4th March 2008: Last year Wine & Food In The Park debuted something completely new: an on-site VIP restaurant serving a-la-carte lunches and dinners. Simple word-of-mouth saw his restaurant completely booked out before the Festival gates even opened. So this year, we're bringing it back - and 200 lucky people can get to enjoy a fabulous 5-course fixed menu lunch or dinner at the VIP Festival Restaurant if they book quickly! The Festival Restaurant is being run by chef Brent Shorter and the catering team from the Kingaroy Hotel Motel, and all the produce used in the meals comes from the South Burnett. Seats at either the lunch sitting (12:00 noon to around 2:00pm) or the dinner sitting (6:30pm to around 8:30pm) are $72 per head, and you can only get one if you book quickly. To reserve a seat, call Kelly on (07) 4162-1677. PS: BYO wine! Media: Get an extra outline of this story in Microsoft Word by clicking here

1st March 2008: Visitors at this year's Wine & Food In The Park Festival will be able to sample some of the State's best wines - and also try out some of the South Burnett's newest. Award-winning wines from the South Burnett's top winemakers will be on display in our Giant Wine Tent, and visitors will also be able to sample wines from brand new South Burnett wineries like Arabesque Wines of Nanango; Bellbird Vineyards of Kingaroy; and the exotic new Coolabunia Wines. Other well-known South Burnett wineries who'll be in attendance include Captain's Paddock, Crane Wines, Clovely Estate, Barambah Wines, Whistlestop Wines, Kingsley Grove and Moffatdale Ridge. And - as always! - you'll also be able to sample some of the earliest releases from the 2008 vintage as well as the newly-matured 2007 reds (and 2007 is looking like it's going to shape up as a particularly fine year for reds indeed). Non-wine drinkers are catered for too, of course, with our big under-cover Beer Tent. And there'll be lots of soft-drinks and tea and coffee outlets spread around the Food Court for the benefit of designated drivers and children. So bring a thirst with you! Media: Get a high-resolution copy of this picture by clicking here (2.7Mb)

27th February 2008: Multi-award winning band Pete Cornelius & The DeVilles - who were awarded Best Australasian Blues Band and Best Australasian Guitarist at the annual Bluestar Awards, and who also took out the Arts Award at the Southern Cross Young Achiever Awards - will be headlining an all-star entertainment line-up at this year's Wine & Food In The Park Festival. The main stage at the 2008 Festival will also play host to top Brisbane swing band Midnight Syndicate; local bands The Blues Excuse and Fat Cow; alternative band Blue Room and solo guitarist Wayne Francis. And this year Wine & Food In The Park is also very proud to welcome back the amazing female acrobatic troupe Monster Blonde; absurdist theatre performers The Wanderers; and - for the children - the incredibly popular Rainbow Connection along with our all-ages Puppet Theatre, all of whom will be performing several sessions throughout the day right in the middle of the crowds. As usual, the Festival will also have an assortment of great carnival amusement rides on Memorial Park's main oval so that parents can take a break at various times during the day, knowing that their children are safe and well-cared for. You can view the complete 2008 entertainment schedule on our website. Media: Get a high-resolution picture of Pete Cornelius by clicking here (250K) and a press release in MS Word format by clicking here

24th February 2008: Over the last 5 years the PCA Regional Cuisine Cook-Offs have become an intrinsic part of Wine & Food In The Park. And this year - as in previous years - they'll be judged by some of Queensland's most eminent food critics. In 2008 the judges are well-known Brisbane chef David Pugh from Restaurant Two in Brisbane (pictured at right); well-known food writer David Costello from the Courier-Mail's Good Life magazine; and respected food critic Kerry Heaney from Style Magazine. The judging team will be led by well-known food identity and former South Burnett Culinary Competition judge Alison Alexander, who'll be sharing her experiences and commenting on the competition as compere. And this year - for the first time - there'll also be short presentations from local South Burnett food producers between the cooking displays. The Cook-Offs are open to chefs and apprentices from fine food establishments throughout south-east Queensland. Entrants will have 25 minutes to prepare two serves of a main dish matched with a South Burnett wine. All dishes must use South Burnett produce and include PCA's Hi Oleic peanuts. The judges will allocate points in relation to set criteria in a number of categories, and the final winners will be announced at around 5:00pm on the day. Media: Get a high-resolution picture of David Pugh by clicking here (450K) and a press release about the PCA Cook-Off in MS Word format by clicking here

21st February 2008: The very latest South Burnett Wine and Food Trail Map can now be obtained on our web site - absolutely free! The new map was released in late 2007 but the version available on our site has been updated to reflect several changes that have occurred since it first rolled out of the printers. The Wine & Food Trail Map lists the South Burnett's major wineries, cellar doors, regional food outlets and many of our accommodation providers. And although the map has been slightly stylised for improved readability, many visitors say they prefer it to a traditional "road map" because of its ease of use. Hard copies of the map can also be obtained from any of the South Burnett's Visitor Information Centres or from Tourism Queensland (but if you get one of those, please be aware that it will contain errors because of changes that occurred after it was printed). You can download a printable map by clicking here (100K PDF)