logo ×

Kapalua Wine & Food Festival

This summer the country’s longest-running wine and food event returns to the Maui coast with the 37th annual Kapalua Wine and Food Festival. Held June 8-10, 2018, at the magical Kapalua Resort, this event is the premier gathering of oenophiles, wine-enthusiasts, and culinary connoisseurs in the Hawaiian Islands. Celebrate the simple pleasures in life while indulging in the gourmet, all beneath dazzling Maui skies and backlit by fiery Hawaiian sunsets.

The Event

Held on the grounds of the world-renowned Kapalua Resort, the event offers spectacular views of the Maui coast, open-air tasting areas and wine gardens, scenic pathways through landscaped grounds, and a relaxed resort-style atmosphere. Vendor booths, festively decorated with string lights create an elegant ambiance as the sun sets, and booths organized by varietal and vineyard make it easy to find your preferred drink. Tasting and informational seminars are held throughout the festival, and visitors can purchase individual tickets to each or a festival pass for the entire 3-day event. So whether you want to experience everything or focus solely on the Santa Maria Valley appellation in central California, the unique terroir of Old World Europe, or the delicacies of Champagne and Caviar, you are sure to find interesting (and delicious) events to your liking.

The Hawaiian Wine

As a celebration of the bounty of the land, you can count on delicious offerings from some of the world’s best vineyards and culinary masterminds. Over 100 wineries will be on hand featuring their best varietals and the cream of their 2018 Hawaiian Wine crops, including names like Benvolio, La Crema, Kettmeir, Taittinger, and Stag’s Leap. Be sure to check back closer to the event for the full lineup, with links to all your favorite participants.

The Food

No celebration of wine is complete without an equal appreciation of the food that pairs so perfectly with it. An entire lineup of celebrity chefs including Cat Cora and Hubert Keller will be on-site for the festival, preparing special tasting menus to pair with your wines. Local featured partner chefs will also be on-hand, serving up dishes with an emphasis on Maui’s fresh local ingredients. The highlight of the food program is the Seafood Festival as the event’s closing gala event. Fourteen of Maui’s best restaurants will compete for the “Best of the Fest” award in a seafood showcase competition highlighting their ingenuity and creativity. No matter who takes the prize, it’s the diners who win. Don’t miss it!

With beautiful beach homes and vacation rentals just minutes away from Kapalua, I Love Hawai‘i is the perfect place to stay during your visit to the Kapalua Wine and Food Festival. Reserve your accommodations online today and save, so you can check out that tasting session of Pinot Noirs you’ve had your eye on. Go ahead, you deserve it!