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Barley Forge Brewing Co. Grand Opening Nov. 15th

Posted on November 7, 2014
barley forge, beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Brewery, brewery tour, brewing, Brewing Equipment, Costa Mesa, drink local, Photography, Travel
Comments: 0

Costa Mesa, CA will finally has their very own brewery. FINALLY. Located in a small business/industrial park behind the behemoth known as The Camp, Barley Forge is a mecca to the weary hipster in need of calm head space and a delicious cold brew. Vintage inspired tones of sea green, industrial orange and light cornflower blue adorn the brewery, furnishing intense feelings of relaxation and comfort while being easy on the eyes. I don’t know if you guys geek-out over how pretty a new brewery is, but I sure do.

Some of the coolest things about Barley was the small details like the seating by the front roll-up door. I pointed-out to Greg Nylen, President and Co-Founder, how much I loved the golden wood seating row and he replied, “Those seats are from my bowling alley that I would frequent when I was younger.” We both stared at them for a bit and I turned to him and again said, “I just can’t get over it. I love them so much. I also love the frames are fill with your beer artwork.” Indeed the design is great. The beer label artwork is interesting and unique, and they proudly display them in frames strategically around the brewery.

Mary Ann, Vice President and Co-Founder

I had already met Greg and his wife Mary Ann, Vice President and Co-Founder, at events and industry parties so I had a slight preview of what to expect but I didn’t expect to be so impressed. Their beers were really good for being so new, and perhaps that has something to do with their head brewer, Kevin Buckley, who has experience from the illustrious Alpine and Latitude 33 breweries. Not very often to you see a lager on draft right when a brewery opens, let alone a fantastic one. This Dortmunder-style export lager, named Grandpa Tractor, is clean with hoppy flavor without being overly hoppy and is downright refreshing. I also really enjoyed the El Paisano, an Amber Ale brewed hoppy with west coast hops and agave.

This is the first brewery in the area that is a brewery first, that just so happens to serve food made in-house. I know that there are several brewpubs in OC but most (if not all) are restaurants that also serve house-made beer, not the other way around. Don’t get me wrong, I am not downplaying the awesomeness that is the brewpub, but this really is a brewery…that has a small kitchen and thoughtful menu and doesn’t have to rely on food trucks to feed their customers. It’s truly a bold undertaking and I applaud the owners for their resourcefulness. I really enjoyed their cheese plate that included a lavender and espresso cheese with Mattern sausages and meats. Their sliders were also very tasty, I particularly liked the lamb and tzatziki sauce slider.

They are open now, but their Grand Opening is scheduled for November 15th, 2014. Visit them and give them some love!

2957 RANDOLPH AVENUE, UNIT B, COSTA MESA, CA 92626 • (714) 641-2084.

Facebook page here.

The Tasting Room is open seven days a week:
Monday through Wednesday 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Thursday 5:00 pm to midnight
Friday 5:00 pm to 1:00 am
Saturday 11:30 am to 1:00 am
Sunday 11:30 am to 10:00 pm

Seattle Beercation 2014 Part 2

Posted on November 5, 2014
beer, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Beercation, Brewery, brewery tour, Brewing Equipment, craft beer, drink local, Finn River Cidery, Photography, Port Townsend, Seattle, Travel, vacation, wanderlust
Comments: 0

Beer on the private beach at the Chevy Chase Cabins!

As promised, the sequel to part 1 is full of adventure and as expected: beer. The day after visiting a few breweries in Ballard, we embarked on the trek to Port Townsend to spend a few days at the beautiful Chevy Chase Beach Cabins (which surprisingly has no relation to the actor Chevy Chase). The drive was only a few hours away which also involved taking a ferry to Bainbridge island and driving over a few bridges and wham! we were there!

We did take out sweet time getting to our cabin that we were staying in for the next few days. We stopped in downtown Bainbridge and stocked-up on food for breakfast tomorrow from the farmers market. We walked around town before stopping to eat at Hitchcock, which was a butcher shop that made delicious artisan sandwiches. With full stomachs we continued on our way and stopped at possibly the most beautiful pumpkin farm I have ever seen. We explored among the tall vines and multi-colored gourds and took some fun family pictures.

