Sarasota Forks & Corks University Wine Tasting

One weekend toward the end of January, Sarasota hosts a series of terrific culinary events called, "Forks & Corks." The main event is a grand food and wine tasting on Sunday in the grand courtyard of the Ringling Art Museum in Sarasota. Other events include wine tasting dinners on Friday and Saturday, and "Forks & Corks University" wine tasting events on Saturday at Michael's on East Restaurant and Michael's Wine Cellar. The events are run by the Sarasota-Manatee Originals, an association of over 50 local, independent restaurateurs. Both the Forks & Corks events and the Manatee-Sarasota Originals association are the inspirations of iconic restaurateur and wine devotee, Michael Klauber.

The Sunday grand food and wine tasting tickets are limited to about 2,000, and sell out within minutes of the start of sales 2 months earlier. Many of the other functions also sell out.

I have had the pleasure of attending the grand tasting twice, and the university wine tastings on three occasions. There are two types of tastings:
1. Morning only, including lunch.
2. Morning and afternoon, including lunch.

The attendees of both types have lunch together in Michael's on East. The lunches themselves are special. Each course is prepared by a chef from a different Originals restaurant and paired with a nice wine.

This year, I attended the full-day session - a Christmas gift from our son and daughter.

The morning session was a tasting of 10 Pinot Noirs, two each from five different wineries - one in Oregon and four in California. The theme of the afternoon session was red wines from various regions of Italy, again involving 10 wines from five wineries. Each wine was presented by a representative from the winery or a distributor of that winery's wines.

The Morning Tasting
The wineries, locations, representatives, and wines in the morning tasting were:
1. Willamette Valley Vineyards, Willamette Valley, Oregon, Mary Joli, presenting:
a. 2012 Estate Pinot Noir
b. 2008 Estate Pinot Noir
2. Hook & Ladder Winery, Sonoma County's Russian River Valley, Michael Deloach, presenting:
a. 2013 Estate Pinot Noir
b. 2009 Estate Pinot Noir
3.Saintsbury, Los Carneros, Napa Valley, Chris Kajani, presenting:
a. 2011 Stanly Ranch
b. 2010 Stanly Ranch
4. Talbott Vineyards, California Central Coast, Bob Seager, presenting:
a. 2012 Pinot Noir Reserve "Sarah Case," Sleepy Hollow Estate
b. 2012 "Pinot Noir Reserve "RFT," Diamond T Estate
5. Presqu'ile Winery, Santa Barbara County, Matt Murphy, presenting:
a. 2012 Presqu'ile Vineyard, Santa Maria Valley
b. 2012 Steiner Creek Vineyard, San Luis Obispo County

The first three tastings, which had different vintages from the same vineyards, demonstrated how much of a difference changes in weather can make from one year to another.

Since these pinots were from many different geographic areas with very different soils and climates, one could appreciate how very different the results can be when using the same general type of grapes, albeit with different clones.

The presenters provided lots of interesting information. One fascinating discussion involved explanations of how different winemakers choose which mix of grapes to use in a given wine.

Also, I knew that the name Pinot Noir was French and that "Noir" meant, "black," but I did not realize that "Pinot" derives from the fact that the Pinot Noir grapes cluster tightly in a shape like a pine cone.

My favorite Pinot was the 2012 Talbott Reserve "RFT." The other three that I liked were the:
- 2009 Hook & Ladder
- 2012 Hook & Ladder
- 2012 Willamette Valley

Afternoon Wine Session
The five wineries represented at this tasting were from all over Italy - the Piedmont in the northwest, the Veneto in the northeast, two areas of Tuscany, and one wine company that uses grapes from five regions in the south - Abruzzo, Campania, Puglia, Basilicata, and Sicily. I had visited one of these wineries, and had passed within 2 miles of three others on various travels in Italy. I had never heard of one of the wineries or the wine company.

