As Roxanne sums it, its overpriced and underwhelming. My experience was no different. My friends came to their first event and had a blast. However this year was a huge let down.
First off, the venue was not as elaborate as I've thought. The Huntington building's lobby during the event was no different than any ordinary day (during the holiday season). The holiday decorations in the lobby is something they do every year. The only thing I noticed was that there were several banners showing the name of the event. Upon arriving, we were given 15 tickets for wine and beer samples. I was expecting at least 20 tickets since there are over 20 wine/beer vendors. So having only 15, we knew we won't be able to try all the vendors. The vendors and food stands are all scattered throughout the lobby and in vacant stores on the first floor. Most of the beers were served in chilled coolers and came out either not cold enough or too flat. Although there were a few good brews like the Christmas ale from Buckeye Brewery. What was most disappointing was the wine vendors. Almost all of the vendors had volunteers pouring their wine and had no knowledge on what it was they were pouring or what to recommended with the food tasting. The food was a bigger letdown. There were only 6 or 7 food vendors at the event and their features do not pair well with wine or beer...AT ALL... I mean who wants hummus with wine or beer? Other food items included soup (it was gross), wings (was ok), and cheeses & crackers (from Heinens - actually my favorite stand). Towards the end of the event I found myself with 6 tickets left, I just didn't have the motivation to use the rest. It was disappointing. Whats more is that I paid $50 for this event... and this was the early bird! It's $60 regularly! So unless they change the way they serve the alcohol and the type of foods being served at a much cheaper price, I don't recommend or see myself coming back ever again.