A Generations-Old Italian Family Recipe

The Conca Family of Lost Mountain Winery has been making wine — and great Italian food — for generations.

Following is a classic dish that Winemaker Steve Conca’s Italian grandmother handed down to Steve’s father, Romeo Conca, and Romeo then handed down to Steve and his wife, Sue. The Conca family had a small restaurant in Bellano on the shores of Lake Como at the turn of the century, and Bracciola was served at the restaurant. The recipe was originally made with salt pork instead of bacon, but Steve and Sue prefer the smokey flavor of the bacon.

Bracciola (bra-shoal)

1 flank steak
6 slices good quality bacon
6 cloves garlic
1/4 cup chopped Italian Parsley
salt & pepper
Olive oil
1 qt red pasta sauce (homemade or jar)
Parmesan Cheese

Chop raw bacon with garlic and parsley until it forms a slightly chunky paste (food processor works well). Spread this mixture on the underside of the flank steak to within about 1/2 inch of edges. Roll-up snugly, jelly roll style, and tie with cotton or butcher’s twine. Dust with salt and pepper. Heat oil in dutch oven style heavy pan and brown flank steak for a few minutes on each side. Add the pasta sauce, bring to a boil, cover and simmer at low for about 1 and 1/2 hours. Check occasionally and stir to turn and be sure it does not stick or burn. Remove meat from the sauce, remove string and cut crosswise into about 1/2 inch rounds. Serve these pinwheels with the sauce over your favorite cooked pasta. Top with a sprinkling of grated Parmesan.

Serve with Lost Mountain Winery’s Cabernet Sauvignon.

Hearty Winter Dishes to Nourish the Body and Warm the Soul

Our second post in the winter food and wine pairing series features two recipes from Olympic Cellars. The first is a favorite of Winery Owner Kathy Charlton. The second was provided by Winemaker Benoit Murat, Olympic Cellars’ “resident foodie.”

We hope you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy these tried and true recipes and suggested wine pairings with family and friends this season. If so, please share your “culinary experience” with us! We welcome your comments.

Quick, Warm Your Soul, Minestrone Soup

Soup is my comfort food, particularly when enjoyed with a nice, warm, buttered whole grain roll and a glass of our Gold Medal 2005 Syrah or “Gracefully Aging Red,” our 2006 Zinfandel.

After a long day at the winery, I appreciate a tasty meal that’s fast and easy to prepare. I don’t go into “food stress” with this 15-year-old recipe I found while living in Dallas.
– Kathy Charlton, Owner, Olympic Cellars

2 cups diced zucchini
1/2 cup past shape of choice, uncooked
1/8 tsp pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 (16-ounce) cans of chicken broth
1 (141/2 – ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
1 (16-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas and carrots (I just use frozen peas and fresh sliced carrots)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese

Combine first 8 ingredients in large saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes or until pasta is done, stirring occasionally. Stir in cheese; ladle into bowls. For more interesting flavor, try adding some basil pesto to taste and stir in. Makes 9, one-cup servings.

Boeuf Bourguignon (Beef Burgundy)

This recipe, provided by Olympic Cellars’ Winemaker Benoit Murat, is ideal for cold weather and easy to prepare. Pair with Olympic Cellars’ Gold Medal 2005 Syrah.

Ingredients:
2-3 slices bacon, chopped
1 lb beef stew meat, cubed
1 onion
2 Carrots
Celery
Minced Garlic
Sliced Mushrooms
1 Tablespoon Flour
Thyme
Bay Leaf
Rosemary
1 Cube Beef Bouillon, prepared
Red wine

Chop onion, celery and carrots and set aside in a bowl.

Sear bacon in a large stew pot. Salt and pepper stew meat, and add half of meat to pot. Brown on all sides, and remove from pot. Add remaining half of beef to pot and brown, adding oil if necessary.

Next, combine all browned meat in the pot and add flour, stirring frequently. Remove meat, place in a bowl and set aside.

Place chopped vegetables in pot and stir-fry for a few minutes.

Return meat to pot, adding minced garlic, sliced mushrooms. Add beef broth and red wine, completely covering contents.

Wine can be good stuff so you can drink a part of it before, or cheap stuff for cooking. You will need about 2 bottles.

Add all herbs and simmer, uncovered, for 2 or 3 hours.

Serve as a soup or over pasta, rice or potatoes. You can add the potatoes 20 minutes before serving and allow them to cook in the stew.

Wineries Share Favorite Seasonal Recipes

The cold days of winter present the perfect opportunity to gather with family and friends over a hearty meal. In the next series of posts, the Olympic Peninsula Wineries will share with you some favorite recipes and wine pairings that are sure to delight all those who grace your table.

Our debut recipes come from Don and Vicki Corson of Camaraderie Cellars. One is an appetizer recipe perfect for holiday entertaining. The other is a main course recipe created by Don and Vicki’s son, Steve Corson. Steve is a Research Chef for Northwest Naturals in Bothell, WA. He creates a new recipe each quarter for the Camaraderie Cellars Wine Club. Bon Appetit!

