As much fun as that was, I am nowhere near as fortunate or generous as Victor (Pick) Tang, who this July won our Top Donor challenge during Blogathon 2009. His $180 individual donation was rewarded with a 3-restaurant progressive dinner with Top Table.

Name doesn’t ring a bell? They’re the group that operates Blue Water Cafe, CinCin, West, and Whistler’s Araxi (which impressed chef Gordon Ramsay enough to sing its praises on The Hour and make it the focal point of this season’s Hell’s Kitchen).

I asked Victor to let me know how his dinner went. He went a step further and took Gigi as his +1.  You may already know Gigi; she’s a Vancouver food blogger and the woman behind Ho Yummy. This week, she and Victor shared the highlights of their evening over a series of three posts.

1. Top Table Progressive Dinner Part 1 – Blue Water Cafe
2. Top Table Progressive Dinner Part 2 – West
3. Top Table Progressive Dinner Part 3 – CinCin Ristorante + Bar

Check out her recaps and photos and drool along with me.

First, an update: Andrea came through with a $134.99 post-Blogathon donation to push our collection to an even $2500. We made our revised fundraising goal – hooray!

The Tiny Bites Top Donor Prize

For donating a cool $180 to be this year’s top individual donor, Victor won a unique progressive dinner experience for 2 at the Vancouver restaurants of the Top Table family. Here’s what he and his +1 might experience that night:

Amuses bouches and appetizers at Blue Water Cafe + Raw Bar

Mains and more at West

Dessert and petit fours at CinCin

I am green with envy that Victor gets to sample these stellar restaurants in a single evening of chef collaboration. I hope he is willing to indulge us all in a recap of his dinner with Top Table. Having recently crafted a fantasy progressive dinner for Tourism Vancouver, I’d certainly be curious to see how a real progressive dinner plays out.

The Tiny Bites Grand Prize

Our Gold, Silver, and Bronze sponsors have contributed to this amazing prize package worth $450 $500. Jason, you’re a lucky son of a gun.

Alpha Global Sushi & Bar: bottle of Dan Dan shochu

My favourite izakaya called shortly after Blogathon to belatedly confirm their contribution to the Tiny Bites Grand Prize. I’ve discussed their bar menu in last year’s Blogathon and am so pleased that they were able to participate as a sponsor this year. 

Artisan Sakemaker: bottles of Osake junmai nama and Artisan Kasu products

I had the privilege of trying local sakemaker Masa Shiroki’s new line of sakekasu a few months past. If you’re not already a fan of Artisan Sakemaker’s sake, perhaps the new citrus dressing and hot sauce – along with Masa’s suggested recipes - will give you cause to try them this year.

ChristaHoops: custom-fit rainbow hoop

ChristaHoops will custom fit Jason (or his friend of choice) with a beautiful rainbow hoop. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it – it’s a fun and energetic workout!

Farmstead Wines: bottle of Renato Fenocchio extra virgin olive oil

You may have already tried the beautiful artisan wines that Farmstead Wines imports to our fair city…but have you tried Renato Fenocchio’s exquisite olive oil yet?

Qoola Yogurt + Fruit: $100 gift card for Qoola 

This gift card is the equivalent of 20 Qoolalas with 2 toppings or however else you’d like to spend the $100 credit. If you get addicted like I have, it can be reloaded to continue enjoying Qoola till your tummy is done with frozen yogurt.

Rouxbe: 1 year premium membership to Rouxbe’s Online Cooking School

Jason is already a loyal Rouxbe Lifetime member ($199) so he asked me to raffle away the $99 Annual Membership that was in his Grand Prize package (which George F. wound up winning).

Sebastian & Co: $35 butcher shop credit

Jason met me in West Vancouver to pick up 6 different types of artisan sausage plus a smoked applewood cheddar with his Sebastian & Co store credit. I think I’ll be inviting myself over to his house for dinner soon…

Social Bites: 10% off discount passes to future Social Bites dinner excursions

I’ve already said my piece about how fun Social Bites is, both as dinner guest and Hobby Chef. Jason has yet to experience it in either capacity so I hope he takes this opportunity to do so.

Tiny Bites Consulting: Winnipeg Folk Fest cookies

These are the cookies I had with me at The Workspace for fellow Blogathoners to satiate hunger pangs at 3am. Chock full of flax, oats, sunflower seeds, coconut with a little chocolate chip and brown sugar thrown in. Here’s the recipe.

