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Islay Part 1: Cows In The Road

Posted on December 4, 2013
B&B, beer, Cows, Day Trip, honeymoon, Islay, Islay Hotel, Photography, Port Ellen, Scotch, The Swallows Roost, Travel, uk, vacation, Whisky
Comments: 1

The view from our B&B

We took the Kennacraig ferry to Port Ellen, Islay and arrived after dark and after 8pm in the evening. After consuming a beer and a coffee on the ferry, food was first on the priorities list but we needed to check-into the B&B first. I learned the hard way: always print-out directions and don’t assume your phone will work instantly when you arrive somewhere. We had made our smart phones able to use internationally for the month but my phone wasn’t cooperating when we got to Port Ellen and I wasn’t handling it well. We just started driving because you can’t really stop when there is a line of cars exiting the ferry pressuring you from behind (ha!). We just drove until I could get the email to load and then was challenged to find a place to turn around in the dark on a two lane road where everyone speeds. The ferry ride had been so pleasant with the smooth travel and hilarious drunk group of Swedes who wore mattress pants and told me that my Mother’s maiden name is famous (my Mom’s Swedish), and now it was back to stressful and lost in the dark. Sean had the foresight to pull-over and we were able to find our way to the small adorable B&B right outside of Port Ellen on top of a steep hill called The Swallows Roost.

Beers on the Ferry

View of the Port Ellen Maltings Factory from the B&B

View from the B&B

View from the B&B

We checked-in and dropped our bags and hi-tailed it back to the car in search of food. On our way down the hill there were huge highland cattle in the road and incredibly they moved into the car turnout so we could pass them. It was so funny because I thought they might ram our car but they moved over so politely-it was no big deal for them. Apparently it wasn’t strange because the entire next day there was cows in the road at various points during our tour of Islay so it just seems like something as natural as trees in Washington.

The cows just don’t care

I had recommendations from the owners of the B&B to try either the Indian food place or the Islay Hotel back in town and we opted for the hotel. We got there and headed into the cozy little bar and, to our extreme happiness, they were still serving food. We ordered a few beers and our food and took a breath of relief. Lucky us, the bar had live music in the form of a woman and a guitar that was so wonderful and it was like she was telling us: “Relax, you are in Islay and this place is magic.” We received a mussels in white wine appetizer that had the most tender and huge mussels it was crazy! The best mussels I have ever had in my life. Sean had the meat pie and I had the fish pie and both were equally delicious and very filling. After we had some food in our stomachs we HAD to get some scotch because we were in Islay and that’s just what you do when in Islay.

Finally-some whisky in Islay!

With full bellies of food we headed back to the B&B to find that our host had supplied two drams of whisky and some water awaiting our return. It was so sweet of them! We were off to bed with plans to get-up super early in hopes of hitting as many distilleries as possible. Most of the distilleries close around 5-6pm so starting in the morning was the best option to tour as many as we could. Lucky for us our B&B supplied the biggest breakfast to get us started! We had yogurt, croissants, coffee, cereal, toast, juice, fruit, etc! Also, the B&B has the most wonderful view of a lighthouse and Port Ellen and at night it gets so dark and clear that you can see the stars.

Stars from the B&B

Port Ellen

It was a sunny any slightly chilly day and we were able to visit almost every distillery in Islay. I will write about the distilleries in my “Part 2′ post because that is a whole mess of photos and long descriptions…to much for one post. We got home from a long day of distilleries and chatted and drank with the B&B owners who had bought us a bottle of “fizz” or champagne to congratulate us on the wedding. We talked about beer, life, scotch, travel … you name it! After several drams and beers later we finally called it a night. I can say, hands-down and without a doubt, it was the best hotel or B&B stay I have ever had. I am so happy with the entire experience that I don’t think I will stay anywhere else the next time I come to Islay and I highly recommend them to anyone visiting the place.

One Day In Glasgow

Posted on November 27, 2013
Bar, beer, Beer Tasting, brewdog, Day Trip, Glasgow, Kelvingrove, Museum, Photography, Road Trip, Scotland, Travel, uk, vacation
Comments: 0

After our harrowing experience in Manchester I was trying to keep my chin up heading into Glasgow. It was already a good road trip since we stopped at Hawkshead Brewery and had a lovely afternoon break and once we were back on the road my spirits were sailing high. We merrily drove past the gorgeous grassy hills speckled with sheep and cows and the occasional castle or ruins and descended into the heart of Glasgow during the magic hour when the sun was setting casting a warm glow around brightly colored clouds. It didn’t even bother me that we exited the freeway and got stuck in rush-hour traffic, it was just too pretty out and I was just excited to be in Scotland.

