Hot chili while anticipating the snowpocalypse

The blog is being revived!  It turns out that 2010 was a bad year for Torchy as she blew her ACL at Women's Flattrack Derby Association's (WFTDA) Western Regionals.  Beer created all kinds of problems for Torchy (which we will get into at a later date.)  Bess also had a tough year in 2011 and the blog and its fun fell aside.  That's going to change.  However, we're not just going to talk about beer in this blog - we're also going to write about food.  As two people who love to eat as much as we love to drink beer - we're also both slightly fitness obcessed and this is the magical place to bring it all together.   So on to ... chili.

The Snowpocalypse is coming.  It usually comes once a winter and brings chaos to snow-novice Pacific Northwesterns (who seem to forget they have snow covered mountains year round.)  The weathermen and women forecast 10" of snow and then we get a light dusting with some ice.  Or we actually get the 10" and are screwed.  The slippery, steep hills of Seattle and the surrounding communities make for dangerous situations as the city's 8 salt trucks often have a hard time keeping up with snow that retains its PNW properities and falls like rain..

In honor of the Snowpocalypse - I made my favorite vegetarian chili from Eating Well Magazine - Zesty Wheat Berry - Black Bean Chili.  I stumbled on this recipe years ago and find that it's simple, cheap and very hearty.  If you aren't a fan of wheat berries, you can put in other things like ground beef or turkey.  Pair this with cornmeal muffins and your favorite IPA - or in this case - Firestone Walker's Union Jack American IPA - you have a cosy evening ahead while you're waiting for the snow to come - or not.

Lava, moutains, high desert and beer...

Central Oregon offers some amazing beauty.  The high desert gives a "wild west" feel and makes for sparkly bright days and chilly, starry nights.  As part of the Cascade Mountain range, there are old lava flows, blown mountain tops, calderas filled with lakes and cool glacial rivers.  Of course, it appears to be the perfect climate to brew some incredible beers.   The Deschutes Brewery, which sits in Bend, Oregon, on the Deschutes River, takes inspirations from the natural formations found in the area  - Black Butte Porter, Obsidan (glassy lava rocks) Stout, (Mount) Bachelor ESB.  The senic, yet harsh environment also produces other great microbreweries like Three Creeks Brewery.  Yum.

Melissa, Michael, Lara and I headed to Bend for some great camping and beer drinking.  It's actually the perfect trip - hike on lava all day and drink beer all night.  The long meandering drive was beautiful.  We threw down our tent at La Pine campground and headed immediately to Deschutes Brewery in Bend for birthday dinner and plenty of beer drinking!  It was crowed on this last weekend in August but the hour wait turned out only to be 25 minutes - just enough time to drink down a pint before being seated.

And there was nothing disappointing about the evening from the food to the drink to the delicious dessert for Michael's birthday.

Horse Ridge IPA -  Hello - a very tasty IPA was served up to me when I said "I would like an IPA" curious to see what they would give me.  YUM - a little lighter than the Inversion (which I love to enjoy anytime), it was a smooth IPA that wasn't malty and had a fresh flavor.  And since you can only get it in the brewery, it was definitely worth a second. 

Saison de la Bond - A farm house ale that was, as Lara said, "*%&ing awesome!"  It was very floral and the flavor lingered - leaving plenty in your mouth to chew on and think about.  Beer Advocate gave it a B- (they also thought it was retired) though guests at the table thought otherwise as two of the four ordered it.

NW Mother Lode - they claim it's the "Red Chair's brother from another mother" - and though I'm not a big fan of Red Chair the Mother Lode was pretty good.

There are enough worthwhile and tasty beers at Deschutes Brewery to take you back for a second day (and possibly even a thrid) but there are also craters, rivers and mountains that beckon and we didn't make it back for a second visit... Next year's trip to Bend is going to be a week long.

Draft beer...

So I did not go out for tasty beverages with Bess tonight or even last night but after a nail biter of a WNBA Storm game, Lara, Julie and I went out for some nosh and a tasty beverage at a place in lower Queen Anne that called themselves a bar... I'm not sure why we decided to stay because their beers only came in bottles and started at $5.  And thought they tried to be fancy pants, the lack of a good draft beer was terribly disappointing.  Terribly. 

Don't call yourself a bar if you don't have beer... on draft.  

You say it's your birthday...um, not so much.

Today I was scrolling on the Deschutes Brewery website today planning my trip to Bend (with Comet, Michael, Lara and Waffles.) I was also looking for an auction donation and was completely distracted by their pretty awesome blog.

Sadly, Black Butte won't be celebrating 22 - which - in my book was an OK year anyway - not really worth celebrating.  (What was I doing?  Post college theatre degree, living in Cleveland, working two jobs so I could pay my expensive student loans and going out, maybe once a week if I was lucky.) 

