Samuel Adams / Boston Beer Co. has a new offering – Samuel Adams Alpine Spring, as well as a partnership with Chef David Burke, who created some tasty recipes using the craft beer. They were nice enough to send us the recipes, which are:
Samuel Adams Alpine Spring + Cooking with Hops (Recipes by Chef David Burke) Read the rest of this entry »
This Tuesday, in my first adventure on behalf of DCfFüd, I attended Casa de Don Julio, a celebration of Don Julio Tequila’s 70th anniversary. This kickoff event, which begins a promotional tour showcasing Don Julio’s brand and introducing its new Don Julio 70 Tequila (more on that in a moment), was held in the way-far-west of Georgetown’s waterfront, in the future site of the restaurant/lounge Malmaison. Don Julio recruited local celebrity chef Malcolm Mitchell and mixologist Andy Seymour to plan a tequila-themed menu with cocktail pairings. But first, the tequila.
After a refreshing “Punch de la Casa” (fruit juices, agave nectar, black tea, Don Julio 70, and mezcal) woke up our taste buds, we were seated for a brief lecture on the process of making tequila, from growing and harvesting the blue agave plant that makes it all possible to aging (or not aging) the beverage to create its three varieties: blanco (“white,” not aged), reposado (“rested,” or aged a few months) and anejo (aged one to three years). It was all enough to make a hard liquor aficionado like me marvel at the first tequila distillers, both for their ingenuity and their desperation to get a drink! And at the same time, it had me saying, “Bring on the tequila!”
Here’s where things got interesting. Rather than working our way up from young blanco to the most aged extra anejo tequila, we were told to start with the anejo. Aged in oak barrels used for bourbon and Jack Daniels, it had the smoked, oaky flavor and vanilla-honey notes that make anejos popular among whiskey and Scotch drinkers such as myself (I keep a bottle of Patron Anejo in the cabinet). But here’s the rub: while older is better in the whiskey drinking world, the aging process deprives tequila, our tasting guide told us, of some of the flavors of the agave plant itself, which make tequila distinctive. From here, we tasted backward to the blanco: sharp, briny, with a heady evergreen flavor like the cactus juice it’s made from.
All this set us up for the star of the evening: Don Julio 70 was designed as the best of both worlds, an aged tequila that maintains the flavors of the agave plant (although don’t ask me how; they were a bit sketchy on the details here). The 70 was light in color (they called it a “claro anejo”) and a pretty incredible fusion of the flavors of both young and old tequila. Finally, we tasted Don Julio 1942, the extra anejo first released in 2002 for the brand’s 60th. This was the exact sort of candy-flavored super-heady tequila that has endeared the spirit to brown liquor fans, but by this point, I was already won over by the 70 and its faithfulness to the blue agave plant (the real star of the evening). And I was ready to eat.
First course from Chef Mitchell was a hamachi crudo with tequila vinaigrette and micro greens, paired with an “I-70 South”: Don Julio 70, mint, cilantro, jalapeno simple syrup, and grapefruit soda. Think fresh, fresh, fresh with a kick. I actually ate a micro green salad with sliced grapefruit and orange, as I have a mild fish allergy, but I tasted a bite of my wife’s hamachi, and the pairing was even better with the buttery fish.
Next up was the main: anejo tequila and chipotle-glazed short ribs over manchego polenta. This dish was clearly going to be the star (short ribs, duh), and the smoky tequila plus smoky chipotle were terrific with the tender beef. The pairing was “Suave Agave,” a take on sangria with Don Julio Reposado, Malbec, and pomegranate juice. The tequila wasn’t as evident here against the big flavors of the wine and juice, but it was refreshing on the whole.
Third course was dessert: a warm and fluffy “Mexican” bread pudding with reposado tequila glaze and agave vanilla ice cream. Yum. Alongside came a drink that was a dessert in itself: “Chocolate Mint Chip,” with Don Julio Anejo, Rumplemitz, rich hot chocolate, and whipped cream. No kidding about the hot chocolate being rich: you can’t hide the alcohol taste in a hot beverage without a heavy dose of cream. I’d rather have tasted the tequila’s flavors minus the mint liqueur, though.
After dinner, the event morphed into a party, with passed hors d’oeuvres (highlight was a little flute of lukewarm gazpacho with tiny bits of calamari), more cocktails, and deejay Relevent. Before heading out, I grabbed what turned out to be my favorite of Andy Seymour’s creations, “Evergreen and Red,” which combined the anejo with agave nectar, pomegranate juice, and a rosemary sprig, as if to give a nice whiff of the evergreen-y blue agave, and perhaps taking a cue from our tasting to reconstruct the best flavors of tequila.
