In July 2010, I received an e-mail from the Tables in Wonderland folks advertising The Grape Getaway at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. I was immediately intrigued and the following day I booked flights and then registered as a participant. The initial cost [$2,504US for single-occupancy, $2,203US per person, double-occupancy and $1,900US per person without the resort stay] was a little intimidating, but as I read through the descriptions of the event I became more and more convinced this would be an event worth doing. Disney later reduced all three prices by $300 and provided a refund to those who had already paid.
The advertising for the event said they maximum number of participants was limited to 100 people. As it turned out, they only had 18 sign up, which was disappointing for them, but made for a very intimate experience for those of us who did sign up. I hope they will try to get around 40-50 participants if they do this again, many more than that would detract from the intimacy and I suspect many less and they’d likely cancel, which would be a great shame as you’ll read…
I ended up booking a night before and a night after the scheduled event resort stay simply because flights didn’t work for me arriving and leaving the way it was scheduled. I managed to get a night at Beach Club prior and added an extra night at Boardwalk. The Reservations CMs couldn’t find the confirmation number I’d been given in the system, so I couldn’t link the two stays at Boardwalk until I was checking in. It all worked out and I didn’t have to switch rooms for the last night there. I did get a little nervous that the whole thing might be some sort of elaborate scam when no-one I actually talked to at Disney had ever heard of “Grape Getaway” at all… But my trepidation was unfounded.
23/24 October
I arrived on 23 October, took DME to Beach Club and checked in in the wee hours of the 24th. I was up early and had an ADR at Cape May for the character breakfast. I always forget that eating solo I eat too fast for characters to all get to me, but I managed to see Daisy, Minnie and Goofy. Then I headed back to my room to get my luggage and head over to Boardwalk to check in there. I was relieved to find that they did indeed have a reservation for me. But there was a hiccup: They had no payment on the room, not even a deposit! Since they had my credit card on file, it wasn’t a disaster and it was all straightened out by the time I checked in with the event later that day.
I spent the rest of the morning in EPCOT. I headed for Soarin’ and got an FP. Then I rode Living with the Land. I rode the Nemo ride and wandered through the Seas. I walked through both Innoventions and rode Universe of Energy before heading back to Soarin’ for my FP. After that I had a lovely lunch at Rose & Crown before meeting Laura in the pub. We chatted a bit over my Blue Label before parting ways. She convinced me to meet her after dinner and go to Universal for Halloween Horror Nights. I had a voucher to get in for free that came with my Premier Pass, so I said why not?
After the Rose & Crown, I went back to Boardwalk, checked in with Grape Getaway then got my luggage and went to the room to unpack and have a nap. On check-in they gave me a bag with a lovely bottle of wine, two Grape Getaway wine glasses and a bunch of other gifts. A very nice start.
After my nap and a shower, I headed to the welcome reception dinner at the Atlantic Dance Hall. They had four food stations set up and we were greeted at the door with cocktails. There was an open bar available throughout. The food was all amazing. I had vanilla chili seared sea scallops and ice wine butter on a bed of quinoa with chervil, an individual baked chicken and vegetable cassoulet with a chasseur sauce topped with a tarragon biscuit, sautéed potato gnocchi and followed up with roasted stone fruits with sour cream ice cream. There was so much food I couldn’t sample everything.
The Dinner menu:
Dinner was followed by a presentation of Louis XIII de Remy Martin Grande Champagne Cognac. I was absolutely blown away by this drink! A wonderfully smooth, delicious cognac. A few of the ladies in the group didn’t care to drink theirs and graciously offered their samples over to me. As a result, I suspect I ultimately drank in excess of $300-400 worth of this elixir [don’t be too impressed, at $1,800-$3,000 a bottle that’s still not very much alcohol!].
An incredible introduction to what truly was to be an epic event!
