Drink With The Wench » twitter taste live

First Twitter Beer vs Wine Event RESULTS

The Beer Wench — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 01:07:07 +0000

Question: What happens when you get a phenomenal chef, a wine geek and a beer wench in the same house?

Answer:An endless waterfall of yummy booze and ridiculously delicious food.

Question: What happens when the aforementioned trio are as equally obsessed with Social Media and Twitter as they are food, wine and beer?

Answer:A crazy virtual beer vs. wine dinner … broad-casted live on the Internet … in a house full of Internet geeks, techies and Twitter-a-holics.

This past weekend I traveled to Tampa, FL to tri-host a very interesting an unique event with 3 of my good friends from Twitter. The event was a Beer Vs. Wine “smack-down” Dinner – the first of its kind on Twitter Taste Live.

The tasting menu was designed and orchestrated by the lovely Dolce Debbie, Executive Chef and Culinary Director for Savory Adventures as well as a Personal Chef and Personal Trainer. Dolce Debbie(@docledebbie on Twitter) currently resides in Tampa, FL – with her crazy, yet adorable, husband Barry (@barryfrangipane on Twitter). Debbie & Barry have toured Italy extensively and together they own Savory Adventures, a company that offers a unique and exciting way to explore Italy, its land, its people, its wine and its foods.

Matt Scott(aka @mmWine on Twitter) provided the wines for the pairing. Based in West Palm Beach, Matt is the author of the wine blog “A Good Time With Wine.” He is also the co-founder of ZsaZsa and Company, an Internet based wine store that offers an elegant yet fun way to give gifts of wine (you can follow them on Twitter – @zsazsaandco).

Naturally, The Beer Wench brought the beers.

If you missed the live streaming of our event, you can check out a video clip of it below (Disclaimer: I say “um” and “like” entirely way too much. But ummm you will like have to ummm just deal with it.)

First Twitter Beer vs. Wine Dinner VIDEO CLIP

Here is the menu, both the beer and wine pairings for each dish … and the winners:

Appetizers – Fried Rice Ball w Shrimp, Bruschetta, Fried Zucchini Straws
Beer Pairing Lagunitas Czech Style Pilsner
Wine Pairing Bisson Prosseco 2007

WINNER = BEER

First Plate – Parmesan Risotto
Wine Pairing Bonci Verdicchio Carpaneto 2007
Beer Pairing Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale

WINNER = WINE

Second Plate – Pistachio encrusted Sea Bass
Wine Pairing Deforville Chardonnay 2007
Beer Pairing Jolly Pumpkin Brewery Calabaza Blanca

WINNER = TIE

Main dish – Grilled rack of lamb encrusted in Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs and rosemary.
Wine Pairing Pievano Sagratino Montefalco 2003
Beer Pairing Dogfish Head Raison E’Etre

WINNER = TIE

Dessert – Lemon Cake with strawberries marinated in Limoncello.

In the end, the real winner was the food. Debbie worked her ass off in the kitchen all night, while Matt and I ate, drank and chatted with both the guests at the party as well as our viewers and twitter followers online. She is the true star of the party as well as the gracious hostess who made it all happen!

Also want to send out a big THANK YOU to Barry Frangipane. He played the role of host, waiter, busboy and dish slave very very well.

Of course, a final thank you to all participants – both in person, in the chat room and on Twitter. With out all of your support and interaction, this event would not have been so successful! Big kisses! XOXO!

CHEERS!!!

The First TWITTER Beer vs. Wine Dinner

The Beer Wench — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 18:14:13 +0000

Tonight I will be co-hosting my very first beer dinner.

Now I’ve hosted tastings, pairings & beer parties. I’ve also ran beer tastings at bars and restaurants. I’ve also done staff training (for both beer & wine).

But this event is completely different. Two of my other “Twitter” buds and I are tri-hosting a beer vs. wine event. While the idea itself is not entirely unique, the execution of the event is the first in its kind.

Unfortunately, tonight’s event does not have an official “name.” The closest any of us have gotten to naming the event is calling it “@docledebbie @mmWine @TheBeerWench Twitter Taste Live event.” And that doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue very well, now does it?

