Cheers! To Texas Wine and Beyond

Grapevine's 40th Annual GrapeFest celebrates decades of Texas wine, tradition, and local fun

Join Grapevine in raising a glass to four decades of wine-filled tradition as the 40th Annual GrapeFest® – A Texas Wine Experience presented by Bank of the West, returns to Historic Main Street September 17-20. The four-day festival celebrates its anniversary with Texas wines, international flavors, live music, family-friendly activities, and plenty of opportunities to sip, stomp, shop, and celebrate.

Since launching in 1987, GrapeFest has grown from a one-day event featuring six Texas wineries into the Largest Wine Festival in the Southwest, attracting approximately 250,000 visitors each year. Along the way, the festival has played an important role in the restoration and renaissance of Grapevine’s Historic Main Street while helping put Texas wine on the map.

This year’s theme, “Connecting Wine Traditions, One Glass at a Time,” celebrates the people, places, and stories that have shaped the world of wine — and there are plenty of ways to experience them.

A toast to Texas wine
Wine lovers can put their taste buds to work at the People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic sponsored by Audi Grapevine, the largest consumer-judged wine tasting competition in the nation. This year, more than 40 wineries will pour more than 150 Texas wines, giving festivalgoers the chance to meet winemakers, sample their varietals, and cast votes across 10 categories, including dry, sweet, blended, and rosé whites, as well as light, medium, bold, sweet, and blended reds.

Take a trip around the wine world
First stop, Italy. Thanks to the Florence Door, returning to GrapeFest by popular demand. Knock on a little wooden door, get a glass of champagne. Inspired by Italy’s historic buchette del vino, the Florence-style wine window at Champagne Terrace, sponsored by Hilton DFW Lakes, gives guests a memorable way to enjoy a glass of champagne while exploring the festival.

For those who want to expand their wine knowledge, expert-led seminars offer a deeper dive into different wine regions and flavors.

Grapefest Knock on the Florence Door and wine will answer.Photo courtesy of Grapevine CVB

GrapeFest goes far beyond Texas. The International Wine Experience sponsored by Gaylord Texan Resort invites guests to explore wines from renowned regions around the globe, including those connected to Grapevine’s Sister Cities.

Wine lovers can discover selections from Krems, Austria; Barossa, Australia; and Parras de la Fuente, Mexico. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the Sister City Accords between Grapevine and Parras, making the international celebration even more special.

The festival will also commemorate the 50th anniversary of the legendary 1976 Judgement of Paris, the blind tasting that famously put California wines head-to-head with celebrated French wines. Visitors can recreate a bit of wine history by tasting French and Napa Valley selections and making their own Judgement of Paris.

Stomp, sip, and celebrate
Of course, GrapeFest is about much more than what’s in the glass. The ever-popular GrapeStomp lets teams race against the clock to stomp approximately 15 pounds of grapes in two minutes. The goal? Claiming the coveted Golden Foot trophy in honor of the Golden Jubilee for Mayor William D. Tate — and, presumably, having a very good time getting there.

For a more leisurely experience, the Champagne Terrace in Weem’s Alley offers bubbly, live music, and a relaxing setting beneath the trees.

Multiple stages throughout Historic Main Street, including the Grapevine Mills Main Stage, will keep the music going, while festival food favorites such as corn dogs and funnel cakes provide plenty of fuel for a full day of festivities. Plus, you can sample new foods including Filipino cuisine, hand pies, unique snacks, and millennial-themed Dirty Sodas.

Grapefest Enjoy live music all weekend.Photo courtesy of Grapevine CVB

Photo courtesy of Grapevine CVB

Cheers! To the perfect wine celebration.

Shoppers can browse more than 70 vendors with handcrafted goods at the Artisan Marketplace, while families can head to the KidZone, Carnival, and Midway for kid-friendly entertainment.

For adults looking for an elevated experience, the Harvest Wine Train offers a 21-and-up wine experience aboard the Grapevine Vintage Railroad on Thursday, September 17.

