Upper Bench & One Big Table ~ Connecting Through food and passion

 I am such a believer in connection: connection to our loved ones, connection to our community, connection to our food. Which is why I was so excited about One Big Table- a culinary journey into our local food community. The man behind the project, is Giulio Piccioli- a charismatic, opera singing, food-loving, Italian man, with a passion for local ingredients and his pet chickens.

Giulio's videos and blog posts delve into our connection to food, featuring how-to cooking instructions, Q+A's with local artisans, farmers and entrepreneurs, and of course feature the beautiful Okanagan.

When we chatted about working together on a few projects, I was so excited Upper Bench was first on the list. Upper Bench Estate Winery is an amazing winery and creamery, the ultimate foodie combo. Shana is the passion and creator behind the creamery- producing hand crafted, pasteurized cheeses that make bellies dance, and taste buds sing. I have always loved their products, but watching how the cheeses are made, the craft, the passion, the energy and love put into every step, made me respect and love the cheeses even more. Shana and Lisa (her amazing assistant) were like little cheese elves, giggling and crafting a product they believe in. Check out the video teaser on One Big Table's Facebook page. The video will be up in the next few weeks and we have even more fun coming for you.

I'm hoping to feature more of these types of projects in future, so please let me know what you think :)

A shot from Naramata Bench overlooking Okanagan Lake.