Tag: craft beer

Posted on

Fallbrook Brewing Company – Celebrating All Things Local

As the craft beer movement continues to grow in San Diego County, Fallbrook Brewing Company stands out as a promising contender.  Embracing all things local, the brewery has a true charm nestled in the heart of Fallbrook’s downtown.  The community of Fallbrook lies northeast of Oceanside and just southwest of Temecula Valley’s wine country.  It known for its avocado groves boasting itself asthe “Avocado Capital of the World.” It is often called “The Friendly Village”where the community hosts their annual Avocado Festival drawing large crowds.  As the friendly village, the local are really just that.  Many are lifelong residents and appreciate the localvore of the area.

In fact, Fallbrook continues to grow embracing their agricultural roots featuring local farms such as Terra Bella Ranch and gastronomic dining like Oink and Moo Burgers and BBQ.  This is a creative community showcases a large art movement with the school of the arts along with a popular art center.  With this creative uprising now comes the next movement with all things local…beer.

Enter Fallbrook Brewing Company (FBC).  The beers are unique boasting local ingredients in popular craft brew favorites.  It is a small craft brewery or nano brewery with a tasting room to serve those seeking local handcrafted beer. FBC houses a small three barrel brewing system allowing the brewers to be creative and offer a spectrum of staple beers and variety of specialty offerings. They strive to utilize local ingredients whenever possible and their goal is to have a positive impact on the local community – “Be Social, Drink Local.”

FBC is a family operation with brothers Chuck and Stephan McLaughlin and their spouses Jaime and Jenn.  Family and friends help run the tap room, so the atmosphere is welcoming and fun.  Serving as head brewer, Chuck is an up and comer with local awards for home brew.  In fact, McLaughlin won for his Rubus Vigoratus, a Russian Imperial Stout with notes of coriander and raspberries (8% ABV), which he brewed with Iron Fist Brewing Company in neighboring Vista, California.  The McLaughlins are fans of the floral spicy notes in a Belgian yeast, along with the hoppiness of IPAs, so expect to find some surprises brewed up to include a camomile IPA and saison made with local avocado blossom honey.

The staples for FBC will honor the streets of Fallbrook – Stagecoach Stout (5.5% ABV), Sleeping Indian IPA (6.5% ABV), Reche Rye Pale Ale (6% ABV), Calavo Cream Ale (4.8% ABV) and Wilt Road Wit (check out line up here).  However the specialty beers definitely show off the fun and flavorful palates of this team. Highlights from their sold out grand opening included a Coffee Stout from locally roasted coffee from Temecula (5.5% ABV), Portleigh Stout with black currents (7% ABV), a Tinge of Ginge Ale with hints of ginger (4.8% ABV) and other fun specialties such as the Apple Jack Rye PA with apples and whiskey (6.5%) and Plum Crazy Saison with fresh plum jam (6% ABV).  My favorite was the Sour Saison, a summer saison with the spice and farmhouse style you expect with a nice sour pucker finish (6% ABV).  Their specialty Coffee and Cream on nitro (4.8% ABV) tapped out by the second session of the grand opening making it one of the most popular of the day.  It is easy to see that the McLaughlins are passionate about their beers and passionate about Fallbrook.

Tasting room hours are Wed-Thu 3-8pm, Fri 3-9pm, Sat 12-9pm and Sun 12-5pm and is located on 136 Main Avenue.  Check out FallbrookBrewing.com for the most up-to-date info on brews, events and more!  Grab a sandwich Dominick’s or a burrito at Estrella’s and belly up at the bar for a pint.  Lift your glass and toast the newest brewery in San Diego County.  This is one brewery you do not want to miss.  Cheers!

 

 

 

Featured Writer:  Cari Gordonne works for the U.S. Marine Corps servicing over 50,000 Marines, Sailors and their families aboard Camp Pendleton. She has served on the board for Slow Food Temecula Valley since 2008. Passionate about good, clean, fair food with a commitment to community and the environment.  She enjoys la dolce vita in wine country, but is a native of Colorado. Blessed with a great Italian family, she is foodie enthusiast and is also the niece of Rich Mauro.

Posted on

GREAT AMERICAN BEER FESTIVAL CELEBRATES THIRTY YEARS OF GREAT AMERICAN CRAFT BEER

The 30th Great American Beer Festival (GABF), held a few weeks ago at the Colorado Convention Center, stands as a testament to the intrinsic appeal of craft brewed beer … and to the vision and hard work of the people at the Brewers Association (which organizes it) and to the craft brewers that have proliferated across the country over these years.

