If you have lived in Tampa for any period of time, you most certainly have either heard of or have had the pleasure of dining at Bern’s Steakhouse and/or the ultra modern Sidebern’s in the South Tampa. However, you may not be aware of the spectacular event hosted each April by David Laxer, owner of Bern’s, Sidebern’s and Bern’s Fine Wines & Spirits, Bern’s Winefest. This year, the four day event was the most popular it has been since its creation some 11 years ago and was completely sold out.

The event started on Friday night at the Winefest Gala. This event consisted of a five-course wine dinner pairing SideBern’s award-winning cuisine with wines from the Wagner Family featuring Caymus Vineyards, Mer Soleil, Belle Glos and Conundrum.

The second event, the Saturday Soiree, was a cocktail party hosted at SideBern’s and paired with exquisite appetizers such as foie gras torchon with spiced marshmallow, Grey Goose pear vodka and quince or Short Ribs with crunchy Bombay Sapphire Gin, gorgonzola and smoked hen of the woods paired with wines provided by Premier Beverage to accompany the culinary delights. Also offered were cocktails made with Grey Goose, the chocolate martini was a must!

The largest of the four day event was the Grand Tasting. Starting in the midmorning hours of Sunday was the VIP party, which gave guests an extra hour to indulge in the ‘easy on the palate’ food offerings and wine pairings. The main event opened its doors to the rest of the mostly South Tampanian crowd at 12:30 p.m. As guests walked in, they received a Winefest crystal tasting glass to put to good use under the two large tents filled with over 200 wines. A plethora of tasty fare was also served and guests were urged to try to fill their full day’s cravings. Each event was arranged geographically to highlight some of the finest wines from each wine country such as France, Italy, Spain, Germany and of course the United States. Food items consisted of unique and exceptional offerings such as herb rubbed strip & gulf prawn from the United States; tamarind braised rabbit from the Southern Hemisphere; foie gras spatzle from Austria/Germany; oxtail and fava bean stew from Spain; and duck confit, lardoons and duck sausage from France. Each country had a minimum of three entrees and two desserts. Some also presented rare cheese offerings to enhance the flavor of their wines like tarago river mature – crystalline aged cow milk cheese from the Southern Hemisphere, and a goat cheese truffle from France. Desserts included items like panna cotta from Italy; a milk chocolate, peanut butter and butterfinger milkshake from the United States and black forest cake from Austria/Germany. Fine wines presented in each tent comprised of a 2000 Masi Amarone ‘Campolongo di Torbe’ a $117.95 bottle from Italy; 2005 Bonneau Du Murray Corton-Charlemagne Grnad Cru, a $139.95 bottle from France; and my most surprising favorite, a 2006 Garnacha de Fuego, a $7.95 bottle from Spain. All wines presented were offered at a special discount through Bern’s Fine Wines & Spirits and the most rare finds were offered during a special silent auction that took place within SideBern’s throughout the event. If all this fine food and wine does not tease your palate, two informative and interactive seminars were offered in the third tasting tent to enhance your knowledge and background of what it takes to produce fine wine.

The event ended with the crème de la crème of the four days, the Bern’s Steak House Winemaker Dinner. This was five courses of Bern’s classic cuisine paired with the wines of Domaine Jean-Luc Colombo with special guest Jean-Luc Colombo to speak about his family’s wines.

If you have not ever been to one of these astounding events presented by Bern’s Steakhouse annually, make 2009’s Winefest your first!
by Vanessa Daniel

See Vanessa’s interviews at Bern’s Wine Fest here.

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