My only complaint was that I couldn’t get a margarita with Don Julio 70, as, to me, that old standard is the perfect expression of what tequila’s flavor is all about. I guess I’ll have to buy a bottle and mix it myself! Cheers!
Guest Writer: Dan (DSR)
[ad]
DuClaw hosted it’s 5th annual Real Ale Festival at the first DuClaw Brewing Company in Bel Air Maryland earlier this month. 21 craft breweries featured two cask-conditioned specialty ales each. The Real Ale Festival house band, Acoustically Sound jammed on the outside stage while event goers enjoyed unlimited beer samples and a food buffet that featured 3 huge roasted pigs and plenty of meats and cheeses.
Those of you familiar with DuClaw may already know their staple beers such as the Black Lightening (American Black Ale) and the Hellrazer IPA as well as their seasonals – look out for the Devil’s Milk Barleywine (brewed in July and aged until November) or the Retribution (Single Barrel Bourbon Aged Imperial Stout). DuClaw has three locations throughout Maryland – but if you live in D.C. or Virginia and can’t make the drive, don’t fret – DuClaw is distributed in Virginia, D.C., Delaware, and Pennsylvania.
As with most beer festivals, each attendee was presented with a 4oz tasting cup, and let loose in search of their favourite beer styles and breweries. What made this festival in particular stand out from other beer fests was that (as the name implies) each beer was cask-conditioned and served unfiltered at cellar temperature.
Real Ale is brewed using pure and traditional ingredients and left to mature in a cask. It is considered a living product due to the fact that – unlike keg beer – the yeast (which is a large component of taste and aroma) is not killed off through pasteurisation and there are no additives like carbon dioxide and nitrogen (that gives keg beer a uniquely sharp and fizzy carbonation.) If you’ve never had Real Ale before, this would be the festival to go to next year, as you can taste organic and all natural rare and living beer from your favourite craft breweries!
This festival hosted quite a few Maryland-based breweries some new and some well known.
The Brewer’s Art (Baltimore, Maryland) offered a firkin of its famous abbey brown ale “Resurrection” which was absolutely perfect as cask ale. It is already known for being “easily drinkable” which ordinarily I would raise an eyebrow at considering that beers in that style are Dubbels and tend to have a sticky and roasted sweet alcohol character. Not to mention the ABV is around 7-9%… Yet the Resurrection really honestly was easily drinkable even with a higher serving temperature and lower, natural carbonation. The cask-conditioned state of the Resurrection had a hazy amber color with a musty, dry nose, herbal spicy hops, sweet earthy malts and a creamy undertone. The temperature and lower carbonation really kept the focus on the complexity of the flavours and how they interacted rather than the mouth feel.
Union Craft Brewing (a month old brewery located in Baltimore, Maryland) featured its first two beers: the Duckpin Pale Ale and the Balt Altbier. The Balt Altbier was phenomenal on cask! This beer was a dark copper colour and had a strong aroma of bourbon and vanilla. Initially I thought “uh-oh!” (…being outside in the sun with 40 other beers to try) – however in some truly magical moment the taste that confronted my taste buds was not bourbon but rather, melon, kiwi seeds and pumpernickel. The bourbon smell seemed to have only existed in the waft! Amazing! After tasting, I was able to detect other notes of toffee, and berries in the aroma, and if you live in Baltimore you are one of the lucky few that have a chance to try this out yourself. The Duckpin Ale was featured alongside the Balt Altbier. The Duckpin Ale is a Pale Ale that is brewed with grapefruit zest. What I appreciated was the introduction to the potential flavour of hops without the bitterness that seems to turn people off. Hoppy beers seem to only be loved or hated, and the friend I was with was not a fan of hoppy beers at all. This beer however, he really enjoyed! I think it’s a great introduction to IPAs, and a unique twist on Pale Ales. Both selections are a great example of drinkable craft brew and are actually designed for cans rather than bottles in order to be more accessible.
