August 27, 2003

Review: Sand Rock marries food and wine at Winemaker Dinner

APTOS — Want to witness some truly inspirational matchmaking? Forget about Reality TV’s "Joe Millionaire" and "Blind Date." Chef Lynn puts them all to shame.

Lynn Sheehan, chef and co-proprietor of Sand Rock Farm bed and breakfast, doesn’t look like Dolly Levi. But Thorton Wilder would appreciate the way she’s pairing food and wine in a series of special dinners, marrying the tastes and textures of her gourmet cuisine with some of the area’s best wines.

Last weekend I attended one of Lynn’s Winemaker Dinners, featuring Soquel Vineyard’s wines teamed with a selection of spectacular seasonal dishes, some featuring organic produce from Ella Bella Farms of Corralitos.

Chatting like old friends, some 36 guests admired the inn’s side garden and its three-tiered deck; the top level, beneath an imposing heritage oak, was our dining room. We marveled that this historic mansion, located just a mile off Highway 1 on Freedom Boulevard. It felt like a peaceful island of gardens, redwoods and quiet paths.

Our winemaker of the evening, Peter Bargetto, modestly acknowledged Soquel Vineyard’s recent accolades: four top ratings from the prestigious Beverage Testing Institute, plus two Golds and two Bronzes in the Santa Cruz County Fair competition. Peter, his twin brother Paul and business partner Jon Morgan co-direct the respected Aptos winery.

As a special treat, Peter had bottled three new wines especially for this dinner after barrel-tasting them with Sheehan. The first, a 2002 Merlot from the Rutherford District of Napa Valley, was remarkably smooth for a young wine, velvety and bold-bodied with rich cherry overtones. Peter encouraged us to sniff for the "Rutherford dust" nose typical of the area’s dry-farmed grapes.

Such a sleek, yet robust, aperitif demanded distinctive appetizers; Chef Lynn countered with petite charmers, tidbits just as rich and full-bodied as the wine. Servers strolled among the guests, offering a trio of sumptuous, bite-sized hors d’oeuvres, beginning with Chicken Confit Roulade with Pickled Bing Cherries — small rolled pinwheels with big taste, the cherries adding tart surprises to the slightly sweet meat filling.

Introduced as "Mini BLTs," the intensity of the next appetizer belied its miniature components: teeny crostini, spread with house aioli and topped with micro-mini Sun Gold tomato halves, smoky bits of bacon and fresh basil chiffonade.

My favorite? Postage stamp-sized puff pastry sandwiches of Red Hill Sonoma chevre punctuated with taste-tweaking plumped apricot bits and chives. A new wine buddy said, "Try these!" and beamed with satisfaction as I sighed over the meltaway mouthful.

Patty Freedman, our event planner (and Chef Lynn’s sister), guided us to the elegant al fresco dining area where round tables were set with grape-cluster motif linens and bouquets from the inn’s gardens. Sand Rock Farm is very much a family business. Art by another sister, Kathy Sheehan, hangs in the inn’s barn gallery and Lynn’s co-partner is their mother Kris.

After a gracious greeting from Lynn we met our second course, Wild Mushroom Crostata with Herbed Leek Confit. Framed by pastry so light it practically levitated off my fork, this savory square tart featured an earthy mix of porcini and portabella mushrooms, sweetly tender leeks and one perfect slice of Yukon Gold potato. Eureka!

Along with our mushroom tart came two Soquel Vineyard Chardonnays, both Santa Cruz Mountains wines. The full-mouthed, 2000 vintage from Raffaelli Vineyard was tropical, lemony and somewhat richer than the 2001, a Chablis-style Chardonnay with a hint of apples and vanilla. Both flavorful wines worked well with the crostata, although I preferred the richer 2000.

Next came Heart of Summer Early Girl Tomato Soup with Fresh Chevre, served room (deck) temperature to enhance its creamy, sun-warmed tomato flavor. The ruddy soup sported a swirl of basil oil surrounding an island of miniature peppered croutons and a tiny flag of Opal basil. Both my neighbor and I said "wow" with the first bite.

We appreciated the backstory on the accompanying wine, a 2002 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir, Whole Cluster. Instead of de-stemming or crushing the grapes, Peter and other staff donned wetsuits, climbed into the vats and pressed through the clusters — stem’s up, dude! This impressive wine’s distinct scent of toasty wood complemented its complex flavors, including full-fleshed fruit and an earthy hint of mushroom.

Our entrée, looking splendid in the candlelight, was Spice Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Satsuma Plum Relish and Sweet Corn Fritters. Both exotic and familiar, the spicy flavors in the dish — cardamon, allspice, star anise, bay and coriander — perked tastebuds and the fritters smoothed them again. My succulent pork medallions, beautifully cooked, struck delicious sparks with the tangy, ruby-red plum relish.

Our entrée’s distinguished wine escort (it took a top BTI award and a 2003 SCC Fair Gold) was a 2001 Santa Cruz Mountains Merlot, Partner’s Reserve. Dark and nearly tangible in body, it inspired licorice memories; Peter confirmed that BTI had described its "sage and licorice" nose and confided that one client dubbed it "liquid sex." The marvelous, toothsome flavor was reminiscent of black cherry — and sin.

All good things must end, but luckily this dinner’s end guaranteed good things in the form of a Rustic Ella Bella Blackberry Torte with Bittersweet Chocolate Cream. This hazelnut-almond cake was delicate, not-too-sweet and sumptuous all at once. Scattered over the top, Donnelly’s Cocoa-nibs (crushed cocoa beans) added a soulful crunch. The lush blackberries displayed the trademark excellence of Ella Bella Farm’s organic produce; Patty pointed out the appropriate Ella Fitzgerald CD playing in the background.

Our dessert wine’s attributes included the fact that the grapes for the 2002 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel came from 102-year-old vines with 100-foot taproots. This Zin’s round, softly dry fruit recalled warm strawberries, an excellent companion for the torte’s complex subtlety.

Dinner ended with enthusiastic applause for Chef Lynn and her sous-chef, Scott Snyder.

This particular Winemaker Dinner was created specifically for one evening, but you can enjoy Chef Lynn’s superlative matchmaking skills at several upcoming food-and-wine events; visit www.sandrockfarm.com for more information.

The next winemaker event will be Sept. 14 at Burrell School Vineyard, a lovely 1890 schoolhouse setting in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Ann Parker is the Sentinel’s food critic. You can reach her at aparker@pacbell.net.

If You Go
WHERE: Sand Rock Farm 6901 Freedom Boulevard, Aptos.(831)688-8005 www.sandrockfarm.com

Rating

SERVICE: 5
CUISINE: 5
AMBIANCE: 5
VALUE: 4
ATMOSPHERE: Gracious and elegantly casual
COST: Wine and food events vary; generally $75-85/person
NOTES: The B&B and grounds are available for special celebrations, weddings, catered events, etc.; see Web site.
1 = Poor
2 = Fair
3 = Good
4 = Excellent
5 = Exceptional

Upcoming Events
Sept. 14:Winemaker Event at Burrell School Vineyards
Oct. 5: Farm-to-Table Event at Ella Bella Farm, with River Run Vintners
Oct. 25:Winemaker Dinner at UCSC, featuring Farm & Garden Produce

© Santa Cruz Mountains Winegrowers' Association
info@scmwa.com   |  (831) 479-9463