If you follow me on Twitter, you are probably more than aware of this event. If you are unfamiliar with Twitter, you probably have no idea what I am talking about. Either way, let us clarify the specifics!

As a result of Twitter, I have been connected to some pretty amazing people. Some of my closest friends are people that I’ve met via Twitter. Before you start thinking that I’m lame for meeting friends on Twitter … I ask you to reconsider. Twitter has connected me with many people that are as passionate (if not more) and obsessed with the world of food & beverage as I am.

One such person is Dolce Debbie (aka Chef Debbie Frangipane), Executive Chef and Culinary Director for Savory Adventures as well as a Personal Chef and Personal Trainer. Dolce Debbie (@docledebbie on Twitter) currently resides in Tampa, FL – with her crazy, yet adorable, husband Barry (@barryfrangipane on Twitter). Debbie & Barry have toured Italy extensively and together they own Savory Adventures, a company that offers a unique and exciting way to explore Italy, its land, its people, its wine and its foods.

I first met Dolce Debbie through a mutual Twitter friend, Matt Scott (aka @mmWine on Twitter). Based in West Palm Beach, Matt is the author of the wine blog “A Good Time With Wine.” He is also the co-founder of ZsaZsa and Company, an Internet based wine store that offers an elegant yet fun way to give gifts of wine (you can follow them on Twitter – @zsazsaandco).

Matt and Debbie co-hosted a Twiter Taste Live event back in February. The theme was Piedmont, Italy. Dolce Debbie prepared a fantastic and delicious spread of Italian foods traditional to the region of Piedmont. Matt paired some equally excellent wines with each course. Several people from Twitter, including myself, attended the event. I spent the night alternating between stuffing my face full and twittering non-stop. Matt did a live U-stream video of the event. You can find the original footage on his blog.

The day after the tasting, the three of us (well and Barry) sat down and started planning out the next event. I suggested doing a wine versus beer dinner … and the clocks started turning.

Tonight will be the first Twitter Beer vs. Wine Dinner event … in the entire history of Twitter. Dolce Debbie has created a 5 course menu. Matt and The Beer Wench are going head to head on the first four courses. Obviously, I will be pairing beer and Matt with be pairing wine. (Bring it on Matty!!!)

The menu is set. Dolce Debbie has already turned into a madwoman in the kitchen. I am actually sitting at a table next to her kitchen (I am the official taste tester) – so I can say from first hand experience that she is just tearing it up in the kitchen! This morning she made us all enormous Belgian waffles SMOTHERED in whip cream, fresh berries & sliced bananas.

Matt and I are both here – and both of us have arrived safely with our beverages of choice. So without any further ado, allow me to present the tasting menu … complete with the wine and beer pairings. The beers have been bought, so there is no going back now. HOWEVER, I would love comments and feedback about my choices. Thanks!

Appetizers-Fried Rice Ball w Shrimp, Bruschetta, Fried Zucchini Straws
Beer Pairing Lagunitas Czech Style Pilsner
Wine Pairing Bisson Prosseco 2007

First Plate – Parmesan Risotto
Wine Pairing Bonci Verdicchio Carpaneto 2007
Beer Pairing Bell’s Two-Hearted Ale

Second Plate – Pistachio encrusted Sea Bass
Wine Pairing Deforville Chardonnay 2007
Beer Pairing Jolly Pumpkin Brewery Calabaza Blanca

Main dish – Grilled rack of lamb encrusted in Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs and rosemary.
Wine Pairing Pievano Sagratino Montefalco 2003
Beer Pairing Dogfish Head Raison E’Etre

Dessert – Lemon Cake with strawberries marinated in Limoncello.

Interested in watching the event?

Live video streaming starts at 6:30, with the event itself starting at 7pm. Video stream will be on the Twiter Taste Live home page as well as HERE with a ustream chat room for viewers to interact during the event (you don’t have to be on Twitter to view the ustream video and interact in the chat room).

DFH Twitter Taste Live RECAP

The Beer Wench — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 21:32:08 +0000

In this post I am going to attempt to recap the Dogfish Head Twitter Taste Live event from Saturday March 7th 2009. Now mind you, I did use the word attempt.

