The Wine and Mushroom Experience was Phenomenal
One of the wettest storms of the season greeted festive party participants at the Scotts Valley Community Center. Everyone walked out of the rain and into a beautiful bright and cheery room decorated with a glowing grape arbor.
Margaret Carpenter
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April 2, 2011
Wine and Mushroom Experience. Photo by Margaret Carpenter
All your senses were immediately engaged—the smell of Bob Wynn’s craterellus pizza and foccacia bread permeated the air along with the wafting fragrance of stuffed morels. The sight of numerous other appetizers filling the table was tempting and made your mouth water. The pleasant murmur of sounds, the sheer draping and amethyst grape lights drew us to the tasting tables.
The Plan was to enjoy an evening of wine and mushroom tasting with first-class wines and foods provided by the Fungus Federation members and excellent Santa Cruz Mountain Appellation wineries. The Plan was fulfilled.
Jeff Emery of Santa Cruz Mountain Winery arranged for six exceptional SC area wineries to share their wines. We were not disappointed: we were given the opportunity to enjoy excellent wines from Ahlgren Vineyard, Alfaro Family Vineyard, Beauregard Vineyards, Muns Vineyards, Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard and Silver Mountain Vineyards. The wineries and their representatives were outstanding and our senses were rewarded with appropriate, enticing aromas, perfect colors, and pleasurable tastes. The appetizer table was overflowing and the entrée table was beyond our wildest imagination. And then there was the dessert table… the decadence was beyond description. Candy Cap Mango Brulée, Candy Cap brittle, chocolate, chocolate and more candycaps. And rising above all the desserts was a field of astounding chocolate mushrooms – the artistic and extravagant creations of Fred Molnar and Debbie Johnson. I saw many people taking pictures of this chocolate mushroom collection with their cell phones.
This was an exceptional evening; many thanks to everyone for their efforts. Special thanks go to Bob Wynn, our chef and food coordinator and to the Santa Cruz Mountain vintners who shared their outstanding wines. As with most of our events, we could not have done this without our fantastic volunteers who help before, during and after the event. You transformed the room for a gala party event and cleaned it all up afterward. Thank you yet again!
As perfect as the night was, there were traffic challenges with over 120 people present. A learning curve... we hope to use this venue again and plan to change the table layout and traffic flow, so our next event here will be better than perfect! If you are an entertainer at heart, or would just like to join the party early, please consider joining the Culinary Committee.