Tag Archives: craft beer

Flavor Festival Enters Second Year

Flavor – Beer, Wine, & Food Festival is back for its second year this Saturday, June 2nd from noon to 6pm at the Innsbrook SnagAJob Pavilion. A $25 sampling ticket will grant you access to over 60 beers on tap in the main area of the festival, including 9 beers from Wild Wolf, 10 from Sierra, 6 from Sam Adams, 4 Duck-Rabbit (including the new Hoppy Bunny ABA!) and many, many others.

For $10 more, you can get into the VIP section, which will feature a cheese and chocolate pairing by Whole Foods Short Pump with 9 special beers exclusive.

Exclusive Beers
Sierra Nevada Hoptimum
Sierra Nevada 2010 Bigfoot Barleywine
Ovila Belgian Quad
Thomas Creek Chocolate Orange IPA
Wild Wolf Strawberry Schwarzcake
Brew Ridge Trail Collaboration Ale (Belgian Wit brewed with honey and pear), brewed by Blue Mountain, Devil’s Backbone and Wild Wolf at Wild Wolf Brewery
Samuel Adams Dark Depths Baltic IPA
Samuel Adams Norse Legend Sahti (Nordic Ale brewed with juniper berries)
Cricket Hill Imperial IPA

Cheeses (all Whole Foods Market exclusives):
Havanero Cheddar
Robusto (Aged Gouda)
Smoked Seaside Cheddar
Azores Flores
Belavitano Balsamic

Chocolate
Caramel covered with Dark chocolate and sea salt paired with Bigfoot Barleywine

Head to the Facebook event page or festival website for more information.  Buy tickets for the festival here.

Innsbrook SnagAJob Pavilion

4901 Lakebrook Drive
Glen Allen, Virginia 23060
(Map)

Mekong’s Surprise American Craft Beer Tapping

American Craft Beer Week in Richmond has been truly exceptional this year.  Just when I had figured out what I was doing tonight, An Bui decided to throw a monkey wrench into my plans.  Mekong will be tapping some great American craft beers starting at 2pm today!  Especially exciting are the two beers from Great Divide because their beer is currently not available anywhere else in Richmond.

2009 Dogfish Head Fort
2009 Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron
2009 Great Divide Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti
2010 Great Divide Grand Cru
2009 Smuttynose Barleywine
2009 Bells Expedition Stout
2009 Founders Breakfast Stout
2010 Allagash Curieux
Weyerbacher Fifteen
2012 Hardywood Grand Cru
Brooklyn Sorachi Ace
New Belgium La Folie
Stone Oak Arrogant Bastard
Allagash White
Hardywood Singel
Ballast Point Sculpin IPA

Now how’s that for a monkey wrench? Once again Mekong proves beer is the answer!

American Craft Beer Week, RVA Style

American Craft Beer Week officially starts on May 14 and runs until May 20.   This year Richmond will start the party early Friday with Midnight Brewery’s open house and Capital Ale House Anniversary beer double tapping.  Here are some details on other events to consider checking out during the week.

Saturday May 12th

Virginia Hops and Barley Fest

The second annual Virginia Hops & Barley Festival will feature over 30 craft beers from from twelve Virginia breweries.  This will be your first chance to try beers from Blue Lab Brewing, Big Daddy’s Brewing, and Midnight Brewery. Take a look at the complete beer list here.  Tickets are $15/person in advance or $20/person at door if available and include unlimited sampling of all the beers. Order tickets here.

Check out the Facebook event here.

Update:

Pins available at the festival:

  • O’Connor Dreamsicle- Green Can Golden Ale infused with Organic OJ & Vanilla
  • Legend Golden IPA dry hopped with Citra hops
  • Hardywood Bourbon Cru & dry hopped  double IPA.

Monday May 14th

ACBW Firkin Crawl

Head out for a pub crawl featuring beers from Legend, Mad Fox, and Victory.

