2011 has been another great year for our artisan clients and we’ve had great success in helping them get their stories in the media spotlight. This Wall Street Journal article profiling Steven Smith Teamaker is  especially satisfying — fantastic exposure for a fantastic entrepreneur and his team.

Congratulations to Steve and Kim and the folks at Sandstrom Design and all the hands that went in to making the perfect story to sit and sip and enjoy over the holidays. We’re off to build more brands in the artisan economy in 2012!

In 1993 Charlie Palmer and I created a simple little event in his restaurant on East 22nd Street (Chefs & Cuisiniere Club) to promote Beaujolais Nouveau.  It was a way to mark the harvest and celebrate the French tradition of throwing back some simple fresh wine while we anticipated the journey of waiting a year or two for the good stuff to be released.

It wasn’t until 2007 that I realized brewers had a similar thing going on.  A way to mark the hop harvest, race back to the brewery from Yakima or the Willamette Valley, toss in some wet hops and brew a spontaneous batch of fresh hop beer.   The results a few years back were quite floral and, frankly, a little funky.

Today, we’re seeing brewers nationwide investing in hop fields and becoming more and more committed to exploring this unique time of year when fresh hops can add elements of brightness and seasoning that dry hops don’t offer.

But the even more exciting thing about the evolution of fresh hop brewing, in Oregon, particularly, is how sophisticated and experimental these brewers are becoming this time of year. Last weekend at the Portland  Fresh Hop Tastival I had some killer beers.  Here’s a few tasting notes and look for them around town, they’re delicious:

Top Pick:  Double Mountain Killer Green (Hops used = Brewers Gold)

Matt decided to run with the concept of hoppy flavor and this beer had a very pleasant hop intensity that was mostly noticeable mid palate, which was unusual.  The hoppiness wasn’t a top note, it was somehow fully integrated and was rounder.  Extremely clean finish, very drinkable.

BridgePort Brewing, (Hops used = Centennial) extremely refreshing, well balanced, good beer.

Upright Brewing (Hops used = Magnum) Sometimes I find the Upright beers, ahem, a little out there.  They did a really nice job with this beer, in my opinion.  It’s a true Saison, with hints of fresh hop character.  Lovely beer.

In case you weren’t able to make it to the festival and want to get in on the action, check out Joe Smith’s Live @ 7 piece for KGW: http://www.kgw.com/thesquare/Fresh-Hop–131371783.html

For more Oregon Brewers Guild events visit their website: http://oregonbeer.org/category/events/

Sunday night we popped into Grain and Gristle to get a burger and a beer.  Their well curated tap list of 8 local beers made me stop and consider what I’m looking for in a beer on a rainy (really, Portland?) July night.

We tasted several options and landed on Upright Six, a farmhouse ale made from rye. What an incredible beer!  Classic Belgian yeasty sweetness but balanced with the sour depth and notes of rye.  It’s the kind of beer that you can’t ignore and throw back. That beer demands your focus.  Interesting on all levels, the color, aroma and complex taste. Love July for its endless selection of events and super happy to have new brewery’s exploring so many hybrid ingredients and styles.

Did you see the brilliantly written review of several new foodie books by B.R. Myers in the most recent Atlantic?  I learned about the story and the thread of electronic havoc it’s causing from food politics writer Hannah Wallace, in her weekly round-up for Faster Times.

Where do I begin? His basic thesis is that foodies have formed a tribe whose value system is focused on creating an exclusive community, brutal moments of violence (killing their dinner, for instance), and elitist experiences only affordable if you have trustifarian rootstock.

Many of Myer’s  comments and observations contain grains of truth but he seems to be expanding those little grains into fully developed absolutes, which they’re not. I’d like him to stop and consider the simple quest for flavor and those who seek it.  I know that most of his attacks are directed at what he calls “fringe foodies,” and perhaps I’m talking about more mainstream foodies, but it seems ill-informed and unhelpful to lump all degrees of “gourmets,” “foodies,” or “flavor seekers” into one  scorn-deserving pot.

