Last week I received a generous invite from owner Jeff at The Laboratory to join them for their first ever beer pairing dinner with New Belgium. Beer and food pairing? Of course I said yes! I’ve been dying to try out The Laboratory since before they opened and this was the perfect excuse to get a head start on my first day off in over 60 days. I feel like I’d earned it.
The menu looked absolutely divine and I couldn’t wait to try everything and see how differently pairings are done in Colorado since my last one was one that I actually hosted in Studio City.
I walked into the spacious restaurant which is located in a walk-in basement-style space decorated with beakers, science experimental displays and glass garage doors.
After securing my seat at a table (allll byyyy myyyyseeeeelf) I was immediately greeted by the owners Angela, Dave and Jeff. We chatted for a bit about the concept of The Laboratory as well as the build out, and then I ordered a sample of the New Belgium Garage Series they had on tap.
LOVE the little beakers they served the beer in!
Chef Don Braddy and New Belgium brewer Tamar Banner introduced the food and the beer and explained exactly why each pairing was created and what to look for with each bite and sip. The first course was a mixture of appetizers – Vegetable ceviche served in a cucumber shell, fresh mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes and basil drizzled with balsamic vinegar on a soft slice of baguette, buffalo sausage and peach compote with spicy red peppers on a soft slice of baguette and oysters on the half shell drizzled with Sriracha, all paired with Blue Paddle Pilsner. This was the second oyster I’ve ever eaten and while I was landlocked in Colorado and slightly fearful of eating seafood so far inland, it was absolutely fresh and sweet with a hint of ocean water and zip of spice. The Czech-style Pilsner quickly calmed the burn from the wide variety of peppers and was a perfect palate cleanser for what was to come.
My absolute favorite dish of the night – Coffeed butternut cup stuffed with duck confit and walnuts, fresh thyme and butter paired with 1554 Black Lager. Perfectly tender butternut squash and the delicate duck confit melted together with each bite while the black lager cut through the richness of the dish and accentuated the hint of coffee. Surprisingly enough, this dish brought out the notes of dark fruit in the beer that I’d never noticed before. Need. More. Now.
Seared scallop, grilled avocado, crab and cream cheese crouton and mango relish paired with La Terroir dry hopped sour. The most interesting pairing in my opinion – while I thought the sour beer would overwhelm the delicateness of the perfectly cooked scallop, it married wonderfully when mixed with the mango relish and cut through the smoky avocado and robust blend of fresh crab and cream cheese. The accent of fried herbs added an earthy, buttery finish to the dish.
Roasted pancetta-wrapped pork tenderloin served with chestnut polenta and spinach, drizzled with pear-cherry gastrique and paired with Trippel. The one pairing I didn’t think worked out quite as well as it could have – tender pork wrapped in crispy pancetta and topped with the sweet gastrique was slightly too robust for the gentle Trippel, or likely should have been plated before the intensity of the La Terroir. No matter, this dish was cooked perfectly and I loved every aspect of it. I boxed half of it since I was about to explode and needed to save space for the dessert.
DESSERT. Salted caramel ice cream served in a chocolate and BACON coated waffle cone topped with brandy and stout sauce and cashew crumbles, paired with Salted Chocolate Belgian Stout. Heaven. The ice cream had a just hint of salt to balance out the sweetness without being overwhelming and the crispy waffle cone was generously coated with candied bacon and sweet caramel sauce and made the focus of the Salted Chocolate Belgian Stout more towards the rich roasty notes rather than the intense sweetness I’d experienced before.
I rolled home stuffed and happy with a handful of leftovers, and can’t wait to head back to The Laboratory for a regular meal and see what other delicious creativity the chef, Don Braddy, can roll out of the kitchen.
Category Archives: beer pairing
New Belgium Pairing Dinner
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Citrus Classic Balloon Festival
I hosted yet another beer dinner on Saturday – this time at the Citrus Classic Balloon Festival in Santa Paula.
Skywriters greeting the thousand of attendees!
My company sponsored the festival and I got to set up the pairings, host and eat!
Blue Moon was the welcome beer.
Pork belly sliders paired with Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale.
Rosemary chicken flatbread with Karl Strauss Red Trolley.
Short ribs with risotto cake and Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale.
Flourless chocolate cake with Rodenbach Grand Cru.
This is Samantha Harvey of Sam ‘n Ash! If you recall, she was playing EVERYTHING at the Banjo and Fiddle Fest! I had to get a picture to send to Brew Chief Joe for proof.
As the sun began to set, the balloons began to rise.
