Drink With The Wench » Beer Bloggers Conference http://drinkwiththewench.com Drinking through the world, one beer at a time. Mon, 21 May 2012 18:53:21 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 Event Recap: Beer Dinner at Black Star Brewery http://drinkwiththewench.com/2011/02/event-recap-beer-dinner-at-black-star-brewery/ http://drinkwiththewench.com/2011/02/event-recap-beer-dinner-at-black-star-brewery/#comments Fri, 11 Feb 2011 03:03:09 +0000 Wenchie http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=6243

This past weekend, Black Star Beer played gracious host to its staff, partners (graphic designers, clients, distributors etc.) and myself. Upon arriving on Friday night, Black Star beer surprised all of us with a beer dinner.

I have attended and even hosted several beer dinners and beer pairings events, with each and every one being unique and special in its own regard. But I must admit that this particular dinner was one of the most unique and intimate I’ve experienced to date. Black Star lined up a super long banquet table right on the brewery floor next to the fermenters. The normal lights were turned off and the brewery was lit by candles and soft spotlights that illuminated the fermenters.

Aside from myself, the owner, brewmasters and maybe a few others — most of the group had never attended a beer dinner before. And many of them weren’t even familiar with the concept. Observing everyone’s reactions and expressions during the dinner was probably my highlight. Don’t get me wrong, the food and beer experience was amazing. But what was even more amazing was watching people experience the perfect synergy between beer and food for the first time. And I guarantee it will not be the last.

As with most food and beer related events that I attend, I often find myself too preoccupied with taking pictures of my food, taking notes on the pairings, as well as instantly posting my pictures and descriptions to Facebook and Twitter. One would assume that I would know better by now that half of the beer dinner experience is living in the moment and engaging with others and not living virtually on electronics and mobile devices.

I was once told at a really fancy beer dinner, “Funny how ANTI-social social media makes you, huh Ashley?” Touche my friend, touche.

Not familiar with my addiction to social media and incessant need to post everything I eat and drink, my surrounding neighbors were slightly confused by my obsessive-compulsive picture taking behaviors and lack of social engagement with the group. But this all changed once they realized who I was, why I was there, and what I was actually doing. However, the group was too lively and engaging for me to bury my head down in my laptop and phone and so, even before the first course was finished, I retired my mobile devices and virtual realm and joined the real life excitement.

The dinner itself was extremely impressive. It consisted of 5 courses, each paired with a different Great Northern Brewing Company beer. My notes are as follows….

FIRST COURSE
Ancho seared flank steak with an espresso mole sauce served on a sweet potato fritter paired with FRED’S BLACK LAGER.


Paring notes: The chocolate and coffee malt notes in Fred’s Black Lager complimented the espresso and cacao of the mole sauce while the light dry body of the lager helped to cut the spice from the ancho and balanced the heaviness of the dish. The sweetness of the fried sweet potato enhanced the malt character of the beer, but the light dry body of the beer cut the fat and oil. The overall earthiness of the dish paired really well with the roasted flavors in the beer. This was definitely a hit in my book.

SECOND COURSE
Spinach salad with goat cheese, orange supremes and candied pecans tossed with a honey-lemon poppyseed dressing paired with WHEATFISH WHEAT LAGER


Pairing notes: To start, I must admit that this was my first experience with a wheat lager. The texture and flavor of the beer was similar to wheat beers brewed with ale yeast, but the esters were not the same (actually, there were no esters). The beer was uniquely clean. As for the pairing, this was definitely a slam dunk. The salad, like the beer, was light, fruity and slight tart. This was an extremely refreshing pairing — one that I wouldn’t mind enjoying on a daily basis!

THIRD COURSE
Coconut-red curried shrimp soup garnished with fresh cilantro and peanuts paired with GOING TO THE SUN IPA.


Pairing notes: OMFG (really, it was that good). The soup was creamy and rich, without being too heavy. The heat from the curry was softened by hints of coconut milk and cooled by the cilantro. The crunch of the peanuts added a nice texture. The IPA was beautifully balanced, mostly pale malt base with a bit of crystal for coloring with Cascade and Centennial hops used for flavor and aroma. I’m a big advocate of pairing IPAs with spicy food. The pairing could not have been any more on spot.