Stillwater Artisanal Ales – oh how I love thee! Stillwater is a gypsy brewer based in Maryland. The most popular brews I’ve seen around the D.C. area have been their Saisons (The Debutante, Cellar Door, and – my favorite the Stateside) but they also make a black saison (spiced with rose hips and hibiscus) called A Saison Darkly, as well as an awesome Belgian Strong Ale Black IPA! Stillwater’s cask-conditioned versions of their beer are not to be missed on the next event, and if you see it somewhere else don’t hesitate to give it a shot! They are currently featured on draught at Of Love and Regret in Baltimore. While visiting their booth at this festival I learned a tantalizing project was in the works – look out for collaboration between Stillwater, Stone, and Evil Twin.
Tröegs Brewing Company based out of Hershey, Pennsylvania really impressed me as well at this event. Normally if a pub around the DMV area has Tröegs it seems to always be the Troegenator – and don’t get me wrong, it is an excellent representation of a Double Bock – maybe that’s why we don’t see too many of their other offerings. So I was happy to try the Great American Beer Festival award winning seasonal: Dead Reckoning Porter. It had a juicy cocoa character and a balancing dry bitterness from the Vanguard and Chinook hops. It is more hop forward than classic porters, but it pairs beautifully with its tart fruit undertones (from the hops) as a dessert beer with rich and fudgy chocolate. I would also love to see the Perpetual IPA more often, it’s a straw coloured quintessential IPA with 7 different kinds of hops (dry hopped with Citra and Cascade) It’s mild and mellow yet subtly complex – a lovely combination! Both beers shined as Real Ales.
New Belgium Brewing from Fort Collins, Colorado was there too, and not only were they set up with lots of stickers and pins (yay!), but they also happened to have one of the most special and rare offerings (for New Belgium fans!) at this event – the single barrel version of La Folie Sour Brown Ale. Aged in French Oak barrels, La Folie is a gorgeous dry and earthy, mouth-puckering (and watering) refreshing sour beer. La Folie – in it’s final and commercial form is a blend of 1 year, 2 year, and 3 year aged barrels. It is blended in order to create balance while still achieving the range of taste that comes with time. The featured firkin was from the first year. With its classic Ranger IPA (even better on cask!) to back it all up, New Belgium did not at all disappoint and was one of my favourites at this event.
Stone Brewing Company from San Diego, California was also pouring some brilliant beer at the Real Ale Festival. They sampled their 16th Anniversary IPA – a Double IPA with a nice dose of rye malt giving it a spicy backbone, mixed in with some lemon verbena and multiple hop varieties including Amarillo and Calypso. A thick, complex and aromatic beer, the 16th Anniversary IPA is expectedly delicious. Their other featured beer was this exotic concoction: The Chipotle Smoked Porter – I couldn’t get enough, the chipotle pepper really did creep up and kick the back of my throat – exciting enough to make me want more! This beer is available in bottle form as well but the peppery kick is not nearly as present with the typical bottle temperature. In fact, this beer excels as a cask-conditioned Real Ale. It is a deep dark brown with a light tan head. Smokey malts with dark roasted grains, chocolate and toasty coffee notes upfront – and of course, the earthy fresh zap of chipotle pepper to shock and restart your taste buds! It would pair swimmingly with dry bread, smoked meats and cheeses – breakfast of champions.
The DuClaw Real Ale festival is definitely a craft beer lover’s festival. Many of us have gone out of our way to try new and different beer styles. Many of us have tried almost all of what is locally available, but the cask-conditioned ales are harder to come by, and harder to tame. The real craft of each brewery is tested by its ability to present an unmasked version of their beer without added carbonation and low temperatures – just pure and simple unfiltered brew. Some of the beers featured from these breweries work best as Real Ales and are not to be missed! The next DuClaw Annual Real Ale Festival [https://www.realalefest.com ] is (you guessed it!) next year, but in the mean-time, keep your eye out for cask beer and you might get lucky enough to try some of these at your local pub!
-MLC
Editor’s Note: MLC’s bio is now available on our About page.
