Five courses with 4 Hands

Now that the World Series is over (I'm starting this in the top of the 7th, so if the Cardinals come back and win then you can blame this one on me, Boston), why not look back to a night we spent with our friends a few blocks away from the new Busch Stadium - the beer dinner with 4 Hands Brewing. (Quick order of business - 4 Hands will be bringing one of their research and development beers to the Strong Ale Festival on November 16h! Get details at http://beerkc.com/beerfest/strong-ale/ and tickets now on sale at http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1760233)

The evening started with a lump crab agnolotti with chard, pear, and peppered mozzarella and the Pyrus saison. My first experience with agnolotti was in last summer's Kurlbaum Heirloom Tomato dinner. I liked it then, and may have liked it even more this time. Pyrus is brewed with pear juice and white peppercorns (in addition to orange zest), so it was a natural pair for this course. Good synergy here. (Top of the 7th just ended. Cardinals got one run and threatened more, but left the bases loaded. Everyone stand up for the 7th inning stretch.)

Agnolotti is kinda like ravioli. Filled with delicious crab next to some pear and mozzarella. Yes.

The second course featured a beer that first appeared at (I believe) the Summer Beer Fest - Resurrection IPA. This was served with a stewed tomato custard, jerky, and bread. Whoa. This was awesome. AWESOME. The tomato custard was smooth, sweet, and creamy. Spread on the bread and jerky, it was magical. When the bread and jerky was gone and I was left with some custard still in its little jar and I ate it off a butter knife, it was still kinda magical. Paired with the beer, it was magical. A balanced IPA with great malt and big hops, the bitterness played off the sweetness.

I'm amazed I waited long enough to take a picture of this. SO GOOD.

As the bottom of the 7th ends and we head towards the 8th, it's time for me to admit that I might like fish. At least very well-prepared fish. I can't hide behind saying I normally don't like it, because me liking fish at these dinners has become the norm. This continued here with seared American red snapper served on risotto and apple butter, and Morning Glory in the glass. Incredible dish. There wasn't much of a fishy flavor, especially in a bite that had risotto and apple butter. And Oh, the apple butter. It might have been the single greatest item served this night. Not overpoweringly sweet. And Morning Glory was the perfect beer to go with it - brewed with sweet potatoes, all spice, nutmeg, whole vanilla beans, and aged on Pecan Wood (top of the 8th just ended, quickly. So much for me getting through a course per half inning). Think of your usual pumpkin beer, and then imagine it being really super good without being that "pumpkin-y." Yeah, good, right? Right.

Alright, I may need to invest in a better camera. That is to say, a camera not on my phone.

Moving along to the fourth course, I KNOW I like beignets, and kielbasa, and poutine. So yeah, I was looking forward to this one. And it was another case of a perfectly-selected beer (bottom of the 8th just starting. I can do this). The Smoked Pigasus is a big robust porter with maple syrup and smoked malts. What was great with this course is that each of the food offerings brought out something different in the beer. The "bk bacon" beignet had smoky bacon and synced up well with the smokiness in the beer, while also pulling out some of the maltiness with the beignet (my fingers want there to be an h in beighnet). The kielbasa was more on the smoky side, not as much on the sweet malt side. And the caramel poutine, besides being FANTASTIC MMMMM made you remember there's maple syrup in the beer.

More. I want more of all of these.

WOO! Made it to dessert before the end of the 8th. And that's good, because this dessert deserves like four innings. (Whoa, a balk! That was weird.) Dessert was chocolate three ways - in the beer, in a mousse, and in a pie. This was good. The mousse was light and fluffy. The pie was rich, with a berry schmear below it to give more variety in the flavor. And the Chocolate Milk Stout was big, rich, and velvety. This is one of the better desserts I've had at a beer dinner (I think the best is still the bread pudding from the Alex Pope-prepared dinner. I still have dreams about that. And now the 8th just ended. Three outs from the end of the season). Also, I discovered the cup holding the mousse was held to the plate by peanut butter. And then I combined peanut butter with the chocolate and whoa. Yeah, that was good.

It may look small, but it was rich enough to pack a big punch

This might have been the best all-around beer dinner yet. It seems Michael Peterson keeps finding ways to top himself, so I'm looking forward to the next one. I'll show up hungry. Keep an eye here and on the Beer Kitchen Facebook page for details on that one when they're announced.

Now we're one out away from the end of the baseball season, so I'm going to sit and take it all in. Hurry back baseball. I love you.

4 Hands, 5 Courses

If you're not out at GABF, you can come to McCoy's to have some award-winning beer. And the Sinister Rye was tapped recently, and me oh my it's good. The rye adds some spice to a smooth beer. Dangerously delicious.

If you subscribe to BeerAdvocate magazine, check out this month's article on The Foundry! They have some quotes from incredibly good looking people in it.

