Heritage Fire
Once a year, Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena is taken over by fire, meat, and a raucous crowd of chefs, farmers, and ravenous carnivores. Gone are the coiffed, bedazzled sniffers and swirlers debating the higher virtues of wines that hit the nose with “just a touch of wet dog”. Bach is swapped out for Metallica, white linen tablecloths for butcher paper, and it’s perfectly acceptable to demolish a turkey leg in one hand while sipping an unpaired wine from the other. Heritage Fire has come to town.
“Our goal is to promote honest food artisans, celebrate family farms, and create culinary awareness for those hard working people responsibly raising heritage species.”
- Brady Lowe, Founder of Cochon555
An outdoor feast of epic proportions, Heritage Fire is the antidote to the food world’s hubris. An event that highlights heritage farming and traditional outdoor cooking techniques, the spotlight is on the chefs and farmers. The air is pulsing with the life that makes food interesting before it becomes a status symbol. There’s a certain level of badassery that takes place here - your food street cred skyrockets just by going. Afterall, eating heritage meats that have been whole roasted on a spit, not five feet away is to be a part of the real, down and dirty side of food. It is gourmet, but it’s the raw, rough side that is most decidedly un-coiffed, unpretentious, and a little bit sweaty.
And this is just how Cochon555, the organization that hosts Heritage Fire, wants it to be. There are over 50 local chefs roasting and serving over one ton of local, heritage meat (pork, beef, lamb, rabbit - you name it) accompanied by a host of artisanal cheeses, craft foods and heirloom vegetables. This is an event that celebrates the hard work, commitment and artistry that goes into raising and preparing ethically sourced food. As a guest, it’s a rare opportunity to taste creations from some of the Bay Area’s most talented chefs and food artisans. Throw in the local breweries, wineries and distilleries on hand serving limitless libations, and Heritage Fire turns from a festival to a marathon.
In short, you cannot miss Heritage Fire 2015. If you’re a Bay Area dweller, it’s coming up on Sunday, August 2nd at Charles Krug Winery in St. Helena. If you’re not, check out the website for other Cochon events - they're all amazing. Tickets for Heritage Fire can be found here. Go hungry - you won’t regret it.