But what the hell is a bag of Doritos doing in the goodie bag for Taste Washington? I like nacho cheese powder as much as the next girl, but you bring in 200 Washington wineries and something like 60 restaurants (some of them great, some of them not so much) and you send me home with a bag of Doritos? Previous years have netted my favorite reusable shopping bag, an excellent wooden spoon, and a ballpoint pen that says, "ah....the power of cheese" and is my favorite bit of swag ever. Now, it's the micro bag of Doritos. Honestly. It's not so much a visible sign of recession as it is a a visible sign of a trip to Costco.
My highlight was not actually food or wine--it was telling Chef Jason Wilson of Crush that his former sous chef (and still occasional assistant) took the cover shot for May's issue. The stunned slow-blink, the huge smile, the "are you fuckin' KIDDING ME?!" (with both punctuation marks)--he was clearly delighted, and he knew the photo right off after I described it. He went on at some length about how perfect it was for Washington food...not to leave you in suspense about the image, but it's my favorite cover yet, and has been something of a controversy. He was so obviously pleased for Zach it was lovely being the person who got to deliver the news.