After dinner I texted Laura and we headed to Universal for HHN. After having my belt-pack searched on arrival, I was surprised that they had a second search and a metal detector at the entrance to USF. Since my belt-pack was looped through my belt loops, it made for a rather awkward scene while Laura assisted with taking it off. We finally made it in without further issue and luckily my shorts didn’t fall off. We managed to go through all the fright zones and one house. Honestly, I’m glad I didn’t have to pay extra to get in, it was underwhelming to say the least. Maybe I’ve become jaded in my old age, but nothing there was remotely scary and most wasn’t even terribly entertaining. But I got to spend some time with Laura, so it was worth going. I was dropped off at Boardwalk and got to bed around 2AM.
25 October
Monday started with a bus ride into the backstage area of EPCOT and we were escorted into the old Wonders of Life Pavilion, which serves as the Festival Welcome Center for the Food & Wine Festival. We started with a huge breakfast buffet complete with Mimosa’s. Breakfast was followed by “Sweet Mondays”, a demonstration by Julian Rose, Master Chocolatier from Moonstruck Chocolate of Portland, OR. Julian demo’d how to make a Pure Origin Chocolate Tarte with Salted Peanut Caramel, which we sampled along with a Crunch Hazelnut Success Cake with Dark Chocolate Mousse and White Chocolate Pistachios Stick and some Vanilla Truffles that were devine! They served us Moët & Chandon Rosé Impérial and Moët & Chandon Nectar Impérial with the chocolate.
I somehow misplaced the menu card from breakfast, so it’s the only one I don’t have a scan of.
From there we moved to another area in the Festival Welcome Center where we had a wine tasting hosted by Luis Burgueño from Marqués de Cáceres in the La Rioja region of Spain. Luis led us through the excellent wines of the region, sampling Cosecha, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva along with a variety of cheeses paired to what we were tasting.
After the wine, we were escorted through World Showcase by two of the three primary chefs responsible for choosing the various foods for the Food & Wine Festival, explaining some of the incredible planning and preparation involved. We stopped at a number of different kiosks as they explained some of the challenges they face in preparing and maintaining the quality of each dish that’s served. After the walkabout with the chefs, we had some free time to go back and sample whatever had struck our fancies, armed with a $50 gift card. I had the Fisherman’s Pie from Ireland and a small sample of Cheddar soup from Canada. I couldn't eat any more than that!
We then went over to the Odyssey Pavilion and had a seminar on Ritter Sport Chocolate by Tom Gaffney. From chocolate, we moved to tequila… A very impressive introduction to the finer elements of quality tequila presented by Jaime Salas from Milagro Tequila. Jaime led us through the process of creating three different Milagro Select Barrel Reserves: Silver, Reposado and Añejo. Of course, we had ample samples to experience! I was amazed to find the Añejo very similar to a good single malt Scotch. The tequila presentation was followed by a Mixology Seminar by Charlotte Voisey, an amazing [and gorgeous] young lady who walked us through the preparation [and drinking] of four different cocktails, a Sicilian Margarita, an Elderflower Margarita, a Blood & Sanguinello and a Little Miss Hendrick’s, all of which were delicious!
After Charlotte, we had a presentation by Maria Hunt, author of “The Bubbly Bar: Champagne and Sparkling Wine Cocktails for Every Occasion”. Maria walked us through the preparation of her cocktail “The Stiletto” and a discussion of various cocktails. It was a little disappointing that Maria had to follow Charlotte, she had a very hard act to follow and two mixologists delivering similar information back-to-back was a bit much. Which was a pity, as Maria’s demo would have been excellent at a different point in the schedule.
