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Taco, Beer, Tequila Festival is Back – 2nd Year with More Tacos, Tequila, Margaritas & Beer

March 6th, 2018 • No Comments

Taco ‘Bout Fun – Taco, Beer, Tequila Festival is Back for our 2nd Year!

We’re Back – Taco, Beer, Tequila Festival is back for our 2nd year at the Yards Park, 136 N St., SE, Washington, D.C. on May 12th, 2018!

We’re Super Excited to have more Great Taco Vendors – many are returning from last year, but we’re also adding some interesting new taco makers who want to showcase that the taco is more than just a Tuesday thing! You can purchase your tickets at Taco, Beer, Tequila Festival Tickets – this is a 2 Session Event on Saturday. $45/person is General Admission which includes 3 hour access to the Festival, 4 Taco Tickets (good for all tacos), 1 Margarita and 8 – 5 oz. beer samples. Tequila Ticket is also 3 hour access, 5 Taco Tickets, 1 Margarita and 10 – 5 oz. beer samples and also includes 10 – 1 oz. Tequila/Mezcal samples within the Tequila Pavilion. VIP is 4 hour access (1 hour early), 5 Taco Tickets, 1 Margarita and 10 – 5 oz. beer samples, 10 – 1 oz. Tequila/Mezcal samples within the Tequila Pavilion, Private tent with private bathrooms and a special rare Tequila Tasting.

Get Your Tickets before this is Sold Out – last year we have over 4,500 people and this year we have a much better date in May. As Always…

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

Bacon Festivals Are Back and TasteUSA Got ’em!

May 17th, 2015 • No Comments

America Loves Bacon..and So Does Washington, D.C.!

albhotdogsIt’s Bacon Festival Season again, and Washington, D.C. seems to be the Extreme Bacon Capitol! Coming up are 2 Bacon Festivals the same weekend in DC – First the amazing and popular Capitol Bacon Fest brought to you by America Loves Bacon. Believe it or not, TasteUSA now Feature more Bacon Festivals than any other website!

Capitol Bacon Festival, May 30, 2015, The Fairgrounds, Washington, D.C. (near the Yards Park)- 2nd Time in Washington, D.C. – Last year’s Bacon Eating Championship was a Feast for the Senses (not bad on the eyes either) and will again pit some of DC’s Best Bacon Eaters in a competitive format. I really enjoyed this event last year – Charm City Caterers, Food Trucks and some local food purveyors made the event a Smorgasbord of Bacon Goodness!

Jalapeno Bacon!

Jalapeno Bacon!

 

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918 F Streets Bacon Tasting – Alas, LivingSocial Closed this Facility!

I attended last year’s DC Bacon and Beer Festival in DC and it’s Back this year on Sunday, May 31st, 2015 – the day after Capitol Bacon Festival!! This was held at Penn Social and was quite good – there were quite a few chefs/restaurants and it Sold Out in literally a matter of minutes.

Beer, Bourbon & BBQ is June 19 and 20th, 2015 – We promote so many of these Festivals that we almost forget – this event includes a Huge Bacon Tasting! There are over 10+ Bacon tasting stations and of course this event comes with a great selection of Bourbons and Beers. The Trigger people produce this event all over the U.S. so they have special relationships with Pork Vendors – it’s Porky and Foodie!

Beer & Bacon Festival comes to Woodbridge, VA for the 2nd year on Saturday, August 29, 2015 and is presented by Trigger Agency again. There’s a Special Price for VIP Tickets on our site – and you get VIP Beer and Bacon Admission will host over 10 restaurant tasting stations featuring the BEST restaurants in the DC Metro area. They will be on-hand vying for the $500 Best Bacon Dish Prize. (VIP Beer & Bacon Session food tastings included, regular beer tasting session food is ala carte.)
• 2 tons of gourmet bacons will be griddled on-site (until 3pm). Save a Few Dollars on Beer & Bacon Festival Here

 

BAconey Deviled Eggs!

