Santa Rosa Press Democrat
 < ArticlesMeet Didier Ageorges, Executive Chefof Sonoma County's Chalk Hill WinerySanta Rosa Press Democrat, Wednesday Feature, October 2003 THERE ARE THOSE of us who enjoy cooking and God bless us all. Then there are those whose passion for cooking overrules "normal" behavior. Those whose thirst for knowledge will lead them to toil away, night and day in hot, noisy, uncomfortable kitchens around the world. Those who will spend 2 solid weeks cleaning and preparing 3 huge, old, wild boar, and smile about the experience. Didier Ageorges is one of those chefs, a man whose sparkling, blue eyes positively light up when he talks of his unusual and often unglamorous pursuit of culinary knowledge. Born near Paris, Didier grew up in Burgundy, a place well known for great wine and food. He says, "I was the only kid who could sit still in a restaurant. I had to order something unusual each time we went. Snails, livers... things that kids don't usually like. I loved it all, and I couldn't get enough of restaurants. They were magic places to me." By age ten, Didier was baking cakes for friends. No ordinary box cakes would do. "I perfected my Black Forest cakes with layers of chocolate, chantilly cream and cherries with my grandmother's kirsch." Didier remembers feeding lunch to the men paving the roadbed outside his childhood home. "My mother would find me in the kitchen, using up our family food to prepare sandwiches for the workers outside!" At age 15, Didier entered culinary school. Before the age of 20, he had already worked in kitchens on 3 continents. Several of those kitchens were in resort hotels in Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana. Didier's cross-cultural style was honed in South America, where he learned to cook anaconda, caiman and other indigenous reptiles. While there, Didier dated a young Native American woman, and spent time with her family, learning about rustic, Amazonian cooking. With the drums of the Amazon still beating in his head, Didier returned to France in the 80s, first to Paris, then to Cannes, where he cooked for the glamorous film crowds on the bountiful and beautiful Mediterranean coast. Didier spent the next ten years in Biarritz, where he perfected the style he calls, "Cooking of the Sun" a blend of Mediterranean, Basque and Côte d'Azur cuisines. Didier came to California after the millennium, and cooked at San Francisco's Ritz Carlton for two years as Executive Sous Chef. At the Ritz-Carlton, his association with sommeliers Stephane Lacroix and Yves Sauboua ultimately connected him with the Furth family, owners of Chalk Hill Winery. Today, Didier is at home on Chalk Hill; his kitchen part of an estate that combines inspired architecture with vistas so beautiful it takes one's breath away. But this is no stage set. Chalk Hill makes lovely wine. Didier says, "It is here, at Chalk Hill that I get to express myself most! We have a wonderful garden filled with herbs and vegetables and edible flowers, beautiful wine to serve, and people who enjoy and appreciate my cooking. My challenge is to create memorable meals that pair well with the wines made here and to use what's growing in the garden to best advantage. It is like heaven!" Chalk Hill's twelve hundred acre estate produces distinctive wines of elegance and power. Their hand-crafted, estate-bottled Chardonnay, perhaps their best known wine, has remained on the top ten list of Wine & Spirits restaurant poll nine out of the past ten years. Chalk Hill, the appellation, is one of ten in Sonoma County. To the west is the cooler Russian River Valley; warmer Alexander Valley is to the northeast. The ruggedly beautiful and climactically diverse terrain includes some of the highest elevations in the county. It is easy to understand the appeal this land holds for Fred and Peggy Furth, the active and hospitable owners of Chalk Hill Winery. Fred, a jet-piloting, law-litigating, winegrowing vintner, has committed time and heart to the land since the early 1970's. Another passion is the Furth Family Foundation, a program that supports Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco with a grant providing housing, shelter and hope to 40 children. As Chairman of the Chalk Hill Estate, Fred likens his role at the winery to the conductor of a 127-piece symphony orchestra. "You have to have an ear for harmony and discord." It is gratifying to him that many employees have been with Chalk Hill for 20 years. "We believe there is the greatest value and satisfaction in sharing with others what you cherish the most." Peggy Furth, Chalk Hill's vivacious and visionary President adds, "We continue to learn something new about Chalk Hill with every spade full of soil we analyze, with every vine we plant, with every wine we make." says Peggy. "Fred and I adore this estate. This land is the genesis of our particular wines, and a discussion of our wines so clearly leads to a conversation about our land." If you'd like to learn more about this fascinating place, visit Chalk Hill's excellent website or better yet, schedule your own personal tour and tasting. -- Marina Andriola |
