Out and About - My Picks from the Philadelphia Food and Wine "Taste" Festival

Last weekend I attended the 2010 Philadelphia Food and Wine Festival, "Taste" where I sampled dozens of gourmet food products and wines - ranging from mediocre to excellent.

Here are a few of my favorites this year:

Crazy Steve's Pickles and Salsa - These "Condiments on a mission" started from a surplus of homegrown cucumbers in Steve Zielinski's family garden. Using his grandmother's recipe for Chow Chow (a condiment made with corn and pickle relish) as inspiration, Steve went on to create new "crazy" innovative pickle recipes. Steve's line includes an array of salsas such as Black Bean and Corn and Mango Raspberry, and all sorts of pickles from sour barrel to Cajuns cukes. Biting into Steve's fresh, crisp pickles brought back memories of the pickles I grew up eating from Gus's in New York's Lower East Side. Crazy Steve's products can be found in several stores or online - where there is also a search function allowing you to search the nearest carrier near you.

Tillie's Gourmet - This company offers gourmet dressings and their original one-of-a-kind Blue Crab Salsas. Tillie Logan, a Bucks County woman who began crafting condiments back in the 1960's serves as the inspiration for these delicious dressings and salsas. I sampled the unique Blue Crab salsas - chock full of fresh crab balanced by a slightly smokey tomato flavor. Tillie's products are available online and in stores throughout PA and NJ.

A Taste of Olive - Gourmet, artisan extra virgin olive oils, balsamic vinegars, specialty seasons and spreads. I tasted a multitude of oils and vinegars - my favorite being the fig vinegar. You can even order their products with personalized labels for a unique gift or party favor!

There were over a hundred wines to try, but these two vineyards stood out among the rest:

Bodegas Paso Robles - Delicious, bold Spanish and Portuguese style wines with beautiful labels from California.

Cupcake Vineyards - Their Chardonnay was delightfully creamy with apple and tropical fruit flavors and a nice balance of vanilla and spice. I also loved the Sauvignon Blanc - nicely balanced and smooth with lemon and lime flavors. Red Velvet 2009 is a lovely blend of Zinfandel, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon with full-bodied blackberry, mocha, and chocolate flavors. Head winemaker Adam Richardson travels far and wide to gain knowledge and inspiration from wineries around the world.