Side note: As a student of beer, my latest preoccupation and obsession has been learning about hops and how they affect the flavor and aroma of beer. My favorite game to play is “name that hop.” And more and more these days, I also have been playing “guess the malt bill.” After tasting Going To The Sun for the first time, I wanted to take a shot at both games. (I think I scared the brewmasters a bit by bombarding them with questions.) I missed one of the hops (I said Chinook instead of Centennial), but other than that I wasn’t too far off.

FOURTH COURSE
Jerk chicken breast over black beans and rice with jicama slaw and pineapple salsa paired with BLACK STAR DOUBLE HOPPED GOLDEN LAGER


Pairing notes: This pairing was a fiesta on the tongue. The acidity from the pineapple salsa and the earthiness from the rice and beans were nice compliments to the heat from the jerk chicken. The beer was light-bodied, but extremely flavorful for a pale lager. Overall, the Black Star lager was definitely the star of the pairing, bringing a nice malty sweetness that complimented all the flavors of the dish.

FIFTH COURSE

Chocolate and cheese platter with smoked sea salt chocolate, bacon chocolate, aged swiss cheese, and manchengo paired with SNOWGHOST WINTER LAGER.

(Pardon the picture, I totally missed the ball on taking a pic of the last dish. This is a pic of the Yeti “Beer Wench” who snuck into the brewery during our dinner and was gracious enough to refill our glasses…)

Pairing notes: Can one really go wrong when pairing chocolate, cheese and beer? The bacon chocolate was absolutely amazing, but then, we all know that the Wench is obsessed with bacon. The SnowGhost winter lager was one of my favorite beers of the night, rich roasted malt flavors and slight hints of coffee — an excellent beer to pair with chocolate.

Whereas the food and the beers were great, it was the energy of the guests that really made the dinner special. Speeches were made, and lots of cheering, hooting and hollering happened all night long. Every single person at the event was happy to be there and extremely proud to work for or with Black Star.

Needless to say, I was a little blown away by the experience. And I was more than blown away with the rockstar treatment I received. The Black Star crew treated me as one of their own, always making sure I had a beer in my hand and constantly checking in to make sure I was doing okay.

Good people. Good food. Good beer. What more could a girl want in life?

CHEERS!

]]> http://drinkwiththewench.com/2011/02/event-recap-beer-dinner-at-black-star-brewery/feed/ 2 Press Release: World’s First Beer Bloggers Conference Wraps Up in Colorado http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/11/press-release-world%e2%80%99s-first-beer-bloggers-conference-wraps-up-in-colorado/ http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/11/press-release-world%e2%80%99s-first-beer-bloggers-conference-wraps-up-in-colorado/#comments Tue, 09 Nov 2010 19:55:03 +0000 Wenchie http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=5654

108 Online Beer Writers Discussed State of Beer Blogging

Boulder, Colorado – 108 beer bloggers from around the United States wrapped up the first-ever Beer Bloggers Conference on Sunday in Boulder, Colorado. Attendees enthusiastically claimed success and started looking forward to 2011.

“It was a great mix of sessions, events, and time to network”, explained Carla Companion, author of The Beer Babe. “I would certainly attend again, and the people invited were credible, quality bloggers who are examples of why we’re all so passionate about we do.”

Beer bloggers are considered the “new media” when it comes to the art of critiquing beer and have a role in educating consumers about the beers they drink. According to conference organizers, there are almost 600 citizen beer bloggers in North America alone.

IMG_1264
The event also attracted industry representatives, including speakers Greg Koch from Stone Brewing, Julia Herz from the Brewers Association, and Jessica Daynor from Draft Magazine. In addition to talks and presentations, there were many beer-oriented events including dinners at Boulder Beer Company and Oskar Blues.

One of the featured events at the conference was Live Beer Blogging, a round-robin, speed-dating style of beer tasting in which 12 breweries each poured beers in five minute segments for 12 tables of bloggers, who tasted and reviewed the beer live. “I had a great time doing the live blogging”, offerd Justin Patti from New Belgium Brewery. “I didn’t know quite what to expect, but ended up having so much fun. Everyone was excited and really into sampling the beer and writing about it.”

IMG_1256Conference organizer Zephyr Adventures announced there will be two Beer Blogger Conferences in 2011, one in Portland, Oregon and one in London, England, with dates to be announced soon.

