Craft Beer Radio
Savor 2011
Welcome to the Craft Beer Radio coverage of SAVOR 2011. This page lists all of the Salons that we recorded at the event. You can listen to the individual shows by clicking on the links, or you can Subscribe to the SAVOR Podcast Feed using iTunes (Subscribe) or some other podcast aggregator (Subscribe) to download all the content easily. Note to regular listeners: all of the SAVOR content will be posted in the Craft Beer Radio Podcast Feed along with the SAVOR only feed.

SAVOR Educational Salons

SAVOR Private Tasting Salons

CBR Interviews from the floor

The "Wow" of Umami! Creating "Wow"of Beer & Food Combination

Discover the fascinating experience and the fundamental taste of umami. Join Charlie Papazian, president of the Brewers Association and founder of the American Homebrewers Association, at this Salon as he reveals the basics of why beer and food often pair and create a "wow" experience. First presented in October 2010 at Slow Food’s Salone del Gusto in Italy, Charlie’s presentation discusses and demonstrate umami character by presenting food and craft beer combinations. The "wow" of food and beer combination is not about their marriage, but rather the "child" which emerges.

Jim Koch, Sam Calagione & Beer Pairings

Join Jim Koch, founder of Boston Beer Company, and Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, for an hour of fun and reverie along with some great food and beer pairings.

Beer and Just Desserts

Ommegang brewmaster Phil Leinhart joins DC Rising Star Pastry Chef, Tiffany MacIsaac (Birch & Barley/ ChurchKey Pastry Chef ) and Star Chef's DC Rising Star Sommelier Greg Engert (Birch & Barley/ ChurchKey Beer Director and Managing Partner). Greg is one of Food & Wine's Top Sommeliers for 2010 and is the first Beer Sommelier ever recognized by that publication. MacIsaac and Engert constantly hone the cutting edge at the frontier of pairing beer and food, and we promise both your sweet tooth and beer tooth will be celebrated and satiated. No dessert and beer pairing idea will be sacred. Tiffany and Greg will conjure fusion desserts, sweet and savory desserts, ice creams, shakes, and other cold desserts made with – and created to go with – Ommegang's fine Belgian-style ales.

It's OK to Play with Your Food and Beer

Join mad chef Bryan Voltaggio as he offers his insane take on using Flying Dog beer as an ingredient to create mind-altering sensory explosions. The presentation will include basic tips and techniques for cooking with beer; carbonation removal and reinfusion; spherification and the art of turning beer into finger food; reduction and bitterness—the art of balance.

The Salon will conclude with the world premiere of the first Flying Dog and Bryan Voltaggio culinary collaboration brew—brewed specifically to pair perfectly with eclectic and ever-evolving menu at Volt Restaurant in Fredrick, Maryland.

Charcuterie, Barbecue & Artisanal Ales

SAVOR 2011 brings together Joe Carroll, founder of Brooklyn's famed Spuyten Duyvil & Fette Sau, and Tim Suprise, founder of Arcadia Ales of Battle Creek, to share a unique and tasty perspective for incorporating and enjoying artisanal ales with house-cured charcuterie and world class barbecue.

Smoked meats and house cured charcuterie from Fette Sau (Zagat Rated Best NYC BBQ since 2009) that have been brined, rubbed, cured, sauced and/or prepared with selected Arcadia Ales will be sampled and paired with specific beers to demonstrate the delicious possibilities when brought together in different stages of preparation.

A special tasting of Arcadia's Shipwreck Porter, aged for 22 months in 22 year-old single batch bourbon barrels, will be included, as well as a tasting of a collaboration brew between Fette Sau and Arcadia specifically made for BBQ.

CraftBeer.com Beer & Food Pairing Challenge

Join Julia Herz of CraftBeer.com/Brewers Association as she moderates and mediates a competition to win the audience’s vote for their favorite pairing. The contenders will be: journalist and craft beer lover Matt Bean of Men's Health and Spike TV, journalist Lauren Buzzeo of Wine Enthusiast (two-time defending champ!), brewer Bill Covaleski of Victory Brewing Company and Adam Dulye, Executive Chef at Monk's Kettle in San Francisco. Presenters cover principles of beer and food pairing and provide take-away attendee resources. The format is quick, to the point, educational and interactive, challenging the audience to think like pairing judges.

SAVOR Private Salons

The Taste of the Midwest – Pairing Local Beers with Local Foods

Join Boulevard Brewing Company brewmaster Steven Pauwels as he takes you through a true Midwestern experience, pairing four of Boulevard's award-winning Smokestack Series beers with artisan foods from the brewery's hometown of Kansas City. Learn how different flavor compounds in the beers outshine others when complementing the brews with the right foods. You’ll enjoy Boulevard's limited release Saison-Brett paired with Green Dirt Farm Bossa cheese, year-round favorite Dark Truth Stout paired with Christopher Elbow raspberry chocolate, Imperial Stout with Bobcat Dan's Smoked Cheese, and Long Strange Tripel with Christopher Elbow Sea Salt chocolate.

Steven Pauwels has been brewmaster at Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City for more than 11 years. During his tenure, Pauwels has overseen all aspects of brewing and quality control as the brewery's sales have more than tripled to over 150,000 barrels in 2010. He is responsible for more than a dozen additions to Boulevard’s brand lineup, including the critically acclaimed Smokestack Series line of artisanal beers.

Pauwels grew up steeped in the brewing industry. His first stint in the business came with summer work at his Belgian hometown brewery, Eeklo's Brouwerij Krüger, where his father held a job. After receiving degrees in Biochemical Engineering from KaHo Sint-Lieven and in Business Administration from Mercator, both in Ghent, Belgium, he held positions at the Domus brewpub in Louvain and at RIVA brewery in Dentergem.

