Posted by: Kim_Hamilton on 03/08/2009 10:56 PM
Updated by: thepinetree on 03/08/2010 02:13 PM
Expires: 01/01/2014 12:00 AM
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Winegrape Gourmet Hoopla, Huge Success ~ By Andrea Silva
Calaveras County, CA....Rave reviews buzzed through the room as hundreds of people poured into Mark Twain Hall for the 2nd annual Calaveras Winegrape and Gourmet. A plethora of vendors provided treats to please every eye, tongue and tummy. The event, hosted by the Calaveras Winegrape Alliance, is a way to “Showcase the County’s many wineries, restaurants, and artists” stated Scott Klan the president of the Alliance......
    
Click above for slide show of the event!
As people sipped wine that was grown and/or bottled here in our area, they were also treated to delightfully unusual food pairings. Wren Creative Food was a popular stop with their Almond Shortbread Myer Lemon Curd and Blueberry tart paired with the Indian Rock Chardonnay Port. While the Thai house of Valley springs spiced things up with Red Curry Chicken and Nam Sod (a lettuce wrap with pork, pepper, onion, peanut, ginger and basil).
Bistro 49 debuted menu items from their new restaurant in Arnold which will be opening this coming Friday. Some of you may recognize the name from the San Andreas location where the owners Kara Blanch and Amanda Dixon shortly took over the Blue Bistro before lease issues forced a move to another location. “We are really excited about opening in Arnold, we feel like it was meant to be” shared Dixon.
Another new business announced it’s opening during the event. The Spice Tin in Murphys is slated to open on May 1st of this year. Owner Patty Schulz offers unique and traditional spices including “Himalayan Salt Blocks”. These cooking accessories are a 600 million year old salmon colored slab. One can use the block as a cooking sheet to place food on and add flavor during baking. Other unique finds included the “Slumped Bottle” booth, where Jan Mangili of the Frisky Seamstress melts and molds discarded wine and liquor bottles into cheese plates and spoon rests.
Once you had a chance to peruse the various arts and crafts, guests were treated to various seminars throughout the day including “Sensory Evaluation/ Building a Wine Aroma Memory Bank” by Tom Bender, or “The Art of Cheese & Wine Pairing” by Judy Creighton. Tanner Vineyards had a Ravioli Demo showing how simple it is to make your own scrumptious homemade ravioli, then expertly pair it with red wine.
Local artist Terri Wilson was honored at the event after she provided the painting that won its way onto the events posters and marketing materials. The evening ended with a raffle of prizes including premium wine baskets, a limo wine tasting tour with Stage Coach Limousine, and tickets to the upcoming Passport Weekend on June 26-28th.
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