By Chuck Lenatti
Slowly but surely, craft beer is gaining the respect that wine has long enjoyed as a complement to fine dining. Quite a few Bay Area restaurants and chefs have begun showcasing their innovative culinary pairings in carefully curated beer dinners in which the beer accentuates and complements the flavors of the food, just as wine does. Chefs frequently use beer in their recipes and then pair the dish with the same beer to create a sublime synergy.
SF Beer Week will offer food lovers abundant opportunities to explore the creativity of local chefs and brewers collaborating to create memorable meals, and to discuss the process with the people who develop the recipes and pairings so they can experiment at home.
SF Beer Week features so many beer and food-pairing events that attending them all will be impossible. As of this writing, there are 21 beer-pairing dinners alone scheduled for SF Beer Week. But this list, sorted by day, can help diners plan their food and beer-pairing week. Keep in mind that some of the more popular and intimate events might sell out quickly.
Saturday, Feb. 9
Kirk Lombard’s Fresh Catch Supper
La Trappe Café
800 Greenwich St., San Francisco CA 94133,
Phone: 415-440-8727
Happy hour: 6-7 p.m., dinner: 7:30 p.m.
The Seaforager's Dinner: Kirk Lombard and crew cook up a three-course dinner with sustainable fish (eel, rock crab, herring, night smelt and other creatures that don't normally appear on local menus) sourced locally in the Bay and on the coast, paired with beers from La Trappe. Sea Forager Lombard will also show a video of how the dinner was caught, sing a few sea shanties and demonstrate some preparation techniques. Price: $65 (plus $4.57 fee)
Tickets:
http://kirklombardsupper2013.eventbrite.com
Jasper’s 2nd Annual Beer Dinner Duel
Jasper’s Corner Tap & Kitchen
401 Taylor St., San Francisco CA 94102
Phone: 415-775-7979
8-10 p.m.
Jasper’s Second Annual Beer Dinner Duel: Anderson Valley Brewing goes head to head with 21st Amendment in a four-course dinner, with each course paired with a beer from each of the breweries. Diners vote for the winner. $65, exclusive of tax and gratuity.
Sunday, Feb. 10
Beer Dinner with Magnolia
The Dark Horse Inn
942 Geneva Ave., San Francisco CA 94112
Phone: 415-469-5508
6-11 p.m.
Three-course dinner (details TBA) paired with four beers from Magnolia: Promised Land Double IPA, Delilah Rye Jones Imperial Rye, a Scottish Wee Heavy and a Belgian Quad. $50; tax is included, gratuity is not.
Monday, Feb. 11
Trappist Dinner
The Monk’s Kettle
3141 16th St., San Francisco, CA 94103
Phone: 415-865-9523
6:30-10:30 p.m.
A beer-pairing dinner (TBA) featuring at least seven, if not all eight Trappist ales, including Trappist Westvleteren XII. $195, plus gratuity. Reservations only.
BBQ Beer-Pairing Dinner with Stone Brewing
Southpaw BBQ
2170 Mission St., San Francisco CA 94110
Phone: 415-934-9300
6-10 p.m.
Four-course Southern dinner paired with special beers from Stone. $50.
Widmer Brothers Beer Dinner
Town Hall Restaurant
342 Howard St., San Francisco CA 94105
Phone: 415-908-3900
6:30-10:30 p.m.
Brewer Ben Dobler of Widmer Brothers Brewing of Portland will pair six beers with a four-course dinner highlighting Max Hosey's New American cooking. Also, a three-year vertical tasting of Widmer's Brrrbn ale finished in bourbon casks. $65, exclusive of tax and gratuity.
Tuesday, Feb. 12 (Fat Tuesday)
Fat Tuesday Party
Social Kitchen
1326 9th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94122
Phone: 415-681-0330
4 p.m.-midnight
A special Louisiana-inspired menu paired with Social Kitchen beers and featuring New Orleans music.
Scott's Seafood Brewmaster Dinner Featuring Hermitage Brewing Company
Scott's Seafood (Mountain View)
420 Castro, Mountain View CA
Call 650-966-8124 for reservations or use Open Table on the website.
6-8 p.m.
Executive Chef Ramon Nava creates a special four-course menu that will accompany beer from Hermitage Brewing. $45. Space is limited and reservations are required.
Paella Fest
ThirstyBear Brewing Company
661 Howard St., San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-974-0905
6-9 p.m.
