Stir Pairing Mother’s Day edition: 3 food-wine-and-art combinations to wow mom
All locally sourced, these are “experience” gifts
What could be better on Mother’s Day than sitting down at home for a freshly made dish of paella in a stainless-steel pan? Sitting down at home for a freshly made dish of paella with a bottle of Hillside Un-Oaked Pinot Gris while watching a short film at Crafted Vancouver’s REEL Crafted Film Festival 2021, such as “The Chair Maker”.
Every week, Stir Wine Pairing suggests BC wine and food to go with a local arts event. This week, it’s a triple shot for Mother’s Day.
THERE’S SOMETHING TO be said for “experience gifts” that make them even better than a physical object. As much your mom or the mother figure in your life might love new clothes, research suggests an experience makes for even longer-lasting happiness and memories. Like great art itself, experiences stay with us long after they’re over and connect us to others in a way things can’t.
Here are three ideas—which feature BC wine, food you can pick up in Metro Vancouver, and something to take in from the local arts scene—to instill delight this Mother’s Day.
Hillside Un-oaked Pinot Gris + the Paella Guys + Reel Crafted
The focus at Hillside Winery is hyperlocal, with Kathy Malone making hand-crafted wine exclusively from Naramata-grown grapes. The 2020 Un-oaked Pinot Gris—which has just the faintest pink hue, like the last of the delicate cherry blossoms—bursts with fresh fruit, and no wonder: the vineyards for this wine are surrounded by orchards along the Naramata Bench. (It’s $23; find Vancouver area retailers here.) Fresh, crisp, and fun, it will go gorgeously with freshly made paella—a craft in an of itself—by the Paella Guys.
Chef Javier Blanc helmed his own restaurant in his home city of Madrid before moving to Vancouver in 2017, bringing his passion for paella along with him. He and local chef Shay Kelly co-founded the Paella Guys, which offers several different types of the iconic bomba-rice dish. Try the Giant Carabineros Paella, with squid, shrimp, and extra-large red prawns; or the traditional Paella Valenciana, with chicken, fresh artichokes, green beans, green peppers, mushrooms, tomato, garlic and saffron.
Sit down with this feast while taking in any of the short films at REEL Crafted, Crafted Vancouver’s third annual film festival. This year’s selection of short films offers an inspiring look into craft-making practices on a global scale, from Lesotho to Australia’s South Coast. We’re especially intrigued by “The Chair Maker”, which introduces viewers to Lawrence Neal. Based in the village of Stockton, near Rugby, England, he crafts traditional rush-seated chairs after gathering and preparing rushes (flowering plants with cylindrical stalks or stemlike leaves) that he cuts from select local rivers and sourcing timbers from managed woodland.
Road 13 2020 Chenin Blanc + Miku bento box + Locked Upside Down
Road 13 Vineyards’ Chip Off the Old Block 2020 Chenin Blanc is made exclusively with hand-picked and -sorted grapes from its estate vineyards on the Golden Mile Bench. It’s crisp, citrusy, peachy, and clean, with a slight minerality that makes it perfect for seafood. (Find it at select retailers province-wide for $19.99.)
Pair that Chenin Blanc with a limited-edition bento box to-go from Miku.
Its Premium Mother’s Day Bento ($75) resembles a jewel box with fresh sashimi, flame-seared aburi sushi, surf & turf with aburi lobster tail and filet mignon, and a special Mother’s Day plum and cherry pavlova by chef Hiro Hoshino. “In Japan, we usually celebrate our mothers together as a family, and this is no different with my family here in Vancouver,” Seigo Nakamura, Founder and CEO of Aburi Restaurants, said in a release. “For us, we love enjoying a great meal together. Our bento boxes are made especially for this purpose so that there is a little taste of everything delicious.”
We’re keen to check out Locked Upside Down, a digital circus film following three artists who use hand balancing and contortion to express their experiences navigating the COVID-19 era. Featuring and produced by Kasha Konaka, Leyna Bella, and Stephanie VanDyck, the cinematic piece explores the possibilities and obstacles of being stuck at home homes while they dream of getting back to the stage. The women’s drive to keep creating in an art form that typically relies on physical contact in a world of social distancing shows the kind of pluck moms everywhere will appreciate.
Gray Monk 2020 Rosé + Popina Canteen + the Piano Men
Gray Monk Estate Winery has released its 2020 BC VQA Rosé, a quintessential summer wine (complete with an elegant new bottle). A balanced blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and its signature Rotberger (a red-wine grape originally from Germany), this vintage is slightly off-dry, perfectly crisp, and full of fruit-forward flavours of grapefruit, strawberry, and cranberry. Find it at retailers throughout B.C. for $17.99.
We think this is just the thing to calm the heat of Popina Canteen’s Epic Whole Fried-Chicken Family Feast available for Mother’s Day only. The Granville Island team brines whole free-run Fraser Valley chicken for 36 hours before dredging it in Nextjen Gluten-free Fried Chicken Mix and frying it to ultimate crispiness. We suggest Hammer’s Nashville Hot, a spice mix spiked with habanero and cayenne (though you can also go for classic or Szechuan Garlic Sauce with Szechuan peppercorns, chilies, and cilantro). It’s $45 and comes with French fries, garlic bread (gluten-free bread is also available), and Popina coleslaw. It’s available first-come first served for takeout or patio dining.
We’re keeping it light and fun with The Piano Men, a free online concert by Richard Sera and Andre Kunkel presented by Surrey Civic Theatres. The two local musicians cover everyone from Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis to Billy Joel and Elton John.
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