9th Annual Black Owned Wine and Spirits Festival (BOWSFest)
9th Annual Black Owned Wine and Spirits Festival (BOWSFest) Returns To D.C. This Fall
Now in its ninth year, the Black Owned Wine and Spirits Festival (BOWSFest) will make its return to the Nation’s Capital this fall, highlighting over 40 brands in the adult beverage space. This year, BOWSFest is introducing a new awards segment, the Black Owned Spirits Awards (BOSA), the first-ever global recognition program dedicated to honoring excellence among Black-owned spirit brands.
CASSIUS attended the 2023 BOWSFest, and we witnessed firsthand how unified and aligned the Black-owned spirit and wine companies were at the event. Instead of presenting themselves as adversaries, there was a collective focus from the vendors to disrupt the current status quo of the spirits and wine industry.
Founded by Chanel Turner, BOWSFest aims to once again educate and shine a light on rising brands in the space, even as trends suggest that there will be some requisite challenges ahead. True to Turner’s outlook in both creating the festival and launching her vodka brand, the event serves multiple purposes as it pertains to the industry at large.
“Now more than ever, it’s essential that we own our platforms,” Chanel Turner, founder of BOWSFest and creator of Fou-Dre Vodkal, shared in a statement. “This isn’t just a festival — it’s a powerful marketplace and a national platform for storytelling and scale. With BOSA, we are extending that reach globally and recognizing the creativity, resilience, and excellence of Black-owned spirit brands.”
As noted above, the first annual Black Owned Spirits Awards (BOSA) will grant recognition to brands in the categories of Best in Category, Best Packaging, and Fan Favorite. The finalists for the awards will face a panel of industry experts and will be helmed by Clyde Davis, founder of 75 Proof Beverage Solutions and a noted spirits insider.
There is a change in venue for this year’s BOWSFest, which will take place at the Hamilton Hotel, right in the heart of Washington, D.C. Along with the expanded venue space, wine, spirit, and beer brands will have opportunities to share their products with patrons of the event at the Tasting and Bottle Market, where guests will be able to sample the wares, purchase products, and connect with the founders and minds behind the producers of the product.
BOWSFest is also proud to announce its retail partner, Housebar, which provides delivery for products purchased on-site. As in previous events, there will be DJs, food pairings, VIP experiences, mixology demos, and much more.
Be sure to follow @BOWSFest on Instagram and visit www.BOWSFest.com to purchase tickets and learn more.
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Photo: BOWSFest
