A signature event for Greater Des Moines now in its third year, Winefest Des Moines returns Thursday through Saturday at various locations throughout the metropolitan area.

Since the inaugural Winefest in 2003, the non-profit organization overseeing the festival has given $60,000 to the arts in Greater Des Moines and more than 10,000 wine and food enthusiasts have participated in Winefest. The 2005 installment of Winefest promises to be equally successful, with events sprinkled around the area and wine-tastings on the State Historical Building terrace extended to two nights with the addition of a Sips & the City tasting designed to key off other downtown events.

Dahl’s Food Marts returns as a presenting sponsor for the Winefest events, at which more than 500 wines, representing more than 200 wine brands from 130 participating wineries and importers, will be poured. Dahl’s will host

On Thursday, Winefest Prima Dinners will be held at eight venues that are members of Bravo Greater Des Moines, the organization overseeing the cultural arts in Des Moines. Sponsored by LaSalle Bank, the dinners feature guest chefs and vintners at the Blank Park Zoo, the Des Moines Art Center, the Des Moines Playhouse, Hoyt Sherman Place, Salisbury House, the Science Center of Iowa, the Temple for Performing Arts and Terrace Hill. At press time, a limited number of tickets for some of the multicourse dinners were still available at www.winefestdesmoines.com.

In addition to local chefs preparing the Prima Dinner menus, three guest chefs from Padua, Italy, will lend their talents, as well as wines, to the lavish meals. Guest chefs at the various locations also include Jeremy Morrow of Forty-

Three Restaurant and Bar, Jodi Porter and Carol Wells of Zoo Beastro, Lisa LaValle of the Art Center Café, David North, Linda Ritchie of Mosaix, Dominic Iannarelli of Splash Seafood Bar and Grill, Glenda Reiling of Eurest Dining Services, Andrew Meek of Sage and Enosh Kelly of Bistro Montage.

Guest vintners will provide a different wine for each of the courses, and several of them have Iowa ties. Ron Kaplan, a former Des Moines lawyer, owns Oregon-based Panther Creek Cellars, which is known for its Shea Vineyard pinot noir. LaVelle Vineyards owner Doug LaVelle grew up in Eldora and graduated from Simpson College in Indianola in 1970. He purchased the Eugene, Ore., vineyard in 1994. Dana Brown of Des Moines is co-owner with her father, Lloyd Messer, of Calcareous Vineyards near Paso Robles, Calif., and P.J. Rex, who owns Deerfield Ranch in the heart of Sonoma Valley is a native of Newton.

Sips & the City from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday on the Historical Building terrace offers a prelude to other downtown events, including the opening concert for the Alive Concert Series, and special offers by nearby restaurants and entertainment venues.

Saturday offers a full day of activities, including wine and food seminars at five Dahl’s supermarkets throughout Greater Des Moines from 3 to 4 p.m.. Guest vintners will collaborate with the Dahl’s chefs to help seminar participants create wine-and-appetizer pairings. The seminars are free, but require pre-registration.

Also that day, Historic East Village merchants will offer wine tastings to participants browsing their shops. Free to the public, East Village Sip and Shop takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Winefest Des Moines concludes with Wine Discovery: The Grand Tasting from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday on the Historical Building terrace. The signature tasting event, it will feature an international array of vintages. Tickets for both the Friday and Saturday wine tastings may be purchased at any Dahl’s store or online at www.winefestdesmoines.com.