Upcoming Utah beer and wine events for your diary

I wrote about Eat Drink SLC just a few days ago, but here I am again with more event news for you. We’re right smack dab in the middle of prime food and drink event season now folks. They’re coming thick and fast. If you’re looking for something plated rather than patioed, here are a few more solid looking events coming up.

Avenues Proper

The always enjoyable cellar series of dinners are retuning to the menu at Avenues Proper. The long running format sees the AP team pull up several aged brews from their private stash, to pair with a specifically crafted meal. The brews come from many of Utah’s finest craft producers, not necessarily the Proper team.

The whole affair is typically enjoyed on the bar side of the business, led by some informal chat from the Avenues’ team. The prices are as keen as the menu reads fun. Case in point, the upcoming July 16th dinner (6.00 p.m. onwards) is priced just $45 for food and $25 for beer. Menu as follows:

• Smoked oysters with chermoula
  • 2017 Uinta Cucumber Farmhouse Ale – aged in gin barrels
• Pickled ginger sala, butter lettuce, citrus supremes, wasabi dressing
  • 2017 Uinta 24th Birthday suit – sour cherry blonde ale
• Duck breast, espresso rub, roasted vegetables, pomegranate molasses
  • 2018 Uinta Crimson Tart – pomegranate Berliner wiesse
• Plantain foster, caramelized banana, fried plantain, pistachio, rum reduction, Pow Pow coconut kirsch ice cream
  • 2017 Squatters 5th Element – farmhouse ale

Pago On Main

New wines from Italy will be the central focus of this Terrestoria Imports led wine dinner at Pago On Main. Presented by Terrestoria founder Stephanie Cuadra cost is $55 for food and $45 for wine. Held on the evening of July 30th from 6.00 p.m. the menu is as follows:

• Tuna tartare, raw tuna, apple, black garlic aioli, shallot, quail egg
  • Tenuta Madres ‘I sognatori’ 2020
• Cauliflower carbonara, guaciale, pecorino, egg yolk, black pepper, pangrattato
  • La Sorte Cuadra ‘silos’ 2015
• Rotolo pasta, English peas, local mushrooms, garlic cream
  • Chiara Condello ‘le lucciole’ 2021
• Beef & broccoli, cheddar fondue
  • Famiglia Demelas ‘giogu’ 2020
• Flourless chocolate torte, mint & white chocolate namelaka, blackberry jam, cacao nibs

Franck’s

July 24th sees Franck’s team-up with local liquor maker Holystone Distillery for their yearly “locals only dinner”. This year’s partnership will offer a four course meal put together with multiple local Utah products; not least several craft cocktails relying on Holystone’s liquor. Price is $130 for food and cocktails, or $80 for food only. The dinner starts at 6.00 p.m. with the menu reading as follows:

• Mandi’s garden heirloom tomatoes, Caputo’s burrata cheese, grilled spring onion XO, Burgundy agua chili, Utah peach, fried pecan, patio sorrel
• Crispy skin trout, green garlic aioli, bahn mi pickles, sun choke textures, Franck’s pho herbs
• Bullard Farm’s pork belly “burnt end”, caramel apple potato salad, roasted radish, sour apple, house kimchi – BBQ, Utah corn cake with miso butter
• Salted Utah honey tart, sugared cherries, cherry cream Anglaise, luxardo cream

Park City / Deer Valley

This next crop comes by way of a few press releases, all with an eye on Summit county happenings over the coming weeks. Always a great excuse to beat the valley heat.

High West supper club

Wednesdays, 6.00 – 7.30 p.m.  The Refectory in Wanship prepares a mid-week supper club throughout the Summer season including three hearty courses of Western fare served family style. $65 per person. 

High West prix-fixe dinner

Wednesdays – Sundays, seatings at 5.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m. The Nelson Cottage by High West offers an evolving prix-fixe menu showcasing the best of Utah’s fresh, seasonal abundance. Each dinner is served with optional whiskey pairings to complement each course, along with an ever-changing wine list available by the glass or bottle and a small selection of beers. $95 per person, with optional whiskey pairings starting at $50.

Hops on the hill at Stein Eriksen Lodge

Tuesday nights, July 11 – Aug 15, 6.00 – 8.30 p.m. Experience favorites from local craft breweries and some of chef Zane Holmquist’s best food pairings on the Flagstaff Deck on Tuesday nights throughout the Summer. The $80 ticket to these 21 and older events includes the food tasting and specialty beer tasting. A $40 food only ticket will be available for purchase at the door. Advance reservations are recommended as these events do sell out.