BAconey Deviled Eggs!
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Past: I attended Beer, Bacon & Music at the Frederick Fairgrounds on Saturday, May 16th, 2015 – this was my first time visiting this event and location – the 2 Tons of Bacon made it really fun (you could literally eat your hearts content of bacon – the Jalapeno was awesome!!) and beers were a penny once you paid the very reasonable cover charge. I was impressed as much with the quality of the craft breweries represented as I was with the Bacon choices. I met a farm/brewery owner – Henry Ruhlman of Ruhlman Brewery  in Hempstead, Maryland who told me the story of how he began growing Maryland Hops and went through all the regulatory hurdles to produce Farmhouse beers. Today, opening a brewery on a farm is much less of a struggle, but he said he would do it again!

Hop Chef Opening Competition for DC Beer Week 2013..And the Winner Is..

August 12th, 2013 • No Comments

2013-08-11 19.25.39Had a fun time at the Hop Chef opening event for DC Beer Week at Longview Gallery on Sunday, August 11th, 2013 – Hopchef.

2013-08-11 19.00.14Brewery Ommegang and the Washington City Paper have invited 8 of the area’s most talented chefs to cook with and pair a unique dish with beers of Brewery Ommegang to earn the title of Hop Chef DC.
Ommegang Brewery was the sponsor for this event and the concept was for 8 chef’s to use a bit of each various beer in their dishes and obviously to win the tasting competition – a Foodie group of judges including K Street Kate, Mel Gold, Tammy Tuck with the City Paper, and Lauren DeSantos, Capital Cooking.

Surprisingly Delicious Haute Dogs from DC3

Surprisingly Delicious Haute Dogs from DC3

The Winner is..Will Artley, Pizzeria Orso!

The Winner is..Will Artley, Pizzeria Orso!

The Event was designed so that each Restaurant had it’s own dish that included the beer in the dish, but attendees could also pair the beer with the dish. Since there was only one beer line (but it moved pretty quickly – I mean I got about 8 beer “tastes” in under 2 1/2 hours!).
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2013-08-11 19.17.45The crowd was quite a mix of industry people and DC Beer Lovers – I would call it DC Eclectic – but alot of new faces which is what makes DC such a unique Foodie market – we just seem to keep getting new people to our burgeoning beer and restaurant scenes – Cheers!

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

Upcoming DC Beer Week Events of Note:

4th Annual Chesapeake Crab and Beer Festival (2 Sessions), Saturday, August 17th, 2013

DC BRAU’s Genuine 2nd Annual DC Beer Week Crab Fest at the Quarterdeck, Wednesday, August 14th, 2013

NoMA BeerFest, Saturday, August 17th, 2013

 

Chili from P.J. Clarkes

Chili from P.J. Clarkes

Robust and Complex dish by Clyde's

Robust and Complex dish by Clyde’s

Craft Beer Goes Crazy in DC!

July 28th, 2013 • No Comments

Union Market had a Memorable Craft Beer Shindig on Saturday, July 27th, 2013..

I attended the Eat Local First Farm to Street Party on a sunny day with a late outpour that brought true Foodies together..Capital Kombucha, Route 11 Potato Chips, Uncle Brutha’s Hot Sauce, Vigilante Coffee and a whole slew of local foodies, artisans, restaurants and craft beers all came together to create a true Foodie Gathering!

2013-07-27 13.18.07Craft Beer is really Hot in DC right now, and here’s the list of craft beers that Meridian Pint sponsored and poured at the event:

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Recent List of Local beers served at the Union Market “Eat Local First” Block Party –

3 Stars Citra & Lemon Peel Saison
Blue Mountain Full Nelson Pale Ale
Brewer’s Art Parking Lot Beer
DC Brau The Tradition
Devils Backbone Vienna Lager
Dogfish Head Festina Peche
DuClaw Euforia
Evolution Lot 3 IPA
Flying Dog UnderDog
Franklin’s Mandarin Summer
Hardywood Singel
Heavy Seas Loose Cannon
Lost Rhino Meridian Kolsch
Mad Fox Post Meridian Schwarzbier
Monocacy Riot Rye
Oliver Modern Life Is Rubbish
Port City Optimal Wit
Stillwater Cellar Door
Troegs Perpetual IPA
Union Balt Altbier2013-07-27 15.06.10

I enjoyed quite a few of the beers – 6 to be exact, but I had recently tried the Stillwater Cellar Door at Birreria in Georgeotwn, and I’ve had the Port City Optimal Wit many times at local bars. Since it’s Summer, most of the offerings were lighter, lower in alcohol beers to refresh – it was about 90 degrees until the rains came!