We arrived at the Kelvingrove Hotel on the west end of town, slightly outside of downtown, and it appeared that parking was going to be just as much of a pain as it was in Manchester. We parked and walked to check-in and to my surprise, everything worked-out better than I could’ve hoped. The gentleman behind the counter gave me a parking voucher so we could occupy the street parking until 2pm the next day for only 2 pounds which meant we could visit the museum that’s right down the street tomorrow before having to catch the 5pm ferry to Islay and it also meant that we didn’t have to schlep our luggage for miles from the parking spot to the hotel. I might’ve kissed the man I was so happy. Our room was huge and came with a queen and a single bed, which was more than I ordered. I am not sure if I got upgraded but it was really nice. The ceilings were so high it made the room feel regal along with the leather chairs and table in the corner for my laptop me feel like my 70 pounds ($113) went a long way.

We dropped our bags and relaxed for a little bit before heading out. I had strategically picked this hotel because of the proximity to the BrewDog Glasgow bar but it also worked-out that it was decently priced and also close to the Kelvingrove Museum as well. We walked to the BrewDog bar in search of food and beer and were not disappointed. The bar was similar to the one in Manchester, but it had some subtle differences. There were some different taps of beers we didn’t have at the last one, including IPA Is Dead in a hopinator with Chinook and Galaxy hop cones. The bartender was super nice and helpful in answering some of our travel questions, along with giving Sean the last beer from the hopinator when he went to clean it at the end of the night. The food was really good too, and surprisingly large portions. We ordered the small cheese plate which was nowhere near small in my opinion, and would’ve cost a small fortune at some places, but no…just 12 pounds for 5 different cheeses and 3 different sausages and 3 different breads. Sean ordered the burger and I ordered the veggie pizza which was more than enough food. We ended-up taking some of the pizza back to the hotel with us because it was just too much to finish. The food was really fresh and healthy tasting. I have dreams of that cheese plate.

The next day we planned on going to the museum but I was nervous to leave our luggage in the car on the street for hours. I asked the front receptionist if we could check the bags with them and they graciously agreed and didn’t charge me any extra! Seriously, this hotel rocks and I will loyally stay there next time I am in Glasgow. We walked down the street to the museum with perma-smiles and the sun shining. There is no charge to enter the museum but they do ask for donations. The museum is huge and old with the gilded ceilings and giant organ that still plays every day. Excited to look around I snagged a map (that I never really use because I just wander around) and started exploring. We saw dinosaur installations, planes, giant animals, skeletons, paintings, sculptures, modern art, etc. It was incredible the range of things they had which made it enjoyable no matter what kind of art you are into. I really loved the hanging faces instillation. I also loved that they had Rembrandt and Van Gogh and Dali paintings (among many others) because it was something recognizable for me. It was a lovely afternoon of art and culture but eventually we had to get on the road so after a quick lunch we left Glasgow and headed through the lochs to Kennacraig port for destination Islay.

Ninkasi Sleigh’r Cookies

Posted on November 25, 2013
baking, Baking with beer, beer, cookies, Cooking with beer, DIY, Ninkasi, Photography, Uncategorized
Comments: 2

I recently posted about a fantastic beer dinner I attended for Ninkasi and I had some beers left over from the event. What to make? I had a craving for a good cookie and since I had made a batch of cookies last week that I didn’t like, I felt redemption was in order. I have high standards over here. You are your own worst critic, right?

I had a recipe I hadn’t tried so I decided to incorporate some Ninkasi Sleigh’r which is a Double Alt Ale (7.2%ABV) and has a nice roasted quality with a decent hop balance at 50 IBU’s. It’s a complex beer but not too hoppy so I knew it wouldn’t overwhelm the cookie.

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups AP Flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter (room temp)

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1/4 cup beer

sanding sugar (or RAW sugar) for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Sift together the flour and baking soda and salt into a bowl and set aside. Beat butter in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment with the granulated sugar for 4 minutes or so, until the mixture is lighter in color and fluffy. Add the eggs and beer to the butter mixture and mix until combined.

