Kendall-Jackson Culinary Team Releases Cookbook with Seasonal Recipes

By biteclub

Jess Jackson, the late founder of Jackson Family Wines, had a thing about carrots.

As a child growing up in Depression-era Northern California, the story goes, he watched a neighbor pluck a fresh carrot from the soil. When the neighbor gave him a taste, Jackson had an epiphany, making an indelible connection between the earth’s bounty and harvest as the time to fully take advantage of it. This understanding informed his devotion to instilling a sense of time and place in his wines, and it’s continued to inspire the Jackson Family Wines culinary dream team behind the recently released “Season: Wine Country Food, Farming and Friends” (Cameron, 2018).

Structured around seasonal recipes and the year-round growing cycle of Wine Country, the cookbook follows the threads between farm and ranch, kitchen and well-paired wines. What keeps it from being a stuffy tome is the charm of its central characters — Justin, Tracey, Buttercup, and Farmer T — whose side notes and “True Confessions” on each recipe are as personal as their longtime friendships. “My favorite way to serve caviar is with crème fraîche and chives on low-sodium Pringles. Try it before you judge,” writes co-author and executive chef Justin Wangler alongside the recipe for blini with caviar.

But why a cookbook?

As part of the Kendall-Jackson culinary team led by Wangler, fellow chef and co-author Tracey Shepos Cenami, estate farmer Tucker Taylor (aka Farmer T), and pastry chef Robert “Buttercup” Nieto serve thousands of meals at public and private winery events and five-course tasting menus daily in the restaurant.

“People who visit us are always asking for recipes, they’re enthralled with how we cook,” says Shepos Cenami. As a longtime Sonoma County chef, she knows just about every farmer, cheesemaker, and producer within 100 miles. “We want this to … inspire them to go to local farm markets or even grow their own food,” she says. “Not everyone has the gardens we have, but everyone can get a taste of that.”

The recipes can be ambitious, requiring things like verjus, finishing salts, or sunchokes and referring to Liberty Duck Leg Confit as a “basic.” The K-J team has ready access to the best ingredients in the world and for them, sorrel aioli is a pretty simple recipe. But that’s also a Sonoma idyll — a vision of vineyard farm tables where women in gauzy dresses eat nasturtium leaf salad with local goat cheese in the summer sun. Tuna casserole in the microwave we ain’t.

An ode to all that we take for granted, consider “Seasons” a kitchen challenge or simply an expression of the best that Wine Country has to offer, 365 days of the year. You’ll be satiated either way.

Downtown Santa Rosa Brewpub First 2019 Closure

By biteclub
2 Tread Brewing Company opens a craft brew and pub with a large patio where you can ride up on your bike for a pint. Heather Irwin/PD
2 Tread Brewing Company opens a craft brew and pub with a large patio where you can ride up on your bike for a pint. Heather Irwin/PD

Downtown Santa Rosa’s 2 Tread Brewing has served its last beer according to co-owner Bill Drury. The restaurant is shuttered as of Jan. 9.

“Thank you to all that supported us over the last year. We had wedding parties, a number of 21st birthday parties, retirement parties, even a marriage proposal. We’ll miss you all,” said Drury.

It hasn’t been an easy road for the 6,000 square foot brewpub, which opened just three weeks before fires ravaged Sonoma County in 2017.

Adding to the rocky start was an already saturated brewpub scene in downtown Santa Rosa (six at the time), extensive construction delays, and most notably the brewpub had to open without, well, any of its own brew.

It took more than two months for the spot to be able to pour their own much-anticipated amber ales and IPAs, and by then folks were more concerned with rebuilding than celebrating.

The patio at 2 Tread Brewing Company opens a craft brew and pub with a large patio where you can ride up on your bike for a pint. Heather Irwin/PD
The patio at 2 Tread Brewing Company opens a craft brew and pub with a large patio where you can ride up on your bike for a pint. Heather Irwin/PD

Despite all that, the food was solid as was the massive patio — which always left me wondering why the spot seemed so quiet even on warm summer days.