Yesterday I made a last minute decision to purchase a webcam and setup a live ustream feed for the event. Having neither used ustream nor a webcam prior to last night, I think that things went fairly well. Obviously, I could have been more organized … but that is something to work on for the future.

The DFH Twitter Taste Live started out as all TTL events seem to start – early. Several tweeters joined the TTL feed earlier in the day – posting updates about the beer and wine they were drinking at the time. Even the “official” Dogfish Head Tweeter (@dogfishbeer) started the night out a bit early with Dogfish Head Aprihops. After addmitting his lack of patience, Dogfish Head brewer zymoid popped open a DFH 60 min IPA prior to the event. Naturally, my day began early as well. I started off with some Tom Eddy New Zealand (aka TENZ) Sauvignon Blanc during lunch. I then moved onto Radford Dale Freedom Pinot Noir just prior to the DFH TTL.

The three Dogfish Head beers that were “officially” tasted for this event were: Red & White, Fort, and Palo Santo Marron. Instead of posting my personal tasting notes as usual, I have decided to post the tasting notes of the tweeters from the DFH TTL event. However, I will try to follow the format that I usually use in my beer reviews. This should be interesting … and fun.

All the picutres of the beers are compliments of @kallardnyc. Thanks! For other really great picutres from the night, check out @lemasney’s FLICKER PAGE.

I appologize in advnace to those of you who are unfamiliar with Twitter and do not understand the way in which I am presenting my tasting notes. Hopefully you can get the jist! Cheers!

Red & White

Brewery: Dogfish Head

Style: zymoid: @beertweeter Calif pinot noir grape juice is used. Yeast is Belgian wit type.

zymoid: @panache We like to play with wood, and originally started with pinot noir barrels from CA. Thought a suped up wit beer would be fun.

Color: angelostzelepis: Nice copper color, a lot of sediment

stfler22: the sediments in the red & white give the brew a unique texture and balance beautiful color!!

Carbonation: lemasney: carbonation is not visually evident, but very evident in the palate. Like an ocean. The body is a summer sunset, with rain in the morn.

Aroma: zymoid: I’ve got the 09 R&W. Some bubble gum esters in the nose, tannins/oakiness and all kinds of fun. A party in the mouth.

beercommdood: fruity and tart smelling, nice solid finger of creamy head, picking up the wine notes in the nose

Mouthfeel: bsimi: Very creamy texture… nice beer !

Flavor: beercommdood: Very sweet and malty, high fruity taste with wine coming through strong.

Finish: darknova306: @beertweeter The alcohol isn’t noticeable at first, but I’m getting a nice warmth after the swallow. Works well with the wine flavor.

kingfarmwine: the pinot noir barrels really enhances the complexity

Pairings: beertweeter: http://twitpic.com/1x5q5 – so earlier I decided to pick up some Chatham Littlneck clams and steam them in Red&White

beertweeter: this works nice with dank cheese http://twitpic.com/1x4l5 as well – Raw Blue Cave Aged

Interesting Facts: dogfishbeer: @zymoid And Sam’s fave wine is Pinot Noir.

zymoid: Tooting the horn alittle here: R&W won gold medal in last years GABF.

Comments:beertweeter: the Red & White is one of the top 3 I’ve had from Dogfish…huge bonus for creativity!

zymoid: @AngelosTzelepis R&W is great in a wine goblet. Lets it warm up and releases the aromatics nicely

Fort

Brewery: Dogfish Head (lemasney: Dogfish head is brewing beers that make you rethink the very state of beer as an idea. They ask you to set aside your beer definition.)

Style: zymoid: @panache We brew a strong ale base and then add a BUNCH of raspberry into secondary ferment.

zymoid:@beerphilosopher Some sugar is used in the kettle, but the fruit really carries the load.

zymoid:@beercommdood Not many hops in this, mostly malt and fruit doing the work.

Color: boothbay: For it’s powerful raspberry taste and aroma…it’s color seems lighter/tricky.

Carbonation: beercommdood: Fort is very fizzy. The head was very crisp and popping like Rice Krispies. Head now completely gone, no lacing.

Aroma: beercommdood: Getting some caramel on the nose with the berries. Anyone else?

darknova306: Lots of raspberry in the nose, with a little bit of caramel malt. Smells like a little tartness is there, too.

