Urkontinent : Google + Dogfish Head

Worth the watch!

Flavors of Yeast

White-Labs from Dennis Stein on Vimeo.

San Diego Beer Week is coming up fast, and November 4-13 can't get here soon enough! Events are still being added to the calendar, and the one that we're most excited about is the "Flavors of Yeast" presentation by the Head of Laboratory Operations at White Labs, Neva Parker. It's certainly not going to be the run-of-the-mill drinkfest (NOT that there's anything wrong with that!) that will be taking place all over the county, rather a more science-y panel for serious beer lovers, home brewers, and just general nerds alike.

On Wednesday, November 9th from 6-9pm at Sea Rocket Bistro, $20 gets you into the talk (plus hors d’oeuvres) that will cover topics like cultivating yeast and the different properties that strains provide to beer styles. As a bonus (and learning experience of course), attendees will slosh down side-by-side a 'base beer' that was created identically in every way except yeast strains, so the individual flavor profiles can be explored and discussed as a group. Yeasts include:

WLP530 Abbey Ale Yeast
Used to produce Trappist style beers, distinct for their clovey, estery profile. Fruity and alcohol tolerant (up to 15% ABV). Excellent yeast for high gravity beers, Belgian ales, dubbels and trippels.

WLP810 San Francisco Lager Yeast
This yeast is used to produce the “California Common” style beer. A unique lager strain which has the ability to ferment up to 65 degrees while retaining lager characteristics. Can also be fermented down to 50 degrees for production of marzens, pilsners and other style lagers.

WLP655 Belgian Sour Mix 1
A unique blend perfect for Belgian style beers. Includes Brettanomyces, Saccharomyces, and the bacterial strains Lactobacillus and Pediococcus.
(info from the Sea Rocket event page)

So if you're a beer lover, science geek, or just someone who wants to know more about the weird little creatures that help the more popular hops + barley become beer, head on down! I'll be there with pocket protector and pint!

Fleet of Eats: 57 Degrees 3rd Friday Food Truck Gathering

Food truck fever has hit San Diego HARD, and this is in no way depressing. Besides the individual truck schedules, there's plenty of "gatherings" where an assortment of trucks get together and create a mobile food court to the delight of locals. One of the ones that I kept missing was the 3rd Friday Gathering at 57 Degrees in Little Italy, but NOT THIS TIME! Parking was a challenge, especially since the closest trolley stop is out of commission for awhile, but we managed to hoof it, fork over the $2 entrance fee, and beeline it through the wine bar to their back parking lot filled from end to end with mobile yumminess!

I knew that I wanted to see what every truck had to offer before committing to anything, so we started with the Eat at Recess Truck, Operacaffe, CurioCity, Tabe BBQ, MangiaMangia, Food Farm, the Gathering Spot, etc. etc. etc. (one immediate complaint is that the list on the 57 Degrees website wasn't really accurate). However, that didn't REALLY matter since there was plenty to choose from and to kick things off we got the Fried Pizza Dough stuffed with cheese from Operacaffe Mobile.

It was pretty much exactly what you'd expect- doughy balls of fried goodness with bubbling cheese spewing from the tops like tiny volcanoes with a side of marinara for dipping. Hot, cheesy balls. What's not to like? We munched on these as we studied the rest of the boards for our entrees. One noteworthy trend is that almost every single truck had some version of sliders and/or parmesan fries (some with, some without truffles). I guess it makes sense since sliders are a little more manageable on the go, but come on people! A little variety would be nice!

Next up was the Spicy Brat from The Gathering Spot Bistrotruck. It seemed to be the recommended dog, and it sounded pretty unusual/great with cream cheese spread and a jalapeno/onion mix. When we got it, I was pretty disappointed with the grayness of the brat, generic cream cheese, and limp, leech-like jalapenos that looked more like sad kelp than spicy pepper. It wasn't spicy in ANY respect, and was just pretty bland. Disappointing. (HOWEVER - we did run into this truck the next day at Green Flash Brewery and decided to give it another go. Their Slidertini with angus beef, dill aioli, sauteed mushrooms & onions with a block of cheddar toothpicked on top was GREAT. Shockingly tender and the perfect amount of dill - which I find can be easily overdone. Not to be missed!)

