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Story & Photography by Barbara Penny Angelakis (cooking)
and Manos Angelakis (wines)
St. Michaels Annual Food & Wine Festival
The 7th annual St. Michaels Food & Wine Festival took place on a hot and sunny weekend; April 24th to 26th to be exact. St. Michaels, Maryland is a charming historic town on the Chesapeake Bay, with over 600 miles of shoreline along meandering inlets with direct access to the water. As in many small towns, Main Street was where the action was and in St. Michaels, the action consisted of wine and beer emporiums, simple to elegant restaurants, homemade ice cream parlors and craft and gift stores… all delightfully welcoming to stop-in and visit awhile. We stayed at a lovely 6 bedroom vacation house, situated just steps from the water and romantically called Willows on the Miles,just a few miles from St. Michaels and the Maritime Museum grounds where the festival was being held. Willows is only one of the many summer rental properties available from Eastern Shore Vacation Rentals, a boutique firm that offers fully accessorized premier vacation homes, from charming cottages to large estates, many with private dock, pool and/or hot tub, and most on or with water views. www.easternshorevacations.com
The St. Michaels Food & Wine Festival is the Mid-Atlantic’s premier food and wine event offering educational seminars, wine tastings and cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs such as Patrice Olivon, Chef & Program Director of Culinary Arts L’Academie de Cuisine and Todd Gray, Executive Chef at Equinox, President Obama’s favorite Washington, D.C. restaurant. The open-air event was set-up under a series of tents, except for the wine seminars, which for obvious reasons were held in an air-conditioned building whose main function is as a Steamboat Exhibition hall. Other buildings on the property exhibited crafts that were a necessary part of the ship building industry of the 18th to the early 20th century. The main tents had free wine and spirits tastings as well as local foods, which along with local crafts, were available for sale.
 My main objective was the cooking demonstrations, while Manos, naturally, concentrated on the wine seminars and tastings and we both enjoyed dinners with the winemakers Danielle Cyrot of St. Clement Vineyards, and Harry and Maggie Wetzel of Alexander Valley Vineyards, both wineries located in Napa Valley, California. St. Clement also generously sponsored the chef demonstrations and supplied the wines for the food tastings.
Of the cooking demos I attended, I was mostly impressed by the variety of ways ingenuous chefs have created for serving raw fish that has been “cooked” in citrus liquid with spices added. Since I never met a tuna tartar that I didn’t like, I was especially interested in the three different approaches demonstrated.
Halibut Ceviche with Avocado and Jicama from Chef Matt Hill of Charlie Palme r Steak in Washington, D.C.; Scallop Margarita with Tequila Ice from Ris Lacoste and her soon to be launched eponymous D.C. restaurant on L Street; and Ahi Poke on Taro Chips by Chef Vikram Garg who came all the way from the Halekulani Hotel in Hawaii where he is Executive Chef. All three chefs employed slightly different techniques and ingredients.
Chef Hill choose Halibut marinated in fresh lime with the traditional red onion, cilantro and jalapeno seasoning mix and served the Ceviche with a molded avocado and jicama salad. If you can’t get Halibut, or prefer to use Grouper or Prawns either would work as well and grapefruit, orange juice or a combination of fresh squeezed juices could replace or supplement the limes. It’s a matter of taste, but what is not up for discussion is the freshness of whatever fish you use. It must be out of the sea  and into your marinating bowl within 24 hours both for safety and for flavor. mhill@charliepalmer.com
Chef Lacoste came up with the most unusual presentation by serving her delicious recipe in a martini or margarita glass. More steps are needed for preparation since you have to make the Tequila Ice and Ancho chili puree, but they are not complicated and can be done in advance and put together one hour before serving. Chef Lacoste chose scallops, lime juice, oranges, red onion, cilantro, scallions and both jalapeno and poblano chilies. She makes a parfait of the mixture in the glass by adding a layer of sour cream and another of orange sections for eye appeal as well as palate delight. ris@rislacoste.com
Chef Garg brings his fusion philosophy to the mix by choosing Ahi Tuna, both Maui and green onions, Ogo (spiky leaf seaweed), sesame seeds, crushed chili pepper flakes, soy sauce and sesame oil. The Asian influence is pronounced but is balanced by serving in individual taro chip bowls. vikram_garg@yahoo.com
All three were delicious, relatively easy to prepare – at least the chefs made it seem so – and a great party treat that will have your guests ohing and ahing. For the exact recipes contact the chefs directly.
There were a couple local wineries represented at the festival, but St. Clement Vineyards and Alexander Valley Vineyards were the heavy hitters.
 Danielle Cyrot of St. Clement Vineyards, the chief winemaker who presented the St. Clement seminars, has an impeccable palate, and the Cabernet Sauvignons she featured at the first seminar – which I attended - were delicious samples of the winemaker’s art. Actually, they were individually vinified wines from five particular Napa vineyards, plus the final resulting blend. These individually vinified elements from different vineyards, and time on the skins, produces an elegant structure and silky smooth tannins for this iconic wine named Oroppas. In addition, at a vintner’s dinner, the same evening, St. Clement’s other whites and reds were presented. I liked the 2007 Sauvignon Blanc that shows wonderfully exotic fruit flavors and aromas, and the Abbott's Vineyard’s 2007 Chardonnay that is aged sur lie for nine months to give it a rich, creamy texture. But, Oroppas was definitely my favorite.
 The Alexander Valley Vineyards is a family owned wine estate in northern Sonoma County that produces hand crafted wines available throughout the country (also see Tilghman Island Inn for the vintner’s dinner). Sin Zin is their best-known wine and CYRUS is their signature Bordeaux blend, but at the vintner’s dinner, the wine I liked the most was their 2005 Viognier that paired beautifully with the seafood on the table. Other interesting wines they produce were Alluvia, a Rhone blend; a 2007 Estate Pinot Noir; a 2005 Estate Sangiovese; and the 2005 Alexander School Primitivo, a second cousin of Zinfandel that is mostly found in Italy.
Temptation, Sin, and Redemption, are three Zinfandels very distinct from each other that can be purchased as a pack. Labeled as a “Wicked Weekend Three Pack” this wine package is very good for the soul.
Another interesting presenter, Laurie Foster, “The Wine Coach”, is a wine speaker, writer, and educator. She is a professional sommelier with extensive wine knowledge, and a very entertaining speaker. The attendees loved her comments about buying, tasting, and pairing wines with ease. www.thewinecoach.com
© June 2009 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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