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 The above picture is of our June Art Show, and the original intent was to highlight the second Art Show in August, but that isn't why it is there. It was taken by Al Patterson, as were many of the photos we displayed; Al passed away in July. He had been sick, but was a fighter, resilient and tough. Al was a sheriff deputy and a veteran, a great hand at Satek Winey. He liked the Colts, dry white wine, and woodcraft, but loved his family and is one of a few people that truly had a twinkle in his eye.

We are grateful for the time we spent in his company, and will miss him greatly.

Goings-On 

Photo taken by Ron Torborg.

The event begins at 6:30 p.m. Please arrive a few minutes early to check in and get seated.  Dinner should finish around 9 or 9:30.  Guests will have the opportunity to purchase Satek wines at the end of the class for a 10% discount. 

Don't wait to long to purchase your tickets, the class size is limited to 45 students, and they go fast!

The menu for the evening is not available yet. 

Entertaining friends is a favorite pastime at our home.  We love to cook fun but reasonably simple meals and match them up with wines that enhance the overall mealtime experience.  I would like to share our summer go-to menu and the recipes that comprise that menu.  Rather than take up space for printing out all the recipes, I shall simply refer you to the sites at which they can be found.  This summer menu is as follows:

Leafy No-Lettuce Salad at Epicurious.com

Meyer Lemon Chicken Piccata at MyRecipes.com

California French Bean Saute at cdkitchen.com

Bill's Blueberry Cobbler at Epicurious.com

The menu is tasty, reasonably light in calories and not too difficult to prepare.   The salad has a blend of  flavors not usually found in your typical salads.  It is refreshing and the lemony dressing is a nice lead-in to the chicken piccata.  The subtle southwest flavors of the California french bean saute are a great complement to the tart flavors of the chicken piccata.  And the dessert is simply summer berry flavor at its fresh best.

The salad is also a relatively quick assembly of ingredients.  The chicken piccata and the French bean saute recipes do require last-minute preparation before serving.  Serving these two dishes is a definite exception to my normal rule of no last-minute cooking.  So how do I handle this anomaly?  I simply involve the guests in the process.  We serve the salad first, then I invite the guests to roam around or join me in the kitchen for the cooking of the entree and side dish.  All the prep work has been done in advance.  I have all ingredients chopped and measured out in advance.  I have par-boiled the beans and corn in the same pot in advance.  I have the chicken sliced and pounded into thin cutlets separated by layers of plastic wrap.  I usually make the cobbler in the morning or the day before the meal.

 I  simply bread and saute the chicken in two large skillets.  Once sauteed, I put the cutlets on a plate and hold them in the oven at 200 degrees for a few minutes while I make the piccata sauce.  After removing the cutlets from the skillets, I deglaze both pans with wine and then combine the deglazings into one skillet for making the piccata sauce.  The remaining skillet is used for the french bean saute process.  Cooking the chicken and the beans is no more than a 12 to 15 minute process and guests seem to enjoy being a part of the preparation.  And once everything is plated, the guests are part of the process of getting everything to the table.

Suggested wine pairings are just that:  suggestions.  There are no hard and fast rules in our home.  While I like the salad and and main course with white wine, we freely serve red wines to guests who prefer them.  My suggestions for the salad is the Satek Chardonnay or Vidal Blanc.  An alternative (but equally good) choice would be the Satek Kreibaum Bay Dry Rose.  This French style rose wine made from the Steuben grape is dry and yummy.  For dessert, we would recommend staying with the Steuben grape which is used to make the Satek Steuben Dessert Wine.  If you really want to splurge and wow your guests, you might also consider the Satek Kreibaum Bay Vida Blanc Ice Wine.  Our 2009 vintage of this ice wine (sadly, long gone from our shelves) won the Indiana Wine of the Year award at the Indy International Wine Competition.

The formula is simple:  good fresh food accompanied by good wine to be shared with good friends will yield good fun.  Enjoy!

Grower Spotlight 

 Bill Waltz

The Grower's Spotlight for August follows Bill Waltz, from Lagrange, Indiana. 

A former superintendent for Lakeland School Corporation, Bill has the ideal "hobby" vineyard.  With several rows each of Regent, Corot Noir, Marquette, Leon Millot, Landot Noir and Traminette.  Bill and his wife have something between a backyard diversion and a professional subplot.  With meticulous row spacing, and laser straight line posts, much care and thought has went into the planning and execution of this Wolcottville wonder.    After visiting towards the end of July, I quickly realized that when Bill is not playing tennis, he's "messing around" on his estate; complete with roses, blueberries, raspberries of course....grapevines.  He and his wife call the place Blue Haus Vineyard.  Pine trees line the back property line, giving the place a true alpine zephyr. 

Although not the Cabernet and Merlot that Bill planted when he lived in New Mexico, the varieties here in northern Indiana will produce some very interesting wines of local flair and character.  Marquette (a Pinot Noir offspring) especially is one we are excited to craft. 

I mentioned to Bill the other day that he plenty of room to plant more vines on his property, if he wanted to expand.  Wisely, he noted that he was happy with the ones he has, and we both agreed the time spent on wine grapes is underestimated initially by most. 

So, next time you're in the winery and you see some blends incorporating new varieties, please note these growers work extra hard up here in northern Indiana to help us sculpt quality wines for you to enjoy.

Thanks to Bill and his family for their hard work and hospitality.