Overall, the crowd was pretty young – I would say even younger than the average Union Market crowd, and I would assume that’s because of the nature of the event: an outdoor affair with great craft beers. To really tell you what it was like is impossible – the new DC Foodie and craft beer scene has to be experienced..so many people with exciting ideas, lofty goals and unique perspectives on what the future will hold. Looking at a crystal ball, my first assumption is that coffee is really happening – quite a few companies are opening roasting facilities soon and I’ll keep readers up to date on that. Kombucha is here and with over 3 vendors at the event, I think you’ll start seeing more in markets. The one question spot is food delivery – will people engage in websites that deliver specific ingredients with recipe instructions (I’m extremely skeptical) or more general delivery of food..it’s hard to say, but it’s also hard to know – personally, I still shop for all my ingredients at local stores, but honestly the strange behavior of shoppers (weird outbursts, unfriendly staff, and frankly limited selections) may change that for me soon – who knows..

Cheers!

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

Bacon + Beer at 918 F St.

July 10th, 2013 • No Comments

Whole Lotta Bacon..

2013-07-08 20.41.12I really enjoyed myself Monday night at 918 F St (Living Social) for a tasty pairing of two of my favorites: bacon and beer! 918 F Street in Washington, D.C. is quite a facility – 5 floors each with one or two rooms for cooking, mixing drinks or other events – it’s a pretty happening event space with literally thousands of people going through every month (maybe every week!).2013-07-08 20.29.01 The speaker for this event – Bacon + Beer – really knew his stuff – Jesse Raines, Beverage Director at VSLS, Living Social (but his card lists him also as “Speakeasy Manager”). Very simple setup: we sat at white table-clothed tables and were given a very explanatory tasting sheet with 4 beers and a selection of 3 bacons (two slices of each – way more than needed!) and finally at the end the chocolate covered bacon was put out separately (I assume to keep the chocolate from melting – it was served slightly chilled).
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Four Bacon Tastings with matching beers (and my comments):

• Honey Chipotle-Glazed Bacon with Abita Amber Lager
This was a very good pairing – The Abita Amber Lager is a Session beer with relatively low alcohol and has just a hint of honey which helped it go with the sweetness of the bacon’s glaze. Actually, the Abita pretty much went with every bacon – except for the chocolate covered..

• Espresso-Glazed Bacon with Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout
Delicious Beer (10% ABV!), great bacon with big coffee/hickory flavors, but the pairing didn’t work – simple reason: the Stout is a Big Beer with loads of alcohol and chocolate/coffee intense flavor (actually has no chocolate in it!) and there just wasn’t any synergy. I would have paired the Stout with something chocolate like cake and maybe even a scoop of vanilla ice cream which would cool down the heat of this beer..Some beers were meant to be drunk alone though!firestonewalkerwookyjackblackryeale

• Sriracha-Glazed Bacon with Firestone Walker Wookey Jack Black Ale
I hate to overuse the word “awesome” but this bacon was AWESOME!! The prior two bacons were hickory-smoked, while this one was apple-smoked and the bacon was more juicy/fatty/srirachi! Yum and yum, this bacon rocked! The big difference in this beer is noticeable hops and a slight rye whiskey flavor (so a spicy/smokyness..) which came from aging in rye barrels. This was a very good pairing with alot of complexity from smoke to hot Sriracha, from hops to saltiness..alot going on which is fun in your mouth!

• Chocolate and Sea Salt-Dipped Bacon with Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter
This was some rich dark bittersweet chocolate – I mean I actually tasted more of the chocolate than the bacon! Nice pairing – it was on the rich side with chocolate, bacon and “Imperial” Porter (BTW – Jesse mentioned that “Imperial” added to a craft beer title pretty much just means high in alcohol!) and of course my palate was coated with a nice bacon fat/hops/maltiness, so it takes some strong flavors to come through.2013-07-08 21.06.55

We ended the evening with a fifth tasting in the Speakeasy (my Bad – I forget the name of the beer!) and I had a couple of Whistlepig Whiskeys to clear my head, and all was good in the world – Cheers!