After the Odyssey, we were bussed back to the Boardwalk to freshen up for dinner. For dinner we were again taken backstage by bus, this time at DHS with a quick walk to The Great Movie Ride. We had the most wonderful experience! Starting outside the building we were greeted and entertained by our “Producer” a CM in costume. He regaled us with stories and interacted with us. Then we were led through the queue and walked into the ride. We went on foot through the ride, arriving in the gangster scene to be met by two CMs, a gangster and his “Moll” who entertained us while we had appetizers and drinks in the gangster era. Then we walked into the Western scene for a wonderful dinner hosted by “Maw” and entertained by her boys, a trio singing and playing instruments. Dinner was a three-course meal, starting with pan seared rabbit loin, boar prosciutto and the main entrée was parmesan and truffle braised short rib with EVOO poached lobster paired with Batasiolo Barolo Vigneto Boscareto and Cerequio wines. If that weren’t enough, we then wandered through to Oz for dessert! Graced by the presence of Glinda the White Witch, we had an absolutely decadent buffet of amazing desserts paired with Batasiolo Moscato D’Asti and [of course] an open bar.
I suspect if the Grape Getaway had ended at this point most of us would have been extremely satisfied, but we were only half way through!
26 October
Today started with another bus ride backstage and we were taken into Wonders of Life again. Today we had a four-course breakfast [yes, you read that right] while being entertaining by Pam Brandon discussing the effort that goes into creating the Food & Wine Festival Cookbook as well as the many other cookbooks she compiles for Disney. Pam autographed copies of the Festival cookbook for all of us. The breakfast was amazing, starting with Tarragon Whiskey Cured Scottish Salmon, followed by a Cheese Frittata, the main course was Petit Kobe Beef and all followed by a Strawberry, Kiwi, Mango and Agave Yogurt Napoleon with Dark Chocolate Rum Smear. The Napoleon was probably my only real culinary disappointment of the entire event, it was quite dry and very difficult to eat. Breakfast was followed by a food demo by Pam Smith, the Culinary Host of the EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival and our event host throughout the Grape Getaway event itself. Pam walked us through the preparation of a delicious Lobster, Wild Mushroom and Fresh Corn Risotto and of course we sampled the dish as she did so, paired with a Mer Soleil Barrel Fermented Chardonnay.
From Wonders of Life we hopped back on the bus and headed to the Contemporary Resort for a very special lunch event at the California Grill. The only word that comes to mind is “mind-boggling”! We were greeted as we came off the elevators with Heidsieck & Co. Monopole Brut. Then we were ushered to a table with full view of their kitchens and positioned between two demo tables. The first course was a demo by Chef Brian Piasecki preparing a seasonal salad which was then served to us with a lovely wine pairing. Then we had an interactive demo by the California Grill’s resident Sushi Chef, who walked us through preparing our own hand-rolls, which were then quickly whisked away to be replaced by her own delectable sushi creations [I ate my hand roll, it was wonderful, but nowhere near hers! LOL], paired with wine. Then we gathered at the kitchen for a demo, again by Chef Brian, of the preparation of our main course, Braised Pork Shank over a puree of Autumn Root Vegetables and Braised Sweet Cabbage, which was then served, paired with wine. We finished off with another interactive demo of chocolate, chocolate, chocolate… Followed by the California Grill’s Signature Valrhona Chocolate Cake!
From California Grill, we were taken back to EPCOT for wine school! Some of our group were starting to fade and decided to retire to Boardwalk for a break, but a stalwart few soldiered on! The Wine School was presented by Brian Koziol, a Master Sommelier, who presented us with six varieties of Cabarbet Sauvignon, all from different appellations of the Napa Valley. He also explained much of the history of the Napa Valley itself and explained each of the many appellations to be found there. It was amazing to taste the distinctive flavours of six Cabarnets and it was a wonderful experience for which we were all presented our own individual certificates of completion of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival Epcot Wine School. The Wine School was followed by a reception with wonderful hors d'œuvres and more wine! We felt obliged to at least sample the hors d'œuvres, but we were all pretty much wined out by this point. Leaving many hors d'œuvres and much wine to waste, we headed back to Boardwalk to freshen up for dinner.