2. Add in the flour mixture to the butter mixture slowly as you are mixing on medium-low speed. Mix until just combined. Separate the dough into two halves and wrap in plastic wrap and allow to chill in the fridge for 1 hour.

3. Heat oven to 350 degrees F and roll out your dough either on a floured surface or in between two plastic sheets of the plastic wrap. I like the plastic wrap because it doesn’t add flour to the cookies and doesn’t make a mess. Roll to a 1/4 inch thick and cut into your desired shapes. I am partial to heart-shaped cookies so I used that. Put your cookies on a sheet tray with parchment paper or a silpat, sprinkle the cookies with your choice of sugar, and put in your freezer for 10-15 minutes to keep the cookie shapes before baking them.

4. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until the edges are browned. I rotated once during the cooking process so they would cook evenly. Allow to rest on a wire rack and enjoy!

I took these cookies to a buddy’s birthday and they were almost instantly devoured. I guess that means they liked them, right? They are like a sugar cookie but with more complexity in flavor and a softness of texture that reminds me of a snickerdoodle. The crunch of the sugar on top really makes for a satisfying cookie. These were a big hit.

Ninkasi Beer Dinner at Library Ale House

Posted on November 22, 2013
Bar, beer, beer blog, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, IPA, LA Beer Bloggers, Library Ale House, Ninkasi, Photography, Road Trip, Travel
Comments: 2

Left to right: Sean McNew, Michael Rooney, PJ (Ninkasi), Kip (Bierkast/LA Ale Works)

I have a confession to make: I have never been to Santa Monica, CA. At least, not recently…It’s possible I went as a kid and don’t remember the experience. I was recently invited by the LA Beer Bloggers to attend a beer dinner hosted by Ninkasi at Library Ale House in Santa Monica, CA and I fell in love with the place. If you are into beer you should have heard about Library Ale House due to their collectively impressive tap selection and reputation for delicious food. I think their success has something to do with having a Certified Cicerone, Alex Davis, managing the beer pairing but hey – that’s just my opinion.

We drove from Orange to Santa Monica in about 45 minutes, not too bad considering it was a Monday. We arrived with some time to kill before the dinner so we walked down to the beach as the sun was setting. After spending some time at the beach, we walked up Main street for a bit and came across this crazy/ridiculous/creepy clown statue on top of the entrance to CVS. Apparently that giant clown has been there for a while and some joke that it’s supposed to mean: “I’m seeing things — time for more medicine.” Whatever the point, I enjoy the creepy clown and insisted we stop for some photos.

We walked back to Library Ale House and had some time to kill before the dinner so we had some beers at the bar. Me and Sean enjoyed a Blind Pig by Russian River while Rooney enjoyed a sour. It was time for the dinner so we headed into the back dining area and staked-out the spot in the back with the best light. Most restaurants aren’t entirely photo-friendly but we got lucky with our table, so much so that fellow beer bloggers brought their food to our table to take their photos! We were provided chips and salsa and water along with some tasters of Ninkasi flagship beers Believer (6.9% ABV Double Red Ale) and Total Domination (6.7%ABV IPA). All the tables had Ninkasi swag including: a sticker, matches, a bottle opener, a recipe booklet, and a button/pin. I can’t tell you how awesome the bottle opener is…plus I am a sucker for a good opener.

We started the dinner with a squash curry with jasmine rice and julienned green apple. It was a cooked squash with rice then a squash curry over the rice with the apple on top. It was seriously good and I ate the entire thing. It had all the flavor of the curry with the creamy squash and the fluffy rice with the cooling, crunchy, and slightly sour green apple that was paired with the Tricerahops IPA (8.8%ABV Double IPA) and Total Domination IPA. It was a great combination because the curry was spicy but the IPA cuts right through it. The second course was a cinnamon and pepper covered chicken roulade with a sweet potato mash. The chicken was cooked beautifully and wasn’t dry whatsoever. I really liked the spice and while normally I am not a fan of sweet potato the mash was pretty good. It was paired with Believer which mimicked the roasty sweet flavors of the dish. The desert was a pumpkin panna cotta with a chocolate sauce and oatmeal cookies. The combination of the cranberry oatmeal cookie with some chocolate sauce and pumpkin panna cotta was just divine. Crunchy, sweet, soft, smooth, spice, paired with the Sleigh’r (7.2%ABV Dark Double Alt) and Vanilla Oatis (7.2%ABV Oatmeal Stout) made it the perfect end to the meal.

