The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo have your perfect pairings.
On Sunday, RodeoHouston hosted its annual Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition, awarding the best wines and signature dishes from Houston-area culinary institutions.
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Of nearly 100 of the area’s top restaurants entered in this year’s competition, 17 were named a “Best Bites” winner.
2022 Best Bites Winners:
Outstanding Showmanship Award
- 1st Place: Eculent
- 2nd Place: Texas Harvest
People’s Choice Award
- 1st Place: Cotton Culinary: Figgy Piggy
- 2nd Place: Guard & Grace, A Modern Steakhouse: Oak grilled Creekstone Farms Prime New York Strip with loaded baked potato
Tasty Tradition Award
- 1st Place: Joyce’s Seafood & Steaks: White chocolate bread pudding
- 2nd Place: Taste of Texas Restaurant: Certified Angus Beef tenderloin and Megan’s mac & cheese
Trailblazer Appetizer Award
- 1st Place: Omni Houston: Pork belly skewer, Moroccan BBQ, Carrot Puree, Chicharrone
- 2nd Place: Songkran Thai Kitchen: Thai Steak Salad (Neu Nam Tok)
- 3rd Place: Revival Market: Cauliflower Crositini – cauliflower hummus, homemade giardiniera, za’atar, chives
Lone Star Entrée Award
- 1st Place: Killen’s Tex Mex: Brisket suadero taco with black garlic salsa guacamole and queso fresco, and charro beans with jalapeno sausage
- 2nd Place: Gus’ Fried Chicken: Fried Chicken Wing
- 3rd Place: Russo’s Italian Kitchen: Lobster maestro – lobster essence, bianco, tal egio, capelietti, maine lobster, smoked pecan
Two-Steppin’ Dessert Award
- 1st Place: Egghaus Gourmet: Texas Pecan Croissant
- 2nd Place: Ragin Cajun: Bread pudding with rum sauce
- 3rd Place: Ashley Cakes: Carrot Cake
Rookie Award
- Craft Creamery: R-C Ranch Wagyu Brisket Ice Cream Sandwich
Trail Boss Food Truck Award
- Cruisin Sushi: Cruisin Special Roll – fried roll inside chicken, zucchini, carrots, Monterrey cheese, Tampico, cream cheese and avocado, drizzled with homemade spicy mayo and eel sauce (homemade soy and jalapeno sauce on the side)
Rodeo Uncorked! Roundup & Best Bites Competition paired signature dishes from Houston-area culinary institutions with nearly 500 award-winning wines, including the Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion.
The award-winning wines will be auctioned at the Rodeo Uncorked! Champion Wine Auction & Dinner on Sunday, Feb. 27.
RodeoHouston attendees can also enjoy a selection of the award-winning wines, available for purchase by the glass and bottle, in the Champion Wine Garden throughout the rodeo season, Feb. 28 – March 20.
2022 Rodeo Uncorked! International Wine Competition Champions:
- Grand Champion Best of Show – J. Lohr Vineyards Cuvee PAU Red, Paso Robles, 2017
- Reserve Grand Champion Best of Show – Nice Winery Cabernet Franc, Paicines, 2018
- Top Red Wine – Three Sticks Pinot Noir, Gap’s Crown Vineyard, Sonoma Coast, 2019
- Top White Wine – Ruffino Italian Orvieto Classico DOC, 2020
- Top Sparkling Wine – Meiomi Sparkling Rosé, North Coast, 2020
- Top Dessert Wine – Pillitteri Estates Winery Vidal Icewine, Niagara On The Lake VQA, 2019
- Top Value Wine – Apothic Merlot, California, 2019
- Top Wine Company – E&J Gallo Winery•Top Region Wine Company – Ste Michelle Wine Estates
- Top Region Wine – Revelry Vintners Limited Edition Reveler Red, Columbia Valley, 2018
- Top All-Around Winery – J. Lohr Vineyards
- Top Texas Winery – Becker Vineyards
- Top Texas Wine – Hye Meadow Winery Boooom Red, Texas High Plains, 2017
What wines and dishes are you ready to try? Let us know in the comments.