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HAWAII PACIFIC ISLANDS REGION NEWSLETTER FALL 2014JUDITH KELLOGG, Chargée de Presse ProvincialeSociété Mondiale du Vin Meeting in CarmelAs usual, the Hawaii/Pacific region made a greatshowing at the Société Mondiale du Vin national meeting,May 1-3. This year the venue was a little different than in thepast. The Monterey Bay area is famous for its charm andbeauty, and nowhere is that more apparent than in theboutique town of Carmel. No winery tours this year, butplenty of wine to sample, beautiful meals, and wonderful andvaried tours of the Carmel scene. Grand Echanson BruceNichols and Pacific Northwest Bailli Provincial MichaelMartello planned an extraordinary weekend for the almost200 members fortunate enough to attend.For the first evening, after greeting old friends atthe Quail Lodge reception, members headed out for thedine-around. The most heroic effort of the evening has to bethat of Kauai/Oahu Vice Conseiller GastronomiqueHonoraire Mirella Monoscalco, who organized a Chaînequality dinner for 56 at Cantinetta Luca. This was supposedto be a small dinner for Hawaii members and a few oldfriends, but, as many of you know, when Mirella plansanything, no one wants to miss out!The next day’s “Santa Lucia Highlands WineArtisans” tasting got us off to a great start. We sampled theregion’s opulence, with twenty producers pouringexceptional offerings. The region prides itself not only infabulous wines, but also in sustainable, fresh, largelyorganic produce. The never empty glasses of beautiful wineswere accompanied by dishes prepared from colorful,perfectly ripened produce, a vast array of cheeses, wildsalmon, hand-crafted sausages, and succulent grilled meats.The region is fairly young as a wine-growing region,with the first vines planted in 1973. Bruce Nichols capturesthe vitality of the region when he says, “Follow the fog as itrolls off the chilly Monterey Bay, evaporates under the warmCarmel Valley sun, makes its climb up and over a ruggedmountain range and is finally cooled by the winds of the greatSalina Valley. This is the Santa Lucia Highlands.” Theconditions are especially favorable for chardonnays and pinotnoirs, as we experienced in the tasting. Of the 6,151 plantedacres, over 3,000 are pinot noir vineyards, and over 2,000chardonnay.Other highlights included “Evening to Roar About”at the Monterey Peninsula Country Club, where vintner GaryFranscioni of Roar Wines spoke about his family’s evolutionas third generation farmers into legendary wine producers,whose pinot noir once was described by Robert Parker as onethat “blew away all the competition from Burgundy.”The next day’s events offered various ways toexperience Carmel’s gastronomical delights of this uniquetown. Those who wanted to stay on the wine-focused trackheaded for Grasing’s restaurant, where Maître Hotelier KurtGrasing created a luncheon perfectly harmonizing with thefeatured Figge wines. For those who wanted to sampleCalifornia’s rich Mexican heritage, Patrick Phinny organizeda gourmet feast at his Baja Cantina, featuring premiumtequila cocktails.Those who selected the “Food Tasting and CulturalWalking Tour” were led through Carmel’s gorgeous oldarcades and walkways, learning about the town’s history asthey sampled tapas at Mundaka, gnocchi at the most romanticrestaurant in Carmel, Casanova, gourmet pizzas at LaBicyclette, as well as specialty olive oils and vinegars, andcrafted chocolates at artisan vendors. By the end of the tour,most were trying to figure out how they could justify movingto Carmel! Indicative of the unique combination of artsy,classy, and “down home” charm is Carmel’s dog-friendlyambiance, illustrated by Cypress Inn’s “Yappy Hour,” wherepets and owners come together to enjoy cocktails whilesocializing. A new idea for a Mondiale event?Of course, the most anticipated event of theweekend was the evening celebrating the Young Sommeliercompetition, once again masterfully orchestrated by ViceEchanson National Charles Bennett. It is normal that thecompetition can be close, but this was unprecedented in thatthe first and second place winners tied, which seems almostimpossible given the complexity of the testing and the largenumber of points at the end. The tie was broken by goingback to the scores in the preliminary stages of thecompetitions running up to the national. An incredibly closefinish from two very talented young sommes!!Jane Lopes from New York City was the winner, andwe look forward to cheering Jane on in Copenhagen onSeptember 19. By the time of our Regional Assemblage, weshould know the results.Save May 14-17, 2015 for the next Mondiale nationalmeeting, in Santa Barbara.14
HAWAII PACIFIC ISLANDS REGION NEWSLETTER FALL 2014WAY TO GO, KAI! by Judith Kellogg, Chargée de Presse ProvincialeProfessionnel de la Table Kai Cowell is making usproud with her first place finish in the savory category at thissummer’s Mango Festival, held at the Moana Surfrider. Shebased her award-winning recipe on the “Exotic Curry FriedRice,” which has become popular throughout the islands.The dish includes cranberries, but while they are in season,adding mangos makes the dish extra scrumptious.Many of us can personally attest to how deliciousthis dish is, and using Kai’s prepared exotic curry spicemakes the preparation easy. Kai tells us that the Exotic Curryspice is organic, gluten free, MSG free, and vegan. Herspices are in some of the local market chains, and you canalso order on line at kaispices.com.Kaiulani's Famous (Award-Winning) Exotic Curry FriedRice with Cranberries & MangosIngredients¼ cup olive oil2 ½ tablespoon Kaiulani's Exotic Curry spice1/3 cup cilantro (chop the stems and the leaves separately)1 tablespoon garlic, minced2 cups Jasmine rice (uncooked), cooked the day before(produces 4 cups of cooked rice)¼ cup cranberries or raisins¼ cup green onion stalks, slice small2-3 tablespoons toasted almonds or macadamia nuts(optional)2 mangos, ripe, cut in small cubes (in season)Heat olive oil in pan on medium heat. When oil is heated,add garlic, Kaiulani's Curry spice, cilantro stems, andcranberries in pan. When garlic is cooked, add the jasminerice. Mix well until the rice is a beautiful golden yellowcolor, not pale. Keep adding the curry until the rice is abeautiful golden color (that is the key of this dish—once youget the right color do not add any more curry) Add the greenonions and cilantro leaves to the rice and mix again. Fold inthe mangos. Sprinkle the toasted nuts on top if desired, andthen scatter some more mangos on top, as well. Serve. Quickand so easy and delicious!Variation: add cooked shrimp, chicken or pork that has beenseasoned with one of Kaiulani’s spices.15
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