Dinner was a “mini-Party for the Senses” held in the Epcot Wonders Retreat, a third floor lounge overlooking the main Festival Welcome Center. We had four food stations where we could sit and chat with the chefs as they prepared whatever of their options we chose to eat. Then there were an equal number of paired wine and beer stations scattered around the lounge to choose from. The highlight was probably a 2007 Nine Barrel Pinot Noir, but everything I sampled was divine. From dinner, we hopped into our bus to be taken to behind France, where we were whisked into the VIP viewing area five minutes before IllumiNations was to start. A wonderful dessert buffet and an open bar were set up for our pleasure as we watched Epcot’s night-time spectacular in all its glory from perfect seating. I can’t say for sure, since we were on time for IllumiNations, but given the exclusive VIP treatment we received throughout, I don’t doubt they would have delayed the start of the show if we’d been late.
Sorry, my scanner wouldn't capture the whole thing!
27 October
As with all good things, Grape Getaway too had to come to an end. But not without flourish! We were escorted to “The Attic” in the Boardwalk Resort. A beautiful reception area with an indoor lounge and an outdoor patio. We had our farewell breakfast, starting with a demonstration of how to prepare crepes, including some hands-on practice for a few brave souls. There was a variety of breads and pastries, delicious citrus crepes, a huge Fruit and Berry Trifle followed by Boardwalk Crab Cake Benedict with Poached Eggs… An amazing finish to a truly spectacular event.
We did a bit of a round-table of what people’s favourite experiences were and we were asked to complete a survey of our thoughts about what was good and what might need improvement and then we had to say our goodbyes… It was wonderful getting to know the small group and we became friends during our short but busy time together. It was really hard to part ways.
I finished off the day in EPCOT. I had to have one more sampling of Cheddar Soup from Canada, of course I spilled a drop on my shirt as I tried to consume every tiny bit. I had arranged to meet with Amber [AMH97] and Donovan along with Tigger, of course! And as luck would have it, she texted her arrival at EPCOT as I was changing my choup-stained shirt. We managed to meet up at China and chatted for a while before getting a required photo with Tigger [yay! I get to be in a Tigger TR!]. I left them to have lunch while I had a much-needed nap. After my nap, I headed to the Belle Vue Lounge in Boardwalk where I was to meet up with Mike [Yanks07] and his lovely wife. I had a Blue Label while I waited and then treated Mike to his first ever as I had my second [it would be rude to let him experience Blue Label alone!]. His wife Julie joined us as we finished up and we all headed to Nine Dragons for a wonderful dinner followed by viewing IllumiNations together. I talked way too much during dinner, but they were gracious and listened. I simply couldn’t eat all of what I was served, but it was delicious. I had egg rolls and Kung Pao Chicken. After IllumiNations, we parted company. I went back to my room, re-packed my bag and went to bed exhausted.
28 October
Departure day. I got up relatively early, showered and finished packing. I had a little time, so I wandered down to the boardwalk to find something to eat and was surprised to find Kouzzina open for breakfast! I got a table and enjoyed a wonderful American breakfast with very nice brewed coffee [I decided against the press pot just because of volume]. Then it was off to catch DME for the ride home.
Summary:
The Grape Getaway was an amazing event! It was easily worth every penny it cost and then some. I was very impressed with the chefs who all seemed genuinely thrilled to be giving us demos and providing us with so much fantastic food. The wines, liquors and alcohol were all not only exquisite but bountiful! [I even tried to buy a bottle of Louis XIII at the Duty-Free at MCO, only to find out they carry it at the UK departures Duty-Free, but not at the Canadian departures store! The clerk swore he would let them know and try to have it when I go through in December.] The Disney staff involved with the preparation, planning and execution of the event were absolutely stellar! Considering that this was their first attempt at such an elaborate event, the minor issues that came up in no way diminished the end result: An indescribable success! I sincerely hope they see fit to host this event again next year! I’ll be there and will try to convince a few friends I know who would certainly appreciate it to join me!
The event staff will be preparing a package with all the menus, recipes provided and the many photos that were taken and sending it to all the participants, but I wanted to get my report out while things were fresh in my mind.