[ad]
And from JAY’s friend, Ami:
Mad Fox Brewing Company located in Falls Church, Virginia may be off the beaten path for some, but it is entirely worth the journey for beer lovers and for food lovers alike. If you enjoy beer, you probably already know that in the DC metro area you can find a lot of craft beer – some of it local, much of it fairly delicious. You are also probably aware of the disappointment you face when an otherwise good American craft brewery fails at a foreign beer style. At Mad Fox, that won’t happen and your taste buds will thank you – and what more can you expect from an award-winning brewmaster that graduated from the Master Brewers Program at UC Davis? But wait, there’s more! Mad Fox is an English-style gastro brewpub, and the food is a sophisticated step up from your average bar food. Executive Chef Andrew Dixon hails from the Four Diamond Award-winning Semiahmoo Resort in Blain, Washington with a farm-to-table organic focus in food art tailored to complement the beer offerings – in both quality and taste! What more could you ask for, really? (Besides more beer)
Mad Fox makes an outstanding Saison. It is a typical honey golden color with just the right amount of earthy funk, peppery honey and clove spice on the roof of the mouth with a balancing lemon and orange citrus and a dry finish. The carbonation is on the milder side of moderate, and is not quite as big as the Saison Dupont (which happens to be the inspiration behind it all.) Madden used a yeast strain from Northern France for the Mad Fox Saison that he says “gets better every time we use it”. To me the Mad Fox Saison is on par with the Bruery Saison de Lente. For discerning Saison / Belgian beer lovers, Mad Fox is worth the pilgrimage.
Along with the aforementioned Saison, Executive Chef Andrew Dixon paired a mushroom strudel. Yum! A few layers of phyllo dough wrapped around a strong and aromatic mushroom duxelle with goat cheese and portabello chips (taken from the gills of the mushroom) and a Saison reduction was a slow and complex evolution of taste. I thoroughly appreciated that the flavorful mushroom crept up on me mid-palate. The best part? This dish opened up the floral note in the Saison, admittedly my favorite aspect.
The dish I kept coming back to was the Ahi Carpaccio – a slice of Tataki tuna with a delectable buttery texture, balanced by crispy shiitake, and exciting flavors like basil and orange-ginger. This dish was accompanied by an award-winning unfiltered Kölsch beer. This beer took home the gold at the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) in 2011. Made with 18% wheat malt and Hersbrucker Hops, it’s a highly drinkable “brewers beer” at 4.4% ABV. It’s a hazy yellow golden color, with a pleasant spring meadow aroma and a light dry finish that cleared the palate for the lovely Ahi Carpaccio. The pairing is the perfect summer combo – light, crisp, and refreshing with a dry complexity. If you don’t make it out for the Saison (or even if you do!) these are a must-try.
Honorable mentions include the Mad Fox English Summer Ale, also a 2011 GABF award-winning beer. This is a beer style that evolved in the UK in order to give younger beer drinkers there a slightly hoppier lager. It’s almost clear golden in color with a light malt character from the English pale and German Pilsner malts, and is lightly hopped with American Citra hops which gives it a nice tropical fruit note. Also, the flame grilled oysters and the bacon jam burger will blow your mind.
Stay tuned for special events at Mad Fox for delicious beer and food pairings.
-Meagan (MLC)
[ad]
This year’s National Harbor Wine & Food Festival was my first. I attended both days, snacking and sipping on the great wine and gourmet food. I decided to focus on five food vendors and five beverage companies from the many I sampled.
For starters, if you’re into dried meats (and really, who isn’t?), Heidi Jo’s is a must-try. Originating from New Hampshire, the company offers such exciting selections as ostrich or venison jerky, as well as buffalo or elk sticks. They also carry the par-for-the-course beef and turkey jerky, hot sauces, and snacks. The big deal is not really the exotic meats (although they are cool), as much as the fact that all their products are all-natural. No preservatives, artificial flavors, or flavor enhancers — just meat and seasonings. I tried out an elk stick and it was pretty tasty, considering I’ve never had elk.
The next product you’ve got to try is a dressing by Milly’s Organics. She makes a line of organic salad dressings that taste fresh and sublime. From the fifteen available flavors, I sampled six, and they were all very good. The combinations are unique, which is refreshing in and of itself. However, it’s the ingredients that really steal the show. All of the dressings are raw, organic, and have no added salt. I recommend that you try at least one bottle soon; my favorites were the Cayenne Watermelon and the Strawberry Mint.
Next up is the olive oil selection from Laconiko. I taste tested several flavors, including Blood Orange, Rosemary, Basil, and the plain Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The flavored oils were not overwhelming, but you won’t mistake them for the regular. I have to admit that I thought their oils tasted fresher than the typical olive oils I’ve encountered. It turns out that the company takes particular pains to ensure that their product stays out of the light and remains airtight during the stages between tree and delivery. I would recommend trying any of the flavored oils if you’re already a fan of olive oil. If you’re new to the club, start out with their Extra Virgin and you won’t be disappointed.
