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Recipe of the Month |
This recipe for Moroccan Chicken is tasty and simple to prepare. You can use any starch as the base, but the orange scented couscous is a nice counterpart to the lemon and olives. Pair it with a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Enjoy! |
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Our Wine Picks |
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Felino Chardonnay 2007 Mendoza, Argentina Pale gold in color with aromas of ripe white peach and honey, this chardonnay is bursting with tropical fruit. There is a bit of minerality and citrus with a light oak on the finish. $16
Abeja Chardonnay 2006 - Walla Walla - WA One of the best of Washington. This Chardonnay has rich flavors not overly toasted or buttery - classically made with gentle aromas of white peach and stone fruit, floral notes, wood spice, and a touch of minerality. Great with rich chicken and mushrooms. $36
Shafer Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch 2005 - Napa - CA Single vineyard Carneros grown chardonnay with a nose of honeysuckle, Fiji apple, apricot and exotic flavors of the tropics. The underlying acidity is integrated with warm toasty oak and a long mouth pleasing finish. Robert Parker 91 pts. $45
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Spring Specials |
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Sport the hottest Island wear. Coho's t-shirts are hand silk screened by a local artist and come in tan, rust or blue. T-shirts $19.05 and $9.50 for baseball caps. Check out our online gift shop. |
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Our Cookbook |
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Coho guests receive $5.00 off La Cucina Anna Maria: Good Life Recipes from San Juan Island. Regularly $24.95, now $19.95. Available at our online store. |
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Cooking Tip |
It is important to let a roast (beef, pork, lamb or poultry) rest before carving. That allows the juices to withdraw back into the meat. If you carve too soon, the juices will spill out onto the carving board. | |
Greetings!
Greetings from Friday Harbor!
We are thrilled to announce the early signs of spring here on San Juan Island. We received our first harvest of spring salad greens and braising greens from Synergy Farms last week and it was a pleasure to showcase them on our menu after what seemed like a long winter. This winter was particularly difficult for our farms. While we enjoyed an extended Indian Summer, it did not allow the tender plants time to harden off. So when the cold weather came, followed by wet rain and snow, many of the winter crops were ruined.
We held on to the promise of spring as we met with Island farmers to discuss their spring and summer planting schedule and during this process we picked up a few new connections. We are working with a new chicken farm on Lopez Island and exploring new avenues for local lamb and pork as well.
In addition to the farmers, we are meeting with several area winemakers. Those who produce estate wines such as Randy Finley, owner and winemaker from Mt. Baker Vineyards, are farmers as well. Dave and I had the pleasure of visiting his winery last week in Deming, Washington - just east of Bellingham. The winery was bustling with activity. We shadowed Randy and his cellar staff as they did barrel samplings of the 2008 Viognier and Chardonnay, which had been sitting in oak for about 4 months now. It was interesting to compare how grapes from the same vineyards, from the same harvest and from the same oak barrels could be so different. We also tasted the Viognier and Chardonnay that were aging in steel tanks. It became apparent how the art of blending is achieved. "I really like this nose, but the acidity is better here and the finish is perfect there." This is way over simplified for sure. On blending days, Randy and his cellar team spend hours deciding on the perfect blends for the 28 wines they produce each year.
Randy pulled cellar samples of his Sangiovese and Tempranillo. Dave and I tried our hand in blending. We had two Sangiovese from the same year from different vineyards in eastern Washington. One had the typical old world earthy nose and the other a fruity nose with a beautiful silky smooth finish. At first we were afraid to blend since we liked the second wine just the way it was. After we did a 50/50 blend, we saw how each wine contributed its attributes to the overall structure of the wine. In this case, it was true that the whole was better than the sum of its parts. To be labeled as a particular varietal, one must use a minimum of 75% in the blending. If this was a real blending, Randy might finish off the Sangiovese with a bit of Petit Verdot or Syrah for depth and finish. He would also go back and check his blends on another day to ensure that he and his team weren't suffering from palate fatigue. Randy has been making wine at Mt. Baker for about 20 years. He is a medium sized winery producing 12,000 cases a year. We are very excited about the Sangiovese that he will be releasing this summer. It will be our first domestically produced Sangiovese on our list.
We look forward to sharing news about food and wines from the Islands with you.
Best,
Anna Maria & Dave
Coho Restaurant's Owners |
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Coho Partners with Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
 Enjoy 4 great evenings of food, fun and friends while helping our feathery, fluffy and furry friends at Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation Center! Coho celebrates its one year anniversary on April 11th. We want to thank the community for helping to make our first year a success. Our 4 spring wine dinners are our way of saying thank you. Coho will donate $20 per ticket to Wolf Hollow. In return, we would like to ask each guest to bring something from Wolf Hollow's Wish List - whether it be some hand tools, packing tape or good quality dog and cat food. Here is the complete list.
There are still tables available for the first fundraising dinner on March 19th. Chris Primus from San Juan Vineyards will be our host for the evening leading us through the wines of Mendoza Argentina. Paul Stevens, Coho's Chef has put together a wonderfully authentic menu including Roasted Pork Belly, Corn Chowder, Grilled Shrimp, Flat Iron Steak and Housemade Ice Cream with Roasted Pineapple. 6 p.m. seating. $70 plus taxes and gratuities. Reservations are recommeded. |
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Save the Date & Help Wolf Hollow!
April 16th - Japanese Sake Tasting - Toast to the end of your 2008 tax returns with a Japanese inspired dinner and sake tasting. We will offer a menu of traditional favorites including miso soup, sushi, roasted black cod and ponzu roasted short ribs paired with 4 premium sakes. We will start the feast with a coconut lemongrass sakatini and end with house made ginger ice cream, tempura bananas and a rich decadent chocolate sauce paired with a sparkling sake.
May 21st - Battle of the Winemakers - California vs. Washington - We will try to put an end to the debate of which state makes the better wine. We will taste 4 varietals (sparkling, chardonnay, cabernet and dessert wine) from the same year. We will compare how differences in weather and soil give each state its characteristic style.
June 18th - Southern Hemisphere Barbecue Favorites - As you think about firing up the "barbie", we will look to New Zealand and Australia for those perfect summer patio wines. Taste a wonderful minerally sauvignon blanc, a peppery syrah and end with a raisiny port. Six courses paired with five wines.
All of Coho's wine dinners begin at 6 p.m. and are $70 per person plus taxes and gratuities. $20 from each ticket will benefit Wolf Hollow Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. Reservations are recommended.
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