By now Ashton-the-sweet-tooth was itching for some dessert, so he headed over to The Chubby Truck for their fried cheesecake with either strawberry compote or chocolate dip. He brought back what appeared to be two egg rolls with a cup of fudge, and I felt like I was back at the gluttonous state fair in Del Mar all over again! Things like this are fine in their own way, I suppose... I mean, yes, it was fried cheesecake. Great. Nothing surprising, and honestly just a little gratuitous. The rest of their menu looked pretty amazing, so I'm anxious to give this new truck another go and get one of their tasty-looking burgers next time!

Last on the list was Tabe Korean BBQ, which I'd had once before and LOVED. To wrap things up we got their Tabe Asada Fries with the sweet pork, and let me just tell you that I give it the rating of "Die, die, must try!" Perfectly tender, sweet and just a little spicy, their pork is drippingly fantastic in everything they offer. It's going to be difficult for me to get any other their other meats because their pork is stellar! The little side cups of hot sauce, chili garlic spread, and spicy aioli were all delightful in their own right, so just do yourself a favor and get some Tabe. Korean BBQ, my new favorite food group?

Ramblin' on with SD Food Trucks

There's just something about the fast-paced food slingin' and militant compactness of food trucks that completely appeals to me. With a smaller menu, I feel like creativity, seasonality, and just plain fun come into play more than stationary eateries. I've already raved about San Diego's Devilicious truck (and I think I'm just one voice in a crowd on that one), but at this year's La Mesa Oktoberfest I noticed that the Asian Persuasion truck was parked next to Devilicious. Being the indecisive fatty that I am, I decided to get something from both trucks just to piss my muffin top off just a LITTLE more.

After a few of my friends embarrassed themselves by being totally unoriginal and getting the Butter Poached Lobster Grilled Cheese from Devilicious (I'm just being a bitch- it's #&(*@&ing amazing), I got an order of the Parmesan Truffle Fries to share with the group and the Shrimp PoBoy for me. It was the pickles that really sealed the deal for me on that one, and I was NOT disappointed. HUGE breaded shrimp were falling out of the baguette, which was smeared with a delicious aioli and red onion with a dark green salad on the side. Seriously. Really, really good. The fries had more of a truffle flavor than I was expecting, but believe me that's not a complaint. Utter bliss.

The $6 Bankok pork sliders from Asian Persuasion came dolloped with spicy mayo and daikon, and with their hint of ginger and side of wonton chips + sweet & sour dipping sauce I was SOLD. Hands down the best dish of the night. I was BLOWN AWAY with how tender the pork was, how wonderful the Hawaiian buns were, how perfectly seasoned everything was, and even how fresh the wonton chips were! Seriously! Home run! I can't WAIT to try that truck again, and maybe get the FOB tacos or the burrito. I don't know, I just can't decide. I just love how San Diego food trucks keep delivering.

Julian tomatoes

I would just like to say summer is still kickin' in Julian and these tomatoes were the best this old bird has had in a while!

Yet-To-Be-Named-Beer Club Meeting #1

Ever taken a brewery tour alone? Do you drink $20 bottles of craft beer in your living room and describe its subtle nuances to your only companion- your cat? Ever be "that guy" sitting at the bar and drown your lonely sorrows into a tulip glass of a perfectly poured aromatic IPA? We have! Be lonely no more, the Yet-To-Be-Named-Beer Club was created for that very purpose- bringing together craft beer lovers who just want more friends to share it with. The inaugural meeting was held in our living room last night, and 12 beer enthusiasts from all walks of craft beerdom joined us with bottles of weird, wacky, and interesting bottles to share and discuss.

