James Beard House Dinner with Chef Daniel Boulud

Last month, our 2006 Blanc du Rhône was featured in a James Beard Foundation Dinner in New York City with Chef Daniel Boulud. What an honor! We were contacted three months ago by Daniel Boulud’s executive chef Gavin Kaysen from Café Boulud, on 76th Street in New York City. Gavin had tasted our wines a few months earlier in New York and was arranging the Beard House event for American Express and knew our 2006 Blanc du Rhône would be a perfect pairing for Daniel’s second course of Fennel Basil Ravioli.

Here is a copy of Daniel Boulud’s menu:

FINE DINING AT THE JAMES BEARD HOUSE WITH
CHEF DANIEL BOULUD
JAMES BEARD OUTSTANDING RESTAURATEUR 2006
JAMES BEARD OUTSTANDING CHEF OF THE YEAR 1994
JAMES BEARD BEST CHEF: NEW YORK CITY 1992

AND
CHEF GAVIN KAYSEN
JAMES BEARD RISING STAR CHEF OF THE YEAR 2008
Special Thanks To
THE JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION
DANIEL JOHNNES WINES
VEUVE CLICQUOT

Dinner
Thursday, June 12, 2008

Canapés
Fried Tomato and Basil Arancini
Grilled Octopus, Romesco Sauce
Snail Persillade Pomponette
Spring Asparagus Quiche
Kumamoto Oyster, Uni, Lemongrass Velouté
Fromage de Tête “Bar Boulud”
CHAMPAGNE VEUVE CLICQUOT VINTAGE 2002

Dinner
Checkerboard of Hamachi and Tuna
CAVIAR, SPRING CRUDITÉS, TONNATO SAUCE
Kingston Family Vineyards, Cariblanco Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Fennel Basil Ravioli
SHRIMP, CUTTLEFISH, CHORIZO, BROCCOLI RABE
Edward Sellers, Blanc du Rhône 2006

Lettuce Wrapped Maine Halibut
FRICASSÉE OF CHANTERELLES, LETTUCE COULIS, THUMBELINA CARROTS
David Duband, Nuits Saint Georges 2006

Epigrame of Pennsylvania Veal
SWEETBREADS WITH CREAMY MORELS, CARROT PURÉE, SHERRYJUS
Colombis, Châteauneuf du Pape 2006

Le Papillon Roquefort Cheese
PINE NUT BRITTLE, ARUGULA, PORT REDUCTION
Château les Tuilleries, Sauternes 2005

Dessert Duo
Lemon-Orange Chocolate Bar
HAZELNUT BAVAROISE, PUFFED RICE, PERRIER-LEMON SORBET

Almond Génoise with Marinated Strawberries
Pistachio Cream, Wild Strawberry Sorbet

A little about James Beard, in 1954, the New York Times anointed him the “dean of American cookery”. James Beard laid the groundwork for the food revolution that has put America at the forefront of global gastronomy. He was a pioneer foodie, host of the first food program on the fledgling medium of television in 1946, the first to suspect that classic American culinary traditions might cohere into a national cuisine, and an early champion of local products and markets. Beard nurtured a generation of American chefs and cookbook authors who have changed the way we eat.

In 1955, Beard established the James Beard Cooking School. He continued to teach cooking to men and women for the next 30 years, both at his own schools (in New York City and Seaside, Oregon), and around the country at women's clubs, other cooking schools, and civic groups. He was a tireless traveler, bringing his message of good food, honestly prepared with fresh, wholesome, American ingredients, to a country just becoming aware of its own culinary heritage. Beard also continued to write cookbooks, most of which became classics and many of which are still in print.

When James Beard died at 81 on January 21, 1985, he left a legacy of culinary excellence and integrity to generations of home cooks and professional chefs. His name remains synonymous with American food.