Key West Food and Wine Festival 2012

The most exciting time of the year is almost upon us, and we’re looking ahead not only to the holidays, but events to follow in early 2012.  Tickets (hint:  Fabulous Stocking Stuffers!) have just gone on sale for one of our annual favorites, coming up January 26-29:  Key West Food & Wine Festival 2012.  Sophisticated culinary tastings, “foodie” seminars, an outdoor wine market featuring rare vintages, and even an afternoon of zany coconut bowling promise a festival of “gastronomical” proportions.

Last year, we participated in one of the Festival’s most popular and well-attended events, Duval UNCORKED.  Our Celebrity Chef was Anna Toole-Hutchens, of SaborAM, in Naples, FL.  Her uniquely silken-textured, mousse-like, wine-infused creations set Duval Street abuzz with the message, “Don’t miss the gourmet cheesecake at The Tropical Inn!” We are honored and excited to be invited back to participate in this year’s event, and have asked Anna to team up with us again.  We’re hoping that her busy schedule will allow (stay tuned).  

“Duval UNCORKED” 2011 tantalized participants with a showcase of fine wines, inspired culinary creations, and beautiful venues.  Saturday afternoon-into-evening, January 28, 2012, promises to be even better, as Duval Street’s funky shops, fine galleries, chic boutiques, and unique lodging establishments open their doors to cosmopolitan Key West visitors and  locals alike.  Fine wines from around the world, complemented by the neighborhood’s best restaurants serving up samples of their signature dishes, will keep revelers toasting and tasting all along the mile-long venue.

Watch here to see what you don't want to miss and book your room today for one of the premier events of the New Year in Key West!

Offshore World Powerboat Championship November 7-14

They’re baaaack!

The 31st. annual Key West Offshore Powerboat World Championship – brought to us by Super Boat International -- has once again roared into town.   Kicking off the excitement with a boat parade down Duval Street this past Sunday afternoon, top powerboat teams and fans from the world over have converged on our tiny island for the final round of high-speed races to determine the winners of the World Championship Title. 

Often equated to the Monte Carlo of Formula One racing, the grueling Super Boat event is to offshore powerboat racing what the Indianapolis 500 is to Indycar and the Daytona 500 is to NASCAR.  Teams prepare all year long, fine tuning their machines and racing their way up the point standings at speeds reaching 140 miles per hour in a series of grand prix events in various cities from May through September.   The National Points  season culminates in Clearwater, Florida, teams earning National Titles in their respective classes.  Then, it’s on to Key West for the international competition for the World Title.   

  

Key West is legendary for having the most exciting – and challenging -- offshore powerboat racing conditions.  Indeed, founder of Super Boat International, John Carbonell, decreed, “To be the best, you have to win Key West!” 

Today has dawned with the promise of perfect conditions for the first races of the epic event: cool and dry, mostly sunny, northeast winds at 15 knots, seas 2-4 feet.  All day long, the fastest, the most skilled – and the most aggressive – drivers and throttlemen will be testing their mettle on the 6.5-mile course that passes through Key West Harbor, the deafening sound of competition rocking the island.  And there’s more to come on Friday and Sunday, as teams roar full-throttle across ocean waters in their quest for the coveted World Title.

The dry pits in Truman Annex are the center of land-based activities and race day viewing is best from the Outer Mole. At the end of each day’s adrenaline-fueled events, the town parties into the wee hours, celebrating today’s victories and anticipating tomorrow’s.  If you’re missing out this year, be here for next, when they’ll do it all over again November 4-11.   Plan to stay at a Key West bed and breakfast befitting the event:  the Tropical Inn, long a favorite of race fans!