Uva Wine Bar: bottle of 2006 Speri Valipolicella Ripasso

Below are Uva General Manager and sommelier Sebastien Le Goff’s tasting notes on this Venetian wine:

Rich, spicy, black cherry, brooding.

Intense, elegant style, pure and persistent. Fine acidity, balanced. Good length. Drink from 2010.

Speri uses only grapes from the Valpolicella zone to make its wines. In addition to the three traditional grape varieties, Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara, small quantities of other lesser known but long-standing varieties are used like Oseleta, Rossanella, Pelara, and Cabrosina.

The Corvina is considered the most important vine variety due to its tannin content and pigments. It imparts fruity aromas, particularly when it is cultivated on the hills. 

The Rondinella is able to adapt to many types of terrain, to withstand drought and lends itself quite well to drying. It is vigorous and very prolific.
The Molinara is mainly used for the distinctive flavour and crispness it gives the wine.

Bigger than a Valpolicella but smaller than an Amarone, the ’06 Speri “ripasso” has been re-fermented over the spent skins of Amarone. There’s a floral earthy scorched earth nose with bits of red fruit and spice and a warm, acidic, alcoholic finish. Best with a piece of Reggiano or Manchego cheese. The fruit comes off family-owned sites in the heart of Valpolicella Classico.

Why am I taunting those of you aren’t getting these prizes? Because I hope that you realize that Tiny Bites will be participating in Blogathon next year, and we certainly plan on rewarding you with prizes like these in 2010!

So mark your calendars and earmark some of your dollars for the last weekend of July for Blogathon 2010.

Wednesday is my breather from the frenzy of the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival.  I’ll be back in the scene in some way, shape, or form on Thursday and Friday.  Till then, please enjoy this collection of Wine Fest recaps from the official and alternative presses, which I will continue to update as new stuff comes in.

From the wire

Reports from TV, radio, mags, and rags:

• Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival is just around the corner (Anthony Gismondi, The Vancouver Sun)
• BC wines face homecoming test (Alexandra Gill, The Globe and Mail)
• Good Eats: B.C. wines take centre stage at Vancouver Playhouse Int. Wine Festival (Bruce Stephen, North Shore Outlook)
• Vancouver Playhouse Wine Festival Launches (Anya Levykh, Metro Vancouver)
• Reality Check in Vancouver (Peter Mitham, Wines & Vines)
• Playhouse Wine Fest Cheat Sheet (David Scholefield, Vancouver Magazine)

From the blogosphere

What bloggers and online publications have been saying:

• How to Survive the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival 2009 (The Blog According to Buzz)
• International Wine Fest 2009: live coverage of BC wines at Earls and West (Tiny Bites)
• Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival – Day 1 (Wine Bard)
• Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival Begins! (Full-Bodied)
• Winefest Blog #269: The 1st Day In The Big Shoes Of Sid Cross (Scout Magazine)
• WineFest Blog #628: Dinner At Bishop’s And 17 Again At Boneta (Scout Magazine)
• Wine Festival Kick Off (Urban Diner)
• Joy in a Glass (Urban Diner)
• The 2009 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival Kicks Off (Vinifico)
• WineFest Blog #270: Heidi Noble As Globe & Mail “Flashpoint” (Scout Magazine)
• International Wine Fest 2009: live coverage of Caymus Vineyards at CinCin (Tiny Bites)
• WineFest Blog #271: Sid Cross Shares His CinCin Tasting Notes (Scout Magazine)
• 2009 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival – Brunello, Barolo and Beyond… event (Vinifico)
• WineFest Blog #272: 2 Wines And 20 Vintages With Sid Cross (Scout Magazine)
• WineFest Blog #273: The Trade Tasting & Mike Bernardo’s Shoe (Scout Magazine, with a gallery containing my photography)
• CedarCreek Winemaker Dinner at Bishops (City Food Magazine)
• Make Wine She Said: Divas at the Met (City Food Magazine)
• New Wines to Try at the Festival: Pink Elephant Sparkling (City Food Magazine)
• Vancouver WineFest Thursday Trade Tasting Report (Full-Bodied)
• Andrea Vescovi Named Sommelier of the Year (Urban Diner)
• Caymus Wine Dinner At Cincin (Urban Diner)
• 2009 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival – Beringer Private Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Vertical Tasting (Vinifico)
• 2009 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival – Wine folks talk about their wines and the value of social media (Vinifico)
• WineFest Blog #274: Spit Bucket Barricades & Fashionistas (Scout Magazine)
• *News Flash* 2010 Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival (Wine Bard)
• WineFest Blog #295: Five Days And Nights & Still Going Strong (Scout Magazine)
• Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival – Summary (Wine Bard)