Another booth that caught my eye was the Gourmet Creations station. The vendors had set up about thirty 8-ounce tubs, each with a different dip inside. I tried the Sugar-Free Raspberry, New York Cheesecake, Roasted Garlic, and Pesto Genovese. Though the packages for the last two specify that they’re supposed to be olive oil mixes, they were proffered as dips — delicious dips, I might add. Either of the two sweet dips could be used as a dressing for fruit salad, or a spread for crackers. The mixes are all sold in the form of powders or dried mixes.
Lastly (for the food), I came across a booth for Mill Stream Farms. The food of choice turned out to be pumpkin rolls. If you’re a fan of anything fall-oriented, you will love this dessert. The cake is spongy and moist, and the cream adds a nice richness to the whole. I sampled the pumpkin, tiramisu, and the lemon rolls, and I can vouch for each flavor. Since I enjoy lemon cakes of all varieties, I would have to say that the latter was my favorite. It would be the perfect thing to go with a tall glass of iced tea.
I decided to pick out the most interesting alcoholic beverages I tried. Instead of being only a review of various wines, I wanted to choose drinks that were different or fresh in some way. Having said that, I did find some very good wines that I can recommend: Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, “Artemis” Cabernet Sauvignon; SeaGlass, Riesling; Cupcake, Pinot Noir; and Fenwick Wine Cellars, “Ambrosia” red blend.
If you feel like you’ve tried all the beers out there and want something different, try Woodchuck Hard Cider. I sampled the Amber and the Pear. Both flavors were crisp and delicious. After trying so many different wines and beers at the festival, the Woodchuck was like a refreshing splash in my mouth. The cider’s carbonation and light flavors make for the perfect summer barbecue drink.
Another moment of revitalization came after I tried Pucker’s newest line of flavored vodkas. The cool thing about their beverage is that you can use it as a mixer or drink it straight. I tried the lemonade flavor by itself, and it was a good rendition of an alcoholic summer drink. However, once the lady in the booth mixed me a second drink with the flavored vodka and cranberry juice, I knew it was a winner. The mixed drink had a very light alcohol taste, and the lemonade and cranberry tasted great together.
Calling all fans of the peach Bellini! Instead of using your food processor or blender to create delicious cocktails, just try Canella’s Bellini. I really enjoyed the quality of the drink. Canella uses their own Prosecco, so you know you’re buying a good sparkling wine. The company also uses its own white peaches for the pulp in the beverage. A touch of raspberry juice completes the bottle. I’d recommend picking up a bottle or two to bring to parties for an instant hit.
Right in the midst of all the regular wine booths lay the station for Vine Smoothie. The company blends French Chardonnay, fruit, and cream into each delicious bottle. I tried the Pineapple Coconut flavor, which tasted like a light piña colada. I tried another product by the company: ChocoVine Whipped Cream. Anybody who likes chocolate should go out a buy a bottle immediately. It’s the best combination of chocolate and alcohol that I’ve ever tried. It tasted velvety, not too sweet, creamy, and full of delicious milk chocolate taste. You may want to get two bottles; it’s that good.
Finally, I thought I’d review the products of one actual winery. I chose Knob Hall because their wines left an impression on me. No easy task, given that I tried them around the middle of the second day. If you’ve ever heard of the Jealous Mistress wine, that’s one of Knob Hall’s reds. I tried the Vidal Blanc 2010 and the Tryst, both white blends. I enjoyed both, though I typically avoid blends. The other wine I tried was a specialty red blend called Survivor Celebration, created to commemorate cancer survivors. It was a little fruity and a little spicy, and what I’d consider to be a good table blend.
-TKW
[ad]
Zengo’s current “Test Kitchen” is Hanoi-Havana (Vietnamese/Cuban fusion), and you HAVE to try the Cangrejo Enchilado (soft shell crab lettuce wraps) and the Lemongrass-Lychee Mojito! Seriously! The crab appetizer was so good that Eugene of DC Life Magazine, who does not like soft shell crab, actually enjoyed it. The Boba Cafecito (a cocktail with dark rum, iced Cuban Coffee, Thai Chili, coconut milk, and coffee pearls) was good as well.
Moorenko‘s Milk Chocolate Gelato has great texture and flavor.
Talenti‘s double Dark Chocolate gelato is very chocolaty with delicious little bits of chocolate.
