Santa Margherita Wine

One day closer to the finale where the winner will be selected for a 3-day trip to LA for cooking lessons with Fabio Viviani and Santa Margherita wine classes with Jacapo Fellini at Café Firenze!

We’ve asked our finalists to tell us their thoughts and feelings as their big day approaches. You heard from Fred yesterday, today we have some insight from Paul!

“So it’s a couple of days until the event. I’m pretty excited to be participating in something this large. The opportunity to showcase one of my recipes is really hyping me up. The anticipation is really getting me excited. Will my recipe take the prize? I suppose it could go either way but regardless of that, I feel like I can take whatever comes my way. This is going to be a great experience; one that I’ll remember for a long time. I’m hoping everyone enjoys the dish as much as I did working on it.”

Be sure to tune in tomorrow to hear from Laurie!

We have renowned Chef Fabio Viviani!
We have Bon Appétit Restaurant Editor Andrew Knowlton!
And of course we have our very own President Bill Terlato!

You all know our finalists – Laurie Lufkin, Fred Piccinni, and Paul Phanthalangsy – wish them luck as they compete from 2:00-2:30 on Saturday, Sept. 25 at the Chicago Gourmet Festival. View their recipes at http://ww2.santamargherita.us/Contest/2010/Finalists and give these amazing dishes a try at home. And if you’re lucky enough to live in Chicago and are attending the Festival, come see us at both the Santa Margherita and Bon Appétit tents (we have wine!).

Check out what finalist Fred Piccinni had to say about this opportunity:
“Wow, it is finally September, and I still can’t believe that I made it to the finals of the Santa Margherita Great Taste Challenge. Back in May it just seemed like a fun thing to do, and honestly I never figured that my video would have gone viral and got me into the finals.

Well Chicago is one week out and the reality is starting to set in. I keep on running my recipe through my head and keep on trying to figure out if I should have added some other ingredients or perhaps made something entirely different – Oh well it’s too late to worry about that now.

Just need to make it to the airport on time to enjoy whatever happens next.”

Stay tuned for the final event!

Santa Margherita is popping up everywhere.

We joined HBO and the Emmy’s for the amazing HBO Emmy Party in Los Angeles – that was an honor. The Train concert at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago was another great event. We gave out so many wine samples we ran out!

More recently, and quite suddenly, we have been asked to participate in the Fashion’s Night Out celebration tonight, September 10th in NYC! Fashion designer Michael Kors has chosen our Prosecco for his toast as he debuts his new line. In celebration of this special night in fashion, Kors is opening 23 US stores at 6pm featuring special events, music, and refreshments (that’s us!).

Next step… the Great Taste Challenge Finale in Chicago!

It’s still Summer. It’s Friday. It’s The Weekend. It’s a Three Day Weekend. All in favor say Aye!!!!!!

We can’t hear you but we’re all saying “Aye!” over here. Business is ending for the week but we’re here to present methods and formulas for your weekend Labor Day party.

Cooling off with a frozen treat no longer means sacrificing your summer body! Our method? Low calorie cocktails – less calories than other cocktails and more delicious because they feature Santa Margherita Prosecco wine. We’ve heard less is more, but we choose less & more.

Top Chef fan favorite, Fabio Viviani, worked with Santa Margherita to create two low cal cocktail blends featuring our Prosecco wine. Sprinklers on, shirts off! Click to view our low-cal recipes.

The formula for food? Check out what Executive Chef Colin Crowley has in store – he’s sharing exclusive grilled recipes including clams, chicken, ribeye, potatoes, and fruit kebabs, that pair perfectly with the family of Santa Margherita wines. We’re here to help turn everyday grilling into something unique.

It’s time to show off your style and party-throwing abilities with the flavors and signature recipes from Tuscany, Italy. Click to view our Exclusive Tuscan Summer Grilling Recipes.

Great food. Great wine. Have fun and be safe this holiday!

Santa Margherita has been welcomed as the EXCLUSIVE WINE PROVIDER at the 2010 HBO Emmy Awards Party. What an honor!

The HBO post-awards reception, taking place at the Pacific Design Center’s (PDC) Fountain Plaza in West Hollywood for approximately 2,000 guests, has the distinct reputation as the top industry event of Emmy night. This year, Billy Butchkavitz has designed the PDC with a style that mixes Tarzan & Jane with a Palm Beach jungle. Santa Margherita has joined forces with HBO for what will be one of the most exciting nights of the year.

The party will be chock-full of both their celebrity talent and Santa Margherita’s – ours being our Pinot Grigio & Chianti Classico wines! Expected guests this year include cast members from Entourage, True Blood, Hung, Curb Your Enthusiasm, as well as talent from HBO Films, Music, Comedy, and Sports.