Complete information about the conference can be found at www.BeerBloggersConference.org. Zephyr also organizes the Wine Bloggers Conference and the Fitness & Health Bloggers Conference and co-organizes the International Food Bloggers Conference.

]]> http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/11/press-release-world%e2%80%99s-first-beer-bloggers-conference-wraps-up-in-colorado/feed/ 1 UPDATED 2010 Beer Bloggers Conference Confirmed Attendee List http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/10/2010-beer-bloggers-conference-confirmed-attendee-list/ http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/10/2010-beer-bloggers-conference-confirmed-attendee-list/#comments Sat, 30 Oct 2010 18:16:46 +0000 Wenchie http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=4834

Everyone keeps asking me if there is a list of attendees for the Inaugural Beer Bloggers Conference. The event organizers have given me the go-ahead to post the list of current registries. Note: this list is continuously updating. For ease of use, the updated bloggers will be highlighted in RED!

Allan Wright – Zephyr Adventures www.ZephyrAdventures.com
Reno Walsh — Zephyr Adventures    www.ZephyrAdventures.com
Ashley Routson — Drink With the Wench    drinkwiththewench.com
Gerard Walen — Road Trips for Beer    www.roadtripsforbeer.com
E.T. Crowe — Wolverine State Brewing Co.    www.wolverinebeer.com
Ryan Conklin — Denver Bartender Examiner    www.examiner.com/x-28228-Denver-Bartender-Examiner
Lucy Saunders — Best of American Beer and Food    www.bestofamericanbeerandfood.com
Peter Kennedy — Simply Beer    www.simplybeer.com
John Holl — The Beer Briefing    www.beernexus.com
Tamre Mullins — Girls’ Pint Out    www.girlspintout.com
Jennifer Litz — Girls’ Pint Out    www.girlspintout.com
Kerry Finsand — Taplister    www.taplister.com
Bob Mack — World Class Beverages    http://worldclassbeverages.wordpress.com/
Anne Fitten Glenn — Brewgasm    www.brewgasm.com
Angelo de Ieso – Brewpublic    www.brewpublic.com
Margaret Lut — Brewpublic    www.brewpublic.com
Sean Inman — Beer Search Party    www.beersearchparty.com
Sanjiv Gajiwala — Blue Ribbon Blog    www.blog.pabstblueribbon.com
Dan Fisher (Dan on Tap) — Life on Tap    www.lifeontap.net
Dale Miskimins — sodakbeer    http://sodakbeer.com
Billy Broas — BillyBrew    http://billybrew.com
PJ Hoberman — Starting a Brewery    www.startingabrewery.wordpress.com
James Marks — Columbus Beer Guys    http://columbusbeerguys.wordpress.com/
Ronnie Crocker — Beer, TX    http://blogs.chron.com/beertx
Carla Gesell-Streeter — Hoperatives    www.hoperatives.com
Tom Streeter — Hoperatives    www.hoperatives.com
Alexis Fritzsche – Ale Babe    www.alebabe.com
Rick Hagerbaumer — Big Foamy Head    www.bigfoamyhead.com
Carlos Swinney — Mendocino Brewing Co.    www.mendobrew.com
Jason Fellon — Beer Cruiser    www.beercruiser.net
Sara Wade – Monarch Beverage    www.monarch-beverage.com
Julia Herz — Craft Beer Muses    www.craftbeer.com
Alison McGee —  From This Pint On    www.fromthispinton.com
Andy Dunfee – Hippo Lane    www.hippolane.org
David Jensen — Beer 47    www.beer47.com
Jennie Chen — MisoHungry    http://misohungrynow.blogspot.com
John Knox — MisoHungry    http://misohungrynow.blogspot.com
J.R. Woolsey — Consultant
Mark Jackson – Simply Beer    www.simplybeer.com
Zach Rosen — Santa Barbara Craft Beer    http://www.examiner.com/x-32901-Santa-Barbara-Craft-Beer-Examiner
Dustin & Libby — Beer 2 Buds http://www.beer2buds.com
Jenn Prosser  – Jenn and Beer    www.jennandbeer.com @jennandbeer
Jonathan Shikes —  Beer Man at Westword Mag    http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/beer_man/
Greg Koch  – Stone Brewing    www.stonebrewing.com
