Steamboat Springs is one of Colorado’s most historic mountain towns full of cowboy culture is also a premier ski resort. It’s a wonderful place to visit and an even better place to host the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. Get a glimpse of it in the following article and episode of the Real Food Traveler Podcast.

Save this article to help you plan your visit to the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival in Colorado. Photos courtesy of Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. Graphic by RealFoodTraveler.com.

Let’s see: Beautiful location? Steamboat Springs, Colorado so, check. Food + wine + festival? Um, check, check and check. But there’s more to the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival than the sum of its excellent parts. The event is also about connections. The format of each of the events allows attendees to meet the people behind the food and drink they are experiencing, putting real humans behind a good time having delicious food and drink. In this sponsored article, find out what you need to know before going to the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival INCLUDING the discount code to use to save 10% off tickets!

And speaking of human connection, click the player below to listen to my podcast conversation with Nicole Jarman who is behind the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. There, she shares some great insider tips for making the most of the festival.

Steamboat Food & Wine Festival: Your Know-Before-You-Go Guide

WHEN IS IT?

October 1-4, 2026

WHERE IS IT HELD?

Events happen in a variety of locations, including a ranch, restaurants and even a park.

Make the most of your time with a stay at one of the Festival’s Lodging Partners which offer special rates for attendees. Use this link to help plan your visit to Steamboat Springs.

Hiking is just one of the activities (involving food and wine) at the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. Photo courtesy of the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival.

WHAT HAPPENS THERE?

The Steamboat Food & Wine Festival is about respected chefs, winemakers, producers and people together to share what they love, with the local ingredients, the season and the character of Steamboat shaping what’s on the table and in the glass.

There are receptions, seminars and multi-course pairing meals plus some surprises like fly fishing and hiking as part of it all.

While you can purchase event tickets individually, to help attendees get a well-rounded set of experiences from the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival, Nicole and her team have created different set-price packages to choose from. You’ll see them on the Festival website but they provide some set events plus lots of opportunities for attendees to choose exactly the events they want.

Taste a wide variety of wines throughout the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival and meet the people behind the wineries. Photo courtesy of Steamboat Food & Wine Festival.

Here are a few descriptions:
Local Harvest Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 1, is hosted at Gravity Haus White Rabbit Tavern and celebrates ingredients, growers and the culinary community of the Yampa Valley.

What You Should be Drinking, Friday, Oct. 2, is a no BS experience-driven seminar about looking beyond the usual to what’s exciting right now in the wine world.

Fly Fishing, Friday, Oct. 2, happens at Marabou Ranch where attendees can enjoy the sport, some solitude and gorgeous scenery followed by a relaxing time riverside with light fare and an après-fishing tasting led by Attimo winemaker Jon Schlegel, pairing wines and fish tales.

Grand Tasting, Saturday, Oct. 3, held at Steamboat Square at the base of the mountain, brings together chefs cooking, winemakers and distillers pouring and guests taking it all in while making connections with the people behind it all.

Nightcap: Fried Chicken & Bubbles, Saturday, Oct. 3, with Veuve Clicquot Champagne combines elegance with comfort food and a light night energy.

Last Call: Bagels & Bevies, Sunday, Oct. 4, wraps it all up in a restorative way with fresh juices, n/a options, plus coffee cocktails and bubbles with bagels and housemade smears and freshly-smoked fish. It’s the perfect way to say farewell to new friends and fortify for the trip home.

Wine pairing dinners are part of the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. Photo courtesy of the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival.

WHO IS BEHIND STEAMBOAT FOOD & WINE FESTIVAL?

See who you’ll be meeting, getting to know and benefitting from the talents of at Steamboat Food & Wine Festival with this handy section of the website.

Jarman & Co., who produces the event, has their own lineage to be very proud of. They are also the folks behind Telluride Reserve and several fantastic Farmers Markets including the Breckenridge Farmers Market and Central Park Farmers Market. Clearly, they know what they’re doing.

Nicole Jarman, the founder and executive director of the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival. Photo courtesy of the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival.

HERE’S HOW TO GET TICKETS AND OUR EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT CODE:

Start with the Steamboat Food & Wine Festival website, peruse the various events and take a look at the packages too in case you’d rather bundle some events together.

Then, apply code “RFT26” at checkout for the 10% off to be applied to your total.

Our thanks to Nicole and Jarman & Co. for providing our listeners and readers with the 10% off code and for sponsoring this article and podcast episode.

-By Courtney Drake-McDonough, Publisher & Managing Editor, RealFoodTraveler.com