Tag: Food

“When we walked into the room, it felt like I was walking onto the field at a Super Bowl,” said Jim Nantz. The longtime sportscaster knows what that is like. But last night he wasn’t on the 50-yard line. He was pouring his wine, The Calling Chardonnay Russian River Valley Dutton Ranch 2016, at Wine Spectator’s 38th Wine Experience at the New York Marriott Marquis in Times Square.

For many wine lovers, the Wine Experience is the big game—three days of tasting rare and aged wines with leading winemakers, lunches showcasing the wines of different regions, and the black-tie Grand Award Banquet, celebrating the best restaurant wine programs in the world. And kickoff is the Thursday night Grand Tasting, the first of two evenings where wine lovers can taste 269 of the world’s greatest wines, all rated 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator editors.

Fitting an all-star show, the tasting had been sold out for days. More than 2,400 guests packed two ballrooms, eager to taste everything from Burgundy to Barolo, from Washington Syrah to a Greek white, from California Cabernet to Bordeaux-style blends from Israel, Japan and Virginia. Some had drawn up detailed game plans for tasting what they thought would be the most exciting. Others just wandered freely and explored.

“It’s overwhelming, it’s exciting. I don’t know where to start,” said Allison Pitts, 25, a New Yorker attending her first Wine Experience. “I feel like I’m learning a lot. There’s different wines from all over the country I never thought I would have the chance of tasting. It’s amazing.”

Many opted to go bubbly, trying Krug’s Brut Champagne Grande Cuvée 163ème Edition NV or Schramsberg’s J. Schram North Coast 2004 from California. For elegant whites, they could sample Pascal Jolivet’s Sancerre Le Grand Chemarin 2015 from the Loire or Forge Cellars Riesling Finger Lakes Dry Les Alliés 2016 from New York or Château La Nerthe’s Châteauneuf-du-Pape White Clos de Beauvenir 2013.

For reds, you could compare benchmarks like the 2008 vintage from both Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Margaux. For something untraditional, you could sample Orin Swift Cellars’ Abstract California 2016, a Grenache-Syrah–Petite Sirah blend. You could base your tasting on exploring a range of Italian, Spanish and Portuguese producers, or opt for a New World bounty from Argentina, Chile, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

For vintners, the evening was a chance to meet customers face to face and perhaps win new converts. “‘Exciting’ is the word,” said Larry McKenna of New Zealand’s Escarpment, who was pouring his Pinot Noir Martinborough 2015. “It’s always exciting to be here with the A-class producers. Especially exciting coming from a town of 1,000 people!”

“This is one of the last places in the world where you can meet all of the owners and winemakers,” said Stephan von Neipperg, co-owner of Bordeaux’s Château Canon-La Gaffelière. “And we come here not just to drink the wines but also to touch the people—they put their hand out and say ‘Hello, Stephan, how are you? I like your wine …’ or they say, ‘I don’t like your wine!’ And we talk. But everyone is happy! You look around and everyone is smiling.”

The Wine Experience happens thanks to the generosity of the countless vintners who share their wines and time. All net proceeds go to the Wine Spectator Scholarship Foundation, which has raised more than $20 million for scholarships and grants for the hospitality and wine industries, including Washington State University’s enology and viticulture program, Sonoma State University’s Wine Business Institute, the viticulture and enology program at the University of California at Davis, Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration and Florida International University’s hospitality school.

To the people at the Grand Tasting, the focus was on trying new wines and making new friends. Unlike the Super Bowl, everyone was a winner. “In a very short period of time, in a very small space, [you] have the experience of really top wines around the world,” said winemaker Sebastian Zuccardi of Argentina’s Zuccardi Valle de Uco, who was pouring for the first time at the Wine Experience. “When you see the brands that are here and the people that are here, it’s fantastic to be part of.”

The Grand Tasting takes the field again tonight.

—With reporting by Brianne Garrett, Ben O’Donnell and Robert Taylor

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The eve of the one-year anniversary of the start of 2017’s devastating wine-country wildfires brought warm temperatures, low humidity and violent wind gusts to Napa and Sonoma. The National Weather Service issued a red-flag warning, alerting residents that conditions were ripe for wildfire combustion and rapid growth. While the night passed without event, fire was on everyone’s minds.

The series of firestorms that tore through Northern California last year killed 44 people, burned 245,000 acres and destroyed 8,900 structures. One year later, wineries that were damaged have broken ground on new construction, many slowed by insufficient insurance policies. Sonoma residents are facing a housing shortage, with rebuilding delayed by a lack of workers.

Despite those hurdles, most residents are feeling optimistic about the future, thanks to a promising harvest and a desire to make the region even better than before the flames.

Rebirth in progress

“Today’s an emotional day,” said Rene Byck of Paradise Ridge Winery, interviewed Oct. 9. A year earlier, runaway flames consumed his Santa Rosa winery, tasting room, event space and thousands of bottles of wine. Byck described the weight of persistent local news coverage and events commemorating the anniversary. “Acting like nothing happened isn’t a solution either,” he admitted.

