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Bottleworks XII Clafoutis

Posted on July 20, 2016
baking, Baking with beer, beer, beer blog, beer pairing, beerandbaking, Cooking with beer, craft beer, craftbeer, The Bruery
Comments: 0

What the hell is a Clafoutis? That’s what I asked my husband when he suggested I make one. It’s something he stumbled across while watching reruns of Good Eats, and he was quite excited about me making one with beer. After some reasearch, I found it to be a cross between a dutch baby (also wacky but more well-known fluffy pankcake-y crepe-y thing you see at restaurants) and a yorkshire pudding. I decided to make a beer syrup to go along with the clafoutis in case it was a total disaster, I could drown it in something delicious and also use it to make beer sugar. Beer sugar is easy, it’s basically how you make brown sugar. You take some of the beer syrup and mix it in your baking white granulated sugar and poof! – beer sugar.

Ingredients for Clafoutis:

2.5 cups fresh or frozen raspberries (or cherries or blackberries)

4 large eggs

1/2 cup granulated beer sugar

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup AP flour

butter for dutch oven or cast iron

Ingredients for Syrup:

1 cup beer

1/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of your cooking vessel. I used my large cast iron pan, but you can use a dutch oven as well. Make sure there is room for your cast iron to cook in the middle rack.
If using fresh cherries make sure they are pitted, and if you are using frozen berries make sure to wash them and thaw them before cooking. Make sure there is no excess juice.
Make beer syrup by cooking down so the liquid is reduced by half. Use half of the syrup to mix in with the 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and save the second half for drizzling over the cooked clafoutis.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and beer sugar until frothy, add milk vanilla and flour and whisk to combine. Place the fruit in a layer on the bottom of the cast iron and pour the batter over the fruit. Add additional fruit on top if desired.
Cook in the middle rack, uncovered, for 30 minutes or until golden brown on top.
Allow to cool slightly, for at least 10 minutes before serving. Drizzle beer syrup and add powdered sugar if desired.

I am sure people will think I am crazy to use the Bruery x Bottleworks 12, an imperial whitbier sour but it was really quite delicious. We had decided to open it anyways, I just used a cup of it to make a dessert and it turned out damn tasty. The overall texture was smooth and delicate while the taste was tart balanced by the sweet powdered sugar and the pops of the fresh fruit. My only concern was it was a dish that would go bad quickly because it’s mainly eggs and milk. I think this was a hit and I would totally make this again. Let me know how yours turns out!

The Burger Parlor Opens In Old Towne Orange

Posted on July 17, 2016
beer, beer blog, beer dinner, Beer Tasting, beer travel, craft beer, craftbeer, orange county
Comments: 0

The Burger Parlor opened in Old Towne Orange, in a great location next to the Haven Provisions, Pizza Press, Pie Hole, and à la minute. I was impressed to see their dedication to having good craft beer on tap. Similarly, Pizza Press has a nice selection of craft beer, so it’s a smart competitive move. The consumer is the ultimate winner, where the question “where do you want to go for dinner” isn’t followed with the debate of whether the beer selection is good or not.

Managing to keep that old school diner charm with the leather bar stools and Sputnik lights, the Burger Parlor seems to have a promising future. With the open kitchen, you can watch the chefs make your food, my favorite part is when they toss the fries with salt.

I tried the classic burger with the “half and half” side where you can get a little bit of fries and a little bit of onion rings, which is perfect for someone like me who likes both. Sean got “The Orange Plaza” which is the parmesan grilled sourdough bun, smoked bacon, fontina cheese, caramelized onions, mushrooms, arugula, and chipotle aioli. He also gt the “Plaza Fries” which is housemade chili cheese fries with secret sauce and caramelized onions. I really liked the way the burgers were done, with that “backyard bbq” feel to it, it tastes very well made. Nothing was bad, but I might not get the plaza fries again, it was kinda messy. Those onion rings – will be forever craved. They have this solid batter that is thick and crunchy, and the onion doesn’t pull from the batter making it easy to bite through. I would gladly eat those onion rings again. I did also get the opportunity to try the milkshakes, which as much as I am not a milkshake person I did indulge in for a few sips. It was seriously decadent. I would recommend checking them out and deciding for yourself! Let me know what you thought 🙂

See You At The OC Fair!

