California Beer & Pizza
dedicated to craft brewing and artisan pizza baking in the golden state
The next Step in Home Pizza Baking Wildwood Ovens Media Watch Interview with the beer babe Beer Spotlight Blind Ambition & Old Rasputin 12th Anniversary
Road Trip Reno Phone Apps In Progress The IPA Championships Beer/Food Pairings
Issue #3 April 2010
California Beer &Pizza
“The perfect lover is one who turns into a pizza at 4:00 a.m.� Charles Pierce
Contents
Issue #3 - April 2010
Table of Contents Letter From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Feedback Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Wildwood Wood Fired Ovens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7 Interview: Carla Companion - The Beer Babe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10 Phone Apps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Beer Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 & 13 Road Trip - Reno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Beer/Food Pairing - Pho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 & 16 IPA Championship Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 - 18
If you’ve recently participated in a home brew competition, pizza competition, or any other beer/pizza related event and you want to tell us about it, we’d love to hear from you. info@californiabeerandpizza.com
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 1
Letter from the editor
W
elcome to the third issue of
California Beer and Pizza. Hopefully everyone is enjoying the best beer and pizza available in their region and exploring new areas for those hidden gems. With spring approaching many people are making a seasonal shift from stouts and porters to pale ales and IPA’s. On the pizza front you may opt for heavier Chicago-style pizza in the cooler months and lean towards lighter, vegetarian or grilled pizzas as the weather warms up. For many people in California there are not huge weather swings throughout the year but for those in the mountain communities and those of us who just think seasonally, spring can be a transition time in eating and drinking habits. If you take a seasonal approach to your home brewing, commercial beer purchases and pizza options we’d be interested in hearing all about it. You may have some great ideas for people who haven’t thought about it before. In this Issue: CB&P is pleased to present two interesting features and interviews. We begin by highlighting Wildwood Wood Fired Ovens. I was able to spend some time with the owner, Chef Michael Gerard, and his team at their location in Eagle Rock, CA. After a tour of the facility I was able to sit down and talk with Michael about his vision and the various applications for backyard (or indoor) wood fired ovens. The
wide range of options available for backyard pizza ovens can open new doors for the pizza enthusiast and significantly elevate home pizza baking. The next feature is an interview with Carla Companion, The Beer Babe. Carla’s contributions to the craft beer world are extensive and our conversation included her personal beer philosophies, the female perspective on all that is craft beer, her blog at thebeerbabe.com, and beer blogging in general. Phone Apps: We take a look at a few of the phone apps that are available for beer and pizza aficionados. Three apps were tested for this feature; Find Craft Beer, Pizza Finder, and The Pizza Dough Recipes. Depending on what your needs are and what you’re looking for in a phone app, these may be useful, particularly when traveling. As always, we’re interested in any input you have to offer on the topics covered in CB&P so if you have any experience, opinions, or comments on the apps covered here or different ones that you’ve downloaded, please share your thoughts. Beer Spotlight: The focus for this issue is on Blind Ambition and Old Rasputin Twelfth Anniversary. Blind Ambition is a Belgian Amber brewed at Ladyaface Alehouse in Agoura Hills, CA. Ladyface is a brasserie that brews on site. This version of Old Rasputin is the familiar Russian Imperial Stout with the addition of the bourbon barrel aging process.
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Road Trip: For this issue we provide a quick-stop look at Reno NV and the Silver Peak Restaurant and Brewery. This stop was definitely worth the brief detour and a location that certainly warrants a return visit. Beer/Food Pairing: We don’t ever want to be accused of backing down from a challenge and in this case the difficulty was in matching a liquid (beer) with a food that has a liquid base; the Vietnamese soup pho. Fortunately the flavor profiles in pho match up well with several styles of beer. Hopefully you’ll enjoy the thought process involved in this pairing. IPA Championships: We’ve provided a list of the early round winners and a link to stay current with the results in the 3rd Annual IPA championships. If you haven’t already been following, check and see if your favorite IPA is in the hunt for this version of March Madness and the quest for a national champion. California brewers are making a strong showing with six breweries in the sweet sixteen. Late Note: As the finishing touches were being put on this issue the Sweet Sixteen was completed in Philadelphia on March 6. Three California brewers have made it to the Elite Eight. The final eight match ups are: Stolen Fire/Prometheus vs. Islander IPA HeadHunter IPA vs. Flower Power Good Karma IPA vs. Roadrunner IPA Wipeout IPA vs. Union Jack
See You in July!
Feedback:
You’ve been out experiencing the best beer & pizza in California. You’ve been home brewing, making your own pizza dough, traveling to interesting beer & pizza-centric destinations, and trying every food/beer pairing you can think of. Your fellow beer & pizza freaks want to hear about it. Write in, tell us about your trials and tribulations, successes and failures. Photo submissions are encouraged.