Drury maintains that the fires were the main cause of the closure and that they were never able to recover afterward.  They’re hardly alone. Many restaurants in the region have seen revenue dips of between 20 and 35 percent since the fires, especially in areas where homes were lost. Though December is typically a boon, slow winter months can be a death knell for struggling businesses.

In addition, skilled restaurant workers which were hard to come by before the fires have become almost impossible to find due to housing shortages and the high cost of living.

It’s going to be a rough winter, so buckle up folks. Or better yet, hit up a restaurant or two this week.

Yes, Foie Gras is Illegal in California. Again.

By biteclub

Foie gras is once again banned from California’s menus — at least technically — after the U.S. Supreme Court took a pass on weighing in on the offal situation this week. Whether or not local chefs will comply is a whole other question.

The legal battle goes like this: In 2004, foie gras was banned in California after animal rights groups protested the practice of “gavage” or force-feeding ducks to increase the size of their livers until they double or triple in size. The ban didn’t actually go into effect until 2012, when all but a handful of vocal chefs took the product off their menus.  In 2015, the ban was overturned, making it legal again. In 2017, that decision was reversed, but would not be enforced while foie gras proponents petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court. With the recent denial by the Supreme Court to rule on the case, the 2017 ban goes back into effect. At least until another appeal.

Seared foie gras with baby kiwi and almonds at Valette in Healdsburg.
Seared foie gras with baby kiwi and almonds at Valette in Healdsburg.

But does anyone really care that much anymore? After years of verbal stone throwing between animal rights groups and chefs, the whole thing has gotten pretty convoluted and contentious. It’s also a bit of a tempest in a teapot.

Though it is hard to find many unbiased figures about how much foie gras Americans actually eat, suffice it to say we’re lightweights compared to Europeans. France, according to the Euro Foie Gras Association consumes more than 14,500 tons of the stuff annually. The Gallic consider its consumption part of their gastronomic heritage and frankly think Americans are silly for all this hubbub. Spain comes in second at 3, 240 tons, and the U.S. about 250 tons as of their 2016 figures.

Anecdotally, foie gras is a fairly rare find on local menus because of the product’s tendency to incite strong feelings. Why push it when you can surreptitiously send out a seared lobe to those on Team Foie as a “gift” and circumvent both the law and the naysayers?

It’s an ongoing battle, and one with passion on both sides. Whether you raise a glass of Sauternes to some secret foie with a nice side of pickled cherries and brioche, or you’re raising a glass of bubbly to its ban, what everyone can agree on is that the fight over foie gras isn’t over.

Why Everyone Is Freaking out About Thomas Keller’s Napa Taqueria

By biteclub

What happens when Thomas Keller opens a taqueria within spitting distance of the venerated French Laundry? Anyone with a fork, cellphone and blog goes nuts–and for good reason.

La Calenda opened Jan. 3 in Yountville serving an Oaxacan-inspired menu with pretty much the same stuff you might find at a neighborhood taqueria. Except it’s from the Keller Team, so they grow their own chiles, make their own tortillas (from corn, not masa), serve Rancho Gordo beans, and have a handcrafted Mexican lager specially made with California corn. So there’s that, along with the restaurant’s chef, Kaelin Ulrich Trilling who hails from Oaxaca, is the son of Mexican cookbook author and TV personality Susana Trilling, and most recently led the kitchen of Jonathan Waxman’s Bajo Sexto in Nashville. Mui cred.

But more than all that, the food just sounds amazing. The opening menu includes four of the seven legendary moles of Oaxaca, complicated, slow-cooked sauces that here include Mole Verde, Mole Chichilo, Mole Amarillo and Mole Negro. Tamales are wrapped in avocado leaves and include chicken or charred butternut squash ($6); there’s the simple queso fundito (cheese sauce, bro, $11); tacos de pollo pibili, grilled chicken in an orange-scented sauce ($11); pork jowl in Mole Verde ($22); or churros with dulce de leche ($9). For the kids, $10 gets you a chicken tostada or cheese quesadilla with rice pudding or ice cream.