Coming up in a little more than a week is our next beer dinner! And this one looks great - we're welcoming 4 Hands Brewing into Beer Kitchen on Monday, October 21st for 4 Hands, 5 Courses -

This looks fantastic. Each course... mmm... And the beers. Double mmm. As usual, this isn't one you'll want to miss. $50 per person reserves your spot and includes the price of the meal, tax, and gratuity. Call Beer Kitchen at 816-389-4180 now!

A few weeks after that, we'll be celebrating the third annual Strong Ale Festival! 25 breweries bringing beers 8% and up. Check out the event's Facebook page for a list of breweries. Tickets will go on sale on October 20th, so check back here for a link.

Special Brown Ales at McCoy's!

Have you gotten to the Foundry to try the 4 Hands beers yet? The Divided Sky Rye IPA and Cuvee Ange from St. Louis are both GREAT, and both on tap now, so get there and try them.

Those aren't the only two new and exciting beers in the area. Today, McCoy's will be tapping a cask of Hogpound Brown with a bite - ancho pepper! Then Saturday, the "Randyl" will once again be put to use, with a cranberry spice brown, $4.50 a pint. A deal! This beer was featured in last year's Thanksgiving beer dinner and was a big hit. Both of these should be good options in the cooler weather, with a touch of heat in one to warm you up, and a sweeter fall flavor in the other.

And don't forget - while you're at McCoy's getting a pint, pick up your ticket to the Strong Ale Fest and save yourself a little money. Tickets are $30 in advance of the November 3rd event, $35 the day of. You can get them at McCoy's without a service fee, but if you're unable to make it to Westport, never fear. They're available online at http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1663931.

4 Hands, Strong Ale Festival, and beer dinners!

Very cool events coming from Beer KC in the near future. Most immediate will be coming tomorrow (Wednesday, October 24th), when we welcome 4 Hands Brewing Co. to Kansas City. The Foundry will have a couple beers on tap from our St. Louis friends - Divided Sky Rye IPA and Cuvee Ange. They are two excellent beers; Cuvee Ange is a complex, funky, woody beer. Don't miss it!

Another event not to miss - the Strong Ale Fest from 1-5 on November 3! The above-mentioned 4 Hands will be, uhh, on hand... as will about 36 other breweries, and nearly 80 beers, all around or over 8% ABV. Advanced tickets are available for $30 online at http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1663931, or you can avoid any service fees by buying them directly from McCoy's. If there are any spots open on the day of the event, the price will go up to $35, so get 'em now and save yourself a few bucks (that you can put towards a hand cranked sausage, conveniently $5). Designated drivers will have free entry, so get a ride, carpool, whatever you need to do. We want everyone to enjoy themselves, and to be safe. 

Then the next beer dinner comes to Beer Kitchen on November 19th. This month it'll be the Wild Game Dinner, with wild boar, rabbit, pheasant, and elk. Yum.

$55 includes your dinner, tax, and gratuity, with a good chance for some great company. Who knows, maybe one course will make you rethink your Thanksgiving plans. Like maybe you'll want to add Brussels sprouts to your meal. Because they are delicious. 

Speaking of delicious beer dinners, last night was October's delicious beer dinner. Or should I say Oktober, for the German-inspired meal? Sure, the real Oktoberfest was a month ago, but that doesn't mean we can't celebrate the culture, beer, and food now. There was even some surprise entertainment for people before the meal started...

You want beer? We've got beer!

Lederhosen optional, but preferred

We're just a few days away from the next beer dinner at Beer Kitchen! Oktober 22nd is our Oktoberfest-themed dinner, with German-style food paired with German-style beer. $50 will get you the five-course meal and beers, with tax and gratuity included. 7:00 pm. Don't miss it! Call us at 816-389-4180 to reserve your spot.

While McCoy's beers didn't place in this year's GABF, our Kansas City brothers in brewing came home with two golds! Congratulations to Boulevard, picking up gold medals in the Other Strong Beer category with Reverb and ZON winning the Belgian-Style Witbier category. They have a great post that goes into some more details of the fest and judging - Bringing Home the Gold!!!

You're going to have a chance to sample a few winners from GABF at the Beer KC Strong Ale Fest! Below is an ever-evolving list of beers that will be on tap. Some of the medal winners include a couple locals - Lawrence, KS's Free State won a bronze in American-Style Stout with Iron Man Imperial Stout, and Perennial from St. Louis took silver in Other Strong Beer with Heart of Gold (a wheat wine).

Firestone Walker's Wookey Jack won the gold in American-Style Black Ale, and Sierra Nevada got the Imperial Stout silver (while the official GABF list of winners doesn't have the Narwhal name listed, I'm pretty sure it's the same beer).