The 6 best bites from the Denver Food & Wine Festival

With wine glasses in one hand and small bites balanced in the other, hundreds of people gathered under shaded tents for the Denver Food & Wine Festival Grand Tasting on Saturday.

And as the Michelin Guide prepares to present its first-ever awards in Colorado on Tuesday, it was clear that the 50 restaurants in attendance had truly stepped up their game, something that is true also of Colorado’s food scene as a whole. I glided through each tent in awe, like I was stepping into the gates of food heaven. I’d like to say I made it to every table, but my stomach could only handle so much.

Proceeds from the annual multi-day festival go toward the nonprofit Colorado Restaurant Foundation, which hosted the festival and which supports local restaurant workers.

Here are six of my favorite bites (plus a couple of ho...