Tag Archives: Umami Fort Collins

Food Trucks and Fancy Brews

Snowbank Brewing has been open for 19 days today! I’m on 21 days of work straight and I couldn’t be happier!
aa0In addition to managing the taproom an social media, I also get to be the brewery photographer – something that I’ve always loved doing since I began working with Enegren Brewing.
a1Every morning I post our specials/pairings/events of the day on the brewery Facebook. When this includes food trucks, I need to have samples to ensure that the food and beer I’ve chosen pair well together.
a2Umami rolled out a new special for us to pair with our Colorado Red – sweet chili pulled pork sliders topped with sweet chili slaw and Sriracha raita. Drool. I’d just had a huge brunch but I ate this anyway. It’s a difficult job, but I’m willing to sacrifice my waistline to do it.
aa1We had the Silver Seed vegan truck set up outside this past weekend and got to enjoy some of the most flavorful and delicious vegan food I’ve ever had. Definitely the most adorable food truck I’ve ever seen in my life!
aa2I could be vegan if everything tasted as good as this. No joke. And if someone were to make it for me. That too.
aad1The Good Life – portobello and cremini mushrooms, arugula, fresh tomato, red onions and some kind of tangy, magical vegan aioli wrapped in ridiculously pillowy focaccia bread, paired with Moon Arete Wheat.
aa5Barbecue squash tacos with fresh avocado and red cabbage paired with our Silent Snow White IPA. Heaven.
aa3We also had Chaulkboard Gourmet Express up from Loveland for Friday night. Billy brought out these beef and chicken tacos for us to sample and I ended up getting an order of them. AFTER I ordered and ate an entire green chili Philly cheesesteak.
b6Not the prettiest, but definitely the most delicious.
sus1If there aren’t food trucks available, I normally bring in something from the grocery store. California rolls and Bike Trail Pale Ale.
amWhen I’m not gorging myself silly, I actually do end up getting work done around the taproom. Weekdays are relatively quiet here so I can get all of my office work, spreadsheets and emails done.
am3I’ve got custody of this kid for a few weeks. I don’t think he’s quite comfortable being the brewery dog yet…
am8He much prefers a soft couch and fluffy blanket to the cold floor of the taproom.
am6On Sundays and Mondays we close at 6pm, so for the next month I’ll be able to enjoy the last rays of sun before the season shifts and it starts getting dark early.
am7
Nothing pairs with a fiery sunset like a Colorado Red.
amI initiated The SnowBANK – our buy a friend a beer board! I did one of these for Enegren Brewing in California and it was a hit (John from the Chive ended up buying 40 people pints through that one!), so I was dying to finally start this. Pay it forward!
am2
We’ve had tons of industry folk swing through our little brewery, and they always bring presents. Hop Zealot IPA from Justin at Twisted Pine Brewing.
am1
AND Twisted Wit from Twisted Pine. Ridiculously generous. After a long day at the brewery, our team of four heads over to someone’s house to sample the wares and make a family style dinner.
crooked
One of my blog readers-turned-friend, Aaron C., brought this Blackberry Dark Origins on one of our first days. Soooo delicious! I had dreams about this beer that very night.
am9
Eric H. came from California and brought this gem. Thank you so much, Eric! “Contains alcohol”. That’s an understatement. At 19.2%ABV, this delectable beauty packs a wallop. All four of us were in bliss. And I was very grateful to everyone in my group for being willing to share it with me. So selfless.
am4And now I need to go on a full body cleanse thanks to all of the delicious food trucks that have been stopping by.

Do you have a favorite food truck in your town?

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Grand Opening Weekend

I don’t think I remember what it’s like to feel rested.
GrandOpeningSnowbank Brewing’s grand opening was this past weekend and it was absolutely insane in the best way.
amI got to the taproom early on Friday to set everything up.
am1Pictures were taken so we could remember what it looked like way back when it was pristine and unused.
am2Ahh, my beautiful taproom.
am3Around 10:30am a gorgeous bouquet arrived from the brewer’s grandparents congratulating the brewery on making it all the way to a brand new beginning!
am4One of Fort Collins’ most popular food trucks, Umami, pulled into the lot and started setting up.
am5I put my order in for lunch about three hours early after reading this sign. The sweet caramelized onions and roasted beef paired perfectly with our Pawnee Porter, if I do say so myself.
am7And then the people started flowing through the doors in waves. I shoved my face at any free second, which were few and far between. Within an hour, we were at capacity.
am6Our first full dishwashing load! A customer begged me to take a selfie in front of it. I happily obliged.
am8The night wore on with the flow of people never stopping. I don’t think my staff, Broox and Stacy, got any chance to breathe except for the half hour I forced them to go grab lunch from Umami. They absolutely rocked it! We finally closed shop around 11:00pm once the crowds had dwindled (we technically close at 9pm), wiped down tables, swept and mopped. I fell into bed around 1am after throwing our rags in the washer to prep for the next day.
am9Saturday was quite similar to Friday, except I actually had a few seconds to sip some beer! I spent some quality time with my laptop and BeerAdvocate, Untappd, Foursquare, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook updating all of our location information, claiming our brewery and editing all of the extra beers people had added in. (C’mon people, I added those beers into Untappd last week for easy check-ins!)
am10Bottlecap BBQ out of Loveland made their way up and served some of the best bread pudding I’ve had in a while. Brioche soaked in our Pawnee Porter, studded with raisins and cinnamon swirls and served hot with whipped cream. And the sliders! 1/2 beef 1/2 bacon sliders from The Boar and Bull in Loveland, topped with pulled pork. I inhaled that slider and remembered I needed a picture only after I looked down at the crumbs. I could’ve died happy.
am16Plenty of brew tours were given over the span of the weekend. My bro redesigned our brewery control touch screen to welcome us every brew morning.
am17So freaking cool!
am18
Sunday marked the 1 year anniversary of my crossing the state line to live in Colorado! The Snowbank Brewing crew and I headed next door to Gravity 1020 for a bloody mary celebration.
am19Ghost Marys, amazing friends and a brand new brewery with some of the kindest, coolest, most eccentric customers I’ve ever met and delicious craft beer.

This is going to be great.

How did you spend your weekend?

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