The most recognized festival Epcot has to offer, The International Food and Wine Festival of 2022 covers a span of nearly 4 months! Starting July 14 and running all the way to November 19, it gives you plenty of time to make multiple visits (if you’re anything like me, I went probably 6 or 7 times.) There are so many options across World Showcase to divulge into, with most menus having a rotation if items about halfway through. This provides even more variety and gives you another reason to make multiple trips and really dive into the world of Epcot food!
Made a quick stop at the Canada souvenir cart for a Moosehead, a customary move on my part!
Without a clue where to begin, I will just start with my favorites because this is my blog. Refreshment Port, Appleseed Orchard, and the Canada booth and pavillion are my go-to no matter which festival is current. The Refreshment Port always offering the tried-and-true poutine plus a seasonal variation at times are sure to please! The seasonal poutine hosted Braised Beef, French fries, Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs Cheese Sauce, cheese curds and gherkin relish. To make an understatement it was phenomenal. Canada, O’ Canada….the beer cheese and bacon soup with a pretzel roll was the star of the show! This item was also a part of Emile’s Fromage Montage game where select cheese dishes around the park would help you complete a culinary scavenger hunt for a neat prize at the end! You can’t forget about the famous “Le Cellier” Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with truffle-butter sauce. Juicy, tender steak with mushrooms, enough said! Moving into Appleseed Orchard, as always, I opted for the beer flight. Big Storm Brewing Co. Apple Blonde Ale, Playalinda Brewing Caramel Apple Pie Ale, and 3 Daughters Brewing Apple Pecan Brown Ale were part of this stellar line up and not a single one disappointed!! Breanna also chose to try Blake’s Hard Cider Co. Saint Chéri Bourbon Barrel Aged Cherry which turned out to be a tasty addition to our trash can tabletop spread. That’s how you Epcot properly!!
Shimmering Sips turned out to be a new favorite for the lovely Breanna (my wife). Offering a host of mimosas as well as a flight featuring all three, we made sure every time we visited this festival to grab them and enjoy without haste. The flight boasted flavors like passionfruit, orange and guava, key lime, and blood orange. Blood orange was hands down my favorite while the passionfruit made #1 for Breanna. I will say the passionfruit reminded me of Stitch juice made famous by Ohana at the Polynesian Resort. Very delicious!
In the same general area of World Showcase we made stops at Hawaii to grab the Aluani Sunrise as well as Brew Wing in the Odyssey Building to try the highly anticipated PB&J sticky wings with their designated beer sidekick! Aluani Sunrise had a mixture of Vodka, DOLE pineapple juice and grenadine which you cannot go wrong with. Brew Wing’s PB&J sticky wings were a sweet and savory treat featuring wings tossed in a sweet jelly sauce, then melted peanut butter along with crushed peanut dust as a garnish. A heavy hitter for any peanut butter lover’s palette!! I decided to pair my wings with 3 Daughters Brewing Watermelon Wheat Ale wihch was a crisp, sweet beer perfect for the hot day I was enduring.
One booth we talked highly of in anticipation was the new Fry Basket. Offering a new french fry flight, this one was a huge target on our radar and boy am I glad we checked it out!! Justin and I on one of our group visits made a bee line over there and picked up the fry flight along with a beer to compliment. Sea Salt and Malt Vinegar Fries; Barbecued Bacon Fries with smoked aïoli; Sweet Potato Casserole Fries with candied pecans, toasted marshmallow cream and caramel whisky. The amount of contrasting flavor profiles this flight contained were unreal! And paired with an 81Bay Brewing Co. Key Lime Lager, where can you go wrong?!?
Fries and beer, any man’s dream am I right?!?
Just around the corner sits Flavors From Fire, another booth that dazzled me last year with the Whoopie Pies and the Bonfire Beer. I chose the Rocky Road Chocolate Cake with marshmallows, spiced almonds and chocolate ganache along with, (yes they had it again!) Saugatuck Brewing Company Bonfire Beer!! The rich chocolate cake was a perfect companion to the deep, roasted malt notes of the beer.
Photos courtesy of WDWNT.com and Disney Tourist Blog
Deeper into World Showcase I made a return to Kenya to snag Kenyan Coffee Barbecued Beef Tenderloin with sweet potato and corn mealie pap and kachumbari slaw. This was an item Jordan and I raved about last year so when I saw it came back it was a no brainer. Paired with 81Bay Brewing Co. Congo Pilsner, although it should be Tusker Lager (moment of silence in respect) this was about as close of a beer I’ve had that mimics what Tusker Lager was. Still a great dish and beer pairing nevertheless.
Photo courtesy of Disney Food Blog
I made a stop or two at Italy for the occasional Peroni pilsner, as well as Hops & Barley at the American Pavillion to indulge in an 81Bay Brewing Co. Strawberry and Lime Wheat Ale. Another returning beverage Jordan and I have absolutely smashed together previously. Belgium also had some bangers like Beer-braised Beef served with smoked gouda mashed potatoes and a Belgian Waffle with warm chocolate ganache. SMASH! And you have to pair anything from this booth with an ice cold Abbey Ale otherwise you aren’t doing it right!
Throwback to 2021 of Jordan and I smashing the beer as the blog states. I didn’t take any pics, I drank it too fast! It happens sometimes.
Felt captivated by this view, enjoy!
Keep in mind it took me several visits to tackle these items, making it sensible why this festival lasts for so long. I still barely scratched the surface but what I did have was truly incredible! Here soon it will be time to switch gears and move into Festival of the Holidays and I can’t be more excited to see what’s in store. All in all, Food and Wine Festival of 2022 was a blazing success, and I had an amazing time eating and drinking as much as I possibly could! Stay tuned for more because we are trying to steam roll into 2023 with lots of momentum and content! Thank you to all our listeners and newcomers because without you guys, this thing wouldn’t be much fun! Until next time, enjoy that beer and take it slow!
-Cheers
Ryan
” There are details within details within details to anchor you in the fact that we are talking about the real world, not an illustrated children's book fantasy world.” -Joe Rhode
