Overall attendance for the four-day event was highest on record
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 23, 2015
SEATTLE – Taste Washington — the nation’s largest single-region wine and food event — reported its highest overall attendance in 2015. The 18th annual event took place March 26-29 and drew more than 6,300 people over the course of four days. The weekend’s educational seminars led by sommeliers, winemakers and beverage writers also sold out.
Organizers attributed the growth to the expansion of the event to include new activities such as the Taste Washington on the Farm series, which brought wine and food lovers to local farms for interactive farm-to-table lunches, and The New Vintage, which featured celebrity chefs, wine pairings and a national deejay. Another favorite in the weekend lineup was the Red & White Party, an upscale evening hosted by AQUA by El Gaucho featuring highly-rated, hard-to-find wines. At this more formal affair, guests dressed up for the theme of red and white.
Taste Washington 2015 by the numbers:
- Overall attendance: 6,307
- Grand Tasting attendance: 4,991
- Wineries at Grand Tasting: 234
- Wines poured: 800
- Number of pours: 200,000
Tickets to next year’s event will be announced this fall. Taste Washington is produced by Visit Seattle in partnership with Washington State Wine. To learn more, visit www.tastewashington.org.
About Taste Washington:
Taste Washington is the largest single-region wine and food event in the United States, featuring more than 225 Washington State wineries and more than 65 Pacific Northwest restaurants. The 2015 Taste Washington welcoming sponsor is Alaska Airlines; the premier sponsors are Alaska Airlines Visa Signature Card, Muckleshoot Casino, Seattle Met and Total Wine & More; and the event feature is Stella Artois. Taste Washington attracts more than 5,000 wine and food enthusiasts to the Seattle area. The Washington State Wine Commission launched Taste Washington in 1998 and is now produced by Visit Seattle. For more information, visit www.tastewashington.org.
About Visit Seattle
Visit Seattle, a private, nonprofit marketing organization, has served as Seattle/King County’s official destination marketing organization (DMO) for more than 50 years. The goal of these marketing efforts is to enhance the employment opportunities and economic prosperity of the region. For more information, visit www.visitseattle.org.
About Washington State Wine:
Washington State Wine represents every licensed winery and every wine grape grower in Washington State. Guided by an appointed board, Washington State Wine provides a marketing platform to raise positive awareness of the Washington State wine industry and generate greater demand for its wines. Funded almost entirely by the industry through assessments based on grape and wine sales, Washington State Wine is a state government agency, established by the legislature in 1987. For more information, visit www.washingtonwine.org.
