Rio Jean Photography - Seattle, WA {Taste Washington 2017}

Can you believe 2017 marked the 20th anniversary for Taste Washington!? I can't believe I missed out on 20 years of this!  

This year I was finally able to provide coverage for Taste Washington 2017 on Saturday, which meant I could see a lot of the winemakers!  Saturday is substantially busier than Sunday and it was harder to navigate the crowds and talk with anyone as the vendors were busy tending to the masses.  Each day has its perks, if you have never gone, I would recommend going on a Sunday as you will have more of an opportunity to speak with the vendors.  If you really don't care about getting your chat box going, then Saturday is your day! 

Guess who I finally ran into this year!? If you don't know who this winemaker is, read through my blog! (and a pic of me and my dad, I had company this year!)

Here is the press release: 

For its 20th anniversary, Taste Washington welcomes five award-winning chefs to the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Chef’s Stage: Chef Kristen Kish, Chef Stephanie Izard, Chef Chad White, Chef Jason Stratton and Chef Gregory Gourdet.

Taste Washington, the nation’s single-largest food and wine event, celebrates its 20th anniversary March 23-26, 2017. Following two days of food and wine-devoted parties and farm tours – including the Red & White Party, The New Vintage and On The Farm – Taste Washington’s finale, the Grand Tasting, takes place March 25-26 at CenturyLink Field Event Center.

“The Grand Tasting showcases more than 225 wineries and 65 restaurants and is truly the centerpiece of Taste Washington. After getting better acquainted with the local food and wine industry at the Red & White Party, The New Vintage, and On the Farm, guests can watch how different celebrity chefs and winemakers bring everything together,” said Ali Daniels, Vice President of Marketing at Visit Seattle. “Being immersed in a chef’s cooking process and culinary vision isn’t just entertaining – it also gives everyone a greater appreciation for Pacific Northwest cuisine and our local resources.”

About Taste Washington:

Taste Washington is the largest single-region wine and food event in the United States, featuring more than 225 Washington State wineries and more than 65 Pacific Northwest restaurants. The 20th annual event will be held on March 23-26, 2017 at various locations in Seattle. The 2017 Taste Washington welcoming sponsor is Alaska Airlines and the premier sponsors are Alaska Airlines Visa Signature® Card, Albert Lee and Muckleshoot Casino. Taste Washington attracts more than 6,400 wine and food enthusiasts to the Seattle area. The Washington State Wine Commission launched Taste Washington in 1998 and is now produced by Visit Seattle. For more information, visit www.tastewashington.org.

The very first thing I tried was from the Capitol Grille and it was a miniature tenderloin sandwich with black truffle mayo and micro bulls blood, it was the best thing I had at the Taste this year!  Very popular item as there were lines of people waiting to stuff their faces with this sandwich!  I HIGHLY recommend you make a trip The Capitol Grille and get your grub on!

Washington State Convention Center never disappoints!  This year they were serving Tropical Fruit Panna Cotta (Whipped Coconut Lima Panna Cotta with Mango Ginger and Pineapple compote).  The presentation for these treats were so cute as it was served in a little egg-shell cup so it looked like a cracked egg. 

One of my all-time favorite places to stop is Swiftwater Cellars as they always have beautiful displays!  

Semiahmoo was serving up some olive oil poached halibut with tomato/coconut soup topped with stinging nettle pesto. It wasn’t bad!  I am always surprised when I eat something that tastes amazing  and find out it's made from duck liver or stinging nettles or micro bulls blood.  I AM happy to report, this year wasn’t at all heavy on the duck pate like it was last year, thank goodness for that!

One food item I tried was a spin of the Sub Zero Ice cream, it was popcorn tossed in liquid nitrogen.  You are supposed to shoot it and then a bunch of liquid nitrogen smoke stuff comes out of your mouth.  It looked cool, so of course I tried it and thought it was ok.  It was so cold that it burned my mouth, but everyone was having fun with it.  

Do you want to know what the absolute best item I saw at the Taste this year?  It is the best thing I have seen in the three years I have attended this event.  I’ll give you a clue:  It has to do with Wine and being a Wineaux on the go. Wine in a KEG!!!!!! It was AMAZING and the wine was actually very good. 

I had the pleasure of meeting Seth Kitzke – son of Vickie and Paul of Kitzke Cellars in Tri-Cities.  I have heard a lot about Seth from his mom and was excited to hear he is now taken over the wine making for Kitzke and is also making wine under his label, Upside Down. From Seth “We believe in bringing people together, whether that be through sharing a bottle or sharing our profits. When you Drink Upsidedown, 20% of the proceeds are passed on to our partner organizations. This is just one small way that together we can Pour it Forward.”  Isn’t that amazing?! Why wouldn't you purchase wine from this company?  I was also lucky enough to win a bottle of their Upsidedown Rescue Rose, thanks Seth, looking forward to drinking it this summer.

There were a ton of amazing wineries, I tried to branch out this year and not go by the usual places.  I met a lot of great people and have plenty of wineries to visit.   A couple of wineries that stood out this year for me was Abbe Winery, Tunnel Hill Winery, J Bell Cellars and Winery, Baer Winery, and Cadence Winery.  Of course all of the usual suspects were amazing and it was good to see the winemakers.

This Mac N Cheese was AMAZING!!! I had at least 2 samples!!