info@californiabeerandpizza.com
www.californiabeerandpizza.com
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 3
Wildwood Wood Fired Ovens
A
fter receiving a very warm and
welcoming greeting from the office staff at Wildwood Wood Fired Ovens & BBQs, I was led on a tour of the facility by the owner, Chef Michael Gerard. During the tour Michael shared his vision for the future of Wildwood Ovens and his plans to help his local community of Eagle Rock, CA become more informed about nutrition and local produce. An Eagle Rock resident since 1964, Michael has strong ties to the local community and enjoys talking about the abundance of local farms he remembers from his youth. While discussing the history of Eagle Rock he also pointed out that built-in backyard barbecues are common in the older homes. Having grown up in a foodie family, in an area with an abundance of local produce and community spirit based around the backyard barbecue, becoming the owner of a company that makes wood fired ovens is a natural fit. It was Michael’s desire to cook with a wood fired oven that led him to build his first outdoor kitchen 15 years ago. Over time that desire evolved into the business of building wood fired ovens and six months ago Wildwood moved into a new location where ovens are made and plans are being implemented to create an outdoor area for classes and test kitchen demonstrations, as well
as an indoor showroom area. As Michael led me around the facility we were accompanied by the constant buzz of oven production. This is a busy place bursting with energy and enthusiasm. While being shown the facility Michael patiently answered my questions and the following is some of the Q & A.
ovens. Can you give a definition of Neapolitan? Neapolitans have a very thin crust and are baked in a wood fired oven at high temperatures between 700-800 degrees (Fahrenheit). Traditionally the dough contains only four ingredients; flour, water, salt and yeast but I like to add olive oil and also a little sugar for the yeast to feed on (this should make sense to home brewers). How do you envision the facility when all the work is done?
From the Wildwood Catalog An example of what’s possible with a back yard setup.
Do your customers typically incorporate your wood burning ovens with gas grills? Some customers do that but I prefer to integrate the ovens with our Brazilian churrasqueiras. The problem with gas grills is the need to replace burners, ignitors, knobs, and vinyl covers. One of the best aspects of the Wildwood ovens is that there is nothing that will corrode. You promote baking Neapolitan-style pizzas in your
The multi-function room will be for staff and dealer meetings. The outdoor area in front will be for the cooking classes and test kitchen demonstrations. The best way to understand the oven is to eat the food from the oven. I like to tell people that making pizzas is just the tip of the iceberg because the wood fired ovens are such a flexible and dynamic tool. One of the things I like to do is begin by roasting red peppers, eggplant and onions in a cast iron ribbed grill pan, followed by Tuscan-grilling steaks. What is Tuscan-grilling? Tuscan-grilling is cooking the steaks right over the hot coals in the mouth of the oven. What are the influencing factors when people are deciding which style or size of oven they want? (Continued on Page 5)
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Wildwood - (Continued) People always ask how many pizzas will fit in the oven. Although that doesn’t really matter because with the high temperatures that wood fired ovens are capable of, the pizzas will bake in the amount of time it takes to roll out the dough and add the toppings for your next pizza. When your next one is ready to go in, the one in the oven is ready to come out. What is your personal philosophy for pizza construction? I like to eat a lot of pizza but I don’t want it to be too heavy with a lot of sauce or cheese. I like to stick with Neapolitans with vegetable toppings like red peppers and eggplant. Another pizza I like is with white truffle oil, a little fontina or gruyere cheese and fresh arugula after it comes out of the oven.
The Showroom The early stages in the new location.
In addition to your culinary talents it must take strong design and building skills to construct
wood burning ovens. Do you have these types of production skills in your background? In addition to cooking, I also come from an engineering background. There are a long line of engineers and inventors in my family. The Wildwood ovens pay homage to the modular precast ovens developed in Italy in the post-World War II era. There was so much destruction during the war the Italians invented ovens that they could quickly set up and put into use. We take that basic idea and add modern design and modern materials. The specifications; such as door height and dome shape are very specific, perfectly balanced and provide even heat distribution. Has the downturn in the economy affected sales? No, I’m finding that rather than taking expensive vacations to the Bahamas people are looking for ways to socialize more and our wood burning ovens provide that environment. You can’t put a price on the experience, we’re not selling ovens but rather memories and a lifestyle. Selling memories and a lifestyle may read like sales-speak but it all comes together when listening to Michael talk about wood fired ovens from concept through implementation. There is no doubt about his sincerity and passion for bringing people together around the backyard wood fired oven.
We continued to talk about the plans to bring in kids from the schools and teach them about nutrition and demonstrate how good eating locally grown food can taste. Michael also feels strongly about getting back to basics and eating the way our grandparents ate, having fresh vegetables from home gardens and making good use of the ingredients grown and raised in California.
From the Wildwood Catalog The ovens and pizzas of your dreams!
The conversation then turned to slow cooking at which point Michael explained his process for slow roasting pork in one of his wood burning ovens. The process consists of browning the meat in a soapstone, seasoning it, wrapping it tightly in foil, putting it back in the pot, placing it in the back of the oven away from the heat, replacing the door and leaving it over night. In the morning he brings the meat into the office where the staff can enjoy pulled pork sandwiches and tacos all day. He adopts a similar plan for brisket but adds braising liquid to the soapstone rather than wrapping it in foil. (Continued on Page 6)
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 5
Wildwood - (Continued) Then came the beer talk. Like many Californians, Michael likes a hoppy IPA and also enjoys trying different styles. He agrees with many craft beer lovers that beer pairs better with food than wine. He has a colleague that is a home brewer and enjoys making pizza dough with beer and they plan on having beer & cooking events with local chefs for charity. Be sure to check out the Wildwood web site and download their catalog. They provide a variety of wood fired oven and churrasqueira designs with options that can suit any situation. They will work with you to create the best solutions for your yard or kitchen. Even if you’re not in the market for a wood fired oven you’ll want to stay informed about upcoming classes and test kitchen demonstrations.
