With nearly 6,000 attendees and 8,621 Room Nights, the Festival generated $3.7 Million for the region
The sun shone on June 27th and 28th in Lake George, New York for the 10th anniversary of the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival. Nearly 6,000 attendees were present throughout the weekend, enjoying samples from over 130 wineries, distilleries, cideries, breweries, non-alcoholic beverage producers, artisan food vendors, and more!
“We were blessed with ideal weather in Lake George for the Festival once again this year,” said Adirondack Festivals Owner and Adirondack Winery Co-Owner, Sasha Pardy. “It put attendees in a great mood to make the most of their festival experience, which translated into great sales for our vendors. I know at our own Adirondack Winery Booth and Extreme Heights Cidery Booth, we had one of our best sales weekends yet; and that’s why we started this festival – to support small family-owned craft beverage producers like us by giving them a platform to sample their amazing products to customers they wouldn’t otherwise have access to,” Pardy added.
“Each year, the Festival concludes with the People’s Choice Vote Grand Prize Giveaway survey, where attendees vote on their favorite vendors and answer critical questions that help us improve the festival for future years; as well as determine the demographic and economic impact the festival has on the area,” said Brad Willett, Festival Director. *See the full list of People’s Choice Vote winners at the end of this release.
The Adirondack Wine & Food Festival continues to attract a wide range of attendees and brings a younger and more affluent demographic to the Lake George area than most local events. Our 2026 attendee ticket demographics and post-event surveys show that 47% of our attendees are under 40 – this compares to an average age of 51 to 56 years old for a Lake George Tourist – and 55% have a household income of $100,000 or greater.
“I am proud to share that this year’s festival generated a $3.7 million economic impact for the Lake George region, through nearly 6,000 attendees who generated over 8,600 room nights. Not only did they stay, but 78% of them shopped at local stores and visited local attractions, while 62% patroned local restaurants and bars while in town” said Festival owner, Sasha Pardy. “We know from our post-event survey that 91% of our attendees came specifically to attend the festival and that we continue to foster growth in the region with this event, as over 2,000 people said they had either never been or hadn’t been back to Lake George in over 2 years,” she added.
Taste NY showed its continued support of the Festival as the presenter of the Culinary and Cocktail tent which held exciting competitions and demonstrations throughout the festival weekend featuring both nationally recognized and local chefs, mixologists, and food and beverage social media influencers. Festival vendors supplied ingredients utilized in the competitions.
New this year, the Hospitality Mental Wellness Initiative USA (HMWIUSA), a national nonprofit organization committed to eradicating the stigma surrounding mental health within the hospitality industry, provided some programming under the Taste NY Culinary & Cocktail Tent. It also graciously presented the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival with the distinguished Hospitality Through Partnership Award. Additionally, HMWIUSA presented its first National Culinary Community Concerns Awards to Fizz MSM, 1911 Established, & The Long Island Shucking Truck for their support of the organization.
“We are honored to recognize those businesses that believed in our mission and chose to stand with us during this historic milestone,” said Vincent Tropepe, HMWIUSA Executive Director.
The weekend’s Chef & Mixologist lineup included:
- Chef Vincent Tropepe, HMWIUSA
- Chef Sakari Smithwick, Food Network Chef & Author of Savor Your Journey
- Chef Journey Kerchner, Downtown Hospitality Group, including Downtown Social in Glens Falls, NY
- Chef Kathleen Pigliavento, @Dannypigs cooking videos with her son on social media & representing Capital Sweat Productions
- Chef Carl Weiner, Sans Souci Restaurant in Cleverdale, NY
- Chef Ralph Viggianno, Long Island Shucking Truck from Long Island, NY
- Kelli Hatin, Jenn Berry, & Emily Enslow, Mixaritas Mobile Bartending Service from Queensbury, NY
- James Humphreys, the Bourbon Room in Glens Falls, NY & representing Everett Bar Solutions
Sunday’s Ultimate Culinary Showdown featured Saturday’s winning chef from the Iron Chef-style competition – Journey Kerchner who faced off against 2025’s Ultimate Chef, Carl Weiner. In the end, Journey Kerchner was the 2026 Ultimate Showdown Winner.