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

Upcoming Beer Events on TasteDC:

Belgian Restaurant Week’s Mussel Throw Down and Blind-folded Beer Tasting at Eastern Market (Saturday, July 20th, 2013)

Artists & Artisans Summer Celebration at 3 Stars Brewery, Washington, D.C. (Sunday, July 28th, 2013)

Drink the District: Beer Edition (Saturday and Sunday, July 27th and 28th)

 

The Craft Brewer’s Conference Beer & Food Experience

April 7th, 2013 • No Comments

The Craft Brewer’s Conference Beer & Food Experience..

2013-03-25 21.58.13So what happens when a couple thousand or so Brewer’s and their beer-loving cohorts come to DC to partake in a 3 day Conference around Beer? Total Chaos! OK, it wasn’t that crazy (I skipped alot of the Shenanigans..), but it started off for me with a serious beer dinner at Birch & Barley on Monday, March 25th, 2013 – Charlie Bravo Charlie (which stands for Craft Brewer’s Conference..get it??) Rare Beer Dinner: Volume #1

Let’s take you through the menu and beers..

Aperitif: Share the Rainbow a Collaboration by Bluejacket, Allagash and Peekskill Breweries.2013-03-25 19.23.21

Ahi Tartare & Maui Ginger Saison

Ahi Tartare & Maui Ginger Saison

Dish #1: Ahi Poke Tartare (Soy-Mirin, Tobiko, Wasabi Peas, Wonton, Sesame)
Beer Pairing: Maui Ginger Saison by Maui Brewing Co., Hawaii

Dish #2: Seared Shad Roe (Lemon Puree, Braised Escarole, Sherry-Bacon Sauce, Arugula)
Beer Pairing: Surly Smoke Lager by Surly Brewing Co., Minnesota

Shad Roe w/ Surly Smoke Lager

Shad Roe w/ Surly Smoke Lager

2013-03-25 20.22.52Dish #3: Handcut Fettucine (Littleneck Clams, Chili Flake, Toasted Garlic, Crispy Pancetta)
Beer Pairing: Black Stallion by Flying Dog Brewery, Frederick, Maryland

Dish #4: Roasted Squab (Toasted Farro-Marcona Almond, Fresh Radish, Roasted Sunchokes)
Beer Pairing: Barrel-Aged Ghouls Night Out by DC Brau, Washington, D.C.

Dish #5: Fourme D’Ambert (Cream Sherry-Plumped Dark Raisins, Rosemary, Hazelnut Butter)
Beer paired – Firestone Walker (CA) XV

Dessert: Vanilla Bean Cheesecake (Citrus Segments, Blood Orange Sorbet, Ginger-Cardamom Pound Cake, Basil)
Beer Paired – Hunahpu’s Imperical Stout (FL), Cigar City

Roasted Squab - Yumm!

Roasted Squab – Yumm!

DC Brau Barrel-Aged Ghouls Night Out

DC Brau Barrel-Aged Ghouls Night Out

Digestif: Odic Equum (Co) Avery Brewing

Brandon Skall of DC Brau!

Brandon Skall of DC Brau!

Meg Parisi - Head Brewer at Bluejacket Brewery, Washington, D.C.

Meg Parisi – Head Brewer at Bluejacket Brewery, Washington, D.C.

So You Wanna Throw a Beer Festival?

March 25th, 2013 • No Comments

Things don’t always go right when you plan a Big Event – especially in Washington, D.C..

Packed and Chilly..

Packed and Chilly..


So I had an “interesting” conversation with the organizer of the inaugural DC Beer Festival a few months before the event. The Organizer was frankly quite cocky about his ability to fill up the event (which he did – pretty unbelievable for a first year event without using Groupon/LivingSocial!) and when I mentioned that he “might not be the first and only beer festival ever”
Lots of Characters Pouring!

Lots of Characters Pouring!

here in our fair city, he didn’t seem to hear my words..but what caught my attention more than anything was the date and the fact that this was pretty much an outdoor event at Nat’s Stadium..he said “and end of March is a good time, we can expect better weather..” – HA – he doesn’t know DC!! Originally meant to be a one day event on Saturday, March 23rd, 2013, the Organizer added Sunday because sales were so strong – One Problem – the weather – snow was predicted for Sunday evening and that meant cancellation of that evening’s session, the one I had planned on going to..Thus, photos of the Saturday evening event..

Oliver's Cherry Blossom Ale..it was quite good!

Oliver’s Cherry Blossom Ale..it was quite good!