I was very impressed with her prompt responses and professionalism. This is clearly a team that strongly believes in customer service and support. E-mail Megan to find out how you can become part of the Wildwood family: megan@wildwoodovens.com •
Cooking classes and wood fired oven demos should resume in the new location in the April/May time frame.
•
Wildwood sells a full range of accessories to go with your oven or churrasqueira.
•
Wildwood ovens are sold throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Australia.
Roasted peppers stuffed with goat cheese stay warm in front of the wood fired oven.
The entire team at Wildwood projected enthusiasm for the products they make and sell. While corresponding with Marketing Associate Megan Keller with follow-up questions 6 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
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The Wood Fired Oven Daydream You’re in your backyard surrounded by family and friends. The wood fired oven is nice and hot as you quickly and easily grill up a variety of toppings. Your guests are enjoying your home brewed IPA (made with hops from your garden) as you add the toppings to your creations, one pie after another. A friend is cutting pizzas right out of the oven and finishing them off with herbs from your garden.
Pizza Kits Electric & Manual Rotisserie Skewers Marshmallow Trees Popcorn Makers Panini Press Dog’n’Brat Cooker Stone Pots Stone Griddles Pizza Stones Lasagna Pans Genghis Kahn Hibachi Pot Warmers Vacuums Temperature Guns
Take a sip, have a slice, enjoy the California lifestyle!
(Continued on Page 7)
Wildwood - (Continued) Wildwood’s Signature Pizza Dough Ingredients: 1 Cup + 2 Tbsp Warm Water 1 1/2 Tbsp Extra virgin olive oil 3 1/3 Cup All purpose flour 1 1/2 tsp Active dry yeast 1 1/2 tsp Table Salt 1 1/2 tsp Granulated Sugar
Team Wildwood Planning the Future From Left: Megan Keller, Michael Gerard, Gisele Losso, Juyen Lee Keeping up with Wildwood Wood Fired Ovens & BBQs YouTube Twitter Blog Web
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Facebook Yelp
Topics
Bourbon Apple-Glazed Cedar Plank Salmon Roasted Peppers Stuffed With Goat Cheese Suckling Pig Rotisseries & Roasters
Directions: Pour warm water and olive oil into a large mixing bowl. Add flour, the remaining three ingredients should be poured into separate corners. Using a wooden spoon or your hands, fully incorporate all ingredients. Once you have a ball of dough, knead on a floured cutting board for 10-15 minutes. Should be smooth and springy. Alternately: In a bread maker, pour warm water and olive oil. Add flour, followed by the yeast, sugar and salt. Set the bread maker to the pizza dough setting and close the lid. When the timer is done remove the dough. Divide into four balls and place dough in lightly oiled containers, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise 1 1/2- 2 hours at room temperature, until doubled in size. Deflate gently by turning 2-3 times. Allow to rest until you start shaping your pizza dough, (the Wildwood dough risingboxes are great for this.) If you plan to store pizza dough, place in an oiled, air tight container and refrigerate until needed.
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 7
Media Watch - The Beer Babe
C
Companion is best known as the Portland Maine based beer blogger at thebeerbabe.com. However, referring to her as a beer blogger only covers a small portion of her contribution to the world of craft beer. arla
In addition to the Beer Babe web site, Carla is a correspondent for The Hop Press and has written articles for associatedcontent. com. and drbeerlove.com. She has also been interviewed by hereforthebeer.com (click here to link to the YouTube video), and participates with the New Hampshire Media Makers. Carla’s talent as a writer and unique perspective sets a very high standard in the beer blogging world. As craft beer enthusiasts we are very fortunate to have thebeerbabe. com as a resource. CB&P’s interview with Carla took place in January 2010. The About page on your webs site offers a description of your personal craft beer path. Have there been significant moments along the way that you can identify that inspired you to dive in the deep end of beer blogging? One significant one for me was realizing that there were so many dimensions that could change the flavor of a beer - and that
occurred when a friend set me up to try three beers side by side - all from Dogfish Head craft brewery. They are each named after the amount of time that hops are continuously added to
Carla enjoying an IPA at the Dogfish Head Brewery
the boil - 60, 90 and 120 minute IPAs, respectively. By trying each side by side, I got a wonderful amount of flavor differences and yet a lot of threads tying things together. I was amazed at how versatile an ingredient hops can be, and that simply changing the time of a part of the brewing process can have such a profound effect on a beer. Being science-minded, I was hooked. Your web site offers a comprehensive set of links for beer bloggers. What do you look for in a blog? What separates the excellent from the mediocre? It isn’t comprehensive, but it’s my “short list” of beer blogs that I enjoy. I tend to like blogs for many different reasons, and sometimes it just comes down to the personality of the blogger. If you can read someone’s writing and
get a little sense of who they are, that’s great blogging to me. Also, I like the guys that go outside of the box of “beer rating,” that is, that go beyond giving everything a score and think about larger considerations. A sense of humor is always a plus, too. In your hereforthebeer.com interview you mention that you think hefeweizens and wheat beers are good crossover styles for women. Can you share any feedback you’ve received on that advice since that interview? It’s interesting, I still get asked all the time what the best beer is to give to someone’s girlfriend to get them to like beer. My answer (though it might seem like avoiding the question) is really that there isn’t a perfect beer, but that finding a beer you like is a process or journey. It takes a little while to map out your tastes... My best advice is to try the styles with distinct tastes (very un-”beery”) and go by trial and error. If you find someone who thinks that hefeweizens are too sweet, try introducing them to a coffee beer, etc. Each individual’s tastes are their own and I view beer more as a category of tastes than one single taste. So if someone doesn’t like broccoli, for example, it doesn’t mean that they’ll never like any vegetables. Maybe they’ve just got a taste for kale instead. But one doesn’t really determine the (Continued on Page 9)
8 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
The Beer Babe - (Continued) other - you just use the information to get at the tastes. What sorts of contrasts (if any) do you find between men and women as they branch out to craft beers? I don’t like to generalize much, but I have found that the taste that women are very sensitive to seems to be bitter (though they can and do learn to like it), and men tend to be sensitive to things that are overly sweet (like barleywines, hefeweizens, etc.) Though as I said before, tastes are so individual it’s hard to say, and I’m never surprised when someone loves or hates a beer that I thought they’d think the opposite of. Do you ever find that men are intimidated by your beer knowledge? Usually not. I do get test questions - kind of a trial by fire - to see if I’m really knowledgeable or not. Once I’ve passed, usually we enjoy a really geeky conversation about beer. I’ve found that, male or female, craft beer enthusiasts are a welcoming, jovial and open group of people. There’s not a lot of one-upmanship, condescension or intimidation going on as a whole, which is why I love hanging around beer geeks so much. Do you have any advice for women who might be planning to form a beer enthusiasts group?