The rubble at the former Paradise Ridge tasting room, event space and winery has been cleared, and the owners are in the final stages of the permit process, hoping to start construction soon, with the goal of opening the tasting room and event space in October 2019. “The sooner we can rebuild the better,” said Byck. “I know people are looking at us as a symbol of rebirth, or maybe recovery.”

On the same day, in neighboring Napa, Ray Signorello broke ground on a new winery, fermentation building and caves, which he hopes to complete in two years. He spoke to a small crowd on the warm and sunny day, with grapes hanging on the vines and bins in the vineyards in anticipation of this year’s harvest.

Signorello told the guests he was in Vancouver at the time of the fire when his wife, Tanya, called to tell him what was happening. Winemaker Pierre Birebent and a crew arrived to help battle the blaze but had to leave as the fire engulfed the surrounding area. “I remember tossing and turning and wondering what was left,” recalled Signorello. But at the groundbreaking, he was positive about the new chapter in the winery’s history. “We’re going to build everything as quickly as we can,” said Signorello. “And now I get to build something [based on] all that I’ve learned over the last 40 years in the wine industry.”

Byck agrees it’s a chance to rethink the business model, calling the rebuilding process a forced “do-over.” “What does visiting wine country look like in 20 years?” he wondered. “We are exploring how to be relevant or maybe innovators.” For one thing, he is considering reducing the number of events they host, but offering guests more exclusivity. For now, guests can visit Paradise Ridge’s tasting room in nearby Kenwood. There are no plans to rebuild the winery; Paradise Ridge now makes wines offsite.

Mayacamas lost a visitor center next to the Napa winery in the blaze. But it’s about to open a tasting room in downtown Napa’s First Street Napa center before the end of the year, which should draw more visitors.

The good news for guests to Napa and Sonoma is that the before and after look much the same. Rains brought back vegetation to most areas scarred by fires. Much of the evidence of devastation is gone. Tourism is nearly back to pre-fire levels.

Lessons learned

But it took months to clear the debris, and it will take many years to rebuild all of the destroyed structures, particularly the more than 5,200 homes that burned down in Sonoma. While it’s estimated that authorities have issued building permits for about 2,500 homes, owners are struggling to find construction crews. Thousands more are having difficulty obtaining proper permits, many stymied by new building codes.

For wineries, the fires brought many lessons, including the importance of using fireproof materials and what kind of insurance to obtain. “We were worried about earthquake insurance,” said Byck. “We had good insurance on the wine, but we were underinsured on the buildings.” He estimates it will cost $14 million to replace all of the lost structures, but his insurance is only giving him $5 million.

Vintners are still struggling with what to do with the wine made from grapes hanging on the vine when the air was thick with smoke, causing possible smoke taint. Some winemakers who did not want to be identified report selling off wine in bulk or to distilleries. They’re frustrated with insurance companies who didn’t agree with what was a loss, or where the loss occurred and whether it was insured.

There are other lessons learned. The anniversary was commemorated with a test of the new Napa emergency text alert, designed to reach as many cellphones as possible in the area. Last year’s fires came quickly.

And a week after the fire anniversary, when risky fire weather conditions appeared again, with winds gusting from 50 to 77 mph, local power company PG&E made the decision to cut electricity for about 17,500 customers in Lake, Napa and Sonoma counties. The blackout closed public schools, and local business owners grumbled about their losses, but PG&E executives say the tactic could help prevent the next big fire. Evidence suggests downed power lines were responsible for at least some of last year’s blazes.

Vintners remain optimistic, particularly about the 2018 harvest, which is going along smoothly and with good yields. “The 2018 growing season has been great,” said Mayacamas winemaker Braiden Albrecht. “We are very happy with the fruit quality.”

It’s a sentiment common in wine country, as winemakers focus on the positives. “You have to have a little hope,” said Byck.

—With additional reporting from Kim Marcus

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When wildfires devastated Napa and Sonoma in October 2017, chef Tyler Florence’s first instinct was to put his skills as a veteran Food Network emcee and kitchen whiz to use by throwing a benefit bash to raise money for relief efforts. But the star of The Great Food Truck Race and Bite Club quickly realized that the event he organized would be part of a much bigger story.

Florence’s “The Grateful Table” last November seated 500 first responders, winemakers, chefs and more, but the North Bay local felt “there [was] no real, thorough documentation of what happened” as communities grappled, and rallied, in the fires’ aftermath, he told Unfiltered. Hence, Florence’s new documentary film Uncrushable, a compilation of interviews with more than 50 residents, emergency personnel, vintners and more, shot in just three weeks, “while the fires were still burning,” he said.

“The entire story just started to unfold in front of us; it was thoughtful, and it was scary, and it was human, and it was real,” Florence said. “I think it’s my best work.”

