The Hospice and Palliative Care of the Eastern Shore organization pulled off yet another great fundraiser party a few weeks ago. Held once again at Aqua, a fine dining restaurant overlooking the Chesapeake Bay in Cape Charles, VA, the party was just getting into full swing as we arrived. 
The great thing about Aqua’s as a venue for a large party like this is that it is such a beautiful building- from its long wall of picture windows overlooking the Bay to the amazing translucent bar that appears to be a long stream of liquid gold to the fabulous irridescent aquamarine tile covered columns, Aqua’s offers terrific ambience for any event. Kudos unlimited to Dickie Foster for building this fine restaurant !
Wine glasses and plates in hand, we began a slow circuit of the various food stations, each seemingly with more delicous offerings than the last. First stop, the Oyster Station. And not just any oysters, but three wide trays of ice, each proudly holding a specific type of Eastern Shore VA grown beauty. A tray of fat Chincoteage oysters, a tray of salty Seaside oysters and a tray of tender Bayside oysters, each plump and glistening in its briny juice, ice-cold and with a dash of Mingonette Sauce, ready to be downed in one great sluurrpp ! My husband loves oysters but I took a pass, concentrating instead on the accompanying sparkling wine from the Scharffenberger Winery in Mendicino, California, which was also ice cold and absolutely luscious.
Next stop, the Chicken Satay/Grilled Shrimp Station whose offerings were being paired with Savigonon Blanc. The chicken was grilled to perfection and served with a slightly spicy Thai chili sauce on the side. The chili sauce was quite good, although I personally am partial to a peanut sauce with satay, particularly a sauce made with whole peanuts freshly ground in a food processor rather than made with the chunky peanut butter called for in lots of recipes . ( However, if one is in a time crunch, Smucker’s brand Chunky Peanut Butter is a top-of-the-line substitute.) And as my husband was quick to remind me, it’s nice to do things differently from time to time. Although they were offering both an oaked and a steel vintage of the sav blanc, I didn’t try either because I was working on my second taste of the Scharffenberger’s. It worked perfectly with the chicken so I figured, if it aint broke, don’t fix it……. or some such adage.
Onward and upward to what turned out to be, side by side, my two favorite stations of the evening. First station offered an Italian antipasto, Kalamata olives, fresh mozzerella and chunks of artichoke hearts transformed into finger food with skewers and also mini-mini sandwiches, styled as “Turkey Reubens”, wafer thin smoked turkey with a dab of cole slaw, tucked into small wedges of crusty Italian bread, very, very nice. Next door to that tasty group was a station featuring sausage chunks atop a bed of ratatulle as well as teriyaki meatballs, both very well prepared although I would have enjoyed a bit more of the delicious sauce over the meatballs. The wine paired with the meatballs and sausage was my very favorite of the night- an aromatic red Zinfandal from the Big Sur region of California, Peachy Canyon Vineyard’s “Incredible Red”, a wonderful pairing, a wine with plenty of heft to work well with those spicy meats.
By now the sun was almost setting and we moved to Aqua’s outdoor veranda to sit for a bit, just relax and enjoy the sunset and the gentle breezes blowing off the water. It was an idylic waterfront scene, the sun slipping deep to the west, despite the cloud cover trying to paint the Chesapeake’s waters in pastel shades of pinks and gold, a few last boats cruising in off the Bay, heading for their marina moorings, waves lapping at Aqua’s soft sand beach, candles glowing golden on the tables, perfectly lovely, absolutely. We waited until the sun had slipped below the horizon before heading back inside for a bite at the Dessert Station, a brie en croute with fig preserve and house made chocolate nut clusters, paired with a late harvest dessert wine. Yummy ! From there, off to peruse the display of the many donated “Silent Auction” items.
“Corks and Forks” is an important fund-raiser for Hospice with proceeds going to its Fragile Hearts Children’s Grief Camp, a camp to be held at YMCA’s Camp Silver Beach this year for children dealing with grief and loss, a truly worthy cause. And funds are raised not just through the ticket sales but also through the donations of various items from local artists and the local business community to be sold at the Cork and Fork’s ”Silent Auction”. This year the prime objets d’ art were paintings by well-known local artists Willie Crocket, Thelma Peterson and Clelia Sheppard and a ceramic by Vesna Zidovec. Other donated items included various types of gift baskets, getaway packages, concert tickets, jewelrey and sculpture. All in all, something for everyone to be interested in. The countdown to the end of the auction was lively, with folks darting to enter their latest bids on their favorite items. Some disappointed sighs were heard the winners were announced but all in all, loads of fun for everyone. This post would not be complete without mentioning the music by the Russell Scarborough Jazz Trio. I am a big fan of jazz and these three guys can really get down, they are wonderful and added a great deal to this delightful evening, chalk up another winner by the Eastern Shore Hospice organization !