A delicious and magical evening! I love my job.
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Golden Road Pairing Dinner
Last night the wonderful folks at Tuning Fork in Studio City had a beer pairing dinner with Golden Road brews. I was (yet again) lucky enough to be able to help design the pairings and host the event.
Five dishes and five brews. I had to mentally prepare my stomach, and I had boxes ready to pack whatever I couldn’t finish to take home.
“It’s a Great Time to Be Alive!” – the official title of the evening. And it is. It really is.
Tuning Fork is a newer restaurant located on Ventura Place with a rustic wood bar and family-style picnic tables. Owners Joseph and Martin man the helm, while Chef Jay works his brilliance in the kitchen. The staff is possibly the friendliest I’ve come across in a long time, and all the customers are instantly welcomed as close friends.
Six beers on tap and almost 40 bottled beers! The selection there is mind-boggling.
The tables were set, carafes were filled with water, empty dump buckets prepared…
Golden Road flannel was repped. We were set.
We started off the evening with a full pour of Cabrillo Kölsch to welcome everyone in.
It was a full house. They ended up having to close the restaurant completely to accommodate everyone who was calling for seats!
I stuck with small pours and even smaller sips since I was being all responsible and stuff. The first pairing was the Cabrillo Kölsch with applewood smoked bacon mac ‘n cheese pops.
Mac ‘n cheese deep fried. Anything deep fried is a win, but these were beyond delicious. Sturdy yet full of creamy cheese and tender pieces of smoky bacon, wrapped in a crust of fried perfection. The clean finish and high carbonation of the Kölsch whisked away the richness as soon as the beer touched the tongue.
The second course was spicy Veracruz seafood ceviche with Hefeweizen. The sweet citrus in the beer marries perfectly with the acidity of the lemon and lime juice used in the ceviche without overwhelming the delicate fish. The final bite of brutal spice was calmed by the smooth wheat in the brew.
IPA braised short ribs on quinoa cake and swiss chard paired with Point the Way IPA. Rich and fall-apart tender short ribs covered in thick gravy are balanced with a gently hoppy IPA that slice through that richness while subtle notes of caramel match with the caramelized meat. And quinoa and swiss chard makes it healthy. That’s how this works.
Chef Jay brought out a palate cleanser immediately after – tangy sweet sorbet to scrub away any lingering hop bitterness or fattiness from the rich cuts of meat.
Jerk spice mole chicken with coconut rice and plantains paired with Wolf Among Weeds IPA. Tropical notes of pineapple in the beer tie in perfectly with the Caribbean-style dish, while rich mole sauce satisfies all the senses. I only had a few bites of this dish and packed it up with the intention of having it for breakfast this morning. Which I did. It has banana, therefore it is breakfast.
The finale of the evening was a traditional English trifle with layers of fresh berries, vanilla custard and sweet crumbly goodness, paired with It’s Not Always Sunny In LA black IPA. Intense bitterness with hints of roast tames the sweetness of the trifle and makes each spoonful even more decadent, yet less filling at the same time. I put this picture up and immediately went to the fridge to finish off the leftovers from last night. Consuming it now – true story.
Rob from Golden Road explained the background of the beers, Chef Jay introduced the dishes and I explained the purpose of why we’d paired which beer with which dish. Education was studded throughout giveaways by the two owners, Joseph and Martin, and the crowds were rowdy and happy.
I have to say, this was the most successful pairing dinner I’ve had to date! I can’t wait for the next one!
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Samuel Adams Pairing Dinner
My job is awesome. Awesome and delicious. I’m the craft beer pairing and education specialist for my company, which means that I get to help design beer pairing menus and participate in drool-worthy dinners.
Last night, that dinner was at Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine in Woodland Hills. If you follow me on Twitter, you got a preview of what I’m about to show you.
Samuel Adams was the brewery of the night. Everyone filed in and was greeted with the social beer – Boston Lager, along with a keepsake pint glass.
The tables were laid out in a German picnic family-style, forcing everyone to meet new people and share awful and hilarious jokes.
Mike from Samuel Adams was there to give an introduction to the flagship beer and the glass design and how it affects the beer.
I’d met with Bart, the chef, about a month and a half ago, carrying in a full case of beer and some extra on the side to make sure we got the correct beers paired with the dishes. It was a rough afternoon of research, I tell ya.
The first dish that came out was the lobster sandwich on a housemade pita bread that was full of peppery lobster bisque and drizzled with avocado creme. We paired this with Samuel Adams Summer Ale – light and citrusy with a hint of coriander and grains of paradise that finishes dry.
