Big Beaver Brewing Co.

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When recently in Colorado, I of course had to try a new brewery. This time I checked out the Big Beaver Brewing Co in Loveland.

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Wanted to get a taste of all their beer so opted for a sampler — the Beaver Teaser. They give you hefty 3oz. of 8 beers for $6.50. They say it’s only supposed to be 2oz each but that doesn’t happen. All the beers have great names, as noted below to the left.

A description of the beers, per the brewery:

Wonder Weiner Wheat: This beer is brewed in the Bavarian tradition with notes of cloves and bananas. No, we do not put bananas or cloves in the beer. The aromas are produced by special yeast that are neither lager nor ale yeast. ABV: 4.6%, IBU: 10

Bust-a-Nut Brown: Our most popular beer, this brown ale is brewed in the Northern England malt forward tradition. A light, sweet malt flavor with a clean, nutty finish. ABV: 4.6%, IBU: 10

Shaved Tail Ale: This classic Belgian ale is brewed with Belgian yeast, hops and malt. It contains a minimal amount of hops, which gives it a crisp finish without the bitter bite. ABV: 6.0%, IBU: 10

Juicy Peach Ale: A sweet twist on Belgian ale, this beer has the light aroma and flavor of a ripe peach picked right off the tree. A subtle citrus flavor balances the peach and hop bitterness. ABV: 5.8%, IBU: 10

Amber Was Her Stage Name: Amber was her Amber’s bright copper in color with a golden head, medium bodied, and smells of fresh biscuits. She’s made of flaked barley, has a moderate amount of Horizon hops for bittering, and a slight residual sweetness from caramel malt. ABV: 5.8%, IBU: 35

Whiskey Dick Stout: Bourbon soaked French oak chips are used to make this well balanced stout. Finishes smooth and the bourbon is not overwhelming. And darn it all… who took a sip of the stout before I finished taking the photos? ABV: 6.0%, IBU: 17

Screw the Pooch Ale: This American Pale Ale is a 100% domestic ingredient beer, made with hops and barley grown in Washington State. Citra hops produce a citrus aroma and flavor. Crisp finish and a pleasant bitterness will make even non hop lovers’ palates tingle with excitement. ABV: 5.7%, IBU: 24

Potent Peter IPA: This IPA is nicely balanced with a moderate dose of bittering hops and crystal malt. A variety of hops are used to dry hop this beer, which produces unique aromas and flavors. ABV: 5.7%, IBU: 42

The Wheat was nice and I loved the Peach — would be perfect during the summer. The Shaved Tail was also a nice standard beer. The others were good to try but not ones I would reach for all the time. Overall, though, nice beer making and glad I checked this place out.

 

Coriander-Roasted Broccoli

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Some recipes catch my attention. Some ingredients in the kitchen find ways to catch the side of the shelf and shatter. Some determination then comes about to still make a recipe happen.

Saw this recipe for Coriander-Roaster Broccoli in a recent issue of Food & Wine, which just sounded amazing. So, had been to the store, everything was ready and cooking was starting.

Ingredients

-2 garlic cloves
-1 tablespoon cumin seeds
-2 teaspoons coriander seeds
-Kosher salt
-1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
-2 heads of broccoli 
(1 3/4 pounds), sliced lengthwise through the stems 1/4-inch thick

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Well, reached for the coriander and the (glass) jar fell from the shelf onto the (granite) countertop. I had opted to use ground coriander vs. seeds and the stuff was everywhere, along with chards of glass mixed in. Ok, that was not going to be used. Very fortunately, I happened to have cilantro on hand! Magical/close enough of a substitute.

Note, I was also using ground cumin.

Directions

-Preheat the oven to 450°. In 
a mini food processor, combine the garlic, cumin, coriander, 
1 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 cup of the olive oil; puree until smooth. *I added a bit of water because of the (arbitrary) amount of cilantro I used, to make it smoother. Played with the amount of oil, too.

-Arrange the broccoli on 
2 large rimmed baking sheets. Drizzle with the remaining 
2 tablespoons of olive oil, season with salt and toss to coat. Roast for 5 minutes. Spoon the coriander oil over the broccoli, toss and roast for about 10 minutes longer, until just tender, shifting the baking sheets halfway through. Serve hot.

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This stuff was awesome! Luckily it was a small error that occurred and can’t wait to try with coriander proper. I will likely make it with this again, too.

Going Boar Wild

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When I go to Colorado I always get to check out this great grocery store, Sprouts. They always have fun stuff to check out, especially meat that is not super easy to find. The latest one I checked out was Ground Wild Boar. I will always remember how much I loved Warthog when I was in South Africa a few years ago and this seemed like it might be fairly similar. It is ‘… all natural and feral from Texas. It is trapped in the wild and processed exclusively under the Durham Ranch label. Each animal is hand selected and sited to our exact specifications.’ It is also a nice lean meat and was absolutely delicious. I wish it was easier to get. We just made it into patties and threw it on the grill.

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Crabbing

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Couldn’t get inspired to cook anything I had on hand the other day so went to the store. They had Phillips Backfin Crab meat on sale for almost half price. That just sounded good.

Opened it and decided not to even craft it into anything like crab cakes. It was perfect just on its own (I did put on the plate, out of the container). Served it with a nice arugula salad and some white wine. Perfect. Sometimes it’s the simple unexpected things that make dinner delicious. Now I want crab season to come.