Doing Events in DC is Difficult – I spent 14 years organizing events here and I can tell you that it’s very tricky, especially pertaining to weather: rain, snow, hurricanes, you name it..oh, and let’s not forget post 9-11 Security..tough! I’ve been snowed out of a few events – the Israeli Embassy wine tasting comes to mind – and how do you cover your catering costs? I mean, I ordered $3,500 in food from a kosher caterer, do I expect them to keep the food? At the last second we both compromised and I paid them 50% – which probably covered their food costs and gave them a little extra. How about cancellation and refunds? Oh, and forgot to mention, that the freak snow storm that cancelled the Israeli Embassy event made it very difficult to confirm all the refunds..some people literally came to the event even though we tried every way to tell them it was cancelled..they ignored the blizzard, howling winds and impossible conditions!2013-03-23 18.20.33

Deciding when to limit ticket sales is the balance between profit and insanely crowded..As a promoter, I know how it is – you need to maximize profitability, but you need to consider the attendees experience. Overall, crowding is less desirable to attendees as they get older – they don’t want to be hassled, pushed, shoved or wait in line. The younger crowd actually desires “some” lines – just as in clubs/lounges, this suggests its the place to be!

Choosing the Right Beers Can Make a Statement-Everyone’s into local – Locavore, local beers, local chickens, on and on! DC Beer Festival had a very good mix of beers – Beer List DC Beer Festival. Unfortunately, I don’t have the Beer List, but there was a good selection of many craft beers – even Burley Oak, a relatively new craft beer from Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The trick with Beer Festivals is to promote the local craft beers like DC Brau, Chocolate City and 3 Stars with some of the nationals like Sam Adams and Harpoon..the trick is to include the bigger names without making the event seem like a pure marketing play for Big Beer – it’s really a “craft” beer festival an organizer should go for..

Make sure there is sufficient food Not a problem for this event – many of the Concessions like Ben’s Chili Bowl were open and serving the perfect food for the conditions – chili cheese fries and dogs! Food Costs usually aren’t an issue for Beer Festivals – they simply don’t include them in the price – but normally beer is unlimited or significant amount of tastings. Each jurisdiction has different laws (for example, Virginia does NOT allow unlimited beer tastings at festivals for a fixed price, so people are normally purchasing sampling tickets). Of course, unlimited beer samplings can create drunkenness issues – especially with today’s high alcohol craft beers – so having a small sample glass, and actually some wait for each beer is a good thing. I will say this – drinking beer in excess is somewhat easier to control than spirits – whiskey festivals can tricky to manage crowd control!
Hope this gives an overview of “some” of the issues pertaining to organizing beer festivals and events in general in the DC Area – Cheers!
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Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler

Upcoming Festivals:

Taste of Japan, Thursday April 4th, 801 K Street, NW , Washington DC
Washington City Paper’s Best Of 2013 Fete Presented by Verizon Wireless, Wednesday April 10th, 801 K Street, NW, Washington DC
Decanter: A Celebration of Maryland Wine and Racing, Saturday April 20th, Pimlico Race Course 5201 Park Heights Avenue , Baltimore MD

DCBrau Beer Dinner with 1905 Restaurant

March 10th, 2013 • No Comments

DCBrau Needs More Beer Dinners..

Guest Post by Christina Portz “Just the Bottle” Blog:

Did Somebody Say Beer Dinner?

I have great respect for DC Brau. The founders are hard working and passionate men. I remember after they first opened, I tried to find The Public Ale. It was amazing having that first beer. I had a friend at the time who had just moved to San Fransisco and took photos of DC Brau. He eventually made his way back home and loves DC Brau.

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This past Thursday DC Brau held a beer dinner at 1905. The event was featured on TasteDC’s calendar (4-Course DC Brau Beer Dinner )among other great sites. Before the dinner, they held a release happy hour for their Saint Joseph’s Tripel. The beer is named in honor of Joey Belcher. They also donated a portion of the proceeds of the happy hour as well as remembered him fondly during the dinner.

I missed the happy hour as I was catching up with a friend at Vinoteca. It’s another great spot in the area that never gets too packed for weekday happy hour and offers several wines by the glass for $5.

