On Wednesday night over a dozen bloggers in the New York City area convened at a food blogger's paradise in midtown: Sur La Table.
Kerrygold USA hosted a wine and cheese pairing as a treat to those in the Kerrygold Food Blogger Network. I have to say that Kerrygold has been quite generous to us food bloggers being a consistent sponsor for Pie Party Live and also hosting regular events and contests to win their coveted cheeses and butters. Anyone who bakes/cooks with Kerrygold knows that their product is top notch. Their butter especially when it comes to making crusts and oh-so-crisp cookies. There's a quality to Kerrygold's butter especially that transcends whatever you get on sale and really does bring up your dessert and savory game when added to any recipe. So invest in the product.
Terlato Wines and Rutherford Hill in Napa Valley supplied the perfect complements to the various cheeses Kerrygold supplied with tastes that helped enhance rather than overpower.
On display were several Kerrygold favorites such as Skellig, Dubliner, Cashel Blue, and Dubliner with Irish Stout that was sweeter than the singular Dubliner and was so delectable it didn't need wine. We continued to eat the crumbles with our fingers before and during the pairing.
Apricot Shallot Chutney and water crackers were displayed as a precursor to our formal pairing. We got to chat and in the case of some of us we caught up! It was so nice to see many of the other local food bloggers whom I haven't seen since Pie Party or even before.
And then things got started with us bloggers being educated by a representative of Terlato Wines about tasting the Dubliner with Irish Stout and a nice Chardonnay and even the Skellig and Merlot and the proper balance of tastes coming together to enhance sweetness or saltiness rather than the liquid overwhelming a lighter cheese. This guidance was helpful and made the event that much lighter fare for us to know what to do in the case of taking a good wine and fine cheese and hosting our own event to have our guests enjoy the spread.
Kerrygold and Sur La Table were also generous enough to serve appetizers from Chef Gamoran and staff such as Bacon-wrapped Dates stuffed with Cashel blue cheese. One of the Sur La Table staff suggested having this with the Merlot and the subdued Merlot and the natural sweetness of the dates mixed in a really fine way.
There were Kerrygold Irish Mac and Cheese Bites that were buttery, crunchy, cheesy (in a good way) with parmigiano-reggiano and Kerrygold Aged Reserve, Swiss, and Dubliner. In addition to Sriracha Glazed Chicken Skewers in a salsa verde that was hot but the heat didn't linger too long on your tongue. And another addiction were the cranberry tarts with a crust made from the go-to Kerrygold unsalted butter to get that fine crispness and sweetness that you can eat a couple dozen. I tried.
In the end there was more wine, additional bites for snacking--and we did snack--as well as goody bags for those in attendance with more generosity from Kerrygold in providing various cheeses, butters, and their cookbook so we can attempt to make these fantastic & filling dishes in our own homes.
Thanks again Megan and everyone at Kerrygold, Chef Gamoran and staff and everyone at Sur La Table for making us feel welcoming and stuffing us with such deliciousness I didn't want to leave. With cookbook in hand I know what my plans will be this weekend.