The whole evening was a success. Ninkasi has always been one of my favorite breweries and it was nice to see that they will have more of a presence in the LA/So Cal market. They are teaming-up with Strab to bring Ninkasi to Orange County and I can’t wait to see them at my favorite local beer bars. Their beer always consistent, drinkable, fresh, and well-done and I can never get enough! Their IPA’s totally dominate my palate and has made a believer out of me….ha! Don’t I sleigh you?!

Hawkshead Brewery in Staveley, Cumbria, UK

Posted on November 20, 2013
beer, Beer Tasting, Beercation, Brewery, Cumbria, Hawkshead, honeymoon, Photography, Road Trip, Staveley, Travel, uk, vacation
Comments: 3

The drive from Manchester to Glasgow takes about 3 & 1/2 hours via car which is not terrible considering the scenery. We left Manchester and headed to Glasgow not intending to make any stops on the way. As luck would have it, I stumbled across a starred location I had previously saved as a point-of-interest on my Google map app and we decided to make a small detour. I am so glad we decided to go because it was magical.

It was only about 15 minutes off the M6 freeway to the Hawkshead Brewery in Staveley, Cumbria. The roads weren’t that windy and were wide and well-paved so this is faring better than expected already. We arrived to where the brewery showed on my map, but it wasn’t there. The brewery was slightly up the road within a small shopping inlet next to a coffee shop. We parked and approached the brewery and were pleasantly surprised with how impressive the set-up was. The building was large and beautiful with large wood beams, huge windows, and comfy leather seats. It was so quiet in there I didn’t know how much noise we could make without being rude, so we opted to sit in the corner so we could strategize about which beers we wanted to try and how much time we wanted to spend off the road.

I ordered the Lakeland Lager which is a 5%ABV Lager/Pilsner and Sean had the Cumbrian 5 Hop 5%ABV Golden Ale. I really liked the Lakeland Lager because it was crisp and refreshing with a great hop flavor on the back-end. Most of their beers were “real ale” style, but the lager wasn’t. It was a nice change from all the real ales available. I also really enjoyed the Brodie’s Prime with is a dark porter-style beer and is 4.9%ABV. It has a very smooth mouth-feel and is extremely drinkable. We sampled almost their entire beer selection and overall their beer was very good. The styles were done well and the beer was clean and clear and cheap!

We were there around lunch time so we went ahead and ordered some food before they stopped serving. Sean ordered the beer cheese soup and I ordered the mushrooms with Stilton blue cheese on toast. The soup was served with large pieces of sourdough bread and butter so it was very filling for a good price. I tried some of the soup and it was really good. The mushrooms were sautéed in butter and the cheese was melted on top of the toast so it was damn delectable. I savored every bite of that toast. The soup was something like 2 pounds and the toast was 4 pounds. I think we walked out of there spending about 10-15 pounds total? Pretty decent if you ask me. Also, they refused to accept our tips. I am accustomed to giving tips always, but they politely declined my offer. Great service, delicious food, cheap and amazing beer and no tip?! It was one of the highlights of the trip.

We drove through one of the nearby towns of Kendal (which was adorable) to get back to the freeway. From what I could gather there was a lot of sporting good stores and a ton of people dressed in riding/biking/walking/fishing gear. It seems that Kendal is the place to stay if you want to visit the nearby Lake District for day trips. I wish I had spent more time here because the towns were so cute and I am sure the hikes through the lake district are breathtaking. It was such a great little detour! I will be back.

Manchester At Night

Posted on November 19, 2013
beer, Beer Tasting, brewdog, Day Trip, honeymoon, manchester, Photography, Travel, uk, vacation
Comments: 1

We checked out of our house in Athy, Ireland and drove to Dublin to drop-off our rental car. It was sad to leave the house we had stayed at for the week but it was exciting to get moving with our honeymoon plans. We got a lift from the car rental drop-off to the airport and took a taxi to the Dublin port. The port is really nice and the service was excellent. I do recommend getting there an hour early otherwise it gets crazy busy. We took the bumpiest, most off-putting, vertigo-inducing ferry ride to Holyhead port, UK. I felt like I was going to throw-up several times. Luckily I had crackers and Sean bought me a soda so I was able to hold it together…just barely.