Weezie’s Kitchen (5:30pm)
Beer: Legend Golden/Brown Ale blend, dry hopped with Sorachi Ace.

3123 W. Cary Street
Richmond, VA 23221

Commercial Taphouse (6:45pm)
Beer: Mad Fox ???? The exact beer from Mad Fox has not been decided but any beer from Mad Fox will be great.  I’m sort of hoping for their Orange Whip IPA.

111 N. Robinson St.
Richmond, VA 23220
 
Update: Looks like I’m getting a Mad Fox beer I’ve never had before!  Commercial Taphouse will be getting Mad Fox’s Broad Street IPA – 6.8% ABV aka Snap IPA, an American-style India Pale Ale that is brewed with 100% Centennial/CTZ hops from the Pacific Northwest and then dry-hopped with over 44lbs of Centennial/CTZ hops for an extra fresh hop punch. This beer has a fresh resiny herbal and citrusy grapefruit aroma that follows through to a tingling hoppy herbal bitterness in the finish. The British pale and German Vienna malts provide a biscuity malt sweetness that balances the hop bitterness.
 
Selba (8pm)
Beer: Victory Ranch R DIPA- 9% ABV DIPA with whole flower Centennial hops grown on Roy Farms in Yakima Valley.  Victory’s Ranch series is a rotating double IPA with hops sourced from one different farm for each batch.

2416 W. Cary St.
Richmond, VA 23220

For your convenience, I’ve created a map with all the locations on it here.

Tuesday May 15th

Pales…In Comparison

Head out to Joe’s Inn in the Fan for a tap takeover celebrating the American Pale Ale. Here are the featured pales:

Legend Pale Ale
Devils Backbone 4 Point w/ single experimental hop
Heavy Seas Pale
Dale’s Pale
Southern Tier Pale
Southern Tier HopSun
Victory Headwaters
O’Connor Norfolk Canyon
Sierra Nevada Pale

205 North Shields Ave
Richmond, VA 23220
(804) 355-2282

Hardywood Park Beer Dinner at The Blue Goat

I don’t have a menu for this one yet but if you’ve ever eaten at The Blue Goat, you know this dinner is a great idea.  Cost for the dinner is $50/person plus tax and tip.  Reservations are required so call the restaurant at (804) 288-8875 to RSVP.  Dinner starts at 7:30pm

Breckenridge Steal the Glass Night at Capital Ale House

Breckenridge Brewery is probably one of my favorite Colorado breweries just because of their Vanilla Porter. If you’re heading to Cap Ale for the evening, I would make sure to get one of these glasses to go.

Wednesday May 16th

Beer Theater: Goose Island

Celebrate the triumphant return of Wine & Beer Westpark owner Matty Lake’s Beer Theater in the Capital Ale House Downtown Music Hall starting at 5:30pm. Settle in to the Music Hall for a skype tasting with brewmaster Brett Porter featuring Sofie, Matilda, Pere Jacques, 312, Honkers, and IPA.  Cost for the tasting is $10/person.  Read more over at Facebook event here.

Goose Island Beer Dinner at Acacia Midtown
At first, I was worried about this beer dinner and beer theater being on the same night.  Fortunately, this dinner is being structured such that you can come in anytime Wednesday night from 5:30 -9pm and get this meal.  Take a look at the menu.

MENU

1st Course

Sofie
Local Raw Oyster with Radish, Mandarinquat & Chive, Fluke Crudo with Foie Gras and Meyer Lemon Emulsion, Sea Bass Ceviche Peruvian Style with Red Pepper Gelee

2nd Course

IPA
Hop Spiced Pork Pate, Roasted Barley Crust, Edible Flowers

3rd Course

Matilda
Almond Crusted Grouper, “Moules Frites”

OR

Pepe Nero
Corned Beef Brisket, Pumpernickel Gnocchi, Coriander Veal Jus

Cost for the dinner is $30/person excluding tax & gratuity.  Call (804) 562-0138 for reservations.

