WAC Magazine

MARCH | APRIL 2018

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MARCH / APRIL 2018 17 taste winemaker dinner ey say wine gets better with time. If that's the case, the WAC's 12th annual Taste Washington Winemaker Dinner, featuring the talents of some of the state's pioneering winemakers—along with some of the younger set—should be our best yet. is year's dinner, set for 6 pm on Saturday, March 24, in the Crystal Ballroom, will honor several legendary founding families of Washington wine and the signature varietals and blends they have cultivated. e accompanying dinner will highlight the seasonal offerings of guest chefs, includ- ing Jon Maley, who worked for a number of renowned Seattle estab- lishments—including e Local Vine and Book Bindery—before joining Gig Harbor's Canterwood Golf & Country Club. Joining Maley will be Anthony's Restau- rants Executive Chef Pat Donahue, who will oversee a pre-dinner seafood reception, opening the evening with a selection of Northwest gourmet. "is is the marquee wine event at the WAC," says Food & Beverage Vice Pres- ident Peter Christian. "It has a fabulous tradition." Executive Chef Eric Floyd and his team join the guest chefs and create their most progressive dishes at Taste Washington, where attendees are oen introduced to new culinary trends and A night for the ages Celebrate Northwest cuisine and Washington vintages at the year's most important wine dinner creative combinations. "I look forward to this night every year," Eric says. "Not just because I get to cook with top chefs from around the region, but also because we create dishes that expose WAC members to new fla- vors and ideas. is is the kind of event chefs live for." Each course will be paired with a wine from J. Bookwalter, Mercer Estates, Seven Hills, ree Rivers, Long Shadows, or Solemn Cellars—a stellar selection of old and new from around the state. J. Bookwalter, founded in 1982 in the Tri-Cities, boasts a tasting room in Richland named one of the nation's best by Sunset magazine. Don and Linda Mercer, founders of Prosser's Mercer Wines, were honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Washing- ton Association of Wine Grape Growers in 2011. Seven Hills, in keeping with its focus on Bordeaux-varietal reds, has bottled more vineyard-designate Cabernet Sauvignons and Merlots from the Walla Walla Valley appellation than any other winery. Walla Walla's Wood- ward Canyon—WAC members Rick Small and his wife Darcey Fugman-Small are the winery's owners—still harvests grapes from Sagemoor Vineyard, the source of the winery's very first Cabernet Sauvignon back in the early 1980s. On the flip side, Solemn Cellars was founded in 2017 and has been called one of the best new wineries in Walla Walla. Wine- maker Justin Basel grew up learning under his parents at Basel Cellars and graduated to Cor- liss Estates and Foundry Vineyards before strik- ing out on his own. e stories of these wineries, their terroir, and winemaking styles will illu- minate each vintage as it's poured and shared. "is dinner really brings together the best of our state's wine and food industry in one place for one night," Peter says. Photos by John Bang

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