Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta

What Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta does

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1991 that produces an annual five-day food and wine festival in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The 35th Annual Fiesta is scheduled for September 22-27, 2026, and draws over 4,500 attendees across 11+ ticketed events including the flagship Grand Tasting, Chile Friday, winery dinners, reserve wine tastings, auctions, chef demonstrations, and a Master Sommelier Throwdown. The organization serves two primary constituencies: adult food and wine enthusiasts (21+) seeking curated culinary experiences, and a participating ecosystem of 65 Santa Fe restaurants and 90 world-class winery partners seeking brand exposure, industry networking, and distribution connections.

Revenue is generated almost exclusively through à la carte ticket sales via the SquadUP online ticketing platform, with no all-access pass offered; ticket tiers include General Admission and Gold Pass for the Grand Tasting and Chile Friday. A secondary revenue stream is a year-round online merchandise store selling branded apparel, accessories, posters, and wine-related goods. Operations are underwritten by a diversified roster of Platinum and Gold Chile Sponsors spanning food distribution (Sysco), water (Icelandic Glacial), energy (ExxonMobil), banking (My Century Bank, Thornburg), and media (Santa Fe New Mexican), and the festival utilizes multiple premium venue partners including the Santa Fe Community Convention Center, Magers Field at Fort Marcy Park, El Dorado Hotel & Spa, La Fonda, Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado, Bishop's Lodge/Auberge Resorts, and the Santa Fe School of Cooking.

The underlying technology stack is intentionally lightweight: a WordPress-based website, social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, Pinterest), email marketing, and the third-party SquadUP platform handling ticketing, confirmation emails, and mobile wallet integration. The organization operates with a lean team (1-10 employees) and is led by an independent nonprofit board with no parent entity, institutional investors, or funding rounds disclosed. Strategic positioning is reinforced by the USA Today 10Best Best Wine Festival award (2023) and recurring industry recognitions including Winery, Champagne, and Artist of the Year designations.

Name

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta

Legal name

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta

Website

https://santafewineandchile.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that produces an annual five-day food and wine festival in Santa Fe, NM, drawing over 4,500 attendees and featuring 65 restaurants and 90 wineries across ticketed tastings, dinners, and auctions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food & Wine Festival Events

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Food, Wine & Beverage Festivals/Expos (MPAGAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food, Drink & Culinary Community Festivals (Community-Led) (MPAGAEAF), Food Festivals & Culinary Events (Ticketed Tastings, Pop-ups) (THAJAGAL), Wine Tastings & Vineyard/Winery Tours (THAJAGAD)

Keywords

• Wine festival events
• Culinary festivals
• Food wine events
• Wine tasting events
• Culinary tourism

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Fe

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: The primary revenue stream comes from selling tickets to individual events during the 5-day festival. Events are sold à la carte with no all-access pass available. Tickets range across different tiers including General Admission and Gold Pass for the Grand Tasting and Chile Friday events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta operates an annual five-day food and wine festival in Santa Fe, New Mexico, selling individual à la carte event tickets for tastings, winemaker dinners, seminars, auctions, and chef demonstrations that bring together 65 local restaurants and 90 winery partners for more than 4,500 attendees. The organization also sells branded festival merchandise and produces an annual program guide. It functions as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit supporting culinary education and the local food and wine community.

Product overview

Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization producing an annual five-day food and wine festival in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The organization operates as a single-event production company rather than a platform, offering tickets to individual ticketed events including the Grand Tasting, Chile Friday, winery dinners, auctions, seminars, and chef demonstrations. The festival draws over 4,500 attendees and features 65+ restaurants and 90+ winery partners. The organization also operates a merchandise store selling branded apparel, posters, kitchen goods, and wine accessories, and publishes an annual Program Guide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 35th Annual Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta Annual five-day food and wine festival celebrating Santa Fe's culinary traditions, featuring tastings, seminars, chef demonstrations, winery dinners, and auctions with participation from 65+ restaurants and 90+ winery partners. Tickets sold à la carte per event.
• Grand Tasting The flagship Saturday event held at Magers Field at Fort Marcy Park featuring wine tastings from 90+ wineries and cuisine from 65+ Santa Fe restaurants. Sold with General Admission and Gold Pass (early access) tiers.
• Chile Friday Friday event at Magers Field at Fort Marcy Park showcasing New Mexico's famous chile and local cuisine paired with wines. Sold with General Admission and Gold Pass tiers.
• Winery Dinners Evening partner restaurant and winery dinners featuring winemaker presentations and multi-course menus. Sold individually per dinner.
• Live & Reserve Wine Auctions Wine auctions including the Live Auction held at Eldorado Hotel & Spa and the Reserve Wine Tasting & Auction held at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. Bids placed by registered attendees.
• Reserve Wine Tasting Exclusive tasting event featuring premium and reserve wines, held at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. Ticketed separately.
• Guest Chef Demonstrations & Tastings Cooking demonstrations and tastings by guest chefs held at the Santa Fe School of Cooking. Ticketed individually.
• Master Sommelier Throwdown Competition event featuring Master Sommeliers, held at La Terraza at La Fonda on the Plaza. Ticketed individually.
• Champagne & Dirty Boots Brunch Sunday brunch event at Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado featuring champagne pairings. Ticketed individually.
• Rosé All Day Sunday rosé-focused event held at Bishop's Lodge, Auberge Resorts Collection. Ticketed individually.
• Gruet Golf Classic Golf tournament at Santa Fe Country Club featuring Gruet Winery. Ticketed individually.
• Festival Merchandise Store Online store offering festival merchandise including apparel, accessories, event posters, kitchen goods, and wine accessories for shipping or local pickup.

