Caps and Corks, Jack of All Trades for your Drinking Needs

July 7, 2012 by 1 Comment

Caps and Corks is a neighborhood bottle shop but also pub offering both beers and wine and mixed drinks in the Pearl District/Slabtown area. I'm not sure who writes their little tidbits on the Facebook feed, but I always enjoy reading them. During my first visit on a Thursday evening, I was surprised to see all the tables in the front and the main front area all occupied by other relaxing 20-30 somethings, but the back, where the air conditioning replaced the summer breeze, was empty. Perhaps everyone was trying to soak in as much sunlight while we had it, and the darker back portion didn't offer that, even though it had the more comfy deep booths. A short time later, suddenly everyone was gone- and I realized they came on the Brewcycle. So, if you arrive and you see it parked out front, go on in- the "crowd" will only be there for a short period.

The full bar is stocked with many kinds of liquors so that they can concoct whatever your regular standard drink is (and can do so even using local liquors), but they don't offer a cocktail menu of their own recipes, save a few that mix alcohols in "Beertails", such as one I saw that put a porter and champagne together. They also had three large cooler units full of bottles of regional beer and cider with a few other offerings from other locations thrown in to give you a lot of beer options, as well as a rotation of 7 additional beer on taps and wines written on the chalkboard (I admit I did not study the wine offerings on this trip). There is a minimal corkage fee if you decide to drink your bottle (beer or wine) here instead of taking it to go.

They offer some bites to go along with all their beverages. The happy hour here is called "191 Merry Minutes", lasting from 3-6:11 with lots of snackity options for less than $5 , ranging from the expected burger, fries, tots, pizza, mac and cheese options to a few luxuries such as Chicken and Gravy Slider ("On a buttermilk biscuit, covered in gravy to help it sliiiiiiiide.") or Bacon Wrapped Asparagus (described as "Bacon, hugging its vegetable friend, in a bleu cheese bath."). Also, on Mondays they have "Burger Monday" with options of 10 different burgers along with tots and a beer and a pint- a happy meal for adults. They also seem to have a Saturday/Sunday brunch with supposedly very good bloody marys.

I went during none of these times, so ordered off the regular menu. Our 3 orders of a Cheese plate of 3 cheeses, Bourbon Fried Chicken with house made bourbon batter (with 2 sides- I selected tots and a mixed greens salad), Veggie Burger with roasted garlic, caramelized onions, and blue cheese on a toasted kaiser roll (with selected side of double tots) all arrived simultaneously.

I tend to be more forgiving of bar food, but I was pleasantly surprised that the dishes we got had good flavor, even if they did lean towards the greasy. For the cheese plate, the cuts of cheese were thin but the herbed goat cheese was spreadable and buttery, and the doughy fresh bread and big helping of house-pickled vegetables that we used to cut through the fat of all our dishes was very welcome. The chicken meat was moist with crispy skin that was cooked well, and the vinaigrette on the mixed greens was a good counter that was not too acidic or oily, but I couldn't detect much seasoning or the advertised bourbon. The veggie burger was the least appetizing looking with its shiny smothering of roasted garlic combined with caramelized onions and blue cheese, but all those toppings also brought flavor and juiciness to a burger which after all, is veggie… by adding a lot of fat.

The service here was very friendly- you go up to the bar with your selected bottle selection for them to open and give you glasses, as well as order your food, which they will then bring to your table. They will also provide water and check on you often to make sure you aren't wanting for anything, be it more beverages, napkins, or taking plates out of your way.

Caps and Corks seems to want to try to offer enough of everything to satisfy whatever your drink crave is and earn their place as your local neighborhood bar, but are ambitious enough to be aspire to offer levels above a mix of beer bottle shop, wine bar, and local dive bar. A jack of all trades is an expert at none, but a jack of all trades is also quite handy to get the job done of satisfying multiple tastes in your party, or just within you depending on your mood.

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Breakside Brewer’s Dinner at Wildwood

June 30, 2012 by 2 Comments

There was a Wildwood restaurant event of a Brewer’s dinner with Breakside Brewery Friday, 6.29 in Wildwood’s back (and newly renovated event space) Wood Room. Wildwood’s Paul Kasten & Breakside Brewery’s Ben Edmunds recently collaborated to brew “Old Woody”, another one of Breakside’s series in which Brewer Ben works with a restaurant chef to make an interesting beer. They then created a special pairing dinner to pair various Breakside Brewery beer with Chef Paul’s gastronomic creations, including of course drinking “Old Woody”. All this was at the reservation price of $65 which was inclusive of food, beer and gratuity… yes that’s right, 6 courses, all paired with beer, tip included!