Blue Cheese Cocktail Cookies

Yield: About 4 dozen cookies Pair with Camaraderie Cellars’ Cabernet Sauvignon

1 cup butter, at room temperature
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
1 ½ cups crumbled blue cheese
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups crisp rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies
2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With a mixer on medium speed, cream together cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add cayenne, blue cheese, flour, rice cereal, and bacon (if using) and beat on medium-low speed until well blended. The dough will be stiff.

2. Roll 1 tablespoon portions into balls and place slightly apart on baking sheets. Flatten each ball with a fork.

3. Bake until cookies are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes.

From Sunset Magazine 2/06

BLACK FOREST PORK TENDERLOIN

Serves 6-8 Pair with Camaraderie Cellars Merlot

2 tablespoons olive oil
Two 1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed of fat and silver skin
2 teaspoons kosher salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 cups dry red wine, preferably good-quality Merlot
1 cup cherry preserves
1 tablespoon water (optional)
2 ½ teaspoons cornstarch (optional)

Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil. Lightly sprinkle the pork on all sides with the salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add the pork and cook, turning with tongs, until browned on all sides, a total of 4 to 5 minutes.

Reduce the heat and continue cooking the meat, turning occasionally, until still slightly pink at the center when cut with a paring knife, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the meat to a large plate and tent with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Add the wine and preserves to the pan, scraping up the brown bits in the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon or heatproof rubber spatula. Bring to a simmer and cook until the liquid reduces slightly, 7 to 10 minutes. For a thicker sauce, mix the water and cornstarch and add to the pan, then stir well and simmer for 1 minute, or until thick and shiny.

To serve, slice the tenderloin and spoon the cherry-wine sauce over the meat.

This year, consider a holiday gift that helps boost the state economy

Wine pairs perfectly with the holidays. Think of a luscious full-bodied Cabernet alongside a Christmas standing rib roast; turkey with all the trimmings and a glass of crisp Viognier or a flavorful semi-dry rosé. Festive cranberry wines are perfect for sipping with a mix of hors d’oeuvres and ports can be savored at the end of a meal with or without dessert.

A bottle of wine handcrafted in Washington makes an excellent holiday gift, and is an opportunity to celebrate the bounty of our state with friends and family. With enough variety to please any palate, wine is a choice that is rarely “re-gifted.”

And why not add some fun to your holiday shopping? Instead of running to the grocery store and picking up a bottle, take the time to visit some local wineries. Discover varietals and blends that may only be available in the tasting room, adding to their uniqueness as holiday gift items.

While pleasing those on your holiday list, you’ll also be helping to boost our state’s economy by becoming a “wine tourist.” According to the “Economic Impact of Washington Grapes and Wine,” a comprehensive study commissioned by the Washington Wine Commission and the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers and released earlier this year, wine tourism expenditures increased 165.3 percent each year between 1999 and 2006, reaching $237.6 million in 2006. Overall, Washington’s wine industry contributes $3 billion annually to our state’s economy. Let’s keep the train going!

Which Wines to Serve for Thanksgiving?

November – that time of year characterized by beautiful fall color, friends, family and traditional Thanksgiving feasts. It’s also the time that many of us are wrestling to decide which wines best complement the array of tastes, textures, aromas associated with our American holiday, as well as our guests’ varying palates.

While there are no hard and fast rules about the “right” wines to serve at Thanksgiving, the Olympic Peninsula Wineries suggest the following food for thought.

First, abundance and variety are key. You’ll never go wrong opening a few different wines and letting your guests serve themselves. There are plenty of good, affordable wines available today so offering variety doesn’t have to break the bank even in these tough economic times. Visit a local winery’s tasting room and sample a few in advance.

Wines with lower tannin levels and less complexity are better suited to the mélange of flavors they are intended to complement.

Think refreshing. With a big meal, lighter-bodied wines that continuously refresh the palate are a good choice, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris. Stay away from big, buttery Chardonnays. Lighter-bodied reds include Sangiovese and Pinot Noir.

If you prefer to serve one wine to carry through the meal, consider a Riesling or a dry to off-dry rosé. Both of these wines are nice complements to turkey with all the fixings.

For dessert, Port pairs nicely with pumpkin and pecan pies.

Last, as Eric Asimov says in his International Herald Tribune article, How to Choose a Wine for Thanksgiving, “The most important thing you can do is choose wines that you really like. That way, if nobody else is happy, at least you will have pleased yourself!” http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/14/arts/trwine.php?page=1

Online “Passport” Sales Rise in 2008

Many travelers took advantage of the opportunity to purchase their “Passports” on line before departing on the Olympic Peninsula Wineries’ first International Passport Wine Tour this past weekend. A quick click via the winery association’s website enables an easy, secure Pay Pal transaction in advance of all wine tours.