While most everything else in the American economy is contracting, it seems the craft beer world just keeps expanding. Attendance, volunteers, and the number of breweries, beers on the floor, beers in the competition, categories judged (83), beer styles (134) and judges all increased! The GABF remains the largest commercial beer competition in the world, with 3,930 beers, an 11 percent increase over last year, submitted from 526 breweries for 248 medals.

Colorado brewers brought home 44 medals, second only to California. Salute the following breweries:

  • Amicas, Salida
  • Backcountry, Frisco
  • Blue Moon, Denver
  • Boulder Beer Co., Boulder
  • Bull & Bush, Denver
  • C.B. & Potts, Ft. Collins and Westminster
  • Colorado Boy, Ridgway, CO
  • Copper Kettle, Denver
  • Coors, Golden
  • Crabtree, Greeley
  • Del Norte, Denver
  • Denver Beer Co., Denver
  • Dostal Alley, Central City
  • Dry Dock, Aurora
  • Durango, Durango
  • Equinox, Ft. Collins
  • Funkwerks, Ft. Collins
  • Glenwood Canyon, Glenwood Springs
  • Grimm Brothers, Loveland
  • Mountain Sun, Boulder
  • New Belgium, Fort Collins
  • Odell”s, Ft. Collins
  • Oskar Blues, Longmont
  • Rock Bottom, Westminster
  • SandLot, Denver
  • Ska, Durango
  • Strange Brewing Co., Denver
  • Upslope, Boulder
  • Wynkoop, Denver

It was particularly fun beer to try a “new” beer style this year: pumpkin beer! Obviously tailored for fall, these earthy, deeply flavored beers were most interesting. And Colorado did extremely well in the category with Upslope won gold and Bull & Bush won bronze.

I was glad to see the festival continued its emphasis on matching beer with food. This was prominently on display in the more intimate Farm-to-Table Pavilion where chefs created dishes using Colorado products to pair with selected beers from around the country. Even some of the Colorado farmers and ranchers were there to talk about their products.

As a “wine guy,” I’m well versed in the affinity between wine and food. So, I have been pleased to see craft brewers in recent years put more effort into making beers that are best drunk with food. The Farm-to-Table Pavilion presented a fine opportunity to discover how much local foods rendered by skilled chefs have in common with craft beer from small and independent breweries. This innovative event is destined to become a perennial highlight of the GABF.

Also impressive was that the festival continued its efforts to remain on the cutting edge of sustainability initiatives. In partnership with ZeroHero (a Colorado company that works across the country reducing the impact of major events and festivals through zero-waste management, alternative energy and education), the Colorado Convention Center, Centerplate Catering, Governors Energy Office, Colorado Carbon Fund, A1 Organics, and Renewable Choice Energy, the GABF worked to reduce its carbon footprint and come as close to a zero-waste event as possible.

Here are some of the programs implemented at the festival:

  • At least 85% of the waste to be diverted away from the landfill
  • Most disposable items were recyclable or compostable
  • All glass and plastic bottles, cans, paper and cardboard to be recycled
  • Use of styrofoam at food outlets in the event was banned
  • Bulk condiments used at concession areas
  • All compost processed by local company
  • Carbon production offset by purchasing wind credits
  • House lights kept at 50% during the show

Great beer, good food, and helping the environment, what more could we ask?

Well, how about continued growth in the craft beer industry. According to the Brewers Association, the craft beer industry in 2010 achieved growth rates of 11% by volume and 12% by dollars. And by August 2011, there were 1829 breweries operating, the most in 100 years, with at least 760 more in planning.

Let’s all raise a glass … or two!

Posted on

Colorado Brewers Dominate GABF as Sustainability Becomes Prominent Theme

rich mauro the peoples palate
scenes from GABF

The 29th Great American Beer Festival (GABF) held a few weeks ago at the Colorado Convention Center continued its record setting ways. While most everything else in the economy is contracting, it seems the beer world just keeps expanding.  Attendance (estimated), volunteers, and the number of breweries, beers on the floor, beers in the competition, categories judged, and judges all increased over last year!

By my count, Colorado was the top winning state with Colorado brewers bringing home 29 medals won (12 percent of the total), besting even such craft beer powerhouses as California and Oregon. Blue Moon won the Large Brewing Company and Large Brewing Company Brewer of the Year awards and Rockyard Brewing Co. of Castle Rock took a silver medal in the Pro-Am competition.

