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Downtown's Annual Celebration of Hyper-Local Businesses Evolves With the Neighborhood

by R.J. Price
Bars & Nightlife Food, Restaurants & Dining Music & Events R.J. Price March 24, 2022

Back in 2010, when Downtown Phoenix was a vastly different place, Urban Wine Walk made its debut as “a light rail-based grape extravaganza featuring 11 up-and-coming wine destinations in Downtown Phoenix, Central Corridor and Tempe.”

Let that event description marinate.

Yes, in order to attract a sufficient number of participating restaurants, the event’s footprint needed to be stretched 12 city miles.

No such problem exists in 2022. Today, Downtown Phoenix boasts over 200 bars and restaurants in a 1.75-square-mile walkable neighborhood, with upwards of 30 projected to be on display Saturday, April 23, during the 10th Annual Urban Wine Walk. From 1-5 p.m., participating bars and restaurants will offer three different wine samples priced at $5 each, plus a complimentary snack with purchase.

A photo from the first annual Urban Wine Walk at Phoenix Public Market, 2011. (Photo: Jamie Peachey)

For many attendees, Urban Wine Walk is the mechanism through which they get their taste of what’s helping drive downtown’s astounding growth: a hyper-local sidewalk experience infused with over 150 murals and supercharged by an authentic community spirit.

For participating businesses, Urban Wine Walk is an opportunity to not only show off their menus, but their hosting chops.

“We have been participating in Urban Wine Walk since we opened in 2018 and it’s one of our favorite events of the year,” said Emily Rieve, who owns GenuWine Arizona with Lindsey Schoenemann. “We love being a part of the Downtown Phoenix community and Urban Wine Walk connects the community with small businesses and helps introduce new customers to GenuWine.”

Lindsey Schoenemann and Emily Rieve are the owners of GenuWine Arizona in Downtown Phoenix (Photo: Grapes and Barrels)

Downtown Phoenix has experienced a net gain in bars and restaurants since Urban Wine Walk was last hosted in its traditional format back in 2019 and several businesses, like Kähvi Coffee on Roosevelt Row, will be participating for the first time.

“These [Urban Wine Walk and Urban Ale Trail] events are the perfect opportunity to show off our concepts to an entirely new audience, while giving us the ability to get creative with our food and drink offerings,” said Julian Wright, CEO and Founder of Fork & Dagger Hospitality, which operates Lucky’s Indoor/Outdoor, Pedal Haus DTPHX and Kähvi Coffee + Cafe.

With so much development happening downtown, Wine Walk has become an opportunity for residents from around the Valley to explore new murals, businesses and buildings popping up across downtown. (Photo: Zee Peralta)

This year’s Urban Wine Walk is sponsored by CityScape Residences and the luxury residential high rise will be giving out commemorative Urban Wine Walk glassware to the first 200 attendees who arrive at the event kickoff held at CityScape. Tours of the CityScape Residences tower will also be available.

Downtown Phoenix Inc. will curate the wine lists and make printed and digital Urban Wine Walk maps and menus available to attendees. You can also track participating restaurants at dtphx.org/winewalk.

We hope you’ll join us for the 10th Annual Urban Wine Walk, a celebration of Downtown Phoenix and the local businesses that make it great.