From the Twitterverse

Trying out yet more fun tech. Below is a feed of the most recent Twitter musings that have been tagged by the official hashtag of the event, #vpiwf.

If you’d like to see the full collection of #vpiwf commentary, you can look it up on Twemes, which has the added benefit of showing you all Flickr photos (like mine) tagged with vpiwf.

Update: Wine Fest personalities on Twitter

Would you like to know which participating wineries to follow after the Wine Fest winds down?  Here’s a list to start you off.

• @township7 – Township 7, BC
• @blackcloudwine – Black Cloud Wine, BC
• @dfwinery – Dunham & Froese, BC
• @stoneboat – Stoneboat Vineyards, BC
• @road13vineyards – Road 13 Vineyards, BC
• @prospectwinery – Prospect Winery, BC
• @tinhorncreek – Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, BC
• @sokolblosser – Sokol Blosser Winery, Oregon

I had a heck of a time finding many participants on Twitter from outside of BC, although there are at least 60 wineries on Twitter from around the world. Please help me flag down any wineries that you follow that were represented at this year’s Wine Fest.

Share Wine Fest news with me

Help me add to this Wine Fest round-up by dropping a comment with related articles on the interwebs.

Festival Gallery

Here is my share of visual documentation of this week’s festivities. Click on a thumbnail and use the Prev and Next buttons to navigate through the rest.

Tonight’s Agenda

I am not sure whether there will be Wifi at the first venue:  Get Uncorked!, hosted by the Earls on Hornby.  If there is, I will upload as many tasting notes that Karen (Wine Bard) and I can send your way.  If not, I’ll Twitter our thoughts using the hashtags #vpiwf and #uncorked from 4 to 5pm.

There will definitely be adequate infrastructure for me to blog the Road 13 dinner at West from 6:30pm onwards.

Get Uncorked! with Earls and Inniskillin Okanagan

Eek! Looks like Karen and I should already be at Earls for the 4pm Get Uncorked! media event so off we go…I likely won’t be able to blog this live but I’ll return to upload photos and a Twitter summary before I jump over to West.

Menu

• Scallop & Grapefruit Ceviche paired with the Chenin Blanc
• Sake Brined Salmon paired with Marsanne Rousanne
• Jasmine Tea Duck breast with Quinoa salad paired with Zinfandel
• Shortrib Crostini paired with Malbec
• Pear & Gouda Tarte Tatin paired with Tempranillo Icewine

The Earls “Get Uncorked!” event is your chance to kick off the Playhouse Wine Festival regional theme “British Columbia” in grand style. Earls and Inniskillin come together to show off varietals that are experimental for the Okanagan such as Malbec, Zinfandel and Tempranillo. Join Earls’ head chef Reuben Major and Inniskillin Okanagan winemaker Sandor Mayer for a truly Canadian culinary experience. Spend the evening indulging in Inniskillin Discovery Series wines, perfectly paired with earls’ locally-inspired eats created exclusively for this special evening. Bring your ehs, your appetite and your bff.

5:30pm – Get Uncorked! Recap

After a whirlwind tasting, rushed hellos, and a race to pick up a new card reader after mine decided to warp shape, I am now churning out this update while waiting for my husband for our dinner at West.

I’ll let the images speak for the event since I’m short on typing time.  Briefs follow.

• Marsanne / Roussane: dry honey with white florals and delicate fruit – more first-batch apricot than fuzzy peach candies. My fave of the  2 whites.
• Stellar pairing of the Zinfandel with the jasmine tea smoked duck breast with blueberry and quinoa salad. Nice crunch of candied pecan; smokiness of the duck brought out the best of the spice and umami notes in the Zin.
• Best eats: shotglass of scallop and grapefruit ceviche; duck salad (above); shortrib crostini with mushroom duxelle and horseradish cream.
• Best sights: the eye candy that are the lovely ladies of Earls; Dawn Chubai of Breakfast Television; Sid Cross.

