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CHAPARRAL GARDENS Champagne Mimosa Vinegar
WHEN A NEIGHBOR'S YOU-PICK BERRY STAND CLOSED DOWN next to her 20 acres of farmland located in the central coast of California, Cari Clark picked as many berries as she could. When she tired of making jams, she tried her hand at raspberry vinegar. The result was a hit with family and friends and sold out at local farmers markets. Clark and her husband, Craig, continued to experiment with fruit vinegars and soon expanded their operations, adding fruit-flavored balsamic to the mix. (Last year the couple's Blackberry Balsamic took home a sofi Gold for Outstanding Salad Dressing, while their Pacific Spice Vinegar garnered a sofi Silver for Outstanding Cooking Sauce or Flavor Enhancer.) This year, sofi came knocking again. Champagne Mimosa Vinegar is a blend of Champagne vinegar and navel and blood oranges. "The idea came to us over Sunday brunch one day while we were all drinking mimosas," says Craig Clark. Champagne Mimosa, like all of Chaparral Gardens fruit vinegars, is designed for versatile cooking applications. Local restaurants use this product for sauce reductions and marinades for dishes as varied as cow's tongue and oysters on the half shell, he notes. Champagne Mimosa even has a place at the bar, where it is being incorporated in the trendy "shrub cocktail," a tart and acidic fruit-based boozy drink. Clark says he grows at least 80 percent of all the produce used for the vinegars; the remainder they source from neighboring farms. Stainless steel vats used for fermentation keep the flavor profile exact. Foodservice price: $33/gallon. Contact: Craig Clark, Chaparral Gardens; 805.703.0829; cgvinegar@ gmail.com; cgvinegar.com.—N.P.D.
FINALISTS
➊ LUQUIRE FAMILY FOODS Carolina Creole® Contact: Jason Luquire jason@carolinacreole.com 843.485.4344 carolinacreole.com
➋ SUKHI'S GOURMET INDIAN FOODS Tikka Masala Curry Paste Contact: Sanjog Sikand sanjog@sukhis.com 510.709.7855 sukhis.com
SEPTEMBER 2012 S39
SHELF-STABLE FOODSERVICE PRODUCT