The 23rd La Dolce Vita Food & Wine Festival that sponsors the AMOA-Arthouse will take place tonight from 6-9 p.m. at Laguna Gloria.

Food will be served from several Austin restaurants including East Side Showroom, Foreign & Domestic, Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill, Olive & June, Parkside, Ranch 616, and Trace. Famed Austin restaurateur Larry McGuire of Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, Perla’s, Elizabeth Street Café, and Jeffrey’s Restaurant has been chosen as the honorary chef for the evening.

“As a native Austinite, I’ve enjoyed Laguna Gloria, La Dolce Vita, and the museum my entire life, so to be asked to serve as the 2012 Honorary Chef is a real privilege,” Larry McGuire said in a press release. “Not only am I excited about helping AMOA-Arthouse raise funds for its education programs, but I feel that this event stands out from all the other food events in town.”

Cocktails will be prepared by Tipsy Texan’s David Alan and local wineries and distillers including Becker Vineyards, Inwood Estates Vineyards, Llano Estacado Winery, and Pedernales Cellars will be present as well. For more information about the event, check out this link.

Tagged: AMOA-Arthouse, David Alan, East Side Show Room, Foreign & Domestic, Inwood Estates Vineyards, La Dolce Vita Food & Wine Festival, Lamberts Downto, Larry McGuire, Layne Lynch, llano estacado winery, Moonshine Patio Bar & Grill, Olive & June, Parkside, Pedernales Cellars, perla's, Ranch 616, Tipsy Texan, TRACE

Despite our most valiant efforts, we cannot predict the life events that await us around the corner. Before May of last year, Daniel Curtis – former food and beverage director of The Carillon – had every intention of continuing his work in the evolving Austin culinary scene. But when a diving accident on Memorial Day Weekend of last year left Curtis with a severe spinal cord injury, all of his prior life plans were derailed. His focus was no longer on cuisine; Curtis wanted to regain his mobility.

Daniel Curtis and Josh Watkins

After the tragic event, Curtis quickly realized the road to recovery would be long, hard, and certainly not cheap. Despite having insurance, Curtis’ medical bills were significant. Lucky for Curtis, though, he had some loyal friends, loving family members, and faithful coworkers that were looking out for him. A group of individuals, including Curtis’ best friend, Josh Watkins – executive chef of the The Carillon – rallied together with the Lone Star Paralysis Foundation and created a fundraiser on Curtis’ behalf. In the end, the event raised an estimated $70,000 that helped cover some of Curtis’ medical expenses.

Now over a year later, Curtis has made some significant progress in his recovery, but he still has a lot of work ahead of him. His goal is to walk again, but his recovery is still very much a work in progress. All the same, Curtis is steadfast in his commitment  to push forward and pay it forward. In fact, Curtis is repaying the life-altering gift that was given to him last year and has helped put together the Pay It Forward With Daniel Curtis Event that takes place tonight.

The fundraising event will help raise awareness and funds for individuals who, like Curtis, have suffered spinal cord injuries. Tonight from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the AT&T Executive Center, The Lone Star Paralysis Foundation hosts a night of silent auctions, live music from Kat Edmonson, and delicious cocktails and cuisine from some of Austin’s most talented culinary minds, including Josh Watkins of The Carillon, John Bates of The Noble Pig, David Bull of Congress, Shawn Cirkiel of Parkside, Callie Speer of Swift’s Attic, Philip Speer of Uchi and Uchiko, David Alan of Tipsy Texan, and several more.

To purchase tickets to this charitable event, see this link. Tickets can also be purchased at the door!

Tagged: austin, Callie Speer, Congress, Daniel Curtis, David Alan, David Bull, John Bates, Josh Watkins, Layne Lynch, Parkside, Pay It Forward, Philip Speer, Shawn Ciriel, Swift's Attic, the Carillon, The Noble Pig, Tipsy Texan, uchi, uchiko

Ever since Tito’s vodka broke through the Texas distilling laws and danced onto the scene in 1997, the craft Texas spirit world has exploded with a number of different products from orange-flavored liqueurs (Paula’s Texas Orange) to blue corn whiskies (Balcones Distilling Baby Blue Whisky). We even have Texas gin, rum and bourbon—more on each of these in the following months. But vodka seems to be the choice spirit for producers across the state. There are more than eight Texas vodkas in addition to Tito’s including Savvy, Dripping Springs, Deep Eddy and Famous to name a few.

