Leadership in Wine, cooking, creative writing, and Traveling in Pittsburgh

Stephen Iwerebon is passionate about cooking, gardening, wine, leadership and travel.

Stephen Iwerebon

With a natural urge for adventure and trying new things, Stephen Iwerebon has spent much of his life and career traveling the world, sampling wines and culinary dishes from across the globe and adding new fruits and vegetables to his home garden in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He began to learn about and become passionate about these hobbies and interests while in college at Penn State University. His college career allowed him to learn a lot about himself while growing new appreciations for art, history, and culture. He realized how much of the world was out there left to be explored and how different positions in leadership enter him into a world of great opportunity.

Education & Career

Throughout his education and career, Stephen Iwerebon has held numerous leadership positions related to his fields of interest in traveling, gardening, writing, and beyond. He has always been known to take action and involve himself in activities throughout the community in hopes of learning something new and making new connections with people. When Stephen Iwerebon enrolled at Penn State University, he couldn't wait to sign up for different clubs and activities organized by the school and student groups. He found that there was a group or activity to match up with nearly all interests and passions a student might have. Soon enough, Stephen Iwerebon found his place at Penn State University and made it his new home away from home. He held leadership roles in the Penn State University Center for Sustainability Community Garden and later went on to study abroad in Florence, Italy. He would go on to graduate from Penn State with a degree in Culinary Arts and a concentration in Creative Writing. With his interests in traveling, wine, and home gardening, he hopes to be able to use his creative writing abilities to combine his passions into a rewarding and exciting career.

Travel

While in college, Stephen Iwerebon decided to take a semester to study abroad in Florence, Italy. During this time, Stephen had an incredible opportunity to explore wonderful Italian cuisine and culture. As a Culinary Arts major, he spoke to local chefs and learned from his professors about typical Italian dishes as well as Italian wines. He loved soaking in all of this new information and these new experiences and was excited to continuing taking in more and more.

From there, Stephen Iwerebon wanted to continue his travels and expand his knowledge on food and wine even further. He traveled to Spain and Portugal where he gained great insights on each country's classic dishes and wine visiting numerous local wineries. He loved studying the different styles of food as well as different tastes and spices. It was also inspiring to see how the chefs and local people were so excited to show and share their food and culture with travelers. The local cuisine really represents a part of the people that live there.

These travel experiences have led Stephen Iwerebon to pursue a career in culinary arts. In the future, he hopes to continue his travels and learn new techniques and styles related to the food and wine industry. Because each region and even small town has their own unique style and way of cooking, Stephen Iwerebon has found that there are nearly endless culinary experiences left to be explored.

Wine

Through his travels across Europe and within the United States, Stephen Iwerebon has had the opportunity to sample a number of wines of different styles from all across the globe. Some of his favorite wines he has tried so far include

  • Port Wine from Porto, Portugal

  • Pinot Noir from Burgundy, France

  • Merlot from Bordeaux, France

When Stephen Iwerebon first began sampling wines, he had no idea how many different categories and styles there were. He has since developed a strong appreciation for each wine's unique flavor and fermentation process.

Cooking

With passions for both cooking and wine, Stephen Iwerebon loves matching his dishes with the perfect glass of wine. He loves experimenting and trying new flavors and combinations to see what works best.

For every holiday or family outing, Stephen Iwerebon is always the first to offer his cooking skills, often bringing fun, new, and unique dishes that turn out to be the "fan favorite". After spending a few months in Italy, Stephen Iwerebon has become a bit of an expert in some of the classic Italian dishes. Some of his favorite Italian meals to cook during a typical week include:

  • Fettuccine Alfredo

  • Chicken Parmigiana

  • Bruschetta

  • Veal Marsala

  • Penne alla Vodka

Gardening

Because Stephen Iwerebon spends so much time cooking, he also dedicates time to growing and caring for his own home garden. Stephen loves growing his own food to make his dining experiences even more special. Knowing that the majority of his ingredients grow fresh right in his own backyard is a satisfying and rewarding experience. Because he has access to clean fresh fruits and vegetables right at home, Stephen Iwerebon has found himself eating out much less which has been very beneficial for his wallet as well as his health and diet.

Stephen's passion for gardening began in college when he was taking care of a few house plants with his roommates. From there, Stephen Iwerebon started learning more and more about different house plants as well as tomato plants and other items he could grow right from his porch at Penn State University or his backyard in Pittsburgh. Soon after, Stephen's garden began to grow and grow, adding new things each year. His garden currently consists of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables including:

  • Cucumbers

  • Tomatoes

  • Pumpkins

  • Green Beans

  • Carrots

  • Asparagus

  • Lettuce

  • Cantaloupe

  • Zucchini

  • And Beyond

Stephen Iwerebon loves sharing his passions and experiences with others, making new connections and relationships. Learn more about Stephen Iwerebon and his leadership roles and interests with updates on his Quora profile: https://www.quora.com/profile/Stephen-Iwerebon.