The f-word has long been banned  from my vocabulary because it doesn’t describe me, my company or how we think about the food system and why good food matters (though we still have we call “Foodie Fridays” at which we learn new craft food and drink techniques as a continuing education practice — the name just sounds too good to change!). So, perhaps the big idea Myers meant to convey was not that Gabrielle Hamilton’s poetic appreciation of raw flesh is pornographic, inappropriate and the emblem of what’s wrong in the national food conversation but that the club of those who relish cooking, sourcing, writing about food is one whose door was shut on him for some reason — not sure why — and he wants membership.

And, it’s probably good news for him that there are a lot of recipes  available for bitters on most cocktail websites, because as Robert Sietsma says (speaking for so many of us, thank you) in his rebuttal in the Village Voice, “Myers’ real problem is dyspepsia. He really, really doesn’t enjoy eating. And resents those of us who do. ”

Enjoy, and let me know what you think after you read both Myers and  Sietsma.  Both are worth the read.

For those who care:  Gabrielle Hamilton is doing a book dinner for her new book Blood, Bones and Butter, at Nostrana in Portland on March 13th.

Yesterday I was fortunate to have one of those authentic Oregon moments. Driving through wine country with a good friend — rainy November day, no traffic — we were power tasting through some of our favorite wineries in and around Carlton, we spontaneously popped into Red Ridge Farms.  Their street sign said “Olive oil tasting,” and we had heard for the past 3 years that they were leading a local movement to experiment with Spanish and Greek varieties here to see if olives could indeed become a viable Oregon crop.

Paul Durant was at the press having lunch and immediately invited us to taste the Arbequina oil spurting out from the small, shiny Italian press.  It has notes of banana and butter, and slight fresh grass with a super spicy finish.

Red Ridge Farms is presenting their first Olio Nuovo Festival (think the oil version of Beaujolais Nouveau) this weekend, and we highly recommend checking it out.  For the past two years, our client Cathy Whims has done a similar thing in partnership with Jeff Bergman, Pricipal of Bergman Culinary Concepts in Seattle, and presented a flight of fresh-pressed Italian oils at Nostrana each December.  The season celebrating fresh pressed imported oils begins on December 15th at Nostrana.  In the meantime, the local Willamette Valley event sounds like a wonderful way to learn about this ancient tradition and how it’s being interpreted locally.

Freshly harvested Arbequina olives. They press the unripened ones for olive oil production. In this case, unripened means more flavor.

Client Expert List

Watershed is proud to represent many of the most talented, trendsetting, and talked-about people and businesses in the food world today. We’re happy to connect you to their expertise, make them available as sources, or fill you in on any of their exciting activities.

Cafe Nell

Cafe Nell is a Portland version of a Parisian bistro, with zinc bar, marble-topped tables, and a hang-out vibe that says sit down, eat…and drink.  Co-owner Darren Creely heads a bar program that excels in updating classic cocktails.

Clyde Common

Clyde Common is the embodiment of Portland’s brand of urban cool, with its location in the Ace Hotel and the gastropub feel of the restaurant. Head bartender Jeff Morganthaler can’t stop innovating — his current obsession: barrel-aged cocktails — and Chef Chris DiMinno worked with Dan Barber at Blue Hill and so knows how to rock farm-to-table.

Country Cat

The Country Cat Dinnerhouse & Bar is the place where Executive Chef/Butcher Adam Sappington and his wife Pastry Chef Jackie Sappington combine their awesome cooking skills with genuine family-friendly, neighborhood values. Adam was the chef at iconic Pacific Northwest restaurant Wildwood for years, and now specializes in butchering locally-raised animals to serve on his southern-but-not-cliche menu (Missouri skillet fried chicken is another specialty). He’s been doing his own butchery for years before the trend caught on and is an engaging presenter and teacher.

Downtown Marketing Initiative (DMI)

A public-private partnership created and funded by the City of Portland and its partners that is dedicated to promoting the long-term vitality of downtown Portland. Since its inception in 2006, the Downtown Marketing Initiative has successfully supported downtown during a period of intense redevelopment and has become a critical economic stimulus tool in the current financial climate.

