Pliny the Younger Release & SF Beer Week festivities!

I think I drank my weight in beer last week. It started with an early Saturday morning drive to the Russian River Brew co on February 9th.... and ended with a very hung over drive home from SF Sunday morning the 17th. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Russian River Brew Co for Pliny the Younger :

A little background to start. Russian River Brew Co is a family run brewery initially opened with the support of Korbel Champagne Cellars. Vinnie Cilurzo the Brew-master and his wife Natalie have run the business from it's inception 2003. In 2004 they opened the brewpub in downtown Santa Rosa which sets the scene for our February 9th adventure. Now for the cause- Pliny the Younger. Released for a limited 2 weeks per year at the Brewpub with single kegs distributed locally to the very special few. Named by Beer Advocate as the Best Beer In the World, it truly is a special experience.Using Triple the standard hops of your typical IPA the time and space required to brew this heavenly elixir are what keep it's quantities so limited. For those with true determination however, your prize awaits. And by true determination? I mean a willingness to wait 6 hours in line...

RRBC pours Younger beginning the first Friday in February. Rumor has it the first people in line the first morning arrived at 3am. With a 2 hour drive to get there from San Jose we weren't quite that bold. I had wrangled Abbie into coming with me after two sets of guys friends were being non-committal with their plans. Initially we talked about leaving San Jose at 9 am to arrive at 11, assuming that surely things would be tapering off going into the second weekend. However after scaring ourselves with some online reports we decided to opt a little earlier for an 8 am start. Thank goodness we did. Even arriving at that time as we drove past the brewpub observing the line that stretched a good two blocks and was beginning to accumulate around the corner... I'll be honest we got a little nervous. After finding parking (all the parking is two hour limits... so we did a lot of taking turns to move the car or pay for more time) we dutifully got to the back of the line up. Thankfully just across the street there are 2 coffee shops along with a bookstore so we weren't at a total lose. As Abbie returned from a trip to procure some pastries for breakfast I saw her signaling me to get out of line. Is she crazy? Nope! It turns out our good friend Jared and a group of other college buddies were just around the bend from where we were waiting and we were joining them! They had only arrived about 20 minutes ahead of us however joining them probably cut our wait time for later by an hour. And thankfully gave us a little more flexibility to get out of line and stay entertained. I'll keep the stories of the wait short because I don't want to bore you as much as we were bored (let's just say the last hour of the wait where you stand next to the patio full of revelers is basically torture, I watched a drunk girl spill her Pliny all over the place and I told her she was ruining my life...) Finally at about 4:15 we made it in!

As soon as we made our way to the end of their very long bar the rounds of Younger were ordered and the true festivities began! With cloying aromas of wild flowers and a viscous yet refreshing mouth feel the Younger's flavor is many layered with hints of grape fruit, wild honey, nuttiness, minimal bitterness and basically everything that is amazing about beer. Oh and also at 10% abv... your buzzed almost immediately and you've never felt happier. Although I have never given birth I feel like that first sip is like the first time you hold your child... suddenly those 6 painful prior hours drift away. Ok that is I'm sure an incredible exaggeration. Regardless by the time I was 3 deep I was on top of the world.

RRBC has an extensive portfolio of beers that they produce and you are able to sip them all in their sampler, a STEAL at $15. I appreciated the many unique styles the showcase such as 3 variations of sour style beers, their IPA's, Belgian Style beers and what felt like everything in between. It's no wonder that once people make it inside they aren't exactly eager to leave. After enjoying the many beers, pizza, & wings we finally bid adieu to Russian River Brew with our Growlers filled with Elder, a day not soon to be forgotten!

SF Beer Week: Allagash tasting & 7x7 Bar/Brewery Crawl:

Wednesday night found my roommate and I on dash up to the city after work to the Mission area bar The Sycamore for their Allagash brewery night.  A cozy space with red walls and a chalk board of beverage choices the Sycamore boats a small 6 seat bar, some tables in the main room, and an adorable patio out back. The place was packed to the gills when we arrived. After some wiggling and maneuvering however we lucked out and grabbed a corner of the bar where we set up our tasting. There were no official flights however they were pouring 8 different varieties in your choice of a 4 oz or 8 oz glass. Shannon and I decided to each pick the 2 that we were most intrigued by and share our own custom flight of 4 oz pours!

