Sig’s Holiday message.
This year has been a very busy year and nothing surprises the guys more than when people bring in stuff from our stores. Especially when they forget what they commissioned almost a year ago. You can easily see Edgar’s expression when he sees the Northwestern Calendar printed for the first time. Thanks to Mary McNatt of Florida for the picture and buying a calendar.
Is there room in this neighborhood for two burger contests? I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Wednesday afternoon from 3:00 – 4:00 pm on the Jones Soda Headquarters rooftop, contestants will try to create the most original and tasty burger using any Jones Soda product in their recipe. Winning recipes in the past have utilized Cola, Orange Cola, Cream Soda and Jones Naturals Limes with Orange.
Participants will have 20 minutes to cook, assemble, plate and present the finished product to the judges, where Sig Hansen, Erik Denmark and Brian Canlis will be on hand to rate each burger on appearance, taste and creativity.
While this panel of judges has one glaring omission, it is quite impressive nevertheless:
Sig Hansen is the Seattle-based Captain of the fishing vessel Northwestern and one of the stars of the Discovery Channel series Deadliest Catch.
Erik “the Red” Denmark, who resides in Seattle, is a competitive eater and a member of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. He recently placed eighth in Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York City, eating 38 dogs in 10 minutes.
Brian Canlis is the co-owner of the award-winning Seattle fine dining restaurant Canlis.
Weeks into the Opilio Season, the fleet is bone tired and desperate for home. As delirium sets in aboard the Cornelia Marie, deadly, rib-crunching mistakes are made. After weeks of relentless hazing the Wizard’s greenhorn gets news from home that could send him packing. On the Northwestern, Jake receives word of a death in the family. These young men will learn that when an ocean lies between a fisherman and his family, tragedy at home spells gut-wrenching, heartbreak at sea.
When the fleet gets word of great fishing by the ice pack, the chase is on to the ends of the earth! Two egos collide, when Keith and Phil fight over fishing turf. Sick of hauling mangled, barnacle-ridden crab down south, Captain Harry on the Incentive faces his fears and climbs north to frozen waters. While aboard the Northwestern, Sig pushes his crew and himself to the edge of insanity with a sleepless, 38 hour grind. Hellacious hours and missing pots—a journey to the far north will push these men over the edge.
Look’s like Sig’s Alaskan Adventure package raised, $13,000. That’s not bad.
Toby Keith’s sixth annual golf and music fundraising weekend to benefit Ally’s House raised more than a half-million dollars to help children with cancer and their families in Keith’s native Oklahoma. The $550,000 raised brings the to-date total to nearly $3 million. The dinner, music and auction saw several big ticket items drawing huge bids. A dinner party for 20 with Keith earned $32,500. The Alaskan Adventure with Deadliest Catch boat captain Sig Hansen brought in $13,000, and a Costa Rica getaway to the Four Seasons drew a $19,000 bid. More than 40 sports and music celebrities were in attendance, including Keith’s Beer For My Horses co-star and co-writer Rodney Carrington, and baseball player Roger Clemens.
EPISODE TWELVE – Tuesday, June 30 at 9 PM (ET/PT) Late into the season, each skipper faces his own personal brand of hell. Frozen crab, frozen gear, and a frozen harbor chill the hearts of even the most callous fishermen. On the Cornelia Marie, Skipper Phil gambles on the theory that air bubbles on the water means crabs are farting down below. On the Time Bandit, Captain Andy enters St. Paul harbor—now frozen enough to walk across. Five pack-a-day smoker Sig Hansen tries his hand at quitting the habit. When a huge storm kicks up he takes his stress out on his crew. Aboard the Wizard, Captain Keith demands an answer from his greenhorn: “Are you in or out?” It’s a season where very crab has been paid for in headaches—but the rising seas and oncoming ice-pack could make things worse.
EPISODE 11 – Lockout EPISODE ELEVEN – Tuesday, June 23 at 9 PM (ET/PT) The 250,000 square mile arctic ice pack is barreling South, swallowing the crab grounds one mile per every hour. Now, the skippers are faced with a major gamble: flirt with the icy, fertile waters to the North, or play it safe in the fished out Southern grounds. After some skippers strike gold, the race is on to St. Paul Harbor. But with the canneries in sight, the crab fleet finds a new challenge — one that threatens the value of their crab bounty…St Paul Harbor is frozen shut! The skippers will need to fight tooth and nail to plow their way to shore.
GREAT AMERICAN SEAFOOD COOK OFF
www.greatamericanseafoodcookoff.com
Press Contact: Shea Communications Inc.