In my view, the only negatives in the entire event were the rather dry Napoleon dessert at the four-course breakfast, the unfortunate back-to-back scheduling of the two mixologists and simply that there was so much food and drink in such short time. The last two are easily fixed, leaving one very inconsequential negative in a sea of overwhelmingly over-the-top positives! I don’t think I could be more effusive in my praise for this event!
The advertising for the event said they maximum number of participants was limited to 100 people. As it turned out, they only had 18 sign up, which was disappointing for them, but made for a very intimate experience for those of us who did sign up. I hope they will try to get around 40-50 participants if they do this again, many more than that would detract from the intimacy and I suspect many less and they’d likely cancel, which would be a great shame as you’ll read…
I ended up booking a night before and a night after the scheduled event resort stay simply because flights didn’t work for me arriving and leaving the way it was scheduled. I managed to get a night at Beach Club prior and added an extra night at Boardwalk. The Reservations CMs couldn’t find the confirmation number I’d been given in the system, so I couldn’t link the two stays at Boardwalk until I was checking in. It all worked out and I didn’t have to switch rooms for the last night there. I did get a little nervous that the whole thing might be some sort of elaborate scam when no-one I actually talked to at Disney had ever heard of “Grape Getaway” at all… But my trepidation was unfounded.
23/24 October
I arrived on 23 October, took DME to Beach Club and checked in in the wee hours of the 24th. I was up early and had an ADR at Cape May for the character breakfast. I always forget that eating solo I eat too fast for characters to all get to me, but I managed to see Daisy, Minnie and Goofy. Then I headed back to my room to get my luggage and head over to Boardwalk to check in there. I was relieved to find that they did indeed have a reservation for me. But there was a hiccup: They had no payment on the room, not even a deposit! Since they had my credit card on file, it wasn’t a disaster and it was all straightened out by the time I checked in with the event later that day.
I spent the rest of the morning in EPCOT. I headed for Soarin’ and got an FP. Then I rode Living with the Land. I rode the Nemo ride and wandered through the Seas. I walked through both Innoventions and rode Universe of Energy before heading back to Soarin’ for my FP. After that I had a lovely lunch at Rose & Crown before meeting Laura in the pub. We chatted a bit over my Blue Label before parting ways. She convinced me to meet her after dinner and go to Universal for Halloween Horror Nights. I had a voucher to get in for free that came with my Premier Pass, so I said why not?
After the Rose & Crown, I went back to Boardwalk, checked in with Grape Getaway then got my luggage and went to the room to unpack and have a nap. On check-in they gave me a bag with a lovely bottle of wine, two Grape Getaway wine glasses and a bunch of other gifts. A very nice start.
After my nap and a shower, I headed to the welcome reception dinner at the Atlantic Dance Hall. They had four food stations set up and we were greeted at the door with cocktails. There was an open bar available throughout. The food was all amazing. I had vanilla chili seared sea scallops and ice wine butter on a bed of quinoa with chervil, an individual baked chicken and vegetable cassoulet with a chasseur sauce topped with a tarragon biscuit, sautéed potato gnocchi and followed up with roasted stone fruits with sour cream ice cream. There was so much food I couldn’t sample everything.
The Dinner menu:
Dinner was followed by a presentation of Louis XIII de Remy Martin Grande Champagne Cognac. I was absolutely blown away by this drink! A wonderfully smooth, delicious cognac. A few of the ladies in the group didn’t care to drink theirs and graciously offered their samples over to me. As a result, I suspect I ultimately drank in excess of $300-400 worth of this elixir [don’t be too impressed, at $1,800-$3,000 a bottle that’s still not very much alcohol!].
An incredible introduction to what truly was to be an epic event!
After dinner I texted Laura and we headed to Universal for HHN. After having my belt-pack searched on arrival, I was surprised that they had a second search and a metal detector at the entrance to USF. Since my belt-pack was looped through my belt loops, it made for a rather awkward scene while Laura assisted with taking it off. We finally made it in without further issue and luckily my shorts didn’t fall off. We managed to go through all the fright zones and one house. Honestly, I’m glad I didn’t have to pay extra to get in, it was underwhelming to say the least. Maybe I’ve become jaded in my old age, but nothing there was remotely scary and most wasn’t even terribly entertaining. But I got to spend some time with Laura, so it was worth going. I was dropped off at Boardwalk and got to bed around 2AM.