Posted on July 15, 2016
beer, beer blog, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, brew hee haw, craft beer, craftbeer, OC Beer Blog, oc beer event, oc brew ha ha
Comments: 1

It’s that time of year again when swarms of people attend the OC Fair for fried food, music, beer, and the people watching. My favorite thing about the OC fair is the giant corn dog (#nageling) and the return of OC Brew Hee Haw!

By some stroke of genius, we have a craft beer event in conjunction with the infamous OC Fair, which is one tradition that this OC gal never misses. I’ve been to the OC Brew Hee Haw the last two years (here in 2015 and here in 2014) and it’s always a blast. I heard that some really special beers are going to be poured *cough* Guavamatic, El Dorado Single Rye, Whits End with Yuzu *cough*.

There are four sessions available so there is flexibility for peeps who prefer a later beer session or a Sunday Funday. Get your tickets here!

SESSION 1

VIP
FRIDAY, JULY 15
6 PM – 10 PM

GENERAL ADMISSION
FRIDAY, JULY 15
7 PM – 10 PM

SESSION 2

VIP
SATURDAY, JULY 16
NOON – 4 PM

GENERAL ADMISSION
SATURDAY, JULY 16
1 PM – 4 PM

SESSION 3

VIP
SATURDAY, JULY 16
6 PM – 10 PM

GENERAL ADMISSION
SATURDAY, JULY 16
7 PM – 10 PM

SESSION 4

VIP
SUNDAY, JULY 17
1 PM – 5 PM

GENERAL ADMISSION
SUNDAY, JULY 17
2 PM – 5 PM

Fundamental Observation Beer Dinner 2016 Recap

Posted on July 10, 2016
anaheim, beer, beer blog, beer dinner, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, bottle logic, Cooking with beer, craft beer, craftbeer, fundamental observation, OC Beer Blog
Comments: 0

This is my second year attending Bottle Logic’s Fundamental Observation beer dinner to celebrate the bottle release of one of OC’s most infamous stouts. The beer geek and bottle trade enthusiast salivate over the chance to score a few bottles every year, and the beer dinner is a mellow opportunity to get bottles in advance of the online or local line madness.

Upon being seated, I noted that my table consisted of Brandon Buckner, his better half Christina, Greg “pancake” Nagel, Cody Storts, and of course my wonderful husband Sean McNew. Rowdiness and revelry was sure to ensue as the beer flowed generously with each course.

First Course: Hamachi – Melon agua chile, avocado, pickled watermelon rind. Served with: Set to Stun Variant (IPA with Melons).

Second Course: Stone Fruit Salad – Ricotta, honeycomb, pistachio. Served with: Berlinear Equation with Stone Fruit.

Third Course: Lobster – english pea vichyssoise, pickled kumquat, sumac. Served with Haze Flux (double IPA).

Fourth Course: Beef Cheek – Heirloom bean ragout, baltic porter demi glace, herb crumble. Served with: Cobaltic Porter & Bourbon Barrel Aged Cobaltic Porter.

Fifth Course: Chocolate Torchon – Foie gras, espresso, Mt. Rainer cheeries. Served with Fundamental Observation 2016 with Mostra Coffee.

Cheese Plate: Humboldt fog, Midnight moon, and aged cheddar. Served with Fundamental Observation 2016.

Just for shits and giggles, we really finished the evening with a taster glass of Fundamental Forces and chocolate covered hard brittle candy. (not pictured was the candy, because I ate it too fast)

I had a lot of fun. The chocolate torchon was really decadent, I almost wish it was a chocolate cake instead of a fatty foie gras but I appreciate the thought behind it. I also wish the cheese was served with a more carbonated beer that would help balance the fattiness of the cheese like a saison or Belgian beer instead of FO, but I also get that’s where the dinner was going so I get serving that beer at that point. I really liked the brittle at the end – I need more of that in my life! Crunchy and salty with dark chocolate is all I really want at the end of a meal. Thanks to Chef Patrick for making a great meal for all of us beer and food enthusiasts.

