Prosser Farm Press Club Picnic by Darryl Duke, Seattle Foodies
Is rolling up your sleeves and working alongside Tom Douglas in the kitchen your idea of fun? Perhaps digging your hands into succulent Cabernet Franc bunches to thin grapes ripening on Chinook Winery’s vines? Or tasting blends to select the 20th anniversary cuvee that will be served in Tom’s restaurants this November?
That’s how 40 lucky members of the Wine Press Club spent last Saturday. Meeting under the blue skies in Prosser, we caravanned to Den Hoed’s vineyards to meet their top viticulturist. No tasting room coddling here. We stopped in the middle of their 600 acre estate to learn about the insane efforts top vineyardists make to produce the very best wines. Canopies pruned to provide hot or cool, depending on the grape, site, exposure, and goals for the wine. Bunches thinned by hand to ensure the optimum number of clusters. Rows drip irrigated or top watered, again determined by grape and goals. Hand versus machine harvesting. Even a peek into the sometimes wacky world of biodynamic wines. Labor intensive cultivation like that explains why that $65 bottle tastes so good and costs so much, and deflates any curmudgeon’s notion about wine pricing and marketing hype.
Then to Prosser Farm, where Tom, Jackie and crew had been tirelessly working since the previous day. First a quick tour of the well-loved flower and vegetable gardens, which supply Tom’s restaurants with uber-farm-fresh produce. Then a group effort in the kitchen, where Tom (photo bottom) led us in teams for the final prep, cooking and serving of our four-course, wine-paired feast. Organized and properly tooled, Tom inspired easy confidence in his kitchen and the results were fabulous. Peach-basil peach salad with crispy chorizo and green olives (photo top). Sweet corn buttermilk soup with crunchy fried poblanos. Merlot grape marinated lamb chops with chanterelles, mustard crushed potatoes, and garden fresh green beans. And a gala apple dumpling with date butter to finish. Pamela’s selection of Italian wines, fresh flowers, and grape vines lacing the tables, and the view over the Yakima River could have transported anybody to a Tuscan hillside.
But no relaxing yet. We had one more duty to perform. A trip to Chinook winery where vintner Kay Simon invited us to taste blends and vote on the wine that will celebrate Dahlia’s 20th anniversary. All delicious; the choice was difficult. Ask for this special wine this November at all Tom’s restaurants. After a back room tour, the day ended in the shade with home-baked bread (by Kay!) and cheese, and more Chinook wines, including the spicy and refreshing new Lola rosé. Sated, sun tanned, and relaxed, it’s no wonder everyone was laughing and having a great time.
More pictures of the day are available here on Seattle Foodies.
RSS Subscribe