WINE AND FOOD

Wine and food festival ends on sunny note

This story was originally published April 2, 2007.

GEORGETOWN — South Austin Soup Peddler David Ansel and Hudson?s on the Bend restaurant chef/owner Jeff Blank had a hokey, smoky smackdown Sunday afternoon, packing a culinary tent to standing-room only as the two popular cut-up chefs attempted to outcook each other with venison at the Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Fair in San Gabriel Park.

Ansel — wearing a khaki sports vest filled with eggs, spices, a pepper grinder, and a variety of spoons and tools, including a hammer — whipped up venison-stuffed matzo ball soup. Blank, in his starched white chef?s coat, responded with a smoked venison tenderloin, rubbed with chocolate, ancho chili and coffee. He labeled it a ?mochachino wrapped around protein? and smoked it in a stove-top box with wood chips and tea.

?It may smell like Willie?s picnic,? Blank noted.

The banter and cooking battle were friendly, though — and, at times, dramatic. While Blank flamed a sauce, Ansel went for the South Austin drama, sticking a lit sparkler in a soup pot handle. The audience of 100 wine and food lovers cheered its approval.

In fact, the overall mood at the concluding event of the 22nd annual Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Fair, a four-day promotional festival, was one of approval. About 5,700 people paid $45 to sample foods from 53 vendors and wines from more than 60 wineries and other alcohol vendors.

The shady grounds along the San Gabriel River were pleasantly mud-free despite heavy rains Thursday and Friday. ?My heartburn went away about noon on Friday when the weather report predicted sun for Sunday,? said Kevin Blessing, general manager at Central Market North and chairman of Sunday's fair.

The prediction proved accurate, and the cloudless skies attracted many first-time fairgoers. Among them were Jamé Norcross, 22, a Cedar Park bank manager, and Matt Bowling, who works in the car business in Killeen. ?We wanted something different to do today. It?s been so nasty,? Norcross said as they sat at a table in front of the festival bandstand where Austin singer/songwriter Trish Murphy played her guitar.

The pair had already sampled Salt Lick ribs and Shiner Smokehouse barbecue. ?We?re not big wine drinkers, so this is an experiment for us,? Norcross said before they ventured into the four large vendor tents for more samplings.

Across the way at a chuck wagon sponsored by the Texas Beef Council, chefs/cookbook authors Paula Disbrowe of Austin and Rebecca Rather of Fredericksburg served tortillas filled with sliced beef to a line of attendees. At Café Josie?s ?jerk shack,? a perennial fair favorite where Charles Mayes had prepared jerk-spiced foods for about 5,000, the line always seemed to have 25 or more people in it. But it moved quickly.

The Texas Beef Council sponsored a Future Chef Challenge kids tent, where leading chefs and their offspring — or nieces or nephews — prepared foods for an audience of parents and kids. The goal was to convince young families that not everything has to be fried or served in "fingers."

Randy Evans, chef of Brennan?s in Houston, cooked macaroni and cheese topped with short ribs with his niece Madison Farley, 9. ?I cook with my grandma and my dad,? she said. And when she goes out to eat, she added, she prefers steak, if they have it, rather than chicken fingers.

Central Market sponsored three large, tented culinary stages that spotlighted celebrity chef demonstrations, as well as various smackdowns and food and wine pairings. To keep all the action going, 30 Texas Culinary Academy students and 10 instructors worked in a nearby tent prepping the food and cooking for the various chefs and tastings.

?We?re preparing 22 different recipes from venison-stuffed matzo soup to shrimp and cheese rellenos,? academy instructor Jim Fischer said. ?The students are here as volunteers,? he added, although they do earn some extra credit and ?undying gratitude.?

It took 165 volunteers to run the fair, said Blessing, who was chairman for the second year. Although the fair did not sell out this year, Blessing said he reached his targeted numbers. He added that he had plenty of food this year, more tents and a better setup that helped crowds navigate the grounds.

?I thought there would be more restaurants and chefs here,? said Shasta Bross, owner of Love Is Blinds, a window covering business. ?But I?m more here for the wines.?

She and her friends had rented a 15-person van, driven by their water-drinking bud Allen Rindfuss.

Blessing agreed that the fair would benefit from more restaurants. He said one leading Austin chef has told him he wants to participate in next year's fair. ?As always, I will try and make it better,? he said.

Although strollers were not allowed in the crowded tents, Angela Melito and the kids sat in the shade of a tree while her husband brought them food and drinks. Phil Melito enjoyed the plentiful wine selection.

?All in all, it seems to be a success. And it?s a nice day,? he said. They were in no hurry to leave.

kcrider@statesman.com, 445-3656