The sixth annual Brewers Plate event was held for the first time at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Standing in the shadows of Franklin Field, brewers and restaurateurs from throughout the Philadelphia region came together in the name of craft beer and in support of the non-profit Fair Food. The gala was held among 4,000 year artifacts from ancient Egypt which provided a backdrop for Philadelphia’s foodies and beer geeks as they comingled in the name of charity.
“This is a huge event and the people are here for good beer,” David Hoffman, of Climax Brewing, said. “We have people here that are more aware of craft beer, and know that the Philly and New York area are turning out some damn good beer. This event shows that brewing ain’t all about the west coast and hop bombs – it’s about solid balanced beer.”
While Hoffman riffed on brewing in the region and served up his nut brown ale, he was well positioned next to Village Whiskey as they passed out samples of their bbq pork sandwich. The small speakeasy themed restaurant was serving up a perfect compliment to the surrounding brewers’ beer from Flying Fish and Dog Fish Head.
For the brewers and chefs, this was a place to present their creations and educate the consumer. Beau Baden, brew master from the Bethlehem BrewWorks, said the venue provided him with a unique opportunity.
“People that come to this event are usually curious and have a lot of questions,” Baden said. “This gives us a chance, as a craft brewery, to really showcase our beers and explain how well they go with the food selections here tonight. We can tell people how well spicy food can be complimented by hoppy beer, which sets this event apart from others.”
After a taste of the Boaks Russian Imperial stout paired with chocolate cupcakes and a solid Beligan Golden Ale from Triumph Brewing, it was time to go downstairs and explore the rest of the show.
A favorite attraction downstairs was a sampling of cheeses from the Pennsylvania Farmstead and Artisan Cheese Alliance, and the tremendous offerings from DiBruno Bros. Bill Covaleski brought two gems with him from his Victory Brewing Co. – the Smokin’ Oats Porter and St. Boisterous- a full bodied lager in the traditional Maibock style. Both beers provided an excellent pairing with the selection of cheeses and gourmet chocolates from John & Kira.
For the general public this event is a day to celebrate and unite craft beer and gourmet food from the region. Covaleski emphasizes that for the event organizers, the real focus of the day is on raising funds and supporting a nonprofit that works to promote healthy, local food systems.
All proceeds from the event benefited Fair Food, which is a nonprofit dedicated to bringing locally grown food to the marketplace and promoting a humane, sustainable agriculture system for the Greater Philadelphia region.
For more information visit the Brewers Plate website or keep an eye on here for the beer for the latest from the Philadelphia area from our newest contributor, Dan.
VIDEO – Well, we thought we were done for the year, but ended up scoring a last minute seat at what turned out to be one of the best beer dinners we attended this year. The dinner was aptly called the night before the night before Christmas and was held at the Sierra Grill in Northampton Massachusetts. The theme was a vintage Christmas, and so some creative spins on a traditional Christmas dinner were paired with vintage Dogfish Head beers and creative “Christmaswear”. Dogfish Head founder and president, Sam Calagione was at the dinner, along with his family and friends from the area (as Sam is from the western Massachusetts region).
If you haven’t been to a beer dinner at the Sierra Grill, put it on your to do list in 2010. They put together some of the best pairings we have ever tried. The owner of the Sierra Grill, O’Brian Tomlin, is a true craft beer evangelist. The tap list on any given day is top notch. Their chef Ralph Webb is extremely creative and loves to prepare food with beer. The combination makes for a killer beer dinner and this one was no exception. Courses included a goose stew with duck sausage, paired with Dogfish Head 2007 Immort Ale and Lobster Eggroll with Dogfish Head 2008 Pangaea. There were two entrees presented, a Bison Prime Rib and a Roasted Smoked Pheasant, both served with Dogfish 2007 Burton Baton. Finally the dinner wrapped up with a Christmas cake (you need to watch the video to hear the chef describe what went into this!) paired with a 2008 Dogfish World Wide Stout.
We also had the opportunity to get some great interviews with Sam, his father and his wife. So we have split the videos up into a series that we will be posting throughout the week. Consider it our “After Christmas special”. We hope you all had a great Christmas and wish you a happy new year! Cheers from here for the beer!
I have been reading a lot of great posts this week about what beers people are planning to drink with their Thanksgiving dinner this year.
It’s nice to see so many people considering beer with their holiday meal.
Personally, as a starting point I always use the basic guide that Michael Jackson’s Beer Hunter provided years ago when trying a new beer pairing. For those who haven’t read the book, I recommend you pick one up, but here is the gist of the beer pairing guide :
As an aperitif: Dry, hoppy beers with some bitterness. Similar to Anchor Steam (San Francisco).
With fish: Pilsners. Almost all of the well-known American beers are loosely of this style. So are the best-known imported brands, like Heineken and Carlsberg. Czech and German Pilsners tend to be drier, and therefore go especially well with the more oily varieties of fish.
Shellfish: Dry stouts or porters.
Smoked meats, sausages: If you can find it, the smoked Rauchbier of Bamberg, Germany. Or a German altbier or weizenbeier.
Pasta: The less spicy pasta dishes of Northern Italy go quite well with the Munich Dark type of beer. It is, after all, commonly served with the admittedly-heavier noodle dishes of Germany.
Fowl: Munich Light with turkey; perhaps the slightly less sweet Dortmunder style might go better with chicken.
Red Meat: English Pale Ale.
Game: Scottish ale, which is heavier.
While some beer geeks like our friend the Beer Babe will be loading up on warm and fuzzy beers like Magic Hat’s Howl and Rogue Maierfest. I tend to stay more session in my pairing choices. So for my Thanksgiving I will probably be going with a Stoudt’s Gold Lager with dinner and perhaps one of my favorites, a Westmalle Trappist Dubbel for an after dinner drink. Which supports my standard saying – your favorite beer pairs with everything.
Have a great Thanksgiving everyone, from Tim and Amy and here for the beer!