La Calena has a full bar specializing in tequilia, mezcal, beer and wine.

There are no reservations taken, and the word is out, so expect a wait if you stop by the former Hurley’s in the heart of Yountville. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 5p.m. to 11p.m., 6518 Washington St., Yountville, details online at lacalendamex.com.

The Queen of Fruits Gets the Royal Treatment at Forestville Farm

By biteclub

There is something indescribably regal about olive oil. From its golden hue and luxurious texture to its revered usage through millennia, the oil of this humble Mediterranean fruit has anointed a thousand kings and lit the lamps of humanity.

It also happens to be pretty great on a salad.

Taking into mind both of those things, Sonoma’s Olive Queen gives the noble olive its due with a lineup of terroir-based blends that include a gently perfumed French Picholine, a zesty Spanish blend of Arbequina and Arbosana, and the bold but dignified Estate Reserve Queen’s Blend with Puglian Coratina olives.

“Olives are truly the queen of fruits,” says Rob Akins, co-owner of Olive Queen, of the inspiration for the company name. He and partner Mark Berry say they fell in love with olive oil on trips to France, Spain, Greece, and Italy where they learned to appreciate the different regional styles — peppery, astringent, delicate, spicy. The couple also really wanted to revive their Forestville home’s history as a working orchard, and olive trees seemed a perfect crop.

“Our climate here turned out to be perfect for olives, with hot days and cool nights,” says Akins.

The couple obsessively studied olive farming and olive oil production, replanting their former apple orchard with dwarf olive trees. They also enlisted their neighbors to get involved. “We were the Johnny Appleseeds of our neighborhood,” says Akins, as we sit under a wood pergola overlooking his grove of olive trees just a few months from harvest.

After 15 years, Akins and Berry have 400 trees spread over three properties, resulting in about 1,000 bottles of estate-grown olive oil each year. They also source olives from nearby farms to make their blended oils.

“We treat every olive like a precious baby,” he says. Within 24 hours of harvest, the olives are cold-pressed and their oil ready to bottle.

“The Greek Yayas had it right. It’s an essential ingredient in daily life,” says Akins, who puts olive oil on pretty much everything he eats, including morning oatmeal. He prefers a lighter blend on that one. “Olive oil elevates everything you do.”

Olive Queen oils are available at local farmers markets, gourmet food shops, specialty stores, and many wineries. olivequeen.com

The Curious Case of the Healdsburg Hammer Theft

By Austin Murphy
The 800-pound hammer that was stolen from the front lawn of Healdsburg’s community center. (COURTESY OF SCOTT KENEALLY)

It was the heist heard ’round the world. News of the theft of a giant hammer from the lawn of the Healdsburg Community Center last October spread swiftly, with TV stations from Boise to Boston running the story, as well as the New York Times and London’s Daily Mail. One couple told Healdsburg police officer Darryl Erkel they’d read about the (literally) grand theft in a local newspaper in Italy.

“It’s not a big story, but it has a sort of amusement factor,” muses Doug Unkrey, the ponytailed, 60-something artist/machinist/welder who created the 6-foot-tall, 21-foot-long objet.

In addition to spawning a series of hardware-themed puns (“Tools Steal Giant Hammer”; Unkrey “is offering a $1,000 reward to nail the thieves”), the incident raised awareness of, and appreciation for, the concentration of contemporary sculpture in the county. Unkrey’s “Hammer” was installed by the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation, the nonprofit responsible for placing many such oversized, provocative, and whimsical pieces throughout the region.

“You go to a museum, you pay a fee to get in, you wander around, the guards say ‘Don’t touch,’” notes Judy Voigt, one of the foundation’s founders. “What we’ve done is put the art out where people are, so it becomes part of their daily lives.”