We continued on our way, stopping again in the small town of Poulsbo, WA for a potty break and to visit Slippery Pig Brewery. The town of Poulsbo is adorable and has so much character. I thought the most interesting beer was the Cucumber Pale Ale and the Dandelion Bitter. It wasn’t the best place I visited but you can’t beat that view they have of the harbor. It was also a really laid back chill place that I would visit again next time I’m in town.

We finally made it to the cabins and the view is spectacular. There was several little cabins overlooking Discovery Bay on a tranquil piece of land that included a private strip of beach accessible by a short hike down through the woods and across a questionable wooden bridge. After getting settled, we ate dinner and went to bed ready to explore the next day.

The following day we went the short distance into the quaint downtown area of Port Townsend and walked around for a few hours. I snapped shots while sipping my hot coffee I so desperately needed. The old buildings with their worn brick and multi-colored ivy gave this downtown so much charm and whimsy. After we had our fill of wandering, we traveled to Finnriver Cidery which was a bit of a trek to Chimacum, WA but totally worth it. The cidery was this wondrous magical place that only exists in my dearest dreams of life on a farm running a brewery. It was relaxed, encouraging, exciting, awe-inspiring and fun with all the farm available to roam and marvel. There was a large crowd that day because it was some apple holiday so there was a band and wood-fired pizzas being served along with guided tastings of at least 8 of the 33 ciders Finnriver offers. I really enjoyed the champagne-inspired cider, hopped cider and the habanero cider the best. I am not super keen to a heavily sweetened cider or beer for that matter. We didn’t want to leave but we wanted to make it to Port Townsend Brewery before they closed so we reluctantly continued on with our journey.

After a quick stop back at the cabin to feed Charlee, my sister’s corgi, we made it back into town for a visit to Port Townsend Brewery. It was in a small building that appeared to be attached to a warehouse where the brewing was being done and inside there was tall bar stools and a lot of wood adorning the interior. We bellied-up to the bar and while Sean ordered a flight I opted for their pale ale which was pretty good but my favorite was the stout that tasted a lot like chocolate milk. We chatted-up the locals before heading out to dinner before our night was over.

Overall we visited 6 breweries, 1 bar and bottle shop and there is still more to see in Seattle. I hope to be back soon and continue to explore and discover! Cheers!

Seattle Beercation 2014 Part 1

Posted on October 30, 2014
beer, beer blog, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Beercation, Brewery, brewing, Chuck's Bottle Shop, craft beer, drink local, Photography, Seattle, Travel, vacation, wanderlust
Comments: 1

I have recently returned from another trip to Seattle with the husband to visit my sissy, her husband and little Maya! My sister’s kid is about 6 months old now and I understand now what it means when people say “It takes a village to raise a child.” It was certainly good practice for the future little beer and baking kiddies. While it’s a lot of work, you kinda miss that busy happy energy after you aren’t around it anymore. I really have an amazing family.

We arrived on Thursday evening and went straight back to my sister’s house for some downtime. The following day we stayed home with Maya for most of the day before making it to our first beer stop of the evening. We started with Chuck’s Hop Shop in Greenwood which is the type of bottle shop I wish we had here in So Cal. It’s a community spot that welcomes puppies and babies with open arms. The atmosphere is so laid-back and the beer selection is pretty damn incredible.

Afterwards we regrouped with my sister and went to Populuxe Brewing, which is a brewery in Ballard that I have been wanting to visit for some time now. I loved the outside of the space with its cute blue house-like building that was really aesthetically pleasing. It was pretty small inside with limited seating options that expanded to an outside area equipt with wooden benches and a fire pit. I had the saison which was decent and I really liked my sister’s cider. This little brewery shows lots of character and promise, I hope to be back soon.

The next stop was Stoup Brewing which was right around the corner from Populuxe. We spent the remainder of the night there sampling beers and enjoying the evening. My personal favorites were the porter and the hef and I know Sean really enjoyed their bitter. I was so impressed with Stoup and loved their concept so much I even bought a sweater.

The following day we had a road trip out to Port Townsend to stay for a few days which I will go into detail about in part 2! Cheers!

