Shelley Taylor

"A Taste of the Peninsula" is just that: your chance to sample from the menus of some of our peninsula's fine restaurants.

This is the third year for the Clallam County Family YMCA's holiday season kickoff, a fundraiser that also features a silent auction.

The Nov. 7 event was a sellout. For 31/2 hours, about 330 hungry diners hobnobbed with restaurateurs, bakers, breadmakers, cheesemakers, winemakers and confectioners and bumped elbows with friends.

This was a rare chance to experience restaurants a little farther away for Sequimites. Coming from L.A., driving 20 minutes or more to a restaurant is considered "just around the corner."

Other businesses wanted to participate but the venue - the vintage and elegant Port Angeles Naval Elks Lodge on First and Lincoln streets in Port Angeles - was filled to capacity. But there's always next year - the first Saturday in November (bookmark the Web site to make sure you don't miss it: www.ccfymca.org/events.html).



All for $45

Greg and I arrived a few minutes before 5 p.m. and already there was a knot of people raring to graze. The check-in was painless and organized; we each, at least those of us over 21, received a hand stamp to assure there would be no restrictions on sampling the "nectar of the gods."

Our $45 tickets bought us as many servings as we wanted of our favorite dishes, a bite or two of chocolates and cake, a few sips of right-off-the-boat, locally fresh-roasted coffee from the Rainshadow Coffee Roasting Company (RainshadowCoffee.com), the best apple cider I think I've ever tasted - ice cold and fresh pressed just hours before, courtesy of Sunny Farms Country Store - and a limited (by ticket only) amount of wine tastings from nearly every local winery:

_ Black Diamond Winery (http://blackdiamondwinery.com) served syrah and estate-grown rhubarb wine (Greg especially liked that, his mom used to make it).

_ Camaraderie Cellars Winery (www.camaraderiecellars.com) offered merlot and cabernet sauvignon.

_ Harbinger Winery (harbingerwinery.com) brought El Jefe and syrah.

_ Olympic Cellars Winery (www.OlympicCellars.com and www.WorkingGirlWines.com) poured petit verdot and cabernet franc.

_ Sorensen Cellars (www.sorensencellars.com) bestowed cabernet franc and Townsend Bay pinot gris.

_ FairWinds Winery (www.fairwindswinery.com) presented a cab/merlot blend and gewurztraminer.

_ Eaglemount Wine & Cider (www.eaglemountwinery.com) decanted Eaglemount red riesling and Cyser hard cider; and Dungeness Bay Wine & Cheese (www.dunge nessbaywineandcheese.com) made cranberry wine for the holidays.

Whew! I must admit I'm a teetotaler, so I think I deserve an award for coming up with seven ways to describe pouring wine! Thank goodness for my friend the thesaurus.



And all that jazz

While standing in line at the buffet tables, we were treated to music by the Taste of Jazz Quartet. I recall tapping my toes and singing along to M*A*S*H's theme, "Suicide is Painless."

Here's who participated this year along with their sample (and mouth watering) menus:

_ Joy's Wine Bistro (www.joyswinebistro.com), vongole tagliatelle

_ Little Skookum's

(skookumshellfish.com) local clams steamed with white wine, tomatoes, herbs, shallots and butter, tossed with homemade tagliatelle pasta

_ Michael's Seafood & Steakhouse (www.michaels dining.com), Northwest mac 'n' cheese with wild smoked salmon

_ Oven Spoonful (www.ovenspoonful.com), fillet of beef tenderloin with horseradish butter and balsamic onions on beer bread, and roasted pumpkin and cheese gratin featuring Sunny Farms' beef

_ Mt. Townsend Creamery (www.mttownsendcreamery.com) cheese and local pumpkins

_ Alder Wood Bistro (www.alderwoodbistro.com), carrot fritters with herbed fromage blanc and gratin of potatoes featuring Lazy J's (lazyjfarm.com) Ozette potatoes, Nash's (www.nashsorganicproduce.com) carrots, cheeses from Fairaview Farm (www.fairaviewfarm.com) and Mt. Townsend Creamery, and Wild West pickled chanterelle mushrooms

_ Bell Street Bakery, artisan breads featuring Nash's wheat and rye milled at the bakery, arugula and roasted root vegetable ravioli (veggies also Nash's) with lemon-poppyseed mascarpone glaze, parsnip and provolone cornbread with fresh-milled corn (also mighty tasty)

_ Double Eagle Steak & Seafood (The Cedars at Dungeness, www.7cedarsresort.com), bite-size wild salmon on a crostini with crisp bacon, basil aioli and fresh diced tomatoes

_ A pairing of Mt. Townsend Creamery and Pane d'Amore Bakery serving a sampling of cheeses like New Moon, a simple whole milk cheese, along with a variety of bakery fresh breads ground the previous night from the grain fields of Nash's Produce - each loaf a delight for the eyes.



Deserving desserts

Of course I went to the dessert tables as soon as I walked in the room to see what I

had to look forward to.

Yvonne's Chocolates (yvonneschocolates@olypen.com), "artisan chocolates made with the finest organic ingredients" are nothing short of tiny works of art.

Raindrop Desserts tempted me with chocolate chip brownies, lemon bars and red velvet cake. If you're looking for a sophisticated special occasion cake, this is where it's at (www.raindropdesserts.com).

Wonder what I can sample next year?