Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada which recently was voted the #1 destination for Canada by Trip advisor's 2008 Traveler's Choice Destination Awards now gets ready to host the newest   Rocky Mountain Food and Wine Festival on  Saturday, the 31^st of May.

This festival was first launched eleven years ago in Calgary and then it went on to expand into Edmonton in 2002 and then Red Deer in 2006 and it has included Banff into its fold. The festival is also at these other three locations at different times of the year and is the largest and most exciting food and wine extravaganza in the Canadian province of Alberta.

The festival offers attendees a chance to sample a wide array of wine, fine whiskies, beers and other premium spirits accompanied by gourmet foods supplied by local restaurants and hotels. Proceeds amounting to $1 from each ticket sold for the festival tour are donated to support culinary schools in each city. In 2007 this festival donated over C$15000 to various institutions in these cities.

The Rocky Mountain Festival of Banff will be held at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and Resort located with the park. The festival will also have the majestic vista of the Rocky Mountains as a backdrop. Tickets for the Grand Tasting which is to be held in two sessions at the conference center of the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and Resort are available online at the website of the festival for $20 per head per session. Tickets to the Grand Tasting will also be available at the door for a charge of $25 per head.

Both sessions will feature a wide variety of wines and other spirits. These will range from the inexpensive to the ultra expensive and the introductory wines to the rare and unique wines so there will be something to entice every level of enthusiast from beginners to connoisseurs. For a list of the participating wineries and breweries do visit the website of the festival. Your ticket only entitles you to admittance into the Grand Tasting Hall, in order to sample the many wines and spirits you will have to purchase Festival sampling coupons. These sample coupons are priced at 50 cents each and the samples are priced from $1 upwards and prices vary according to the grade of the product that you choose to sample.

This Grand Wine tasting will also feature delectable hors d'oeuvres, mini-entrees and deserts which will be supplied for the event by the leading Banff and Lake Louise restaurants. In addition, several gourmet food companies will also be distributing food samples of their products at the festival. In order to learn about participating festival restaurants do visit the website of the festival which features the complete list of participating festival restaurants. The afternoon session of the tasting will be held from 2pm to 5pm and the evening tasting session will be held from 7 pm to 10 pm.

The Festival also has other allied events like the Food and Wine Symphony which is to be held at the Maple Leaf Grill on the evening of  Friday the 30^th of May .

 This fine food and wine event will feature a five course Canadian Meal, the menu for  which has been put together by the Chef ,Salvatore Polizzi and the Sommelier, Eric Huston of the Maple Leaf Grill. Each course will be perfectly complemented by the finest International wines and the dinner will be an exclusive intimate affair restricted to the first 24 guests who reserve their places. Tickets to this epicurean fantasy are priced at $110 per head and can be purchased by calling Eric Huston at 403.760.7680 or by contacting him on email at eric@mapleleaf.com .

Festival attendees will also have a chance to enjoy live Jazz at the Banff Centre during the festival. The Banff centre has jazz programs such as Notes from the Underground and Saturday Night Jazz: The Bad Plus scheduled for Friday the 30^th of May and Saturday the 31^st of May respectively.

The area hotels such as Aspen Lodge, Buffalo Mountain Lodge and Rundlestone Lodge in Banff and the Deer Lodge in Lake Louise are offering special packages tailor made for those wishing to attend the  first  Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival  in Banff.

Images of Banff  National Park and Fairmont Springs Hotel and Resort originally posted on http://www.flickr.com by bugman50,bryanbendo,swh,amyvdh and antikriz,