Tag Archives: Denver International Wine Festival

Winning Chefs at Denver International Wine Festival

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Pairsine chef competition winners announced

Yesterday evening, I was scheduled to be on high floor at the Hyatt Regency Denver with the city lights all around and the center of the room filled with dishes prepared by some of the Denver area’s leading chefs. I had again been invited to judge Pairsine, the exciting chef competition component of the annual Denver International Wine Festival. If I had been there, this would be a long post, featuring photos of some of the fabulous dishes (and having judged before, rest assured that they were fabulous).

Instead, I was at home, lying flat with an ice pack on my back and a woozy-making pain medication coursing through my veins. To say I was disappointed to have to cancel is understatement. But festival organizers have released the names of the winning chefs, which I share in this very short, photo-less post. They were:

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My Lobster Pot Runneth Over

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First the Niwot Lobster Bash and more recently a lobster feast at the home of friends

The recent Niwot Lobster Bash was fun, but when it comes to seafood on a summer evening, nothing beats a clambake, lobster bake or crab boil at someone’s home. Erie doesn’t have salt marshes, sandy beaches, rocky cliffs or sea breezes, but it has good friends who know a lot about food, wine and boundless hospitality. My husband and I were flattered to be invited by Chris and Darcy Davies to a backyard lobster boil last weekend and delighted to accept.

The Davieses run the annual Denver International Wine Festival and the Denver International Beer Comeptition, both of which have chefs’ competitions attached. I’ve known them for a long time but didn’t realize, until Chris showed his skill with crustaceans, that he had worked at a Long Island seafood restaurant when he was in his teens. Like riding a bike, lobster wrangling is something you never forget.

Hors d'oeuvre aplenty in the Davieses' spacious and cook-friendly kitchen.

 

Delicate and well-sauced mussels.

Chris and a couple gorgeous lobsters fresh from the pot.

Fresh lobster, so good and sweet that melted butter (to me) is just a drippy distraction.

Well-cooked lobster and mussels at 5,000-plus feet above sea level and nearly 2,000 miles from New England are the greatest delights, but here’s the whole menu:

  • Bruschetta
  • Denise’s Deviled Eggs
  • Grilled Octopus
  • Angry Shrimp
  • Mussels Provence Style
  • Corn on The Cob (Munson Farms “Peaches and Cream”)
  • Twice Baked Garlic Gratin Potatoes
  • Red Velvet Cake

Two lobster opps in such a short time was a first since I moved to Colorado 23 years ago, and this was the best. The wines. starting with a lovely French rose, were wonderful — and the friendship and hospitality were even more so. Thanks, Chris and Darcy

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