Acacia
2601 W Cary St
Richmond, VA 23220
(804) 562-0138

Thursday May 17th

O’Connor Firkin Night

There will be three firkins from O’Connor Brewing in town Thursday night.  Head over to Station 2 to get Rad Nun (Red Nun Red Ale infused with Raspberries) or Brutella (Great Dismal Black IPA infused with Peanut Butter, Nutella, Chopped Hazelnuts and Dry-roasted Peanuts.

Meanwhile, The Camel will have a pin of Xocolat, Great Dismal with organic fair trade cocoa and ground cinnamon.

Friday May 18th

Taste the Local Tasting at Once Upon a Vine South

Head over to  the  Once Upon a Vine off Forrest Hill Ave to meet Virginia brewers and taste their beers. Be prepared to have a great time.  Tasting runs from 5 – 8pm.

Once Upon A Vine South
2817 Hathaway Rd
Richmond, VA 23225

More Fun than a Barrel of Virginians

Head out to Mekong for a wood and barrel aged beer bonanza featuring beers from Legend, Hardywood Park, Heavy Seas, Mad Fox, and more.

Sunday May 20th

Final event for the week is the Richmond Food Cart Derby at Historic 17th Street Farmers Market. 20+ food cart vendors, beer, music, and more.  I’ll have more on this as the date gets closer but I’ll say now you want to go to this.  Check out the Facebook event here.

Capital Ale House Double Taps Anniversary Beers

Capital Ale House may have missed last month’s Anniversary beer tapping but they are making up for it with the tapping of two anniversary beers Friday May 11th at 6pm. 

First up is a Black IPA from Lancaster Brewing out of Pennnsylvania. Lancaster’s Black Boar IPA is the first of Cap Ale’s anniversary beers to come from out of state.  I have an affinity for Black IPAs so I am looking forward to getting the chance to try it. 

The second anniversary beer to be tapped  will be from Blue & Gray Brewing of Fredericksburg, VA. Their Kollaboration Kolsch, brewed by Richmond native David Achkio, is described as “a refreshing golden ale, hopped with Saaz and Splatz.  It’s bright, with a light delicate body.  A great session beer for the warmer weather, it is a straightforward fresh Kolsch, true to its German origins accentuated by the noble hop character.”

Both beers will available at all Cap Ale locations starting at 6pm Friday.   Go out and try these beers while you can.

Scoop: Beer Vs Wine Dinner at Peter Chang China Cafe

Needless to say, Peter Chang’s arrival in Richmond has excited foodies in town so much that they don’t mind driving to Short Pump just to feel the burn of his unique Szechuan cuisine.  I’ve tried to get a seat in the new restaurant but I couldn’t handle the two hour wait.  I thought I’d wait until the crowds died down until I would try again.  Turns out I will be there sooner rather than later because Peter Chang is hosting a Beer vs Wine Dinner on Sunday, May 27th

This is not my first time hearing about this dinner concept. The idea of this concept and who in town could throw such a dinner were my main reasons for starting this blog.  I am incredibly excited that Peter Chang’s China Cafe  has chosen to do this for their inaugural dinner event.  The dinner will be in the style of a traditional Chinese banquet served family style.  After heavy appetizers, each family style course will be paired with beer and wine samples.  Dinner participants will vote on a winner for each course, beer or wine.

Presenters for the dinner will be Bartholomew Broadbent of Broadbent Selections, Ben Petty of Brown Distributing and Genevelyn Steele of Dionysos Imports.

Heavy starters followed by a four course feast with beer and wine, Richmond may just implode from all of the excitement.  Cost for the dinner is $80/person.

RVA Beer Fest Is This Weekend!

This weekend will be super busy for me.  Not only does The Avengers finally come out in theaters Friday but Saturday is Free Comic Book Day. Yes, I am a multi-faceted geek! Ha!

If that was the only thing happening Saturday, it wouldn’t be too bad but there are two big beer events happening this weekend: Big Brew Day 2012, which I’ll talk about later, and RVA Beer Fest!