I showed up shortly before the start of dinner. I was greeted by the wonderful staff of 1905 including one of my favorite bartenders, Lyn. She’s a sassy lady with amazing taste in beer and food. I also was lucky enough to meet one of the DC Beers crew, John Fleury.

Let’s get started with this tasty dinner. Nom nom nom.

Amuse Bouche

Oyster Shooter

DC Brau Citizen, Horseradish, Lemon Juice, Pickled Okra
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The amuse bouche featured the DC Brau Citizen as an oyster shooter. I am not the biggest fan usually of oysters, but the spice and acid notes were perfect. The DC Brau Citizen had a balancing effect.

First Course

House-Smoked Pork Belly

Brined in DC Brau Penn Quarter Porter, Maple Glaze, Bacon Collards, Littlenecks

Paired with Penn Quarter Porter (5.5% ABV)

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My preferred beers are stouts or porters. I love the Penn Quarter Porter. The pork belly was succulent. It was so creamy along with the beer it came out very luxurious. The collard greens with bacon added an element of salt.

There were amazing chocolate notes in the porter with some smoke towards the finish.

Second Course

Brau-Brined Salmon

Lemon-Pepper Creme, Deviled Crawfish, Pickled Fennel

Paired with Saint Joseph’s Tripel (10% ABV)

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This was yet another amazing dish. The tripel made delicious sense with the salmon. As Jeff presented the dish, he spoke of having beer compliment or contradict your food. It’s a great aspect of dining with beer.

The salmon was cooked perfectly. It was incredibly moist and sort of fell apart in my mouth. The deviled crawfish and pickled fennel added a nice sourness that was a palate cleanser.

The tripel was a great homage to the Belgian tripel. It wasn’t as overpowering as I find Belgian tripels (possibly food would help). It had lovely citrus notes, some toast and mild sweetness.

Third Course

Crisp-Skin Duck Breast

Housemade Kraut, Sorghum Mustard, Barrel-Aged Ghoul’s Night Out Beer Salt

Paired with Barrel-Aged Ghoul’s Night Out (11% ABV)

Aged in Catoctin Creek Grape Brandy Barrels

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Next we moved onto the duck, which to quote my man friend was “quacktastic”. The sorghum mustard added spicy notes combined with the barrel aged ghoul’s night our beer salt and beer itself. The beer had amazing caramel notes that brought out additional flavor in the duck.

Even though I prefer heavier beers, this may have been my favorite. It reminded me somewhat of a doppelbock with caramel flavors and a lovely smoothness.

We also had the opportunity to sample the Catoctin Creek Brandy to have a better understanding of how the beer was aged. This may be my new favorite brandy. It was very smooth with great vanilla notes and hints of molasses.

Final Course

“Coffee & Doughnuts”

Paired with Barrel-Aged Penn Quarter Porter (5.5% ABV)

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Obviously, I love donuts. I went to the donut party. One can never have enough donuts. As we finished our dinner, we were treated to donuts with light powdered sugar, chocolate ganche sauce, Barrel Aged Penn Quarter Porter and a coffee styled chaser.

The donuts were light, fluffy and warm. That’s a key to donuts is conning the mouth into thinking they are eating something that hasn’t been fried in grease. At least, that’s what I tell myself.

The barrel aging added more vanilla and toasty notes with hints of whiskey to the beer. It rounded the finish.

This was an amazing dinner with great people both attending and working the event. I always love my visits to 1905 and hope to go back soon.

Oh and DC Brau! I’m calling you out. Have more beer dinners!!

If It’s March, It Must Be Beer Time!

March 5th, 2013 • No Comments

It seemed that beer classes and beer dinners had disappeared..

anchorbrewinglogo5-Course Anchor Brewery Beer Dinner with Brewmaster Mark Carpenter w/Top Chef Sprissler’s Dishes – Wednesday March 27th

It may seem unusual, but DC was full steam ahead with beer events over the past few years, but it just kind of stopped late 2012..I can’t explain it, but beer dinners disappeared, beer classes were impossible to find, and you really had to search out beer events other than tap takeovers (maybe it was a hangover from too many recent beer festivals?)..Well Great News – as of March, 2013, that all has changed! One of the reasons is that the American Craft Brewer’s Conference is in Washington, D.C. this year and so many great American Craft Brewers will be here from March 26th-29th.
dccraftbeerbustour

Here’s a List of upcoming DC Beer Events (no affiliation with DCBeer.com – but they are an excellent resource!)