Until it disappears. In a commendable but futile attempt to lure “Hammer” back, anonymous locals drove a 3-foot-long nail into the grass at the community center. Onto the head of the nail was inscribed the word “Bait.”

At press time, alas, the hammer’s whereabouts remained unknown. “It’s essentially a cold case,” lamented Officer Erkel. Amused though he was by that attempt to “bait” the thieves, he would rather have the hammer than the nail.

Doug Unkrey is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the hammer’s recovery. Anyone with information can contact Healdsburg Police Officer Darryl Erkel at 707-431-3377 or police@ci.healdsburg.ca.us.

Sonoma Restaurants: Where to Eat Right Now

By Heather Irwin
Cavatelli with Duck confit, delicata squash, roasted onion, taleggio, breadcrumb, parmigiano at Lowell’s in Sebastopol. Heather Irwin/PD

Comfort food speaks every language. Familiar, warm, and inviting, it’s what we crave in the darkness of winter. Whether your indulgence of choice is a Japanese pancake filled with mushrooms, fried chicken and biscuits, a bowl of roasted squash, or a cup of matcha, we’ve got you covered with four Sonoma County spots where you can relax and meditate about the coming year. Click through the above gallery for details and best bets.

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Sonoma County Serves Up Crawfish, Clam Chowder and Schnitzel in January

By biteclub
Schnitzel served on a bed of fries at Franchetti’s for Oktoberfest. (Christopher Chung/ The Press Democrat)

HAUS PARTY

Schnitzel is back for good at Franchetti’s (1229 N. Dutton Ave., Santa Rosa). They’ll be serving up schnitzel sandwiches on pretzel bread and other great German dishes like short rib sauerbraten with bread dumplings and weisswurst throughout January, er Germanuary.

Beginning in February, they’ll change up the entire wood-fired menu and rename the restaurant Franchetti’s Schnitzel and Pizza Haus, featuring all-day service throughout the week and featuring German dishes throughout the day.

Word is they’ll be serving the rarely found flammkuchen come February — a thin German pizza topped with creme fraiche, cheese and bacon. Stay tuned for more details.

IT’S CRAWFISH TIME

Tips Roadside (8445 Sonoma Hwy, Kenwood) will host a traditional Louisiana crawfish boil on January 9 at their Sonoma Valley restaurant. All you can eat crawfish, shrimp, corn on the cob and potatoes is on the menu. Seating is limited. Tickets are $35 per person with seatings at 5:30 and 7:15 p.m.

Details online at exploretock.com/tipsroadside

CHOWDAH DAY AT THE BAY 

If you’re a clam chowder fan, Bodega Bay is the spot to be on January 26. Throughout the day, local restaurants and businesses ladle up their best chowder recipes and you get to vote for your favorite. It’s a fun way to drive around the area, check out menus and decide — once and for all — who has the best clam chowder in Bodega Bay.

Last year I picked Blue Water Bistro as the “Critic’s Choice” winner with the Birds Cafe in second and Spud Point Crab Company in third. Your opinions may vary, and that’s the fun of the event, which is a value-priced $12 per person.

Details and tickets at bodegabaychowder2019.brownpapertickets.com.

 

Stone Brewing and More: Best Napa Breweries to Visit Right Now

By Jess Lander

Hops have long been a staple of Sonoma County, but Napa is playing catch-up. In just the last three years, a renaissance has been brewing here as both local and national breweries have been popping up amidst the vines at a rapid rate. Click through the gallery above for our guide to the best breweries to visit in Napa Valley.

We Love These Heart-Shaped Items and Gifts from Sonoma Stores

By Karen Kizer

With February appearing at the next turn of the calendar page, you might want to deck your home in hearts or start thinking about a special gift for someone you love. Here are some exquisite heart-shaped finds, all available in Sonoma County. It could be called Valentine’s Day shopping but, really, love is always in season. Click through the above gallery for details.