The following breweries also brought home awards:

  • Boulder Beer Co., Boulder
  • Bristol Brewing Co., Colorado Springs
  • C. B. & Potts, Ft. Collins
  • Colorado Boy Pub & Brewery, Ridgway, CO
  • Del Norte Brewing Co., Denver
  • Dillon Dam Brewery, Dillon
  • Dry Dock Brewing Co., Aurora
  • Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co., Glenwood Springs
  • Great Divide Brewing Co., Denver
  • Left Hand Brewing Co., Longmont
  • Mountain Sun Pub and Brewery, Boulder
  • New Planet Beer, Boulder
  • New Belgium Brewing Co., Inc., Fort Collins
  • Pagosa Brewing Co., Pagosa Springs
  • Pug Ryan’s Brewery, Dillon
  • Rockyard Brewing Co., Castle Rock
  • Rock Bottom Brewery, multiple locations
  • Ska Brewing Co., Durango
  • Steamworks Brewing Co., Durango

I was glad to see the festival continued its emphasis on matching beer with food. This was prominently on display in the more intimate Farm-to-Table Pavilion where local chefs created dishes using Colorado products to pair with selected beers from around the country. Even some of the Colorado farmers and ranchers were there to talk about their products. We sampled craft beers paired with foods sourced from these local farms and ranches.

As a “wine guy,” I’m well versed in the affinity between wine and food. So, I have been pleased to see craft brewers in recent years put more effort into making beers that are best drunk with food. The Farm-to-Table Pavilion presented a fine opportunity to discover how much local foods rendered by skilled chefs have in common with craft beer from small and independent breweries. The event featured products from thirteen Colorado farms and ranches paired with special releases available only in the pavilion. I found this is so innovative for a beer festival I feel compelled to reprint the menu here.

The Farm To Table Pavilion Menu

Appetizers

Roasted Vegetable Napoleon, Spent Grain Cracker Sweet Onion Jam & Micro Greens

Oskar Blues’ Hoppy Seconds

Sweetwater Brewing Co. Magnum IP Imperial Pilsner

Three Sisters (Corn, Beans & Squash) Red Quinoa with Southwestern Chile Vinaigrette

Rogue Chocolate Stout

Hazel Dell Wild Mushrooms & Thyme with Creamy Polenta

Odell Brewing Co. Woodcut #3

Wood Fired “Helios” Chicken Liver Mousse with Stone Fruit Gelee, House Pickle,

Apple & Thyme Foccacia

Victory Brewing Helios

House Made Pork Sausage, Smoked Fingerling Potato, Mixed Cabbage & Pear Slaw

Victory Brewing V12

Main Dishes

Colorado “Tongue of Fire” Stew – Braised Duck, House Made Rabbit Sausage, Winter Squash & Tongue of Fire Beans

New Holland Brewing Co. Charkoota Rye

Odell Cutthroat Porter

Smoked Trout, Corn Cake & Tomatillo Chutney

Rogue Juniper Pale Ale

Mini Rosemary Buffalo Burger with Windsor Dairy Bleu Cheese & Caramelized Onions on Brioche Bun

Ska Brewing Co. Buster Nut Brown

Stone Brewing Co. Saison du Buff

Heritage Turkey Confit Quesadillas, Haystack Goat Queso de Mano & Green Heirloom Tomato Pico de Gallo

Sweetwater Brewing Co. Happy Ending

Tripple M Bar Ranch Lamb Polpette, Mint Pesto, Goat Cheese, Curry Pinenuts, Micro Basil, Balsamic Reduction

Ninkasi Summer Radiant Ale

Aion BLT: Ten Fidy Cured Bacon, Crisp Butterhead Lettuce, Heirloom Tomato,

House Made Aioli & Bread

Oskar Blues Ten Fidy

Dessert

House Made Buttermilk Panna Cotta, Honey Tuile & Colorado Berries

New Holland Brewing Co. Dragon’s Milk

Ska Dubbel Blond

Spice Cake with Roasted Pear Compote & Honey Goat Cheese Cream

Stone Brewing Co. Sawyer’s Triple

North Fork Valley Apple & Pine Nut Tartlets with Beer Caramel

Ninkasi Believer Double Red Ale

Well-earned kudos go to Chef Chad Armstrong and Chef Marlyin Kakudo and the student chefs of the Culinary School of the Rockies in Boulder. And the Guest Chefs deserve recognition for some creative parings: Dakota Soifer and Eric Lee of Café Aion, Boulder, CO; Kelly Whitaker and Sean Magallanes of Pizzeria Basta in Boulder; and Elise Wiggins of Panzano in Denver’s Hotel Monaco.