My advice would be to meet in person as often as possible. I’ve found that discussing beer with groups of people - and having group tastings - are some of the best ways to get to know beer and to open your palate. Trying things that you’re not familiar with is more fun in a group setting, too, and any group where you’re welcome to have an opinion (even if you thought the beer was disgusting) is a huge plus.
Speaking at the NH Media Makers Meeting, Newmarket NH
How is your home brewing coming along? Heh. I knew you were gonna ask that. My kitchen is now mostly unpacked (I moved around Christmastime), and I have a cellar now, so I really have no excuses left. I really regret not getting to that last year, but honestly I think I’m more ready now in this new place and new town. Plus, there’s a homebrewing supply store in town that I can walk to, which is not the case where I used to live. I hope to start brewing in early spring.
A year removed from your west coast beer adventures, what stands out in your mind as the most memorable moment? I was thinking about that trip today, as a matter of fact. When I took that trip with my little brother, it was very spontaneous. I didn’t plan it as an “epic beer road trip” so there were a lot of beer stops that I missed along the way (I drove right past Rogue and never even realized it!). I was incredibly happy to have been able to stop in at Stone Brewing and get a tour, and sample a lot of their beer. And, there was a crazy hailstorm (followed by a rainbow) to boot. It was also before a lot of their beer was available in bottles on this coast, so it was a rare treat for me to drink things like the Smoked Porter. However, I also really enjoyed my stop at the Big Time Brewery in Seattle, because I feel like I got really connected to the west coast hops obsession. Since your blog on “Going Local,” have you found there are enough local brewers to keep you interested? Oh my goodness yes. Portland Maine is the East Coast’s beer mecca. There’s Gritty McDuff’s Brewing, Geary’s, Allagash, Shipyard, Sebago, and Maine Brewing Co., are right in town. Run of the Mill is a brewpub in Saco, and Lion’s Pride Brewery just opened in Brunswick. There are about 15 other breweries in Maine/NH and I’m lucky that a lot (Continued on Page 10)
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 9
The Beer Babe - (Continued) of stores are really good about carrying Maine beer. I won’t run out of local beer for a while. Sometimes while on “beer adventures,” having a designated driver along can be difficult to arrange. Have you come up with any unique solutions to this dilemma? It is very important to me that my beer adventures end safely, though I haven’t thought of anything more novel than your typical solutions. In Portland I am lucky that there is cheap, easily accessible taxi service, and a lot of drinking destinations are within walking distance to my house. One thing I do think about though is that after 1-2 beers (of any strength) my tasting/writing ability declines a lot. So I tend to think about why I’m really out - and will sometimes go to smaller sample sizes if I’m at a brewery or have a max of 2 beers/night at a beer bar. I’m not in it for the intoxication, I’m in it for the adventure, after all. I also do a lot of my reviewing at home, so after a few I don’t really have to worry about going anywhere. How do you see the future for beer blogging and women’s involvement in craft beer? There are still very few female beer bloggers (despite the huge boom in beer bloggers as a whole), but I’m looking forward to a time when honestly it doesn’t matter or make me
special that I’m a female beer blogger. I think that there’s a shift happening in our perception of what beer is and what it means to be a beer drinker, which I hope will make it easier for women to feel comfortable ordering a beer. I have seen even in the past two years more and more women enjoying beer at Belgian beer bars, and enjoying finding out their own tastes along the way. I see all that as positive. I still think that advertisers have done a very thorough job of convincing men that women are there to serve them beer, not drink it, and it’ll be the future millionaire that properly markets craft beer to women. What’s your long-term vision for thebeerbabe.com? Keep drinking beer, I guess. LOL. Seriously, I’d like to be able to interact with more people - either brewers, bar owners, other bloggers, and think about ways to collaborate more. I really enjoy participating in events and being social, so I’m hoping that I can use the base of my beer reviewing to expand into more social content. Do you have a favorite beer & pizza combination? There’s a white buffalo chicken pizza that they make at La Festa in Dover, NH that’s awesome - its a buffalo chicken pizza with a swirl of bleu cheese and hot sauce on top. La Festa also has a fabulous tap selec-
10 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
tion and not-so-bright managers that allow them to serve things like 90 Minute IPA (9+ %ABV) in 20 oz glasses. I’ve had several slices and a tall glass of that and been blissfully happy for the rest of the night.
