An Evening of Good Taste at Soergel's

I was fortunate enough to be invited to a Good Taste! Pittsburgh preview event at Soergel's Orchards last night. Even more fortunate, I was allowed to bring along a guest - so of course I took SP!

Wine from Arrowhead, Lake Erie. Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Port.

Good Taste! Pittsburgh is a food, wine, and cooking extravaganza. It's being held on Saturday, April 20 from 10 am ~ 5 pm at the Pittsburgh Marriott North in Cranberry Woods (which is very near to where I used to work). There will be celebrity chefs, wine tasting, food sampling, food activities for children, and cooking demonstrations. Food sampling? That sounds good to me! Lucky for me, we had the opportunity to sample some terrific food last night.

I am always nervous attending events where I don't know people, or don't think I will know people, but after I poured myself a glass of cabernet sauvignon and turned around, I saw Lindsay. If you haven't met Lindsay, well, she's one of the nicest, sweetest people I know and her blog leaves me laughing because she has a terrific way of finding a little happy in each and every day - or of making the not-so-happy funny! She was there with her friend Natalie and the four of us had a great time talking and catching up.

Usually we get our fill of local fruits/vegetables from our CSA or the nearby farmers market so we don't often go to the local farms. We have been to Soergel's several times and our focus is almost always on fruit and vegetables. We really should look around more because they make and sell BBQ sauce and pasta sauce and lots of other goodies.

Also, as I learned, they recently invested in a professional grade smoker and started smoking pork.

Delicious, moist, smoky pulled pork. So tasty. Did I mention how much I love smoked meats and how this pork had a delicious smoky flavor? There were three sauces from which to choose:

Sweet & Smokey (which I tried and really liked), Spicy (which SP tried and he said it was very good but not as spicy as he expected, probably because when he thinks spicy he thinks sweating and guzzling water), and a Carolina sauce, which Natalie liked.

I also learned that Soergel's raises cattle locally on the farm and it's happy cow - no added hormones or growth stimulants, just a diet of grains and grass hay. We were able to try some of the Black Angus beef. It was tasty happy cow.

Creamy potato salad - so good

The smoked pulled pork was my favorite food from the buffet but I have to say I thought the potato and pasta salads were excellent as well and I could have eaten more. If this food had been in my house and I could eat with no one watching me, I would have hoovered up a lot more at a rapid fire pace! There also was a mini salad bar, which made SP happy since he loves his lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, carrots, and cucumbers.

Pasta salad - penne with cucumber, pepper, olives and a tasty vinaigrette

Of course we all know I couldn't wait to dive into the cookies! SP and I shared one of each kind and all were very good.

Dessert! Cookies - I loved the mini lady locks and the fruit filled ones.

One thing I really enjoyed and appreciated about the evening was the presence of so many Soergel family members. They are very generous and hospitable. Towards the end of the evening, they walked around with samples of their applesauce, which is all natural, no sugar added. It might just be the best applesauce I've ever eaten.

I should mention that in addition to the wine and sodas, there was homemade lemonade and fresh brewed iced tea. SP loved the iced tea - unsweetened, not watered down. I liked both, but when I mixed them together, it was really, really good. I don't know if they sell the lemonade/iced tea in their store, but if they do, it's definitely worth checking out.

I should also mention that Soergel's has a Naturally Soergel's store which has organic, natural foods and has gluten free, soy free, rice free, casein free, and egg free options for those on special diets. While I am glad that SP's celiac diagnosis was incorrect, the convenience of a store in the north that sells such products makes me happy.

Many thanks to Good Taste! Pittsburgh and Soergel's for a terrific evening. We are hoping to be able to check out Good Taste! Pittsburgh next weekend before our show at the Benedum. If the food photos from Soergel's haven't tempted your taste buds, maybe this stage schedule for the Good Taste! Pittsburgh event will:

• Lindsey Smith, author of Junk Foods & Junk Moods
• Caroline Wright, author of Twenty-Dollar, Twenty-Minute Meals, will prepare 3 recipes from her newly published book
• Kevin Watson from Savoy will prepare butternut squash ravioli with lobster basil creme sauce
• Chef Keith Fuller from Root 174 will prepare Asparagus, 5 minute egg, farro salad with lemon, chive, & dehydrated oyster mushroom
• Ann Talarek, owner, Green Spot, discussing re-purposing Olive Oil Bottles & Flower Arranging Tips
• Ryta Mirisciotti, Wine Expert, Making Sense of the Restaurant Wine List and Other Fun Facts About Wine
• Amy Soergel, from Soergel's, The Art of Juicing
• Table Top Designs

You can buy your tickets for $12 here: http://www.goodtastepittsburgh.com/



* I wasn't paid or asked to write a review about Good Taste! Pittsburgh or Soergel's, I was simply invited to an event, this post is just my thoughts on the evening.