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VinePair named AAPI Food & Wine its 2026 Next Wave Awards Nonprofit of the Year. Founded by Oregon winemakers Lois and Dave Cho, the nonprofit has held annual festivals in Oregon and expanded to New York City, with further city events under discussion but not yet confirmed.
AAPI Food & Wine, the nonprofit festival founded by Oregon winemakers Lois and Dave Cho, has been named VinePair’s 2026 Next Wave Awards Nonprofit of the Year. The recognition comes as the organization moves beyond its Oregon events, including a three-day New York City celebration in March, and considers further expansion.
VinePair’s award recognizes an organization that began with a question the Chos heard repeatedly after launching CHO Wines in Oregon’s Willamette Valley in 2020: what informs their palate for wine? Lois and Dave Cho thought about the Korean food they grew up eating and wanted their wines to complement that cuisine. They also saw a gap between the growing appreciation of Asian American food and the attention given to Asian American wine.
The couple launched AAPI Food & Wine in 2023, initially imagining a potluck for AAPI community members in the Willamette Valley. The first festival brought together 12 Portland chefs and five Asian American Pacific Islander-owned wineries. Lois Cho told VinePair that 1,000 people attended and the event sold out. Since then, the nonprofit has staged three annual walkaround festivals in Oregon, where participating chefs and winemakers offer samples and meet attendees.
The organization’s activities have included established names in food and wine. VinePair reported that the first Oregon festival featured Hundred Suns Wine, Et Fille Wines, Sun Rice and Matta. Later collaborations included winemaker Sashi Moorman of Evening Land Vineyards and JinJu Patisserie bakers Jin Caldwell and Kyurim “Q” Lee. In March 2026, AAPI Food & Wine held a three-day celebration in New York City and partnered with Korean restaurant Atoboy. VinePair described its events as near or total sell-outs.
Recognition for AAPI Food and Wine
The award puts a national spotlight on a nonprofit seeking to connect Asian American Pacific Islander food and wine producers with audiences through shared events. Its work gives attendees a place to taste wines alongside food and to meet the people making both. The Chos’ stated aim is to have Asian American-made wine receive attention alongside Asian American cuisine, rather than treating the two as separate cultural stories.
Lois Cho told VinePair that the first festival’s reception went beyond a successful turnout: some attendees approached her in tears. She said she had expected a lively party but had not anticipated the emotional response. That account reflects the founders’ view that the events can offer community and visibility as well as tastings. It is their description of the response, not a formal measure of the nonprofit’s impact.
Recognition may also help the group build relationships with chefs, winemakers, vendors and attendees in additional regions. The organization’s planned direction, as described by Cho, includes featuring people beyond the Pacific Northwest and New York area, including emerging cooks with small restaurants or food carts. Whether it can sustain events in new cities will depend on plans and partnerships that have not yet been announced.
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From Willamette Valley to New York
The Chos’ path to the nonprofit started with CHO Wines, which they launched in 2020. VinePair reported that Lois and Dave Cho became the first Korean American winemakers in Oregon when they started the winery. As they built the business, questions about their palates led them to think about Korean cuisine and how their wines might pair with it. That reflection prompted a broader conversation about the visibility of Asian American wine producers.
Rather than begin as a large festival, AAPI Food & Wine grew from the idea of a local potluck. The rapid response to the inaugural event led to annual festivals in Oregon. The organization is now run with help from board members, including secretary and volunteer director Sylvia Choi and vendor relations and events director Jane Barmore, according to VinePair.
Cho told VinePair that Asian American communities have often been encouraged to assimilate and avoid attracting scrutiny. She said a younger generation is more publicly identifying with its heritage through food and wine. That perspective helps explain the nonprofit’s cultural purpose, while the award itself recognizes the organization’s work and growth rather than confirming broader changes across the wine industry.
“The first year, we hosted 12 Portland chefs and five Asian American Pacific Islander-owned wineries from the Willamette Valley. We had 1,000 people show up, and it was sold out.”
— Lois Cho, co-founder of AAPI Food & Wine, speaking to VinePair
Expansion Plans Still Unconfirmed
VinePair reported that AAPI Food & Wine is discussing possible events in Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Austin. The report does not give confirmed dates, venues, partners or a schedule for any of those cities. Cho said the organization had received requests, but it remains unclear which discussions will lead to events.
The available report also does not provide financial information, attendance totals for the later festivals, or details about how the nonprofit measures its longer-term effects on representation in food and wine. The reported sell-outs and collaborations show audience and industry interest in particular events, but do not establish the organization’s overall reach or impact.
Possible Cities and New Voices
The next public milestone would be an announcement of dates and locations if any of the expansion discussions become confirmed events. Until then, the proposed cities should be treated as possibilities rather than a tour schedule. The nonprofit has not announced which city, if any, will host its next festival.
Cho told VinePair that she wants future events to include chefs and winemakers outside the regions where the organization has already held festivals. She also said she hopes to make room for up-and-coming cooks, including people running small brick-and-mortar businesses and food carts. Any such programming will depend on the organization’s future event plans and participating vendors.
Key Questions
What award did AAPI Food & Wine receive?
VinePair named it the 2026 Next Wave Awards Nonprofit of the Year, according to the publication’s report.
Who founded AAPI Food & Wine?
Oregon winemakers Lois and Dave Cho founded the nonprofit in 2023. They also launched CHO Wines in the Willamette Valley in 2020.
Where has the organization held events?
AAPI Food & Wine has held three annual walkaround festivals in Oregon and held a three-day celebration in New York City in March 2026, according to VinePair.
Are events in other cities confirmed?
No. Lois Cho told VinePair that the organization was discussing possible events in Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Austin. No dates or commitments for those cities were reported.
What is the nonprofit’s stated aim?
The Chos established the festival to bring attention to Asian American-made wine alongside Asian American food, through events that connect chefs, wineries and attendees.
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