Fancy winning yourself a free dinner with wine pairings by correctly answering ten fun wine-based quiz questions over dinner? Or like the sound of complimentary nibbles with a discounted wine-based tipple? Curious to discover the role wine has played in the evolution of cocktails, or to learn about the history of wine-making? Interested in what a self-guided wine tasting or wine trail might entail? Or ever wondered how to extract a glass of wine from a bottle without removing the cork?

These are just some of the exciting ‘Dublin Wine Experiences’ on offer throughout the first Dublin Wine Fest, coming to over 30 Dublin restaurants and bars from April 20th–25th.

Participating venues include:

Ananda, Balfes, The Butcher Grill, Camden Kitchen, Chameleon Restaurant, China Sichuan, Coppinger Row, La Dolce Vita, Diep le Shaker, Drury Buildings, Dunne & Crescenzi, Eastside Tavern, ely winebar, ely bar & brasserie, l’Gueuleton, House, KC Peaches Wine Cave, Koh, l’Officina, Monty’s of Kathmandu, The Port House, The Port House Ibericos, The Port House Pintxos, Rio Rodizio, Rock Lobster, Saba, Stanley’s Restaurant & Wine Bar, Super Miss Sue, Tribeca Restaurant & Winebar, Whitefriar Grill, The Woollen Mills.

How will the Dublin Wine Fest work?

Festival-goers buy a €5 wristband (from participating venues or Entertainment.ie) for a 30% discount on at least two festival wines at 30+ Dublin bars and restaurants.

Each participating venue is also running a festival ‘Dublin Wine Experience’ to complement their festival wines. These range from a post-work aperitivo with complimentary nibbles, to wine-based cocktails, food and wine pairing offerings, and flights of wine.

Festival-goers vote online for the festival’s Best Dublin Wine Experience (#BestDublinWineExp) with a cash-prize for the winning venue. Those who vote will be in with a chance of winning prizes such as a €200 case of wine from O’Brien’s Wines; a €100 case of six wines from The Corkscrew; a voucher worth €70 from Baggot Street Wines, for their new The Cavern wine bar; two tickets to ‘Wine Tasting Wednesdays’ Burgundy tasting (6 May) at Green Man Wines.

Participating venues are gathered in four neighbourhood  hubs (City Centre hub; Georgian Dublin hub; Liffeyside hub; Green Luas hub) to encourage festival-goers to engage in self-guided wine trails.

Green Luas hub

With participating such as Ananda, The Butcher Grill, Camden Kitchen, China Sichuan,  l’Officina, The Port House Ibericos, Rio Rodizio, Rock Lobster and Tribeca Restaurant & Winebar to choose from, a trip along the Green Luas line has never been so much fun.

You could meet friends in Dundrum at ‘aperitivo o’clock’ on the terrace of l’Officina for a Venetian-style Aperol spritz, pop over to the bar in Rock Lobster for a glass of Picpoul de Pinet and a taster of Irish oysters, book yourself into Ananda for a main course pairing of slow-cooked Tandoori lamb and a €6 flight of paired wines (Catena Malbec, Portuguese Grous & Barossa Shiraz Viognier), and finish up with a tasting flight of wine-based cocktails at the Candlelight Bar above Siam, or a port and chocolate pairing at The Port House Ibericos.

Or jump off the Luas at Ranelagh and pop into Rio Rodizio for nibbles at the bar (caipirinha de vino e frango, €11.95) or into Tribeca for a glass of one of four festival wines (€4.50 each, or €7.50 with tapas of fresh crab tostada or jamon & Toonsbridge, 3pm–7pm) and then over to The Butcher Grill for a 30% discounted main course steak or fish of the day paired with El Lagar de Isilla Crianza or Verdejo.

• Camden Kitchen Dublin Wine Experience: Choice of wine-paired starters (€12, daily 5.30–7pm), including Marlborough Forrest Sauvignon Blanc with Natural-Smoked Haddock, Lemon, Avruga Caviar, Fennel & Green Apple
• China Sichuan Dublin Wine Experience Offering: Choice of starter pairing: glass of Fantini  Fiano & Chinese Turnip Cakes (€12.00) or glass of Allegrini Palazzo della Torre & Tea-Smoked Jasmine Ribs (€15.00)

Liffey hub

With venues including The Chameleon, La Dolce Vita, ely bar & brasserie, Koh, The Port House Pintxos, Monty’s of Kathmandu and The Woollen Mills, choosing might be tricky.

