Denver Food + Wine Festival returns in September. Here's what to expect.

The Denver Food + Wine Festival is returning for yet another year. This multi-day extravaganza of food, wine, and spirits, hosted by the Colorado Restaurant Foundation in partnership with Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits, showcases Colorado's incredible restaurant community while raising funds to help hospitality workers across the state advance and thrive in their careers and their lives.

American Elm chef Daniel Mangin and Denise Mickelsen, vice president of communications for the Colorado Restaurant Association and Foundation, stopped by the CBS Colorado studios to chat about the excitement building around the upcoming event.

"Denver Food + Wine is one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. It is so crucial for all the programming that we do," said Mickelsen. "Starting on Sept. 3, we have a wine seminar. The next day, on the 4th, we have a food and cocktail competition, then on Friday, we are activating restaurants all around town as part of an online auction. We have all these special dining experiences, hotels. On Saturday, Sept. 6, is the grand tasting. Fifty restaurants, all the wine and spirits you could possibly ever drink. It's super fun at the Tivoli Quad on the Auraria Campus downtown."

Rallying around our local restaurants is imperative with fundraising at events like Denver Food + Wine, especially right now, Mickelsen says.

"Restaurants are not having the easiest time. Employees also run into tough times. So, we provide scholarships, training, and education, but also emergency assistance grants," said Mickelsen.

Mangin also demoed a squash cavatelli dish,  which is just one of the many bites that attendees can enjoy.

CBS Colorado is a proud media sponsor of the Denver Food + Wine Festival. To learn more and get your tickets, click here.