Already being familiar with and a fan of Chapter Estate Winery, I was thrilled to be able to attend the latest Langley long table, where they were serving their wines.
We joined the Fraser Valley Wine Collective at Common Ground Farms for a special Harvest Dinner celebrating not only what has been grown this season, but what they all have created together.
This was the inaugural event for Common Ground Farm, a new event space, now available to and in the Fraser Valley. They hope to soon host more celebrations as a gathering space.
This is a traditional barn, refurbished into a two-story event space. The top floor includes a loft that doubles as a lounge with bedrooms and two facilities. This makes them a great wedding venue, considering the bottom floor is basically a hall with vaulted ceilings.
Tonight’s event was all about the harvest we would get to experience the bounty of the season through food, setting, and views.
Guests started outside, watching the sunset past the fields. The reception welcomed guests with cocktails mixed using gin from Langley’s own Roots and Wings Distillery. This was a light and refreshing cocktail with plenty of citrus to perk up the appetite. The owners of the distillery were also attending, so I was able to chat them up a bit and discover that they have a Canadian version of Soju in the works, which they’re calling Soju-eh. It will feature more traditional but local flavours to BC, and there’s even talks of having one flavoured like maple and bacon for the full Canadiana effect.
For those who finished their drinks early, there was also Fraser Valley Cider and Chapter wine available for purchase at the bar. Guests were also able to partake in the former, as event organizers brought out samples to try. Apparently there was a hiccup with the kitchen and its running water, so the samples were to buy time and they did well to delay the dinner. I was impressed because this was completely news to me. The entire event was well run and went along smoothly.
When time, I was one of the first to enter into the barn excitedly, to be able to take photos of the stunningly decorated venue by Luxe Weddings. They did Chapter Estate Winery’s latest event, and it was stunning, so I knew today was no different. The room was bathed in green and white with hydrangeas and white roses. Once again, they had come out out of a wedding the day before and we were able to give these florals new life and another purpose for another day.
However, my first experience was a little marred as I tripped over the ditch in the entry way. This was a dip in the ground, where the rolling barn door slid back-and-forth within. There was no signage and no warning, and as a result I fell flat on my belly. As my belly hit concrete it left me winded, but luckily not missing any teeth or breaking any bones. Everyone else seemed to walk in with no problem, hopefully learning from my lesson.
Throughout the entire evening, there was a live musician performing indie versions of popular 80s, 90s, and early 2000 songs. I had fun was guessing the title of each. There was also a silent auction for those looking to win gift cards and Canucks packages for their bids. 100% of the silent auction proceeds went directly to PacificSport Fraser Valley and its work in this community.
When time we heard from event organizers, including the Chapter Estate Winery team, welcoming ticket holders, explaining the wine pairings, and having their bistro Chef go over his concept for the meal to come. You could definitely feel the love of the neighbourhood in coming out to support these local businesses.
The goal was to celebrate the harvest, extend community, and foster partnership that have all grown together in the Fraser Valley. They joked that tonight, instead of a long table dinner, this was a four short table dinner that fit within the space.
The evening’s menu featured produce and products that were local, within miles of the property. During the reception we enjoyed slices of Lazy Acres pork belly in a Chive Maple Glazed with an Apple Mostarda. I liked the twist of the pineapple lightening the bite. I just could have used a sauce to dip into or more salt to flavour.
I enjoyed the Golden Ears cheese on onion tarts. Both it and the pork was soft and tender, with the fat on the pork melting and the caramelized onions spreading like jelly.
For our seated dinner, the first course was Delicate Squash and Burrata salad with Kale, Radicchio, Apple, and Pickled Mustard Seed. All gently dressed in a Hazelnut Sherry Vinaigrette. I liked the flavour but found the squash hard and that it could have been cooked down a little further to match with the chew required for the rest of the salad as a whole.
The bitterness of the kale was tempered by the Chardonnay wine pairing for this course. This was Chapter’s 2024 Reign. Their sommelier spoke to how this is what Fraser valley wine is known for and what it can be in its future.
Our second course was a Sweet Corn Raviolo with corn from Chilliwack, Calabrian Chill, Corn Velouté, and Succotash. I found the pasta sweet as promised, therefore it was nice to have the 2023 The Mockery rose in hand to balance it out with tart and juicy notes of red berry.
Next we had Herb Crusted Alberta Beef Sirloin with Spiced Carrot. The Demi glaze was prepared with the same wine for pairing, which was the 2022 Young and Restless. This was 80% Merlot and 20% Syrah, lending its character to the meat. Sadly I found my piece dry and tough and the jus on the salty side, drinking more to wash most of the above out.
The room unanimously loved the Warm Butter Cake for dessert. Topped with Maple Bourbon Caramel, and local Poached Pears (poached in Chapter Estate’s Mockery rose), Pecan, and Whipped Mascarpone Maidon. The chef was inspired by the one he had and loved in Arizona and was able to successfully recreate it for us tonight. The crisp edges and soft centre were brilliant. I just would have liked the pear to have been cooked down softer, to better contrast the sponge of the cake and the crunch of the nuts.
In short this was a great way to celebrate the harvest and help usher in a new event space to the area.
Common Ground Farms
17948 8 Ave, Surrey, BC V3Z 9R9
commongroundfarms.ca
