We’ll take a visit to this year’s Festival Center to see what’s fresh. You’ll find it in the same place as it has been located for several years in between Mission: SPACE and Ellen’s Energy Adventure.

Wider: https://i2.wp.com/easywdw.com/reports13/festival_center_wide.jpg

Getting your lay of the land once inside is pretty easy. Plus there is an information kiosk literally at the bottom of the walkway which is probably easier to visit than loading this picture. Plus I forgot to label the Disney Fine Art area on the far right and Intermissions Cafe next to it.

This might also help, though amusingly perhaps I took this picture outside near the Fountain, which doesn’t make the “YOU ARE HERE” sticker particularly accurate. The official word on what each of these things is can be found here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/epcot/food-wine-festival-center-events/.

You may find yourself at the Festival Center if you are participating in a Beverage Seminar, the list of which you can find here: https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/media/wdpro-assets/parks-and-tickets/tours-and-experiences/epcot-international-food-and-wine-festival/beverage-seminars-2016_updated_september_v2.pdf and you can check availability and make reservations here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/epcot/food-wine-beverage-seminars/.

Tickets are $15 and typically include three small pours of whatever the presenter is discussing, whether it be beer, wine, spirits, or easywdw blog posts. I’ve been to a dozen or so in the past and enjoyed every one. The companies typically send a pretty big deal to give the presentation.

The culinary demos are a more popular offering with the list available here: https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/media/wdpro-assets/parks-and-tickets/tours-and-experiences/epcot-international-food-and-wine-festival/culinary-demonstrations-2016_updated_september_v3.pdf and availability/reservations here: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/epcot/food-wine-culinary-demonstrations/.

Note that if you recognize the presenter that the event probably sold out months ago. But I have enjoyed every single one of these that I’ve attended (other than Robert Irvine) even when it’s the chef from Crystal Palace or Tony’s Town Square. It’s not their fault that they serve frozen chicken parmesans. And you receive not only a sample of whatever food item they’re making, but whatever drink that’s accompanying it – usually a wine. If you have any interest whatsoever in eating or drinking then I do recommend taking a look at the list. 45 minutes of air-conditioning combined with a pretty intimate seminar and a tasting of the food is a slam dunk of a deal.

Intermissions Cafe is located on the right, which you might be interested in if you are otherwise going to starve to death before reaching Mexico.

But there are some food and drink options and if you are a vegetarian on the Dining Plan then you might want to hit up that Vegetable Wrap or Caprese Salad.

There is perhaps no better person to ask the all-important question, “is it art?” than the Disney Fine Art folks.

It’s worth heading to the back of the Festival Center for a “free” square of Ghirardelli chocolate.

Each of the three items available from the register is unique.

But the best part is perhaps the chocolate displays:























Definitely take a minute or two to appreciate it.

The Festival Center offers a pretty nice selection of bottles at prices that are sometimes competitive.

This bottle of Corazon Reposado would set you back $33 at Total Wine.

On the other hand, the Macallan 12-year Double Cask is $74 at Total Wine or $110 at Epcot.

The Mango Mama wine is $2 less expensive than their own online store.

While the Bison Grass Vodka that I mentioned, at $30, is $7 more expensive than Total Wine. But the point here is that you might pick up a bottle for the room and save some money.

Virtually every wine available at a booth is available for purchase, often at prices even more competitive than the liquor.

Don’t expect any beer deals though. Only a couple are available and they usually cost as much as the they do outside at the Festival.

The Festival Center also offers 3-ounce tastings of ten wines in these fancy Wineemotion Cinque dispensers.

According to the company, “Each bottle is connected to an individual dispensing system, which uses argon or nitrogen gas to preserve the wine’s properties during storage. These gases are inert and entirely food-safe. They prevent oxidisation, so the wine remains as fresh as when it was uncorked, for up to 30 days.”

These are so expensive that they will not tell you the price, but I believe they start around $5,000. The pour here will cost you $5 or $8 depending on which you select.

The Festival-exclusive wines are available here as well at $22 each for the chardonnay or cabernet. I thought both were virtually undrinkable and my go-to is a 1.5L bottle of Woodbridge.

We are in pass-me-the-box-of-Franzia territory here.

You can watch “The Chew” this year on the Mostly Useless Stage to the left.

Overall, the Festival Center may or may not be worth a visit depending on what you’ve got going on. It is nicely air-conditioned and if you have any interest in the Wine portion of the Festival, then you might enjoy a beverage seminar or culinary demonstration. And you might be able to save some money by picking up a bottle of tequila from the store and juggin’ it up in the room before heading out for the Festival at 10:30am. I’m right there with you.

Festival merchandise is about 75 pictures so I think we’ll take a quick look at it separately.