We arrived in Holyhead and picked-up our second rental car of the trip and we were off again headed to our hotel stay for the night in Manchester. It was about 2 & 1/2 to 3 hours drive from Holyhead but the scenery was amazing. I loved driving through Whales and some of the towns were so adorable I wished we could spend more time exploring some of them. We drove straight through to Manchester and got into town right as it was getting dark. Manchester was very much like you would expect any large city to be: traffic, no parking, expensive. We were surprised to find our hotel didn’t have any parking close by so we had to park in the parking structure that was blocks away for the overnight stay. It ended-up costing us £ 20 which translates to $32!!

We walked the 10 minutes with our bags to the hotel to check-in. We were staying at the LeVille Hotel on Canal Street which also just happened to be in the gay district of Manchester. I joked that I needed to keep an eye on Sean because he’s a handsome man but we didn’t get approached so it was no problem. We have lots of gay friends so we weren’t uncomfortable at all. The hotel was nice and modern and they even gave us a complimentary bottle of wine and muffins! I was pretty happy about that. The room was small but the bed was large and comfortable. The room was on the first level (street level) so there was some noise, but I am a heavy sleeper so it didn’t bug me. We dropped our bags, had some wine and muffin, and headed out to find the BrewDog Manchester bar in search of food and beer after a long day of travel.

Walking through Manchester at night is interesting. There are a lot of eerie old, dark, twisted buildings that would most likely be beautiful in the daytime. These old fossils are nestled in-between newer clubs and hotels and apartment buildings jockeying for position and attention. The streets are somewhat dirty and there are homeless people and shady-looking groups of drunk tourists stumbling and yelling. I took some photos while we were walking to BrewDog but I wasn’t the most comfortable with keeping my camera out for that long. Me and Sean are pretty savvy and while we don’t live in a big city we have been to LA and other large cities on several occasions so we know how to navigate these large cities. Usually you just walk fast, stay together, don’t make eye-contact, don’t linger in one spot for too long, avoid alleys, etc. We didn’t have any issues in Manchester thankfully.

After a 20 minute walk, we got to BrewDog and ordered a flight of beer. I normally poo-poo flights because I know they are annoying for the bartender but it did give us a good sampling for our next round. I really liked the Blitz! Apricot which is a 3%ABV Berliner Weisse that was so damn good. It was light and fruity and damn drinkable. We also got to enjoy the Dog B American Imperial / Double Stout that is 15%ABV and the Abstrakt AB:14 Weizenbock that is 10.2%ABV. Both were amazing and very hard to get in the US so we enjoyed ourselves considerably. We ordered the BBQ themed food as well and it was delicious. Tired but happy we walked back to our hotel and called it a night.

The next morning we ventured into the Manchester ASDA (UK Walmart) to get an adapter cable so we could play music from my smart phone in the car and to get cash. We had also planned on going to another place that was on the list before our next long drive to Glasgow but because we couldn’t find parking AT ALL and drove around for almost an hour looking, we just gave-up and got on the freeway for Glasgow. Overall, I liked Manchester but I wouldn’t stay there with a car again. I would rather stay outside of Manchester and do a day-trip into the city via public transit. It’s crazy, but I have been able to find parking better in LA than Manchester….and that’s saying something.

A Kilkenny in Kilkenny, Ireland

Posted on November 18, 2013
Bar, beer, Castle, Day Trip, Guinness, Ireland, Kilkenny, Photography, Travel, Uncategorized
Comments: 6

We spent the day walking around Kilkenny and discovered a beautiful castle, delicious beer and a gorgeous town. Kilkenny was on my list of places to visit since it was only about 30 minutes from where we were staying in Athy, but I didn’t know if we were going to have the time with everything else on our plate. Luckily, we had a few hours to ourselves and were able to visit this town and I am so glad we did because it was one of my favorite towns in Ireland.

Kilkenny is located in county Kilkenny and is known for the Kilkenny Castle and Kilkenny beer. How many times can I say Kilkenny? A lot…apparently. The beer is brewed by Guinness and is a nitro cream ale that is more blonde/brown in color and is one of my favorite beers to have in Ireland. It’s a nice break from all the Guinness and Smithwicks. We parked in paid parking behind the library and ran into people from San Diego who immediately asked us about Sean’s Stone Brewing Co. shirt and wanted to know if we were from San Diego. I said we were from Orange County which (side note) is somewhere most people have no idea where that is. They ask “is that LA” or “Is that near San Francisco” and I just say it’s in between LA and San Diego but they still look at me like WTF does that mean. It’s kinda refreshing.

