Page 3 - Dining Out - Sep 19 2021

Restaurant Insider with Anne Lee
winemakers, great chefs and som- meliers with guests interacting at the tables. This started with small dinners in people’s homes back then. As that part of the island grew with more hotels and restaurants, this festival evolved even more to celebrate food and wine. We have panel discussions and education for guests that are passionate about wines.
I first started attending this event as a guest about 20 years ago and became actively involved about 2008. Fred Dame from The Court of Master Sommeliers was the offi- cial honorary host, and he oversaw setting up the panels and bringing in the winemakers. I was asked to take over the reins from Fred and host the event. Now, I have been doing this for 12 years.
Kapalua Wine Festival celebrat- ed its 40th anniversary last year during the pandemic and we did a small scaled-down version this year. USA Today named this event the No. 1 festival in the country. It really is about the vibe, the great winemakers and chefs, and the amount of interaction that guests have with purveyors. This event is engaging and down to earth; it’s “edutainment” (educational and entertainment).
AL: We are at PAI Honolulu. Tell me about the wines you have paired with each dish.
MJ: Chef Kevin Lee offers some of the most unique dishes that pair well with our wines. To welcome
AT THE KAHALA
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our guests, I have selected the 2019 WillaKenzie Rose. It’s 94% pinot noir (offers floral notes), 4% pinot blanc (brings creaminess) and 2% pinot meunier (adds a hint of fresh fruit).
The first course is Shredded Cabbage Salad with toasted chick- en, garlic chive, cashew, pickled daikon and ginger vinaigrette. We paired that with the 2018 Capture
The third course is the Pork Ado- bo Headcheese Ragu, featuring fresh hand-cut pasta. We paired this with the 2015 Harford Court Seven Benches Pinot Noir. This fruit intensity is balanced by an earthy and savory side, with black cher- ry and boysenberry leading into subtle truffle and spice characters.
The last course is the Black Bean Braised Beef with Chinese mustard potato gratin, broccoli and truffled beef jus. The wine selection is the 2017 Les Cadrans de Lassegue (90% mer- lot and 10% cabernet franc). This showcases a
complex expression of red fruits spices and violet, a great wine to pair with beef.
The Capture Sauvignon Blanc and the Cadrans de Lassegue are available at PAI by the glass.
AL: Anything else you’d like to share about JFW?
MJ: Shaun actively works within Jackson Family Wines, and he de- veloped Capture vineyards (the 2018 Capture Sauvignon Blanc is the first vintage that was released). I remember visiting Shaun in 2013 there, and they were just planting the seeds then. This is the highest elevation for sauvignon blanc in
PAI Honolulu
55 Merchant St. Ste. 110, Honolulu 808-744-2531 (takeout and preorders) 4:30-9:30 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays
the world; when you plant 3,000 feet on top of a mountain in Cali- fornia, you get really intense, rich wines like this.
If there are restaurateurs or hotels that want to get involved with our wines, they can contact Kelli Sahara or Michael Hopkins at jacksonfamilywines.com.
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1. Caramelized Onion “Pissaladier” 2. Pork Adobo Headcheese Ragu 3. Black Bean Braised Beef
(all part of the four-course dinner)
Sauvignon Blanc. This wine is styled like a classic white Bor- deaux, indulgently creamy, rich and round.
The second course is the Car- amelized Onion “Pissaladier,” which is smoked akule, sweet onion puree, arugula and Kala- mata olive purée. We paired this with our 2016 Stone Street Upper Barn Chardonnay. There are hints of stargazer lily, ripe pear and lem- on custard, and it scored 97-plus points by The Wine Advocate.
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BEACHFRONT BREAKFAST AT THE KAHALA
Start your day off right with a spectacular sunrise, beautiful ocean view and scrumptious
breakfast fare in a breezy open-air setting.
PLUMERIA BEACH HOUSE BREAKFAST
6:30-11 a.m. Daily | Complimentary Parking
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LIMITED SEATING
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Dining Out
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