Looking forward to seeing everyone next year and if you haven’t been to the Taste Washington, what are you waiting for!? This is THE event to be at every year.  You will eat a ton of amazing food, sip on some of the best wine around, and meet loads and loads of wonderful people.  The Washington Wine industry is truly amazing.  Treat yourself and go the Taste Washington 2018!!

Cheers!! 

Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Des Moines, WA {Poverty Bay Wine Festival}

I haven't been to Poverty Bay Wine Festival in YEARS!! (http://blakemesser.wixsite.com/drink-to-music) and (http://www.seattlesouthside.com/events/1691-poverty-bay-wine-festival).  I decided to attend the event with my Wino BFF (My Dad) and we headed over to Des Moines to get our wine on!

 I have to say, this event has really evolved since I was last there 10 years ago.  This year, there were 20 wineries, most of them were smaller wineries.  There was also live music, door prizes, a shuttle to take you from the parking lot to the event, designated drivers, and a food truck!!! I was surprised there was wine available for purchase too!  The food truck was a life saver as the event offered cheese and meat trays, I'm sure it was very delicious but, when drinking wine, I need to nom on food that has some substance to it!

I had a great time here and of course took the opportunity to rub shoulders with winery owners and talk their ear off about wine! If you have not gone to this event, I highly recommend you check it out, I cannot say enough good things about this event. I thought the Rotary Club of Des Moines and Normandy Park did an amazing job with putting everything together (all the proceeds went to charities too)!  It's a perfect event for a girls day or even an event to take your significant other to.

Cheers!
Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Zillah, WA {Guerra's Gourmet Catering}

A little late to post this, I stopped by Dineen Vineyards (http://www.dineenvineyards.com/) for some wine and wasn't at all impressed with their service as I was never served!  I stood there at the tasting bar for about 10 min and wasn't greeted or acknowledged so I decided to check out another business that was on the grounds, Guerra's Gourmet (http://guerrasgourmetcatering.com/) and I am so glad I did!

Guerra's Gourmet Catering is family owned and I had the chance to meet one of the owners, Chris, who is also the head chef and he was amazing!  Chris seemed like a really laid back and fun guy! It was very evident the owners believe in supporting the community and supporting other business in the area. Chris spent a lot of time talking up other wineries and also recommended other places to eat at, which I thought was awesome!  

The two items I would recommend trying is any of their pizzas and the asparagus. The asparagus was cooked to perfection with just the right amount of crunch and seasoning and it wasn't too greasy.   I also really enjoyed the pizza and their pizza was beyond amazing.  What made the pizza impressive was the multi layered flavor, the fresh toppings and the thin, crispy crust.  The crust was what really sealed the deal for me. The crust is the same recipe that is used to make tortillas, so it was thinner and had a nice firmness to it.  I really liked their pizza as I didn't fill up on a thick bread crust; I was able to enjoy more of the toppings.

If you happen to be in the Zillah area, I highly recommend you check out Guerra's, you won't be sorry!
Cheers!
Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Zillah, WA {Bonair Winery}

My first stop during my visit to Zillah Wine Country was to Bonair Winery (http://www.bonairwine.com/)  The vineyard was planted in 1980 with the first grapes (Chardonnay, Riesling, and Cabernet Sauvignon) being harvested in 1984.  The winery was opened in 1985 and Bonair was one of the first wineries in the area.  

If you haven't seen Bonair Winery, it is a compound!  There are at least three building plus the tasting room and a cave.  Bonair Winery uses estate grapes and also sources grapes from Morrison Vineyards.  All of the production is completed on site and the winery produces around 8000 - 10,000 cases of wine a year.  

When we pulled up to the parking lot, we saw this dog...just hanging out underneath a truck.  I'm not going to lie, I was a little scared as I wasn't sure if he was going to jump up and start barking and possibly start chasing us.  But surprisingly, he didn't.  He just sat there and looked at us.  Turns out, that was Bung,  Bonair's winery dog(he's an Australian Shepherd).  

I wasn't too impressed with any of the wines, they seemed like they were all on the lighter side, even the reds.  However, I do recommend you try the wines out as not everyone likes the same qualities in wines as I do.  If you are in Zillah,  stop by and check out Bonair Winery.  Leave me a note to let me know how your experience was! 

Cheers,
Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Zillah, WA {Cultura Winery}

I've never been out to the wineries in Zillah, so needless to say, I was pretty excited about this trip.  One place I was really impressed with was Cultura Winery (http://www.culturawine.com/).  Both of the owners were working the tasting room and having them both there really added to my experience.  There's something about being able to meet the owners, talk with them about their story, and hear how passionate they are about their winery.  Another aspect I enjoyed about Cultura Winery was, the day I was there, they were donating tasting fees to the Yakima Pet Release, that makes me like this place even more!

Cultura Winery (meaning to cultivate culture) had its first vintage in 2005.  Cultura uses estate grapes as well as sourced grapes from Sunridge Vineyards to make their delicious wines.   The production is done on site and the winery produces about 1200 cases a year.  Tad, one of the owners, states they plan on staying a small production winery as they want to continue to remain a hands on winery.

This place was so cool and after several not so good experiences at other wineries that day, Cultura was haven of warmth and friendliness.  If you are looking for a winery that has a laid back atmosphere and friendly service provided by the owners, Cultura Winery is a must see.   

If you visit or try any of Cultura wines, leave me a comment to let me know how you liked it!

Cheers! 

Melanie