The 72-minute documentary debuted at the New York City Wine & Food Festival and screened in Toronto earlier this week; a first-look trailer also dropped last week. The film now comes home, with a showing in partnership with Visit California and Sonoma County Tourism on Oct. 19 in Santa Rosa, Calif. Then on Nov. 9, the Napa Valley Film Festival is partnering with Robert Mondavi Winery for a fundraising dinner and screening of the film.

“There’s been an unbelievable amount of progress,” Florence reflected on the year that has passed. “The big question I’ve got [for wine],” he added, “is, ‘What’s the 2018 vintage going to taste like?’ I think the interest in the 2018 vintage is going to be very special.”

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Lenny Kravitz Tastes the Stars with Dom Pérignon in New Film, Photo Series

Champagne is like Lenny Kravitz: a little fresh and a little tart, by turns smooth and mellow, then exuberant and effervescent. So it’s a natural fit that Kravitz is the latest artist to collaborate with Champagne Dom Pérignon, on a new photo and film series with the rocker behind and in front of the camera.

“I’ve long been a fan of Dom Pérignon—an avowed believer,” the four-time Grammy winner for Best Male Rock Performance told Unfiltered via email. “My experience with Dom Pérignon has been over the last 10 or 11 years; I’ve become friends with chef de cave Richard Geoffroy. So our collaboration is a story of authentic friendship, mutual respect and love.”

In May, Kravitz visited the maison and spent some hangtime in the vineyards, and last month, the fruits of his creative efforts were unveiled, footage of Lenny and his glamorous friends/progeny like Susan Sarandon, Harvey Keitel, Alexander Wang and Zoë Kravitz posing, doing artsy-type stuff and sipping Champagne. The exhibition now travels from New York to London, Milan, Tokyo and beyond, and the material will be used in ads rolling out this month. As Kravitz stays on in his role at Dom into 2019, we thought we might be able to help out with a few potential Pérignon jingles inspired by some of our favorite Kravitzms—gratis, LVMH:

“Let’s go and taste the stars / at the Abbaye / pressure 6 bars …
I want to get away / I wanna Hautvilleeeers / Oui Ouiii Ouiiii”

“American sparkling / stay away from me
American sparkling / steal my AOC-eee” …

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Beyoncé, Jay Z, Tiffany Haddish and The Prisoner (Wine) Star at City of Hope Charity Gala

Superstars lit up the night last week, as artists and musicians gathered at Santa Monica, Calif.’s Barker Hangar for the Spirit of Life Gala, supporting the City of Hope nonprofit clinical research and treatment center. And wherever there’s a celeb-studded charity event, you know a wine sponsor can’t be too far away. This particular evening, The Prisoner Wine Company had its Prisoner red blend and Blindfold white blend on-pour for gala-goers including Tiffany Haddish, Dr. Dre, Rita Ora, special performer Beyoncé, and the evening’s hosts, Pharrell Williams and Jay Z.

Honoring music executive Jon Platt for his dedication to City of Hope, the gala raised $6 million raised for the organization’s efforts to fight cancer, diabetes, and other life-threatening diseases.

“We were honored to support the City of Hope’s important efforts through our involvement in this year’s Spirit of Life gala,” John Seethoff, VP of marketing at The Prisoner Wine Company, told Unfiltered via email. “It was a natural fit for The Prisoner Wine Company, whose wines of character and quality echo the luminaries from music, film and philanthropy who filled the room that evening.”

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In a major move late yesterday, Constellation Brands announced that its current president and COO, Bill Newlands, will take over chief executive duties from Rob Sands, effective March 2019, with Sands becoming executive chairman. With the transition, Newlands will become the first Constellation CEO from outside the Sands family.

He takes the helm during a heady time for Constellation, which has seen its market value rise from $6.3 billion in 2012 to $43 billion today, following a string of acquisitions across the wine, spirits and beer businesses. Most recently, Constellation made another bold move with its $4 billion investment in Canadian cannabis producer Canopy Growth.

Shanken News Daily managing editor Daniel Marsteller caught up with Newlands to discuss his new appointment and the future of Constellation. Read the interview at Shanken News Daily.

Craving fresh apple juice in the morning? Learn how to make it using these five methods – any of which yields a refreshing juice full of flavor.

Les Grandes Tables du Monde is taking global action to get more women into the industry following the results of its first ever gender balance survey.

Pierre Koffman, a man with more stars than most, says that the Michelin guide can not be trusted

The winners’ ceremony of the competition dedicated to the design of food and beverage spaces took place in London. Dubai and Las Vegas on the top of the world.

After outraging Italians all over the world with her double cream carbonara recipe, Nigella Lawson divides us even further with Marmite spaghetti.

Enjoy a delicious look at dishes from Asia’s newest two-starred Michelin restaurants: Mingle and Alla Prima.