Wine tastings come and go, and while most are a good opportunity to taste a wide range of wines of a given kind or from a specific place, but on occasion they have something more to recommend them than simply the chance to educate your palate.

The Monterey Wine Festival is a great chance to taste a lot of interesting wines from a lesser know wine region, both from local producers, and many other wineries that make wine from grapes sourced in the region.

But as far as I’m concerned, the real reason to attend the Monterey Wine Festival is the change to drink wine in front of this:

While most wine tastings are held in quite unremarkable settings, I can hardly think of a cooler place to taste a bunch of wines and eat some good food than amidst the stunning natural beauty of the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

There will be an oyster bar (of course), nearly 400 wines, and food from the area’s best restaurants. Slurp down some oysters with the sea otters, and then nibble on some tuna tartar while watching…. tuna swim by the big bay window.

Proceeds from the event benefit the National Restaurant Educational Foundation, which provides scholarships for needy students who are trying to go to culinary school.

Monterey Wine Festival
October 1, 2009 7:30 PM – 10:30 PM
Monterey Bay Aquarium
886 Cannery Row Monterey, CA 93940

and

October 2, 2009, 5:00 PM – 9:00 PM
The Hyatt Regency, Monterey
1 Old Golf Course Road , Monterey, CA 93940

Tickets for the event are $99 and they should be purchased in advance online.