Richard Shea, Alexis Schneider Gerbracht (212) 627-5766
FOR RELEASE:
GREAT AMERICAN SEAFOOD COOK-OFF TO GATHER
COUNTRY’S FINEST CHEFS IN NEW ORLEANS
Sig Hansen, Star of Deadliest Catch, Will Host the Annual Seafood Showdown
NEW ORLEANS, June 12, 2009 — Accomplished chefs from throughout the United States will gather in New Orleans on July 18th to compete in the 2009 Great American Seafood Cook-Off, which is presented by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board. This will be the sixth consecutive year that the popular culinary contest has occurred. The event, which has featured both up-and-coming and celebrity chefs over the years, underscores the importance of cooking with domestic seafood and encourages the use of products from sustainable fisheries.
“Since first introducing the Great American Seafood Cook Off in 2004, we have advanced the cause of sustainable fishing and also had a lot of fun,” said Ewell Smith, executive producer of the Cook-Off and executive director f the Lousiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board. “I look forward to continuing this tradition and welcoming America’s most talented chefs to New Orleans this summer.”
NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, the event’s chief sponsor, uses the cook-off to highlight to American seafood consumers the agency’s management of the Nation’s marine ecosystems. “Rebuilding U.S. marine fisheries so they can support the highest sustainable harvest for future generations of Americans is a significant challenge,” said Jim Balsiger, acting NOAA Fisheries Service assistant administrator. “We are on target to end overfishing and set annual catch limits as required by U.S. law.”
Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana recently sent letters to the governors of all 50 states asking them to appoint a chef to compete in the event. To date, 12 states have registered chefs including Kentucky, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Maine, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Texas and West Virginia. Louisiana will be represented by Chef Tory McPhail of Commander’s Palace. The 2009 Great American Seafood Cook Off is endorsed by the National Restaurant Association and will be audited by the National Fisheries Institute.
Sig Hansen, the commercial fishing captain who stars in the popular documentary television show Deadliest Catch, will host the 2009 Great American Seafood Cook Off. Hansen began fishing at age 14 and currently captains the Northwestern, a fishing vessel based in Seattle. The Northwestern won the final derby seasons for king crab (2005) and opilio crab (2006), taking home titles for both the highest poundage caught and the highest dollars earned among the boats featured in Deadliest Catch.
“I am very excited to visit New Orleans and participate in the Great American Seafood Cook Off,” said Hansen. “Coming from a commercial fishing family, I recognize the importance of sustaining our fisheries here in the U.S., which keeps the rich culture and heritage of our coastal fishing communities alive.”
The Great American Seafood Cook Off will take place at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans during the Louisiana Foodservice Expo. Open to the public, the event asks attendees to make a $5-$10 donation at the door. This donation is for cook-off entry only and does not include entry into the expo. The Cook Off will begin at noon and conclude at 4pm. Participating chefs will create unique dishes with domestic seafood, and utilize fish that’s native to their home state whenever possible.
Prior winners of the Great American Seafood Cook Off include John Currence of City Grocery in Oxford, MS, Tim Thomas of the Ocean Forest Golf Club in Sea Island, GA, Justin Timineri, Executive Chef for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Randy Evans of Brennan’s of Houston, and John Besh of Restaurant August in New Orleans.
Great American Seafood Cook Off sponsors include NOAA and FishWatch, Michelob Brewing Company, Whole Foods Market, Loubat Food Service Equipment, Louisiana Restaurant Association and the Royal Sonesta New Orleans hotel. Acknowledgement is also in order to the supportive seafood organizations; the National Fisheries Institute, Gulf and South Atlantic Fisheries Foundation, Texas Department of Agriculture, Jones Seafood Solutions, Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. A special thanks also to media sponsors, Gulfscapes Magazine and Louisiana Public Broadcasting.
For more information, visit online at www.GreatAmericanSeafoodCookoff.com.
###
EPISODE TEN – Tuesday, June 16 at 9 PM (ET/PT) It’s week three of the Opilio Crab Season. Long hours and inhuman conditions already have the crabbers turning on each other. One skipper needs to deliver his crab but boat-crushing ice stands between his vessel and the safety of harbor. On the Northwestern, the bitter temperatures have the Jr. Deckhand showing signs of strain. While on the Wizard, Skipper Keith is still reeling from the after-affects of a monster wave that banged up his crew. On the Time Bandit the crab is crawling on board, but one old Deckhand wants to crawl off. A sea of misery surrounds the fleet — and the season isn’t even half over.
