Slow Food, Great Wine Highlight New Supper Club

Winemaker Chris Johnston and Chef Leah

Middle Ridge Winery is teaming up with Slow Food Diva and Chef Leah Delyte Di Bernardo to celebrate memorable evenings of wine and seasonal food starting in November.

The Middle Ridge Monthly Supper Club Series is modeled after an informal dining society and focuses on one-of-a-kind menus made fresh from local gardens and paired with local wine in a casual and relaxed atmosphere.

The inaugural dinner will be held on Nov. 18 at 6:30 p.m. at E.A.T Marketplace (Extraordinary Artisan Takeaway), 27535 Jefferson Ave. in Temecula. Cost is $65 per person and includes tax and gratuity. Seating is limited. Make reservations by calling (951) 699-8897, ext. 101.

A three-course gourmet meal that is paired with award-winning wines embodies the philosophies of Chef Leah and Middle Ridge winemaker Chris Johnston.

The menu is inspired from Chef Leah's recent trip to the Piedmont district of Italy -- organic mixed greens, toasted almonds, pepita nuts, cypress grove blue cheese, poached grapes and pomegranate seeds. It also includes flat bread baked with herbs and cheese and Jidori organic chicken, slow roasted over cipollini onions, pumpkin and fennel. Dessert is a divine surprise! The second dinner in the series is slated for Dec. 9.

Middle Ridge Winery is just one year old but Johnston and his wife, Melody, have made clear their commitment to bring people together through the enjoyment of handcrafted, artisan wine. A successful entrepreneur and data communications expert, Chris follows his winemaking passion by carefully selecting grapes and closely monitoring the wine through the fermentation and aging processes.

Chef Leah has been charming Temecula Valley palates for years. She is executive chef of Delyte's - a slow food inspired catering company and E.A.T Marketplace (E.A.T- Extraordinary Artisan Takeaway), which is set to open in January 2011. E.A.T Marketplace will offer locally foraged and hand crafted meals to go, along with wine, artisan beer, olive oil and many more delights. Chef Leah is the founder and president of the Slow Food Temecula Valley Chapter, which focuses on good, clean and fair produce, artisan foods and wine that is all locally produced.

Award-winning Middle Ridge wines are available at selected restaurants in Idyllwild, Idyll Awhile Wine Shoppe & Bistro in Idyllwild, online at www.middleridge.com and through The Collective at 28544 Front Street in Temecula, CA, which serves as a tasting room for Middle Ridge Winery.

Middle Ridge is a boutique winery born in the mountain arts community of Idyllwild, CA. The friendliness of the small town inspired winemaker Chris Johnston to bring people together to enjoy and learn about handcrafted, artisan wines in comfortable, inviting settings. Middle Ridges philosophy is simple: to have a conversation with everyone who comes in contact with the winery.

For more information on Middle Ridge, go to www.middleridge.com or call (949) 861-1459.

Anyone for Wine and Gourmet Cupcake Pairing? Meet San Diego's "Cupcake Boss"

by Mike Bragg
Times are Tough! This Holiday season, why pay those high prices at bakeries and supermarkets for holiday candy, Yuletime cookies, Thanksgiving cakes, and classy, Christmastime cupcakes? Why not save money and have fun, while learning to make your own delightful desserts and other gourmet goodies from "Ro" Zinniger, founder of Ro Z's Sweet Art Studio.

Ro Z's Sweet Art Studio offers gourmet cupcake baking (and decorating). The center of the candy-making, cupcake and cake decoration universe is located right on Rancho Santa Fe Road, south of Highway 78. The confectioner's and decorating supply store is over 1600 sq. ft, with a separate instructional studio (with kitchen) that is 800 sq.ft.!

Photo: It's Not a Real San Diego Holiday Wine and Cheese Party Without Custom Decorated Cookies, Cakes and Cupcakes, ala Ro Z's Do it Yourself Decorating Classes!

It all began in one small suite and has expanded into a full retail store and school. Ro Z's is home to Palomar College Venture Certification classes, City of Encinitas Teen Program, partnered with the Girl Scouts of San Diego County, and supporter of many of San Diego's Military families!

Ro Z's is staffed with professional instructors that teach baking, cooking, art, cake decorating, sugar art, and flower sugar art. The Sweet Art Studio shop (next door)  is stocked with the finest cake decorating and baking supplies. Led by "Ro" Zinniger, the educational/instructional part of the company offers a variety of classes / workshops, it is a great place to have a party, and is conveniently located in North San Diego County.

The classroom's educational setting and is a great place to have a party or special event (including a wine, cheese and cupcake pairing parties). Specialty workshops and events are offered, including bi-yearly cake shows displaying local talent, workshops taught by Celebrity Cake Artists, and host to the Creative Confection Club. Ro Z's Sweet Art Studio retail supply store is stocked with supplies for cake decorating, candy making, cookie decorating, and more! The retail shop is being stocked weekly with new product!