Quantifiable outcome

• Draws over 4,500 food and wine lovers to the region annually

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• BenekeithminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor of the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.
• My Century BankminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor of the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.
• Corcoran Plaza PropertiesminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor of the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.
• ExxonMobilminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor of the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.
• Icelandic GlacialminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor providing water products for the festival.
• Market Street UnitedminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor providing commemorative bags for guests at Chile Friday and Grand Tasting.
• SyscominorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor and food service partner for the festival.
• ThornburgminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor of the Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta.
• Santa Fe New MexicanminorOthersPlatinum & Gold Chile Sponsor and media partner providing press coverage and photo galleries.
• Santa Fe Community Convention CentercoreOthersHome base for SFWCF during Fiesta week. Hospitality Desk located in lobby Wed-Fri 9am-5pm. Venue for seminars and Reserve Wine Tasting & Auction.
• Magers Field at Fort Marcy ParkcoreOthersHistoric park venue for Chile Friday and Saturday Grand Tasting events. No on-site parking; shuttle service provided.
• El Dorado Hotel & SpacoreOthersFeatured venue for Live Auction and Guest Chef's Luncheon. Luxury Santa Fe hotel celebrating Southwestern design.
• La Fonda HotelcoreOthersVenue for Guest Chef Luncheon and Master Sommelier Throwdown at La Terraza. One of the oldest and finest hotels in Santa Fe.
• Four Seasons Resort Rancho EncantadominorOthersVenue for Sunday's Champagne & Dirty Boots Brunch. Set on 57 rolling acres in Sangre de Cristo foothills.
• Bishop's Lodge, Auberge Resorts CollectionminorOthersVenue for Sunday's Rosé All Day event. Located against Santa Fe National Forest, short drive from historic plaza.
• Santa Fe School of CookingcoreOthersVenue for Guest Chef demos and tastings throughout the Fiesta. Internationally acclaimed culinary school specializing in American Southwest cuisine for over 33 years.
• SquadUPcoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial ticketing platform for Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta. Handles online ticket sales, confirmation emails with attached tickets, and mobile wallet integration.
• New Mexico Chile AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partner promoting New Mexico chile and local food traditions. Kari Dominguez represents the association as a participant.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aspen Food & Wine Classic: Premier U.S. food and wine festival operated by Food & Wine magazine. Direct peer to SFWCF as a multi-day ticketed culinary festival featuring winery and chef partnerships at a single destination.
• Pebble Beach Food & Wine: Annual multi-day luxury food and wine festival at Pebble Beach featuring top chefs and wineries with premium ticket tiers. Highly comparable in event structure, premium pricing, and curated winery participation.
• Sonoma Wine Country Weekend: Multi-day wine and culinary event in Sonoma County featuring winery tastings, winemaker dinners, and chef experiences. Direct comparable in event format, winery/restaurant partnerships, and nonprofit-style destination festival positioning.
• Charleston Wine + Food Festival: Five-day culinary festival in Charleston featuring wine tastings, chef demonstrations, and experiential dining events. Highly comparable in event duration, ticketed event structure, and curated chef/winemaker participation.
• Naples Winter Wine Festival: High-end destination wine festival in Naples, FL featuring winemaker dinners, auctions, and tasting events. Comparable in premium ticketing, auction revenue, and charity/nonprofit structure supporting local causes.
• Festival Napa Valley: Multi-week arts and wine festival in Napa Valley, including wine tastings, winemaker dinners, and auctions. Nonprofit-operated with similar mix of ticketed culinary events and destination-driven programming.
• Newport Wine & Food Festival: Annual destination wine and food festival in Newport, RI featuring Grand Tastings, seminars, and winemaker dinners. Direct peer in event format and tiered ticket structure (general vs. premium access).
• Paso Robles Wine Festival: Annual California wine festival featuring regional winery tastings, seminars, and reserve wine events. Comparable in California-centric wine programming and ticketed tasting format, though more regionally focused than SFWCF.
• La Jolla Wine & Food Festival: Annual destination food and wine event in San Diego featuring Grand Tastings and chef experiences. Comparable in ticketed event structure and curated winery/restaurant participation.

Broad incumbents

• Food & Wine (magazine/events): National food and wine media brand operating the Aspen Food & Wine Classic and related destination events. Functions as a broader incumbent in the wine/food festival category with significantly larger audience and sponsor reach than SFWCF.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sfwinechile
• Facebookfacebook.com/santafewineandchile
• Instagraminstagram.com/sfwcfiesta
• Pinterestpinterest.com/fssantafe/santa-fe-wine-chile-fiesta

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Santa Fe Wine & Chile Fiesta