Sip This: Firestone Walker Opal

Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Opal Farmhouse Ale: This beer is as multifaceted and attractive as the gem it’s named after. Officially a Wallonian (that’s the French-speaking part of Belgium) Saison (originally brewed in winter for the summer, hence seasonal), it’s got some slightly funky Belgian yeast at the heart of its brew, giving it a classic rustic under-flavor. Unlike some saisons, though, the result is more wine-like than barnyard.

Want to read the rest then do so at the Independent's site.

A Sensational Six Pack of Summer Beers

Sure, come summer you can drink up beers with blonde or light or even worse lite in their names, or you can pour yourself something with some flavor that still won't weigh you down or heat you up. It really is a blessed time of beer plenty right now, so enjoy, even while sweating in the sun. Here are six California brews that will please in very distinct and delicious ways, from German classic styles to wheat-based beers to saisons - a variation adapted from the farmhouse style of Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium - to, yes, even an IPA that with its higher alcohol level and heady does of hops still seems perfect for the backyard, or even a dark bar watching the Dodgers (as if they were on TV) or Angels.

Want to read the rest then do so at KCET's Food Blog.

Session Beers for Independence Day Drinking

Oh say, can you still see straight at the end of a beer-fueled Fourth? If you decided you couldn't abandon drinking your favorite IPA all day, despite its relatively high alcohol level (most IPAs clock in at about 7% ABV, or more), here's some advice about how to keep those bombs bursting in air and not in your head as your hangover starts during the fireworks finale.

Welcome to a session ale.

Want to read the rest then do so at KCET's Food Blog.

An Earth Day Feast

(Given Farm photo)

It's easy to think of every day as Earth Day when you get to enjoy the bounty that abounds in Santa Barbara County. Just walk the booths of any of the farmers' markets, or even better grow some great produce or fruit yourself and you will know just what I mean--we live in an eater's paradise.

That point will get underscored this Saturday, April 26th at the first ever Farm to Table Dinner at Earth Day from 7-9 pm at Alameda Park. After all the other hoopla celebrating gaia, a group of people will partake in an outdoor pop-up unlike any other. Plus it gives people in town the chance to feast on the food of chef Jeff Olsson, known as the longtime proprietor of New West Catering, whose recently opened Industrial Eats in Buellton has been earning raves (if a bit too far away raves). His eats will be matched with wine from Buttonwood Farm Winery and beer from Firestone Walker Brewing Co., too, so no one goes thirsty.

The evening kicks off with a reception around the gazebo (so wonderful worker bees can set the meal up as partiers look on) that features artisan snacks by Isabella Gourmet Foods (the fine upscale market-almost-deli on Figueroa) accompanied by 2012 Buttonwood Grenache Blanc, Firestone 805, and Lori's Lemonade--lovely local drinks all.

What will follow is Olsson's four-course family style feast (so you have to rub elbows and talk and learn the pleasures of the table).

Course 1: minestrone of white beans, green garlic, and black kale with olive oil grissini (breadsticks, that is), accompanied by the 2012 Buttonwood Signature Sauvignon Blanc

Course 2: little gems with farm egg, crispy pancetta, and shallot-thyme vinaigrette AND Chapala Farms braised mustard greens with charred tomato, fennel, and basil, accompanied by the 2013 Buttonwood Syrah Rose

Course 3: heirloom beets with fresh favas, Drake Farms goat cheese and burnt honey-cayenne vinaigrette AND curry roasted cauliflower with hot chile, sweet onion, and mint PLUS New Vineland bread and crackers, heirloom tomato butter, Buttonwood Farm olive oil and tapenades, accompanied by the 2010 Buttonwood Cabernet Franc

Course 4: spring berry pudding with olive oil cake and Rancho La Vina walnut cookie, Green Star coffee

"With our festival theme this year of Local Roots, we wanted to drive a conversation around locally grown food," says Sigrid Wright, Earth Day Festival Director. "Our global food system is incredibly intensive in terms of water and energy, and yet three times a day we all have the power to make choices that are better for the planet. Eating locally grown, in-season food is one way to make Earth Day every day." (OK, maybe someone influenced my lead to this blog post a tiny bit.)

"We also wanted to create something at Earth Day that helps stitch the fabric of community," Wright continued. "Putting people at a table to literally break bread together is very powerful. The farm-to-table dinner is about giving thanks for the abundance of our region, exposing people to an exquisitely designed vegetarian-friendly menu, and ultimately building community."

