Now that winter is in the rear view mirror (I hope) and spring has arrived, it’s time to plan a few nice-weather getaways. And, surprise, all of these jaunts I’m recommending involve exposure to and consumption of good food and wine.

Let’s start close to home.

Taste of ParkersburgThis gourmet extravaganza kicks off on Friday evening, June 1, with a special wine and food dinner. On Saturday June 2, (from 5. to 11 p.m.) attendees will be able to graze outdoors and sample the edible wares from more than a dozen local restaurants. There will also be more than 40 wines from which to select. Call 304-865-0522 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information on the Taste of Parkersburg.

West Virginia Wine and Jazz FestivalThis event will be held on September 15th and 16th (Saturday and Sunday) at Camp Muffly near Morgantown. Local and regional wines will be available for tasting (Saturday: 11 AM - 6 PM, Sunday: 12 noon - 6 PM.) Admission is $20 per person/per day and includes a commemorative wine glass. Contact http://wvwineandjazz.com/tickets/ for tickets.

Wine and All That JazzThis annual fest will be held on Saturday, June 23, on the lawn at the University of Charleston. The event is hosted by The Fund for the Arts and offers a variety of foods as well as West Virginia wines. In addition, the entertainment will feature a full day of performances by several renowned jazz musicians. Tickets are $30 each ($35 the day of the festival). Contact http://www.festivallcharleston.com/ for more information.

For those of you who want to make your wine and food adventure a vacation, you might check into these two special gourmet events: The Food and Wine Classic at Aspen, Colorado and the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC) in McMinneville, Oregon.


Food & Wine Classic, Aspen, COThis is among the top five food and wine weekends (June 15-17) in the nation. You will be fed by some of the best culinary talent in the country and be able to rub elbows with the wine illuminati while sampling their vinous products.
The days are filled with cooking demonstrations, seminars and tastings with more than 300 wines represented at the Grand Tasting Pavilion. This is not an inexpensive undertaking at $1700 a person. Check out the itinerary at http://www.foodandwine.com.

International Pinot Noir Celebration in OregonThis spectacular celebration of pinot noir is held each year on the last weekend in July (27-29 this year) at a small college campus in a town about 45 minutes south of Portland. While the weekend focuses on different aspects of producing pinot noir in Oregon and around the world, you’ll also spend a great deal of time sipping wine. And the food is absolutely phenomenal since you will be catered to throughout the weekend by the best chefs in the Pacific Northwest.

I’ve been to IPNC four times and I’m considering making it five this summer. It’s also very expensive at $1295 a ticket, but you might be able to rationalize the expense (like I did) if you call it a vacation. Anyway, it is a very special wine and food experience and I highly recommend it. Go to their website: ipnc.org for more information and to sign up.

If you’re a fan of ramps and willing to forego the traditional Mountain Mama recipes for this less than delicate lily, then boy do I have a culinary treat for you to consider.

Right now, many towns in the state are holding ramp feeds. However, I am not a fan of the traditional manner in which ramps are prepared at these dinners. Most folks fry them in lard or bacon grease and then add them to potatoes or pinto beans. I think they’re prepared in this manner to cover up their rather pungent taste and smell.

My favorite way to consume these babies is to grill them, particularly over charcoal, and feature them as an accompaniment to protein like beef, pork or chicken. I will also sauté ramps in olive oil with just about any vegetable dish from broccoli to green beans to zucchini.

But today’s recipe includes the use of ramps to help spark up the rather bland flavors of white fish such as grouper, cod or halibut, and demonstrates that these odiferous little lilies, if applied prudently, can actually have a subtle influence on a dish.


And this lovely rendition of ramps-enhanced seafood really marries well with
crisp, yet rich, white wines such as verdicchio from around the commune of Matelica in the Italian state of Marche. The verdicchio in this region is much superior to the wine made from the same grape in other parts of Italy.

Here’s my choice to pair with the following recipe:

2016 Bisci Verdicchio de Matelica ($18) – Round, ripe and crisp, this wine has the depth and freshness to enhance the flavors of the dish while also providing a refreshing and thirst-quenching attribute.