Santa Margherita is right at home; between the glamour of the Emmy’s, HBO’s star-studded elegance, and delicious dishes by Wolfgang Puck, this night is going to be a new kind of entertainment.

For those of you at home, throw your own Santa Margherita-featured Emmy party! Check our website for special Santa Margherita cocktails and amazing recipes.

There is such a wonderful attraction to pairing foods and wines now. Everywhere you look on cable television 24/7 and throughout the internet blogging world, and splashed into the food magazines is now this push for more and more people to treat food and wine matching as a very personal endeavor.

So here’s a delightful Indian Chick Peas with Mushrooms dish that you will fall in love with.

Listen as we discover why the recipe pairs so well with the Santa Margherita.

Remember, all of the semi finalists in the 2010 Great Taste Challenge want you to watch their entries and to vote! So open a new bottle and prepare yourself to watch some rather amazing new recipes!

Pasta Fresca. Just the mention of it will make the mouth water.

It’s no wonder why this gorgeous dish made it to the finals of The 2010 Great Taste Challenge..

No wonder at all…

The 2010 semi finalists in The Great Taste Challenge are competing for your votes. You can vote for up to three videos per day…every day! And we’re seeing an amazing race right now. So watch them all and vote for your favorites…because…why should American Idol get all that fun???

LOL

Cheers from your all friends at Santa Margherita!

If you have come looking for food and wine recipes that literally take your breath away, this TIRAMISU paired with a delightful Santa Margherita Prosecco, simply will put the wind in your apron.

Lady Fingers
5 eggs
⅝ cup sugar
⅝ cup all-purpose flour, sifted
½ pinch salt

Espresso syrup
6 Tbsp. espresso
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. rum

Mousse
6 egg yolks
9 Tbsp. sugar
9 Tbsp. marsala wine
1 ½ cup mascarpone
1 ½ cup cream – whipped

Lady Fingers:
Separate the eggs. Whip yolks with ½ of the sugar until pale. Whip whites and the other ½ sugar until firm. Fold them together. Add sifted flour and salt and fold gently. Spread into sheet pans (12×16) lined with parchment paper and bake at 350° F. for 10 min.

Espresso syrup:
Mix hot espresso with the sugar, water, and rum.

Mousse:
Mix yolks, sugar and marsala wine in a bowl over double boiler. Whip until pale and thick. Take the mixture off the stove and fold in the mascarpone cheese. Finally, fold in the whipped cream.

To Build:
Using a cake pan, place the first lady finger layer on the bottom. Soak with espresso syrup (see Espresso syrup recipe above) and add ½ of the mousse (see Mousse recipe above). Add another layer of lady fingers, soak with syrup and mousse. Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with cocoa powder before serving.

Wine Notes: The delicate bubbles in Santa Margherita Prosecco are well-matched with the feather-light texture of Tiramisu.

Look for more food and wine recipes from Santa Margherita…and never, ever, ever, stop trying to find the most amazing pairings of your favorite recipes with our best wines!

That is, we think, one of life’s greatest recipes!

Manga!

PS… Do not forget to check out The Great Taste Challenge to see how your skills at pairing wine and foods could soon make you unforgettable in the kitchen.

Looking for an amazing new food and wine event this weekend, April 24-26th? Why not dig deep into your favorite recipe book, head out to your absolute favorite shoppe for the best ingredients, and then head to the best wine store for the best Santa Margherita to go with whatever it is you can “see” being paired up in the kitchen!

That’s really what The Great Taste Challenge is…the celebration of how we match the best foods with our favorite wines.

And by showing off just how adept we are at it, and through use of a simple video, we’ve made it possible to have a food and wine event in which YOU star!!! And this weekend, if you do submit multiple food and wine recipes into The Great Taste Challenge, and you are one of the first 5 to do so, you will be the proud new owner of a Flip Camera!

Here’s a great video that explains.

How ironic that the food and wine event you may be looking for could be going on in YOUR OWN KITCHEN.

Cheers!

Naturally there are many food and wine recipes out there. As real lovers of pairing, we at Santa Margherita just happen to love the ones that stick! We simply adore food and wine pairings that create an artful balance between the perfect foods and just the right Santa Margherita Wines.

So as you prepare your kitchen and your corkscrew for your entry into The Great Taste Challenge with your best food and wine recipes, here’s one to get the mouth watering!!!

Now, when you are ready with your best food and wine pairing and you are convinced that it is your time to shine, head over to The Great Taste Challenge.

All the best!