Pictured were our 4 pours- The James Bean (a Bourbon Barrel aged Tripel with cold pressed coffee added, 10.3% alcohol amazing depth of flavor sweet and smokey my favorite of the night), the Dubbel (tradition Belgian double hopped beer, it was nice but not particularly interesting), the Interlude (a Belgian style farmhouse beer aged in wine barrels with a unique almost cider type flavor, fun and different), and Allagash's most well know beer the  White (a traditional Belgian Wheat beer with the additions of coriander and tropical orange peel, always one of my favorites) we enjoyed sipping tastes and comparing all 4 beers while also sampling their kitchens offering of the night (to celebrate the Portland, Maine brewery) a traditional Lobster roll. ( I took a picture but it was way to dark to make it worth posting). Simply dressed on a traditionally grilled bun with huge chunks of sweet lobster meat it was a fun treat along with these exceptional beers. After doing our flight and lobster roll we grabbed a pint of the Trippel and headed out to enjoy the unseasonably warm night on the patio. Inside there were signs promoting their Sunday brunch specials and we look forward to another warm weekend to spend out on the patio with some mimosa's!

7X7 North Beach Bar Crawl
 

The last event I attended was the 7x7 bar crawl featuring 7 local breweries set up at 7 different bars in the North Beach neighborhood. We didn't end up going to all 7 (we got a little bit later start than intended thanks to construction traffic on the Embarcadero) but had a great time at the ones we made it too! The entry fee was $10 pre paid (you got a tee shirt!) and each bar charged $4 for your tasting flight of 3-4 beers (my educated guess was 4 oz pours, they all had the same little plastic cups they were using specifically for the tasting). Check in was in front of Northstar so of course they had the biggest initial crowd, we decided to save them for later and headed across the street to Boardroom for so Speakeasy beers. I was so caught up in conversation with my Lil' Bro Arthur who I attended with that I have to admit to not taking notes or pictures. However you can never go wrong with Speakeasy beers! From there we headed over to O'Reilly's for some Magnolia beers. They were the only ones I saw pouring 4 and they had some great flavors particularly the Imperial IPA. Next up was Shmaltz Brewers over at Amante a cool old school bar that called to mind Frank Sinatra. They were pouring some of their He'Brews line at the tasting and I didn't realize till the brewer gave me their card that they also brew the "The Freak" Beers which are named and labeled after Circus and Carnival characters. Their Albino Python is one of my favorite Belgian White Ales. We wrapped it up at Northstar with the Laugunitas tasting.  Arthur had actually gone tasting at Laugunitas the weekend prior (after arriving WAY to late to get in at RRBC) and was familiar with the beers we were tasting particularly their "Sucks beer" which is a second run of one of their really good beers. True to name it did suck. This was a great way to spend a Saturday, the weather was mostly sunny and warm and the crowds not overwhelming if you chose your next bar carefully. It was a good value for all we got and I look forward to going again next year!

Beer week is so much fun each year and the list of events I want to attend. Even the little things (beer flavored ice cream at Humphrey Slocombe?! way tastier than you might imagine) make it a special time in the City!

Vegas Uncork'd #3: After Hours, The Remix

Saturday had already been an amazing day with our fabulous lunch at Spago and meeting one of our dance idols so we could only imagine what the night would hold. Unfortunately with her bright and early flight the next morning Tori had opted out of joining us for the After Hours Dessert party at The Mix lounge in THEHotel @ Mandalay Bay. Little could we know that she would be missing out on the best night we had ever had in Vegas... Ever.

After waiting in the huge line the night before at the Grand Tasting we decided it was best to be safe and not sorry and arrived at Mandalay Bay about 45 minutes prior to the event start. This was the only "late night" event of the Festival starting at 10:30 pm. After initially entering the casino it took a little while to figure out what direction to head in. The Mix Lounge is in Mandalay Bay's high end Hotel adjacent to it's casino hotel so we had to make our way through the casino floor before we found the check in and bank of elevators that would lead us up to the 64th floor. Although a small crowd gathered while we waited for entrance it didn't even approach the massive throng of the night before - already a good sign.

The View from the patio

Custom Cake Pops

 Once it was time groups of 8 were brought up to the Lounge in the glass elevator giving us full view of the landscape around us. As we entered there were cocktail waitresses handing out champagne cocktails with cherries in the base (already a good sign- we didn't have to hunt down the drinks) and we were instantly over come by the view. The lounge is long and narrow in shape with a broad walk way between the bar and a long banquette lined with tables on each side. Small booths line the window and there is a large patio that you can walk out on to to see the incredible view of the entire strip. To the right of the entrance was a small dance floor with a light up floor and there were tables upon tables of desserts as far as the eye could see!

We couldn't help but be overwhelmed by all the options. Most things were bite size which made it somewhat easier to try as many things as possible but it didn't take long before we began to reach our sugar fill. Nothing cures sugar overload like a few open bar Grey Goose and soda's however. After maybe 45 minutes to an hour the room had filled however it was comfortably full. Everyone had a place to sit and there was plenty of space to walk from table to table sampling. There was a rustle of excitement over by the DJ booth and we saw that they were transitioning from the house DJ to none other than San Francisco's own Michelin Starred Chef of Fleur de Lis - Hubert Keller!