The spices in the beer matched the pepper of the bisque while the citrus enhanced the natural sweetness of the lobster without overwhelming the dish. I demolished this.
The salad was next – spicy arugula wish goat cheese, strawberries, roasted nuts and drizzled with a citrus vinaigrette that incorporated the pairing beverage – Angry Orchard Crisp Apple Cider. Tangy and sweet, the dressing was absolutely wonderful and showcased the acidity of the cider. (Angry Orchard is made by Boston Beer, for those of you who were unaware.)
The first entree was something I’d been looking forward to since the first tasting (although I was looking forward to everything after they sent me the menu): Seared scallops with a white chocolate foam and peppered parmesan chip on top paired with Samuel Adams Norse Legend Sahti.
The sweetness of the white chocolate foam was tamed by the earthiness of the beer and pine of the juniper berries. At this point, I was starting to fill up. Only one and a half scallops was consumed, to my chagrin.
Final entree – Beef cheeks. Face cheeks, not butt cheeks for those of you who are wondering. Bart slow roasted these in a stew for hours, until they were falling apart. No knife needed.
I paired this with the Samuel Adams Third Voyage Imperial IPA – intense hoppiness and carbonation cut right through the rich fattiness of the beef and scrubbed the palate after every sip. I finished more than I probably should have thanks to that pairing…
And finally – a chocolate bomb with Jameson caramel and gold leaf paired with Samuel Adams Dark Depths Baltic IPA (which is actually a lager, but labeled as an ale?).
Intense chocolate filled with light and airy marshmallow ice cream. The hints of chocolate in the Dark Depths matched the flavor of the thick shell while the hoppiness evened out the intense sweetness and cleansed the palate. I only had a few bites of this before I had to quit. For shame.
Overall, a very successful dinner! Thanks to Bart and the entire team at Roy’s for their incredible menu!
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Tap Takeover at Dish
Last night, Enegren Brewing Company took over the taps at Dish in Thousand Oaks.
Chef Alfie had been inspired by a few of EBC’s beers and decided to put together a burger pairing for Dish’s weekly Monday Craft Beer and Burger Night.
While the boys set up for the evening, I greedily studied the menu and proceeded to order each of the featured burgers.
Buffalo Mole Burger, inspired by Captain Patrick’s Irish Stout – A thick, juicy buffalo patty cooked perfectly to medium, topped with a savory mole sauce emanating essence of dusty cocoa, sweet onions and a delicate spice of pepper. The dry Irish stout enhanced the smokiness of the burger and brought forward the rich chocolate in the mole while taming the spice.
Three Little Pigs, inspired by Protector Imperial IPA – This burger was a little overwhelming at first. Stacked to high heaven and no knife and fork in sight…
We topped it with the tender brioche bun and proceeded to compress it until it was almost short enough to take a full bite. House ground pork patty topped with the thickest bacon I’ve ever seen topped again with barbecue pulled pork and crispy onions. The hoppiness of the beer cut through the adiposity of the bacon while balancing out the sweetness of the barbecue sauce.
I also happened to see a new addition to the chalkboard – Onion rings coated in Golden Spur Saison batter, served with warmed zesty dijon mustard dipping sauce spiked with Golden Spur. The batter was light, flaky and piping hot. Everything was greedily consumed and copious amounts of napkins were used.
In addition to the five beers on tap, the boys brought along a cask of Vanilla Oaked Valkyrie – a favorite of the brewery regulars.
Ron of Dish tapped the keg in the early evening and we were pleased to see many glasses being sent out around the restaurant.
After a taster of the cask, I was designated the task of disposing of any “mispours” made by the boys. I didn’t complain – gotta do what I can to help out!
Overall it was yet another delicious night, as seems to be tradition when there’s beer and food involved.
The night was almost ruined for me when my camera bag betrayed me and threw my beloved camera onto the street, cracking the lens right down the middle. While I stood in shock, hyperventilating, internally cursing and trying not to faint, Commander Matt calmed me down and showed me that the body and actual lens of the camera were fine – the protective UV cover had taken all the abuse. The above picture is proof that my lovely camera still lives. Crisis averted.
Said camera bag may be burned and replaced for its betrayal.
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Getting Up to Speed
A few of the things that have transpired lately…
PLINY THE YOUNGER! Didn’t even have to wait in line! I was taking a different route home, got a call from a lovely lady from Ladies at Ladyface and was receiving a pour two minutes later. I’m glad that I tried it, but I’m very glad I didn’t wait in line for it. It’s a perfectly balanced beer. Someone at Tony’s Darts Away explained it the best way – “So perfect it’s forgettable.” I’ll remember it just because of the hype. And the jalapeno and bacon mac ‘n cheese I paired with it.