Flavor: lemasney: taste is deep, layered with flavors: raisin, cherry, plum, raspberry, citrus, bitterness, burns on the way down. So nice.

lemasney: definitely brandy, wheat, raspberry, and honey. Delicious. Agitation brings a strong aroma of whiskey, oak, and leaf mold.

Finish: kallardnyc: Fort is warm in the chest like a Port or Madeira.

Pairings: dogfishbeer: I’d drink this with a sliver of great dark chocolate.

Comments: beertweeter: this is like Raspberry Rock Candy…insane!

beerphilosopher : Friends don’t let friends drink Fort and Tweet

panache: Well the Fort was great. Don’t know if I would have bought it before today, but now I definitely will! Nice work @zymoid !

Palo Santo

Brewery: Dogfish Head (dogfishbeer: You HAVE to come to the brewery and see the massive tank made from Palo Santo Wood. it’s way cool.)

Style: zymoid: @rgrace99 Gotta say, the wood is the key, yeast is 2nd ary for this beer.

zymoid: @BrewDad Yes, it almost comes off as a fruit beer– cherries esp. it is all from the Palo wood. Amazing tree.

zymoid: @beertweeter We source yeast from both Whitelabs and Wyeast.

Color: hopwild: - PSM – pours like used motor oil – more like a black ale than a brown!

erikboles: as we say on @BeerTapTV “Dark as a struck match”

Carbonation: hopwild: - PSM – pours like used motor oil

Aroma: semperfifi: Partner says “Cherry wood flavor…”

beertweeter: Burnt Campfire Wet Wood Next morning with a malt sandwich?

beercommdood: Palo Santo nose: molasses, vanilla, peat, and burnt sugar cookies

Mouthfeel: brewdad: 12% it does not come off this strong in the flavor. The wood must have mellowed the flavor.

Flavor: angelostzelepis: Coffee, caramel, vanilla working for me today. I love this beer.

Finish: erikboles: there is a very very subtle taste of how fired ceramics smell on the back-end of the PSM

Pairings: zymoid: Y’all, save some of your chocolate for the PSM. It’s a great pairing.

zymoid: Palo Santo is a great mixer too. Try 50/50 with our Punkin ale.

Interesting Fact: kallardnyc: After the 1906 San Fran earthquake, wire insulators were made from Palo Santo wood because the was a shortage of materials.

Comments: thebeerwench: Dudes Palo Santo wood is a fucking bitch. Do you know how hard it is to cut down, let alone make a huge ass fermenting tank with?

RANDOM WENCHNESS

Somehow I missed this tweet from later in the tasting – zymoid: @TheBeerWench So who are you?

My bragging rights – dogfishbeer: @TheBeerWench That’s why we love you!

Great comment – beertweeter: @dogfishbeer @zymoid @thebeerwench the best! great peeps, great brews! I’m sticking around

Another great comment – hopwild: thanks @dogfishbeer and @zymoid for joining us! thx @thebeerwench for hosting!

And lastly - dogfishbeer:@TheBeerWench – Thanks so much for hosting the tasting tonight, that was great fun! – YOU ARE VERY WELCOME. Thank you Dogfish Head for making the best fucking off-centered ales for the crazy off-centered people like myself! Cheers!

Dogfish Head Twitter Taste Live

The Beer Wench — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:58:42 +0000

Oh yes … yet another blog post on the amazing powers of Twitter.

Go ahead, roll your eyes.

I recognize that most people in the world are oblivious to Twitter. And a very small percentage of those that are aware of its existence actually have a Twitter account … and most of those people probably do not use it.

I can safely bet that at least half of the people reading this post have never even heard of Twitter.

On the flip side, the other half of you probably linked to this post from Twitter … further demonstrating the power of Twitter.

A few months ago, I wrote a post about my obsession with Twitter. The following in an excerpt from that post:

Twitter allows people to interact with other like-minded individuals that have similar interests and levels of intelligence. Twitter also allows for an instantaneous exchange of information with others.

