Weekly gastronomy agenda: James Beard Foundation Awards 2010, Agavefest

This May opens with a range of events celebrating food all over the world. First stop, New York City for the 20th annual James Beard Foundation Awards, then Stilton for the 51st Annual Stilton Cheese Rolling Competition, back to the US for Agavefest, next stop Germany for the World Beer Cup European Awards, ending the week in Las Vegas with Uncork'd.

James Beard Foundation Awards 2010
May 2-3
Lincoln Center, New York, New York, USA

2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the James Beard Foundation (JBF) Awards that will honor a wide range of talent in the food and beverage industry in the USA including chefs, restaurateurs, cookbook authors, food journalists, restaurant designers, architects, farmers, bread bakers, winemakers, cheese makers and more at a black-tie gala. The awards are considered a "social and gastronomic highlight of the year," and will name many "Best" including Young Rising Chef, New Restaurant and International Cookbook. To view a full list of the finalists, go to: www.jbfawards.com/nominees.html

51st Annual Stilton Cheese Rolling Competition
May 3
Silton, England

Every May Day, the village of Stilton celebrates their beloved cheese, also referred to as the 'King of Cheeses,' with the traditional sport of cheese rolling. The cheese is not rolled down a hill but rather down Main Street with the help of ‘Cheese Rolling Champions.' For directions to Stilton and more information on the event, fair and dance, visit: http://www.stilton.org/about_rolling.html

Agavefest 2010
May 5
Hotel Congress, Tucson, Arizona, United States
Astor Center, New York City, USA

Cinco de Mayo (May 5th), a national holiday in Mexico, is becoming known as Agavefest on both the east and west coast of the United States. Tucson is celebrating its second annual tequila tasting event with hands-on seminars, hard to find tequilas and an Iron Chef inspired competition with Herradura. Tasting cards are sold $20 (€15) for ten top-shelf tastes and a three-course tasting menu is $30 (€22.62). http://www.hotelcongress.com/2010/03/26/2nd-annual-tequila-tasting-agavefest A smaller event can be found in New York at Astor Center's Lounge, their first Agavefest where the creators promise to deliver an event akin to their 2010 Bacon & Bourbon Expo. Tickets are $25 (€18.84) for the evening of tequila and guacamole that begins at 6:30pm. http://www.astorcenternyc.com/class-agavefest-2010.ac

World Beer Cup European Awards Ceremony
May 5
Höhr-Grenzhausen, Germany

Brewers Association, US-based association of beer brewers, began the World Beer Cup International Competition in 1996 to celebrate "the art and science of brewing." This event is often referred to as "The Olympics of Beer Competitions" because it awards gold, silver and bronze medals to the award-winning beers in 90 international styles, such as fruit and vegetable, experimental, coffee-flavored and Baltic-style Porter. It takes place every two years, and beers are judged by a panel of internationally recognized brewers, consultants, industry suppliers and writers.
http://www.worldbeercup.org/ 

4th Annual Uncork'd: Big Flavors, Bright Lights and the World's Greatest Chefs
May 6-9
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Uncork'd is presented by Bon Appétit magazine and boasts a celebrity chef line-up including Burke, Ducasse, Robuchon and many more, plus numerous respected wine aficionados and sommeliers. Uncork'd takes place at various Las Vegas hotels and resorts and is a rare opportunity for food lovers to find world famous chefs in one place sharing recipes and preparing decadent meals. For a complete list of the events and prices, visit: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/28735

Thaifex - World of Food Asia 2010
May 12-16
IMPACT Challenger, Bangkok, Thailand

This year's program has two new highlights the "Best Value Awards for Creative Food Products in Asia" and a new hall devoted to the "World of Halal." Thaifex is known as a tasting and buying event - new food flavors and ‘healthy indulgence' trends may find their way on to airline menus, duty-free shops and markets around the world. Thaifex is the largest Southeastern Asian food and beverage event with over 22,000 trade and public participants and 14 international pavilions and is related to Wine&Gourmet JAPAN and ANUGA. The event is free for the public to attend on May 15-16. For more information, visit: http://www.worldoffoodthailand.com/

Vinexpo Asia-Pacific
May 25-27
Hong Kong

Exclusively a trade event that returns to Hong Kong in 2010 due to the rapidly growing wine market in Asia and the position of Hong Kong as the hub for wine education, trends and new products. Buyers from all over the world will be in Hong Kong selecting products that will likely be new selections available in duty-free shops, markets and restaurant menus. For more information on Vinexpo visit: http://www.vinexpo.com/en/asia-pacific-2010/

Gourmet Latino Festival
June 4-12
New York City, USA

The first festival devoted to gourmet cuisine from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, México, Perú, Uruguay, and others taking place in New York City. The festival offers a number of events to participate in from hands-on-seminars (Morning with Coffee & Cacao, Brunch Levantamuertos), grand tastings to carnival parties and authentic dining with 40 world-renowned Latino and Latina "tastemasters" including Daisy Martinez, Lourdes Castro and Aarón Sánchez . Events are priced individually to customize your program, go to: http://www.gourmetlatinofestival.com

Bocuse d'Or Europe 2010
June 7-8
Geneva, Switzerland

Bocuse d'Or Europe is the final competition this year that has toured the world to pre-select the four best continental teams that will compete at the annual prestigious final Bocuse d'Or 2011 in Lyon, France in January. Teams of chefs will be representing 20 European nations. Russia was to join the competition but had to drop out and Poland has taken its place; also new to the competition this year is Slovakia. All the teams will be making halibut and Swiss veal. http://www.bocusedor.com/2010/