Ciao Bella‘s Lemon Zest Sorbet and Lime Graham gelato are both good but I prefer the Lime Graham gelato (which also comes in sandwich form). Ciao Bella is a finalist for a Sofi Award at the Fancy Food Show for the Grapefruit Campari (which I have not tried).
Tate’s Bakeshop in Long Island is also a finalist for a Sofi Award for their chocolate chip cookies. The cookies are delicious, buttery, and very crunchy. I actually like to let them soften for a day or two.
I had a great breakfast at Art & Soul with Art Smith and Mary Beth Albright, where I met Allison Adato, the author of Smart Chef’s Stay Slim. It is a great book and Art wrote the foreword. Yes, I ate lemon pancakes and house-cured bacon, but I also tried Art’s healthy quinoa granola.
I had some great food and wine at Market Tavern, so I am sorry to hear that they closed their doors a couple of evenings ago. I even hosted a large happy hour there recently.
I’ve nearly used an entire bottle of Suriny rice bran oil. It works well at high temperatures and has been responsible for some great veggie stir-fries.
We got to try a variety of Norwegian brewery Nøgne ø’s beers at the Norwegian Embassy, and while they were all good, the (chocolaty) porter blew us away, especially paired with berry panna cota. If you find their porter for sale in DC or Arlington, let me know. I hear that Wine Specialist may carry it. The embassy’s Chef Sandre Bruvik Ellingstad created some truly amazing dishes–this was some of the best food I’ve had anywhere recently.
DuckTrap River of Maine makes some truly great smoked salmon (and other fish). Look for it in Whole Foods, although WF doens’t carry the pastrami spiced lox, and Giant only carried that one variety.
Mighty Leaf makes some of my favorite teabags. I’m a fan of their organic Green Hojicha (which tastes like toasted rice), Organic Spring Jasmine, and Orange Dulce (a black), and less a fan of the Green Tropic (although it smells amazing). I understand the “magic of the tea pouch” but it would be great if (1) the tea didn’t run down the string to the table, (2) I didn’t find tea lives and pieces of cotton or string floating in my tea, (3) They weren’t $9 for a box of 15 or so, and (4) if people didn’t keep telling me the string looks like a certain feminine product.
Big Buns is a great burger joint in Ballston. I like their beef burgers, and even their sweet potato fries are good, and they have a soda bar (to make flavored sodas). The vegetarians can get a mushroom burger (I can’t vouch for it).
Saffron Road‘s Lasagna is a great (vegetarian) product and is available in the freezer case at Whole Foods Market. They have recently come out with simmer sauces but I’ve yet to try them.
I’m addicted to Popchips, especially the BBQ and Salt and Pepper varieties. Please don’t tell anyone. 4Bitten Media put a bag of the cheddar flavored variety in my gift bag at their awesome launch party a couple of days ago at Masa 14, but I haven’t tried it yet.
Keep an eye out for Kababji Grill‘s food truck. I attended the truck’s launch last night, and got to sample the food, which was good. I especially enjoyed the baba ganouj, kibbe, and friend phyllo cigars (stuffed with cheese).
-JAY
[ad]
In my inbox from Theodore Peck (Kate Faughnan and Mary Kong sent me something about this too). Last year’s theme was tacos.
-JAY
———————————-
I wanted to let you know that The Food Experiments is returning to DC and I could not be more excited. For the uninitiated, The Food Experiments is a series of amateur cook-offs that celebrate the home chef.
We are excited to return to one of our favorite culinary destinations to present the DC Chinese Take-Out Experiment, an amateur cook-off involving Wash DC’s finest, most committed, passionate, and intense home chefs. Dishes will range from the savory to the sweet, from the Hot n’ Sour to Sweet n’ Sour to General Tso to Kung Pow to the humble Fortune Cookie and every possible experiment in between! Remember, there is always room for a little experimentation and one last bite. As long as it reminds you of those special times around the Lazy Susan, it can represent. You may never look at take-out the same way.
By creating these events, my co-organizer and I have looked to develop a community of food and fun-loving people not only in our hometown of Brooklyn but also across the country. And now thanks to our presenting sponsor Brooklyn Brewery, The Food Experiments are going on the road for a second year!
The DC Chinese Take Out Experiment will return to The Rock and Roll Hotel on Sunday April 22nd, from 12-3PM. Anyone can compete! All you have to do is sign up through our website. Anyone can win! Anyone can attend! Tickets are $12 and include a Brooklyn Brewery Beer and over 20 samples of Chinese goodness. A portion of the event’s proceeds will go towards charities that promote sustainability and local culinary education for disadvantaged children and teens.