Will you start with some steamed buns and a choice of two out of three paired wines at The Chameleon, or with a seafood tapas and vino at La Dolce Vita? Or you could take your pick of one of the four courses of food and wine pairings at The Woollen Mills  (€10 each, or all four for €35, including whitebait and cava, ox tongue fritters and Zweigelt, and PX sherry and cake). And then consider hopping on the Luas and finishing up with a glass of fine wine at ely bar & brasserie, and learn about the revolutionary new Coravin extraction system which allows sommeliers to offer wines by the glass from across their full range (by extracting the wine via a needle through the cork).

• La Dolce Vita Dublin Wine Experience: A choice of antipasti pairings: San Vincento Soave with mixed seafood antipasti (€15) or Ad Majora Nebbiolo with ham, salami and cheese (€12).
• Koh Dublin Wine Experience: Choice of small-plate pairings, including Thai gyoza & Gruner Veltliner or Miang Kam betel leaf bites & Bebian Rouge (€11).
• Monty’s Dublin Wine Experience: Choice of barbecued starter pairings: chicken chatamari with Medalla Real Gran Reserva Chardonnay or spicy lamb choila with Medalla Real Gran Reserva Carmenere (€16).

Georgian Dublin hub

With participating venues including Diep le Shaker, Dunne & Crescenzi, Eastside Tavern, ely wine bar, House and KC Peaches Wine Cave, this is a charming way to mosey around Georgian Dublin.

You could start your festival experience at ely winebar with one of their daily flights of wine or at Dunne & Crescenzi with an Aperol spritz, move on for some food and wine pairings at KC Peaches Wine Cave, Eastside Tavern or Diep le Shaker and finish up in the wine-tasting room at House where €20 buys wristband-holders a chance to taste through all 16 wines, with a complimentary cheeseboard to nibble on.

• Eastside Tavern’s Dublin Wine Experience: A choice of pairings, including Gaba do Xil Godello with organic salmon tartare, puffed seeds, apple & sorrel or La Bastide Saint Dominique with beef cheek croquettes & black olive aioli.
• Diep le Shaker’s Dublin Wine Experience: A choice of small-plate pairings served at the bar: Spanish Verdejo with Dublin Bay prawns and mango, or German Pinot Noir with chargrilled lamb and wok-fried greens.

City centre hub

With participating venues including Coppinger Row, Drury Buildings, l’Gueuleton, The Port House, Saba, Stanley’s Restaurant & Wine Bar, Super Miss Sue and Whitefriar Grill, the city-centre is spoilt for choice.

You could begin in Stanley’s at 5pm with their daily seminar on the history of wine-making, as you enjoy their intriguing flight of ‘skin contact’ (or ‘orange’) wines, served with a canapé of pressed duck terrine. Then stroll up to your pick of terraces (Coppinger Row for a glass of festival wines with complimentary cheese and ham for just €5.50, 5pm–7pm, or Balfe’s for a generous sharing antipasti and two glasses of festival wines for €25, 3.30pm–7pm), and on to Super Miss Sue for a small plate pairing of char-grilled shrimp and honey gyros with Ciu Ciu ‘Oris’ Pecorino/Trebbiano (€12). Or catch one of several tempting ‘early bird’ hour offers in the likes of l’Gueuleton and Whitefriar Grill.

• Whitefriar Grill’s Dublin Wine Experience: Three-course early bird menu with paired wines (€32), plus a 10-question wine quiz where each correct answer docks 10% off your bill!
• Saba’s Dublin Wine Experience: ‘Sweet Sparkles’ cocktail of dessert wine, lemon, gin, elderflower liqueur & prosecco, served with a taster of one of our signature betel-leaf dishes (€9.95).
• Drury Buildings Dublin Wine Experience: Italy beyond Pinot Grigio: sample the best producers from four regions, combined with delicious bites (pair of 90ml pours €8, or €15 with three tapas).

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