The service was well organized, the dinner was timely, and everyone left full and happy (thanks Lindsey!). Dinners like these are a labor of love, and a lot of time and effort and work goes into them. I think anyone who does them should be applauded, and as a attendee I appreciate all the efforts made by everyone involved. Check out my buddy Greg’s write up on the event if you haven’t already!

PS – I hope Bottle Logic wasn’t planning on doing anything with those cute turquoise clothes pins because we did some weird stuff with them after all that beer.

OC Brewers Guild Festival 2016 Recap

Posted on June 23, 2016
beer, beer blog, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, craft beer, craftbeer, craftbeer.com, OC Beer Blog, oc beer event, oc brew ha ha
Comments: 0

One of the coolest things about the OC Brewers Guild Festival was it was from 5-9pm. It’s so nice to attend a beer event late and escape the oppressive heat that can happen with the early afternoon, be able to get stuff done during the day, and see how weird things can get under the guise of the night.

I fully expected to see make-outs, crying couple fights, inadvertent genital flashing while peeing on beautiful orange trees, and basically mistakes in the moment – but alas I ended the night free of NSFW content. Either that means the craft beer crowd is getting better at holding their beer or this was truly an event attended by the more serious craft beer fan who really is there to have a good time and remember it the next day.

The event was held at the Fullerton Arboretum, which made for quite possibly the most beautiful background of any event I’ve been to. It was also the inaugural event for the OC Brewers Guild, with vendors of solely OC Brewers and OC Restaurants. It was pretty cool to be so #drinklocal and actually mean it, but that also meant there was some stinkers in attendance. This was perhaps the second or third time I’ve seen Old Orange Brewing’s name on an empty table and it makes me sad. Why must they always seem to bail? It was cool to see Dean’s Brothers beer there, and have an Old Ale in a 2 month old cask and the same beer aged for 2 years. Unfortunately the 2 year old version tasted very off and was virtually undrinkable, while the newer version was somewhat palatable. I wonder if we will start to see more from Dean’s? It would be pretty rad to have an OC cask brewery à la McLeod in Van Nuys.

Now for some of my favorite beers from the event! I really enjoyed the wild saison from Newport Beach Brew Co. and the new beers from Chapman Crafted. I had the pale from Chapman and it was crystal clear and on the hoppier-side of a standard pale, which is what I prefer over a less-hopped pale. Truth be told, Chapman is shaping-up to be a very exciting addition along with Unsung and Stereo Brewing Company to the OC beer scene. I think some great things are coming soon, and lucky for me it’s all within minutes from my house. I would also like to add that I had like 3 pours of “I Love It” from Noble, because -well – I love it. Pun intended.

Overall, I really enjoyed this event. It was a cool location, it had food included (perhaps that helped keep the crowd PG-13), and the band was covering some of my favorite OC hits. The event also seemed more intimate than most, perhaps because the smaller number of total ticket holders and there being a finite amount of breweries, but it was a nice change of pace from those massive beer events. Cheers to the OC Brewers Guild – here’s to a fantastic start!

Sabroso 2016 Recap

Posted on May 16, 2016
beer, beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, craft beer, craftbeer, oc beer event
Comments: 1

This is my third consecutive year as one of the prestigious taco judges for Sabroso, and this was by far the most adventurous yet. I almost missed the simplicity of the ghosts of tacos past, specifically the Haven asparagus taco, but this year’s line-up of offerings was far from disappointing. We judged blind and most of the time we had no idea who made what tacos, so I am still not really sure who each taco belongs to! Yay – no bias!

Taco 1: Soy marinated flank steak taco with pickled veggies and purple corn tortilla. This taco was good, I liked the pickled veggies, and the meat was flavorful. I wished it had a bit more sauce, but overall very tasty.