#BBC14 Part 2

Posted on October 8, 2014
#BBC14, beer, beer blog, Beer Bloggers Conference, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Beercation, Brewery, brewing, craft beer, Green Flash Brewery, OC Beer Blog, Photography, Sierra Nevada, Stone Brewery
Comments: 2

Day 2 of the #liverquiver #BBC14 (Beer Bloggers Conference) started off slowly. I am not a morning person, especially after a day full of drinking with a bunch of new beer geeks bff’s. I managed to roll out of bed, with a mixture of hunger and a timely sense of urgency to get my ass to the first scheduled part of the second day of the conference, which was one of the most exciting ones for the photographer nerd in me, the photography session hosted by Alan Kropf who takes professional pics and gets paid for it. That must be the life, right? So jealous!

I snuck in the back of the photography session only a few minutes late and quickly glanced around to see if there was coffee. Alas, no coffee. Halfway through the session, I regretted not getting a water bottle at the little hotel “store” and gave longing looks at the water cooler across the room that might as well been through the final challenge from Legends of the Hidden Temple. Regardless of my misery, I really enjoyed learning about how a professional photographer works and what the benefits to different equipment can be.

After another session that included videography, we were off to the Yard House for lunch and some drinks. We arrived and was escorted to a private room downstairs that had buffet-style finger food and waitresses sweeping the room with more finger foods. I really was hoping for something more substantial but after a mini hamburger and some chips I started to feel the color come back to my face. We went back upstairs to get some fresh air and socialize until we were required to get back on the bus to head back to the conference.

Greg with OC Beer Blog taking a Selfie at Yard House

Upon return, we were treated to a keynote speech from the one and only Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada. He was quite majestic and many of my beer brethren was plucking the stars from their eyes. The room was atwitter…pun intended. Just sitting in a room not interacting and listening to someone talk can be tiring and almost boring, but I wasn’t board by Ken’s speech. He regaled us with stories and the most notable one was the harrowing journey that was the Beer Camp Across America. I just love hearing about people you look up to getting wasted or driving for 14 hours without AC…it makes them so human and relatable.

Ken Grossman

After one more speech, we participated in live beer blogging which was basically speed dating. We had about 5 minutes with different local breweries and sampled their beer and either tweeted about it or live blogged about it. I opted to tweet about it because I am methodical about what I post on this blog and didn’t want to have a post without good pics or in-depth content. I am so deep, I know.

Meghan of CraftBeer.com

Mitch Steele of Stone Brewing Co.

After the whirlwind speed dating, we had all of 10 minutes to ourselves before being whisked off to Stone Liberty Station for “dinner” and more drinks. I say “dinner” because it was again buffet-style finger food and I again didn’t eat enough. It’s really my fault because I should’ve shoved as much flat bread in my face as possible but noooo…. I went on a tour with my old pal Dr. Bill instead. So, for all of you who haven’t been to Liberty Station yet…it’s crazy beautiful. It’s already won awards for architecture and stuff and it shows. The tour started in the bathroom (of course) and Dr. Bill showed us the open hand-wash station while we took pics and freaked-out the bathroom goers. Sorry citizen, we are bloggers and this shit is too rad to not document. Tooling around the restaurant we saw the back outside patio, the several rooms for food and drinks, the tall ceilings that you could throw a football through, and the tallest tree I have seen since Yosemite. After the tour Dr. Bill dazzled me and my new beer bff’s with pulling some rares from his on-site cellar, Dr. Billy Stylez. Not wanting to leave but wanting to stay with the group, we were herded onto the bus back to the hotel. Oh, and they had replaced our nice and quiet bus with a party-style bus and there was a stripper pole that was well-used on that ride back. Oh the memories.

Taking pics of beer displays in bathrooms…nbd

Jon of Beers of Tomorrow chillin in the bathroom with Dr. Bill

Jon and Duke

But wait! It’s not over folks. There was a beer social being held again in the main conference room with more beers, followed by a bottle share with an impossible number of beers to try and taste from some of the most prestigious beers geeks across America. Needless to say, shit got really crazy and luckily I called it a night before I got really sloppy. I was still pretty sloppy, I’m sure.