Enegren Brewing and El Segundo Brewing beer pairing night at Short Order!
Tom from El Segundo Brewing, Matt and Joe from Enegren Brewing.
Valkyrie California Alt in front of the fire on a warm evening.
Bad news for you guys – the food was so delicious that it was devoured before I remembered I should be taking pictures. My apologies.
Custom Melt visited the brewery for our St. Patrick’s Day event!
Green Mac ‘n Cheese with Bangers. Spinach blended into the cheese made it green. And healthy. That’s how that works.
Heavenly corned beef and cabbage melts. It was jam packed again, similar to Superbowl Saturday, so I was only able to snag a few bites of everything.
Irish Car Bomb bread pudding! Thomas of Custom Melt made Valkyrie beer bread to use in this recipe. Have I mentioned how Custom Melt is my hero/haven/love/dream?
We had the 21st meeting of Ladies at Ladyface! Irish brews were the theme.
Plenty of donations from the ladies.
Traditional examples of nitro Irish stouts.
And and “Irish Car Bomb” beer by Ladyface owner Cyrena. She used Ladyface’s Barleywine and threw in whiskey-soaked oak chips. Dangerously delicious, plus each glass had an oak chip or two gracefully floating atop the sweet nectar.
Corned beef and cabbage sliders to top off the evening!
I also designed and hosted a beer pairing at Cafe Fiore in Woodland Hills!
The things my job requires me to do… It’s rough, I’m tellin’ ya.
Chef masterpieces commence….NOW.
Ahi Tuna Tartar with fresh avocado, house-pickled cucumbers and crispy focaccia. I could’ve eaten just this all night and been content.
Citrus-glazed shrimp skewers with citrus wedges and spring greens.
House-made chicken and sun-dried tomato sausages atop sweet polenta, drizzled with a balsamic reduction. Again, heavenly.
Corned beef sliders – twas the season.
Awful picture, but possibly my favorite dessert EVER – caramel sauce, freshly sliced Fuji apples and asiago cheese atop freshly baked pizza crust. My boss, my boss’s boss and myself each ordered an additional one to take home and share with those who were truly deserving of such an abundance of deliciousness – that means I ate the majority of it. It’s THAT good.
I had a lovely girls’ night with Janelle and her little Avery last night as well! She made an amazing spread of stuffed peppers, roasted sweet potatoes and fresh salad to pair with the beers I brought.
Farmer’s Reserve No. 2 by Almanac Beer Company. Wonderfully tart and not overpowering with spices at all. This will be a repeat.
Avery was a little jealous of us I think. Only 20.3 years and then you can join us in appreciation of fermented liquids! She shall be trained well when the time comes, but for now I’m enjoying capturing her beautiful innocence.
Coming up this week – a new restaurant review. I did a beer education at this amazing place with an eccentric/genius chef and have been dying to sit down and have a full meal there. Tomorrey is that day.
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Superbowl Saturday
Enegren Brewing and Custom Melt joined forces today for a Superbowl Saturday Extravaganza!
Food and brews for six hours straight. We prepared for a heavy onslaught of hungry and thirsty revelers.
The menu was set – partly created by our very own Brianne Braun Enegren! She created these short ribs with Daniel Irons Oatmeal Stout for a brewery “family dinner” a few weeks ago, and the owners of Custom Melt decided to turn it into a sammich. Yes, please, thank you very much.
The food was prepped right outside the roll-up door behind the brewery and the smells were devastatingly tempting to all of the hungry souls inside.
About twenty minutes before Custom Melt officially began serving…
And this is what the brewery looked like for the rest of the day – a constant flow of brewery and Melt fans alike poured through the door. Those of us working behind the bar didn’t have a single chance to sit down, let alone enjoy a full dish from our in-house chefs. In between inhaling bites while hidden below the bar, I went around snapping pictures of other people’s food in order to have some sort of commemoration of what had graced our presence.
Mac ‘n cheese with parmesan crumbles.
Zesty chili paired with a Daniel Irons Oatmeal Stout.
Mac ‘n chili dog! My personal favorites of the day were a tie between the EBC short rib melt and the mac dog – both of which went unphotographed as they were being quickly consumed in between pouring glasses and washing said glasses.
It was an incredibly successful day full of happy, patient people, delicious foods and brews and incredibly sore feet. I’m attempting to heal with a Maui Brewing Sobrehumano Palena’ole. It’s not quite killing the ache yet.
