Tickets for the 36th Annual GrapeFest® – A Texas Wine Experience, presented by Bank of the West, are now on sale. GrapeFest is the largest wine festival of the Southwest and boasts the largest consumer-judged wine competition in the nation.
This year’s festival will be held September 15, 16, 17 and 18, 2022, in historic Grapevine, featuring the very best of Texas-grown wines as well as exquisite selections from guest wineries in the California Sonoma Valley and the Italian Sicily region. Visitors won’t want to miss signature events People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic, the Liberty Park Plaza Wine Experience and Champagne Terrace, as well as area wine pavilions and award-winning winery tasting rooms on Grapevine’s Urban Wine Trail. Not a lover of wine? Alternative adult beverages such as craft brews, hard seltzers and ciders will also be available at booths throughout the festival.
All New for GrapeFest 2022
New to GrapeFest this year is the addition of VIP Experiences— exclusive tasting sessions and offerings—that will provide festival-goers additional comforts and amenities such as a private tent with limited capacity for a more intimate tasting experience, deluxe seating, gourmet charcuterie boards, live entertainment and more. VIP offerings will be available at both the People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic and Liberty Park Plaza Wine Experience.
GrapeFest is a celebration of Texas wines. Home to more than 400 wineries and over 4,400 acres of vineyards producing nearly three million gallons of Texas wine each year, Texas is the fifth largest wine-producing state in the United States. Grapevine has earned its reputation as the headquarters of Texas’ wine industry, home to a vibrant Urban Wine Trail along Historic Main Street that offers daily wine tastings and special events throughout the year.
The 36th Annual GrapeFest will again host the People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic, a competition of more than 30 Texas wineries in which festival-goers will have the chance to sample over 100 of Texas’ finest wines and vote for their favourites. This signature event, located in the Historic Cotton Belt Railroad District, is one of the most popular at GrapeFest and is the largest consumer-judged wine competition in the nation. Guests will receive a wine reference guide describing featured wines along with a ballot. Wine is judged across 10 categories (White: Dry, Semi Sweet, Sweet, Blends, Blush/ Rose; Red: Light, Medium, Bold, Sweet and Red Blends), and winners will be announced on Sunday, September 18 at 5 p.m. People’s Choice will host eight 90-minute Tasting Sessions Thursday through Sunday and three VIP Tasting Sessions on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The Liberty Park Plaza Wine Experience, sponsored by Gaylord Texan Resort, will offer an international wine tasting experience featuring Sicily, Italy and Sonoma County, California, with a backdrop of live music. Guests may purchase a wine flight Tasting Card of six one-ounce pours from a selection of 12 wines from the two featured wine regions. Tasting Cards ($18 in advance or $20 at the festival) include a souvenir wine glass. VIP Tasting Cards ($50) include premiere seating in the Gaylord Texan Lounge (first come, first served), light snacks and a souvenir wine glass, as well as two glasses of special wines from the private bar.
Champagne Terrace, sponsored by Hilton DFW Lakes, returns to the shade of the oak trees in Weems Alley, located between the historic Palace Theatre and Grapevine City Hall. Guests will enjoy a beautiful garden-like setting and sophisticated ambience of classical music under the porte cochère as they sip sparkling mimosas, poinsettias by the glass and a variety of champagnes. Table seating will be available on a first come, first served basis.
For some wine-themed festival fun, GrapeFest will host a Champagne Cork Shoot-Off, sponsored by Texas Gun Experience. This ticketed event will take place near the Grapevine Mills Main Stage at Franklin St. by Tolbert’s. Champagne bottles will be placed on a stand and participants will push the cork out of the bottle towards a target. Shots will be measured on accuracy, and prizes (including cash prizes!) will be awarded to daily shoot-off winners and the Grand Shoot-Off Champion. Tickets are $5 per person for a single shot or $20 for five shots.
Guests can also sign up to compete in the popular GrapeStomp competition located between the Ole Grapevine Cigar Shop and City Hall. Two-person teams swap turns at stomping approximately 18 pounds of grapes for two minutes, and officials measure the extracted juice. Prizes for the champions are awarded hourly. Scores are kept for the entire weekend with a Grand Champion Stomp-Off on Sunday, in which the winners will be awarded the coveted “Purple Foot,” a glass sculpture from Grapevine’s Vetro Glass Blowing Studio. The entry fee is $10 per team (contestants must be over 13 to compete).
GrapeFest caters to family-friendly fun! This year’s festival will offer plenty of parent- and kid-friendly activities, with tons of fun to discover along the Carnival midway, a Kid Zone and all along Historic Main Street. Guests can take a spin on the giant Ferris wheel, catch thrills on the many carnival rides and try their luck along the midway games. After working up an appetite, they can top off their winnings with ice-cold drinks and classic festival bites like corn dogs, turkey legs, nachos, funnel cakes, snow cones and popcorn. In a new location, the Kid Zone will offer interactive activities from LEGOLAND Discovery Center, SEA LIFE Aquarium and Peppa Pig, as well as arts and crafts provided by 121 Community Church, inspiring educational experiences with House of Shine, face painting and more. Festival-goers can then walk across the Grapevine Vintage Railroad train platform to European-style food hall Harvest Hall, and for $3 visit the observation level of the Tower at Grapevine Main Station, located at 815 S. Main St., for a 150-foot-high bird’s eye view of festival grounds from the south end of Historic Main Street.
Shopping and Dining Along Historic Main Street
Each year, GrapeFest brings in artisans and marketplace vendors from all over the metroplex, and beyond. Attendees can stroll to the north end of Historic Main Street to find a marketplace of handmade treasures and unique gifts, as well as gourmet goodies highlighting all things Texas—from local honey to barbecue sauces, salsas, baked goods, candy, craft sodas and more. The flavors of the festival aren’t limited to street vendors though—guests can sit down and relax at any one of Historic Main Street’s famous restaurants, from Piaf Kitchen’s Mediterranean coastal cuisine to Farina’s Winery & Café (try the spaghetti pizza) to the Chicago-style Weinberger’s Deli, with over 120 sandwiches—and many more. Additionally, the boutiques, galleries, jewelry stores and other shops lining Main Street will be open, offering special deals and incentives.
Music fans get ready for a show. No matter if you favour jazz, blues, country western, bluegrass, modern funk or even hard-core classic rock, Grapevine offers something for every type of music buff. Whether you prefer acoustic music in a coffee shop-type setting or a wall-to-wall concert in a wild setting, you can see both local and national acts here.
So, whether you throw on your black concert t-shirt or pull on your cowboy boots, be sure to make your way to Grapevine and listen to the vibrant sounds of the city where live music is always happening.