It’s Sunday morning and I want to die. I decide I can ditch the first part of the conference because I look at my shoes and all I can think was … nope. Not moving around yet. I finally muster the courage to get dressed and suck it up, and visit the hotel store for a diet soda, water, crackers and a protein bar. After plowing through that protein bar and that diet soda, I start to feel normal again and jump into the breakout sessions about bloggers what their experience has been. It was cool to listen to the different backgrounds and experiences some of us have had. The conference ended around noon and I was looking forward to going home to my comfy bed and wonderful husband and cute puppies. I said my goodbyes to my new friends and made the 2 hour trip home. Why does traffic from San Diego to OC on a Sunday suck so hard?

All in all, I really enjoyed my first Beer Bloggers Conference. I think next year I will make a point of it to eat more and bring some more snacking food to tie me over in between meals. I didn’t even drink that much but it was the lack of food and water that really hurt me in the end. I hope to be able to attend the BBC15 in North Carolina for take 2! Hope to see all y’all there! Thanks to all the sponsors and breweries who participated!

#BBC14 Part 1

Posted on October 2, 2014
#BBC14, beer, beer blog, Beer Bloggers Conference, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Beercation, craft beer, Karl Strauss, LA Beer Bloggers, Lagunitas, OC Beer Blog, Photography
Comments: 1

I know I am pretty late in posting about this but hey, #BBC14 kicked my butt. The Beer Bloggers Conference 2014 took place in San Diego, CA at the lovely Mission Valley Marriott so after a short hour and 30 minute drive I arrived bursting with excitement and anticipation of the beer festivities. I also think my liver quivered. That should’ve been my hashtag for the whole weekend…#liverquiver .

I dropped my bag in my room and walked into the conference room full of unknown passionate beer bloggers. I scanned the crowd for a friendly face and happily I saw Greg with OC Beer Blog who saved me a seat at his table. After some chatting and some beers (obviously) we went to a trade show that was set-up in another area of the hotel to try more beer (shocking) and immerse ourselves in some of the sponsors and vendors that attended. I really enjoyed the Lagunitas Hop Vapor bags and it made for some really fun pics. Tom of Queen City Drinks seemed to REALLY enjoy it.

After the trade show, we went back to the original conference room to listen to a introduction speech from Julia Herz of the Brewers Association followed by a panel of San Diego Brewers Panel with Tommy Arthur (Lost Abbey), Chuck Silva (Green Flash), and Peter Zien (Alesmith) on the history of craft brewers in San Diego. It was really interesting to hear them talk about the beginning of the craft beer scene from the people who lived it. After one more speech about social media best practices, we were given a short break then whisked off to Karl Strauss for dinner and beers.

On the ride over to Karl Strauss I struck-up a conversation with Jessica Miller of Hey, Brewtiful and we chatted about our local beer scene (she’s from Atlanta). Jessica is so cool and her blog is super clean and well put together, you guys should check it out!

At Karl Strauss we listened to Chris Cramer talk about some of the history of the brewery and the trials and tribulations one has to endure to open a brewery. It was really a lovely evening sitting on the picturesque patio of the brewery, sipping good beers and chowing down on some tacos. I knew full well that there was still a craft beer social happening back at the hotel hosted by Lagunitas so I needed to carbo load.

Thanks for photo bombing me Greg!

The Lagunitas party was great. I chatted with lots of fun people and I met more wonderful beer bloggers. I had a sarcastic conversation with Fred Abercrombie from Lagunitas that rivaled the best sarcastic conversation …ever. He could really throw around some wit. After lots of fun and even more food, I snuck away to a “cool kids” bottle share in one of the rooms to taste some super rare beers. I didn’t stay for too long because I was exhausted so I retired to my room around 1am. Stay tuned to part 2 of my #liverquiver #bbc14 experience!

Thanks for photo bombing me Greg!