Earls Restaurant
905 Hornby Street | Downtown
(604) 682-6700

Husband’s home. Time to get ready for a sit-down (and hopefully much less harried) experience with West and Road 13. Back soon.

West + Road 13 – A Sense of Place

The wines of Road 13 are being underlined tonight at West with a 6-course celebration of BC. My palate is screaming with excitement.

Executive Chef Warren Geraghty
Pastry Chef Rhonda Viani
Restaurant Director Brian Hopkins
Wine Director Owen Knowlton

Canapes:
Saffron and Red Pepper Arrancinni
Gallantine of Quail En Croute
Arctic Char with Olive Oil Hollandaise
Road 13 Sparkling Chenin Blanc 2006

Cannelloni of Ruby Beetroot, David Woods Goats Cheese and Elderflower Mousse
Road 13 Riesling 2007

Qualicum Bay Scallops, Lobster, Dungeness Crab and Vancouver Island Octopus Cantaloupe and Mild Chili Soup
Road 13 “Jackpot” Viognier 2007

Roasted Pave of Sablefish, Crushed Sunchoke Brandade, Sunchoke and Leek Cream
Road 13 “Jackpot” Chardonnay 2007

Breast of Thiessen Farm Squab with Cinnamon Risotto
Road 13 “Jackpot” Pinot Noir 2007

Pithivier of Okanagan Venison and Foie Gras, Pink Venison Loin, Parsnip Puree and Curly Kale
Road 13 “Jackpot” Syrah 2007

Napoleon of Bitter Manjari Chocolate Custard
Blue Cheese Mousse and Maldon Salt Hazelnut Cream Cheese Wafers
Road 13 “Fifth Element” 2006

8pm – 2 courses down, 4 more to go

My husband and I are enjoying ourselves at our table, seated with illuminaries such as Joan and Sid Cross, West owner Jack Evrensel,  and Road 13 reps Michael Bartier (winemaker) and Joe Luckhurst.  My netbook is situated off in a corner in order to keep the dinner table uncluttered by tech. I’m equipped with my cell phone for more real-time updates, so check Twitter for those observations.

Highlights so far include the quail canapes with sweetbreads, mushroom, hazelnut cream, and crostini;  grassy and surprisingly weighty Riesling, grown from the vines of one of the oldest (if not the oldest) vines in the Okanagan; the springtime fresh beetroot canneloni that was paired with it; the structured and smooth Viognier that followed.

Wine fun fact: Viognier is one of the most bitter grape varieties around.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the seafood course despite the novelty of pea-sized honeydew balls and the vibrance of the cantaloupe and chili soup.  My octopus was rubbery at worst, chewy at best; I wished the chili came out more than it did.

8:45pm – 3rd course down, with some Twitter fun in between

A bit of Twitter banter has evolved during the third course of roasted sablefish pave, sunchoke and leek cream, and the Jackpot Chardonnay (my husband’s favourite of the whites).

Black Cloud winemaker Brad Cooper noticed that I was at this dinner and asked me over the Twitternets to greet Road 13 winemaker Michael Bartier with their secret greeting.  Upon passing the message to Michael, he requested the opportunity to respond.  We stood together in the corner as he typed out his reply.  Brad seemed to enjoy the exchange (I know I did).  Now to figure out what TABOMA stands for…

[TABOMA shall only be revealed by speaking directly to Brad or Michael...it is their secret greeting, after all.]

9:30pm – 5 courses down and 6 wines in

Kurt leaned over to confess: “This is the best meal I’ve ever had!”

He wasn’t with me when I was blown away by the experience at Atlanta’s Bacchanalia, but admittedly, I can’t recall being this impressed by a meal in Vancouver.  My favourite course of the night was Thiessen Farm squab with cinnamon — cinnamon! — risotto.  The pairing with the Jackpot Pinot Noir was tremendous; the allspice, nutmeg, and cinnamon of the wine wrapped the risotto and the melt-in-your-mouth squab in a lover’s embrace.  Bonus was the complimentary bottle of Pinot Noir that we got to take home at the end of the night. Can’t wait to open it at the end of the week when my in-laws get into town.