Park City wine festival

Park City Wine Festival has announced its experiential seminars for the 2023 festival, including “Art of Aperitivo: Negroni 101” hosted by Campari, a South American Hike and Lunch at the St. Regis Deer Valley, and a Portuguese Paradise lunch with Piattelli Vineyards. Park City Wine Festival is the ultimate food and wine festival that brings master winemakers and wine enthusiasts from around the world together in beautiful Park City, Utah from October 5-7. Tickets for the seminars, Grand Tastings, Best of Fest, and new Wine Is Blind event, are on sale now via Eventbrite. 

Nearly 20 events throughout three days will introduce guests to globally focused experiences. On Thursday, October 5, seminars include a Deer Valley DAOU Dinner at St. Regis Deer Valley with DAOU Vineyards, Best of Butcher’s Dinner at Butcher’s Chop House & Bar with MILA Family Vineyards, Montage Deer Valley Dinner with Arietta Wine, Better Off Red Powder Dinner at Powder Restaurant, Wild West of Wines Dinner at Grub Steak. On Friday, October 6, experiences include Champions of Chardonnay Wine Lunch with Jackson Family Wines at Riverhorse on Main, Portuguese Paradise Lunch at Hyatt Centric with SommSchool, Vintner’s Table: Wine Family Lunch at Boneyard Saloon with Cline Family Cellars, Pure Paso Picnic Hike & Lunch at Montage with J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines, and Italian Dreams Lunch at Glitretind. The weekend will cap off on Saturday, October 7 with South American Sips Hike & Lunch at St. Regis. Deer Valley with Piattelli Vineyards, Tale of Two Hemispheres Lunch New World vs. Old World Lunch with SommSchool, and Art of Aperitivo: Negroni 101 seminar. More seminars as well as participating restaurants and wineries will be announced in the coming days. 

“This year’s Park City Wine Festival is designed with a passport state of mind,” says Park City Wine Festival Events Director Kristen Slater. “We want guests to feel like they’re transported to a beachside party in Portugal, then whisked away to the depths of South America green spaces, followed by a leisurely Italian lunch and back to Utah – without ever needing to take out your passport.”

Park City Wine Festival allows imbibers to sip, swirl, and savor wine from more than 100 international wineries from California to France at the Grand Tastings, while taking in breathtaking views of Park City’s fall beauty. Mix and mingle with winemakers and vintners, immerse yourself in the world of wine during expertly paired lunches and dinners throughout the weekend, add some adventure with a paired wine hike, and participate in events like Wine Is Blind, a new collective experience that reveals your favorite wine without preconceived notions. 

In addition to the seminars, there are also a number of signature events throughout the weekend including the Best of Fest on Oct. 6, featuring the gems of the Grand Tasting during an intimate, all-inclusive evening tasting. New to 2023 is Wine is Blind on Oct. 6. We’re putting your taste buds to the test at the Park City Wine Festival. During this late-night, blind wine tasting you’ll get to know mystery wines and vote for your favorite based on the flavor profile alone. The wines presented are all 90+ point rated and will be concealed in mystery bags. Wear your cocktail attire and get ready to fall in love with a new wine—all without seeing the bottle first. The weekend is anchored by the Grand Tastings on October 6 and 7. Enjoy wines from 100+ wineries, while taking in scenic mountain views, dancing to live music and snacking on delectable small bites. Explore everything from fruit-forward sauvignon blancs and pinots, to rich cabernets and zinfandels. In addition to an impressive, curated selection of  wine, the Grand Tasting has hand crafted cocktails and local beer. Tickets are all-inclusive and cover the cost of all drinks and snacks.

Other useful links

• Free newsletter – signup and receive our weekly newsletter for free
• Food talk group – chew the fat with other like-minded Utah foodies over on Facebook.
• Best of SLC 2024 – what you can’t miss in the Beehive right now.

Stuart Melling

Hi, I’m Stuart, nice to meet you!  I’m the founder, writer and wrangler at Gastronomic SLC.  I’m a multiple-award winning journalist and have written in myopic detail about the Salt Lake City  dining scene for the better part of seventeen years.

I’ve worked extensively with multiple local publications from Visit Salt Lake to Salt Lake Magazine, not least helped to consult on national TV.   Pause those credits, yep, that’s me! I’m also a former restaurant critic of more than five years, working for the Salt Lake Tribune.    I’m largely fueled by a critical obsession with rice, alliteration and the use of big words I don’t understand.   What they’re saying about me: “Not inaccurate”, “I thought he was older”, “I don’t share his feelings”.

Want to know more? This is why I am the way I am.