by Jonathan Cristaldi
In March, James Beard Award–winning chef Charlie Palmer and his team hosted their 17th annual Pigs & Pinot event, a weekend-long celebration that showcased the magic of Sonoma County Pinot Noir wines alongside a bevy of creative pork-driven dishes. Palmer’s iconic Dry Creek Kitchen in downtown Healdsburg served as the backdrop, along with neighboring Hotel Healdsburg and nearby restaurant The Matheson.
The festivities kicked off March 15 with Taste of Pigs & Pinot, where attendees swirled and sipped the 60 wines chosen to participate in the signature Pinot Cup wine competition. This year, The SOMM Journal’s own publisher and editor-in-chief, Meridith May, was selected to serve on a three-judge panel for the competition, as was Virginie Boone, lead spirits reviewer for sister publication The Tasting Panel, and Master Sommelier Keith Goldston, who works for Landry’s.
I arrived early to chat with Palmer before the madness of the proceedings overtook him. Speaking just outside his recently renovated restaurant, complete with a new glass-enclosed wine cellar displaying some 750 Sonoma-appellated selections, we chatted about the past and future of Pigs & Pinot. “The event started as a simple fundraising dinner with a few winemaker friends, including Pinot luminaries Tom Rochioli and Bob Cabral, among others,” Palmer explained, noting that the proceeds, organized through his Palmer Family Education Foundation, went entirely toward educational opportunities in the local community: “This is the first year that all of the donations are focused on culinary and wine scholarships to places like the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, the Sonoma State University School of Business and Economics, and other local food and wine efforts. We also have a big push supporting the education of music and the arts.” Above all, Palmer was most eager to show his support for the hospitality side of the business because, in his words, “I think there is a huge need now more than ever to provide scholarships to young people who want to be the next generation of chefs, winemakers, and wine professionals.”
With that, Palmer darted off to greet the thirsty hordes of food and wine enthusiasts who were lining up in anticipation of tasting their way through small bites prepared by the likes of Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of San Francisco’s iconic Boulevard; Neal Fraser, chef-owner of Redbird and Vibiana in Los Angeles; Dry Creek Kitchen’s own chef Shane McAnelly; and a handful of arrivals from Hawaii, including chef Ryan Urig of the Grand Wailea in Maui—to name just a few. Oakes, who made a chorizo churro with whipped manchego–tomatillo escabeche for the event, noted that “we love [the Palmers,] so anything they stand for, we stand for. They’ve done good for Sonoma County for years with this event, supporting education of all forms—and all the best Pinot Noir makers are in the room at the same time, so you can’t really turn it down!”
After chowing down on everything from Korean-style grilled pork belly to decadent pork ragu with black truffles myself, I caught up with Cabral, who is serving as Pigs & Pinot’s new wine director, and his wife, Heather. When I asked him why he agreed to take on the role following the retirement of Daryl Groom, Cabral was jovial, if not a bit relieved to have crossed the finish line after many hours of volunteer work to organize the blind tasting, held earlier that day. “I really believe in the charities that Charlie’s foundation gives to locally here. That’s [also] why Heather and I started Bob Cabral Wines,” he explained. “It’s about giving back to the community. It’s why I get up in the morning.” He admitted that his job was fairly easy thanks to Groom, who “laid the groundwork with a master list and was always fair about rotating new wineries in and out.” By the same token, Cabral added, “I want to keep it fresh. I want to show new winemakers and their products, and there are some really talented younger male and female and Hispanic winemakers from whom I learn and [whose wines I] admire.” The resulting competition lineup constituted what he called “the crème de la crème of Sonoma,” and clearly the judges agreed: “There wasn’t a lot of bickering. They were on the same page. I’ve been at tastings where judges almost come to fisticuffs, and [there] was none of that.”
Indeed, when I ran into May, she was beaming with excitement about her experience at the tasting earlier that day. “I was just honored to taste with Virginie and Keith, and the fun thing is we were all on the same path—unanimous in our decision on the winning wine,” which Cabral had not yet revealed to them. “We’re aching to know,” May exclaimed. I asked her to describe the qualities of their top pick. “Aromas that match the body, which had balance all the way through,” she said. “We picked a rounded beauty with weight and color.”
At exactly 7:45 p.m., the winner was announced as the Reed Holland 2018 Deep End Pinot Noir from Anderson Valley. Perhaps no one was as elated as Cabral: The winemaker behind it was, after all, his longtime protégée, Ashley Holland. “That felt very surreal and full circle for me,” said a surprised Holland. “For my mentor, Bob Cabral, to be handing me the cup on my Pinot, and to be in a lineup of icons sourcing from the best Pinot Noir sites and have my Pinot noted for its uniqueness, is everything,” she added, beaming with well-deserved pride.