Tomorrey is Superbowl Sunday! I’ve got a few recipes up my sleeve that I can’t wait to share with you!
I have it on good authority that Daniel Irons Oatmeal Stout French Toast might be on the menu in the morning. Stay tuned!
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Golden Road with Pops
My pops came into town for a business trip and was staying in Burbank, so I hopped into my new car and cruised down to pick him up for dinner.
Golden Road was only ten minutes away and we arrived right before the dinner rush.
Figueroa Mountain’s Stagecoach Stout for me…
Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout for my pops!
We split two dishes – slow cooked ribs with housemade balsamic, hefeweizen barbecue sauce and cornbread…
and cast iron lasagna full of tender noodles, ground chuck and piping hot cheeses alongside fresh garlic bread. Thick, warming stouts ended up being the perfect pairing for these rich dishes – espresso, chocolate and high alcohol (at least for the Yeti) enhanced the richness of both the ribs and the deep dish of cheesy goodness.
I topped off the meal with Golden Road’s Berliner Weisse with Woodruff syrup – dessert! Since I was designated driver of the night, I really appreciated the option of a 2.8%ABV brew. I was hoping to show my pops inside Chloe’s, the new semi-private beer industry space connected to the pub, but was told that they were having a private event.
“A private event… I recognize almost everyone going into Chloe’s right now… The L.A. Beer Blogger event was tonight!” – My thought process. Since I’d signed up to attend and completely forgotten that the blogger gathering was that evening, it worked out extremely well for me to be able to give my dad a glimpse of the cute little pub-like area.
Kip Barnes of Bierkast was the originator of the event which was kindly hosted by the PR peeps of Golden Road, Cambria and Frances.
It was almost as jam packed as the invitational grand opening night! Drew Beechum and John Palmer made guest appearances to give talks on writing about beer and homebrewing. After checking the place out we said a quick hello to blogger and beer friends before making our way down the street to Glendale Tap for a rousing game of billiards and more craft brews.
Tomorrey is Enegren Brewing’s Superbowl Saturday event with local deliciousness Custom Melt! Come down for some amazing grub and brews between 12pm-6pm!
SHORT RIB MELLLLLLLLT!!!!!
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Beer ‘n Wings Night
One evening I was sitting at home after a long day’s work, in desperate want of buffalo wings and a good craft beer to pair with them. I opened my computer, went into Facebook and created the group “Beer ‘n Wings“. Once a week a group of friends and brewery regulars (who are now friends) get together at a new spot and test out the wings and taps, in search of the best in the state. So far we’ve hit up Hooters (twice), the Dugout, Arkaine’s, Brendan’s Irish Pub in Newbury Park, BJ’s in Westlake, Wood Ranch and our latest destination: CUSTOM MELT!!!
The owners of Custom Melt, Phil and Thomas, offered to host our latest wings night. Thomas specially prepared out-of-this-world wings drenched in his own creation of sauces. Thomas and Phil, thank you so much for going out of your way for us!
Important things first – chips and cheese and BEER! Firestone Double DBA on tap? Yes. Sweet toffee malts balanced out with rich, earthy oak and topped off with a touch of hop bitterness. 12%ABV. Yes.
First up were the spicy wings. Tender, succulent and a hearty kick of spice at the end. The second – chipotle barbecue wings. Smoky and sweet. The third?
A combination of the spicy sauce with the chipotle barbecue. This was everyone’s favorite and made for a PERFECT pairing with the Double DBA. The ribbons of caramel in the malts complimented the sugar in the sauce and tamed the flame while the oak danced with the smokiness of the chipotle making each bite and sip taste like more. Okey, now I’m hungry again.
We had a lovely group of nine craft beer and wing enthusiasts. When people heard that Custom Melt was hooking us up, they raced to sign up. This place is HOT within the people of Moorpark for good reason!
Enough pictures, time to eat more.
Good job, John. We went through THIRTY POUNDS of wings that night! I’m quite proud of the nine of us accomplishing this grand feat.
Of course we had to end with an official dessert. Daniel Irons – Missoura style! Enegren Brewing’s Daniel Irons Oatmeal Stout with a splash of coffee, topped with whipped cream and another dash of rich stout.
Delicate aroma with hints of vanilla, robust cocoa and a touch of coffee.
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Now the question that awaits us all – where do we go first in the new year?
I’m off to Colorado for eleven days of breweries, beer, brewery tours, family, Christmas, beer and breweries! Keep up with my Twitter, Facebook and blog for updates throughout the upcoming week!
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