A friend who had been to Uncork'd before had mentioned that he would probably DJ for a portion of an event. Turns out he is really good! and not only that you can't help but love watching him enjoy something so much. We instantly hit the dance floor to get our groove on and work off some of the sugary delights we just consumed. I was over joyed at this point that I had decided to buy flats earlier in the day eschewing the very high heels I had originally planned to wear. We spent the next 2 hours straight dancing away while Chef Keller spun a mix of club hits and top 40. We were joined at times by groups of young and older but never was the dance floor crowded, it felt like we practically had the place to ourselves! So to recap- Dessert for dinner, open top shelf bar, awesome DJ, personal dance floor... does it get any better than that?!?! Oh wait and the view of the entire strip!

Chef Keller and his "Hype Girls"

By the end of the night we felt like we were walking on air. As we said goodbye to Hubert (I mean by this point we were basically best friends right?) he told us that we were "the best dancers" of the night. We made our way next door for something a little more savory to eat at the Luxor Cafe (a regular haunt of our many Vegas trips for late night food). As we rehashed the night we couldn't help but quote the laughing gas kid from YouTube "is this real life?!".

I think it's going to be a long time before I have a day and night that tops that one!

Vegas Uncork'd #1: The Grand Tasting

Viva Las Vegas! I have been waiting a year for this event and finally the day arrived! Bon Appetit magazine's 6th Annual Vegas Uncork'd Food & Wine Festival. Comprised of over 20 special events over 4 days ranging from Chef led wine paired dinners to a rally of food trucks to a Grand Tasting of the top Las Vegas Restaurants this was an event not to be missed by any avid foodie. My birthday present this year from my parents was my ticket to Friday night's Grand Tasting at Caesar's Palace Garden of the God's pools. 77 booths featuring the best Culinary talent represented in Vegas and known throughout the world. We arrived at Caesar's 30 minutes early to find a place in the LONG line that had formed. The event had sold out and we were eager to get in the door!

Each guest was given a glass and plate with a hook to hold it as they walked in the door. I love these things for tasting events. There is nothing harder than juggling glass and plate. The ability to hold them in one hand is the best.

The booths surrounding the first pool were hectic with excitement. Each way you glanced Chef's were hob nobbing with guests and pal-ing around with each other. With so much to take in I'm going to let my pictures do much of the talking for me.

Salt Crusted Fish

Oh Hey Ryan from Season 4 of Top Chef! Such a cute SF guy...I accidentally flung sour cream on his hand, we had a moment :)

That's the top of Gordon Ramsey's head

There were no fewer than 7 places serving ceviche and about as many who went with various sliders... I can just only eat so much ceviche

My first time trying anything with Foie Gras! This was a mousse



Amazing Pasta from Spago!

The beaker looking things are Captain Crunch Milk Shakes, Phenomenal! Also ....sliders

Wearing high heels- WORST CHOICE EVER thank god for the shallow pool!

Things I wish I had taken a picture of? Todd English's staff  throwing potato chips at Charlie Palmer & Michael Mina. A chip hit me on the head, no joke. It was obnoxious and very very surreal. Over all it was a fascinating night. The drinks were a little more difficult to get to than I would have liked and had we realized how much more there was beyond the crowded first circle we would have made a bee-line. But on the grand scheme it was an amazing night to be a part of! Little did we know what was to come on Saturday! Stay Tuned for part 2

Moveable Feast Garden City

In case you haven't already noticed (or are agoraphobic and never leave your house) food trucks are all the rage these days. The love child of economic downturn and foodie culture up turn these are not your grampa's roach coaches of old. Sleek tech savvy trucks with custom wrapped paint jobs and gourmet ingredients everyone is following their favorite truck. Ever growing, this community has had to find new and creative ways to get their brands and products into a steady market place. Enter the entrepreneurs of Moveable Feast. With 3 San Jose locations the organizers of Movable Feast gather an average 7 trucks with various cuisines into 1 location on a regular day and time frame each week to sell their wares to eager customers.
Monday Dinner, 5p to 9p
MF Southside at 525 Blossom Hill Rd (at Blossom Ave) in San Jose.
Friday Dinner, 5p to 9p
MF Willow Glen at 2310 Canoas Garden Ave (at Curtner Ave) in San Jose.
Saturday Lunch, 11a to 2:30p
MF Garden City at 350 Saratoga Ave (at Stevens Creek Blvd) in San Jose.