Equally impressive was that the festival continued its efforts to remain on the cutting edge of sustainability initiatives. In partnership with ZeroHero (a Colorado company that works across the country reducing the impact of major events and festivals through zero-waste management, alternative energy and education), the Colorado Convention Center, Centerplate Catering, Governors Energy Office, Colorado Carbon Fun, and Renewable Choice Energy, the GABF worked to reduce its carbon footprint and come as close to a zero-waste event as possible.

Here are some of the programs implemented at the festival:

  • At least 85% of the waste to be diverted away from the landfill
  • Most disposable items were recyclable or compostable
  • All glass and plastic bottles, cans, paper and cardboard to be recycled
  • Use of styrofoam at food outlets in the event was banned
  • Bulk condiments used at concession areas
  • All compost processed by local company
  • Carbon production offset by purchasing wind credits
  • House lights kept at 50% during the show

The Brewers Association, a brewing company trade association based in Boulder that markets the festival should be proud for organizing such a successful event in these tough economic times. And the future looks good, too. The Brewers Association reports continued growth in the craft beer industry. With just about every other industry seeing declines, the craft beer industry in 2009 achieved growth rates of 7.2% by volume and 10.3% by dollars. And by August 2010, there were 1625 breweries operating, the most in 100 years.

Let’s all raise a glass or two!

Posted on

Sam Adams Promotes Food and Beer Pairing and “Extreme Beer”

I know the subtitle to this website is “ Wine, Food, Travel” but even wine journalists don’t live by wine alone. I, for one, love beer, too. And I even like to write about it whenever I can. Hence, this month’s posting is all about beer.

Food and Beer Pairing
It’s become arguably the biggest trend in beer (at least craft beer) to promote serious beer and food matching – and I don’t mean wings and burgers. Food and beer matching ideas are cropping up all over the craft beer industry, with the most notable example being the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) in Denver this past October. There were pairing demos in the Beer & Food Pavilion and they even had available a beer and food matching chart that list 28 styles of beer along with suggested foods. For more info, check out www.beertown.org.

But the Boston Beer Company, maker of Sam Adams, and specifically Jim Koch, the company’s founder, has been in the forefront of this movement. This shouldn’t be a surprise, as Koch and Sam Adams have been beer innovators since the company’s founding in 1984.now Koch and his company are pushing for beer lovers and would be beer lovers to think about beer (at least some of the time) the way wine drinkers think about wine – as a natural accompaniment to food.

Koch even has promoted this idea in the heart of wine drinker territory – the Food & Wine Magazine Classic at Aspen. In recent years, Koch has hosted lunches at the Classic with food prepared by culinary luminaries, such as chefs Todd English and David Burke.

Sam Adams also has promoted beer and food pairing at the GABF this year. At a dinner at Rioja restaurant in Denver’s Larimer Square drove the point home. How about appetizers including apple beignet, foie gras Napoleon, cinnamon range gastrique and seared duck breast washed down with Sam Adams Winter Lager? Or an entrée of beef filet, seared scallops and caramelized onion with Sam Adams Boston Lager? Dessert, a hazelnut brown butter tart, was accompanied by Sam Adams Cram Stout.

Even for a wine journalist like me, the beer and food pairings seemed every bit as natural as they were revealing.

Extreme Beer?
That’s what Jim Koch calls it. I mentioned above that he and his company are beer innovators. Beginning with Triple Bock in 1994, Koch has really pushed the envelope of complexity and alcohol. The Triple Bock came in at 17.5% alcohol. In 2000, Sam Adams released Millennium Ale at 21%. Then came Utopias MMII in 2002 at 25%. In 2003, and again in 2005 Utopias was released at 25% alcohol. Now the just released 2007 edition of Utopias weighs in at 27% alcohol!

What is amazing about this brew, though, even more that the alcohol itself, is that the alcoholic heat virtually disappears behind the seamlessness of its rich texture and complex flavors of caramel, maple syrup and butter pecan. At $120 a bottle, Utopias certainly is the most expensive beer ever but this brew also can take its place among the finest after dinner drinks, whether Cognac, Sherry or Port.