Vintners Brunch, one of the longest-running and most successful wine festival events always sells out.
Attended by some 600 wine and food enthusiasts, last Sunday's extravaganza featured plates from 16 restaurants paired with a wide array of wines. Music was provided by Capilano University's Ruben Gurr, who brought his quintet with a wealth of serious dance chestnuts that provided the finishing touch.
Aside from being a stylish wrap-up for the wine festival and a great party, the brunch confers first, second and third place on the best food and wine pairings.
Sequestered well away in the back, I helped judge the competition, which also provided some overall useful wine pairing ideas. Interestingly, this year's top spot went to an under-the-radar competitor: Farm2Fork.
The Gastown popup restaurant's beautifully assembled and carefully spiced laksa (spicy noodle soup) turned out to be the ideal match with William Hardy's Adelaide Hills Sauvignon Blanc 2013.
The dish's careful balance of gentle spice, flavour and texture worked perfectly with the wine.
"But wait a minute," you might say. "What's this Aussie doing stealing the Sauvignon Blanc thunder from its Kiwi neighbours?"
Actually, this cool-climate Adelaide Hills Sauvignon Blanc yields more of an "old world" style, sporting more citrus than grassy or tropical notes, and is also quite textured and less acid driven.
There was a nice sense of umami (pleasant taste) that played between the wine and the dish. And it was gratifying to taste yet one more convincing ambassador for the "new" Australia.
Unfortunately, you can't buy it here. Yet. My second choice with this dish was the subtly lemon-lime and mineral-toned Wynn's Coonawarra Riesling 2013, which (should you be in the mood to whip up some laksa and why not?) you can buy at Everything Wine for $20.99.
The second-place dish and match also shone: Forage chef Chris Whittaker's Yarrow Farms Duck Breast and Duck Confit Arancini with Haskap Berry Preserve was a shoo-in for the juicy acidity and rich red and black berry notes of velvety Cedarcreek (Okanagan) Pinot Noir 2012 ($24.95).
Duck and Pinot Noir is a classic match, and the haskap berry sauce played out as the perfect bridge for this dish. In the absence of Cedarcreek, any good (but not too heavy) pinot will always serve you well.
Usually at least one dessert makes the cut and this year proved no exception. Bella Gelateria won third place with their "porch party," a play on words for the match: Langley's Backyard Vineyards Porch Style.
This Port-like wine ($22.99, 500 millilitres) sports loads of black fruit wrapped in Christmas cake spices. Cue the perfect partner with Bella Gelateria's Stilton and cherry chocolate ice cream with Castle Brie gelato and smoked blueberry walnut tuile.
Belly's Budget Best
Monasterio de Las Vinas Reserva 2006: Here's a good example of what Spain can do so well: deliver drinkable, remarkably wallet-friendly wines with some age and a degree of interest. This blend of Granacha, Tempranillo and Carinena yields hints of black fruit on the nose followed by quite a full-bodied palate with approachable tannins, good acidity, some spicy notes and even a touch of mineral. Think spring barbecued burgers. Great value (BCLS $14.99, 89 points).
Tim Pawsey writes about wine for numerous publications and online as the Hired Belly at hiredbelly.com. Contact: [email protected].