Articles by Carla at thebeerbabe.com I Wish My Girlfriend Liked Craft Beer Tasting Beer; Why Our Vocabularies Lag Behind Our Tongues Know Your Beer: Ales & Lagers Quest For the Perfect Beer List What it Really Means to Go Local What Every Craft Beer Drinker Should Know Make Beer Not War Beer & Chocolate A Sweet Pair
Twitter Facebook
Beer & Pizza Phone Apps
I
t seemed a good time to extend my
iPhone Application collection into the beer and pizza realm. The first three apps on these topics I downloaded from iTunes may be of varying degrees of usefulness for those of you on the lookout to upgrade your craft beer and pizza resources.
like this app already. So far I’d say the $0.99 was well spent. Next up is Pizza Finder. There are several pizza apps but most seem to be put out by the big chains or focused on those establishments.
The first app for review is Find Craft Beer. The high user ratings suggested it would be a useful download and worth the $0.99 price. I started by entering a 50-mile search from my home address and the results consisted of pubs, brewpubs, breweries, homebrew supply stores and stores with craft beers. I recognized most of the places on the list but was surprised to see an alehouse I’d never heard of just 8.8 miles from my house. After tapping the alehouse link the address and phone number were revealed with options for More Information, Show Map, and Dial Number. I noticed from the address that the 8.8 miles is as the crow flies and is actually about a 25-minute drive. Tapping on the More Information tab brought up their web site link, Post to Twitter, Check Weather & Traffic, and a map. Tapping the web site tab launched Safari and I was surprised to learn that this alehouse actually brews their own and has a full menu in the French Brasseries style. Definitely going there, I
Pizza Finder is a free download and although it doesn’t have the variety of features that Find Craft Beer does, it is useful. Enter a location and a list of pizzerias with distance from your location shows up on the screen. Tap on one and you get a Call button, Map button and the opportunity to rate the location thumbs up or thumbs down. There is also a small advertising bar at the bottom of the screen. Once again I am surprised to see a location I was unaware of, this time only .5 mile away. The name indicates a mom & pops type establishment so I will definitely check it out. This app is powered by telephonenumbers.com, which suggests that if a pizzeria has a phone number, it will come up in a search. It does display an extensive list so this could be very handy, particularly when traveling. Our final app for this issue is The Pizza Dough Recipes. This
app will set you back $0.99 and contains three categories — Pizza Dough Recipes, Pizza Sauce Recipes, and Pizza Recipes. There are approximately 25 pizza dough recipes to choose from, ranging from N.Y.-Style to Whole Wheat. Many of the dough recipes are very similar and only contain minor differences. Most of these you could think of yourself for adding to your go-to dough if you were so inclined. Scanning these dough recipes could get you to consider new ideas so from that perspective they may be useful. The list may also be helpful if you haven’t established your signature dough yet and you want to try different things. Ten sauce recipes are included and they are very simple and basic. They could be helpful if you have very little time and you want to throw something together quickly. There is a huge list of pizza recipes, many of which would be considered on the fringe. Some examples; Beefy Hash Brown Pizza, Cheesy Jalapeno & Egg Pizza, Hot Dog Pizza and Pumpkin Pizza. This app may be helpful if you’re looking for a lot of easy ways to crank out a wide variety of pizzas. Tell us about your experiences with beer and pizza apps. info@californiabeerandpizza.com
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 11
Beer Spotlight Blind Ambition Ladyface Ales (Click photo to link to their web site) Belgian Amber Ale 6.4% ABV
T
ale was poured into a brandy sifter-style glass there was considerably less head than when it was poured into a tulip glass.
The Ladyface Alehouse & Brasserie was the surprise result of a Find Craft Beer phone app search. The surprise being that I didn’t know there was a restaurant brewing their own Belgian-style ales so close to where I live.
The aroma is sweet and malty and that profile translates directly into the flavor as well. As expected, there is minimal hop presence. The sweetness is enjoyable throughout and doesn’t become cloying by the end of the glass. A very enjoyable, relaxing sipper.
his beer review ties in two other
themes from this issue. The first being the benefits on going local and the second being the usefulness of phone apps.
