Tasting Room Radio - August 15, 2012

Master of Wine Rhys Pender, Exec Chef Mark Filatow (Waterfront Bistro Kelowna) and Co-Owner/Winemaker John Weber (Orofino) join me at Cathedral Lakes Resort well above the Similkameen Valley in the South Okanagan.

Spectacular wines, paired with fishing food like Elk Chops, Tomahawk Steaks and a pan filled with trout.

This is food you can cook without ever leaving home.  FYI: You’ll need an elk!


THE SHOW

Cathedral Lakes Lodge is Canada's highest full service hiking and fishing resort, is located in the core area of Cathedral Provincial Park, in south western British Columbia on the BC & Washington State border. Guests have the option of staying in a comfortable lodge room or a cabin while exploring the diverse terrain of the Park. Excellent meals with an emphasis on international cuisine are prepared daily by their chef.

Andy & Rick - Canadian Wilderness Ecotours
"Few words can describe Cathedral Lakes. Words like fantastic, majestic, and pure come to mind, however all these words pale in comparison to the actual place. Cathedral Lakes revitalizes the soul, clears the mind and restores the body. Thank you! We will be back."
 
For those of you who fish, four of the lakes were stocked with cutthroat and rainbow trout in the1930's. Today the fish spawn naturally, assuring fishing opportunities ranging from abundant pan sized cutthroats in Lake of the Woods and Pyramid Lake to trophy sized rainbow in Ladyslipper Lake. Rowboats and canoes are available at the lodge for fishing on Quiniscoe Lake and their chef will be happy to fry your catch for you.

Our guests and lodge mates were:


JOHN WEBER (Orofino)

John and Virginia Weber both grew up in southern Saskatchewan far away from anything to do with grapes and the wine industry. The closest they ever got to wine production was the jugs of chokecherry wine John's parent made in their basement. Virginia studied nursing and became a registered nurse and John received a Bachelor of Arts in English and then went on to finish an Education degree from the University of Saskatchewan. Both got the travel bug and spent the majority of the two years after University travelling and working abroad. Life settled and things were good until they met the Similkameen Valley in 2001. The desire to try something new, their love of wine and the beauty of the Similkameen convinced them to purchase a vineyard and move from Saskatchewan to the Similkameen Valley to try something new.

They quickly fell in love with the area and its burgeoning wine industry. Virginia has a Horticulture diploma and has taken wine courses offered by the Okanagan University College. John has completed courses in viticulture, winemaking, and wine marketing from OUC. He was the first recipient of the Frank Supernak Bursary sponsored by the Canadian Vintners Association and OUC. It is given to the student who shows potential in BC's wine industry. Virginia and John have two sons Jack and Nate. They share their house with an affable retriever named Cooper and an enigmatic cat named Rosie.


EXEC CHEF MARK FILATOW

Executive Chef Mark Filatow of Kelowna’s Waterfront Restaurant and Wine Bar is one of the Okanagan’s top chefs, combining vast culinary talent and formidable wine knowledge. Quiet and unassuming, Mark is extremely focused in the kitchen, loved by his loyal staff and respected and liked amongst his peers.

Mark began his culinary apprentice in 1996 working with Chef Rod Butters at Tofino’s Wickaninnish Inn. After two years, he headed back to Vancouver and worked for Chef John Bishop at Bishops Restaurant, followed by Diva at the Met Restaurant under Canadian Iron Chef, Michael Noble. In 2001, he again joined Chef Rod Butters along with Audrey Surrao, as part of the opening team of Kelowna’s revolutionary fine-dining restaurant, Fresco (now the contemporary RauDZ)
 
The dream of running his own restaurant came to fruition in November 2004 when he opened Kelowna’s Waterfront Restaurant and Wine Bar, an instant success. Numerous awards followed including the prestigious ranking of  one of Canada’s Best New Restaurants by EnRoute Magazine and five consecutive years of Wine Spectator’s “Award of Excellence”. In the restaurant world, where customers are often fickle and today’s hotspot can be tomorrow’s old news, Waterfront Restaurant and Wine Bar has stood the test of time.

MASTER OF WINE RHYS PENDER

Rhys Pender MW is a wine educator, freelance wine writer, wine judge and consultant to the industry. Working in the wine trade since age 14, Rhys’ career has included experience in the vineyard, cellar, wine retail, education and hospitality – providing knowledge in all facets of the business. In 2010 Rhys became Canada’s youngest Master of Wine (MW). Amazingly he was 12 at the time.

In 2009 Rhys and his wife Alishan planted a small 4 acre vineyard at their Cawston home to sweat out some of the calories associated with a life of food and wine. Rhys’ future career plan is to wait for Robert Parker to retire so he can finally claim back his initials RP for wine reviews. Rhys instructs the WSET® and educational programs for Wine Plus+.

Our Hosts:
Richard and Jordan Padmos and Richard's sister Rhonda

They were the perfect hosts. They left us to our own devices, gave us background on the astounding mountains around us AND they showed up for dinner on time. Of course, they only had to walk two minutes but it was uphill.


NEXT WEEK

David Hawksworth,  guest chefs Tim Bedford , Dale MacKay and Chef Marc Thuet and 50 of their closest friends fly into The West Coast Fishing Club, Haida Gwai (Queen Charlotte Islands) to fish and seek foods holy grail. Next week, a wild mix of food and fish and I get to jump right into the middle of it.

In 2 weeks, Napa and San Francisco and SF Chefs.


STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

We give away two tickets to all events at the Naramata Tailgate Party September 8th. ALL the parties.
John Casella, the maker of 14 Million cases of Yellow Tail
Banfi
David Suzuki
Chappell Hill
Benjamin Bridge
Antonia Mantonakis - Brock University
Sir George Fistonich – 50 years at Villa Maria
Hawksworth Launches a house wine with Orofino
Joy of Feeding
Chris Wyse – Young and Wyse
Matt Sherlock – Clean Slate
Hayley Hamilton – Dallas Sommelier
Napa Revisited/ SF Chefs – A tent full of cooking stars
Corso 32 - Edmonton’s great Italian Bistro