 

March 6th, 7-9 pm – La Cuisine du Québec: Exploring the Passion and Depth of Québec’s Emerging Microbreweries, $30/per person, Smithsonian – Celebrated beer sommelier Sylvain Bouchard joins us from Québec to showcase the microbrewery movement and the wealth of variety that defines craft beers in Québec.

March 7th (Thursday), $75/per person, 4-Course DC Brau Beer Dinner, 1905 Bistro & Bar 1905 9th Street, NW, Washington DC 20001 – This is inaugural Beer Dinner for 1905 with DC’s own 1st Brewery DC Brau

March 9th, Noon – 4 pm – Real Ale & BBQ Fest at Heavy Seas Brewery, $49/per person – In addition to your Heavy Seas favorites from 10 taps, our award winning brewers will be creating many one-of-a-kind casks! We’ll be pouring real ale from 10 firkins, including from the wood.

March 11th 6:30 pm, Italian Craft Beer Dinner, Pizzeria Paradiso, 3282 M St., NW, Washington DC 20007 – Paradiso is matching food to Italian Beers

Bourbon Beer School – Series of 6 Classes, each is $25/per person, Bourbon Glover Park, 2348 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington DC 20007
Session 1: Fermentation & Yeast (Only on 3/12)
Session 2 Hops (3/19 & 3/26)
Session 3 Malts (4/2 & 4/9)
Session 4 American Craft Beer (4/16 & 4/23)
Session 5 German Beer Styles (4/23 & 5/7)
Session 6 Belgian Beer Styles (5/14 & 5/21)
Each Class is a Stand-Alone Class (no Prerequisites) – a series of educational beer tastings led by resident beer expert Rachel Murray – 6 Beers are tasted at each event.

March 13th, March 21st & March 27th (3 Separate Classes) Local Charcuterie, Craft Beer, & Cheese, $59/per person, Righteous Cheese, Union Market 1309 5th Street NE, Washington DC 20002– We’ll explore the world of cheese pairing by tasting 4 cheeses and 4 local craft beers along with a bounty of charcuterie from local producers Red Apron Butchery, Three Little Pigs and Seasonal Pantry

-March 23rd & 24th (Weekend), DC Beer Festival, $40/per person, Nationals Ballpark, 1500 South Capitol Street, SE, Washington DC 20003– The inaugural DC Beer Festival brings together dozens of craft and international breweries, as well as DC’s best local breweries.

March 25th, 6 pm, Cheese and Beer Tasting with Janet Fletcher – Cowgirl Creamery is pleased to welcome Janet Fletcher, author of the brand-new guide, Cheese & Beer. Janet’s weekly cheese column for the San Francisco Chronicle has made her a nationally recognized cheese authority, and we’re the first store in the nation to have her beautiful new book. Come meet Janet at this private, walk-around tasting. You’ll sample a selection of the best American craft brews expertly matched to their cheesy soul mates. Ticket price includes a signed copy of Cheese & Beer. Space is limited. Reserve now for this tasty and educational evening.

March 25th, 7 pm, The Craft Brewer’s Conference Beer & Food Experience at Birch & Barley, 1337 14th St., NW, Washington, D.C. – I haven’t gotten the list of brewers, but this is going to be some shindig! 5 Craft Brewers in town for the CBC (locals DCBrau and Flying Dog will be there..)

March 26th, 6:30 pm, Belgian Beer & Cheese Inspired Dinner, $49/per person, Belga Cafe, 514 8th St., SE, Washington DC 20003 – Enjoy tasting menu and a very special line up of Belgian “rock star beers”

March 27th – 5-Course Anchor Brewery Beer Dinner, $55/per person, Mayfair and Pine, 2218 Wisconsin Ave., NW -Mayfair & Pine and Anchor Brewing would like to invite you to an exclusive food and beer pairing dinner! Executive Chef Emily Sprissler and Brew Master Mark Carpenter will be your hosts during this elegantly casual evening. Chef Sprissler has chosen her pairings to develop a unique experience to create palate pleasing plates! Each course is accompanied by seasonal and perennial favorites crafted by Brew Master Mark at America’s first craft brewery in their traditional copper brewhouse. Souvenir Anchor Brewing Pint glass included! (See Complete Menu)

