In The News

Source: JCPG
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Edition: Early, Section: B News, Page 06

Grape expectations: Wine event removes guesswork

By Katie Fischer, Staff Writer

Pop the cork, bring the wine to your nose and take a deep breath. Tease your tastebuds with the scent. Then take a sip. Swirl around the liquid. Chew it so it gets under and around your tongue. Explore the flavors: Grapefruit? Lemongrass? Cherry chocolate? Nutty? Challenge your senses at the third annual Lake Country Wine and Food Festival on Sunday, Sept. 16.

Not everyone has had the chance to become a refined wine drinker. Some know they like their cheap chardonnay, so they never stray from buying the same bottle. Others only choose the pinot noir over the merlot because the guy in the movie "Sideways" claimed it was better.

Then there are the wine lovers who stock their cellars with the best bottles and take pride in pulling out an 8-year-old cabernet sauvignon after a nice meal.

The Lake Country Wine and Food Festival removes the intimidation from wine tasting. Newcomers have a chance to taste the difference between a chardonnay and a sauvignon blanc, experience how different foods complement different wines, and compare how a wine’s aroma can vary depending on the origin of the grape.
Wine collectors will not be disappointed. With more than 200 varieties of premium wines, wine enthusiasts are sure to be introduced to a wine out of their repertoire.

The essence of a wine can be enhanced by the right food, said Paul Decker, a wine collector and Rotary member. Find out what pairs well with a Kaesler Stone Horse shiraz or a Lake Sonoma sauvignon blanc. Winestein’s, Gagliano’s and Fox Bros. will offer a variety of cheeses and smoked sausages, and local restaurants will serve savory gourmet appetizers. Taste Seven Seas’ pan-seared scallops with Black Forest ham and Golden Mast Inn’s rosemary-encrusted rack of lamb chops.

Desserts are known to go well with bubbly, like Heidseick Premier Cru champagne. Andrew’s will feature a mango cheesecake and a flourless chocolate cake.

"Have a light breakfast," Decker said.

For beginners and connoisseurs alike, the event is also a chance to stock the wine cellar. Whether it is the 2002 J. Lohr cabernet sauvignon or the Havens 2002 merlot, the wines are available for purchase through Oconomowoc’s Sonoma Cellars. Those who find numerous favorites can assemble a case of different wines unique to their taste. Collectors looking for additional high-value wines can take part in the live auction with wines valued over $100. A 2002 1.5-liter of Marilyn Merlot Velvet and a 2000 1.5-liter of Preana Red are features of the auction.

Proceeds from ticket sales, a live and silent auction, and donations to the "restaurant tree" will benefit Lake Country Rotary Club charities.

The event goes from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Golden Mast terrace on Okauchee Lake.

Tickets are available for $50 in advance at Golden Mast Inn, Sonoma Cellars and at www.lakecountrywine.com. Tickets cost $55 at the door. Lake Country Publications is the event’s media sponsor.

Extras

• Scott Markley, a representative for Castro Cellars in Paso Robles, Calif., will attend the event.
• Other samples include Milwaukee’s Rehorst vodka and gin and a variety of Belgian beers.
• Wine-themed items, gift baskets and treats will be available at the Grand Wine Tasting Boutique.

Learn more

• Grand Wine Tasting ticketholders can attend the wine education seminars that take place before the event. Register at www.lakecountrywine.com.
• Introduction to wine, noon to 12:30 p.m. Learn the basics about wine: the regions, grape varietals, color, smell and taste. Taught by Timothy Graham, associate dean of hospitality management, culinary arts and global education at Waukesha County Technical College.
• Napa 101, 12:30 to 1 p.m. Helpful tips for visiting and touring Napa Valley. Taught by Dick Kneiser.
• The fun of wine collection, 1 to 1:30 pm. How to grow your collection at home into a compelling treasure. Taught by Paul Decker.

For immediate release
For more information, contact Gayle Graham at 262-695-7833

200 varieties of wine and that's just the start of
Rotary's third annual Wine and Food Festival in Okauchee

Okauchee Lake — Wines from Alsace to Australia will be among more than 200 varieties to tantalize your palate at the Lake Country Rotary Club's third annual Wine and Food Festival held at the Golden Mast Inn in Okauchee on Sunday, Sept. 16.

Dozens of vendors, from vintners to restaurateurs, will offer samples of their fare from the venue overlooking picturesque Okauchee Lake. Seminars starting at noon will give way to the charitable festival itself from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Visitors will not only be able to nibble on delicacies from hors d'oeuvres and desserts from some of Lake Country's finest restaurant, but also sample exotic cheese from Winestein's, fruit tarts from Gagliano's and select from wine gift items, such as decorative stoppers and hand-painted glasses.

"It's become the premiere wine-event of the Lake Country area," said festival director Gayle Graham of the Lake Country Rotary Club. "Come for the wine, but stay for the cuisine. Most people are as amazed at the breadth of wine selection as they are at the epicurean delights made by our partner restaurants. It is truly a tasting indulgence and the setting on a crisp late summer day is unbeatable."

A dozen food purveyors will feature a variety of offerings, from Bertrand's Pointe Comfort Crab Cakes with Chipotle Aioli Sauce and the Hartland Inn's Roasted Strip Loin in Field Mushroom & Burgundy Sauce to Andrew's Mango Cheesecake to the Seven Seas Viennese Apple Strudel.

The year's event also features vodka and gin from the Rehorst artisan distillery in Milwaukee and Belgian beers. A live auction will showcase wine costing more than $100 a bottle.

Featured restaurants – The Golden Mast Inn, Red Circle Inn, The Union House, Gasthaus Inn, Seven Seas and the Hartland Inn – will not only be offering samples but participating in a companion Wine and Dine event that features special wine and fine dining menus from Sept. 12 through Oct. 24.

Proceeds from the Festival and the Wine and Dine events will benefit the Rotary, helping fund numerous charities. In the past few years, they have included scholarships for Kettle Moraine and Arrowhead High School students, Relay for Life, Lake Country Caring, Angel's Grace Hospice, Guard and Reserve Family Support Fund, Hartland Village Center construction and Veterans Memorial Riverwalk in Delafield.

Tickets for the Festival are available for $50 in advance or $55 at the door. To order, go to www.lakecountrywine.com or visit one of these participating restaurants: Andrew's in Delafield, Bin One Eleven in Hartland, the Gasthaus Inn in Waukesha, The Golden Mast Inn in Okauchee, Hartland Inn, Meat 'n' Place in Stone Bank, Red Circle Inn in Nashotah, Sonoma Cellars in Oconomowoc, the Seven Seas in Delafield, White Oak Grill in Delafield and Winstein's Café and Wine Market in Town of Oconomowoc.

Tickets for the Festival allow guests to attend any of the three wine tasting seminars that begin at noon, but registration is required. The pre-festival itinerary kicks off with Introduction to Wine at noon, led by Timothy Graham, associate dean of hospitality management, culinary arts and global education at Waukesha County Technical College; Napa 101 for intermediate wine enthusiasts, presented by Dick Kneiser; and, at 1 p.m. "So You Want to be a Wine Collector" facilitated by Paul Decker.

Sponsors for the event include Investor's Bank; Baird; Dream Kitchen; Pick 'n Save; Sonoma Cellars; Mortenson, Matzelle, Meldrum – United Health Care; and Lake Country Publications.

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