Tickets are being sold for $60 a person and guests must be 21 or older. For info, check out the CEC webpage.

Burgers, Beers, Punctuation Fears

Cattie said what all of us we're thinking when the waiter left the plate, "It's four barnacles." The surely looked that way, inch-wide onion rings from the fullest diameter of heft onions, leaving me wondering what might happen to piles of abundant onion innards. The panko crust gave them a definite crunch, and it stuck: you didn't have that awkward onion ring moment when the veggie slips free of its fried sheath, leaving you with a breaded straw and hot greasy onion down your chin. The spicy ranch, hard to get at since the rings were wider than the container holding the dressing, not only packed a peppery kick but also seemed a bit sour, hinting at buttermilk, perhaps. Overall the rings were fine, but they were four, and were $4.50.

Suffice to say, Eureka! Burger, despite its excited love for exclamation points (see the menu), didn't leave me running naked down the streets of Santa Barbara shouting about the thrill of discovery. (Here's hoping you know your Archimedes, or now I sound odder than I even am.) Eureka! Burger is a place that whelmed, particularly for the price.

What they definitely do best is put tasty craft beer on tap. But even then, beware, as they have a policy to give you less of a beer as its alcohol level goes up;* my 6 ounces of Firestone Double Double Barrel Ale--served as it was in Billy Barty's brandy snifter--certainly was a treat, but for $7, the treat was on me. And the swarming staff--we had a a waiter who took our order and checked in, but then every time something came to the table, a different person brought it--isn't quite up to speed with the definitely wide-ranging beer list, which I always find disappointing. The guy who dropped off that Double DBA said, "Well, it's really strong, it's 14%," when it's really only 12% (I know, I know, why quibble over 10%--it's going to weaken your knees no matter). Later when I asked our server whether the Cismontane Black Dawn, listed under porters & stouts, was a porter or a stout, he said he'd have to ask. I ordered it anyway and really liked the coffee-kicking stout, and later found out the name is actually Blacks Dawn, after the beach. Guess you can sweep some precision under the rug with a few exclamation points.

As for the rest of the food, my Pearl Street Blues burger was ok, a bit less medium rare than I like and asked for, a bit undistinguished--not even the blue seemed zippy enough, and the same was true for the chipotle ketchup, which isn't easy to do, I imagine. Chryss's shrimp po' boy came on ciabatta, and therefore someone had a miraine for no reason in New Orleans. Flavor wasn't that bad, she reported. Cattie's veggie pattie got one of the biggest thumb's up for the evening, something a bit unusual by answering the question "where's the beet?" plus you could order it sans bun, too. (The burger menu is nothing if not adaptable to all sorts of eaters.) The thin and short fries were literally a mixed lot-- some seemed cooked crisp, others were colder and mushier.

Sure, I'll probably go back as that beer list is a temptress I have no resistance for. And maybe the staff will learn as it works, assuming they keep that fully staffed. As for the food, there's more to try, so they've got that going for them. Although I have to admit upfront a starter called Osso Buco Riblets terrifies me in the way deep-fried butter at the county fair does.

*I know numerous other places do this too, but are usually more upfront about it.

But What If I Do It Every Day Anyway?

In case you didn't know, it's #IPA Day, so, at last, Twitter has served some useful function.

Georgeeats is particularly fond of IPAs, and not really just the hoppier the better, although I positively swill in the ale of the big boys. But balance, my friends, balance. You need that malt, the depth, the sweet, to make the bitter sing its terrifically trebly part. Plus hops is half as fun on the nose--forest of pine, groves of citrus. So if you want to make quick work of #IPA Day and opt for a double, you can never beat the best Russian River Brewing's Pliny the Elder. Not that Alpine's Pure Hoppiness or even, if you want to go local, Firestone's Double Jack, are anything to sneeze at (they are something to sniff at, though--breathe deep before you quaff).

As for single IPAs, it's hard to beat Hollister's Hippie Kicker, as fresh as its playful name.

On a side note, does anyone else find it funny that Wikipedia illustrates its IPA page with a photo of Fuller's IPA, when Fuller's flagship ale is its ESB? Oh well. Drink while we can, as the economy is only going to go further and further into the shitter thanks to dirty deeds done debt deal deep.