Jacob McKean – Stone Brewing    www.stonebrewing.com
Lauren Polinsky  – Durham Craft Beer Examiner    http://www.examiner.com/x-53634-Durham-Craft-Beer-Examiner
Cathy Clark —  Brewtiful www.brewtiful.com
Jim Pavlik —  Central State Asylum www.csasylum.wordpress.com
Jessica Daynor —   Draft Magazine www.draftmag.com
Ryan Ross —   Karl Strauss Brewing Company www.karlstrauss.com
Jay Brooks — Brookston Beer Bulletin www.brookstonbeerbulletin.com
Ian Cowpar — 2 Beer Guys http://www.2beerguys.com
Sean Jansen – 2 Beer Guys http://www.2beerguys.com
Ryan Jansen – Beer Guys http://www.2beerguys.com
Chuck Noll — World Class Beverages Arizona http://az.worldclassbeverages.com/
Jennifer Morrison –  Ales for All http://alesforall.blogspot.com
 Willis F Jackson III – Mashtun Technologies www.mashtunbeer.com
 Mike Besser — BrewDad www.brewdad.com
 Steven Ward — Nova Beer Fly http://novabeerfly.wordpress.com
 Doug Brumley — Fledgling Brewer http://www.fledglingbrewer.com/
 Tiffany Adamowski – 99 bottles http://www.99bottles.net/blog
Jay Rascoe — Guns and Tacos www.gunsandtacos.com
Kami Marquardt — Great Lakes Brewing www.greatlakesbrewing.com
Lauren Boveington — Great Lakes Brewing www.greatlakesbrewing.com
Dionne Cocktail Diva
Mariah Calagione — Dogfish Head Craft Brewery www.dogfish.com
Sebbie Buhler — Rogue Ales www.rogue.com
Kyle Freeman — Jenn and Beer www.jennandbeer.com
 Michael Bussmann — New Belgium Brewing www.newbelgium.com
 Owen McCuen — Ferment Nation www.fermentnation.com
Greg Krsak — KSW Beer www.kswbeer.com
 Ilya Feynberg — Damn That’s Good Beer! www.damnthatsgoodbeer.com
 Jay Wilson — Brewvana www.brewvana.wordpress.com
Tom Wilmes — Boulder Daily Camera www.dailycamera.com
Nate Fochtman — The Beer Ace www.thebeerace.com
Josie Finsand — Taplister www.taplister.com
Tom Wilmes — Boulder Daily Camera www.dailycamera.com
Ryan Murphy — The Daily Pint www.dailypint.wordpress.com
Rick Andrews –  Ales from the Crypt http://alesfromthecrypt.blogspot.com
Stephanie Jerzy — Drinks for the House http://drinksforthehouse.blogspot.com
Will Blankenship — Colorado Beer & Food www.cobeerandfood.com
Erik Boles –Beer Tap TV www.beertaptv.com
Eli Shayotovich — Beer Tap TV www.beertaptv.com
Stephen Johnson — New Brew Thursday www.newbrewthursday.com
Patricia Shepherd
Dan Weitz – Boulder Beer www.boulderbeer.com
Sean McNeal – Wayward Productions
Chad Melis — Oskar Blues www.oskarblues.com
Travis Poling — Beer Across Texas http://beeracrosstexas.com
Mark Drudge — Pencil and Spoon http://pencilandspoon.blogspot.com/
Adrienne Rinaldi — BeerSnobChick www.beersnobchick.com
Meghan Storey — CraftBeer.com www.craftbeer.com
Zander Hartung — The Beer Ace www.thebeerace.com
Jeff Bull — He-Brew Men’s Brewing Society www.hebrewbrewing.com
Nancy Maddaloni — Great Brewers www.greatbrewers.com
Reggie Currie — Cheers for Beers www.cheersforbeers.com
Carol Dekkers — Microbrews USA www.microbrewsusa.wordpress.com
Jake Koeneman –  iBrewToo www.ibrewtoo.com
Carla Companion — The Beer Babe www.thebeerbabe.com
Lisa Mallen — Zephyr Adventures www.ZephyrAdventures.com
Wendy Littlefield — Belgian Experts www.belgianexpertsblog.com
Sanjay Reddy –  Not So Professional Beer Blog www.notsoprobeer.com
Julian Green –  MillerCoors www.millercoors.com
Jeff Bowles — Huck Fin’s Beer Buzz http://huckfinsbeerbuzz.com
Renée DeLuca — The Brewer’s Daughter www.brewersdaughter.com/
Dustin Romero — Widmer Brothers Brewing www.widmer.com
Candace Lacy – NC Beer Wench
Hagan Blount — Wandering Foodie http://wanderingfoodie.com
Erik Peterson –  Bull and Bush www.bullandbush.com
Jen Cadmus — Bull and Bush www.bullandbush.com
Mike Laur – Beer Drinkers Guide to Colorado www.beerdrinkersguidetocolorado.com
Danielle Quatrochi — New Planet Beer www.newplanetbeer.com 