Ro Z's Sweet Art Studio, (760) 744-0447 www.rozsweetartstudio.com

The Perfect Fit For Orfila Winery

Article and photo by Frank Mangio
Six weeks ago this column mourned the passing of a winemaking saint who touched the hearts of wine lovers in two continents. Leon Santoro of Orfila Winery in San Diego County’s Escondido brought to market some of the most outstanding wines ever tasted in Southern California. Judges in major world competitions agreed and presented Orfila with over 1,300 awards of excellence.

The winery’s owner, Alejandro Orfila of Argentina and a former official for that government, upon the passing of Santoro, placed many calls to this columnist and others who could spread the word and make suggestions for a successor. At best this was a difficult search. Santoro had sharpened his skills in French Rhone Valley varietals like Viognier, Marsanne, Roussanne and Syrah, as well as Italian grapes like Sangiovese.

When I learned that the brilliant winemaker from Temecula’s Thornton Winery, Don Reha, had agreed to split his time between Thornton and Orfila, I silently said to myself “I do believe in miracles.”

Reha had been hired by Thornton 6 years ago from Northern California where he had a rich tenure with some household name wineries like Fetzer and Cline. All the while he was honing his skills in the Rhone and Italian style of winemaking, a footprint of what made Leon Santoro so popular in the wine community.

In a recent interview with A Taste of Wine, Reha echoed that thought. “It’s an honor and a privilege to come in to Orfila after Leon and carry on his legacy that will always remain here. My ideas of winemaking are the same ideas he had with him. The quality here has been outstanding.”

I asked him what favorites he had tasted and he quickly replied, “the Viognier Lotus 67 is perfectly structured for this appellation. It screams for more Viognier and we’ll plant more, as well as the Syrah with its great reputation at Orfila the past 10 years. I will be getting comfortable with what has been done and strive to use more estate grapes that will thrive.”

Orfila Vineyard and Winery is in a very good position and I have no doubt that Reha will be putting his skills in full throttle to make this winery even more successful and take it to greater heights. See the new website at www.orfilawinery.com.

Wine Bytes
In downtown Los Angeles, the historic San Antonio Winery has a Wine 101 four course lunch and wines on Sat. Apr. 11 from 12 to 3pm. Hosted by Michael Papalia. Cost is $65. pp. RSVP at 323-223-1401 ext 8745. Taste Maddalena, Luigi Bosca and Ruggeri Prosecco.

A wine & dinner salute to Federal Court Justice Gilbert Nares to benefit the North County Bar donor advised fund will be Thurs. Apr. 16 starting at 5:30pm with a reception. Location is The Crossings at Carlsbad. Orfila Wines will be featured. Cost is $95. pp. Call Mary Cervantes at 760-758-5833 for details.

Sat. Apr. 18 at Vintage Wines on Miramar Rd. San Diego, taste the latest Pinot Noirs from California and Oregon from 11 to 3:30pm. Just $5. Call 858-549-2112 for more.

The new Charlie Palmer inspired Next Vintage Wine Shop at Bloomingdales, South Coast Plaza Costa Mesa has a Cakebread Cellars Winemaker Dinner featuring Dennis Cakebread of Napa Valley Mon. Apr. 27. Call for prices and times at 714-352-2525.

Taste Of Wine TV Showcases Nature Sweet Tomatoes

What part of sitting down to a great meal with wine, but without tomatoes don't you understand?

On Saturday, our friends at Nature Sweet will stop by our TV booth to talk tomato. Think of the pasta, salad, and other pairing possibilities....See you Saturday at The San Diego Bay Food and Wine Festival.

TOMATO TIDBITS

· Tomatoes were originally cultivated in the Americas by the Aztecs and Incas.

· Columbus “discovered “the tomato and brought it back to Europe.

· A tomato is botanically a fruit, not a vegetable, because it develops from the ovary of the plant after fertilization has occurred. However, it is categorized by its use, thus making it a vegetable by law. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1893 that because the tomato is eaten with the main part of the meal instead of dessert, it is indeed a vegetable.

· NatureSweet recommends that you NEVER refrigerate your tomatoes –

it destroys their natural sugars and they don’t last as long.

Keep your D’Vines™ on the counter (out of direct sunlight) for optimum flavor and convenient snacking.

· The French labeled the tomato “love apple”; the Germans called the tomato “apple of paradise.”

· By 1850, the tomato was an important produce item in every American city.

· There are over 4,000 varieties of tomatoes.

· Americans eat roughly 18 lbs. of tomatoes per capita on average each year.

· Tomatoes are a good source of lycopene - the stuff that makes tomatoes red -which research suggests may reduce prostate cancer in men. Tomatoes are also a source of dietary fiber, potassium, iron, phosphorous and some B vitamins. They are low in sodium and contain no cholesterol.