Hangar 24 Beer Dinner at Black Gold Golf Club

Posted on October 1, 2014
beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, drink local, Hangar 24, Photography, wanderlust
Comments: 1

I love a good beer dinner. It’s a chance to meet some new people and drink some tasty brews along side some delectable food and support the local restaurant scene all at the same time! That’s exactly why I attended the Hangar 24 Black Gold Golf Club beer dinner, and well…because I love Hangar beer. I was also excited about photographing a golf club because I don’t think I have done that yet and I love a good challenge.

I arrived about 10 minutes early and snapped a few quick shots outside before wandering into the posh yet relaxed club. I sought-out the bar and spotted Dallas of Hangar 24 immediately (if you are around the craft beer scene, chances are you know or have met Dallas..he’s hard to miss or forget). After a warm hello with Dallas, I was promptly introduced to Kurt of Beers in Paradise (whom I think I have met before) and served the flagship Orange Wheat with the fitting orange slice. The beer geek in me was trying to forget the fruit and chilled glass and kept telling myself that in this heat, I should be thankful of a chilled glass and the cortisol-reducing orange slice. After chatting for a bit, me and Kurt excused ourselves to take some pics outside on the picturesque patio overlooking parts of the expansive golf course.

I ventured out towards the front of the entrance by the driving range on my own for some more golf-inspired pics and working-up a bit of a sweat. Hey, slow your roll everyone, it was like 85 degrees out. Cut me some slack. The cool interior rushed back into my life as I rushed back inside so I wouldn’t be late to the start of the dinner. After a few short minutes of some various meats on a stick and very fancy-looking cheese platter, it was time to begin.

Seats assigned and first beers poured, Dallas described the first course. A salad seems simple enough but this was certainly beautiful and had such complexity. I was impressed the dressing was made with beer. The edible flower pedals made me feel like I should have worn a dress but I happily chowed-down on the fancy salad regardless. The Polycot went very well with the lightness and subtle flavor profile.

The next beer, Oktoberfest, went with the roasted chicken served with potatoes and baby bok choy. It was a bit of a shock for my palate to go from something so light to the maltiness of the Oktoberfest but it ended-up being a nice compliment to the savory chicken and the slight bitterness of the bok choy. Finally we enjoyed spumoni crepes with Chocolate Porter. I know there was some porter-haters at my table, but I did my best to convince them this was the perfect pairing. I love a hoppy porter with a sweet dessert because it cuts the sweetness nicely and makes you ready to go back for more. It was a lovely end to a very satisfying meal. Dallas did such a good job presenting every dish to the craft beer curious crowd and I left enchanted by the loveliness of the Black Gold Golf Club. I hope to be back very soon! Oh…and for like $35 it was so worth it.

The Copper Door Menu Revamped

Posted on September 29, 2014
Bar, beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, craft beer, drink local, dtsa, native son alehouse, Photography, The Copper Door, Travel
Comments: 0

I somehow keep finding myself in Downtown Santa Ana when I want to go out for drinks with friends. It really has everything and is improving in leaps and bounds. I can park my car and grab drinks at Native Son then hop across the street to the Playground for dinner and a few more drinks, or possibly visit one of the several fantastic restaurants within walking distance. One of those “several” restaurants is The Copper Door who has been around for a while but never really had an alluring food menu, until recently.

The Copper Door is a truly unique place. It’s one of the only underground bars in Orange County and boasts an impressive 30-foot center table, 28 rotating taps, three billiard tables and a stage where they support the local music scene. I had been to the Copper Door a few times a long time ago, when they were under different management, but they have always had a decent selection of beer available. They used to be primarily a Belgian-beer bar with a few surprises and now they have a eclectic mix of approachable hyper local craft beers mixed in with unexpected and uncommon offerings. For example, they have a B. Nektar mead on tap which is so original it blows my mind. How cool is that? Bars are pouring mead now!

I was invited to come and try the new menu and sample some of their beers. What intrigued me the most was the fact that the menu was mainly small plates and everything was at and under $10. Seriously, no joke. You can get sandwiches for between $6-8, burgers between $6-8, sliders are 2 for $5 and 5 for $10, flatbreads between $5-8. We tasted several items and I will give you my honest opinion and go through each item.