The menu included

  1. strawberries and asparagus basil, spring onion, champagne vinaigrette, goat cheese, saba paired with solera-style lambic. Brewer Ben explained meant that this beer was made using the solera process in which 3 beers were used in succession in the barrel with a little purposely left as the new beer was added, so this beer is the culmination of the flavors from all three (Sour Double Wit, Soursop Wheat, and Sourdough Ale plus Brettanomyces lambicus to make it a lambic… despite all the”sour” in the beer names, it only has a slight sourness to it). Pairing wise, he also noted that the same sort of acid found in this beer was echoed in the goat cheese of this salad.
  2. pastrami pork belly éclair spring onion, pickled chile cream cheese icing paired with newport summer ale although for the vegetarian, the pairing was mixed summer greens with cucumber, snap peas, and feta. Of all the items in the menu, this was one I highly anticipated, and I loved the taste of the pork belly eclair with the chili cream cheese (although I thought the amount of icing was a bit overwhelming for the beer, though it was tasty), a melding of the tang of the cream cheese with the softness of the eclair and the meaty with bit of fat of the meat inside. At the same time, I thought the nice fresh taste of the radishes and greens was quite complimentary with the ale too, perhaps even a better pairing… though I would not give up that pork belly eclair.
  3. lamb carpaccio guajillo oil, grilled scallions, crispy chickpeas, cumin yogurt paired with session brown which for the vegetarian was a grilled asparagus and farro salad with scallions and lemon that used a slight grilled smoke taste from the asparagus to go with the malt forwardness of this beer- in this case both pairings of food dishes was excellent but the lamb was better, particularly with those awesome light as air crispy chickpeas and guajillo oil
  4. crispy chicken confit wild mushroom and fava bean panzanella paired with old woody while the vegetarian had panzanella with wild mushroom and fava beans. Both these dishes were fabulously full of crispness and complex savory flavor to hold up with this collaboration beer that has a touch of sweetness from molasses. Panzanella, a stale bread dish, never sounded that interesting to me but now I know that crunch from the bread balanced with flavors of oil and vinegar and mushrooms sounds simple but delivers more than what you would think from the sum of those parts

  5. pan seared rib eye filet fava purée, grilled porcini, pale ale glace paired with old bourbon woody while the vegetarian pairing was russet potato gnocchi with morel mushrooms, fava beans, and creme fraiche. I’m certain this is the beer that started really working out my liver (just looked it up as it’s currently at Breakside Brewery on their board listed at 11%) but the complexity of flavor that every sip of liquid offered is well worth it, this is one fine beer. Ben also mentioned this beer’s other alias, Old Whiskey Dick.
  6. colston-basset stilton honey, candied walnuts, brooks cherries paired with bourbon barrel aged 1st anniversary wheatwine This was the only beer I didn’t love (though I still like it) because I thought it had too much alcohol upfront (it does clockin at 12.7%) and I would have liked to have it sit a little longer to mellow out, but F thought the beer was perfect as it was/is.

All the food and beer pairings were really wonderful through all six courses without anything being a disappointment and in fact, even impressing us more than we expected. Overall it was an amazing experience as everyone around us was a beer and food lover, but we got to enjoy this in a relaxed but refined atmosphere.

Wildwood also has a great bar with seasonal summer concoctions I enjoyed while waiting between the end of work and beginning of this brewer’s dinner. One of their summer drinks is the The Naughty Kitty with pimm’s, india lemongrass, lime and strawberry puree, a sweet but not too sweet drink that definitely took me away from my worries quickly and smoothly. I also appreciated a little gift from the kitchen of pate with a little dop of mustard and bit of cornichon all vehicled into the mouth by a little toast… as if I wasn’t already grateful enough that the Chef was willing to put together a vegetarian version of the six courses at my request. Enboldened by this bite, I decided I still had enough time to try one more cocktail that caught my eye- Oh Snap! Tanqueray, cointreau, mint tincture, lemon, and sugar snap peas puree, a fresh cocktail. As always, I have never been disappointed by Wildwood in presenting me with local and seasonal flavors that really embody the Northwest region.

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Portland Beer & Cheese Fest 2012

June 17, 2012 by 4 Comments

I was out in Colorado for work and we are starting our kitchen remodel, which meant my business caused me to I miss most of the 2nd annual Portland Beer Week (June 7-17, 2012). All throughout the week there were special events varying from Rye Beer Festival and Fruit Beer Festival and Brewers Nights and pairings of beer with various dinners in restaurants throughout Portland (including a progressive dinner with matched beers and courses). At least though I was able to catch the Portland Beer & Cheese Fest with pre-purchased tickets only (and it sold out!) from 1-6pm today at Commons Brewery.