The wineries, locations, representatives, and wines in this tasting were:
1. Farnese Vini, various locations in the south, Vito Candela
Unlike the others in the afternoon session, Farnese is not a winery, but a group of seven companies. The wines presented were:
a. 2011 Farnese Edizione Cinque Autoctoni 13. This wine is produced from five grapes (33% Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, 30% Primitivo, 25% Sangiovese, 7% Negroamaro, & 5% Malvasia Nera). "Cinque Autoctoni" means, "Five Native Grapes" (as opposed to foreign grapes like Merlot). It had no appellation name. I was surprised at how good it was.
b. 2009 Piano del Cerro Aglianico del Vulture. This wine is produced from Aglianico grapes grown in the volcanic soils near the extinct volcano Vulture in the Basilicata Region. It was good.
2. Castello di Querceto (Oak Castle), just west of Greve in Tuscany, Marco Fizaletti:
a. 2009 Castello di Querceto Chianti Classico Riserva
b. 2007 Castello di Querceto Chianti Classico Riserva
Normally I love Chianti Classico & Chianti Classico Riserva, but I was surprised that these did not impress me. I have had their Chianti Classicos before. Sometimes I enjoyed them, and sometimes not.
3. Marchesi di Gresy, Barbaresco, Alberto di Gresy. Barbaresco is in the Langhe wine area of the Piedmont Region. The Langhe produces superb reds, and has outstanding cuisine. I love the area and recommend visiting it. I was not familiar with this winery.
a. 2008 Gaiun Martinenga Barbaresco, made from 100% Nebbiolo. Nebbiolo is used to create great Italian wines, including one of my favorite types - Barolo. This was a nice Barbaresco, but I've had better.
b. 2007 Camp Gros Martinenga Barbaresco. This one is also 100% Nebbiolo, but is from a different vineyard. My sentiments about this one were the same as its predecessor.
4. Altesino, Montalcino, south of Siena in Tuscany, Guido Orzalesi. The small commune of Montalcino produces my favorite type of Italian wine - Brunello, which is made from a clone of the Sangiovese grape. Montalcino is a spectacular area.
a. 2012 Rosso di Montalcino made from a Sangiovese clone from younger vines. The requirements for the production of the Rosso (red) are much easier than for Brunello.
b. 2009 Brunello. This wine gets very high reviews; e.g., 93 from James Suckling. However, I didn't find it exciting. Since it is young for a Brunello, it may need more time to age. I have a bottle Altesino Brunello of the same vintage at home. I will probably let it age for at least 3 more years, so we'll see then. My favorite Brunellos are from Poggio Antico.
5. Zenato, the Veneto just west of Venice, Vittorio Marianecci. I love this winery and its wines. My wife and I had a great tasting there with friends when we stayed at nearby Lake Garda. One of their wines, Valpolicella Superiore, is one that I've had many times. The wines at this tasting were:
a. 2010 Ripassa Valpolicella Superiore, which I like even better than the Valpolicella Superiore. The grapes used are 80% Corvina, 10% Rondinella, and 10% Sangiovese.
b. 2007 Cressaso Corvina Veronese, which won the 2015 Forks & Corks Best in Show award. This was by far my favorite wine of the whole day. It is made from 100% Corvina grapes. It's the first time I've ever had a wine made entirely of Corvina. It sells for about $70 a bottle. Perhaps Santa will bring me a bottle.

Lunch
The lunch was terrific:

Hors d'Oeuvres, by Michael's on East
1. Spicy Tuna Cannoli
2. Poached Duck Money Bags
3. Grilled Endive Wrapped in Serrano Ham
Paired with a nice NV Grandial Blanc de Blancs Brut sparkling wine from Charentes, France

First Course, by the Crow's Nest Chef
Shrimp & Grits - Wild Florida shrimp with garlic, peppers, and onions, in a Creole pan sauce over cheesy stone-ground grits with bacon and scallions
Paired with a nice Sauvignon Blanc from the Silverado Vineyards, Napa Valley

Second Course, by the Pier 22 chef
Short Rib Cupcake - Tender short ribs served with a potato frosting, mushroom au jus and julienne vegetables
Paired with a nice 2011 Tillerman red blend from Hook and Ladder Winery

Dessert, by Michael's on East
Malva Pudding with Crème Anglaise and Mango Ice Cream - absolutely incredible. I'm getting hungry thinking about it.
Paired with a nice Quady Electra Muscat dessert wine.

One great additional pleasure of Forks & Corks University is meeting people. During the tastings, I sat next to a terrific couple, Cindy & Wayne, whom I'd met last year.

At lunch, I sat with Karen & Mikael Hansen, the very pleasant owners of Copenhagen Imports, another nice couple, and owner of Quady wines.

If you like food and wine, Forks & Corks is well worth your time.