Chili cook-off winners announced

It may not have been the warmest day, but the heat was on at the 18th annual Great Petaluma Chili Cook-Off, Salsa and Beer Tasting held on Saturday, May 9 at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds. A panel of VIP judges sampled several dozen chilis and salsas in order to determine which teams would walk away with trophies. The winner of the Grand Champion chili trophy was Taps, which also means they earned the “Golden Ticket” to compete at the World Food Championships in November. The judge’s award for best chili in the individual category was Samuel Heights Lowbrow Chili. In second place was Tree Huggin’ Hippies, with The New Hotness winning third place. In the restaurant category, first place went to Taps; second place went to Third Street Aleworks; and third went to Bellyfull Dinners. The awards in the business category went to Sprouts (first place), Exchange Bank (second place) and North Bay Smiles (third place). Judge’s awards in the service organization category went to the Santa Rosa Fire Department (first), Petaluma Volunteer Fire Department (second) and Team Coast Guard (third). The Santa Rosa Fire Department’s win earned them the special award of “The Golden Axe.” Judge’s awards for best vegetarian chili went to Preferred Sonoma Caterers (first), Bellyfull dinners (second) and Tree Huggin’ Hippies (third). The judge’s awards for best traditional salsa went to Run to the John & Mike (first), Fat Kid (second) and Mr. Pyro’s (third). The awards for best fruit salsa went to Petaluma Market (first), Barcrawl (second) and Team Coast Guard (third). The People’s Choice Award for best meat chili went to Petaluma Market (first), Run to the John & Mike (second) and Sax’s Joint (third). In the vegetarian chili category, the People’s Choice Award went to Preferred Sonoma Caterers (first), Black & Cheese (second) and Rotaract of Sonoma County (third). The People’s Choice salsa awards went to Mr. Pyro’s (first), Team Coast Guard (second) and Run to the John & Mike (third). The People’s Choice awards for best beer went to Petaluma Hills (first), Lagunitas (second) and 101 North (third). Fox Craft won People’s Choice for best cider.