Three Experts, Including Renowned Wine Educator Jerry Comfort, to Offer Unparalleled Culinary Experience at Old Hickory Steakhouse

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. (July 29, 2008) – Lush wines, artisanal cheeses and superb cuisine – the holy trinity of epicurean appreciation – will marry in perfect harmony for the Foster’s Wine Dinner at Old Hickory Steakhouse.

Old Hickory Steakhouse at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center proudly welcomes renowned Professional Chef and Wine Educator Jerry Comfort of Foster’s Wine Estates, Melbourne, Australia, for this one-of-a-kind event on August 8 at 7 p.m. Foster will join with Executive Chef Wolfgang Birk and Maitre d’Fromage Carolyn Stromberg to create an exclusive culinary and educational experience.

Menu highlights include:

• Fresh Ahi Tuna Tartar with Black Summer Truffle and Watermelon paired with Stags’ Leap, Viognier Napa Valley, California 2007

• Grass-Fed Beef Tenderloin with Yukon Potato Gratin and Summer Vegetable paired with Penfolds, Bin 128 Shiraz Coonawarra, Australia 2005 and Penfolds, Bin 28 Shiraz Kalimna, South Australia 2005

Click here to view the full menu online.

Reservations are required and limited. For reservations, please call 301-965-2718 and ask specifically about the Foster’s Wine Dinner. The event cost is $75 per person, plus tax and gratuity.

ABOUT WINE EDUCATOR JERRY COMFORT
Jerry Comfort is the author of the definitive guide to cheese and wine pairing, The Progressive Wine and Cheese Pairing Wheel (2003), and more recently the award-winning Web site ewinematch.com. He is a Certified Master Sommelier.

Comfort creates and executes wine and food education programs for Foster’s Wine Estates Americas, a leading Napa Valley-based premium wine company and subsidiary of Foster’s Wine Estates of Melbourne, Australia. Comfort previously served as Culinary Director of Beringer Blass Wine Estates, overseeing Chateau Souverain’s hospitality and restaurant, Beringer’s Culinary Arts Center and private dining facility, the Hudson House, and other culinary programs around the world.

Additionally, Comfort served as an instructor at Beringer’s “Master Series” school, and as a guest instructor at famed culinary schools like Culinary Institute of America in New York and Napa Valley, L’Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne and the Napa Valley Professional Culinary School. Comfort has conducted food and wine seminars internationally at such events as Viniexpo in Finland, Prowein in Germany, Vinexpo in Tokyo, and the Gourmet Summit in Singapore.

Foster’s Wine Estates Americas produces and markets an international portfolio of highly respected branded wines from iconic estates like Beringer Vineyards and Chateau St. Jean in California; Penfolds, Rosemount and Wolf Blass in Australia; Castello di Gabbiano in Italy; and Matua Valley in New Zealand. For more information about Foster’s Wine Estates, visit www.fosterswineestates.com.

ABOUT EXECUTIVE CHEF WOLFGANG BIRK
Executive Chef Wolfgang Birk’s culinary expertise is culled from the best kitchens of Spain, Italy, Germany, North America and beyond. Most recently, he served as executive chef of Miami’s famous five-star, five-diamond Casa Casuarina (formerly known as the Versace Mansion).

Trained in Europe, Birk honed his craft over twenty years in such establishments as Cologne’s three-Michelin-star Rino Casati, New York’s Colors, the five-star Carenage Bay Beach & Club Resort in The Grenadines and Grand Bay Hotel’s Bice Restaurant in Miami. Birk has also worked alongside many of the world's top chefs and taught at New York's illustrious New School.

Birk’s honors include a certificate of appreciation from the James Beard Foundation in 1998 and 2004; a best chef nomination in Food and Wine magazine in 2001, 2002, and 2003; and honorable mentions in the New York Times, New York Daily News and many international food magazines.

ABOUT MAITRE D'FROMAGE CAROLYN STROMBERG
Maitre d’Fromage Carolyn Stromberg brings to Old Hickory Steakhouse nearly five years of professional experience working with fine cheeses. As the restaurant’s artisanal cheese expert, she oversees the procurement, care-taking and presentation of more than two dozen artisanal cheeses.

She’s in the perfect place to share her passion. Whether it’s to dinner guests or just about anyone who is willing to listen, Stromberg can talk for hours about the fine complexities of cheese – its flavor, texture, heritage, and aging process, and how it works well with a particular wine.

Stromberg is currently the only individual to hold the esteemed title of “Maitre d’Fromage” in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area. Prior to joining the Gaylord National, she ran wholesale operations for Cheesetique, a small Del Ray, Virginia cheese shop. She also previously worked for famed California-based, cheese-maker Cowgirl Creamery at the company’s Washington D.C. store.

ABOUT GAYLORD NATIONAL RESORT & CONVENTION CENTER
Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center opened April 25, 2008 along the banks of the Potomac River, less than eight miles south of the nation’s capital, in National Harbor, Md., a new 300-acre waterfront destination in Prince George’s County, Md. The Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center is the largest-combined hotel and convention center on the Eastern Seaboard, offering 2,000 guest rooms, including 110 lavish suites; more than 470,000 square feet of convention, meeting, exhibit and pre-function space; acclaimed restaurants; Relâche™ Spa; Pose Ultra Lounge; and a soaring 18-story, glass-covered atrium. For more information, visit www.gaylordnational.com.

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Media Relations Contacts:
Amie Gorrell, 301-306-5053, agorrell@gaylordhotels.com