5 hours, 3 cheeses, 2 salsas, and 20 different beers later, the meeting was called to a close and the last attendees stumbled from our apartment into the night. The meeting had kicked off with a blind IPA tasting, and it proved to be more challenging than expected. However, member Stephanie took home the top prize with 3 out of 5 correct and brought home her prize bottle of the 2nd generation Life & Limb collaboration by Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head- well done Stephanie!

By the end of the meeting most of us found ourselves too deep in the cups to properly set the schedule for the next meeting, but future plans include group brewery tours, blind tastings, homebrew collabs, bar outings, group BBQs, and more! Below is the list of the beers enjoyed (and completely drained) by all, including the IPA contestants:

1) Aecht Ochleaterla Rauchbier
2) Rogue: Hazelnut Brown Nectar
3) Russian River: Redemption blonde ale
4) Russian River: Damnation golden ale
5) Avery: The Reverend belgian-style quadrupel ale
6) Great Divide: 17th anniv. Wood Aged Double IPA
7) Bootlegger's: Black Phoenix ale with coffee and chipotle peppers
8) Lindemans: Cuvee Rene gueuze lambic
9) Hitachino Nest: White Ale
10) Ballast Point: Black Marlin porter
11) Magic Hat: #9
12) Lagunitas Hop Stoopid IPA
13) Sam Adams: Black Lager
14) Sierra Nevada: Torpedo Extra IPA
15) Brew Dog: Hardcore IPA
16) New Belgium: Ranger IPA
17) Russian River: Blind Pig
18) Wells: Banana Bread Beer
19) Wade and Dan's homebrew (honey wheat ale)
20) Ashton and Beth's homebrew (summer wheat)

Beers from all walks of life were represented, and with autumn quickly approaching the tentative theme for next meeting is Harvest/Oktoberfest beers. There's plenty of wiggle room and all beers are welcomed with open arms! Membership is open to all who
1) love beer and want to learn as much as you can about it
2) want more friends to drink it with
3) are willing to meet around once a month
4) occasionally host meetings (this means providing snacks and arranging games/events/prizes)
5) bring at least a bottle to share each meeting

That's it! Join us today- bonus points if you think of a good group name!

Suzie's Organic Farm Pedal, Pick & Grin

If you didn't make it to Suzie's Organic Farm in Imperial Beach yesterday for $2/lb tomatoes and $3/lb peppers (both of endless varieties) then you TOTALLY MISSED OUT. Bike parade? Check. Bluegrass band? Check. Tromping through rows upon rows of completely organic produce just picking whatever looks delectable? Check. I've been a lazy slob about signing up for their CSA, but laze no more, after yesterday I am a believer. There's just something about eating something that you pick, and I'm sure if you grow it the feeling is intensified by a bajillion. It was a glorious day as horses trotted by, kids created dirt tornadoes with their bikes, people of all ages gripped their straw hats and knelt to gently twist and remove a fat and hearty jalapeno, bell pepper, heirloom tomato, or fresh okra bite to take home and enjoy however they saw fit.



For us, a pizza was our ultimate creation. We snagged a garlic and herb pizza dough from Trader Joe's and after letting it rest for 20 minutes, we divided it into 4 mini pizzas and started the grill on medium high. While the grill heated up, we sliced and diced some of the amazing deep red tomatoes and a variety of yellow, orange, and green peppers for toppings. After laying the rolled out dough onto tin foil on the grill, we let them sit for about 3 minutes and flipped them, revealing a golden brown crisp crust. We immediately spread some fresh pesto on the crisped side, liberally sprinkled some feta, and then laid the tomatoes and peppers across the whole shebang. After another 3 minutes of toasting, we removed them from the grill and crowned each one with some torn fresh basil leaves and feasted.



As the first of many dishes this week that will feature our bounty, it was a success! I can't wait to keep nomin' on our stash, and I definitely look forward to continuing to patronize Suzie's. All hail San Diego local organic farms!