We wandered into a bar called “The Field” to get a Kilkenny beer and watch rugby. It was a quaint little bar with a wonderful group of older ladies enjoying their drink on this lovely Monday. At one point they even broke into song and it was magical. We dropped our buddy at the train station and decided to stay longer in Kilkenny because I wanted to see the castle. It was almost closing time but we were able to walk the outside grounds which were massive and very green. The castle was built-in 1195 by William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke to control a fording-point of the River Nore. The property was transferred to the people of Kilkenny in 1967 for £50^[1] and the castle and grounds are now managed by the Office of Public Works. The castle was so well maintained we wondered if it had ever seen battle and I learned it was badly damaged in the Irish Civil War in 1922 but has since been heavily restored. It was sprawling and alluring.

After the castle, we went for a drink at the Kilkenny Hibernian Hotel. It was a dark bar with lots of dark wood and segregated seating areas like most bars in Ireland and UK. We sat at the bar and had excellent service and a hard-to-get whisky from an apparently a very good whisky selection (according to my whisky-loving mixologist buddy). It would be a hotel I would love to stay at on my next visit just for the bar!

After that we wandered around town for a few hours. We saw cute antique shops, got ice cream, took photos of the river, saw some awesome graffiti and art installation about witches, and stumbled across the Smithwick’s Brewery. I hadn’t done my research so I had no idea that the brewery was in Kilkenny. Unfortunately, the brewery was closed for renovations so we couldn’t see what the inside looked like. I was nearing the evening so we opted to visit a Whisky bar we saw driving through town on the way in before heading back to Athy for the night. The bar was called Dylan’s Whisky Bar but they weren’t open for another 30 minutes so we stopped at the bar right next door for a drink. I had one of the best old fashions I have ever had and my buddy had a “bartender’s choice” drink which was also very impressive. I believe the bar was called Biddy Early’s? After we had that drink we went next door to Dylan’s and cozy’d up to the bar for a whisky. It was a luxurious bar with leather seating, low lighting, large bar seats, and the longest whisky list I have ever seen. I splurged on a Middleton and Rooney ordered three different variations but I think my favorite was the Writer’s Tears. We met another fellow blogger from San Diego who writes a blog called “One Day In A City” and travels for a living…lucky! We chatted and tasted whisky for a while savoring the moments of being in an exquisite bar, in Ireland, with good company. The day had to come to an end so we could do some laundry and clean before checking-out of the house in Athy and taking the ferry into the UK the next day. I love you Kilkenny! I will be back.

Lahinch, Co. Clare, Ireland

Posted on November 13, 2013
beer, Day Trip, Ireland, Lahinch, Photography, Travel
Comments: 2

After a very eventful trip to the Cliffs of Moher, we traveled down the road to the next seaside town to stop for food and a few beers. We passed by the famed Lahinch golf course which is riddled with mini grassy hills and looked like the world’s hardest golf course and settled in the little town of Lahinch. We parked the car and since the fog had broken and the sun started shinning (really, now you shine? Right after we leave the cliffs?!) we walked to the lookout to take a few pictures. There was green cliffs that broke way to the rolling waves that crashed upon large dark rocks. On top of a distant hill there was horses, and I am filled with happiness. I am so lucky to be in such a beautiful place.

We walked down a small hill to reach the town and explored the shoreline. We settled on the Corner Stone for dinner. The place was a dark stone pub with kitschy ads on the walls and a decent tap selection. We enjoyed our fish and chowder and beers and once we were full we walked back to the car and drove the 2-3 hour drive back to Athy. Lahinch was an adorable town with fantastic views of the ocean and I couldn’t help but wish I had stayed there for the night. It was just another wonderful, quaint Irish town that fills your heart with satisfaction.

Victory At Sea Tiramisu

Posted on November 12, 2013
baking, Ballast Point, beer, Cooking with beer, DIY, Photography, Uncategorized
Comments: 7

Sometimes your best desserts are suggested to you by a friend, family, or loved one. Sean and I were tossing around ideas for what I should make for this week and he asked if I had ever made a tiramisu before. I hadn’t but immediately wanted to make it as cupcakes because that makes it easier to serve since we were also having people over for a bottle share that weekend. Sean said that I should just try to make them the traditional way and challenge myself. Who am I to shy away from a challenge? I committed the cardinal sin of the baking world and committed to making something I have never made before for a party that was mere hours away…and it was fantastic.