 
The Recipe
Two six ounce filets of firm white fish (grouper, cod or halibut)
Six to eight cleaned and ramps
Two ounces of extra virgin olive oil
One-half teaspoon of salt, black pepper and hot pepper flakes (optional)
Four ounces of dry white wine (I would use the verdicchio above)
One-half teaspoon of minced garlic
One half pound of asparagus cut into half inch pieces

Sauté in olive oil the ramps, asparagus, garlic until translucent
Add the white wine and sauté along with the ingredients above for 30 seconds
Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes
Remove sauté pan from heat
Sauté the fish -three minutes a side until firm
Reheat the sauté pan with the ramps and asparagus
Plate the fish and pour the ramp and wine sauce over the fish
Serve immediately

Can anyone find spring? I think Mother Nature must have benched spring this year for not showing up with more energy and intensity. It seems like we have sprung directly from winter to summer.

Anyway, Memorial Day weekend is upon us and, while this is a solemn holiday, it also heralds the official start of the picnic and barbecue season. And it’s also time to transition from the heavy wines of the cooler months in favor of lighter-styled whites, roses’ and reds.

Of course, you’ll need to pair these vinous lovelies with appropriate hunks of protein like red meat, chicken, fish and pork as well as fresh garden vegetables. And the best way to enjoy warm weather food is to cook it in the great out-of-doors on your trusty charcoal or gas grill. So let’s talk about the most common picnic type foods you will be preparing this summer and which wines are most compatible with them.

If you’re like me, you don’t mind wolfing down an occasional (less than healthful) food product. I cherish those increasingly infrequent times when I toss caution to the wind and select hot dogs, Italian sausage, chorizo, kielbasa or smoked meats like ham for the grill. I love to match these humble offerings with lighter styled reds like Beaujolais, cabernet franc or grenache-based wines such as those found in the southern Rhone. I also love to pair them with chilled, fruit-forward and dry rose’.


For our vegetarian friends – or anyone else who wants to go meatless – there are wines for you too. Try using a crisp, herbaceous sauvignon blanc or a fresh and fruity pinot grigio with grilled veggies like asparagus, broccoli or with sweet, or with multi-colored bell peppers. You might whip up a cold penne pesto pasta salad -composed of basil, minced garlic, pecorino romano, and extra virgin olive oil – and pair it with albarino from Spain or picpoul de pinet from southern France.

How about scallops or lobster tails on the grill? You’ll want a rich, but well-balanced, chardonnay or a full-bodied and round white like friulano. This lovely wine from northeastern Italy is not well known, but it is worth searching out because it’s a delicious substitute for the ubiquitous (and sometimes over-used) chardonnay.

Sangiovese and pinot noir are my favorite red wines in the warm months, particularly when matched with dishes like barbecued baby back ribs or spiced up (cumin, ancho, cayenne, etc) skirt steak. These reds should be served slightly chilled and are particularly simpatico with spicy foods.

But the sine qua non of all warm weather dishes is red meat. And guess what? You don’t need to forego using full-bodied reds just because the ambient outdoor temperature is sizzling. Simply pop that big cabernet, zinfandel or petite sirah into the fridge for a half-hour or so before you’re ready to eat. Then enjoy that rib eye steak, rack of lamb or filet mignon with the full-flavored wines that were meant to be paired with them.

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads and grand dads everywhere! And since I qualify in both categories, I put in my request for a Father’s Day meal a few weeks back. As a matter of fact, I actually cooked the delicious dish I am sharing with you today back then. I want it again!

I know, I know… most of you guys out there in father land are probably going to be celebrating our day by eating a large piece of cow meat. And while I might just fire up the grill this afternoon for an accompanying rib eye, I’m definitely going to make my mushroom and pea pappardelle pasta dish the centerpiece of this hallowed holiday.

So if it’s too late for your chef de cuisine to change the meal plan today - or to add to the holiday menu - hang on to the recipe below because it is a WINNER! But whenever you decide to try the dish, be advised that while I would opt for a full-bodied white wine to pair it with, you could also accompany it with a silky red.


Here are my white and red wine suggestions for this exquisite pasta dish.

2016 Mastroberadino Fiano di Avellino ($30)- One of the characteristics of this white wine from the Campania region of Italy (in the hills above Naples) is the nutty, round and rich flavors of Fiano. It also has some citrus and mineral notes and should be a perfect match to the complex flavors in the pasta dish. If you can’t find Fiano, you can substitute it with a white like friulano or even a rich chardonnay.