Shortly after becoming aware of Ladyface, I made my way over for dinner and a couple of beers. You can imagine how happy I was to find out they also offer growler fills. This review is of their Blind Ambition Ale, which I brought home from the restaurant/brewery. Blind Ambition is listed as a Belgian Amber Ale. This description caused me to wonder if I’d encountered this exact style before but I decided to taste first and research later. To my eye the pour suggested red rather than amber and looked similar to a glass of brandy. A note about the significance of glassware; when this
Time to turn beer-geek and obsess on BJCP style guidelines. Since there isn’t a specific listing for Belgian Amber I thought perhaps the style was based (due to the color) on a Flemish Red but it doesn’t contain the fruitiness associated with that style. I also looked into the Flanders Brown Ale/Oud Bruin, but I didn’t get a sense of raisin, plum, fig, or cherry esters. The closest match I came up with is biere de garde, which contains the color variation of reddishbronze. The color fits, as does the flavor profile, described as medium to high malt flavor with a toasty, toffee-like or caramel sweetness. This ale is different from the biere de garde I’m most familiar
with (Avant Garde from Lost Abbey), so I imagine there is room to play with the style. I’ll stick with the brewer’s choice of Belgian Amber and continue to enjoy it. Pizza Pairings: Dough, olive oil, herbs, Parmesan, you’re done. Food Pairings: The brewer recommends the following from the Ladyface Barsserie menu; their burger, moules-frites, sausage plate, and fish du jour. Before reading the brewer’s recommendations I had been thinking about pairing with a rich, hearty stew or pot roast. However, I think the best way to enjoy Blind Ambition is on it’s own. After dinner, sitting in front of a fire with a good book or talking with family and friends, this ale would make a fine accompaniment. There is plenty of useful information on the Ladyface web site that includes when the current line up of ales were tapped and which are currently in the fermenting tanks. They also have cask conditioned ales and special events for holidays (Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day at the time of this writing). Ladyface Alehouse Map It
12 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
Beer Spotlight Old Rasputin Twelfth Anniversary North Coast Brewing (Click photo to link to their web site) Russian Imperial Stout 11.2% ABV
R
CB&P may recall from Issue #2 that there is some big love for Old Rasputin here (and it was the suggested pairing for shepherd’s pie). You can imagine the excitement when a bottle of the Twefth Anniversary Bourbon Barrell Aged version was on the shelf at the local Bevmo. eaders of
The cost of the 500 ml Anniversary edition will likely set you back more than double the cost of the standard Old Rasputin 4-pack but if your financial circumstances allow it the recommendation is that you try at least one bottle and preferably purchase more for aging. There have been occasions with other stouts in which I’ve thought the burbon barrel aging process has added too much bourbon flavor to the equation so I was a little leery even though I was dealing with a good friend. The pour, as expected, produced very dark (althouth not pitch black) hues with a creamy, espresso colored head. The color was not so dark that you couldn’t watch the swirling show as the beer settled in.
The whiff of burbon is prevelent but it doesn’t overwelm the pleasures received from breathing in the chocolate, plum & raisin aromas. The urge to pour this in a bucket and stick my face in it was extreme, it smells that good. The first sip reveals less of a bourbon taste than expected, it seems the flavor is more of the barrel than a mix of beer and bourbon. The 11.2% is apparent but it doesn’t punch you in the face. If I hadn’t known the stats before I drank it I would have guessed a lower abv. Exploring the flavors reveals bittersweet chocolate, coffee and the dark fruits. To my palate there seemed to be a hint of cherry as well. The creaminess from the head adds a significant amount to the overall experience and prevents the balance from being too far on the liquid brownie end of the spectrum. The foam leaves a nice lacing down the side of the glass as well which adds to the visual enjoyment. As delicious as the individual compnents are, the sum of the parts create an even greater whole. With every sip there
is the feeling of the first taste experience. There is a lot going on but it is clean and neat with a full, rich mouthfeel. Pizza Pairings: My first thoughts are baguettes and butter when contemplating a dough partner. Try it, you’ll be happy! If you want a pizza, brush on a light cherry sauce and add some venison or other wild game. Food Pairings: It’s hard not to consider dropping a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the glass but for the price of the 500ml you probably won’t want to do that. You can use a less expensive stout for a float (although the burbon flavor might be an interesting new guest for that particular party). To take full advantage of all the rich flavors in Old Rasputin Twelfth Anniversary you will likely want something roasty and carmelized. You’re favorite cut of steak that you like charred off the grill will do you right. For the veg-heads you may want to try various methods of preparing mushrooms and/ or potatoes and find out what works best. No matter what you have, this stout will be the star.
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 13
Road Trip - Reno
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Reno area provided the opportunity for a quick stop at the Silver Peak Reataurant & Brewery. recent pass through the
The cozy pub atmosphere offered a welcome respite from a chilly evening. We sat at a table in the bar area rather than in the restaurant and the vibe was just what one hopes for in a pub; the sounds of people talking, laughing, and enjoying themselves in a mature manner. Our friendly waitress Sarah delivered the beer list and I was struck by the wide variieties of beers that are brewed at Silver Peak. They have six regular house brews and over 50 seasonal offerings. I had 12 Silver Peak beers to choose from and the most difficult decision was deciding which one. Since I was the driver I was on a one beer limit. I settled on the Black Rockbier, a rauchbier inspired lager. How often do you come across a rauchbier brewed in-house? The number of rauchbiers I’ve had is on the low end of the spectrum compared to most other styles and I can’t say it’s a style I’ve gone to great lengths to search for. However, this one pint of rauchbier caused me to completely rethink my attitudes to-
