We attended the first Grand Rapids International Wine & Food Festival which took place November 21 - 23 at the DeVos Place Convention Center in downtown Grand Rapids. It was great! There were over 100 booths -- wine distributors, wineries, Michigan to International in scope -- and food. The wine representation was spectacular. We tasted only a few but of those we could sample we chose a $200 Opus One 2005 Red for our tasting experience and were impressed with the smooth rich berry flavor. This wine is a 92 pt rated red from Napa, the result of a partnership between Robert Mondavi and Baron Philippe de Rothschild to create a Bordeaux style blend in Napa Valley. The bottle retails for $179 or more at most wine stores. Described as "a voluptuous garnet, the 2005 Opus One offers concentrated aromas of blueberry, rose petals, white truffle, licorice and nutmeg. Flavors of cassis, black olives, raspberry and dark chocolate." I'm not sure I got all of those flavors out of my tiny sip, but I sure liked the rich berry bouquet that was especially smooth . This wine is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Malbec. Tasting wines at events like this really help determine what you like best. And for a $176 bottle, you'd better know that you really like it prior to purchasing. One of the best places along the Lake Michigan Coast to buy wine is at Martha's Vineyard in Grand Rapids. At Martha's they specialize in hundreds of international wines. Their great selection of Cabernet's and French reds is known by wine connoisseurs throughout the state and beyond. Their wine attic is fascinating and the bottles are significant enough to impress just about any wine snob.

We participated in one of two restaurants who offered a special three-course small plate and wine pairing. Both the 1913 and Bar Divani Restaurants in Grand Rapids offered the special seating throughout various times at the event. Tickets were $25 for the one hour presentation. Craig Oland, new Executive Chef at Bar Divani, did a fantastic job of answering questions and showing the 12 interested participates how to make each course. We were served, for the first course, sauteed fennel and sweet corn crowned with cornmeal encrusted scallops. The "crisp, clean" Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc 2006 was a perfect wine pairing for the delicate and slightly sweet flavors in the dish. The second course was a roasted cauliflower risotto - simple and subtle as well. The wine that they paired with this was a surprise - a Morande Pinot Noir 2007 - a great wine that was subtle enough but paired nicely with the nuttiness of the Parmigiano-Reggiano in the risotto and the slightly smokey flavor of the cauliflower in the dish. The last course was a pork Saltimboca created with thinly pounded pork tenderloin, sage leaves and thinly sliced proscuitto served on sauteed turnip greens. This dish was paired with an unoaked Cabernet Sauvignon, Earthworks, from the Barossa Valley of Australia, a rather light Cabernet that paired well with the more complex flavors of this dish. Although these food creations are not on the Bar Divani regular menu, they offer a wonderful selection of diverse small plates for vegetarian and meat eaters along with a wide selection of incredible wines at their trendy Ionia Street restaurant in Grand Rapids. All of the wines are available at Bar Divani, however.

All in all our short 1 1/2 hour experience at the International Grand Rapids Wine and Food Festival was very interesting and worthwhile. Mark your calendar for next year's event which will likely be even bigger and better than this year. Plan on the middle of November the weekend prior to Thanksgiving. About 8000 people attended the three day event.

Bon Appetit!

Sally