Portland Beer & Cheese Fest

The Commons Brewery only recently opened this year, and is hosting the location of this event. This festival features beer and cheese pairings, with the beers from 10 different regional brewers and cheese selection by champion cheesemonger Steve Jones of Cheese Bar. Also on location are included light savory meaty snacks from Chop Butchery and Charcuterie, recently just voted best butcher in Portland by foodie visitors of Portland Food and Drink. Cheese, Beer, and Charcuterie, yum!

Seriously though, that charcuterie board by Chop was sooo beautiful, and Steve always brings the best cheese. The only improvement I could have made is that I wish there were more surfaces (so cocktail tables, no chairs is fine) to be able to not have one hand of beer glass and one hand of plate of cheese = no hand left to eat, so it was a balancing act that ended up in a sad loss of a dropped Ladysmith cheese sample at one point and a couple of other close calls. I loved that the event was all presale so that the number of guests were managed, and there was a certainty of enough beer, cheese, and chop for all.

The pairings list include the following beer and cheese

  • Solera Berlinerwiess/Grisette Blend with Sartori Bellavitano *Cow Wisconsin
  • Upright Brewing Offen Weisse paired with Mountina *Cow (raw) Montana
  • Gigantic Rauchweizen and the Bandit paired with Willamette Valley Cheese Co. Brindisi *Cow (raw) Oregon
  • Double Mountain Das Boot Alt with Tumalo Farm Pondhopper *Goat Oregon
  • Firestone Walker dba (double barrel ale) with Abbaye de Belloc *Sheep France
  • The Commons The Flemish Kiss with Samish Bay Aged Ladysmith *Cow Washington
  • HUB (Hopworks) Abbey Ale with Uniekaas Vintage Grand Ewe *Sheep Holland
  • Oakshire Perfect Storm Double IPA with Hook’s 5-Year Cheddar *Cow Wisconsin
  • Widmer Brewing Pitch Black IPA with Rogue Creamery Smokey Blue *Cow (raw) Oregon
  • Block 15 Figgy Pudding with Colston-Basset Stilton *Cow UK

Portland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese FestPortland Beer & Cheese Fest

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Brewvana + New School: Corvallis VIP Tour with Block 15

March 5, 2012 by 1 Comment

I’ve been able to enjoy the Brewvana van twice- once during my experience with Zwickelmania last year, and another time with sponsorship of Google Hotspot for writing reviews. This was my first time that I went directly for them for a specific tour… and heh, was a paying participant. When I saw on FB that Brewvana would be offering with New School beer blog a Corvallis VIP Tour with Block 15, I was excited. I thought the itinerary sounded really promising and full of new tastes for me, and of course I knew I had good experiences with Brewvana those two previous times. I was lucky I bought the tickets that evening while sitting at the bar of Bailey’s Taproom and fortunate enough to think to catch up on my FB, because the tickets were all sold out the next day.

The tour on Saturday February 4 (sorry for the delay in my post- I did go international to 4 countries- soon to be covered in upcoming posts) coincided with the same day that Block 15 Brewing in Corvallis was releasing bottles of  two barrel aged beers. Batch 2 of Pappy’s Dark Ale (a Dark Strong ale in bourban barrels), as well as the “lost barrels” of Super Nebula (Imperial Oatmeal Stout in bourbon barrels). I have liked many a Block 15 beer, and had both those beers last year at a Block 15 Pappy’s Dark bottle release event at Hop & Vine 2011. More recently after hearing about their new restaurant/beer spot during a food tour, have been mentioning multiple times to others (fishing…) on how I would like to visit their beer cave. And, now here was the opportunity where I wouldn’t have to worry about driving… Brewvana is going to chauffeur me there.

But wait! There’s more! This trip not only included round trip transportation to Block 15, but also

  • stops at Calapooia Brewing (known for its chili pepper beer) for beer samples and a behind the scenes tour with owner/brewer Mark Martin;
  • and also a stop at Flat Tail Brewing with its more experimental beer selection and more samples with Head Brewer Dave Marliave;
  • and a stop at Les Caves Bier and Kitchen (a recently opened European style bistro and beir bar with 16 rotating taps and over 100 bottled beers) for beer and dinner.
  • And then, once finally at Block 15, besides accessing a taster tray of Pappy’s Dark and Super Nebula 2010 and 2011 and Hypnosis 2011 (barrel-aged Barleywine) at Block 15, we also get to learn about their barrel-aging program and see behind the scenes!

Fun! Signed up!

Calapooia Brewing Visit,  a secret (even from residents down the street apparently) that is getting more successful and is bottling their incredible chili beer so its rise is underway. It was cool to hear how Calapooia was conceived and his philosophy for the brewery straight from head brewer and owner Mark Martin- and his cooler smelled wonderfully yeasty

Flat Tail Brewing, a brewery that loves to get creative and experiment, and our time with head brewer Dave Marliave also gave us insight into the art of concocting a beer and also insight on how it sounds fun and laid back environment but make no mistake, it is also a lot of hard work as a career choice.