Framboise and Port Wine Swiss Fondue: Framboise beer simmered with mint and tarragon and blended with port wine swiss cheese. I didn’t care for this at all. The thought behind it was good, I like the idea of incorporating framboise beer with a fondue dip but the texture was off-putting and grainy and the flavor was a strange combination of not savory enough and not sweet enough.

Stout Beer Cheese Fondue: Mole stout beer simmered with fresh garlic, rosemary and sage and blended with sharp cheddar cheese. This fondue was very tasty, even if it reminded me of a cheese beer soup a little. It was very delicious with the dipping items of steak and chicken and bread. Very comforting and filling.

Olive Tapenade and Bruschetta: The tapenade was chopped black olives with dijon mustard, stone ground mustard, capers, garlic, sage, rosemary, and red pepper while the bruschetta had roma tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic and lemon juice. Both were delicious and I don’t even like olives or olive tapenade. I could probably eat that bruchetta by the bowl. The olive tapenade was briney and salty with a bitter aftertaste and the bruschetta was really fresh and had great texture while being light and bright.

Salmon Tartare: Smoked salmon, olive oil, capers, dijon mustard, whole grain mustard and dill on a cracker. My notes read: Seriously wonderful. It was light, not fishy, crunchy and soft, very satisfying.

Filet Mignon Crostini: Herbed chevre cheese with filet mignon, horseradish sour cream and balsamic glaze. I didn’t know steak could be that tender. It was perfectly seasoned and very easy to eat. I bit right through that steak with no drag or pull. It was divine.

We had a plate of sliders which consisted of the Alligator Blues Slider, Caprese Sliver and a “BLT” salad cup. The alligator was an alligator sausage with pepers, onion, aioli and blue cheese on a ciabatta roll. It was good, a little on the dry side, but had interesting flavor. The caprese slider was fresh and tasty as one would expect a slider of basil, mozzarella, tomato and balsamic glaze on a ciabatta roll would be. The star was the BLT salad to my surprise. It was a bacon cup with a fully dressed salad in the cup with baby tomatoes. The cup didn’t discinigrate when you picked it up and bit into it, and the salad didn’t go everywhere. It was facinating how well executed it was and super yummy! We all chatted excitedly about how much we loved it.

Lastly we had the Candied Walnut Crostini: Sweet cinnamon cream cheese, candied walnuts and balsamic glaze on a toasted piece of bread. It was the great end to a wonderful meal. It reminded me of a sticky bun and it was very well balanced, not overly sweet. So good.

Chef Ben and company are helping bring interest back to the Copper Door and I personally can’t wait to go back. See ya there!

Upcoming Events For The Craft Beer Inclined

Posted on September 18, 2014
beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, blogging feature, craft beer, Hangar 24, LA Beer Week
Comments: 0

Busy season isn’t over folks. It’s time to pull up those pants, suck in that gut, and bolster your stash of Advil cuz this week is jam-packed of craft beer events!

Friday, Sept. 19th:

20th Anniversary San Diego Festival Of Beer

6pm-11pm, tons of great breweries, great for craft beer noobs.

$40 for 10 tasters, additional tasters can be purchased.

Saturday, Sept. 20th:

LA Beer Week #LABW6 Kick-off Party

China Town Central Plaza, LA. Amazing list of beers, rub elbows with craft beer royalty. It’s one of the best events you can’t go to, because they are sold out.

3-7pm, $45 general/ $65 VIP

Hangar 24 Beer Dinner at Black Gold Golf Club in Yorba Linda, CA.

6pm-8:30pm, $34.95 per person. This is such a good deal because I would probably spend that on a single course meal with drinks. This comes with four courses! Score! I am going to this event so I might see y’all there 🙂

1st Annual San Diego Sriracha Festival

3-6pm, Liberty Station. $60 tickets include food and beer tasters!

Sunday, Sept. 21st:

Pint Night with El Segundo Brewery at Harry’s Bar

Beer Brunch at Timeless Pints Brewery

Modern Times Hangover Brunch at Beer Belly

Caskforce at Beachwood BBQ and Brewing in Long Beach.

Monday, Sept. 22nd:

Craft Beer Cocktail and Adult Board Game Challenge

The Factory, Long Beach, 5pm.