Visitors paired wines crafted locally from old world origin grapes with a selection of foods from some of Europe’s most famous wine growing regions. New taste sensations were discovered, including Sorensen Cellars’ Viognier and goat cheese canapes with apricots and almonds, and Olympic Cellars’ Dungeness Red Lemberger Wine and Alsatian Tarte Flambee.A good time was had by all.

The Olympic Peninsula Winerie’s next event will be the Red Wine & Chocolate Tour. This two-weekend event will take place on February 7-8, 2009 and February 14-15-16 (Presidents’ Day Weekend). More information is available at www.olympicpeninsulawineries.org. Get your advance tickets on line now!

Celebrate Lavender Wine Tour

Summer covers the North Olympic Peninsula in numerous shades of purple as the designated Lavender Capital of North America comes abloom. Celebrating this seasonal heritage, the Olympic Peninsula Wineries invite the public to enjoy a special Lavender Wine Tour, from Saturday, July 12 to Sunday July 20. the seven artisan wineries will pour their new and current releases from 11- 5 daily. Drive the self-guided Lavender Wine Tour and experience the warm hospitality for which the wineries are known.

The wine tour kicks-off Sequim’s annual Lavender Festival, set to take place July 18-20. The festival is the largest lavender event in North America, attracting visitors from around the world each year. The Olympic Peninsula Wineries will be featured in the Wine & Beer Garden during the Festival Street Fair, with wines available for tasting or for purchase by the glass or by the bottle.

The life of wine

The life of wine is a long traveled road before it arrives at your table. This post will take about two legs of the journed: Vineyard selection and Primary Fermentation.

Vineyard selection: The final taste of a wine starts in the vineyard, where the soil delivers nutrients and minerals to the vines, giving each vineyard a unique and distinguishable flavor from year to year. During the spring to early fall growing season, the sun’s warmth and light allows grapes to go from a sour green state of high acid, low sugar to a very ripe state of lower acid and higher sugar. Drier, sunnier climates (like Eastern Washington) and vineyard locations (ie: the South side of a hill) tend to produce sweeter fruit than fruit planted in cooler, more humid climates (ie: grapes planted on the North side of a hill). The grape’s sugar and acid content is critical to both how much alcohol the wine will have after fermentation, and how dry the wine will be after fermentation. Winemakers look for a subjective balance bertween sugar and acid when deciding when to pick.

Primary Fermentation: Wine grapes are run through a machine that removes the stem and lightly crushes them. The remaining juicy flesh, seeds and skins is call the “must”. If a white wine or a rose’ is being made, the must is then pressed within the first 24 hours (depending on the winemaker’s style) to separate the juice from the skins and seeds. The juice is then moved to tanks, vats, barrels, etc (again, winemaker’s style). Yeast is added to begin fermentation, converting the sugar into alcohol. Sulfites can be added (or not) to protect from any oxidation prior to fermentation…or after, but not during. Red wine is made like white wine, except the jujice remains in contact with the skins and seeds during the fermentation process, thus picking up color, aromas, flavor and tannins.

((Next time Malolactic fermentation, racking, maturation, filtering (or not) and bottling

What about the kids??

Most winery tasting rooms can accomodate looked after children. Wineries in other areas have chosen to handle the situation by posting signs saying “must be 21”. The seven wineries of the Olympic Peninsula Wineries are open to you bringing your children and here are a few things you can do to make it a more enjoyable experience them:

1. Some wineries will provide some sort of beverage for underage folks and some will not. For the wineries that do not, they may be reluctant to let your toddler handle an expensive glass so she can be a “big girl”.

2. Keep them close to you while you are tasting-little people are out of the line of sight of adults whose attention is elsewhere and they can be bumped into and become overwhelmed in a sea of adult legs in a crowded tasting room.

3. Be sure it’s okay to leave them outside to run and play– there may be machinery, traffic, etc that could be dangerous to them.

4. If they have toys to keep them occupied, watch that they don’t set up a GI Joe camp in the middle of the floor where someone may trip on their toys or step on the children.

Children are almost always welcome and a little attention from their parents will make the experience more enjoyable for everyone.

Next Event

Gorgeous scenery, warm temperatures and a jovial crowd made for a great Spring Barrel Tasting Weekend. The three day event brought out the best in everyone as they toured the scenic back roads, gazed at the snow covered Olympic Mountains, and tasted both wines in progress direct from the oak barrels and some spectacular current releases.

For more great fun in Olympic Wine Country you might want to put the Sequim Lavender Festival on your calendar. All the wineries will be open for the “Celebrate Lavender Wine Tour” July 12-20, 2008. Reserve your ticket and glass combination in advance on line or purchase at the door of any participating winery.

Most of the wineries are now on their summer schedules with expanded tasting room days and hours. Come for a visit … we are looking forward to seeing you!