25 October
Monday started with a bus ride into the backstage area of EPCOT and we were escorted into the old Wonders of Life Pavilion, which serves as the Festival Welcome Center for the Food & Wine Festival. We started with a huge breakfast buffet complete with Mimosa’s. Breakfast was followed by “Sweet Mondays”, a demonstration by Julian Rose, Master Chocolatier from Moonstruck Chocolate of Portland, OR. Julian demo’d how to make a Pure Origin Chocolate Tarte with Salted Peanut Caramel, which we sampled along with a Crunch Hazelnut Success Cake with Dark Chocolate Mousse and White Chocolate Pistachios Stick and some Vanilla Truffles that were devine! They served us Moët & Chandon Rosé Impérial and Moët & Chandon Nectar Impérial with the chocolate.
I somehow misplaced the menu card from breakfast, so it’s the only one I don’t have a scan of.
From there we moved to another area in the Festival Welcome Center where we had a wine tasting hosted by Luis Burgueño from Marqués de Cáceres in the La Rioja region of Spain. Luis led us through the excellent wines of the region, sampling Cosecha, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva along with a variety of cheeses paired to what we were tasting.
After the wine, we were escorted through World Showcase by two of the three primary chefs responsible for choosing the various foods for the Food & Wine Festival, explaining some of the incredible planning and preparation involved. We stopped at a number of different kiosks as they explained some of the challenges they face in preparing and maintaining the quality of each dish that’s served. After the walkabout with the chefs, we had some free time to go back and sample whatever had struck our fancies, armed with a $50 gift card. I had the Fisherman’s Pie from Ireland and a small sample of Cheddar soup from Canada. I couldn't eat any more than that!
We then went over to the Odyssey Pavilion and had a seminar on Ritter Sport Chocolate by Tom Gaffney. From chocolate, we moved to tequila… A very impressive introduction to the finer elements of quality tequila presented by Jaime Salas from Milagro Tequila. Jaime led us through the process of creating three different Milagro Select Barrel Reserves: Silver, Reposado and Añejo. Of course, we had ample samples to experience! I was amazed to find the Añejo very similar to a good single malt Scotch. The tequila presentation was followed by a Mixology Seminar by Charlotte Voisey, an amazing [and gorgeous] young lady who walked us through the preparation [and drinking] of four different cocktails, a Sicilian Margarita, an Elderflower Margarita, a Blood & Sanguinello and a Little Miss Hendrick’s, all of which were delicious!
After Charlotte, we had a presentation by Maria Hunt, author of “The Bubbly Bar: Champagne and Sparkling Wine Cocktails for Every Occasion”. Maria walked us through the preparation of her cocktail “The Stiletto” and a discussion of various cocktails. It was a little disappointing that Maria had to follow Charlotte, she had a very hard act to follow and two mixologists delivering similar information back-to-back was a bit much. Which was a pity, as Maria’s demo would have been excellent at a different point in the schedule.
After the Odyssey, we were bussed back to the Boardwalk to freshen up for dinner. For dinner we were again taken backstage by bus, this time at DHS with a quick walk to The Great Movie Ride. We had the most wonderful experience! Starting outside the building we were greeted and entertained by our “Producer” a CM in costume. He regaled us with stories and interacted with us. Then we were led through the queue and walked into the ride. We went on foot through the ride, arriving in the gangster scene to be met by two CMs, a gangster and his “Moll” who entertained us while we had appetizers and drinks in the gangster era. Then we walked into the Western scene for a wonderful dinner hosted by “Maw” and entertained by her boys, a trio singing and playing instruments. Dinner was a three-course meal, starting with pan seared rabbit loin, boar prosciutto and the main entrée was parmesan and truffle braised short rib with EVOO poached lobster paired with Batasiolo Barolo Vigneto Boscareto and Cerequio wines. If that weren’t enough, we then wandered through to Oz for dessert! Graced by the presence of Glinda the White Witch, we had an absolutely decadent buffet of amazing desserts paired with Batasiolo Moscato D’Asti and [of course] an open bar.
