8:30 a.m. The Chief arrives, it immediately starts raining as I run to his car.
“Great timing” says I.
“Why? The rain?” he asks.
“Well that… and the toaster just popped.”
8:35 a.m. Coffee stop. Immediately feel blessed that a Starbucks is on the way to the highway. Order a venti-double-shot-skinny-vanilla-latte and realize I’m that kid now.
9:00 a.m. Arrive at The Good Earth Food & Wine Company – our set for the day. Meet up with our photographer, Jeffrey Kirk and his assistant, Dustin. The four of us meander our way through the property talking about different shots. The rain is holding off, but it’s cloudy – which kinda works in our favour since we are supposed to be shooting for the Harvest cover after all.
10:00 a.m. After a recycling bin, a half block, some cardboard and one of the Chief’s old wine boxes all are propped lucy goosey upon themselves, I wonder about gravity briefly before oh-so-carefully plopping a wine glass and bottle on top. Safety first, kids.
10:15 a.m. Nigel, who I can only describe as the Good Earth’s loving, camera-hogging mascot, comes for a visit and a roll around in the grass.
11:30 a.m. After somehow turning summer into autumn, Jeff and Dustin tear down all our cover shot stuff and we head over to the new home of Nicolette’s pizza oven. Pretty much instantly, my stomach grumbles. I’m officially Pavlov’s dog.
12:15 p.m. Nicolette’s on set for her photo which will run in the Good Earth feature next issue. She might be one of the funniest people to shoot ever, simply because she has so much to say.
12:30 p.m. The ‘other’ Amanda (she’s the Good Earth’s ‘retail therapist’) brings me a treat of sugared pecans. It’s official, I’m moving in.
12:45 p.m. We’re on the move again. Its time for Patrick Engel’s shot. He’s the Good Earth’s ‘food alchemist’ so we wanted to put him amongst the peach trees. That idea expires quickly due to the sun that’s magically appeared (thanks a lot, Mr. Accurate Weather Man). It’s hot as blazes outside and three out of the four of us are wearing black. Smart move.
1:16 p.m. We’ve settled in against the weathered red barn at the front of the property. It’s gorgeous – minus the potential of the bees nest to the right of our subject erupting in a- ‘I’m covered in beeeeees’-Eddie Izzard-type-fashion. We may move to the other side of the building to avoid lawsuit. Again, smart move.
2:30 p.m. Jeff’s on to shooting the Sip & Savour trio outside. Figuring out heights and views takes a bit, but the end result is as stunning as the wine and food pairings themselves. I know I mentioned it already – but go try the Cab Franc and roasted tomato and oregano pinwheel.
3:15 p.m. We’re sitting in the shade waiting for Tony de Luca to arrive. VINES is giving his new cookbook some love in a future issue and thought a profile picture would be just lovely. The Chief delivers a candy-gram – The Good Wine 09 Rose. Spoiled, I am.
3:30 p.m. Tony shows up. I jokingly call him a diva, but the guy could be no closer to one than I am a supermodel. Every time that we meet, I feel like I can only come up with one adjective – ‘refreshing’. He’s got a great laugh that makes shooting winter photos in July seem almost natural. Plus, he makes hand cut papparadelle noodles with pancetta, mushrooms, baby arugula and cheese shards, which is pretty much a piece of heaven on a plate. This from a guy who doesn’t particularly love pasta… and he’s Italian.
4:00 p.m. We sit down for lunch. Two of us have the Vineyard Hands Platter and two of us have the Artisinal Cheese Platter. They’re both yummy, with delish spreads, smoked goodness and pleasing wine to cap off our meal.
5:00 p.m. The Chief and I head out, while Jeff and Dustin go on the hunt for some off-road adventure shooting. It’s hard to decide, but I’d say those are the images I’m always most excited to see. They seem like magic little time capsules that Jeff manages to capture and put on our pages. He’s good people that way.
5:30 p.m. Time for a long, cold shower to rinse away the grime and sunscreen. Thanks to the Good Earth staff, Tony, Jeff and Dustin for an exciting kick off to our next issue!
The Corkscrew 