Foodshed

FoodShed is a soon-to-launch, unique on-line specialty food site. Founder Brenda Crow learned the ropes as a broker and buyer for companies such as Dean & DeLuca and is now is creating her own highly-curated group of select food products that represent the best of American traditional hand-crafted food. She’s an expert in regional foldaways and American products that have traditional European roots.

Hotel Monaco Portland

Hotel Monaco Portland originally opened in 1996 as the Fifth Avenue Suites and was completely refurbished by award-winning designer Cheryl Rowley, reopening as the Hotel Monaco Portland in 2007.  Dedicated to supporting the arts and the environment, Hotel Monaco Portland achieved the Silver Green Seal Certification in 2009, and has also earned the prestigious RecycleWorks Award from The City of Portland.  The hotel has consistently been voted one of the ‘Top 500 Best Hotels in the World’ by Travel + Leisure, and was selected by National Geographic Traveler for the 2009 ‘Stay List.’

Hotel Vintage Plaza

The Hotel Vintage Plaza is Oregon’s wine-focused hotel, offering packages and events throughout the year that are focused on the wine-loving traveller. Located in the heart of downtown Portland, the Vintage Plaza was opened in 1991 by the award-winning San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. Named for its close proximity to Oregon’s famed wine regions, the Hotel Vintage Plaza is a charming European-style boutique hotel in a turn-of-the-century brick building, blending Old World hospitality with New World luxury for a distinctive taste of local terroir.

Irving St. Kitchen

Irving St. Kitchen is a vibrant new addition to the Portland dining scene. Rustic juxtaposes with contemporary in a 1909 corner warehouse. The soulful American menu offers many dining options highlighting the best ingredients of the Northwest, lightly accented with Southern overtones. The team behind Irving St. are three San Francisco restaurant pros (Doug Washington, and Steve and Mitch Rosenthal of Town Hall fame), who saw Portland as the perfect city to bring their blend of cool but playful design sense and superb hospitality.

Montinore Estate

Montinore Estate is a leader in biodynamic winemaking as well as sustainability in the wine industry. The family-owned and operated winery in the northern Willamette Valley produces Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Müller-Thurgau.

Nancy’s Yogurt

Heard of probiotics? That’s thanks to Chuck and Sue Kesey, who in 1960 started the Springfield Creamery, one of the only independently owned and operated creameries distributing its products nationwide. 2010 is their 50th anniversary, which means they’ve got the long view on the way the dairy industry in America has evolved. Nancy’s was the first yogurt in America to use both Acidophilus and Bifidum cultures together to create an entirely natural cultured yogurt.

Nostrana, Cathy Whims

Nostrana serves regional Italian cuisine, with most dishes coming from the restaurant’s wood-fired oven.  Executive Chef and owner Cathy Whims was a James Beard “Best Chef: Pacific Northwest” finalist  in 2009 and 2010; former Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl called Whims’ fearlessly authentic cooking style “brave,” and in 2006, Nostrana was named Oregon’s Restaurant of the Year by The Oregonian.

Oregon Brewer’s Guild

Oregon is the epicenter of the craft brewing movement, and The Oregon Brewers Guild is the non-profit trade association for the state’s independent breweries. The Guild comprises 65 brewing companies, 32 associate or supplier members, and 2,725 enthusiast members or S.N.O.B.s (Supporters of Native Oregon Beer) — there couldn’t be better experts on all aspects of sourcing, brewing, distributing, and drinking craft beer.

Organic Prairie

The meat branch of the Organic Valley brand, Organic Prairie features meats that are produced by an independent cooperative of organic family farms. The company began producing meat without the use of antibiotics, synthetic hormones, or pesticides and has continued to do so since 1996. Organic Prairie was the first in the industry to ban animal by-products from cattle diet. These people walk the talk and have a deep understanding of the organic meat world.

