There are wine tastings, and then there are wine tastings. The annual Wine & Spirits Magazine Top 100 Tasting is quite possibly my favorite big public wine tasting each year in San Francisco. Why? Because the quality of wines poured at this event is always second to none. Some of them are wines that many of us rarely get the chance to taste, because they are either too expensive or too difficult to find. Many others are simply just great examples of their particular region or grape variety.

The event has increased its focus on food over the years, and now features tasty bites from the magazine’s top restaurant picks for San Francisco, which means that when you need to take a break from drinking great wine and get something in your stomach, you don’t have to settle for mere crackers and cheese. No, you can feast on slow-roasted pork shoulder and polenta or freshly shucked oysters, for instance.

Held at the top of the Metreon building in San Francisco, which is a great event space, the tasting has plenty of space to spread out, and great views of Yerba Buena Gardens and the city skyline. Dare I say this is the one wine tasting event that is worthy of being a date night?

Whether you’re there to flirt with a date over fine wine, or to anti-socially taste and take notes on new and exciting finds for your cellar, it’s an event worth going to.

Like many such events, a portion of the proceeds will benefit Baykeeper, an environmental non-profit focused on the health of the San Francisco bay ecosystem.

Sadly, this is the first year of many that I will not be able to attend, as I’ll be out of the country. So you’ll just have to go and tell me what was great!

2015 Wine & Spirits Magazine’s Top 100 Tasting
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Cityview at the Metreon
135 Fourth Street, 4th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94103
415-255-7736 ext. 2 for more info

Tickets for general admission run $125 and are very worth it. For a limited time, you can purchase “pre-sale” tickets at a discounted price of $100, so get crackin’! A limited number of VIP tickets are available for $170 that provide advance entry (at 5:30 PM) and access to special wines. This event will likely sell out, so I recommend buying tickets ASAP. They can be purchased online at the event web site.