Twitter has connected me with people all over the world who share my passion for beer, wine & food. On Twitter I follow beer bloggers, beer connoisseurs, homebrewers, craft breweries, wine bloggers, winemakers, wine marketers, food bloggers, chefs, foodies, winos, hopheads … and many individuals who work in the hospitality and restaurant industry. We all exchange information via Twitter: tasting notes, beer reviews, wine reviews, restaurant reviews, beer news, wine news, bacon news …

As a result of Twitter, I have made some amazing connections and and friendships. Twitter has provided me with many experiences and opportunities that I would not have had otherwise. This may sound strange to non-Twitter users, but it is the truth.

Twitter’s amazing rate of popularity and growth has led to the development of topic specific platforms outside of Twitter that work in conjunction with it. One such “spawn of Twitter” is TWITTER TASTE LIVE.

ABOUT TWITTER TASTE LIVE:Twitter Taste LIVE is a ground breaking tasting format that utilizes the popular social networking tool Twitter to connect passionate consumers with people that share their passion! TTL began as a series of online wine tastings bringing the worlds top winemakers, importers and bloggers directly to consumers all over the world. As an open platform driven by the users, we quickly found demand for other topics including Craft Beer, Cigars, Spirits, and varied Culinary topics.

Originally, TLL was centered around wine tasting. Eventually, beer was added to the roster. The first TTL beer tasting was “An Introduction to Trappist Ales.” It was held this past January and was tremendously successful.

Being both a beer geek and Twitter addict, it was only natural that the brilliant creator of Twitter Taste Live approach The Beer Wench regarding future beer topics and assistance with running TTL beer tastings.

Needless to say, my ideas are endless. However, I was able to narrow it down to two beer themes in which I am extremely interested: beers with exotic ingredients and lambics (specifically gueuzes).

The first of hopefully many Twitter Taste LIVE Beer events co-hosted by @TheBeerWench is scheduled for SATURDAY MARCH 7th 2009. The theme is “Exotic Ingredients in Beer Featuring Dogfish Headhead.” The tasting will begin promptly at 8PM EST.

Dogfish Head beers to be tasted:

Fort – world’s strongest fruit beer with wild raspberries.
Red & White- made with pinot noir grapes.
Palo Santo Marron – An unfiltered, unfettered, unprecedented brown ale aged in handmade wooden brewing vessels

For obvious reasons, I am totally stoked about this event. I’m looking forward to tasting some amazing beers from one of my all-time favorite craft breweries with my fellow beer loving tweeters!

Cheers!

TWITTER Underground Beer Lair

The Beer Wench — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 23:24:42 +0000

It is no secret that The Beer Wench is addicted to Twitter. My followers on Twitter are very aware of this “problem.” My friends, coworkers, bosses, family members and random strangers also know about my sick obsession with Twitter.

I am guilty of twittering while at work … at restaurants … on vacation … and even while driving (a controversial topic). I am especially known for twittering while intoxication … TWI baby!

My iphone and the Twitterific application make it possible for me to be on Twitter anywhere and anytime.

I am a huge advocate of Twitter. I talk about it to everyone … everywhere … just about everyday.

Why do I love Twitter so much? In real life, it is almost impossible to control your environment. You can chose your friends, but you cannot necessarily chose your coworkers, your clients, your customers … the people who work in the stores at which you shop, the bartenders and servers in the restaurants you visit … etc. BUT … on Twitter … you can control your entire social circle.

Twitter allows people to interact with other like-minded individuals with similar interests and levels of intelligence. And Twitter also allows for an instantaneous exchange of information with others.

In fact, a separate Twitter-related website called Twitter Taste Live has been created by food, wine & beer enthusiasts … for fellow winos, foodies & hopheads … further connecting them through virtual tastings!!!

Twitter has made me a smarter blogger … a smarter consumer … a smarter taster & reviewer.

I want to share all of my Twitter friends with the world! So I spent a good part of my afternoon compiling a list of all the people on Twitter that I follow that love beer. Some of them are beer bloggers, some are homebrewers, some are craft breweries … many are wine lovers that also share a passion for beer … Regardless of what aspect of the beer realm they come from, each person in my underground lair possesses some sort of passion and enthusiasm for beer! So check them out!

THE WENCH’S TWITTER UNDERGROUND BEER LAIR