FEBRUARY 2008

Warm Up With Good Food & Wine

Festival Pavilion

Spread a little warmth through the chill of mid-February by attending a massive, world-class wine tasting event at Fort Mason Center’s Festival Pavilion. The San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition has become the largest competitive event for American wines, according to the organizers. This giant celebration of wine also features cuisine to delight any palate and educational programs.

The 2007 competition was a showdown among 3,800 wines, the largest group of entries ever assembled for a US wine judging. More than 60 judges presided over the 2008 selection process, which took place in January in northern California where the Chronicle competition originated in 1983 as the much smaller Cloverdale Citrus Fair Wine Competition.

In the 25 years since the first Cloverdale event, the competition has expanded into a highly-anticipated annual extravaganza of wine, food, and culinary demonstrations. The 2008 event promises to be outstanding thanks to the efforts of a local gourmet specialty foods web site, SavorCalifornia.com. SavorCalifornia.com has arranged for more than 40 of its food and beverage partners to serve their products at the Chronicle Wine Competition. SavorCalifornia.com estimates that the Chronicle event also offers more than 400 award-winning wines.

Among the vendors and products at the wine competition are Jade Chocolates, Marcel et Henri pâtés and sausages, McEvoy Ranch olive oils, Valley Fig Growers, and Three Sisters Farmstead Cheese. Staff and students from the California Culinary Academy prepare fabulous dishes using ingredients contributed by Niman Ranch, Oliver’s Markets, and other epicurean sources. The culinary arts students of Santa Rosa Junior College also create amazing hors d’oeuvres during the event in a series of cooking demonstrations.

Those attending the wine competition will swirl, sniff, sip, and savor their favorite varietals in a complimentary crystal Schott Zwiesel Tritan wine glass, rated top wine glass in 2006 by the San Francisco Chronicle wine section. The event benefits the Santa Rosa Junior College Wine Studies and Culinary Arts programs. The college has its own vineyards, orchards, vegetable gardens, café, and bakery where students gain hands-on experience in winery and culinary arts.

Find the perfect vintage and food pairing at the Chronicle Wine Competition. For more information, see February 16 and www.winejudging.com.

— Claudia Willen