Pazzo Ristorante

Pazzo serves sophisticated Italian food from the best Pacific Northwest sources. The kitchen at Pazzo Ristorante is led by Executive Chef John Eisenhart — one of the godfathers of  good food in Portland and former right-hand man to Mario Batali at Babbo. Pazzo was an early-adopter of the farm-to-table philosophy, and Eisenhart continues with exquisite sourcing, even bringing seasonal produce to the bar program, with his fruit-infused grappas and cellos.

Pinot American Brasserie

Opening summer of 2010, in the platinum LEED-certified Indigo Building, Pinot American Brasserie is positioned to be the heart and hub of the West End. At the helm is Executive Chef Bill King, long-time head of culinary development for McCormick & Schmick’s. Pinot’s menu is a reflection of traditional French brasserie fare but with ingredients grown and raised in the Pacific Northwest.

Schaffner Press

Schaffner Press is the publisher of two books by award-winning filmmaker and author Bill Carter. Carter isn’t a typical journalist who searches for topics to write about, he actually lives the topics — stumbling across deserts, surviving civil war, fishing for salmon in the icy waters of Bristol Bay, Alaska – and then writes from the depth of his own experience. Carter lives a life of adventure and commitment that the rest of us only dream of, and he’s a passionate speaker about salmon fishing, the Bosnian conflict, and more.

Shepherd’s Grain

Shepherd’s Grain is a group of 33 wheat farmers in the Pacific Northwest who are all committed to sustainable farming methods in order to create healthy soils, nutritious crops and a future for generations of family farms. Members use no-till, direct-seed methods, along with crop rotation, which greatly reduces soil erosion and builds more nutrients in the soil. Shepherd’s Grain flour is used by leading restaurants and bakeries, including Nostrana in Portland and Grand Central Baking Company in Seattle and Portland. In 2010, Shepherd’s Grain co-founder Karl Kupers received Natural Resources Defense Council’s “Growing Green Award,” which honors farmers, business leaders and promoters of sustainable food.

Steven Smith Teamaker

Steven Smith is the guru of high-end tea in America, having essentially launched the premium tea category when he started first Stash, then Tazo Tea. Smith Teamaker produces small batch, whole leaf tea crafted (literally) by hand, using rare ingredients harvested at their peak of flavor. Smith is an articulate and engaging speaker on tea.

Wetlands Conservancy

The Wetlands Conservancy (TWC) is the only organization in Oregon dedicated to promoting community and private partnerships to permanently protect and conserve Oregon’s wetlands throughout the state. TWC designs and implements collaborative strategies to sustain the health of wetlands.

Woodchuck Hard Cider

Woodchuck Hard Cider is an independently owned, award-winning cider company based in Middlebury, Vermont. Woodchuck produces a variety of handcrafted, premium hard ciders, all of which are naturally gluten-free. Distributed nationally in 49 states, Woodchuck is the first cider company to sell one million cases.

Branding Events we  Own and Produce:

Livestock

Livestock was developed by Watershed Culinary Productions as a collaboration with Camas Davis of the Portland Meat Collective (PMC). At Livestock, chefs respectfully display their butchery craft as ranchers share their bond to the land, and writers present short stories exploring the food politics and emotions embedded in eating meat.

Portland Indie Wine Festival

Founded by Lisa Donoughe and Catherine Healy in 2004, the PIWF is a festival that features 40 locally produced small craft wines that are selected through a blind-juried tasting. The Festival aims to give small producers a chance to shine in Oregon’s artisan wine industry. PIWF also features food from Portland’s top chefs and takes place in a farmer’s market setting for a general public festival as well as an industry festival, attended by the leading regional and national sommeliers and media.

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Watershed’s mission is to honestly communicate about and add value to the great brands of our generation in order to preserve businesses that enrich our culture. We aim to help each other grow as professionals and as people, to learn something new each day and to do good while doing good work.

Two years ago I was having dinner in Cathy Whims’ back yard and met a fearless advocate for the conservation of Oregon’s Wetlands — Esther Lev, the executive director of the Wetlands Conservancy.