Taco 2: Breakfast taco with chorizo fried rice, carne asada, cream and a fried egg. This taco was messy, and perhaps perfect if I could eat it in a burrito, but it was somewhat off-putting in taco form. The runny yolk really took over the flavor, but I seriously applaud the ballsyness of this taco. It was the most shocking to see with the fried egg, so I have to give it some props for creativity and ridiculousness.

Taco 3: Falafel, pickled red cabbage, house pickled jalapenos, cilantro garlic sauce, avocado. Straight-up I LOVED this taco for several reasons: 1. it was really crunchy and for me texture is super important, especially in relation to satisfaction; 2. the richness of the avocado was expertly cut by the pickled jalapenos and the flavors had a nice level of citrus to keep everything bright while being distinct; 3. it was mostly simple being it only had 4-5 main components and you could taste everything. I had to hold back from eating this whole taco being it was only the third out of like 16. I had to keep it together.

Taco 4: Beef tongue pastrami taco with pickled ramps, rye toast, queso fundido, cabbage, and spicy island dressing. This taco was beautiful but it really didn’t do it for me. It was hard to bite through because the pickled ramps were stringy and as much as I love melted cheese, this melted cheese was so unpleasing. The beef tongue was a creative taco ingredient to see, and it was tasty, and I also liked the crunchy rye crisp. This one was middle of the road for me.

Taco 5: Flour tortilla, 12-hour braised short rib, arugula, horse radish creme, buttermilk fried onions. This taco was good overall because it had texture, a bunch of greens, and tender meat. It just wasn’t the most exciting because it was lacking spice or punches of citrus, but I would certainly eat this again.

Taco 6: Citrus braised barbacoa pork, avocado creame, cilantro slaw, with cotija cheese. I liked this taco, but something about the cotija cheese really didn’t mesh with the rest of the ingredients. I think my aversion to cotija cheese might have clouded my judgement but It felt off the mark for me.

Taco 7: Pork belly taco, bao bun, pickled radish and cucumber. I am a sucker for a good bao bun, I just love them so much. The pork belly was perfectly rendered, but the skin was almost too crispy – I almost felt like I would break a tooth! It had great flavor and despite the insane crunch was delicious.

Taco 8: Lime fried plantain & artichoke, roasted corn, cotija cheese, salsa, garlic mojo sauce, cilantro and radish. This taco was delicious, and vegetarian! I was loving the corn in this taco, it gave it such a nice crunch. The fried bit was also quite flavorful, and I didn’t mind the cotija cheese as much in this taco. It had a high score from me and one big bonus – it didn’t taste vegetarian. I didn’t miss the meat at all!

Taco 9: Cajun shrimp taco, cabbage coleslaw and creole aioli. In all honesty, this taco was lacking for me. I wished it had more life, more creativity. It wasn’t spicy, or citrusy, but the shrimp was nicely cooked. It didn’t stand-out in the crowd for me.

Taco 10: Barbacoa short rib taco, onion, cilantro, salsa verde. The taco was also most likely dipped in the meat drippings which made the tortilla really soft and flavorfull – but also messy! The meat had tons of flavor, and was moist, but the overall taco was soft in texture and therefore I couldn’t escape the oneness of this taco. I was left wishing for something crunchy or hot to wake-up my mouth! It was still a pretty decent taco.

Taco 11: Pork belly, asian slaw, bahn mi sauce. This taco was underwhelming, it was really missing a sauce or the sauce was too thin. The pops from the sesame seeds were a welcomed addition, but overall this taco was missing something.

Taco 12: Pork taco, quesco fresco, nopales, salsa, fresh avocado, radish. This taco was hard to eat, and seemed to had too many ingredients in it. Not my favorite, but had a good idea but needed some fine tuning. Maybe if the nopales was finely chopped so it was easier to eat?

Taco 13: Braised goat taco, pineapple, manteca , cucumber pico de gallo, black mole. I think this taco would’ve been better on a plate, with a side of rice! It had good ingredients with some good flavors, but it got muddled in the taco, and was overall too wet without texture to rank high on my list. The goat was really nice on it’s own.

Taco 14: Pork & plantain taco which appeared to have some type of crema sauce and cotija cheese. The tortilla seemed kinda strange, but overall the taco was too sweet for me to rate highly. It overall had one soft texture and wasn’t my favorite.

