Food and wine go together like chefs and vintners

Balistreri Vineyards teams with several area chefs for its annual Spring Barrel Tasting this week.

Wine is the sauce to food. So food and wine go together like peanut butter and jelly. The pairing gets even better when food is represented by a local chef, wine comes from the barrels next to the dinner table and you don’t even have to leave Denver to experience it all.

This can only mean one thing.

The Balistreri Vineyards Spring Barrel Tasting is back. Each year winemaker John Balistreri opens his cellar for exclusive wine tasting dinners, inviting a guest chef each evening to prepare a complex, five-course menu paired to yet-to-be released Balistreri wines.

It’s a great opportunity to experience Colorado wine in the making and get a sneak preview of his new 2010 wines straight from the barrel.

For more:

Balistreri Spring Barrel Tasting

6:30 p.m. May 18–21 at the winery, 1946 E. 66th Ave., Denver. Call 303-287-5156 or visit the website for tickets. $72

The chef lineup:

• Wednesday: Elise Wiggins, Panzano
• Thursday: Curtis Lincoln of Willow Creek
• Friday: Executive Chef Darren Pusateri of Ototo Den & Izakaya Den
• Saturday: Executive Chef and Owner Ian Kleinman and Sous Chef Justin Lisius of the Inventing Room