I’d like to encourage you and your readers to enter or attend. The grand prize is a trip to Brooklyn (we take you out for some great food, and put you up in a seriously cool hotel) to eat and compete against all the cook-off winners from around the country. All DC chef-testants will be a provided with a $50 Harris Teeter gift certificate to help purchase ingredients for the competition.
Both the audience and the judges will get to name their favorites. I am proud to announce on the esteemed judging panel will include Mary Kong of Girl Meets Food, and Lauren DeSantis of Capital Cooking.
—————————–
Check out my friend’s Costa Rica Tours and don’t forget to use the code “TOUCAN” to save money. He has some group tours that you can join.
-JAY
We gave away free tickets to Sound Bites last year, and also attended it. It is a great event at a great venue for a great cause!
So, who wants to win a pair of tickets to the event? One lucky DCFüd reader will randomly win a pair of tickets. All you have to do is email contest@dcfud.com with the subject “Sound Bites Entry” and include your first and last name and cell number in the body of the email before 9:00 am on 5/13th. Only one entry per person (regardless of how many email addresses you have). You will need to show ID to the venue to pick the ticket up. The above email address is only for contest entry and is not for questions or comments. When the winner is chosen (give me a few days from when the contest closes), I’ll comment on this post that the winner has been chosen. If you have questions, email me at jay@dcfud.com. Good luck!
The press release is below.
-JAY
————————————————–
Music + Food = Change
Sound Bites Tickets Now On Sale for May 20th Hunger-Fighting Benefit
WASHINGTON, DC – Tickets go on sale today for Sound Bites, DC Central Kitchen (DCCK) and the 9:30 Club’s annual charity concert and food fest. Proceeds benefit DCCK, a national leader for combating hunger and creating opportunities for individuals in need. The May 20 event will be in and around the 9:30 Club, 815 V Street, NW.
Music at this year’s event is curated by Eric Hilton of Thievery Corporation, and features Bones Fur Feather, The Archives and Nappy Riddem. There will also be a cocktail competition involving DC’s hottest mixologists from Oyamel, The Passenger, Fujimar and The Gibson. And of course, all you can eat food from dozens of the area’s favorite food trucks and restaurants including:
BONMI – Borinquen -Cork – Della’s – Dolce Gelati – Harry’s Smokehouse
Indique – Jackie’s – Mie N Yu – Pepe – Policy – Rappahannock Oysters
Room 11 – Shake Shack – Taylor Gourmet
Tickets are $40 and are on sale today at http://www.ticketfly.com/ or the 9:30 Club and Merriweather Post Pavilion box offices. For more information, visit http://www.soundbitesdc.com. For the latest news on #Soundbitesdc, follow the Kitchen (@dcck) on Twitter. Be sure to join DCCK and the 9:30 Club May 20th for music and food that will change lives.
About DC Central Kitchen
This year marks DC Central Kitchen’s 23rd year of combating hunger and creating opportunity. The Kitchen works 365 days a year providing low-income individuals and families with nutritious food, assisting local farmers, empowering chronically unemployed men and women to achieve self-sufficiency and reaching out to people living on the streets. Tens of thousands of pounds of free or low-cost, surplus fresh produce recovered from area farms enhance the nutrition of more than 5,000 meals prepared at the Kitchen every day.
About the 9:30 Club
Multiple winner of both Billboard’s and Pollstar’s Nightclub of the Year, the 9:30 Club is the inimitable place bands aspire to play and music fans love to attend – a destination for locals and people across the country. Gracing the stage have been legends Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton, Al Green, and James Brown; recently discovered acts like The Arctic Monkeys, Wolfmother, Katy Perry and Lily Allen, and arena acts looking for an intimate club play such as Justin Timberlake, the Smashing Pumpkins and Foo Fighters. The 9:30 Club is located at 9th and V streets, NW, Washington, D.C.
[ad]
It wasn’t until I looked up from a few work assignments a couple of days ago that I realized the most Irish day of the year was but a few days ahead. And there was my first problem. I had wanted to make homemade corned beef for St. Patrick’s Day this year. But corning beef brisket takes quite a while – my favorite Food Network source calls for 10 days of brining in the refrigerator in order to cure the brisket. Needless to say, that was not going to work in time for St. Paddy’s. I usually prefer to focus on quick and easy recipes, for obvious reasons, but 10 days is a long time to plan ahead. Maybe next year!
