Photos – Sun and ‘C’ with Spain, Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival March 3 2012
– text by Shawn Conner/photos by Robyn Hanson
This was our second Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival so-called “grazing” event – i.e., move from wine table to wine table while every once in a while returning to the food table.
Like the grazing event we attended last year – New Zealand wines at The Boathouse in Kits, which was happening again at the same time – the Sun and ‘C’ With Spain featured a variety of regional wines, knowledgeable pourers and very tasty morsels (but no sun – the afternoon was typical grey March Vancouver weather).
The wines available for tasting include a few Cavas (Spanish sparkling wine) and a couple of Rosés along with a number of whites (the light and grassy 2010 Botani Moscatel from Jorge Ordonez was a favourite) and reds (Miguel Torres’ rich, full 2009 Celeste had us going back for seconds). Nathalie Bonhomme, a Montreal expat now living in Spain, was one of those aforementioned knowledgeable (and very cheeful) pourers; she was there to share El Petit Bonhomme, an earthy blend of Monastrell, Syrah and Grenache from the Jumilla region.
Nathalie Bonhomme at Sun and 'C' with Spain. Robyn Hanson photo
To complement the Spanish varietals, including Tempranillo and Monastrell, the C kitchen had prepared some brunch-type dishes – chorizo potatoes with quail’s egg, mini eggs Benedict served on a brioche with shaved Iberico ham and saffron Hollandaise, risotto balls with saffron and a pistachio dip, smoked salmon-wrapped cream cheese, along with a blue cheese and hazelnut fig salad and brisket meatballs with a rustic tomato sauce.
Brisket meatballs with a rustic tomato sauce at C Restaurant, March 3 2012. Robyn Hanson photo
Although we got in as media, we decided that the price – $69 a ticket, which includes as much wine and food as you can consume in two hours early on a Saturday afternoon – seems reasonable. Especially if you can have a nice long nap afterwards, or another bottle of Spanish wine – or both.