The Mixology competition featured one of the Festival’s resident mixologists, Jenn Berry of Mixaritas Mobile Bartending Service, going head-to-head against James Humphreys of the Bourbon Room. Ultimately, James Humphreys came out on top as the Mixology Showdown Winner.
“The festival wasn’t just for adults,” said Festival Director Brad Willett. “We saw more families attend than ever before. Younger attendees enjoyed our kids’ tent games and activities, and all our non-drinkers and underage guests also got to sample from over 40 nonalcoholic beverages and artisan food vendors while also enjoying our entertainment options,” he added.
This year, the kids’ tent was kindly managed by the team from Sister’s Slime Co., whose booth was a hit with attendees of all ages.
“The Adirondack Wine & Food Festival has been one of the highlights of our 2026 season so far,” said Shelbie Handville of Sister’s Slime Co. “We met so many incredible families, were introduced to so many new customers, and loved seeing everyone create memories in the extremely well-stocked kids tent – there was every activity you could think of! We are so grateful to the festival team for putting together such a fantastic event and we hope to be back again next year!”
The festival entertainment line-up was chock-full, featuring local acoustic musicians and jaw-dropping stilt walking and aerial work from Jessica Black.
“Food Truck Alley” has been a favorite feature of the festival for the past four years in a row. Food Truck Alley, located on Westbrook Road, is open to the public and hosted 14 vendors this year offering a wide variety of unique products.
Attendees were also introduced to the brand new Beer & Cider Lounge presented by the Capital Craft Beverage Trail. The lounge featured exclusive vendors offering larger sample pours, a live music stage, and expanded covered seating to take a break.
The Festival has now cumulatively raised over $117,000 for beneficiaries like Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Southern Adirondacks & Soroptimist International of the Adirondacks. Funds raised for BBBS, now in their 8th year with the fest, benefit the youth in our community, while funds raised for Soroptimist, now in their 2nd festival year, transforms the lives of women and girls in our community through volunteering, education, & social connection.
Andrea Kinderman, BBBS Development Director said, “Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Southern Adirondacks is honored to once again be a beneficiary of The Adirondack Wine & Food Festival. Because of the generosity of Adirondack Winery, the festival organizers, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, and attendees, more local children will have access to the guidance, encouragement, and opportunities that come from having a caring mentor. We are grateful for a partnership that continues to strengthen our community and invest in the potential of our young people.”
Soroptimist Treasurer Wanda Smith said, “On behalf of Soroptimist of the Adirondacks, we sincerely thank Adirondack Winery for partnering with us again this year. Our members were proud to volunteer at the Adirondack Food & Wine Festival. This partnership supports our mission to improve the lives of women and girls and contribute to a vibrant community event. We’re grateful to be part of a celebration that brings people together and strengthens the Adirondacks.”
The 2027 Adirondack Wine & Food Festival will take place June 26th & 27th. Tickets are anticipated to go on sale Black Friday, November 27, 2026.
Attendee Metrics & Demographics
- Gender 75% Female | 24% Male
- Attendee Age: >20: 14% | 20s: 16% | 30s: 17% | 40s: 16% | 50s: 18% | 60s+ 19%
- Attendee Location: 31 States | 34% traveled 3+ hours to attend
- 55% Had a household income of $100,000 or greater
Key Results
- $3.7 Million Economic Impact
- 8,621 Total room nights generated
- 55% Stayed 1-14 nights in the region.
- 91% Planned their trip or chose the dates of their trip to Lake George specifically to attend the festival.
- 78% Shopped at and/or visited local stores and attractions.
- 16% Had never been to Lake George and another 18% hadn’t returned to Lake George in 3+ years
- 62% Ate or drank at a local bar or restaurant.
- 99% Would attend the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival again
