Cabernet Sauvignon Sourdough

Hi everyone! Cecily Parrish Ray here. I wanted to share with you all my passion for our Cabernet Sourdough bread and the journey I’ve been on to make it for our tasting room. In 2017, my dad and I discussed what our hopes were for the new tasting room at our Adelaida Vineyard and one of those was baking our own bread.

Unsure how to go about this, one morning I stumbled upon an old Julia Child video featuring Nancy Silverton, who started La Brea Bakery. Silverton was crafting a sourdough starter from store bought table grapes. It dawned on me in that moment that we had a whole vineyard and I could use grapes at harvest to make a starter. But, there was one fact that still remained…I didn’t know anything about baking breads.

That changed with a serendipitous visit from Chef William Carter and his wife Katherine of Canyon Villa Bed & Breakfast to our downtown tasting room. He was the Executive Chef of the Playboy Mansion for 30 years and during that time he had begun baking artisan breads. I told him about the Cabernet Sauvignon starter I wanted to do and I asked if he could help me. 

For six days in January 2018, Chef Wills worked with me in his kitchen where it smelled of delicious baked bread and my hands were covered in flour. He showed me the ropes of managing a sourdough starter from feeding to baking. He had taken some of our 2017 Cabernet grapes at harvest and began a starter from it. He gifted me with the starter for me to use at our new tasting room. He also taught me other artisan breads. including the focaccia we now make in the tasting room. It was a wonderful experience that I cherish.

I have continued to keep alive the original Cab starter, but in the Fall of 2019, I decided to try my hand at making my own Cab starter. Early on September 22nd, I rushed into the winery with a bucket and grabbed freshly picked grapes from the bins. It was busy season to start working on a side project, but I really wanted to see if I could do my own starter. I then began mixing flour and water with a cheese cloth full of Cabernet Grapes. It bubbled and popped. It smelled like sweet yeast. It took about 12 days for the starter to get to a point where I could begin to use it. I fed it for a while and then did my first bake with it to share with family on Thanksgiving. The bread turned out perfectly.

I now have two starters that I am keeping alive and we’ll see if I have time do any others. Regardless if I increase my starter family, I am happy that I can continue to bake Cabernet Sourdough for my family as well as the families that come in to our tasting room. It has been a lot of work, but it fits with the food program my dad and I envisioned for our tasting room and we hope you enjoy it!

 

 

 

New Paired Flight for Fall

You're invited for our new Fall Flight. Estate Chef Rachel Ponce talks about her creation of this exciting new wine and food pairing featuring:

Barrel Aged Berry Sausage and Butterfly Pea Flower Puree Paired with 2017 Sauvignon Blanc
Homemade lamb and pork, barrel aged luxardo cherries, cilantro and juniper sausage on top of a creamy butterfly pea flower and cauliflower puree, garnished with dill, English pea's and feta

Smoked Salmon over Buckwheat Flour Pancake and Cacao Fig Mousse Paired with 2016 Zinfandel 
Locally caught salmon, smoked on top of a buckwheat pancake, side of cacao fig mouse, garnished with chives, micro-greens and salmon caviar 

Burrata, Roasted Tomato, Prosciutto di Parma and Pesto Paired with 2015 Silken
Homemade burrata, Italian herb-roasted tomato, prosciutto di Parma and drizzled with an arugula hazelnut pesto

Join us for Sunday Brunch starting August 18

You're invited to join us for Brunch every Sunday starting August 18. 

Estate Chef Rachel Ponce has created two amazing options paired with our Bordeaux-style wines. 

Monte Cristo $15
Smoked ham, swiss cheese and raspberry horseradish jam layered twice. Soaked in a smoked paprika custard and grilled. Served with side of mixed greens.  

Summer Squash Shakshuka $18
Spiced tomato, summer squash, onions, garbanzo beans and black garlic stew.  2 poached eggs, topped with feta cheese and basil.  Side of toasted bread. 

Reservations are not required, but are encouraged and can be made here.

New Paired Tasting Flight Experience

This Friday, April 12th, marks the beginning of a new wine & food offering at Parrish Family Vineyard. For many years, Owner and Winemaker, David Parrish and his daughter and General Manager, Cecily Parrish Ray, envisioned offering unique food pairings to accompany their Estate wines. Estate Chef, Rachel Ponce, shares the same vision as David and Cecily to create decadent, wine focused food pairings and offerings. She creates an experience with the new Paired Flight that is unparalleled to what Parrish has offered before.

The entire flight is untraditional and showcases Chef Rachel’s creativity. Her use of ingredients help pull out different elements of the wine, which makes it a fun discovery of how food can work with wine in unexpected ways.

You are invited to join Parrish Family Vineyard for this new wine and food experience on the weekends, Fridays through Sundays, from 11am-4pm. The menu will change with the seasons.

Sauvignon Blanc paired with Grilled Chicken Stuffed Sweet Peppers

Petite Sirah paired with Coffee Crusted Duck Confit

Cabernet Sauvignon paired with Potato Dumplings with Heirloom Tomatoes

New Menu Released for Spring

Join us as we release our new dishes for Spring on Friday, April 5th!  Chef Rachel shares unique, wine focused dishes that create harmonious relationships with our Estate wines. These new dishes are shareable and perfect for a light lunch on our porch.

-Herb Goat Cheese & Red Pepper Pesto with Handcrafted Sourdough Crostini

-Wild Mushroom & Olive Tapenade with in house Focaccia

-Walnut & Lentil Pate with Handcrafted Sourdough Crostini

Also, starting April 13th, join us for the release of our new Paired Tasting Flight. We are excited to see you soon!