Txakolifest July 24th, 2010 2pm-2am.

Hay Txakoli Outside

TxakoliFest is to Six Plates what St. Patrick’s Day is to ye olde Irish Pub, Oktoberfest to Germany, and the Superbowl to the NFL. It is hands down the biggest day of the year for our crew, our regulars, and all the bottles of Txakoli we can get our hands on.

This year we’re doing things a little differently. We’ll be selling 150 tickets for $10 in advance for entry into the festival from 2-5pm. For the price of admission you get an cider glass, to use and keep, and the opportunity to order any (or all) of the eight featured Txakolis by the glass and first look at the menu. After 5pm it’s general admission for $10 per person, glass included. Tickets go on sale June 7^th. We will almost certainly sell out of the advance tickets. You can but tickets at Six Plates for cash or credit or at Wine Authorities with cash only.

I don’t know about you all, but I’ve been counting the days until this year’s Txakolifest since the day after last year’s Txakolifest. We’ve been scurrying around all month like squirrels in winter or stagehands before opening night and we’re ready. To prove it I’ve sent you the menu, the list of Txakoli we’re serving, and the lineup of bands, complete with descriptions and links for your entertainment while you sit at your desk and count the hours until Saturday. Admission is $10, presale or at the door. A presale ticket gets you in at 2:00 (we’re down to the last 50 or so, better get yours soon). If you plan to pay at the door, you’ll have to wait until 5pm to come in and grab a porron and some traditional Basque cuisine.

We’ll see you Saturday!

What is Txakoli? And why are we celebrating it?

Txakoli is delicious Basque white wine, slightly tart, slightly effervescent, and destined to be paired with seafood. The Basque are a fish eating culture and a lot of their food is fresh, local, seasonal (sound familiar?) for those reasons hard for us to recreate on a daily basis. But Txakoli is a wine worth celebrating, so for one day a year Six Plates becomes a traditional Basque-style restaurant and we serve six different types of oysters, we let people drink Txakoli from a porron (if you don’t know what a porron is now you’ll learn fast on Saturday), and we serve traditional basque plates, even more like tapas than what we have on a regular basis. Come see why the Basque traditions are worth celebrating on Saturday. Eat, drink, and hear live music all day.

The Menu

Guilda Pinchos

-anchovy and piquillo stuffed olives with orange zest and oil over a slice of fresh baguette. One of the most traditional Basque tapas dishes

Crispy Bread Crumb Coated Croquettes

-potato, manchego and serano ham, drizzled with quince sauce

Lightly Battered and Fried Fresh Sardines

-with romesco sauce

Flatbread

-quickly sauteed mixture of diced tomatoes, onions, red and green peppers with garlic, basil, and extra virgin olive oil and topped with idiazabal cheese

Basque Style Meatballs

-garlic, onion, parsley with a carrot onion sauce served with capanada, a mediterranean mixture of eggplant, kalamata olives, onion, tomato, parsley, capers, and Spanish paprika

Cheese plate

-idiazabal, lightly smoked sheep’s milk cheese from the Basque region

-mahon, mild cow’s milk cheese from Menorca, Spain

-garrotxa, goat’s milk cheese from Barcelona, Spain

cheese plate served with housemade white wine and orange jam and fried almonds and crostini

Dessert: Blackberry, chevre, and Txakoli Locopops!

Six different oysters on the half shell:

Beau Soleil, New Brunswick

Mal Peque, Prince Edward Island

Wellfleet, Massachusetts

Kumamoto, California

North Point, Prince Edward Island

Indian Creek, Prince Edward Island

All oysters are priced a la carte at $1.50 to $3.00 and will come with a raspbery mignonette on the side and slices of lemons.

The Wine

Ameztoi Getariako Txakolina 2009

90% Hondarribi Zuri and 10% Hondarribi Beltza

This light and crisp wine is bottled with residual carbon to give it its signature natural spritz. Bright briny sea salt combined with limey fruits. Fresh and eminently quaffable.

Ameztoi Getariako Txakolina Rubentis 2009

50% Hondarribi Beltza and 50% Hondarribi Zuri

Candied red fruits combine with a lime infused edge makes this a wildly intriguing rosé.

Doniene Gorrondona Bizkaiko Txakolina Tinto 2008

100% Hondarribi Beltza

2008 was a good vintage with conditions that allowed for ideal maturation of the grapes. Aromas of green peppers and spices are followed by red fruit. On the palate the wine exerts flavors of crushed minerals. Medium tannins yield a light and refreshing finish.

Gurrutxaga Bizkaiko Txakolina 2009

60% Hondarribi Zuri, 20% Mune Mahatsa and 20% Txori Mahatsa

Deep and dense with citric and brine infused notes. The palate is rich and extremely flavorful.

Gurrutxaga Bizkaiko Txakolina Rose 2009

100% Hondarribi Beltza

melon, red berry, and maritime scents combine to form an intoxicating aroma. Deliciously fruity hints of strawberries are framed by crisp acids.

Uriondo Bizkaiko Txakolina 2009

70% Mune Mahatsa, 30% Txori Mahatsa

Fresh green apples and citric notes. The flavors on the palate are refreshing and almost salty.

Xarmant Arabako Txakolina 2009

Hondarribi Zuri, Izkiriota, Izkiriota Ttippia, and Hondarribi Zuri Zerratia

A floral nose with hints of wetstone gives way to a crisp palate of apples, pears and sweet berries.

Here is the music line-up for the event. It is going to be amazing, click on any band to be redirected to their web page for a preview.