Taco 15: Cinnamon carnitas taco, mango salsa, lime, pickled red onion, jalapenos. This was so close to being great! The meat had great flavor, the salsa punched you in the face, and the addition of cinnamon was a nice touch. I rated this one pretty high.

Taco 16: Last one! Three sausage mix taco, smoked tomatillo salsa, avocado smash, garlic cream, cotija cheese, cilantro. More cotija cheese!! I need to get over my distaste for it, but dang man. It’s everywhere! The sausage was interesting but not my favorite taco, it might be due to palate fatigue but it seemed a bit on the bland side.

Overall I had a great time at Sabroso. The taco judging took longer than expected and as a result I missed the wrestling – but my buddy John Holzer captured some really sick pictures of the action. I got to meet some new OC media people during judging like OC Food Diva so that was pretty cool.

It was nice to see new friend like Unsung at the event, of which I was recently introduced to. I got to see a sneak peek of their tasting room design – it’s really nice and clean. Perfect for across the street from the packinghouse in Anaheim. Every person I talked to at the event said I need to try their beer, so that’s always a good sign. I remember loving the margarita beer from Newport Beach Brew Co. a ton, plus it was great to see the brewer Derek again. I hope to see everyone again next year!

Firkfest 2016 Recap

Posted on April 17, 2016
anaheim, beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, craft beer, craftbeer, Firkfest, firkfest, OC Beer Blog, oc beer event
Comments: 0

I am back from a long vacation, and following-up where I left off with my recap of the Firkfest event in Anaheim, CA. I have a guest writer who will be contributing to my post, so I will first mention my feelings and then introduce the guest author with their words! All photos are still by me 🙂

Firkfest was really fun, as per usual. I couldn’t walk more than a few feet without seeing someone I knew so it ended-up being a party of sorts, but with considerably good beer available each step. Some of my faves being from MacLeod and Good Beer and Bravery, all making very drinkable and flavorful cask beers. MacLeod shouldn’t be a surprise, as they are masters of the cask, and if you haven’t been to their Van Nuys tasting room you should give them a try. Besides the beers, the event was very well organized as I’ve come to expect from Greg Nagel. He’s not only a beer event organizer, but a frequent attendee of beer events, so I think he really knows how to put together a good beer event better than most. The crowd seemed happy, and for the most part there were no lines, and no complaints. It was another great year, and I look forward to the next one. I almost think they are outgrowing their location, so I wonder where they will move to instead?

Let me introduce Gilbert “Charlie” Perez, Certified Cicerone® from “Terms of Embeerment” for the next portion of the post. We’ve previously worked together on his post about Diacetyl where I provided pictures for him, and he’s much more technical than I am when it comes to beer. Without further ado:

A bit of a backstory on cask. There are some words that are usually used when we talk about casked beer. When we talk about real ale or cask, the words that are almost always used in tandem are: English, Pub, Ale, and Cask. The ales we most commonly associate with cask-conditioned beer are English Bitters and Milds. The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), founded in 1971, is possibly the biggest contributor as to why these beer styles didn’t fade into history.

What is a cask? Well, for the sake of this post we will say it’s a keg that has a keystone that can be tapped for dispensing. The most common are Pins at 5.4 U.S Gallons and Firkins at 10.8 U.S Gallons. What is Real Ale? CAMRA defines as follows: “Real ale is a beer brewed from traditional ingredients (malted barley, hops water and yeast), matured by secondary fermentation in the container from which it is dispensed, and served without the use of extraneous carbon dioxide.”

The world wars and taxation have heavy hand shaping the British beer scene and influencing what was pulled at the pubs. The ever-growing popularity of Pilsner kept creeping into the slots where Mild and Bitters once were. A group of loyal pub-goers took notice and started a campaign to bring back what they eventually coined as “Real Ale.” CAMRA was born and they pushed to revive the tradition of cask-conditioned beers that were basically on their last breath.