Wednesday, Sept. 24th:

Avery Beer Tasting at Buzz Wine Beer Shop

Telegraph Brewing and Far Bar present Funk on Funk : A Palate Experience

Sept. 20th-28th: LA Beer Week! #LABW6 come out and support the amazing LA craft beer scene.

Saturday, October 18th: 5-9pm

2014 BierBuzz Masquerade, the Inland Empire’s first Halloween craft beer festival!

$35-45, a good deal for a good amount of rare and special pours from fantastic local breweries!

Hope to see you guys at some of these fun upcoming events!

Mini Turnovers With Stone’s Hibiscusicity & GIVEAWAY

Posted on September 10, 2014
baking, Baking with beer, beer, Beer Tasting, craft beer, giveaway, Hibiscus, Hibiscusicity, OC Beer Blog, Owen & Fred, Photography, Stone Brewery, You Earned It Bottle Opener
Comments: 32

It hit me like a stroke of genius…mini turnovers! Sometimes I feel stuck trying to brainstorm on what to make next and it was a rush of inspiration once I received the newest beer from Stone Brewing Co., the Hibiscusicity. It’s a hibiscus beer (I can’t seem to get away from them, not that I would want to because I love hibiscus) made Belgian Golden Ale style with hibiscus flower and orange peel. It’s pours with a pinkish hue and strong head retention, with a slight candy tartness finish. It practically screamed at me to reduce this beer with some fruit and make some sort of tart or pie. I just noticed my buddy Greg at OC Beer Blog posted his tasting notes here!

Opting to go the more adventurous route, I dived-in to making turnovers. I have never made turnovers before, but how hard could it be really?

Lucky for me I had my trusty Owen & Fred “You Earned It” heavy-duty bottle opener to help me crack-open my beer. Yes, bottle opener, I really did earn it. Thanks for noticing. The lovely people at Owen & Fred has authorized me to run a GIVEAWAY for a kick-ass “you earned it” bottle opener so post a comment on this post about how you earned your beers by Friday at 5pm PST for a chance to win one of your own! Winner will be announced on the following Monday. Only US residents can enter for shipping purposes. Sorry international fans!

This bottle opener has received a lot of compliments and people love the look and weighty feel of it. It’s actually solid brass! It’s about a 1/2 pound so compared to your sad plastic novelty bottle openers, it will last a long time, beer after beer. I used and abuse this opener during recent bottle shares and even the #BBC14 and it’s still going strong-looking like the day it was received in the mail.

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 1/4 cups of AP Flour (I used Whole Wheat Flour from King Arthur Flour)

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 unsalted butter (1 stick)

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 cup ice water (use 1 tablespoon at a time)

Filling:

1 cup fresh pomegranate juice (either store-bought or by blending pomegranate seeds in a food processor and straining…it took about 4 pomegranates)

1 cup beer

2 cups of raspberries (fresh or frozen works)

1/3 cup granulated sugar

Topping of the turnovers:

Non-stick butter spray

Cinnamon and sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

1. Make the dough in advance. You will need it to be cooled enough to roll out without losing the integrity of the dough. Combine the flour, salt, sugar and mix. Cut the cold butter into cubes. You can either now mix together with your hands or use a food processor. Add water until the mixture comes together just enough. If it’s too dry it will crack and if it’s too wet it will not hold the liquid.

2. Plastic wrap your dough and place in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight.

3. Place your beer, pomegranate juice, sugar and raspberries in a skillet and simmer on low for 30 minutes. Mixture should be relatively thick. Allow to cool completely before covering in plastic and placing in the fridge for at least 1 hour to overnight. I opted to make the dough and the filling the night before making the turnovers.

4. Heat your oven to 400 degrees F. Roll out your dough on a floured surface and cut into oval shapes. Think of the dough as an eye that you need to blink. After you have cut out your shapes, try to form a half-pocket by pinching the sides together on one side and then dropping in the filling out of the open end, then closing the open end up last. That’s the best way I have found, as opposed to folding over the whole thing at once. The filling doesn’t want to stay when you do that. Trust me, I made a mess. Finalize them by pressing the edges with a fork for an extra tight seal.

