I left Portland last Monday on a rainy, grey morning heading down to Eugene for a week of work for Petroio and its wines. It felt nice to take some time off from the two very busy kitchens where I've been working and I knew that it would be fun to put back on my "producer" clothes and visit some of my favorite clients and a new market we still hadn't explored: Ashland.

Two dinners were in program at the Excelsior Inn of Eugene, in which both my wines and my food would be featured. I have know Maurizio, the owner and former chef, for many years and we had always wanted to orchestrate something of this sort, but there never seemed to be enough time. This was the perfect occasion. Except for the fact that my dinners were going to be Wednesday and Thursday and I was scheduled to be in Ashland on Tuesday. The only reason I managed to pull this off was thanks to the wonderful staff that awaited me at the Inn. Brian Borroughs, Allan Weller and Shane Tracey not only were welcoming and helpful, but curious and fun to work with, even when things didn't go as we had wished. 

Walking into a new kitchen each time is a real challenge. You never know want type of equipment, space, fire and people you will be working in. And trust me the kitchen on a hundred year old building should be no challenge for a Roman chef like me, but it was. We prepped together all of Monday and got most of what was possible done..chicken liver pate, ten onion jam, pannacotta and the marinate for the pork. I left my instructions, hoped for the best and took off for Ashland with Christie, our Italian Wine Specialist DownState. 

Ashland has the beauty of small, quaint and sophisticated little town. It's like you can breathe the shakespearean air all year round. 

So I guess I knew while I was driving down to Portland from Seattle last Saturday that the next few days where going to be quite intense, with my first big wine dinner planned at Nel Centro already for that Tuesday and my "hanging out" with them after that starting the day after, but never would I have thought that I was not going to have the time to write about it till a week later!
These have been the most intense and energizing days ever! To be back in my chef's coat has been incredible. To be able to work side by side with amazing chefs like Cara Powell and Matthew Bemis has been inspiring. To be able to put all my skills at work for Petroio in such a beautiful place as Nel Centro a privilege.
The dinner went wonderfully with a group of fantastic guests mixed between old Petroio aficionados and new fans. My pear and gorgonzola risotto paired beautifully with the 2008 Chianti Classico Riserva, and the 2005 and 2006 Riserva Magnums where just treats! A little sneaked in Vinsanto to finish off the dinner and the big event was over before I could really understand what incredible event was accruing around me. Just a huge, indelible smile for all the days to come..
Enjoy some of the shots we were able to take of the dishes, the staff and breath the wonderful atmosphere that was created... 

What a great first week! It's always kind of easy to start in Seattle. It's home, it's familiar, there's Dedee to stay with and always friends to see. 
But market wise it has always been a little bit more challenging. Well not this time. Walking around with the 2010 Chianti Classico, the 2008 Riserva and Magnums of 2005 Riserva made my work almost effortless. Throw in the great staff of the Estates Group and I was bound for success. 
So my great thanks go to Jason and Brandon Frobose for a great start and lunch at Serafina's!  (http://serafinaseattle.com). 

It was a great pleasure to meet in that occasion  the beverage manager of El Gaucho (http://www.elgaucho.com/el-gaucho-seattle.html), Mackenzie Parks, who fell in love with our 2005 Riserva to the point to pick up 12 Magnums for the up coming holiday season. Guess she too saw the great connection between wonderful juicy steaks and lovely aged Sangiovese! Sure made my day. 

Such was the success of DayOne we had to have the remaining 15 cases of 2005 Riserva Magnums be shipped up to Seattle. 

Hopefully they will make it on time for the big party that will be held ad Tavolata (http://www.ethanstowellrestaurants.com/locations/tavolata/) and where they would like to have the wines. Brandon Lervold, the new italian wine specialist was a great person to explore new spots and visit old clients with on day two. I can't wait to get him to Petroio so he too can be hooked for life. I feel the wines though already have him on a good path. 

Thursday with Andrea Pucci and Friday lunch with new sales manager Kathy Byrd could not have been more pleasant. 

Throw in a wonderful breakfast with long time family friends and a crazy night out with my Levenworth family and I can't think of much more I could have asked for. 

Maybe I could of skipped the not so gracious moment of throwing up out the side of my rental car in front of a police officer on High5!. But I guess that's part of a good adventure too..

So I now head down to Portland knowing that my Petroio duty up here is done for a while and that I'm booked for a second week of promotion up here from December 8th to December 14th. I will hosting a tasting at TenMercer of December 9th and a dinner at Marianna in Redmond on December 11th!