Charleston Wine + Food continues their year-long programming push with the October edition of Tasting Notes Live!, recorded on Wednesday at Wine + Food’s Rutledge Avenue test kitchen.
The fest’s “first-ever in-house podcast series” features a new podcast + guest each month, with episodes recorded in front of a live audience. Guests are able to interact with hosts and talent before and after the recording, with food and wine thrown into the mix via cooking demos or cocktail tastings.
This month’s event — the second of the Tasting Notes series — featured Post and Courier’s The Winnow podcast with guest Brooks Reitz, the restaurateur behind Little Jack’s, Leon’s, Melfi’s, and Monza.
Since it was a touch too early for burgers and martinis, Reitz started the morning by whipping up some buttermilk pancakes using Bon Appetit‘s “best buttermilk pancakes” recipe topped with Westwind Orchard maple syrup. He notes that while he’s found “these are our favorite at home,” he misses Hominy Grill’s buckwheat flapjacks.
After some coffee and cakes, Reitz and The Winnow hosts, P&C food editor/chief critic Hanna Raskin and food reporter Dave Infante, settled in on the impromptu recording studio’s couch.
Last week, we noted that The Winnow’s Tasting Notes appearance comes on the heels of an L.A. Times feature by Raskin titled, “How food festivals hurt the chefs they’re meant to help.” Charleston Wine + Food was one of the festivals Raskin analyzed, from facts and figures to testimonials from chefs.
There was no mention of that article during the recording.
Instead, the three chatted about everything from the merits of real maple syrup — not the log cabin shaped bottles — to how Reitz deals with negative customer feedback — “we follow it all the way back to the source.” We won’t spoil all the fun; you can listen to the recording in its entirety next week when it goes live in your podcast feeds. Until then, head to one of Reitz’s spots for one of their “cult favorites — the best problem for a restaurant to have” like the Siam salad, Little Jack burger, or Stretch Armstrong pizza.
The next Tasting Notes Live! event takes place Wed. Nov. 13 at 4 p.m. at the Wine + Food HQ with VinePair Podcast and a local guest. VinePair podcast is hosted by VinePair co-founder Adam Teeter and Seattle sommelier Zach Geballe; the event is free to attend, but you must reserve a space online.
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