wards the style, not that I’ve had anything against smoked beers, it’s just not a style I’ve had an extraordinary amount of interest in. Most people who appreciate craft beer can point to an exact moment when their world was rocked by a first experience, or memorable encounter, with a particular style. Most of us can remember the particular brew that provided the milestone memory and often times the location and circumstances around which it was consumed. That “wow” or “getting it” moment is a tremendous experience, but those moments become fewer as one progresses along the craft beer path. This was my rauchbier moment. I was totally blown away from first sip to last. This is not a style that will cause your face to explode but the Black Rockbier from Silver Peak put me in that flavor zone where I felt like I could have spent the rest of my life sitting in that pub sipping that beer. It was a great reminder of how excellent a lager can be and the smokiness emphasised rather dominated the complexity of the beer. Then came the food menu, I’d forgotten we’d come there to eat. A quick glance and I’m zeroing in on the pizza portion. I ultimately
14 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
settled on the Linguica & Shitake Pizza. This pizza was topped with Portuguese sausage, shitake mushrooms, carmelized onions, and mozzarella cheese. I quized Sarah on the pizza making operations and one of the things she pointed out was that they add grains from the brewery into the dough. This gave the crust a unique flavor and seemed to intensify the charring and cripiness. The pizza was extremely well made and delicious. I hadn’t considered the beer/pizza pairing before ordering but as it turned out the beachwood smoke from the rauchbier created an excellent flavor bridge to the Portuguese sausage on the pizza. A very enjoyable and tasty ride. Before leaving, I picked up a growler of the Peavine Porter and that beer earned an enthusiastic thumbs up as well. It has a little more of a chocolate profile than most porters, so if you like that it’s worth seeking out. The Silver Peak web site offers full descriptions of their beers and lists what is currently on tap. Menus are also available for online viewing. email@silverpeakbrewery.com
Beer/Food Pairing — Pho
F
or this issue’s non-pizza beer/
food pairing we take a look at the Vietnamese soup pho. A large number of Vietnamese restaurants and pho-specific locations have opened in California and across the country in recent years. In some areas they have become wildly popular and if you haven’t tried pho you may want to do a quick search and see if there is an establishment close to you. It’s worth the effort. The origins of pho are a little unclear but it seems to have originated in northern Vietnam within the past 100 years. Over the past century regional variations have been developed and the pho that is sold in the U.S. and Canada is typically made in the style of southwest Vietnam. French techniques, such as adding charred onions and beef, are some of the methods used that differentiate pho from other Asian soups. If you are trying pho for the first time in a restaurant the menu can seem a little overwelming as the choices of soups seem almost limitless. The thing to keep in mind is that the majority of the soups are based with a beef broth and you are choosing which cuts of meat you want added to the broth. Beef is the dominant profile but there are also chicken, pork and vegetarian options. If you are used to sterile meats from the local mega-mart you
should brace yourself because if a meat is described as fatty you are going to be looking at fat in the bowl. You should also be aware that the fattier the meat is in your soup, the better the broth is going to taste. You should also expect to see animal parts you are not used to seeing listed on a menu. This shouldn’t deter you though, one benefit of all the menu options is that you can get very specific about what you want.
dig right into that fatty brisket but the real magic is experienced when you get past the meat and veg and get deep into the broth. All of the components in the pho add to the depth of flavor and richness contained in the broth. Beer time: unfortunately you will probably not find a quality list of craft beers in too many pho restaurants. You do have the option of making your own and to get you started CB&P recommends Ming Tsai’s Blue Ginger cookbook. You will find a method for pho preparation and also a very tasty vegetarian stock if you want to go meatless.
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Shortly after ordering your pho (and maybe some spring rolls or bread to go with it), your food is typically delivered very quickly. It’s an amazingly efficient operation. When your soup arrives you gaze deeply into the bowl and see the rich broth filled with rice noodles, onions , and your bold choice of fatty brisket. A garnish plate with sprouts, Thai basil, peppers, and lime wedges are brought for you to add as you wish. You also have choices of hoisin sauce, Siracha sauce, and red chili paste to use as condiments. You’re loaded up and ready to
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Once you have made your own pho or miraculously found a Vietnamese restaurant with an impressive beer list, you have to decide on the best pairing. You have the option of jacking up the heat in your pho but the base soup is not excessively spicy so even though there is a lot of herbal flavor and the opportunity to add sweat-inducing amounts of peppers or hot condiments, it is, at it’s core, a comfort food. (Continued on Page 16)
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 15
Pho (Cont.)
IPA Championships
You will want a beer with some backbone that will compliment the flavors but not something so intense that it will dominate the soup experience. Double IPA’s are probably not the best choice but a single IPA could work well. You’re not looking for a hop bomb but some some grapefruit flavor should put you right in the zone.
The 3rd Annual IPA Championships are currently under weigh. The results through the third round are listed below. If you want to keep track of the action you can do so at: http://www.brewingnews. com/nipac/
Diamond Knot IPA Diamond Knot Brewing
First Round Winners 2/14/10 Syracuse N.Y.
Yellow Snow IPA Rogue Ales
Let’s take a look at some of the typical seasonings for the broth and see if we can find any common links in The Flavor Bible and then apply those to beer. Seasonings can include cinammon, star anise, roasted ginger, black cardamon, coriander seed, fennel seed and clove. When these seasonings are cross-referrenced with fairly common beer profiles the following matches occured more than once: orange (5), pears (5), chocolate (4), vanilla (4), grapefruit (3), honey (3), pumpkin (2), citrus (2), coffee (2), and coconut (2).
