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The 3 Best Wine Festivals in Mississippi

Charl Joost
Last Updated: July 31st, 2023

A wine festival is an event in which wineries of a particular region or theme and other vendors and sponsors are invited to showcase their wines for a day in a specific location.

Usually, the events include booths from several local wineries and may also have food vendors and other types of vendors, such as companies that provide services related to wine-making or wine-pairing suggestions.

Wine festivals are a fun way to experience a variety of wines while also supporting local businesses. These festivals are an excellent opportunity to discover new flavors, but they’re also a safe way to drink without the worry of over-indulging.

They are a place to try an assortment of new wines and an excellent opportunity to reacquaint yourself with some old favorites.

In Mississippi, wine festivals have been popping up since the turn of the century and continue to flourish. Some great wine festivals occur throughout the year, from the Mississippi Delta to the Gulf Coast and everywhere in between.

Wine festivals in Mississippi provide an excellent excuse for people to get together, sample some great wines, eat delicious food and listen to music. Let’s take a look at some of the best wine festivals the state has to offer.

The Top Wine Festivals in Mississippi

  1. Mississippi Food & Wine Festival
  2. Sante South Wine Festival
  3. Natchez Food & Wine Festival

1. Mississippi Food & Wine Festival

mississippi food and wine festival

As one of the first-ever Mississippi food & wine festivals, MS Food & Wine Festival is a three-day occasion that brings renowned cooks from Mississippi and its surrounding towns together for exclusive dinners held at numerous Jackson spots.

The Mississippi Craft Beer Festival, which is currently in its eighth year and represents the festival’s second-night focal point, serves as a foundation for the Mississippi Food and Wine Festival. This further enhances the delectable appeal with a series of private chef meals and a magnificent tasting finale.

The first night blesses those attending the festival with features of two private chef dinners at Lou’s Full-Serv in Belhaven and The Cedars in Fondren.

For the second evening, two more dinners are enjoyed at Albert’s at Parlor Market (in the restaurant’s personal dining area) inside the city and at Brent’s in Fondren, as well as the Mississippi Craft Beer Festival, which is held outdoors underneath a tent on Duling Avenue.

On the closing night, the Grand Tasting finale is held in the same tent on Duling Avenue.

The inauguration of a fresh food and wine festival as one of Mississippi’s first food halls demonstrates Jackson’s desire to grow into a more popular culinary attraction.

Ticket prices for each of these dinners can be costly due to the limited seating. The festival pays homage to Mississippi’s agricultural resources and invites chefs from previous dinners and other cooks from the Southern food scene, mixologists, and winery representatives.

The festival’s exclusive chef dinners, which can only accommodate 90 guests, will include five courses and wine pairings.

However, it’s not all about indulgence either. The festival is also impactful in supporting nonprofits in the food service industry. Participating chefs and restaurants donate a portion of their profits to a charity.

Ultimately, the MS Food & Wine Festival offers private dinners for an extravagant deep investigation into Mississippi’s food scene. However, the festival’s food component still caters to a fancy but more relaxed experience.

2. Sante South Wine Festival

sante south wine festival

The Sante South Wine Festival was founded in 2006 and has gradually expanded to become the most extensive wine and culinary event in Mississippi.

The festival is a tourism event and a worldwide demonstration highlighting some of the best wines from around the globe and some of Mississippi’s most excellently delectable cuisines.

Sante South is a culinary exhibition that features food from the best eateries in the state, wine from some of the best locals on earth, and benefits a worthwhile cause.

In its 17th year of running and is one of Mississippi’s most prominent and oldest foods and wine festivals, wine connoisseurs can talk with vintners from all over the globe and sample countless numbers of their creative works at the festival.

Attendees have a rare chance to interact with upmarket vintners face-to-face and sample well over 120 extraordinary wines and beautiful foods from various Mississippi restaurants.

The event was held on the 7th of May, 2022, at Renaissance at Colony Park in conjunction with the Ridgeland Fine Arts Festival.

The Sante South and Ridgeland Fine Arts Festival combine with The Natchez Trace Century Ride as an iconic series of events that comprise Ridgeland’s Art, Wine & Wheels weekend.

Like the Mississippi Food & Wine Festival, Sante South pays tribute to a nonprofit organization.

The organizer and founder, Norm Rush of Beaumad & Associates, seeks to promote the provision of services and support, educational material, and investigations for Alzheimer’s disease in the state of Mississippi through the MIND Center of the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

They have significantly contributed to the fundraising of over $750,000.

3. Natchez Food & Wine Festival

natchez food and wine festival

The Natchez Food and Wine Festival is among some of the most eagerly awaited events in the state of Mississippi.

The itinerary will take you through one incredible atmosphere and an extraordinary experience into the next. You can be expected to be surrounded by many of the most renowned chefs and restaurants in the state while indulging in the best cuisine, wine, and amusement.

Renowned chefs congregate in Natchez every summer to put on multi-course dinners in old mansions, gradual dining experiences, fine dining tastings, and laid-back social gatherings that take advantage of the city’s breathtaking riverfront environment.

For the summer Food & Wine Festival, foodies, restaurant owners, winemakers, and craft beer brewers alike travel from all over the country to Great River Road, Natchez.

The first night features a sizable taster’s fair called Tastings Along the Mississippi River, where numerous local chefs and eateries participate. Leading local chefs host articulate feasts in magnificent Natchez mansions the following night.

It’s an opportunity to spend the weekend in Natchez, the earliest known permanent town along the Mississippi River and residence of more than 500 historic buildings.

About The Author

Charl Joost

Charl is a trainer, public speaker, and professional writer. While he has been coached to niche down, he has many passions. These include golf, gardening, technology, and a decent cup of coffee or two. Charl loves to learn about new products and tries everything he writes about.

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