Ladyfingers:

Ingredients:

1 cup AP flour

5 large eggs plus two more large egg whites

3/4 cups granulated sugar

Directions:

1. In a bowl with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix the egg yolks with two tablespoons of the 3/4 cups of granulated sugar until the color lightens and becomes thick. Set aside.

2. You can either clean your stand mixer and use it to whip the egg whites or you can use an electric hand mixer with the whisk attachment. When whipping egg whites I find it’s better to use the hand mixer because you have more control and it whips them better, and the stand mixer always has this little pool of non-mixed whites at the bottom that drives me nuts. Anyhow, whip the whites with the remaining sugar together until they form stiff peaks.

3. Fold the yolks in with the whites until there’s no streaks. Sift in 1/3 of the flour and fold, continue until you have used all the flour. Be sure to fold and not over-mix the batter. The egg whites need to keep fluffy but it needs to be well incorporated.

4. Pipe the lady fingers onto parchment paper on cookie sheets. The length can vary, but I opted to make 4-6 inch long. 1 inch wide ladyfingers. That way I wasn’t fussing about with a ton of ladyfingers. Let them sit at room temp for 15 minutes and while they are doing that, you can turn on your oven to 350 degrees f.

5. Bake for about 8-12 minutes depending on how big you piped your ladyfingers. You want the bottom of the ladyfinger cookies to be browned and therefore they won’t stick to the parchment paper. Allow to cool on wire racks completely.

Tiramisu:

Ingredients:

ladyfingers, if making from scratch use recipe above, if buying use two packages.

6 egg yolks

2/3 cups whole milk

3/4 cups granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups whipping (heavy) cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pound (16 oz) mascarpone cheese

2 cups beer

cocoa powder for dusting

Directions:

1. In a bowl, whisk yolks and sugar together until combined. Add yolk mixture and whole milk to a skillet and heat on medium, whisking constantly. Allow the mixture to come to a soft boil for a minute, then take off the heat and transfer to a small bowl to cool. Once cooled for 10-15 minutes, cover with plastic wrap tightly and place in the fridge to sit for an hour.

2. Once your yolk mix has sat for an hour in the fridge, mix in the marscapone cheese with a whisk until mixture is smooth. Set aside. Optional: you can reduce your beer with a 1/4 cup of granulated sugar to intensify the beer flavor…set aside so mixture is cool. Whip cream and vanilla with a hand electric mixer until stiff peaks but be careful not to over-whip otherwise it becomes butter. I was skeptical that it wasn’t sweet enough, so if you prefer you can add some granulated sugar at this point but it really depends on your tastes. Drizzle your ladyfingers with your beer (or reduced beer) so that every cookie gets a little of the liquid on it. If you feel like you want more, add more beer.

3. In a 11×17 pan, place your soaked ladyfingers to line the bottom of the pan. Try and make sure there are no large gaps. Using an off-set spatula, place 1/2 the marscapone yolk mixture and spread into an even layer. Then layer on a 1/2 of the whipped cream and spread evenly. Add the second layer of ladyfingers, then the marscapone, then the whipped cream. Sprinkle the whipped cream on top with some cocoa powder (using a sifter) and cover with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to set for at least 4 hours.

Lasts: 2 days

Yield: 12-16 servings (depending on your size pieces)

Level: medium

Season: any

This tiramisu was a huge hit. People could really taste the beer and when you use an amazing beer like Ballast Point’s Victory At Sea…well that just makes everything about your dessert better. I will definitely make this again!

My Destination Wedding In Ireland

Posted on November 7, 2013
beer, Creative Outlet Studios, DIY, Guinness, Ireland, Travel, Uncategorized, Wedding
Comments: 6

I finally got around to editing the photos from my wedding to my best friend in one of the most beautiful places in the world. I think the final count was something like 200+ photos but I won’t post that many here because that’s just crazy. There are a bunch of photos that are really funny, but wouldn’t be so nice to post because they are considerably unflattering. That means it was a good night and it will be a good story between friends over beers.