Torpedo Extra IPA Sierra Nevada Brewing
Jamaica Sunset IPA Mad River Brewing
Lake Placid IPA F.X. Matt Brewing
30th Street Pale Ale Green Flash Brewing
Marin IPA Marin Brewing
Troegs Nugget Nectar Troegs Brewing
Hippie IPA Buckeye Brewing
Centennial IPA Founders Brewing
Paw Print IPA Big Bear Brewing
White Hawk IPA Mendocino Brewing
Super Goose IPA Hale’s Ales
HeadHunter IPA Fat Heads Brewery & Saloon
Despite the prevelence of chocolate and coffee, the citrusy flavors seem to be a better match. The singe IPA theory (or pale ale) should work well but scanning the BJCP flavor profiles suggests the best match would be a Belgian Wit-bier. What do you think? info@californiabeerandpizza.com
Stolen Fire/Prometheus Elysian Brewing
Northern Lights Starr Hill
Ballistic IPA Ale Asylum
Hot Diggedy IPA Port Townsend Brewing
Stone IPA Stone Brewing
Brew Free! or Die IPA 21st Ammendment Brewery
Pike IPA Pike Brewing
Torrey Pines IPA Oggi’s Pizza & Brewing
NorCal IPA Moylan’s Brewing
Top Gun IPA Blind Tiger Brewing
Check Out The Flavor Bible Click Thumbnail to link to Amazon
16 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
No. 24 IPA Gella’s Diner
Islander IPA Coronado brewing
(Continued on Page 17)
IPA Championships - Continued First Round Winners Cont. Caskastrophe Pearl St. Brewing
Roadrunner IPA Blue Corn Brewery
RIIPA Trinity Bewhouse
India Pale Ale Goose Island Beer
Lakefront IPA Lakefront Brewery
Crooked Tree IPA Dark Horse Brewing
Big Nose IPA Swamp Head Brewery
Sky High Rye Arcadia Brewing
Union Jack IPA Firestone Walker Brewing
Flower Power Ithaca Beer
Hopworks Organic IPA Hopworks Urban Brewery
Hoppin’ to Heaven IPA Hoppin’ Frpg Brewery
Red Eye PA The Brew Kettle Prod. Works
Norm’s Raggedy-Ass IPA Big Rock Chophouse
Chinooker’d IPA Lawson’s Finest Liquids
Apex Bear Republic Brewing
Interurban India Pale Ale Fremont Brewing
Trickster IPA Black Raven Brewing
Mojo IPA Boulder Brewing
Hop Ride Tenaya Creek Brewing
Over The Top IPA Beerguy of America
Dancing Ferret IPA Weasel Boy Brewing
Workhorse IPA Laurelwood Brewing
Cornerstone IPA Rochester Mills Beer
Pushing the Envelope IPA Willimantic Brewing
McGilligan’s IPA The Livery
Titan IPA Great Divide Brewing
Wipeout IPA Port Brewing
Second Round Winners 2/21/10 Buffalo N.Y.
Good Karma IPA Mad Anthony Brewing
Sockeye Red IPA Midnight Sun Brewing
Nectar IPA Nectar Ales
Seven IPA CornerStone Brewing
Indica IPA Lost Coast Brewing
West Coast IPA Green Flash brewing
Racer 5 IPA Bear Republic Brewing
Four Seasons IPA Voodoo Brewery
Class Five IPA Thomas Creek Brewery
India Pale Ale Sweetwater Brewing
Lake Placid India Pale Ale F.X. Matt Brewing Marin IPA Marin Brewing Supergoose IPA Hale’s Ales Stolen Fire/Prometheus Elysian Brewing Stone IPA Stone Brewing (Continued on Page 18)
California Beer & Pizza — April 2010 — 17
IPA Championships - Continued Second Round Winners Cont. No. 24 IPA Gella’s Diner
Roadrunner IPA Blue Corn Brewery
Stone IPA Stone Brewing
Islander IPA Coronado Brewing
Lakefront IPA Lakefront Brewery
Islander IPA Coronado Brewing
Yellow Snow IPA Rogue Ales
Norm’s Raggedy-Ass IPA Big Rock Chophouse
30th Street Pale Ale Green Flash Brewing
30th Street Pale Ale Green Flash Brewing
Hop Ride Tenaya Creek Brewery
HeadHunter IPA Fatheads Brewery & Saloon
White Hawk IPA Mendocino Brewing
Workhorse IPA Laurelwood Brewing
India Pale Ale Goose Island Beer
HeadHunter IPA Fatheads Brewery & Saloon
Wipeout IPA Port Brewing
Flower Power Ithaca Beer
Hot Diggedy IPA Port Townsend Brewing
West Coast IPA Green Flash Brewing
Mojo IPA Boulder Beer
Torrey Pines IPA Oggi’s Pizza & Brewing
Four Seasons IPA Voodoo Brewery
Good Karma IPA Mad Anthony Brewing
India Pale Ale Goose Island Brewing
RIIPA Trinity Brewhouse
Roadrunner IPA Blue Corn Brewery
Flower Power Ithaca Brewing
Union Jack Firestone Walker Brewing
Hop Ride Tenaya Creek Brewing
Red Eye PA The Brew Kettle Prod. Works
Chinooker’d IPA Lawson’s Finest Liquids
Wipeout IPA Port Brewing
Mojo IPA Boulder Beer
Cornerstone IPA Rochester Mills Beer
Four Seasons IPA Voodoo Brewery
Titan IPA Great Divide Brewing
Third Round Winners 2/27/10 Grand Rapids Michigan
Union Jack Firestone Walker Brewing
Good Karma IPA Mad Anthony Brewing Racer 5 IPA Bear Republic Brewing
18 — California Beer & Pizza — April 2010
Marin IPA Marin Brewing Stolen Fire/Prometheus Elysian Brewing
Chinooker’d IPA Lawson’s Finest Liquids http://www.brewingnews. com/nipac/