I had been eager to check out the Garden City Location which is just blocks from my apartment for sometime now. It seemed inevitable that I would either forget (only to be reminded on my way elsewhere mid day) or I would remember on a rainy Saturday that they weren't set up. The stars finally aligned this last Saturday and while pondering my post for this week I realized I had nothing to do till 2 pm and $20 to burn! The weather was perfect and so off I went.
I arrived at about 12 pm. A moderate crowd had begun to gather but it was still early enough that I only found myself waiting in one some what substantial line. There were 7 trucks present-
Arabian Bites , KojaKitchen , Louisiana Territory , Dough , The Chairman , Treatbot , & CurryUpNow

After a quick walk around my first inclination was to get in one of the longer lines. It's an interesting psychology that goes into choosing your food truck. Long line assumes a high demand product. While no line.... makes you question the goods. This was definitely affecting Arabian Bites & Louisiana Territory who throughout the day, though people made purchases, never seemed to garner a line. After looking over their menu's my first inclination as to why wasn't lack of quality or uniqueness, but price point. Arabian nights was serving large plates of great looking food- for $8- $10 a pop. Were you getting your money's worth? Absolutely. BUT people come to these events with the intention of trying lots of things. In my experience keep your portions moderate and your price point around $5 and you will have a lot more luck.

I chose to start with the KoJa Kitchen truck and ordered their Korean Beef. In my opinion the most impressive truck on the lot that day. Their paint wrap on the truck was beautiful, their windows accessible, and most impressive they had two flat screens built in to the side where you ordered- one with the full menu displayed, the other with a slide show of well shot pictures of their food. While this would maybe be considered an excessive business cost by other truck owners but I see the value in being able to easily change your menu offerings and the professional look. Now on to their food! Served between two rice patties I went with their Korean Beef offering (knowing I would be having pork at another truck later). Holy moly! This meat was so flavorful and tender! I loved how portable the sticky rice patties made this dish, I chose to eat it with a fork and because of the way it was presented I could do that easily standing without a plate. The greens were nice and fresh and the sauce sweet and spicy. This was an incredibly impressive start to my day. I loved everything about this dish from presentation to function to flavor. Since I wanted to fit in as much as I could I actually ate a lot of it while standing in my next like at The Chairman truck.

The Chairman truck does Chinese buns- your choice steamed or baked in 4 varieties: Spicy Chicken, Pork Belly, Coca-Cola Braised Pork, or Crispy Miso Cured Tofu. Price point here is perfect. Average $3.25 or $3.75 for steamed buns and $6 or $6.75 for baked (the pork were the more expensive). As I overheard people ordering the popular choice was to get one of each and steamed seemed overwhelmingly more popular. I can't say i have ever had a baked bun but I know I loved steamed ones. Since I was trying to keep to my $20 I went with 1 steamed Pork Belly bun with Pickled Daikon.

Yummy! The bun was sweet tender and a little chewy (as it should be) the pork was sooo tender and juicy with nice little crispy bits on the edges and the crisp cool crunch of the pickled daikon just sent the whole thing over the top.It was the perfect size for a hearty snack and with everything else I was eating I was glad it wasn't too big but big enough that I really got to enjoy it. This is one of the better known Bay area food trucks so if you see them out and about make sure to stop by!

I was starting to get full but I wanted to hit one more savory spot before I headed for dessert.

Curry Up now didn't have much of a line but I had heard about them previously so I decided I would check them out. Their menu offered a variety selections: a "deconstructed Samosa" , Burritos with fillings like tikki massala, kathi rolls, & their "sexy fries" (waffle cut fries slathered in curry). Thinking it would be an appetizer size I went with their deconstructed samosa with my choice of Paneer (an Indian cheese that is firm and nonmelty one of the main Indian proteins). Turns out it was a very full little container and very filling! Since I had already eaten at two other places I had a few bites to enjoy the flavors then saved the rest for my mom. All the sauces were delicious and it was definitely spicy! I liked the way the paneer stood up under the burden of all the other elements. The base of crispy fried pastry that would normally surround the whole thing on the other hand mostly got soggy and wasn't really distinguishable under the other elements. In terms of their truck while the wrap was pretty the actual service front was pretty plain and the windows felt extra high.

After all that spice- I was ready for some Ice cream for dessert!

Pumping out fun music and serving up yummy Ice cream Treatbot totally hit the spot. Their servings are generous and flavors delish. I wussed out and just got the waffle bowl but next time I plan to try one of their cookie sandwiches! They serve out of a much smaller airstream (which is really all they need since they aren't actually cooking more just assembling).

This is a great event for groups of friends or families. The more people you have the more foods you can try! Just circle up some of the buckets provided for tables and chairs and get to eating!!