5. Once you have your turnovers filled, spray with your butter spray or brush with milk and sprinkle cinnamon and sugar. Bake for about 17-20 minutes. Once the edges are browned, remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Serve warm with ice cream or a good beer, or both. No judgement here.

These turnovers were small but packed a satisfying tart punch with the filling. The dough was flaky and crunchy, just like it should be. It wasn’t overly sweet because I used fresh pomegranate juice and that stuff is tart! This beer alone was delicious but I would like to think I made it extra special with the turnovers. Let me know if you make these and how they turned out!

Don’t forget to comment for your chance to win this awesome bottle opener!

OC Brew Ha Ha 2014 Recap

Posted on September 9, 2014
21st Amendment, almanac, beer, Beer Event, Beer Tasting, beer travel, Bravery Brewing, Brewery, cascade, craft beer, four sons brewery, Newport Beach Brew Co., oc brew ha ha, OC Brew HaHa, Photography, the brew house, Travel
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Whelp, it turns out that I am psychic. I can predict the future. Shocking, I know! Sign me up to assist the police and work on a hotline because I knew what was going to happen before it actually came to pass. The Orange County Brew Ha Ha was exceedingly impressive, as predicted. Fun was had by all. Hand over all your cash now and I will give you a discounted rate on a reading using my newfound gift.

The event this year managed to outdo itself once again and bring the pain (in the form of new and exciting breweries, beers, food, games, and bands). Just when you think you’ve seen it all…BAM there’s a life-size foosball game being played with vigor by a bunch of smiling coeds in the middle of a beer event. Go figure! Only you, Brew Ha Ha, and that’s why I love you. Well, one of the reasons anyway.

I don’t know about the other attendees, but I was bouncing on the soles of my feet just thinking about getting some 21st Amendment and Cascade beer. That stuff isn’t easy to find here in So Cal and if you are lucky the Haven restaurants have some. I was incredulous that there was barely a line when I finally made my way over to 21st Amendment’s booth. “I want everything!” I exclaimed as I stepped closer to the edge of the table adorned with beers begging to be consumed. The beer pourer produced a half-smile and said, “You gotta pick one.” I agonized between the Bitter American, Hell or High Watermelon and the Brew Free or Die IPA and finally settled for the watermelon. I love that beer so hard. I was savoring my beer in the shade behind the 21st Amendment stand when I noticed a beautiful pile of their lovingly designed cans. I love this beer so much I bought Sean (husband) a Hell or High Watermelon Wallet. That’s saying something. I snapped a few pics of the cans and it might be my favorite capture of the day.

There are so many other notable beers to talk about. Derek from Newport Beach Brew Co brought 6 sours in total and killed it. I had one of his sours with cucumber aged in wine barrels that was so damn delicious. Derek always has something unexpected and original to share at beer events and he didn’t disappoint this year. The Brew House had the Flowering Gose by Almanac and a Surly beer on tap and when I heard about it in passing I almost ran over to them for a pour. They nailed it. The Gose from Almanac was light and tart and utterly satisfying in the hot hot heat that bore down on the attendees. No matter, because there was plenty of water and mist action to keep everyone in good spirits.

I also really enjoyed the dry stout from I & I Brewing, everything from Bravery, gulped enthusiastically the Blonde from Four Sons while muttering “guhhh I this beer is so gooood”, the saison “change-of-pace” from Hoparazzi, and the list goes on. It was cool seeing the new breweries I had recently posted about getting a lot of love by the attendees and secretly just because I like to whisper to myself “you helped them get that exposure they deserve.” Thanks for that satisfaction, subconscious.

The bands were entertaining, breweries plentiful, and water supply was seemingly endless like some magical water fairy didn’t stop supplying everyone with ice-cold water. I was the most well-hydrated and composed I have ever been this year post brew ha ha. The only thing that got to me was the sun and that’s because, well, bitches’ be pale. It was so much fun to reconnect with some beer friends I haven’t seen in a while and I ended-up chatting with some people for a long time, but still managed to get a good amount of tasters in. I really don’t know how, but I predict next year’s event will be even more epic. You can take that to the bank! Cheers!