A Week on the Stephen Taber: Food , Wine and Racing: Day One

October 21, 1871 - Glenwood Landing, NY: "Launched-- the Schooner Stephen Taber was launched from the yard of Mr. Bedel.... She is a well built natty schooner--she bears a good name and no doubt will prove a profitable investment for all concerned"

January, 2012 - Glenwood (now Roslyn Harbor, NY): I'm a girl originally from Penobscot Bay, temporarily in Glenwood Landing.  The Stephen Taber is a boat built and launched from Glenwood Landing (just at the end of the street) now making her home along the coast of Penobscot Bay.  We both love food and wine, and we both had an incredible adventure for six days.  

A few years ago, I wrote a short story about a magic iBook that when you set the clock on the computer, it would transport you in time. This adventure really is a variation on that story, only, it really happened.  After a few e-mail exchanges with Jane, the NYC sommelier and captain's wife, then through the magic of a credit card, I booked passage on the Stephen Taber for the Maine Windjammer Association's Great Schooner Race in Penobscot Bay, Maine. 408 miles down east from Glenwood Landing, NY.

Sunday July 1:  After a Young's Lobster Pound send off in Belfast, I drove to Windjammer Warf in Rockland to join the crew and guests on the Taber.  My cabin was a small aft single, #8, just off the library.  We joined the Captain on deck, he went over the basics for the week "This is adventure travel"! (hey it was an adventure rolling out of my bunk in the morning)  We then moved on to a Fiore olive oil and vinegar tasting.

We spent the first night at dock, and woke to coffee and our first meal on board, breakfast which included fresh baked muffins prepared by Chef Anna Miller and her assistant Meghann. Coffee and muffins.  I was already in heaven and we hadn't even left the dock. (seriously, a breakfast of fresh fruit, blueberry pancakes and bacon was over the top, after the coffee and muffins, I was blissed out)

After some prep and final provisioning, we cast off from the dock. It was a quick sprint (even for a boat built to haul freight) past Vinalhaven when I took a look at the chart and realized that we were heading to the edge of Penobscot Bay, Isle au Haut.  Captain Barnes out ran some nasty weather, we stopped in the sunshine for Beef Bourguignon, a fresh green salad, bread and peanut butter squares. This is where I should tell you that al though the Taber is Adventure Travel, it is an epicurean adventure.

The Taber partners with high end local providers and presents its guests with Michelin standard fare.  All cooked on a wood stove in a galley on a boat built in 1871.

And so we sailed on to Isle au Haut.  The coast of Maine is beyond words.  We sailed close along the rocky coast, framed by pine trees beaten down by weather, surrounded by the cold Atlantic waters - it was July, but I still needed long sleeves.   It was only fitting that as we sailed past a large house flying the American flag, they saluted us by firing their cannon. we were in a world where people still used cannons!!!  There was no cell phone service, I was unplugged and FINALLY on vacation.

We anchored at Isle au Haut, there was plenty of wine being poured, and my pairing for dinner was a New Zealand  Marlborough Valley Arona Sauvignon Blanc`10.   Chef Anna presented us with a dinner of crusted halibut, broccoli with lemon olive oil and rice pilaf.  It paired really well with this light crisp wine.  I was happy.

Of course for dessert, Chef Anna had made a Boston Cream Pie, my favorite dessert. Even though the crew threw her overboard (a birthday tradition) Soaking wet and freezing, she was a pro and she still fed us.Over the course of the next five days, Anna Miller was my own personal hero.

Sunset, Day One:

Decible Pinot Noir `10 $28.00 Live Blog Red #WBC12

New Zealand Martinborough.  Daniel is from Philly but moved to NZ.  This is a Pinot with an undertone of minerality.  I may be imagining this as I think of NZ, but it is very interesting, and has a great flavor.  This is a 100 case wine, so seriously, buy it and talk about it.  It is Distributed in NY, so if you see it, snap some up, and talk about it while you eat mushroom risotto, or go out to eat and order a bottle.  This wine is in a lot of restaurants in PA.  Try it, you'll like it.

Babich Marlborough Pinot Noir `09 $18.99 (not TJ's) ***

Liked it.  Liked it the first time I sipped it.  Liked it so much that I went old school blogging and took a picture with my Blackberry and thought, "I need to write about this wine!"

Medium weight, dry cherry with a savory hint of mushroom.  (I know, how in the world can a wine taste like mushrooms??? Well, I tells you, this one does!)  What a great combination of fruity, savory, and not too heavy even when grounded with a taste of earthiness (that elusive mushroom flavor).  I did have a chuckle when I read the label "made from Pinot Noir Clone", I'll admit it, when I read "clone", my mind went Star Wars but the truth is, New Zealand is fertile ground for developing new strains of grapes that produce good wine. I say grow those clones and produce more bottles like this one.  New Zealand is becoming a "New World" order for wines from around the globe.  It isn't just for hobbits anymore... or sheep, or beautiful mountains, or the gateway to Antarctica, or some great sailing, or some extreme sports (the list goes on...). New Zealand is a hidden gem, and producing wine like this just adds one more facet to the diamond.

The Vinturi did not affect this wine - don't bother aerating, just unscrew the cap and enjoy!  We had it with grilled steak and mushrooms in a cream sauce with  pasta. Now to try some of The Babich family's other wines by winemaker Adam Hazeldine!

Friday for lunch, there was one glass left in the bottle.  It was still multifaceted and very easy to drink, maybe it had broken down a little and seemed a bit more alcoholic but you should never save just one glass in a bottle.  We split yummie Meatball Parmesan and Eggplant Parmesan sandwiches from Razzanos  (2009 review here), I just savored the glass and was happy.

Villa Maria Chardonnay (unoaked) $8.99 ****

I don't even know where to start on this one. I came home from work with the leftovers from my bosses lunch (1/2 a veggie burrito)

On my walk home, as I was crossing the street, a school bus ignored the red light and drove at me. I looked at the bus 10 inches from my face and realized that I was about to be hit by a bus.

In the perfect convergence of me trying to dash out of the way and the driver realizing that there was a pedestrian in the crosswalk, tragedy was averted. I yelled at him. And then I yelled at him some more. Then I walked up the hill to my house, put the burrito in the oven to heat up and shakily opened the twist top to this bottle of wine.

It tastes good. On my second glass, my hands are no longer shaking. It is a fruity slightly acidic wine that does the trick. $8.99 is all in. I think that the price reflects the quality.

I still have most of the bottle in the fridge, so tomorrow, I'll update this review when I am not traumatized.

Update: It is a good, fresh wine. As it is a screw top, I'd think twice before bringing it as a hostess gift (old snobbery still prevails), but I would have no problem serving it at any meal that I cook.