March 28th, Beer & Cheese with Oxbow & The Bruery, $45/per person, Meridian Pint 3400 11th st NW , Washington DC 20010– The 6 PM seating is $45 (tax and gratuity included) and will feature Tim Adams, Oxbow Co-Founder and brewer, and at least one representative from The Bruery. Michelle Gardner

March 28th, DC Craft Beer Bus Bar Tour, $65/per person, 801 Mt Vernon Pl NW, Washington DC 20001   – Featuring 5-6 Stops at various DC Beer Establishments (you’re on a Bus) – 21st Amendment, Elysian, Ninkasi, No-Li & Uinta Breweries plus a few surprises

DC’s 3rd Brewery Gets Artsy

December 17th, 2012 • No Comments


3 Stars Inaugural Artists & Artisans Holiday Extravaganza – This Shindig Got Me Drinkin!

Saturday, December 15th, 2012 marked 3 Stars Brewery’s launch into the world of Art and Beer with their new Mural at their 6400 Chillum Place Brewery and a Who’s Who of DC Food and Drink Artisans.

This was a DC Foodie Scene:

Michael Lowe, Green Hat Gin

-I finally tried (and met the owners of DC’s First Distillery) Green Hat Gin – I really like their blend of spices with alot of Indian spice like cardamom and interestingly it reminded me alot of Pisco. Michael Lowe and John Uselton were both there and I could feel their enthusiasm for DC’s first Distillery in many years. Currently, they offer the chance to work their bottling line at the Distillery, but we talked about a more in-depth class like a Distilling 101, more news soon..

-Qualia Coffee’s Joel Finkelstein was sampling his off-premise brand “Fresh Off the Roast” and talking about his recent tasting with some DC Local Press – Here’s the article from Tim Carman over at WaPo about Joel’s indignation over the lack of quality crafted coffee in DC Restaurants

Carolyn Stromberg of Righteous Cheese

-I sampled some of Righteous Cheese ‘s well, cheeses, and chatted with the Founder Carolyn Stromberg about the need for more cheese classes in DC. Her schedule is so busy and a retail cheese shop is so demanding of her time, that she felt she could only do a limited number, but expect to see more in 2013.

Dave Coleman w/3 Stars Brewing at Repeal Ball

3 Stars was pouring Pandemic Porter, Southern Belle, Peppercorn Saison, Sea Change Pale Ale, Winter Madness, Global Pandemic (Bulleit barrel-aged Pandemic Porter (aged six months from the first brew in the brewery) blended with fresh Pandemic Porter) and all were delicious – I definitely remember the oak, vanilla and smoke of the last beer which would be perfect with some BBQ pork ribs! Dave Coleman was having a great time with the release of the new mural made by local artist Kendra Kuliga – I also noticed that the warehouse space had room for expansion..sort of a hint?

Teddy Folkman of Granville Moore’s was slicing up some salty and delicious brisket as well as some briney Edwards Virginia Hams (which remind me alot of Spain’s Serrano Ham).

-Sampled some charcuterie with Three Little Pigs co-owner Carolina Gomez – she told me the store would be closed much of January because she’ll be getting married.

Gordy’s Pickles Sheila Fain spoke with me about the phenomenal growth of her spears and how Whole Foods was carrying them in all of their DC markets. I had to bring up the curious local connection of Rob Duncan of Dolcezza creating a special Thai basil jalapeño sorbetto, featuring Thai basil jalapeños from Gordy’s Pickle Jar

Rappahanock Oysters was tasting some of their wonderful salty Virginia oysters. I’m hoping they do more tasting events and dinners in Washington, D.C. – Although we have one major oyster fest (Oyster Riot at Old Ebbitt Grille), there is definitely enough demand for more events around oysters and easily we could pair them with other local artisan products..speaking of which..

There were also Cocktails by Nick Nazdin of El Chucho & Carlo Bruno of Sidebar, but by this point I was so looped, that I had no palate to speak of!

A fun time had by all and a very good idea for future new concept events – maybe we could do a DC Brew and Oyster Fest, or a DC Cocktail Expo, or even a Chesapeake Wine and Oyster Fest..there are a myriad of possibilities and definitely the demand is there for these type of Foodie Experiences – Cheers!

Charlie “I Drink on the Job” Adler