Legends of Wine at State Capitol in Sacramento

2016 Farm-to-Fork Legends of Wine at State Capitol in Sacramento.

You cannot say there is nothing going on at the State Capitol after spotting the crowds mobbing the west steps for the 2016 Farm-to-Fork Legends of Wine event in Sacramento. As we drove down 10th Street, heading for the parking garage, the lines of people were more than a block long. Event planners hurried to shove trash cans at the exit to try to prevent guests from entering at that spot. Once my husband and I joined the line, it moved quickly.

The Legends of Wine event is part of Farm-to-Fork month in Sacramento, having started in a big way in 2013. It seems like every year the Farm-to-Fork movement grows bigger, and it’s not just in Sacramento that this is happening. You’ll find back-to-the-kitchen stuff is across the board in the United States. The hottest restaurants in Minneapolis, for example, are “craft kitchens,” sourcing local produce.

Dawn Herlache and Elizabeth Weintraub at 2016 Farm-to-Fork Legends of Wine in Sacramento

Soon as we slipped through the gate, grabbed a wine glass and bag of bread, I noticed my #1 favorite escrow officer, Dawn Herlache, chatting with her associates from Placer Title Company near a wine booth. We hardly ever see each other but we communicate pretty much daily during the week through email. Dawn has the patience of a saint, decades of experience, and it shows in her work. To say I have high expectations is putting it mildly, and I don’t know why she puts up with me, but my real estate clients and I love her to pieces.

Wine expert David Berkley speaks at 2016 Farm-to-Fork Legends of Wine in Sacramento.

We sampled a huge variety of wines at Legends of Wine, stuff that I ordinarily might never get to taste unless I stumbled across the winery by accident. Although I did purposely visit the Ripken Winery in Lodi last year seeking a petite sirah. Most of our wine tastings take place in Sonoma or Napa, or I find a new wine at The Kitchen I can’t live without, or my husband brings home something new and exciting from the Sacramento Co-Op, and we buy several cases. Don’t get me started on the wine clubs in Oregon or Calistoga or Trenton-Healdsburg.

The person I wanted to talk with was David Berkley, and we seized that opportunity when it presented itself. Berkley got his start at Corti Brothers in 1973, mentored by Darrell Corti himself, who also partnered with him for this event. This is a guy who worked at the White House selecting wines and choosing pairings. He is now 72 and retired. We asked if he indeed personally selected each of the 35 award-winning wineries present at Legends of Wine, wondering, of course, if they just paid a fee for the booth, but Berkley assured us he did.

Elizabeth Weintraub met a Rendezvous 2014 Barbera she likes.

We sampled sausages, artisan cheeses, chocolate, specialty desserts, and many varieties of local Sacramento wines at Legends of Wine. We explored a plethora of wines from Capay Valley, Acampo, Davis, Clarksburg, Lodi, Walnut Grove and, of course, Amador County, just to name a few, and tasted a huge selection of wines, ranging from Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Viognier to Tempranillo, Zinfandel and Barbera.

Two of my favorites were a 2013 Sparkling Viognier from Capay Valley Vineyards and the robust 2014 Barbera from Rendezvous Winery in Clarksburg.