Taste of Sonoma serves up a sell-out

<p>A cooling breeze, strong enough to blow straw hats off heads, greeted a capacity crowd of 2,500 guests attending the Sonoma County Wine Country Weekend's annual Taste of Sonoma event at the historic MacMurray Ranch in Healdsburg on Saturday.</p><p>Billed as the largest outdoor food and wine event in California, it featured a stellar lineup of wine and food plus ideal weather with temperatures in the ‘80s.</p><p>“We have greater attendance than last year, and most of that is paid,” said Honore Comfort, executive director of Sonoma County Vinters, the long-time sponsor of the Saturday showcase. “We had a lot of last-minute ticket sales. People were buying tickets until 10 p.m. last night.”</p><p>Along with the record crowd, the event attracted the most wineries ever - more than 150 — along with 60 local chefs, who served pairings under four white tents representing the major appellations of Sonoma County.</p><p>“I love the weather. You can actually taste the wines and enjoy them,” said Anne Giere of Sapphire Hill Winery in Healdsburg. “Before, we've had to keep it on ice.”</p><p>The event was moved last year from mid-July to Labor Day as part of a new collaboration with the Sonoma Valley Vintners and Growers, who are putting on the Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction today at Cline Cellars in Sonoma.</p><p>With harvest already underway, Comfort said, it's harder for vintners to take time off, but it's a better time to attract visitors to Wine Country.</p><p>Heirloom tomatoes were everywhere this year, reflecting the seasonal character of Sonoma cooking.</p><p>“The chefs are making the most of the peak of the tomato season,” Comfort said. “Every year these themes develop organically.”</p><p>Anticipating heat, many of the restaurants concocted refreshing dishes and drinks to make sure everyone stayed nice and cool.</p><p>Cyrus restaurant from Healdsburg created a tart, Gravenstein apple juice cocktail. Kendall-Jackson in Santa Rosa served an icy sangria from a slushie machine. And the Girl and the Fig in Sonoma poured a sweet Fig Vodka Cooler.</p><p>Chefs were ready to offer advice on pairings.</p><p>“The Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc and the Sweet Pea Shooter from John Ash & Co. was phenomenal,” said Laura Haddad of Los Angeles. “Also, the duck wonton from A La Heart Catering and the Gary Farrell pinot.”</p><p><NO1><NO>New activities this year included a Taste 2.0 computer station where people could Twitter and upload photos of the event to their Facebook pages.</p><p>The demographic this year seemed to shift to a younger, hipper crowd of folks in their 20s and 30s. Organizers attributed the change to one of its sponsors, Visa Signature, which offered discounts to people using their credit cards.</p><p>“We succeeded in bringing in a younger crowd,” Comfort said. “We're so excited to see these people drinking wine.”</p><p>Tickets to the Taste of Sonoma cost $150. The Sonoma Wine Country Weekend is the county's largest wine and food fundraiser, with proceeds going to local charities that support students, children, farmworkers and people in need.</p><p>In addition to a younger crowd, the event drew a raft of repeat customers from across the country.</p><p>“We're making it a ritual to come every year,” said Gregory Levalds of Plano, Texas. “The chefs bring their recipes, and we make them for friends when we come home.”</p><p>“It's the best wine event in the country, and the best part is that it hasn't been put on the map yet,” said Tammy Taylor of Phoenix, back for her third time. “I love Napa, but Sonoma people are of the earth and down to earth.”</p><p><NO1><NO>The Sonoma Steel Chef's competition was a popular draw, with three heats throughout the day pitting four local chefs against each other in an Iron Chef-style contest.</p><p>“I like the chef's competition because it's interactive and it's hilarious,” said Mo McElroy, executive director of the Santa Rosa Visitor's Bureau. “I like to see people under pressure.”</p><p>This year's Sonoma Steel Chef winner was Ryan Fancher of Barndiva in Healdsburg, who won his first round against John Toulze of The Girl & the Fig, then edged out Nick Demarest of Harvest Moon Cafe in the final round.</p><p>“It was a lot more fun than I thought it would be,” Fancher said. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for the other two chefs.”</p><p>To help smooth transportation issues, shuttle buses from five major hotels in the region, plus taxi service, were made available to guests.</p><p>“We tried to make it easy” Comfort said. “And to get people off the road.”</p><p>Some folks driving to the event from the Bay Area ran into a bit of traffic in the city, due to the closure of the Bay Bridge all weekend.</p><p>“It took us two hours, and it was supposed to take one hour,” said Derrick Martin of San Francisco. “There was traffic from Golden Gate Park all the way up to the bridge.”</p>