I am not a fan of Black Butte because it's Bess' realm of beers (dark, rich, sweet).  I also don't think chocolate and beer should get along and clearly, in Black Butte XXII - they don't.

xo
Torture

I don't know many girls who read the Beer Advocate...

is what Mr. B. Ware thought when the server from Santa Fe Cafe on Phiney Ridge commented on his obsecure Minnesota brewery shirt - you know -  she had read about it in the Beer Advocate.  Turns out her partner had been the brew master at Goose Island and was now at Fremont Brewery.  She gave Bess and Mr. B Ware a few drink tickets...

Bess warned me that it would be difficult to find and sure enough I did a loop and ended up parking right in front of it before realizing... well that I was right in front of it. 

Fremont Brewery calls it their Urban Garden - open-brew-house-beer-pouring-adventure - of course I stumbled upon a hipster-party-in-action and was immediately was annoyed as I got the - who-invited-you-to-this-party-look. Um.  Too many dashes. I waited for a few and then decided I might as well drink.  The server was the NICEST guy ever and made up for the hipster-stare-down.  I asked him about the Cask IPA(s) and when he was done explaining I said "Though I love hoppy, it's a warm night my friend..." so he awesomely suggested the Cask IPA with Orange and Lime - as it was cooled to 44 degrees and would be the most optimal choice fitting my request for a hoppy but refreshing IPA on a warm Friday night.  Bess showed up with her dog Shamus who won over the heart of hipsters and non-hipsters a like.  (And wanted to be friends with every single dog that walked by.)

Cask IPA - Orange and Lime -  was cooled which made it wonderful event for your mouth on a warm Friday night. It was less bitter/hoppy than the Interurban - but also a much smoother beer.  It's like a wine with a nice finish.  It's a beer that leaves you wondering what might come next.Worth getting another.  YUM.

Interurban IPA - good IPA - but not distinguishable.  Hoppy IPA - like synomyous. Very tasty but if given a choice of the two - pick the Cask IPA - with fruit. 

It's cool little brewery.  If you find yourself outside of Fremont and one of their beers is on tap - you can't go wrong.  There are plenty of other beers to taste at the Fremont Brewery - and we suggest you go down and try them out.   But keep your eyes open - you'll probably drive right past it - only once.

Oh, and for those of you who are wondering – the obscure Minnesota brewery referenced above is Surly Brewing Company.

xo

Bess & Torchy

PS - A fun video just for you..

Finally drinking beers on Friday!

Bess and I finally got together after two months of lamenting - and had a couple of beers together - on Friday.  (It almost qualified as a miracle.)  We met down at the Beer Authority (BA) on Lake City Way where Mr. B. Ware works a couple of shifts.  They had like a gazillion beers.  Seriously.  It's mostly a beer shop with a gazillion beers and a half dozen on draft.  There is a smattering of tables and chairs (and a small patio outside).  It's quite cozy and you can have a beer or two before picking out some for the weekend. We were there with Lara and chatted throughout the night with some regulars/new friends, Colin and Kristi. Kristi also works some shifts at the BA. They had two beers on draft that are good standards.

Caldera IPA - it's the best IPA in a can (I'll mention this often) and even better on draft.  It qualifies as and IPA and your non-IPA-loving friends (you should keep this to a minimum) will enjoy it too.  Delicious. 

Godon Pale - Holy Cow is this brewery JUST AWESOME. They make Dales Pale - which let me tell you right now - is one of the best 6 packs you can bring to any party. Very few people know about it and those that do will give you the approving nod and your coolness will grow by 7.42 points. (And if you don't care about cool - PBR will earn you different points and it's cheaper.) Oskar Blues does not disappoint and Gordon is no exception. This beer is also most often enjoyed in a can and even tastier on tap. Oh, but a note on the coolness quotient – it’s called ‘Gordon’. If you refer to it as ‘Gordon’s’ you’re sure to lose some of your hard-earned points. This one gets a thumbs up for being a nice mellow brew that still has a little something going on; tasty, mellow but not boring.

Cheers,
Bess & Torchy

Tasty beverage anyone?

CNN posted an article today about more Americans drinking beer - and it's all kinds of Americans who are drinking - not necessarily more often - just more of them.  There are many ways to interpret this data and what it means socially and culturally.  To us, as health-nuts-and-lovers-of-most-things-hoppy, it means you need to drink more water with your beverages.  A 1:1 ratio (water to beer) is a great rule of thumb - especially in summer.  Of course, as you drink more tasty beverages your memory of this important rule goes out the window...