For 26 years, MacArthur Beverages in Washington has been holding a California Barrel Wine Tasting. We’ve attended the past couple of years and it’s a fantastic opportunity to sample upcoming vintages from some of California’s most prestigious boutique small production wineries. The festivities kick off with a Vintner’s Dinner at highly rated CityZen on Friday night, April 1. On Saturday, April 2, the wine tastings are held over two sessions, one in the afternoon and one in the evening.
Each session is very relaxed and you’ll have a chance to both sample and order wine before it’s release. Almost every winery is represented by the actual wine maker or owner, so it’s a perfect opportunity to meet great folks and discuss their wines. The venue is the same as past years, the Mandarin Oriental hotel. It’s a perfect location, directly across from the Jefferson Memorial and just a block or two from the National Mall.
The timing for this years tasting is perfect and should coordinate with the peak of the cherry blossoms in DC. The National Cherry Blossom Festival will be going on at the same time, with many different events scheduled over a two week period. The day after the wine tasting, Sunday, April 3 is the Cherry Blossom 10K run.
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Last modified: January 6, 2014