I suspect if the Grape Getaway had ended at this point most of us would have been extremely satisfied, but we were only half way through!
26 October
Today started with another bus ride backstage and we were taken into Wonders of Life again. Today we had a four-course breakfast [yes, you read that right] while being entertaining by Pam Brandon discussing the effort that goes into creating the Food & Wine Festival Cookbook as well as the many other cookbooks she compiles for Disney. Pam autographed copies of the Festival cookbook for all of us. The breakfast was amazing, starting with Tarragon Whiskey Cured Scottish Salmon, followed by a Cheese Frittata, the main course was Petit Kobe Beef and all followed by a Strawberry, Kiwi, Mango and Agave Yogurt Napoleon with Dark Chocolate Rum Smear. The Napoleon was probably my only real culinary disappointment of the entire event, it was quite dry and very difficult to eat. Breakfast was followed by a food demo by Pam Smith, the Culinary Host of the EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival and our event host throughout the Grape Getaway event itself. Pam walked us through the preparation of a delicious Lobster, Wild Mushroom and Fresh Corn Risotto and of course we sampled the dish as she did so, paired with a Mer Soleil Barrel Fermented Chardonnay.
From Wonders of Life we hopped back on the bus and headed to the Contemporary Resort for a very special lunch event at the California Grill. The only word that comes to mind is “mind-boggling”! We were greeted as we came off the elevators with Heidsieck & Co. Monopole Brut. Then we were ushered to a table with full view of their kitchens and positioned between two demo tables. The first course was a demo by Chef Brian Piasecki preparing a seasonal salad which was then served to us with a lovely wine pairing. Then we had an interactive demo by the California Grill’s resident Sushi Chef, who walked us through preparing our own hand-rolls, which were then quickly whisked away to be replaced by her own delectable sushi creations [I ate my hand roll, it was wonderful, but nowhere near hers! LOL], paired with wine. Then we gathered at the kitchen for a demo, again by Chef Brian, of the preparation of our main course, Braised Pork Shank over a puree of Autumn Root Vegetables and Braised Sweet Cabbage, which was then served, paired with wine. We finished off with another interactive demo of chocolate, chocolate, chocolate… Followed by the California Grill’s Signature Valrhona Chocolate Cake!
From California Grill, we were taken back to EPCOT for wine school! Some of our group were starting to fade and decided to retire to Boardwalk for a break, but a stalwart few soldiered on! The Wine School was presented by Brian Koziol, a Master Sommelier, who presented us with six varieties of Cabarbet Sauvignon, all from different appellations of the Napa Valley. He also explained much of the history of the Napa Valley itself and explained each of the many appellations to be found there. It was amazing to taste the distinctive flavours of six Cabarnets and it was a wonderful experience for which we were all presented our own individual certificates of completion of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival Epcot Wine School. The Wine School was followed by a reception with wonderful hors d'œuvres and more wine! We felt obliged to at least sample the hors d'œuvres, but we were all pretty much wined out by this point. Leaving many hors d'œuvres and much wine to waste, we headed back to Boardwalk to freshen up for dinner.
Dinner was a “mini-Party for the Senses” held in the Epcot Wonders Retreat, a third floor lounge overlooking the main Festival Welcome Center. We had four food stations where we could sit and chat with the chefs as they prepared whatever of their options we chose to eat. Then there were an equal number of paired wine and beer stations scattered around the lounge to choose from. The highlight was probably a 2007 Nine Barrel Pinot Noir, but everything I sampled was divine. From dinner, we hopped into our bus to be taken to behind France, where we were whisked into the VIP viewing area five minutes before IllumiNations was to start. A wonderful dessert buffet and an open bar were set up for our pleasure as we watched Epcot’s night-time spectacular in all its glory from perfect seating. I can’t say for sure, since we were on time for IllumiNations, but given the exclusive VIP treatment we received throughout, I don’t doubt they would have delayed the start of the show if we’d been late.