No, instead, I decided to peruse the shelves at my local Virginia ABC store. (Note for out-of-towners: Virginia does not allow liquor purchases outside of its state-owned stores. Beer and wine are usually available at the grocery store, but for the hard stuff, you need to hit the state store). One downside to this arrangement is that prices tend to be somewhat higher than elsewhere, but they do have a captive audience – how many people are willing to road-trip to DC to save a buck or two on a bottle? In any case, I went looking for my favorite Irish cordial for the holiday. I know, I know – whiskey’s a great choice for St. Patrick’s Day, and while I like a good bottle of bourbon, unless it’s really smooth stuff (and correspondingly, of course, expensive…) I just don’t love Scotch or Irish whiskey. If you believe Robert Redford in Spy Game, you can always look cool drinking Scotch in a bar, no matter where you are in the world, but he has another rule that gets quite expensive: never less than twelve years old.
No, when it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, I turn to an old favorite: Bailey’s Irish Cream. I’m sure you can find any number of cocktail recipes for this liqueur, but I prefer it chilled neat, or as a component of my favorite offensively named chuggable drink: the Irish Car-Bomb. Famously banned in many bars unless plastic vessels are available, the Irish Car-Bomb consists of Bailey’s floated on a shot of Irish whiskey, which is dropped into a full pint of Guinness and drunk as fast as possible. Take down a few of those and you won’t be physically capable of ordering another drink!
But Bailey’s price can be a problem. While Virginia law precludes me from naming its price directly, I can safely say that the Bailey’s name runs quite a premium, especially for a liqueur that doesn’t exceed 17% alcohol. On perusing the VA ABC website, our fair Commonwealth also sells a couple of knockoff Irish Cream brands, which definitely piqued my curiosity.
I found myself wondering if Bailey’s is really worth the price. Surely, I thought, Bailey’s doesn’t have a monopoly on good taste. So for you, dear readers, I sacrificed. I put you all first. I decided to sample four brands of Irish Cream liqueurs in hopes of finding a better tasting value buy.
Tasting Notes: I poured about a shot for each brand, though I didn’t finish any of the pours – I wanted to . I chilled each bottle for several hours before the tasting and served them in a glass tumbler with no ice. I should point out that this wasn’t rigorously scientific – no blind tastings, and yes, this is just my opinion. Without further ado…
Bailey’s Original Irish Cream: The original Irish Cream (and a popular choice around my fraternity house a few years back). Bailey’s is my baseline, as it’s a brand I’ve enjoyed quite a bit before, so it’s easy to compare. The aroma is distinctive – a decidedly rich, chocolate smell with a bit of a burn at the end. And that burn follows with the taste – while the initial taste is quite creamy (duh, right?), Bailey’s comes with a bit of heat as you swallow, almost like it’s got some cinnamon in there, but obviously that’s from the Irish whiskey in the mix.
St. Brendan’s Superior Irish Cream: The best value in my sample. St. Brendan’s aroma isn’t quite as powerful as Bailey’s when in the glass, but oddly, it seemed to taste creamier and richer. The burn was a bit more intense in the aftertaste, too – my guess is that they used less refined whiskey in this bottle, but it wasn’t offensive. It seemed to balance the extra richness well.
Ryan’s Cream: The only domestic bottle on my list (at least according to VA ABC). Ryan’s poured a bit thinner than either of the previous two and was distinctly less flavorful. The whiskey back on this one just didn’t seem to be as strong even though its alcohol content is the same as the others. This one was the clear loser, and I can’t recommend it.
Emmet’s Irish Cream: An improvement over Ryan’s, Emmet’s came off rich and creamy, but again, with seemingly less whiskey aftertaste. In this case, though, the subtlety seemed to work well – the richness was there without being overpowering. St. Brendan’s was definitely more powerful stuff, but Emmet’s was understated. The Honda Civic of the sample, if you will – reliable without being luxurious.
Overall Winner: Much as I love buying the original, I thought St. Brendan’s was the best choice. Its whiskey base was a bit harsher than the others, but it balanced well with the creamier texture and worked very well in the glass. I didn’t get the chance to try it dropped into Guinness, but I suspect it’d be just as nice. And for the price, it simply can’t be beat. Give it a shot next time you’re at the liquor store and I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Especially when you get the receipt!
Enjoy!
-HML
[ad]