--

And then there is my ongoing Twitter list. I will do my best to update this list as much as possible. If you are registered and would like to have your name added to the list, leave a comment on this post and I will get you on it ASAP.

Twitter list to follow: TWITTER LIST

CONFIRMED BBC 2010 ATTENDEES

]]> http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/10/2010-beer-bloggers-conference-confirmed-attendee-list/feed/ 26 Chief Blogger Named For First Beer Bloggers Conference http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/06/chief-beer-blogger-named-for-first-beer-bloggers-conference/ http://drinkwiththewench.com/2010/06/chief-beer-blogger-named-for-first-beer-bloggers-conference/#comments Tue, 15 Jun 2010 22:41:17 +0000 Wenchie http://drinkwiththewench.com/?p=4793

The cat is out of the bag. Some of you might have figured it out for yourselves, some of you have heard it from me, and some of you may have read the announcement … Either way, I am very honored and excited to reveal that yours truly has been selected as the Chief Blogger of the Inaugural Beer Bloggers Conference that will take place November 7-9th in Boulder, CO.

Now there are some things I need to clear up before describing my involvement in the conference. In no way shape or form does the title Chief Blogger imply that I have been crowned the “best” beer blogger. Oh no, there is no way in H E double hockey sticks that my 2.5 year old blog has earned me such honors. Although I aspire to be like them, I am definitely no Stan, Jay, Stephen or Charlie.

So why have I been deemed Chief Blogger of the Beer Blogger Conference? Well for starters, I have attended the Wine Bloggers Conference, I know its founders, Zephyr Adventures, and I am familiar with their organic process of organization, and their concept of using a collaborative voice to drive the contents and flow of the conference. I also am familiar with the steps leading up to the conference — determining panels, recruiting speakers, nominations for awards, social media promotion for the event, etc…

For the past week or so, the rumor mill has been churning and I have received several calls, emails, texts, DMs and the like about my involvement in the Beer Bloggers Conference. Consider this your official confirmation. It should also be noted, at this time, that I will be attending the Beer Bloggers Conference as both Ashley “The Beer Wench” and Ashley of Mutineer Magazine, one of the event sponsors.

In my opinion, the Beer Bloggers Conference is an excellent opportunity to bring together some of the most passionate craft beer advocates, enthusiasts and evangelists in the world together. The conference is not limited to just experienced bloggers. In fact, newbies are highly encouraged to attend because there will be so much information available to assist in the development of a beer blog.

Personally, I am really excited to be involved in something that will help to promote, strengthen and increase the awareness of the beer blogosphere. In just 6 months, I have learned a lot about over 100 of my fellow beer bloggers through my Featured Beer Blogger Interview series. I have already had the opportunity to meet nearly 100 fellow beer bloggers in my travels all across the U.S., and I really hope to get the opportunity to reconnect with many of them in Boulder.

For all details surrounding the events as well as updates and news releases, check out the official site HERE.

Naturally, I will also be managing the Twitter process for the 2010 Beer Bloggers Conference. We have set up the Twitter account @beerbloggers and I will be Tweeting and Retweeting about the conference. So sign up to follow our updates and please use the hash tag #BBC10 on all your Tweets about the conference!

I also want to give a shout out to the sponsors who have made this event possible:

Boulder Beer Company
Oskar Blues Brewery
Draft Magazine
Mutineer Magazine
Boulder CVB
Colorado Brewers Guild

And if you or anyone you know is interested in sponsoring the Inagural Beer Bloggers Conference, contact Allan at info@beerbloggersconference.org!

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Also, for those of you who are curious to know who has confirmed registration, I will begin the compile a list on my site and update it as frequently as I can. I will only post people who want to be posted, so if you don’t see your name on the list, leave me a comment of shoot me a message!

CONFIRMED ATTENDEES

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