Not a lot of people know that wine comes from Illinois, but nowadays there’s fantastic wine being made all over the US, including in your own backyard! We’ve got some incredible hometown talent coming to Wine Riot Chicago. Check out the nearby heros that’ll be pouring next weekend: they’re ready to do your views a 180 and get you amped to drink local.

Illinois Sparkling Co.

Sparkling wine from Illinois? Bring it! This independent craft winery is obsessed with delivering mind-blowing sparkling wines using 100% locally-grown grapes. Make your way to their booth and experience wines with names like Stereo and Dollface that hail from a place called Peru, Illinois (which sounds just crazy enough to work!) The team at ISC embrace the spirit of sparkling wine (rather than the hype) with goals to make themselves and their wine unique and approachable. A must-taste on the Bubbly Tour, make sure to stop by and say hi!

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Lynfred Winery

These Wine Riot veterans blew it up last year and are back again for round two! This local company was founded by the father of the Illinois wine industry Fred Lynfred. Word has it that Robert Mondavi once told him, "You're wasting your time in Illinois. You should come to California." But Lynfred responded like a true baller, saying his roots were in Illinois and that he wasn't going anywhere. His hometown pride, years of dedication and mad business skillz resulted in high-quality wine that it bested over 300 others, including top California wines, in a Nevada judging back in the 80's. Stop by and get a taste of their top reds, whites, and even a cider.

 We've got just two weeks until we get back to our favorite Midwestern city Chicago! And we're bringing the heat with new ways to get your learn on. Check out these Crash Courses that will be at the event along with our new interactive booths. With four awesome topics covering a spectrum of badassery and deliciousness, come get served up some wine along with a heavy dose of brain juice.

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New Portuguese MVP’s” with Esporao Wines
Portugal's best known celebrity has always been Port, but now this Iberian superstar is rocking out reds that compete with France and Italy. Try these outstanding new reds from Esporao’s Quinta dos Murças. And yes, Port will make a guest appearance!

“Back that Class Up” with Cameron Hughes
Awesome wine doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Test your palate against four different wines with four very different prices and see why dollar bills aren't everything.

“The Mighty Reign of Riesling” with Dr. Loosen Estates
The Riesling grape has dominated Germany’s Mosel valley for two thousand years. Taste the wide range of wines styles from dry to lusciously sweet with Dr. Loosen Estate.

"Wines of Languedoc" with Languedoc Wines
With a dynamite blend of Mediterranean climate and awesome grapes, Languedoc is France’s most dynamic wine region with adventurous producers redefining traditions and producing some of the country’s most exciting wines today.

This week Tyler hit the road with the Millennial Wine Circus: a Wine Marketing Conference like none other!

This traveling conglomerate of beverage and marketing-savvy professionals got packed to the brim in an RV and are cruising all over the West Coast wine countries: Calaveras, Santa Barbara, Paso Robles, Sonoma and Napa Valley. Check out the video!

At each stop, they’re hosting a circus (complete with homemade popcorn) with speakers and presentations to address the significance of millennials and their unique, pivotal impact on the wine industry. This entire tour is a pretty awesome concept on a hot topic and demonstrates just how much the wine market is changing!

Tyler and the crew are blowin up wine regions with their speaches, as you can see Tyler droppin' insight into the minds of the millennial wine drinker. The crew will be joined by Morgan today and tomorrow for the final victory leg of the tour. The circus folk already seem to be causing a ruckus -- we’re lookin at sold-out conferences in Sonoma and Napa!

Follow the circus and get all the action updates at the Mutineer Facebook and blog, and on Twitter with @MutineerMag and #winecircus.

We’ve been fiending to get back to DC ever since our first Wine Riot there in 2011, and the capital city did not disappoint! Our Second Glass crew had a hell of a time returning this past weekend for an all-day Saturday of Rioting. We got a bunch of recent press including local publication the Washingtonian making a covergirl out of our amazing DJ Andie, and were stocked with a stand-out batch of DC’s finest volunteers. You guys freaking rule! Thanks to Washington for an amazing second stop on our 2012 tour.

SLO Down Wines Sexual Chocolate

California, USA

Slow down and take life a little less seriously with Sexual Chocolate, a baller red wine worth every penny and made in small batches by three former twentysomething bootleggers turned startup winery owners.

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To toast the completion of a Sold Out Boston Wine Riot, team Second Glass hit up Eastern Standard for the after party! In tow was a record breaking 9L bottle of Veuve Cliquot, reaffirming our work-hard party-hard ethos.

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Second Glass has been throwing Wine Riot with the classic look and same iconic imagery for a number of years. This time around we wanted to revitalize the entire event and take it to a new level for 2012. Drum roll, please....

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