The whole week it was raining pretty consistently so my plan for an outside wedding was increasingly improbable. Because I had faith that it was going to be fine so I refused to consider a back-up plan. I am just that reckless and it drove my poor bridesmaids crazy. Luckily enough, it was a lovely sunny day and the temperature was around 65 degrees F.

I spent the morning writing thank you notes to everyone who attended and putting my bridesmaid gifts together. I had the assistance of the lovely people at Creative Outlet Studios who were a tremendous help with everything. They handmade clutch bags to hold everything I gave my bridesmaids, they provided the screens to screen print my invitations, space for me to make both my tassel garland and bunting, and they hand-sewn mustard linen napkins then helped me custom screen print them. My best friend and bridesmaid, Lauren, is a co-owner so I took full advantage of the place! Her mom, Susan (who is also a co-owner), made the clutch bags and wrote all the addresses on the invitations. She also helped mastermind the linen napkins. Lauren is the screen printing queen so she helped with burning all the screens and putting the invites together. Lauren’s sister Whitney (who designed the Beer and Baking logo) custom designed the invitations and the template for the napkins. Whitney also sewed the bulk of the 20 napkins. I pretty much have the best bridesmaids ever…

The bridesmaid gifts were the clutch bag, 2 rifle paper co. journals, 1 pair of Tumbleweeds Handcraft sunglasses, and a card from me. I also surprised my husband with Tumbleweed sunglasses for each of his groomsmen as a bridal party gift. They made for some amazing photos. While I was acting like Santa and running around delivering gifts, my lovely bridesmaids were shoved all the decorations I had in my carry-on luggage and told to “make it look good.” My sister (maid of honor) and Aunt put amazingly beautiful and tasteful flower bouquets while my sister’s husband cooked a huge and delicious meal for the reception. Lucky for me, my sister’s husband Syd is a chef at Where Ya At Matt in Seattle and cooks delightful food.

My (basically) lifelong friend, Nick Burson, officiated the wedding. He’s an ordained minister and has a certificate to prove it (ordained online). It just makes everything more meaningful when someone that you have known since you were 5 officiates your wedding. He did a great job and made it really classy! My other long-time friend (middle-school) Michael Rooney was willing to be put through the ringer and be the designated photographer. It’s hard to be on the other side of the lens and relinquish that control but he made it fun and the photos were wonderful. Most every photo is from him (he’s in a few so obviously I took some and I believe Lauren took some) and edited by me. It was my camera, after all.

I walked down the isle to one of my favorite songs: Radiohead’s “Fog.” Once we exchanged rings we walked away to Sean’s favorite song: Oingo Boingo’s “Stay.” We did several rounds of photos then adjourned to the dining room for the reception dinner. We enjoyed mouthwatering shepherds pie, roasted pork, beet salad, fish, roasted potatoes, etc. Everything was so unbelievable and thank goodness for getting to sit and eat because I was starving! My mom purchased a traditional cake from a local bakery but she also made a carrot cake for the occasion. Baking prowess runs in the family so her carrot cake is famous for being exquisite. After everyone had their fill of food and cake we had some impromptu toasting (that wasn’t planned or required…I like no pressure situations) and after some merriment we discovered a painting in the dining room that was hilarious. It appeared that the standing man in the painting was telling the women in the chair “listen here b@#&#” and everyone freaked-out about it. It is just something you have to be there to fully appreciate..I suppose. Oh, and there was a bat.

The whole evening winded-down in the bar where we took full advantage of the Guinness keg and whiskey. General revelry continued into the wee hours of the night and I went to bed with my heart full of thanks. I am so lucky to be surrounded by such talented, giving, creative, hard-working, generous people. It was the most amazing wedding and I wouldn’t have changed anything.

Sean’s suit: 3-day suit broker, My dress: Leanne Marshall (she won her season on Project Runway…fan-girl squeak!), Bridesmaid Dresses: Dear Creatures, Venue: The Bert House (Athy, Ireland), Invite design/Napkin Design: Whitney Macaluso, Screen printing and all DIY done at: Creative Outlet Studios, Punch Cocktail and Photography: Michael Rooney, Chef: Syd Suntha, Flowers: Jennifer Rice Suntha. A special thanks to Tumbleweeds Hancraft for their awesome handmade sunglasses making this wedding extra special! Everyone loved their sunglasses 🙂

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My Destination Wedding In Ireland

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