Sorry, my scanner wouldn't capture the whole thing!
27 October
As with all good things, Grape Getaway too had to come to an end. But not without flourish! We were escorted to “The Attic” in the Boardwalk Resort. A beautiful reception area with an indoor lounge and an outdoor patio. We had our farewell breakfast, starting with a demonstration of how to prepare crepes, including some hands-on practice for a few brave souls. There was a variety of breads and pastries, delicious citrus crepes, a huge Fruit and Berry Trifle followed by Boardwalk Crab Cake Benedict with Poached Eggs… An amazing finish to a truly spectacular event.
We did a bit of a round-table of what people’s favourite experiences were and we were asked to complete a survey of our thoughts about what was good and what might need improvement and then we had to say our goodbyes… It was wonderful getting to know the small group and we became friends during our short but busy time together. It was really hard to part ways.
I finished off the day in EPCOT. I had to have one more sampling of Cheddar Soup from Canada, of course I spilled a drop on my shirt as I tried to consume every tiny bit. I had arranged to meet with Amber [AMH97] and Donovan along with Tigger, of course! And as luck would have it, she texted her arrival at EPCOT as I was changing my choup-stained shirt. We managed to meet up at China and chatted for a while before getting a required photo with Tigger [yay! I get to be in a Tigger TR!]. I left them to have lunch while I had a much-needed nap. After my nap, I headed to the Belle Vue Lounge in Boardwalk where I was to meet up with Mike [Yanks07] and his lovely wife. I had a Blue Label while I waited and then treated Mike to his first ever as I had my second [it would be rude to let him experience Blue Label alone!]. His wife Julie joined us as we finished up and we all headed to Nine Dragons for a wonderful dinner followed by viewing IllumiNations together. I talked way too much during dinner, but they were gracious and listened. I simply couldn’t eat all of what I was served, but it was delicious. I had egg rolls and Kung Pao Chicken. After IllumiNations, we parted company. I went back to my room, re-packed my bag and went to bed exhausted.
28 October
Departure day. I got up relatively early, showered and finished packing. I had a little time, so I wandered down to the boardwalk to find something to eat and was surprised to find Kouzzina open for breakfast! I got a table and enjoyed a wonderful American breakfast with very nice brewed coffee [I decided against the press pot just because of volume]. Then it was off to catch DME for the ride home.
Summary:
The Grape Getaway was an amazing event! It was easily worth every penny it cost and then some. I was very impressed with the chefs who all seemed genuinely thrilled to be giving us demos and providing us with so much fantastic food. The wines, liquors and alcohol were all not only exquisite but bountiful! [I even tried to buy a bottle of Louis XIII at the Duty-Free at MCO, only to find out they carry it at the UK departures Duty-Free, but not at the Canadian departures store! The clerk swore he would let them know and try to have it when I go through in December.] The Disney staff involved with the preparation, planning and execution of the event were absolutely stellar! Considering that this was their first attempt at such an elaborate event, the minor issues that came up in no way diminished the end result: An indescribable success! I sincerely hope they see fit to host this event again next year! I’ll be there and will try to convince a few friends I know who would certainly appreciate it to join me!
The event staff will be preparing a package with all the menus, recipes provided and the many photos that were taken and sending it to all the participants, but I wanted to get my report out while things were fresh in my mind.
In my view, the only negatives in the entire event were the rather dry Napoleon dessert at the four-course breakfast, the unfortunate back-to-back scheduling of the two mixologists and simply that there was so much food and drink in such short time. The last two are easily fixed, leaving one very inconsequential negative in a sea of overwhelmingly over-the-top positives! I don’t think I could be more effusive in my praise for this event!