One of the latest to join the scene is Cinco Vodka out of San Antonio. And while it bares the same spirit name as its circle of Texas-made liquors, Cinco stands out as the only vodka made in the classic European tradition using wheat as the key grain ingredient. All other Texas vodka is made with corn.

What makes wheat different than corn? If you ask cocktail guru David Alan, aptly referred to as the Tipsy Texan, you’ll find that the wheat component brings a different characteristic to the spirit altogether.

“I think wheat is what lends the spirit that creaminess on the palate. Many of the premium international brands—Grey Goose, Ketel One, Absolut—are made from wheat so there is little question whose market share they are going after,” says Alan, who has consulted on the cocktail menus for myriad recent bar openings throughout Central Texas including The Esquire Tavern in San Antonio and Annie’s Cafe & Bar in Austin. “Personally, I think they’ve done a great job at targeting their market specifically to the Martini drinker. It is sweet, with a creamy mouth feel, and impeccably smooth.”

To Alan’s point, the Alamo City vodka is marketed as “The Martini Lover’s Vodka,” leaving no question as to how crisp and clean the spirit must be. After all, a good martini—if you’re not going to use gin—is simply a handy helping of vodka with an obligatory waft of a vermouth bottle over a glass garnished with a few olives leaving vodka as the star of the cocktail.

Does Cinco measure up? In Alan’s opinion, absolutely. And I heartily second his judgement, if not for the creamy, layered flavor, then certainly for the balance. With a spirit this strong, it’s easy to feel that familiar burn at the back of your throat. While Cinco certainly adds a warming sensation, it’s smooth enough to go down without that pesky burn.

Made from Idaho amber wheat, Cinco is distilled five times, which basically means it’s distilled enough to make it taste clean, but not too much that all of the flavors have been stripped out of it. Three of the distillations are in a column still in Idaho, but I’m willing to forgive them of the out-of-state beginnings knowing that the final two distillations are in a hand-hammered copper kettle still in San Antonio. It also helps that 60 percent of this 80 proof vodka is water straight from the Edward’s Aquifer in Central Texas.

With a little more than a year on the market, Cinco has exploded into restaurants and liquor stores across the Lone Star state. I even happened upon a sizable display of the beautifully pressed-glass bottle in a small liquor store on the outskirts of Fort Stockton, a.k.a. The Middle of Nowhere.

How to enjoy Cinco? If it’s not going to be a straight pour over a few cubes of ice, then consider a few of the recipes from the website. I particularly like the Moscow Gimlet for its tangy citrus and ginger nuances as well as the Fashionista primarily because it gives a nod to Texas wine Messina Hof Port. But in truth, it’s best to enjoy this spirit as the makers intend; in a martini.

“Vodka is a perfect platform for flavor in cocktails, if you have produce or a modifying spirit you want to show off. If you want to taste the base spirit though, the best way to do it is in a vodka Martini,” says Alan. “A small amount of fresh vermouth. Stirred, by all means, not shaken—despite Mr. Bond’s advice.”

According to Alan, a stirred Vodka martini is “viscous, luscious, coats the palate, and really shows off the spirit. Shaking it just gives you a watery mess.”

Lastly, Alan suggest that if you are going to make a Martini with vodka, don’t chill the spirit in the freezer first. If it is frozen, you won’t get the dilution you need. Dilution in the right amount is critical to a cocktail’s texture and flavor.

Cincotini

3 oz Cinco Vodka

.5 oz Noillyprat dry vermouth

1 dash orange bitters

3 olives as garnish

Combine the liquid ingredients in a mixing glass and stir with ice to chill. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with 3 olives.

Moscow Gimlet

2 oz Cinco Vodka

.75 oz fresh lime juice

.5 oz simple syrup

8 mint leaves, plus 1 for garnish

1.5 oz ginger beer

In a shaker, combine first 4 ingredients and top with ice. Shake vigorously to release the mint oils and double strain into a chilled martini glass. Top with chilled ginger beer. Garnish by floating a large mint leaf.

Fashionista

2 oz Cinco Vodka

.5 oz fresh lime juice

.5 oz simple syrup

1.5 oz Messina Hof Port (or similar)

Lemon twist as garnish

In a shaker, combine first three ingredients and top with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a well-chilled martini glass. Top with port. Garnish with lemon twist.

- Jessica Dupuy

Tagged: Cinco Vodka, David Alan, Deep Eddy, Dripping Springs, Famous, Jessica Dupuy, Savvy, Texas Spirits, Tipsy Texan, Tito's