2016 Allegrini Valpolicella Classico ($17) – This lighter-styled, silky red is full of fruit forward and ripe cherry flavors. It is perfectly balanced and refreshing with enough acid to be a counterpoint to the richness of the pasta.

Mushroom and Peas Pappardelle
One pound of pappardelle pasta
One half pound of mixed mushrooms (shitake, oyster, baby portabella, etc.)
Three ounces of extra virgin olive oil
One tablespoon of butter
One small Vidalia onion and one clove of garlic
Four ounces of green peas (preferably fresh spring peas)
One-half cup of chicken stock
Three ounces of dry white wine
Three tablespoons of heavy cream
One tablespoon each of kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
One tablespoon of chopped Italian parsley
One teaspoon of red pepper flakes (optional)
Eight or ten cherry tomatoes

Grate one-half pound of Parmigiano Reggiano (or other good grating cheese)
Slice tomatoes in half and thinly slice the onion and garlic
Shuck fresh peas or thaw out frozen green peas
Clean mushrooms with a damp cloth and slice into quarter inch pieces
Sauté onions in olive oil and half the butter until translucent
Add peas, mushrooms and garlic to sauté pan and cook for about three minutes
Pour in chicken stock and white wine and cook for about five minutes
Turn heat down to simmer
Add pappardelle to boiling water and cook until al dente
Drain pappardelle reserving one-half cup pasta water
Add pasta to the simmering mushrooms and peas
Add the remaining butter and pour in heavy cream and pasta water
Sprinkle in the salt, pepper and red pepper flakes
Add the cheese and toss the mixture until it’s all integrated
Sprinkle parsley and more cheese on each plate of pasta
Serve immediately

Buon Appetito!

I spend a considerable amount of time cruising around our town and state in search of the perfect dining experience. Of course, an essential component of any excellent meal is an appropriately matched wine that is reasonably priced.

We are blessed in the Kanawha Valley to have several fine dining establishments with very good wine lists. I am always on the lookout for those eateries that understand the importance of wine and attempt to craft a list that complements their specific menu.

So today, I’ll report to you on the best wine restaurants in West Virginia as rated annually by The Wine Spectator magazine. Wine and food lovers in our state should be proud to know that eight West Virginia establishments are among those receiving the lofty honors in 2018.

According to the magazine, Wine Spectator’s restaurant awards program recognizes places whose wine lists offer interesting selections, are appropriate to the cuisine and appeal to a wide range of wine lovers. To qualify for an award, the list must present complete and accurate wine information and it must include vintages and appellations for all selections, including wines by the glass.


The three categories of awards are: “Awards of Excellence;” “Best of Awards of Excellence;” and the “Grand Award.” Only 2453 restaurants across world have received the “Award of Excellence,” including six restaurants in our state. Two other WV restaurants received “Best of Awards of Excellence. ” That’s quite an honor since only 1215 restaurants on the planet achieved that distinction. And only 91 restaurants around the world received the highest honor. Unfortunately, none are located in our state - yet.

The state restaurants receiving “Awards of Excellence” are: Bridge Road Bistro; The Chop House; and The South Hills Market and Café – all in Charleston; The Wonder Bar Steakhouse in Clarksburg; Provence Market Café in Bridgeport; and Sargasso in Morgantown. The two restaurants that received “Best of Awards of Excellence” designations are: The Greenbrier’s Main Dining Room in White Sulphur Springs and Spats Restaurant in Parkersburg (at the Blennerhassett Hotel).

The Wine Spectator recognition is a special tribute to the winners in the Mountain State, and we lovers of wine should do our best to patronize these restaurants. We should also encourage our other favorite eateries to upgrade their lists and/or submit them to the magazine for future consideration.

Here in Charleston, one restaurant that should considering entering their wine list for a Spectator award is Laury’s. Not only do they have some of the best food in the city, but they also have the most comprehensive and reasonably priced wine list too. Other restaurants in town that should consider submitting their lists are: The Block; Paterno’s At the Park; Noah’s Restaurant and Lounge; Bricks and Barrels; and The Barge Restaurant.

Restaurants wanting to have their wine lists evaluated by The Wine Spectator for a possible award should contact the magazine at www.winespectator.com on the criteria for each award level. Applications must be submitted Dec. 1, through Dec. 31, 2018 for consideration.