By the 1960’s and 1990’s, the pubs in England evolve to resembles what we recognize today with plenty of Real Ale pulled from the cellars directly from the casks. Pilsner still has a vast popularity, but Real Ale has firm footing.

Fast forward to Firkfest and we see rows of Pins and Firkins flowing unique, tasty, and esoteric beers. Although they may fall under the definition of “Real Ale,” most of these beers were so outside the box that you’d wonder… If someone purposely punched a hole in it to let creativity loose!… if there was even a box to begin with! Aside from a few beers encountered with Diacetyl, most beers were quite pleasant.

Some standouts for this author were Noble’s Wrong Side of the Road, McLeod’s Ordinary Bitter, Bottle Logic’s Square Root, and, Bravery’s Pink Lemonade.

Before we begin, an honorable mention goes out to Kum Town from Tustin Brewing Company. The beer was tasty (Tustin’s Old Town IPA with Kumquats), that’s no question. But that name… That’s a ballsy name. (Pun was totally intended). Award for best name: TBC’s Kum Town!

Noble’s Wrong side of the Road was impressive! A crisp, light, floral, and tasty ale. Light biscuity malt flavors but plenty of floral an earthy hop notes. Perhaps one of the best examples of an extremely fresh (and dry-hopped) bitter pulled from a cask in OC.

Speaking of bitters, another stylistically outstanding ale was McLeod’s Ordinary Bitter. Moderate mealtimes and woodsy hops in the undertone. A firm (but not harsh) bitterness floats atop of the malty caramel tones and foresty hops. Absolutely British! Well, for this author, that is. Without having taken a trip to England, this is the best example that showcases what a Bitter should resemble (according to style publications).

The uniqueness award goes to Bottle Logic. Their Square Root was a Brown Porter with root beer spices added. If root beer scares you, feet not. The spices were subtle and wet hiding behind the chocolate character pulsed out from the appropriately named EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse = Electromagnetic Porter… Science!). The finish resembled more Bottle Caps candy than soda, and that’s not a bad thing. If root beer was your thing, a hint of root beer was in the finish. If root beer was NOT your thing, the finish was cola-like. A nice take on a beer that has hints of said flavors, not a flavor bomb on top of what used to be an otherwise great beer. Nice work, guys!

Olfactory memory. That’s when memories are activated when you take in certain aromas stimulate your olfactory nerves. For this author, Bravery’s Pink Lemonade almost made him shed a tear. Aromas of “Agua de Jamaica,” lime, and fruit brought back memories of when his grandma would make some Agua de Jamaica (hibiscus water) and fresh lemonade during the summer. Back then, this author never really enjoyed Agua de Jamaica on its own. So, to not upset his grandma, the author would secretly splash some lemonade into the Agua so he could drink it. Bravery’s Pink Lemonade’s aroma was so similar to Jamaica-Lemonade the author almost heard his grandma’s voice behind him, yelling as he mixing the drinks for the first time. The author almost shed a tear…

Hell, this author isn’t fooling anyone, is he? Yes, he let out a few tears. So what!? That’s what beer is all about: the experience. And that’s the one experience this author won’t soon forget from Firkfest.

Source for Real Ale definition:

http://www.camra.org.uk/en_US/faq

Thanks Charlie for your contribution! Cheers!

Barley Forge Black Dahlia Cookies

Posted on March 29, 2016
baking, Baking with beer, barley forge, beer, Beer Tasting, beerandbaking, cookies, Cooking with beer, craft beer, craftbeer, Photography
Comments: 0

It’s been so long since I’ve posted a recipe on the blog. I have a few planned posts coming soon, I hope it will make up for the long wait! I made these chocolate crackle cookies with Barley Forge’s Black Dahlia. The beer lended a slightly fruity and boozy kick to these very decadent cookies.

Ingredients:

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped then melted.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened dutch process cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt (like sea salt)

1 stick of unsalted butter – room temp. (or melted!)

1 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup whole milk

1/3 cup Beer

(For the rolling before baking – not the batter! – in separate bowls)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup confectioners sugar

Directions:

1. Melt chocolate and set aside to cool. Mix together flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, ginger, cayenne, nutmeg, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.