Enjoy free admission Thursday and Friday until 5 pm, plus parking and shuttles (both free!) to make getting there a little easier.

With four days of wine, food, music, history, and family fun, 40th Annual GrapeFest promises to be a celebration worthy of raising a glass. Whether visitors come to discover a new Texas favorite, test their wine knowledge, stomp some grapes, or simply enjoy the lively atmosphere of Historic Main Street, there’s plenty to celebrate.

GrapeFest, presented by Bank of the West, takes place September 17-20, on Historic Main Street in Grapevine. For tickets, schedules, and additional information, visit GrapeFest.com.

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Movie Review

Revived Coyote vs. Acme shows Looney Tunes’ enduring appeal

Photo courtesy of Ketchup Entertainment

Wile E. Coyote in Coyote vs. Acme.

No movie studio has gone through more ups and downs in the past few years than Warner Bros. In 2022, they oddly shelved two mostly-completed movies, Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt. But the next few years brought major movies like Barbie, Dune Part Two, Sinners, Superman, Weapons, and One Battle After Another, giving them a huge boost. Strangely, that led directly into a proposed sale to Paramount that is now going through legal battles.

Another previously-shelved Warner Bros. movie, Coyote vs. Acme, is now seeing the light of day thanks to a deal with a small company called Ketchup Entertainment. Taking its cue from the classic Looney Tunes cartoons, the film creates a world in which Wile E. Coyote - sick of constantly being thwarted in his pursuit of Road Runner by faulty Acme products - decides to sue the company.

To do so, he approaches the law firm of Avery, Jones & Maltese, led by Kevin Avery (Will Forte). The firm typically takes on small cases that are easy to settle, but - with a little subterfuge from Wile E. Coyote - they are soon presenting Acme and its lead attorney, Buddy Crane (John Cena), with a lawsuit that could be worth millions of dollars. Naturally, the big corporation won’t give in without a fight, leading to all sorts of shenanigans on both sides.

Directed by Dave Green and written by Samy Burch from a story by Burch, James Gunn, and Jeremy Slater, the film is a fun mixture of nostalgia and clever storytelling. Most of Looney Tunes’ classic characters make an appearance in the film, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, and Sylvester. The two, other than Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner, who get the most play are Tweety, who appears in some of the movie’s funniest scenes, and Foghorn Leghorn, reimagined as the CEO of Acme.

The blend of live action and animation is not quite on the level of something like Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but it is still effective. It also affords the film plenty of opportunities to employ Looney Tunes’ signature brand of cartoon violence that doesn’t actually leave lasting damage. The gags are very familiar for those who grew up on the studio’s short films, but combined with the inventive ways in which they’re used and the pointed jabs at corporate culture, they become somewhat fresh again.

Naturally, there are plenty of references in the film, starting with the name of the law firm, which pays homage to legendary directors Chuck Avery and Chuck Jones, as well as writer/animator Michael Maltese. Sly jokes that could turn the film from PG to PG-13 sneak their way in, although they steer clear of elements that haven’t aged well (documented in a recent viral comedy clip). But the film is at its best when it leans into the well-earned traits of its favorite characters and just lets them cook.

Forte is a great scene partner for Wile E. Coyote, as he can turn even minor slights into comedy gold. His deadpan reactions are the ideal way to counter the insanity going on around him. Cena has proven in other films that he has great comic timing, and he demonstrates that skill well here, too, especially in a fantastic scene opposite Tweety. The voice talent does a good job with the iconic characters, although the legendary Mel Blanc remains the gold standard.

Coyote vs. Acme is not a world-changing movie by any means, but it is a fun twist on the characters many know and love that deserved to be seen by moviegoers. Wile E. Coyote may never actually catch Road Runner, but this movie shows that his unceasing attempts remain entertaining after all these years.

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Coyote vs. Acme is now playing in theaters.

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