After lunch we had the Saturday keynote address and discussion with author Rex Pickett of Sideways and more, moderated by Alana Gentry (Girl With a Glass). This was a really fun Q&A session. Really, it was a stream of consciousness discussion that was very entertaining. Rex has a great sense of humor.
Next up another installment of Live Wine Blogging–a speed tasting of red wines, just like we did the white wines on Friday. Lots of fun and some very nice wines. One thing about the fast pace is you really have to concentrate on what you are doing. You don’t get distracted and lose focus. Also, swishing and spitting is essential. No drinking the wine. Yes, I know that seems sacrilegious, but we must make the sacrifice!
After the red wine tasting we went to a pre dinner reception hosted by New Wines of Greece. This really opened my eyes up to some very nice wines I would never had tried. My only previous experience with Greek wine was Retsina and I can’t say I liked it at all. The new Greek wines are very well done and more to the taste we expect in a wine. Not fruity in your face reds, but elegant reds and crisp dry whites. Very educational!
Before our final dinner, a five course meal prepared by King Estates Winery, we had the wine blogger awards presented. There were awards for the Best Post of the Year, Best New Wine Blog, Best Original Photography or Video and many more categories. A full list of the winners can be found at Wine Blog Awards.
Finally it was time for dinner! Nancy will do the writing for this.
Dinner with King Estates Winery was a very ambitious undertaking. Ed King, CEO and Founder, explained all food is locally sourced, much of it comes from producers working for King Estates. King Estates brought their executive chef Michael Landsberg, pastry chef Tobi Sovak, and supporting staff to cook for us. It was a five course dinner with wine pairing.
We started with a fennel, heirloom tomato, grilled corn and duck breast prosciutto salad. It was paired with the 2011 NxNW Horse Heaven Hills Riesling. The salad was flavorful and fresh and the wine was floral and crisp. It was a great pairing.
Next we were served a confit of spot prawns with cucumber, roasted peach and basil. The dish was paired with the 2011 King Estate Signature Pinot Gris. The Pinot Gris was crisp and clean and paired well with the richness of the prawns.
Next, Wild Chinook salmon, garlic sausage, gnocchi, buttered leeks and aged balsamic which was served with a 2010 King Estate Signature Pinot Noir. The combination of flavors on the plate was complemented by the complexity and fruit of the Pinot Noir.
The next pairing was roast loin of beef with wild mushrooms, Yukon potatoes and a shallot marmalade which was paired with 2009 NxNW Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The earthy flavors of the mushrooms and shallots paired well with the rich complex flavors of the Cabernet.
The meal finished with a wonderful lemon panna cotta with berries and lavender syrup. It was paired with a 2010 King Estate Riesling Vin Glacé. Panna cotta is my all time favorite thing, and this one was particularly silky and flavorful. It was a wonderful finish to a special meal.
Big thanks to King Estate!
After dinner we didn’t get even a break and we started International Wines Night. We tasted wines from around the world. Greece, Portugal, Spain, France, Argentina and more. It is a really great experience to try wines from different countries all in the same tasting. You can really get a feel for what the different country styles and terroir are.
To finish up the night we went to post parties put on by Wines of Chile and Chehalem Mountains Winegrowers. A great way to finish the night and we headed off to bed sometime around 1:00 AM. Tomorrow we will finish up with a Q&A session with some of the wine blog award winners and our lunch with AOC Wines of Langedoc.
