How many prominent wine festivals hold two events the same year? Maybe not any – except the Park City Wine Festival. They hold one in the fall and one in the spring, both in the historic, chic, mountain town of Park City, Utah. Either Festival is a great way to take in a destination worth visiting on its own, while enabling attendees to explore wines (and spirits) from around the country. They can do that through events like a series of wine and food pairing meals at local restaurants (a fun way to get to know local chefs and their restaurants) and at Grand Tasting events where you can talk to the wine makers and distributors while sampling their products. Click on the player below to join me and my returning guest, Kristen Slater, the organizer of the Park City Wine Festivals, as we talk about what’s new for this 2026 spring event. 

Save this Real Food Traveler Podcast episode to Pinterest to help you plan your visit to the Park City Wine Festival’s Spring Edition. Graphic by RealFoodTraveler.com.

2026 marks the second year for the Spring Edition of this popular event. Last year, more than 1000 came and more are expected this year. Through the various events, attendees can try wines from more than 50 different wineries while also talking to the winemakers themselves in many cases, learning more about their wineries, the terroir, their methods and latest offerings. My guest, Kristen Slater, of Team Player Productions, gives us her insider’s look at the Festival.

Kristen tells us about the different events, some of which are more intimate, like a wine tasting combined with snowshoeing or paired lunches and dinners at local restaurants to larger events like the two Grand Tasting sessions.

Paired lunches and dinners at local restaurants are a fun way to meet fellow foodies while getting to know local restaurants. Photo by Ryan Cox Photography.

Hungry for more? What to Know-Before-You-Go to the Festival.

At the Grand Tasting, there will be some fun activations included like a Bubble Bar for sipping sparkling varietals; Wines Around the World, to learn about wines from Spain, Italy and France; and Two Truths & A Wine, a sommelier-led game to test attendees’ palates.

The Grand Tasting events are an opportunity to explore new wines and meet the people behind them. Photo courtesy of Park City Wine Festival.

New this year, is the Après Paired event in a walkabout format, where guests can enjoy food from local restaurants specifically paired with wines from the participating wineries. It’s a fun way to see how food affects wine and wine affects food in the best ways.

In the podcast, Kristen gives us an idea of just what goes into planning the Park City Wine Festivals. Hint: it’s A LOT! Hearing about it will give attendees even more appreciation for the event as they take it all in.

Kristen gets personally involved in the planning and setup of the events she and the company she co-owns with her husband, Team Player Productions, puts on. Photo courtesy of Team Player Productions.

Kristen also shares some really helpful tips for getting the most out of attending the Park City Wine Festival, including what kind of footwear to plan for and where to head to first at the Grand Tasting events. By the way, be sure you bring a physical ID with you, that has your date of birth on it, like a driver’s license – the State of Utah requires them to be scanned in order to consume alcohol (you’ll need that at any business that sells liquor throughout Utah). Good to know!

One of the best ways to enjoy the Park City Wine Festival: Spring Edition the most is by taking advantage of our exclusive discount promo code, realfoodtraveler, to save $10 on every ticket to every event! A huge thank you to Kristen for providing this generous opportunity to our listeners and readers!

To learn more about the Park City Wine Festival, head to our Know-Before-You-Go article which presents all the essential information you need to plan your visit, including links to every event.

Enjoy this and all of the Real Food Traveler Podcasts on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon Music and many other places you like to listen to your favorite podcasts.

-Courtney Drake-McDonough, host of the Real Food Traveler Podcast and publisher/managing editor of RealFoodTraveler.com