Unlimited paella, flamenco and beer, including the SF Brewers Guild collaborative beer Green Death and a Pacific Brew Labs/ThirstyBear collaboration: a Bakery Tartine sourdough, oyster-infused, black steam beer. $35 in advance, $40 at the door.
Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras Party
Pleasanton Main St. Brewery
830 Main St., Pleasanton CA 94566
Phone: 925-462-8218
5-11 p.m.
Jambalaya, red beans and rice and chicken gumbo paired with special house-brewed beers. Free, no reservations.
Wednesday, Feb. 13
Brewery Cellar Dinner
ThirstyBear Brewing Company
661 Howard St., San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-974-0905
6-9 p.m.
Head Brewer Ron Silberstein and Brewmaster Brenden Dobel will preside over a 4-5 course dinner (menu TBD) with rare bottles and barrel tasting held in the brewery cellar. Only 10-12 tickets available. $70.
Sau & Brau (Part Trois)
Drake’s Barrel House
1933 Davis St., Building 177, San Leandro, CA 94577
Phone: 510-568-BREW
6-9 p.m.
Third annual whole pig roast with 20 taps of Drakes beer, including small-batch barrel-aged beers. Live music in Drake’s Barrel House Taproom. $50 for a Sau & Brau logo glass, happy hour (6-7 p.m.) with tasting of all regular and strong beers, four tickets for Barrel House beers during happy hour or any beer after happy hour, full pig roast dinner from ChopBar plus dessert. This popular event will probably sell out early.
Tickets:
http://drakessauandbrau3.brownpapertickets.com
Beer Week Brewers Dinner
Pyramid Ale House
901 Gilman St., Berkeley, CA 94710
Phone: 510-528-9880
6-9 p.m.
Four-course beer-paired dinner and brewery tour with Brewmaster Simon Pesch. Take home a growler of your choice. $45. Limited seating.
Tickets:
http://pyramidfebruarydinner-es2003....te.com/?rank=4
Almanac Beer Pairing Dinner
Central Kitchen
3000 20th St., San Francisco CA 94110
Phone: 415-826-7004
6:30-9 p.m.
Almanac Brewing and Chef Thomas McNaughton will serve farm to table food with farm to barrel beers. Five-course tasting menu with beer pairings. $130.
Shmaltz Brewing Beer Pairing Dinner
Wise Sons
3150 24th St., San Francisco CA 94110
Phone: 415-787-3354
6:30-9:30 p.m.
Wise Sons Jewish Deli and Shmaltz Brewing team up for a night of food and beer pairings. Details and price TBA.
Thursday, Feb. 14 (Valentine’s Day)
Valentine’s Day Prixe Fixe Dinner with Beer Pairings
La Trappe Café
800 Greenwich St., San Francisco CA 94133
Phone:415-440-8727
Four-course dinner with beers handpicked by La Trappe’s staff. $65. Reservation times throughout the evening.
Lower DeBoom Barley Wine Release Dinner
21st Amendment Brewery
563 Second St., San Francisco CA 94107
Phone: 415-369-0900
6:30-10 p.m.
Release celebration of Lower De Boom Barley Wine in cans and on draft. Beer Chef Bruce Paton’s special menu will include Lower De Boom as an ingredient and as an accompaniment to his dishes.
Saturday, Feb. 16
Twisted Tasting Evening Gala
Top of the Ritt
Corner of Church and Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz, CA
Contact:
emily@scmbrew.com
Phone: 813-425-4900
6-10 p.m.
Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing hosts a gala event at the Top of the Rittenhouse building, showcasing 40 of the most unique, experimental and unusual beers in the world paired with locally produced, exotic, beer-inspired food. $65 for unlimited beer and food pairings.
Beer Dinner with 21st Amendment
The Dark Horse Inn
942 Geneva Ave., San Francisco CA 94112
Phone: 415-469-5508
6-11 p.m.
Three-course dinner (details TBA) paired with four beers from 21A: Marooned on Hog Island Oyster Stout, Sneak Attack Winter Saison, Fireside Chat Winter Warmer and Brew Free or Die IPA. $50; tax is included, gratuity is not.
Anderson Valley Takeover Barbecue
La Trappe Café
800 Greenwich St., San Francisco CA 94133
Phone:415-440-8727
Anderson Valley Brewing will bring in some old favorites and some hard to finds to pair with the kitchen’s first Belgian barbecue. Free admission.
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About the Author
Chuck Lenatti is an editor and writer living in Pacifica. He writes about food and beer on examiner.com and at allbrews.blogspot.com.