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Bloody Mary

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A great way to start the new year is by enjoying a delicious Bloody Mary. I like doing this because the bubbly was enjoyed on New Year’s Eve, so no need for mimosas right now.

I happened to get some delicious mix for said drink in my stocking so it was even easier to concoct this beverage. Demitri’s Bloody Mary Seasoning is amazing stuff. Great spices (with 14 natural ingredients) and taste, all you need is that tomato juice, vodka, ice and any adornments (I had some nice green olives to toss in). Cheers!

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Just Bubbles

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Went to a Champagne tasting recently and found a new bottle of bubbles that was just wonderful. And when it comes in a split, it can be even better when you’re enjoying it solo! You don’t want the stuff to go flat.

This was the Billecart-Salmon Brut Reserve. It’s made of 40% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay. It has some nice fruit notes while still carrying the dry/brut taste. The split was about $20 so it was perfect. Great was to say cheers before the New Year.

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Bubbling over work

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I have side gigs to help fund my travel and wine rack. One of them is working wine tastings. I had one yesterday afternoon, New Year’s Eve, at Bassin’s/MacArthur Beverages in Washington, DC. And, oh darn, I had to pour bubbly! One was sparkling wine from CA the other three were veritable Champagne.

#1 Roederer Estate Brut, Anderson Valley. This is the an estate/winery Louis Reoderer (next on the list) opened in the US. $20. It’s a sparkling wine, since it’s CA vs. France. This is roughly 60% Chard, 40% Pinot Noir. Some nice fruit notes for bubbly, especially compared to other bubblies (aka champagnes). And, at least half the cost.

#2 Louis Roederer Champagne, Brut Premier. $40. This is a blend of roughly 40% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay, and 20% Pinot Meunier. Traditional Champagne taste. I would put it ‘medium’ toast, nice and soft.

#3 Taittinger Champagne. $40. This is a blend of roughly 40% Chardonnay, 60% of Pinot Noir & Pinot Meunier. Medium bubbles, soft toast taste, just rolls around the mouth and down your tongue to give you pure happiness.  I am partial because it’s one of my favorites.

#4 Comtes de Champagnes, Taittinger, Blanc de Blanc 2006. $129 (yes, that price is correct). 100% Chardonnay. Very nice taste all around, and while it was definitely a better taste than the prior 3, it would be tough (for me) to spend that much. However, 3 people did buy bottles. All personal choice.

Cheers to 2017!

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Lentil Chips

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Was roaming through World Market and a fuchsia bag jumped out at me. Had to inspect a bit. It was (Bandar) lentil chips, or Poppadums, to be exact, and they were original cumin flavor. Figured I should give them a try, especially since I had my 20% off coupon that expired that day.

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They were very dry and cardboard-y. And ironically soft at the same time. Not all that impressed, though ironically I kept eating them. The cumin taste was very nice, especially considering it’s one of my favorite spices. Totally not something I will pick up again, but was worth trying.

 

Cacique

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This year I visited Frederick, MD a couple times and on one occasion had dinner at Cacique, which serves fine Spanish and Mexican cuisine. Fortunately on a Friday night it wasn’t too packed when we arrived, but I could tell we just beat the rush!

We ordered the required of guac and margaritas, both of which were very good.

For dinner, my friend ordered the Paella de Marisco — a rice dish consisting of shrimp, scallops, fish, mussels, calamari, and garnished with a clam. Cooked in a seafood broth and Spanish herbs (made to order). Made to order in the sense that they warn you it takes 20-30 minutes to prepare. Now jumping forward it did take quite awhile (30-45)…but come the end it was quite good.

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I went for my favorite of ceviche and found one with calamari, which isn’t all that common. The whole dish was Ceviche Mixto — fresh tilapia, shrimp, scallops and squid marinated in fresh lime juice with red onions, cilantro, celery, garlic, ginger, and jalapenos. Very good! The ginger was also a unique ingredient in the dish.

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The food and atmosphere overall were very good. Service got a bit slow mid-meal, though it was a Friday night. But, I would definitely check this place out again. Salud!

 

The Wine Harvest

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There is a fun local restaurant in Park Potomac, MD (just outside of DC) called The Wine Harvest. If you know the area, it’s off of Exit 4/Montrose Rd from 270, or if you’re ever just going up 270, it’s where that Harris Teeter, Founding Farmers and the ever-growing townhouses/developments are (though that last part doesn’t totally narrow it down).  They also have a location in The Kentlands.

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It’s a small, family-owned place that offers a casual, tasty menu and also sells wine by the bottle/is a wine shop. Oh, beer, too. They have a bar where you grab or drink and tables to sit back and relax.

Last time I was there I just went for some sort of finger food and opted for the Smoked Salmon Plate — smoked salmon served with chopped red onions, capers, sour cream and baguette slices. Instead of sour cream they were great and put manchego on there for me!

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My friend went for the Greek Salad — romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, Greek olives, pepperoncini, feta cheese, served with Greek dressing and pita and added a bowl of the Soup of the Day, which was a Cream of Broccoli.

We enjoyed a bottled of Italian wine with dinner. You can order wine by the glass from the menu or buy a bottle from their nice selection, but are then charged a corkage fee. But, you can take it home if not finished.

Everything, from food to service was very good. The prices are also excellent. Not your typical DC prices, which is great!