Why beer? I’ve been asked a lot of questions about why I’ve tried so feverishly to squeeze myself into this world. After all, there are a lot of ingredients that make great culinary obsessions. So, why beer? To explain that, we’ll have to talk about collaboration. Craft beer is the only major market that does… Read More
I’m on a book tour as I write this, traveling the West Coast somewhere between Mexico and Canada, hoping my way from brewery to brewery. Nothing like a good old fashion beer pilgrimage to inspired patriotism and re-ignite the wanderlust in my gypsy soul. From the backwoods of wine country, to small towns that defy… Read More
My book tour kicks off in a few days and one of my first stops is at Bear Republic, one of my favorite California breweries. On October 10th, from 6:30 to 8:30 I’ll be at the pub in Healdsburg hanging out, signing books, hoping to meet some of you and gleefully consuming… Read More
I’ve made mention of Gateway Beers before, beer that serves as an easy introduction to craft beer as well as offers a fine example of the flavor profiles available. Beer that eases the curious into the pool of craft beer flavor, while giving a preview of what’s to come once you decide to wind yourself… Read More
As I type this, I stand firmly on the waining end of National IPA Day (August 1st). With two different bottles of IPA rattling around in my bones, I blame all levels of grammatical inaccuracies and typos on higher than average ABV’s. IPA day was started by bloggers, with nothing to gain but promoting the… Read More
We tend to feminize or masculinize food. Beer is man food, as is bacon, grilled red meat and bourbon. While tea, lavender, scones and blueberries tend to been feminine. Chocolate seems to be neutral go-between, grabbing it’s gender label once the final product is presented. Chocolate Stout Cake with Maple Bacon Frosting: Man Cake. Chocolate… Read More
In the world of salad dressing, there isn’t a more fiercely debated member than Caesar. Some swear that the only way to make it is by hand, table side, others claim blasphemy if not strictly adhering to the original recipe, invited in the 1920’s in Tijuana Mexico by Caesar Cardini, while some insist that it’s… Read More
The above picture is pretty strong illustration of what I did nearly the entire weekend. Along with spicing up my beer wings, I also made a Sriracha butter for grilled corn. In other news,I ran out of Sriracha. Maybe it’s the new grill that found it’s way into my backyard, or maybe it was eyeing… Read More
The anemic looking, plastic tub dwelling potato salads of my youth put a pervasive distain in my culinary soul for the union of the words “potato” and “salad.” It wasn’t until I found a non-mayo based version that I really started to see potential. While I’ve used sour cream, blue cheese dressing and even bacon… Read More
Nothing in life should be qualified by what is left out. You shouldn’t stand in the warm, golden, tropical, sun, toes digging into the sand, asking where the snow is. You shouldn’t visit Machu Picchu and think, “It’s pretty good for a place that doesn’t have a mall.” Lazy Sunday afternoons spent reading Down… Read More
I don’t make a lot of sandwiches that I want to post about. But this is a sandwich I could eat every day. One that I would even serve at a party, especially one revolving around sports viewing or card playing. It’s spicy, beery, cheesy, and totally necessitates several napkins. I used a beer that… Read More
I’ve finally found some clarity when it comes to this struggle that’s been twisting around inside me over the past few weeks. I told you about that feeling of creative stagnation, and the realization that I’ve been pandering to the masses rather than cooking what I love. Both of these feelings, that I figured were… Read More
I made you a summery pie with a Double IPA Don’t be scared, this double IPA plays nice, I promise. I’m hesitant with double and triple IPA’s, over hopping a beer can result in a poorly balanced, pinchy tasting, bitter-in-a-bad-way beer that leads to my hesitation to sample the D & T IPA’s. That’s… Read More
I finally made friends with my slow cooker again. It took awhile, we haven’t been on speaking terms since that guy ruined several attempts at vegetarian chili earlier in the year. But he likes meat, that slow cooker, and so do I. I think this is the common ground that we’ll share. Slow and… Read More
last September I was able to visit Bear Republic. I was able to jump behind the bar, chat with brewers and sample everything from the Peter Brown Tribute to the Grand Am, right from the source. Solid beers that are becoming easier to find across the US as their distribution expands. Maybe it was the gorgeous… Read More
Before I get to the lemon bars that were more than a year in the making, I need to talk about these beer glasses. These glasses are more than just vessels of craft beer glory, they are a indicator of the thread of craft beer weaving itself through the mainstream. Crate and Barrel, a mecca… Read More
I promise you that this is the last St. Patricks day post. Until next year when I will further assault you with recipes for celebrating my love ‘o the Irish, and forcing you to read more stories of my visit to Dublin. Until then, here is a Green Beer cheese soup that contains not… Read More
This needs to be made with an IPA. The buffalo sauce (which has to be Franks, let’s just get that out of the way) needs a big kick to the face. The only beer up for that job is an IPA. I made this with Ballast Point’s Sculpin, one of my favorite IPA’s on the… Read More