Best of the Blue

Taxi into Del Monte Aviation’s executive hangar Saturday, November 12th for “Best of the Blue,” a new food and wine event featuring gourmet food trucks, live music, and the latest releases from 50 area wineries.

Participating wineries include the “Who’s Who” of Monterey County winemaking (such as Figge Cellars, Talbott Vineyards and the Bernardus Winery). Local food purveyors—Babaloo, A Piece of Cake, The Pizza Gypsy, Treatbot, Me and the Hound Memphis BBQ, and Lugano’s Swiss Bistro—will serve up the cuisine, ranging from Cuban dishes to cupcakes.

You’ll have a chance to taste seasonal farm-to-table dishes (and get holiday food and wine tips from Williams-Sonoma) while enjoying music by the Cachagua Playboys. The party starts at 1 pm at 100 Sky Park Drive in Monterey. Admission is $60.

(In case you’re wondering, “The Big Blue” is an enormous submarine canyon (sixty miles long and two miles deep) that connects the deep blue sea to the wine growing regions of Monterey, manifesting in fog, wind, moderate temperatures, and lack of rain during the growing season.)

What The Locals Know–November Food & Wine Events

If you’re interested in wine, don’t miss The Great Wine Escape Weekend, November 12 – 14, 2010. The Great Wine Escape Weekend is the food and wine event of the year for Monterey County , which in 2009 featured over 50 Monterey wineries, local and national celebrity chefs, and the ultimate travel experience in the beautiful setting of Monterey Wine Country.

Events throughout the weekend include wine and food pairing sessions, wine country open houses and tours, a hidden gem and boutique wine tasting, over 25 winemaker dinners by world-renowned chefs and The Great Wine Escape Grand Finale on Sunday at the Intercontinental the Clement Monterey.

The first day, Friday, November 12, will offer winery open houses, barrel tastings and appetizers, and a winemaker’s dinner. The second day, Saturday, November 13, will offer more winery open houses, a behind-the-scenes winemaking “boot camp”, pairing and tasting events, as well as another winemaker’s dinner. If you aren’t wined out by Sunday, November 14, the event’s third day, you’ll get to visit the winery open houses you missed, and top it off with a culinary showcase at the Clement hotel.

We believe that Bacchus, the god of wine and intoxication, would be proud of this event!

Insider’s Tip: You’ll save money and have more fun if you get the weekend pass. Email jrosenau@montereywines.org, call 831.375.9400 or visit www.montereywines.org for details.