The next course was the boldest of them all: a pithivier of venison and foie gras with even more venison to boot.  It went well with the Syrah, which I appreciated even more than the Pinot before it, but this dish was the only one that I wasn’t able to finish.  I ate half of each item on the plate before I had to decline.  All of the Syrah was polished off, however, and kudos to the staff for being generous and frequent with top-ups.

10pm – dinner wrap-up

The last hurrah was a Bordeaux-style blend: Road 13’s “Fifth Element”.  It complimented the chocolate Napoleon adequately and mellowed out the layer of blue cheese mousse that was sandwiched between Maldon salt hazelnut cream cheese wafers.  While all the wines were consistently delicious, this wine was immensely eclipsed by the Pinot and Syrah that preceded it.  My husband was moreover left wanting from the dessert: “I didn’t like that the cheese course and the dessert course was combined into one. They should have kept them separate.”

After I asked him which of the 5 previous dishes should have been replaced by a cheese course, he changed his tune: “Well, I wouldn’t replace any of the courses…I guess my complaint is that they should have had more food!”

Considering my normally peckish appetite, even I found it difficult to disagree with that.

West Restaurant + Bar
2881 Granville Street | South Granville
(604) 738-8938
Make a reservation through Open Table

Visuals from the Road

Have fun watching events unfold this evening!

A Memphis Blues smoked prime rib sandwich! $9.95 for a mound of marbled heaven, slathered with BBQ sauce, Carolina mustard and served with thin-cut fries. Just look at all that marbled goodness.

This sandwich is a rare treat for lovers of this Vancouver barbeque mecca. I asked co-founder Park Heffelfinger how often this sandwich is available; to my chagrin, I heard “only once or twice a year” and “for special occasions like Father’s Day” in his reply. So it must have been kismet that I dropped into Memphis Blues this day of all days.

I’ll be dropping by with my dad next month for Father’s Day on the slim chance that we’ll see the chalkboard announcing the return of the smoked prime rib sandwich. And if my dad doesn’t order it, well, dang it, that just means more for me!

Want more Memphis Blues?

Check out the restaurant profile that I’m slowly building out as well as the photos below, which contain snaps of the Memphis Blues cookbook launch at Liberty Wine Merchants over at Park & Tilford. I’m going to try my hand at the cornbread recipe some time this week.

The first item that screamed out at me were the deep-fried pickles. Crispy on the outside, sour as sin on the inside, yet still retaining that fresh crunch that is the mark of a good pickle. I was thrilled that my friend is anti-pickle. I ate all 5 slices with relish (ha).

We had a really hard time deciding on which combo to order. There was the usual cod and halibut, even wild Pacific salmon for a bit of West Coast flair. Then there were battered oysters, battered prawns, clam strips. All intriguing but a little too adventurous for a first visit. The range of sides were equally enthralling. In the end, we went with cod and halibut with mushy peas and Newfie dressing on the side.

I preferred the oiliness of the cod while my friend liked the drier, flakier halibut. Both of us enjoyed the Newfie dressing, which is essentially like stuffing with a bit of gravy on top. The mushy peas were indeed mushy. It smelled slightly sulfurous; sort of like how an egg does when it’s cooked too quickly. Neither of us had more than a couple tastes of it. Won’t be ordering that side again.

How can one ignore the deep-fried Mars bar on the menu? We were already drooling in anticipation. This dish delivered over and above our expectations (having deep-fried a Mars bar ourselves once upon a time). It was significantly airier in texture and almost delicate in taste, like a chocolate wafer but oozy. Nothing like the denseness of your typical Mars bar. An instant favourite.

As we enjoyed our lunch, we chatted with co-owner Roy Blackwell about having recently become a Green Table member. He was enthusiastic about his plan to eliminate styrofoam use from all of their locations. He even showed us how he had already switched to takeaway containers and cutlery that were all compostable. It was the first I had heard of such biodegradable products. I learned more about compostable dishware at EPIC, which you may have read about in a previous post.

We waddled out of Mr. Pickwick’s Fish & Chips with happy bellies and even happier wallets: under $20 for all that we had sampled. Looking forward to another go. Perhaps we’ll try their downtown location on Denman & Nelson next time around.

Mr. Pickwick’s Fish & Chips
8620 Granville Street
Vancouver, BC
(604) 266-2340