The RVA Beer Fest seems like a dream that you never thought would happen after the cancellation of Richmond’s second World Beer Festival. Congratulations Richmond, it’s not Brown’s Island but RVA Magazine, Phull Entertainment, and Gallery 5 have pulled together to bring you a two day festival with an amazing selection beers from Brown Distributing, Specialty Beverage, and Loveland.

As it should be on a First Friday in Richmond, Friday May 4th is Taste the Local Night with Virginia breweries taking center stage:

Legend Brewing
Hefeweizen
Imperial Stout

Starr Hill
Pils
Triple

Devil Backbone
Belgian Congo
Reilly’s Red Ale

O’Connor Brewing Co.
El Guapo IPA
Great Dismal Black IPA

Roanoke Railhouse Brewery
Track 1
Railhouse IPA

Wolf Hills Brewing
Wolf Den Double IPA
Imperial Stout

Bull & Bones
Sunlit Wit
Maroon Effect

Hardywood
Singel
Mocha Belgique
Hoplar

Saturday, May 5th is the big event with regional beers outside along with local beers inside Gallery 5.

Liefman Draft
Oud Bruin

Blue Mountain
Evil 8
Mac Hayden

Dogfish Head
My Antonia
60 Minute IPA
Namaste

New Belgium
Somersault
Fat Tire

Ommegang
Hennepin

Heavy Seas
Loose Cannon
Black Cannon

Southern Tier
2X Milk Stout
Hop Sun

Victory
Headwaters Pale Ale
Sunrise Weissbier

Weyerbacher
Double Simcoe IPA
Merry Monks

Cricket Hill
East Coast Lager
Jersey Summer Breakfast Ale

Highland
Gaelic Ale
Oatmeal Porter

Duck Rabbit
Milk Stout

Thomas Creek
Class 5 IPA

Samuel Adams
Tasman Red IPA
Dark Depths Baltic IPA
Norse Legend Shati

Wild Wolf
Alpha Ale
Blonde Hunny Ale

Sierra Nevada
Summerfest
Hoptimum
Bigfoot

Want to be a VIP? Get exclusive beers in Mekong’s Tasting Lounge.

Mekong Tasting Lounge Beer List
J W Lees Harvest Port 2010
Stillwater Premium
Troegs Mad Elf
Avery Mephistopheles
Founders Curmudgeon Keiser
Dogfish Head Noble Rot
Bockor Cuvée de Jacobins

Whoa! Got all those beers down?! Here’s all you need to know for tickets:

Friday Night

FREE

Saturday 12pm-6pm
$5  General Admission — Presale Tickets here

Beer Tickets:
2 Ounce Tasting – $1 (tasting ticket)
16 ounce pour – 1 Ticket – $6 (full ticket)

$25 VIP tickets — Upstairs Mekong Tasting Lounge + 5 tasting tickets — Presale Tickets Available Here)

Get more information about bands and food over at the Facebook event.  Are you ready Richmond?

My Birthday Dinner at Bistro 27

I had the most amazing birthday dinner of my life on April 27th thanks to Bistro 27 and Bobby Kruger.  Bobby made me two birthday beer cocktails just for me.  The cocktail pictured above on the left used Allagash White (one of my favorite beers), cardamom crystals, egg white and freshly ground black pepper.  This cocktail was the perfect start to the meal prepared by Chef Silva. Choosing from the Restaurant Week Menu, my first course were mussels tossed in marinara sauce; I could not help but use the bread provided to sop up this tasty tomato concoction.

My second course was Steak au Poivre.  This classic French dish was absolutely delish but don’t take my word for it. Have a look at this pic; I barely stopped myself long enough to snap it.

My meal would have ended with the decadent dark chocolate torte for dessert but Bobby was not done with me yet.  He created a mocha float using Hardywood Mocha Belgique with a charred chocolate marshmallow on top and with a kick from a bit of mole syrup.  Once again guys, thanks for the superb meal!

