“Catch The Spirit – Cooking With California Wine” will debut on Cox 4 September 5th. The crew has been taping episodes at Temecula Valley wineries the past few weeks and I caught up with them on Friday at Keyways. Friday’s undertaking was an ambitious one: they decided to tape two episodes. The day didn’t unfold without a few stumbles, but all in all things went very well and the food was nothing short of delicious.
The first shoot was set up outside in the rose terrace. Chef Cody James of Manhattan Catering prepared a menu of Chilean Sea bass with a Three Citrus Beurre Blanc served over rice pilaf and paired with Keyways ’08 Sauvignon Blanc and followed it up with Brie en Croute with Raspberries, Keyways ’06 Zinfandel, a red onion reduction and cracked black pepper. There was a cooling breeze that also carried the wonderful aromas to those of us lucky enough to attend. Keyways owner Terri Pebley lent a hand and helped Chef roll out the dough for the Brie en Croute. Chef Cody is a master at putting an audience at ease and has a quick wit. Terri was a natural. She was very interested in watching the beurre blanc preparation and admitted she’d never made it. She was the one who came up with idea of Chilean Sea Bass. The food was divine. Both wines were excellent and paired perfectly with the food.
We moved inside to the Club Room for the afternoon shoot. For this episode Chef Cody prepared a meal designed to follow the journey of the Chenin grape from early to late harvest. He started with Prosciutto and Honeydew Melon atop baby greens served with Keyways Krystal Ice Wine dressing. The color and presentation was impressive. Terri joined Chef Cody as he prepared Braised Scallops with beurre blanc sauce and curled carrot and golden raisin salad. This was paired with Keyways ’07 Chenin Blanca. It made for a long day, but the food was scrumptious, the wines were wonderful and it was a unique opportunity to be behind the scenes for the taping of a TV show. Keep an eye out for for this show. I’ll be posting recipes and video links soon.