I wasn’t aware of the importance of the health and well-being of wetlands and how they contribute to maintaining healthy marine life and aquatic ecosystems and farmlands.  The evening inspired Watershed’s commitment to TWC’s mission and specifically our role in widening the awareness and support in Oregon.

Our first major culinary event experience showcasing an organic farm and its adjacent wetlands project is this coming Saturday, September 25th in Waldport at Blue Heron Farm.

Cathy Whims of Portland’s Nostrana Restaurant and a team of fantastic local coastal purveyors will present a four-course dinner, entitled Wetlands and Wellies.  A few seats are still available and if our practice dinner two weeks ago was any indication, this will be the first of many special experiential events designed to bring to life the interconnectedness of wetlands and the local food movement’s values.  Thanks to all participating sponsors Whole Foods, Kettle Foods, Lenné Wines, Chehalem Wines, Rogue Ales, Springfield Creamery, Local Ocean Seafoods and Oregon Albacore Commission to name a few of the many, many generous organizations and companies.

Cathy Whims Prepares Paella in Waldport at Blue Heron Farm

We pride ourselves on being a learning organization, focused on finding “teachable moments” and seizing them.  These themes keep coming up in the office as we find ways to constantly improve ourselves, so I thought I’d take a moment to share some of our insights on simple ways that a client can create a highly functioning relationship with their PR firm and see maximum positive results.

1. Say “thank you.” It’s amazing how motivating this is, but also how underused. Saying thank you when it’s well deserved can seriously increase the amount of energy on your account. PR practitioners are often thought of as the people “behind the curtain,” or maybe better put, the thought leaders behind the communications strategy. But when you peel back the layers of media coverage, it’s not the Wizard of Oz working his magic, it’s people who have studied the profession and dedicated their lives to helping individuals and businesses, and believe me… they thrive off of acknowledgment and appreciation.

2. Being likable and cooperative goes a long way. This goes for all areas of life, but in the publicity and communications world, this makes not only your publicist, but also the media, want to use you as a resource.  We get a lot of calls and emails from national media looking for sources, and being easy to work with can assure the PR team that things will go smoothly if they use you as a resource in a pinch.

3. Be generous to your PR team: Invite them in to dine at your restaurant, stay at your hotel, try your new product as often as possible. Never underestimate the value of making sure they are part of your experience – they are your spokespeople and by bringing them into your business as much as possible, they become an emotionally connected advocate… kind of like family! By building a regular fan out of your PR team, you have an off-the-clock spokesperson who is constantly in touch with tastemakers. This is one of the  best financial investments, because it’s not an out of pocket expense.

These golden rules of motivating your PR team and inspiring writers to want to cover you may sound simplistic, but in a complicated world, it’s important to revisit the basics every now and then.  The reality is that occasionally  smart, well-intentioned people forget that it’s more than their business’s innovation or the monthly retainer they spend on PR that makes our work enjoyable.

So, if you are considering hiring a PR firm, or currently work with one, remember these three simple rules and you can look forward to a happy, long relationship.

Also, check out a complementary and related blog on the PR Squared blog:

http://www.pr-squared.com/index.php/2010/03/pr-pros-are-people-too/comment-page-1#comment-22132

The news is out — the talented, award-winning food editor, Martha Holmberg will join Watershed on April 1st as Editorial Director for our new content division.  Martha’s last day as food editor at The Oregonian is February 19th.  Prior to moving to Portland almost 5 years ago, Martha served as publisher and editor of Fine Cooking Magazine.

We are excited about expanding our services to develop more robust and sophisticated content for culinary client partners.  Not only is Martha a friend and one of Portland’s most gifted food experts and instructors, but her ability to think big, zero in on the essence of what makes a great story and have fun at the same time makes us all feel very grateful to have her joining our team.  And, the bonus? Watershed Wednesday cooking classes.  Sweet.

I couldn’t resist popping into Nostrana with my wig on.

A Whimsical Moment at Nostrana