Les Caves Bier and Kitchen. We started with a shared appetizer of Artisan Board with head cheese, Willamette cheddar cheese, pickled gherkins with stone ground mustard and fresh baked and torn bread. We then had a choice of 3 dishes (or another dish where we would pay the difference). We went with what was already offered: the Roasted Vegetable Strudel of oven roasted parsnips, squash, onions, peppers, fresh mozzarella & ricotta wrapped in a flaky crust with a pink peppercorn sour cream, served with a winter greens salad; and the Naturally house cured, smoked and steamed Painted Hills beef pastrami with stone ground mustard & crisp pickles on rye ciabatta 11 with gruyere cheese.

The Artisan Board was great, but I found the Strudel a bit too rich because of how buttery the crust was, while the pastrami was steamed too far into dryness. The ideas were good for the dishes- in theory they would match well with beer- but the execution was flawed in our dinners. The place was getting packed as we got there right when dinner was starting- maybe the kitchen got overwhelmed. I was much more conservative during dinner in not partaking in ordering from the huge beer menu because I wanted my palate ready for Block 15, but others couldn’t resist the beer bottle list.

Finally, the highlight: the Block 15 visit! There has been no beer from this brewery I have not enjoyed, and I love their concept of aging beers. We tried last year’s and this year’s Pappy’s Dark and Super Nebula and also another beer, Hypnosis, and aged (of course it’s aged!) Barleywine. Nick Arzner showed us the maze of corridors that comprises their brewing and aging areas and his perspective of crafting beautifully complex beers.

We got a sneak peek at a still aging White Framboise made with white raspberries that is probably a one time thing- and is going to probably sell out in hours when it does release. We came in late in the day, after their release at the brewery, but he had set aside bottles for our group to purchase, thank goodness! Of all the breweries we visited this one was the most organized, demonstrating their attention to detail and care and control cascading to their work environment even though they work mostly in a basement.

The only negative of this trip was how the high alcohol content took a toll, so the bus ride home was full of half a bus of those who pehraps their volume sensitivity was not what it usually is, and the other half passed out trying to digest and give all our power to our livers (I went on this side),  all while scrunched into the very little legroom because the seats were made for children. The reality is that Brewvana is awesome and needs a real bus, not a school bus, similar to what size are used for wine tours: that amount of distance with that many people all day is just not comfortable. I don’t see why wine tasters get to be comfotable but beer lovers don’t. At least the treatment we get on the tour on and off the bus is definitely red carpet at least.

Brewvana only started a year ago and has been a huge success- and is now in its growing pains. Their concept for the various tours Brewvana offers is intriguing and is good for either those new to beer or experienced beer geeks, for those new or even those who have been in PDX for a while- the logistical arrangement, communication, sparkly fun energy and enthusiasm and passion Ashley and those involved bring- all of those combined make for a “doh! I can’t believe that’s her job!” and you can’t help but absorb that vivacity she has during the tour and you can’t help but have fun.

Thanks so much for Ashley of Brewvana and Ezra of the New School for putting this fantastic trip together, for the brewers and their staff for their hospitality and generosity with me and the other beer geeks, and also Jason the bus driver for his patience and amazing skills for both speedy and safe driving, and the other beer geeks for being beer geeks but not beer snobs and letting us into their circle for a little bit.

So I realize that as usual, there is no photographic proof on my own camera that I am even present. Fortunately, Ashley took a bunch of photos as well, which I have stolen a few that had me in them as proof of life and am sharing here. All these photos belong and were taken by Ashley Rose, the lovely beer effervescent princess of Brewvana from the Brewvana Flickr album which has more photographic proof of how much fun they are always having.

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A visit to Cascade Brewing

December 27, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Thanks to JnJ for their gift card to F for his birthday, as it funded what you see here (ok…. many months later) at Cascade Brewing Barrel House… well, on my part (I didn't photograph his food or beers). Tasters of some of their sour beers (their speciality), a cup of Saison Beer Cheese soup (very cheesy!), and Curried Chicken Salad, a mixture of smoked chicken, mango chutney, celery, red onion & seasonal fresh fruit (in autumn this is apples) tossed in a yogurt-based curried dressing served on a bed of greens with bread. Aside from the Chicken Salad I had from Kenny and Zuke's, this is the best chicken salad I have had so far in Portland. And of course, if you like sour beers, you will love it here… if you aren't as big of a fan, they do have some other beers but that's the point here… at least try a sampler of a few of the sours. I'm not a big sour fan, but even I really enjoyed a couple of them. Open up your mind and palate to something new!

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