Eat Local;Drink Local (TM): Movement and Event by Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery

It’s official: Hawk Haven will pair with Sean’s Restaurant to emphasize the environmental and economic importance of drinking local wine. We will kick off the campaign with a weekly small-plate dinner event on premises beginning November 6th.  Pair a beautiful local meal with a local wine.

The first “Eat Local; Drink Local” small-plate dinner will take place on November 6, 2009 from 7-10pm in the Hawk Haven tasting room. Reservations required. $50 per person. Call 609. 846. 7347. Join the movement: “Eat Local; Drink Local”

Yesterday I talked to Sean about local food.  Sean is as sunny as his little orange restaurant.

He started the restaurant with his wife Jennifer because he loves to cook and, “My wife likes french fries.  We bought a restaurant so she could have them the way she likes them – no one else makes them.”  He’s all about high quality food – that’s why we knew he was perfect for our “Eat Local; Drink Local” campaign and event.

Sean is animated as he explains the importance of local food and wine.  “We all work together.  The more local I buy, the more it keeps everyone else in business.”  As he explained that most of his produce comes from Vineland, he reminded me that local foods just taste better – fresher.  “I’ve grown up eating out of a garden.  And the more people that start eating local food, the better everyone’s food will be.”

The “Eat Local; Drink Local” campaign is also about the environment.  Rich Saunders of BrighterPlanet.com says, “With all the focus on local food it often becomes easy to forget the climate impact of the manufacture and distribution of beverages. If you live in New York, Hawk Haven’s wines would travel 150 miles to your glass, instead of the thousands that wines from elsewhere often cover.” That is a huge carbon differential. So drink local wines – drink Hawk Haven wine!

We gave the event a trial run last night at Sean’s Restaurant.  Everything was delicious, but we might mix it up a little for the first event.  Can’t wait!

Eat Local ~ Drink Local
Hawk Haven Vineyard and Sean’s Restaurant
6 November 2009
All Three Small Plates and Wines Included

Small Plate One
2008 Pinot Grigio
Spinach and Seared Scallop Salad dressed with Toasted Sesame and Siracha

Small Plate Two
2007 Red Table Wine
Pork brushed with Blackberry Barbecue Sauce served over Jasmine Rice and Chef’s Vegetables

Small Plate Three
2007 Cabernet Sauvignon
Rack of Lamb with Dijon Drizzle served over Roasted Garlic Mash and Chef’s Vegetables

Signing off from Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery in Cape May County, NJ – Cape May Wine Country ~ Cate

Wine and Dine: Rye Breaded Pork Roast with Hawk Haven Red Table Wine Marinade

I concocted a delicious pork marinade using Hawk Haven’s Red Table Wine last night.  The Red Table wine is dynamic – good for cooking AND complimenting with many types of food.  It’s a 75% Cabernet and 25% Chambourcin blend.  The Chambourcin really mixes things up.  It’s a very vivacious grape (and temperamental too).  The 2008 vintage Chambourcin we used is full of two seemingly contradictory flavors: fruit and spice.  This flavor combination makes it perfect for pairing with a simple dinner dish like pasta; it almost seasons the food for you.  And it’s also great for cooking because it’s bursting with spiciness AND fruitiness.

Pork is often prepared with both spicy/salty and sweet foods like a spicy sauerkraut and fruity applesauce.  I tried to mirror the flavor combination above when I came up with my recipe.

Rye Breaded Pork Roast with Hawk Haven Red Table Wine Marinade

1 glass (5oz) of Hawk Haven Red Table Wine

1 3/4 lb pork loin

Chervil and rosemary to taste

1 tbsp chopped garlic

1 tsp whole grain mustard

2 tsp olive oil

one whole onion chopped

one whole lemon squeezed

three pieces of toasted rye bread

Pierce pork all over with skewer and pound with mallet. Combine the wine, chervil, rosemary, garlic, mustard, oil, onion and lemon juice (and rinds to increase acidity) in a zip-lock bag with pork.  Let sit in refrigerator for 45 minutes to one hour.

After the pork finished marinating (and my grandparents were salivating), I put the pork in a baking pan and put the bits of torn up rye bread on top.  I baked it at 350 for about an hour.

My poor grandparents just wanted to sit down early and eat a simple pork dinner last night, but I decided to put them through another Hawk Haven wine recipe ordeal.  They were hungry when I got home at six, but they had to wait until 8:30 to eat.  (They loved it anyway).  So if you execute my Hawk Haven Red Table Wine marinade, start earlier in the evening than I did.

I set the table with pewter, featuring a pewter sugar and cream set from TreeHouse Antiques.

Signing off from Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery in Cape May County, NJ - Cape May Wine Country ~ Cate Hylas

Talks with Todd: Combatting Feathered Foes

Vineyard managers battle mother nature everyday.  Fungi, bacteria, mold and deer are all common wine-grape pests.  Come late August, early September, there’s a feathery foe: warblers.

The warblers swing presumptuously down from the sky and pluck our grapes right out of their clusters.  The brick count (a measure of sugar content) in the pinot grigio is nearly up to 20, so I can understand why grapes have become the choice bird snack.  I can barely prevent myself from picking the grapes right now – they are so good – so it’s hard to blame the birds.

To prevent against the wino-warblers (and Katies), Todd puts nets up around the vines.  Bird-brained animals can’t conceptualize of reaching through the nets, so the grapes are protected.

It’s nice that there is such a simple alternative to using pesticides.  Nets – so easy!

The view through the nets is absolutely breathtaking.  The nets make the vineyard feel misty and enchanted.

This is a half-netted Cabernet Sauvignon vine.  The half-net technique tricks warblers, but not me!  I ate one, and it was delicious.

Signing off from Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery in Cape May County, NJ - Cape May Wine Country ~ Cate Hylas

Wine and Dine: Cedar Plank Salmon with Hawk Haven Red-Tailed Rose Wine and Orange Glaze

So I’m having a Julie Powell moment.  After seeing the movie Julie & Julia, I decided to try extending the blog to include cooking with Hawk Haven wine.  (Mostly I just want to bounce around my kitchen shouting  boef bourignon and bon apetit in falsetto).  I’ll try to wow my boyfriend and my grandparents with a Cedar Plank Salmon with Red-Tailed Rose and Orange Glaze tonight.  Wish me luck…

I’ll be grilling the salmon on a low flame with Cedar planks (courtesy of my Aunt Susan).   I’m not much for recipes, so I’ll just give you an idea of what I plan to do.  I can’t promise I’ll follow my own instructions, but I’ll let you know in another post what if anything I change:

Red-Tailed Rose and Orange Glaze for Cedar Plank Salmon

A little bit of cilantro..

A little bit of orange zest…

A few orange slices…

A few cups of orange juice…

About a cup of Hawk Haven’s Red-Tailed Rose…

Vegetable oil (maybe?)…

And Sour cream if I decide to turn the whole thing into a cream sauce…

I told you I wasn’t much for recipes… Suggestions and comments welcome!  If you have any of your own recipes that include Hawk Haven wine, please send them to me at info@hawkhavenvineyard.com, and I’ll post them on the website!

Signing off from Hawk Haven Vineyard and Winery in Cape May County, NJ - Cape May Wine Country ~ Cate Hylas