2. With an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, beat butter and brown sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in eggs and vanilla and then the melted chocolate. Reduce the speed to low and mix in the flour mixture in two batches alternating with the milk. Then add the beer. Divide dough into three or four equal pieces and wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (2 hours to overnight).

3. Preheat oven to 350F and divide each piece into sixteen 1 inch balls. Roll in the granulated sugar and then the powdered sugar and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper. About 2 inches apart because they will spread.

4. Bake until the surfaces crack, about 14 minutes. Rotate the sheets halfway through. Let cool on wire racks. Cookies can be stored for up to 3 days.

These are quite possibly my favorite cookies. I get tons of requests to make these because they are rich, warming, and crunchy on the outside with a soft middle. They might be the most perfect cookie, ever.

Beer Yoga @ Native Son’s in DTSA

Posted on March 28, 2016
beer
Comments: 0

The Hop Mistress Society hosted a beer + yoga session on the roof extension of Native Son’s and it was pretty magical. Forget that it was slightly colder than expected, a decent crowd came to detox then retox with Andrea Machuca of The Culinary Underground and Yulia the yogi master. It started with a sugarless grapefruit juice drink, followed by yoga under the stars (or was it the twinkle lights?), concluding with a chia seed pudding and a beer. Native Son’s is one of the coolest locations for a bar, and one of the only respectable rooftop bars that has a decent craft beer tap list. The fact that they have a private space for yoga, catering events or otherwise is downright rad.

Noble’s Fifth Anniversary Recap

Posted on March 27, 2016
Anniversary, beer, beer blog, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, craft beer, craftbeer, Noble Ale Works, OC Beer Blog, oc beer event
Comments: 0

Noble’s Anniversary party is one of my most favorite to attend every year. With so many anniversary celebrations to attend, picking the best ones are getting increasingly difficult. For me, the reasons why I love Noble’s event so much is: The live music comprised of local brewery employees, the delicious beers and punches and cocktails, getting to see all my beer homies and make new friends, and the epic people watching.

The Beer: Evan Price is really a master of his craft, and that is the craft of craft beer. Along with his fantastic team of hard-working individuals, Noble is able to corner the market on several niche styles like IPA’s, English-style ales, beer punches, some of the most sought-after nitro beers, delicious shandies and gose’s, etc. Winning the sought-after LA IPA award two years in a row, and this year winning a bronze metal at GABF for their IPA’s was not a mistake because they make some of the most drinkable, and well-balanced IPA’s I’ve ever had. In my humble opinion, they crush the IPA category, and are able to produce some of my tip top favorite IPA’s of all time. I still think about the Messenger with Yuzu they did with Three Weavers.
The Live Music: The bands were all really fun to watch. The light-hearted music was fun for everyone to watch their favorite head brewers and beertenders play a cover of their favorite song. I really enjoyed watching Jeff Monig of The Bruery sing, he was electric. Evan and Brad of Noble rapping was the cherry on top of an already decadent afternoon.
The Punches/Cocktails: In previous years, they’ve had some really great cocktails made with beer but more recently it seems like punches are where it’s at, and they make some damn fine ones. I tried all the different ones they had to offer, and my favorite was the Oh Yeahhhhhh! that had cool aid mix in it. Toss my shame into the wind, because this was the tits and I don’t care who knows it. I went back for seconds.
The People Watching: Noble seems to attract a very eclectic crowd on a regular basis, so their Anniversary was weird on steroids. There is always the Rob Zombie Doppelganger, the way too drunk couple, the awkward PDA, the tongue wagging in unison, the general revelry that I’ve come to expect and love from Noble events. Overall, it’s a really good time and I always love getting those lowered-inhibition photos towards the end of the day. There always ends-up being photos I can’t share, but I am convinced that someday I will have an NSFW gallery event where all my deep and dark archives will see the light of day to the horror of a few. You know who you are.

It was a super fun event, and I cant’ wait to attend again next year. It’s become a beloved tradition for me and my good friends so join me next year and be apart of the fun times. Cheers!