine Classic is any gauge. Tickets can be purchased on the event site.