San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Chefs perfect food pairings for Passport parties
After glass after glass of Zinfandel and Sauvignon Blanc, there’s no question that Passport to Dry Creek Valley is all about the wine. But the food that participants eat during the weekend event is worth celebrating, too.
That’s because most of the food is made by the region’s most esteemed chefs — culinary pros whose cooking many visitors may not have the time to experience on a regular weekend visit to Wine Country.
The list of participating chefs reads like a who’s who of epicurean all-stars from near and far. Among the standouts: Duskie Estes of Zazu Kitchen, Ken Rochioli of KR Catering, Brian Anderson of Bistro 29 and winery estate chefs like Heidi Finney from Sbragia and Peter Janiak of Seghesio. New Orleans chef Matt Donelon will also be there cranking out jambalaya and other dishes.
Perhaps the headliner in the culinary department is Charlie Palmer, executive chef at Dry Creek Kitchen and the owner of 14 other restaurants and bars. Palmer will work out of a makeshift kitchen at Mauritson and pair lobster corn dogs with Sauvignon Blanc and a lamb dish with Zinfandel. He and winemaker Clay Mauritson also will pour a Pinot Noir they co-produce and release every year at the Passport event.
Palmer has participated in the Passport event for 13 years — just about the same amount of time he’s lived in Healdsburg.
He said the event takes on particular significance because it celebrates the place he now calls home.
“There’s definitely an extra sense of pride because this is where we live,” he said. “I always try to incorporate ingredients that show off the very best this area has to offer.”
Dino Bugica, chef and owner of Diavola Pizzeria in Geyserville, agreed. Bugica says he’ll spend Passport working out of a mobile oven in front of Zichichi Wines, and expects to make a variety of pizzas, including one with mushrooms and squash, one with locally cured pepperoni and a handful of others.
“You want the food and wine to pair, but you also want to make sure you’re using local stuff,” said Bugica, who also owns the Geyserville Gun Club bar in downtown Geyserville. “The whole point of the event is to celebrate the region as someplace special, so we really try to do that with everything we produce.”
Chef and owner at Spinster Sisters in Santa Rosa Liza Hinman said she will use the same strategy.
Hinman will mastermind the Vintage Soiree event on the Friday night before Passport gets going, and she is excited to get the party started the right way. To that end, she plans to cook a little gem salad with smoked trout and creamy tahini, a baby artichoke and asparagus Panzanella and a mixed trio that comprises Meyer lemon and green garlic chicken with chimichurri, Calabrese pork sausages and Valley Oak beef skewers with a fava bean and feta salsina.
Passport has special significance for Hinman. When she and her husband were first dating, they came up to Wine Country from the city for the first time to attend Passport.
“From the food to the wine to the people, [Passport] just delivers a whole lot of local flavor,” said Hinman, who is now a permanent resident of the Alexander Valley. “The whole weekend is sort of like a great meal.”