Thoughts for Next Year’s VA Cask Festival

I attended the first Virginia Cask Festival this past Saturday, April 21st.  Arriving a bit late, the crowd was noticeably thin but buzzing excitement.  Everyone in the room was there for beer. I started out light with Devils Backbone’s Wit Bier then dived head first into Hardywood’s Bourbon Cru.  By all accounts, Hardywood’s Cru was a crowd favorite.  In addition to the Cru, Mad Fox’s Wee Heavy and Williamsburg Alewerk’s Choca-Latte were a malt lovers dream in a room of IPAs. I had the pleasure of meeting Bill Madden of Mad Fox for the first time and thanked him for bringing one of my personal favorites from the Falls Church brewery.  I will say the only beer I was disappointed with was O’Connor’s Great Dismal Black IPA.  Normally, a favorite of mine, something about the addition of coffee did not work for me.  On the other hand, I found Starr Hill’s Double Platinum quite enjoyable and balanced as it is normally too hoppy for me.

Turning thoughts to next year’s festival, there are a couple items that I think would make next year’s festival even better.

More Breweries

With only eleven breweries in attendance, it may have been difficult for people to justify the price of admission.  The festival was a fundraiser for the Virginia Craft Brewers Guild; breweries who were not guild members were rightfully not allowed to participate. So in order to grow the festival, more Virginia breweries need to join the guild.  VCBG has done a great job promoting craft beer in Virginia, most notably the passing of SB 604 which will allow breweries(member or not) to sell pints without having to server  food.

Location

If we are able to increase the number of breweries at the festival, it would most likely necessitate a larger venue. Capital Ale House’s Music Hall was the perfect size for this years festival but add another five or ten breweries in the mix and the room could feel cramped.  I think Kanawha Plaza would be a nice step up from the Music Hall plus Richmond loves an outdoor festival.

How can you help? Next time you visit a Virginia brewery ask if they are VCBG members.  If they say no, ask them why not.  If they say yes, thank them for making great beer here at home.

Virginia Cask Ale Festival Picks

Heading out to the inaugural Tap into Virginia Cask Festival today, Saturday, April 21st, at the Downtown Capital Ale House Music Hall. Here are my personal first six picks:

  • Hardywood Park Craft Brewery — Bourbon Barrel Quad Yes you could wait to get it next weekend but why wait?!
  • Mad Fox Brewing  — Wee Heavy Scotch AleNot available in Richmond; you’d have to drive up to NoVA to have anymore of their great beers.
  • Devils Backbone Brewing — 1)Wit Bier – 4.5% ABV, 15 IBU  Belgian-style witbier that is hazy straw in color, light in body, with a refreshing fruity spicy finish. Spiced with coriander, orange peel, szechuan peppercorn, and brewed with an aromatic Belgian yeast strain to create a complex yet delicate wheat ale.  2) White Stag IPA – 7.0% ABV, 50 IBU’s.  A wheat IPA that blends aspects of American IPA’s, British IPA’s, and wheat ales . Brewed with 4 types of malted & un-malted wheat, kettle hopped with both American and English hops, and dry hopped with East Kent Goldings to create a beer that’s uniquely its own. Choose between two Devils Backbone beers? Not going to happen.
  • O’Connor Brewing — Great Dismal Black IPA –  infused with “Old Havana Cuban Coffee Blend” from Virginia Espresso in Norfolk, chocolate and vanilla bean.  ABV- 8%. A personal favorite so of course it’s here.
  • Wild Wolf Brewing — Tom Tom Founders Festival Ale — White IPA with extreme citrus and tropical hop notes added to the flavor of a traditional belgian wit, dry hopped with a pound of cascade. The brew used more than 60 pounds of local VA wildflower honey.  70IBU 5.5% ABV White IPAs are a very new style so I’m looking forward to trying this one from another Nelson county brewery. 

Have fun out there!

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