"food show" news and stories

This dispatch from the floor of the New York Wine Expo comes to us from Alysia Lew, AOL staffer and wine lover. Thanks Alysia!

Foodies and wine enthusiasts flocked to the International Restaurant and Food Show of New York this weekend. However, one of the pillars of this show – and the best reason to trek to the Jacob Javits Convention Center on a rainy Saturday - was the New York Wine Expo.

The Wine Expo featured over 600 wines from 170 winemakers from around the world and was a great opportunity for wine lovers to taste and learn about new wines including many not yet available in the US. The tickets for the event cost $75 for Friday night and $85 for Saturday. While a seemingly steep price, it's a great way to spend a day and can be a perfect date or a fun place to go with friends.

Upon entering the Wine Expo, attendees are handed a souvenir tasting glass. Each vineyard has their own booth where you simply go up to the counter and get a sample of the wines the vineyard is highlighting for the show. You can learn about the way the grapes were harvested, the wine making process and what makes each wine standout. The expo was divided into regions, with New York and California wines taking up the most space. Not to be outdone, international wines were also prominently featured, with Argentina and Chile being the standouts in that category.

The Winter Fancy Food Show just wrapped up in San Francisco. The show is one of the largest gatherings of specialty food retailers in the country, where they gather to show off new products, highlight new trends and encourage the buyers from stores across the country to carry their products. There were over 80,000 new products and 1,100 exhibitors. "Specialty food" is a term that is usually applied to relatively rare foods, very high quality ingredients and small production runs, but as consumers become more interested in health, nutrition and, most importantly, taste, specialty foods are enjoying wider popularity than ever before.

One of the most obvious trends this year is the shift towards natural and organic foods, with many companies aiming to simplify their ingredient lists and use ultra high quality ingredients. Many products boasted the use of organic materials. Heidi noticed that "superfoods", like acai and green tea, were making a strong showing, while simmer sauces and relishes spiced things up a bit. There were many whole grain products, including whole grain baking mixes from King Arthur Flour. Another big showing was made by specialty salts and fleur de sel, which appeared in its pure form as well as in candies, like Fran's Grey Salt and Smoked Salt Caramels.