Last weekend, I was lucky enough to once again head west to Perini Ranch for the annual Buffalo Gap Wine & Food Summit. For the past several years, while I have been putting together programming for and planning the Fort Worth Food + Wine Festival, I have had the incredible opportunity to attend some of the best food and wine events in the country. However, none of them can recreate the feeling that the Buffalo Gap Wine & Food Summit has. Nestled in the serene countryside outside of Abilene, this event feels more like dinner with old friends than anything else.
Tom Perini, Dr. Richard Becker, & Fess Parker began the festival nine years ago. Since then, it has transformed into an event that sold out in 11 minutes this year. The original thought was to bring together Texas and California winemakers in a setting like no other. It has developed into an annual gathering of sommeliers, winemakers, chefs, and “foodies” who anticipate the event for months in advance. It still holds on to those original roots, but now has a global theme. This year's theme highlighted the cuisine of Spain.
Those who were fortunate to purchase a “Patron's Pass” enjoyed:
• Dinner prepared by Stephen Pyles on Friday night
• Experienced educational wine seminars from Master Sommelier Guy Stout and some of the best Texas winemakers on Saturday
• Lunched on three different paellas from super talented chef Jason Dady from San Antonio
Reata's Lobster and Rabbit Paella
• Dined on offerings from chefs throughout the state such as Dallas-based chefs Matt McCallister of FT33 and Tim Byres of Smoke and Chicken Scratch
• Participated in a Tapas Crawl featuring Fort Worth chef Michael Thomson of Michaels Cuisine.
Although many come for the food, the wine is becoming the star. We were set up next to Brennan Vineyards. Owner Pat Brennan spent many years in Fort Worth before moving to Comanche and starting the vineyard. He and winemaker Todd Webster were pouring the 2011 Viognier, which was simply unbelievable.
The event actually serves as the birthplace of the FWFWF. Such great Fort Worth chefs such as Jon Bonnell, Tim Love, Grady Spears, Michael Thomson, and Juan Rodriquez have all participated in the event over the years. It was there that I realized that if there was such a demand for Fort Worth chefs more than two hours west then certainly there must be a demand for this local talent at home.
As a side note, Juan and I were able to make a pit stop on the way out to Buffalo Gap to a little place in Strawn that you may have heard of. Mary's Café was packed full of hungry diners and it didn’t disappoint. The Chicken Fried Steak was as good as advertised and always is. If for some reason you have put off making the drive west on 20 to visit this landmark restaurant, I can’t tell you what you missing.
Russell Kirkpatrick is AGM at Reata Restaurant and Founder of the Fort Worth Food + Wine Festival
