Dare to Pair, with appetizer/wine pairings, benefits Cabrillo College's Culinary Arts
Cabrillo College is joining with Surf City Vintners to hold the event, as the competition is a benefit for Cabrillo College’s Culinary Arts and Hospitality Program.
Teams of Cabrillo culinary students prepare appetizers, and these are paired with wine from each Surf City Vintners winery – actually, there are 13 wineries but a total of 11 pairings. Attendees walk from winery to winery (all located within a couple blocks of each other) to taste the food and wine. “This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to showcase their skills, and for the public to enjoy their culinary creations paired with our great local wines,” said Eric Carter, director of the Cabrillo Community College Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management program.
The event takes place Sunday from 12-3:30 p.m. at the tasting rooms of the Surf City Vintners wineries off of Swift and Ingalls Streets in Santa Cruz. Tickets are $50 in advance (buy from any Surf City winery – see list below — or at Sesnon House on the Cabrillo campus. Call (831) 435-3000 for more information. If tickets do not sell out, they will be available the day of the event for $60.
Participants vote on their favorite pairings for the People’s Choice awards, and a panel of chefs and restaurateurs also judge the competition including Bryan Showalter (Executive Chef of The Hilton, Santa Cruz), Sheri Moise (owner of Johnny’s Harborside), and Ted Burke (owner of Shadowbrook). There is an after-party with live music from 3-5 p.m. (so it actually starts 30 minutes before the event ends), and the awards ceremony takes place at 4:30 p.m.
Surf City Wineries
Bonny Doon Vineyard
Copious
Equinox Champagne
MJA
Odonata
Rexford (formerly Hillcrest Terrace)
Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard/Quinta Cruz
Silver Mountain
Sones Cellars
Storrs
Trout Gulch
Vino Tabi
Location: Swift Street Courtyard, Swift & Ingalls Streets in Westside Santa Cruz
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Cabrillo Community College’s Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management program provides students with basic culinary food preparation and service, advanced a la carte and buffet food production and service, as well as food service management training for the industry. Cabrillo College offers both a Certificate of Proficiency and an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management.