Califlorida: A Tale of East Coast / West Coast Collaboration

Cigar City (Tampa, Fla.) and The Bruery (Orange County, Calif.), two young and up-and-coming breweries, put their heads together to brew something unique that reflects the origins of both breweries. Cigar City is known for many things, and one of them is delicious brown ales and the use of unusual Floridian fruit in their beers. The Bruery is known for a few things as well, and is well regarded for its barrel aged sour beers. Together they’ve brewed Marrón Acidifié, a Flemish-style Imperial Oud Bruin, and ISO:FT, a Flemish-style Imperial Oud Bruin that is also fermented with California dates and Florida pink guava. They will share these beers, as well as some of the beers that inspired Marrón Acidifié and ISO:FT.

Joey Redner, Founder, Cigar City Brewing

A Tampa native with a thing for beer, Joey Redner has owned a bar, sold beer at the retail, brewery and import level and written about beer for several publications. A free spirit by nature Joey tends to shun things like recipes, temperature gauges and gravity readings in favor of “flavor readings.” While this keeps him happy in his homebrewing pursuits, it doesn’t always produce a consistent product at the commercial level. This is why Joey is happy to be working with Wayne Wambles, a man who grounds unfettered enthusiasm in the foundation of sound brewing practices. In addition to beer, Joey is passionate about Cuban food and the colorful history of the city of Tampa.

Wayne Wambles, Head Brewer, Cigar City Brewing

Wayne Wambles is a self taught homebrewer who turned commercial. He started brewing beer at home in early 1996. After spending a year and a half focusing on his obsession with homebrewing, he pursued a commercial opportunity to brew at a local brewpub in Dothan, Alabama called Poplar Head Mule Company. He then brewed at Buckhead Brewery & Grill and Foothills Brewing Company, which received several Great American Beer Festival medals during his tenure. Wayne became the Head Brewer at Cigar City Brewing in March 2008.

Patrick Rue, CEO / Founder, The Bruery

Raised in Orange County, Calif., Patrick started homebrewing in 2003 during his first year of law school. He spent about as much time homebrewing experimental batches of beer as hitting the books, and shortly after graduation made the bold decision to open his own brewery. In three years of business The Bruery has grown steadily from 600 bbls in 2008 to a projected 4300 bbls in 2011, without compromising its creative and authentic approach toward brewing.

Tyler King, Director of Brewing Operations / Head Brewer, The Bruery Developing an interest in creating craft beer at an early age, the Bruery’s Tyler King decided that brewing was a passion worth pursuing. Determined to learn about commercial brewing, Tyler had to convince a brewery to hire him at the age of seventeen. Starting as a cellarman, Tyler was employed by BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery for four years while completing his bachelor’s degree. As Director of Brewing Operations/Head Brewer at The Bruery, Tyler has had the rare opportunity to work with Patrick Rue in building a brewery from the ground up. Tyler’s creativity and attention to detail has helped in the successful creation of such beers as Oude Tart and Black Tuesday.

Three Years of Bourbon Barrel Beers Vertical Tasting

Presented by Jamie Emmerson, Executive Brewmaster, and Irene Firmat, CEO and Founder of Full Sail Brewing Company, Hood River, Oregon.

Wood barrel aging is an art form. When done right, it’s a wonderful thing. Barrel aging beer has been a Full Sail tradition since 1998 when they joyfully discovered what happens when you pair vintage barrels, dedication and patience. Full Sail will offer a rare opportunity to sample three vintages of their Black Gold Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout from 2006, 2009 and 2011 in a vertical tasting.

Each of these vintages was aged in rich bourbon barrels for over 12months, and after bottling have been carefully cellared in the Brewmaster’s private collection. This extended aging presents hints of vanilla and allows the stout to pick up the flavors of the wood, bourbon and oak. The difference in years and total aging time create an extraordinary opportunity to see how time impacts the flavors of the beer. A truly wonderful and unique tasting experience. Taste the nuances of these remarkable beers alongside artisan cheese and chocolates. In the February issue of Men's Journal, Black Gold was named one of the best barrel aged beers in the U.S. Previously, Black Gold was awarded a silver medal at the 2009 World Beer Championships and at the 2006 Great American Beer Festival (wood-aged strong beer category). A few lucky Salon attendees will get to take home a bottle of the vintage bourbon aged beers signed by the Brewmaster himself.

A Tasting with Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada

Here’s your chance to hear stories and talk with a pioneer of the craft beer movement who continues to push the limits of creativity. Ken Grossman shares the newly released beer from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s Ovila Abbey Ale series, which closely follows the traditions established by centuries of monastic brewing. The first beer in the Ovila series—a Belgian-style Abbey Dubbel—was released in March and is packaged in 750mL cage-and-cork bottles featuring artwork inspired by the historic Santa Maria de Ovila monastery. Ken will wax philosophical about this new series, their recently celebrated 30 year anniversary and more.

An Evening with David Walker of Firestone Walker Brewing Company

Firestone Walker Brewing Company takes pride in making exceptional pale ales. The awards they have garnered is proof of their brew team's hard work and skill. Join David Walker, co-founder, as he shares stories and the following beers from their Pale Series along with a surprise special beer.

DBA: A British Pale Ale never tasted so fresh. Honoring the traditions of the great British Pale brewers of Burton-on-Trent using patented Firestone Union oak barrels. You’re left with a mild blend of vanilla and toasted oak flavor touched with an elegant hint of English noble hops. DBA is the flagship brand of Firestone Walker and is wildly popular.

Pale 31: One of the most award-winning American style pale ales in the country. A crisp floral hop aroma precedes a medium-bodied clean finishing ale.

Union Jack: Bold citrus and pineapple aromas meet savory malt flavors resulting in a truly balanced effort. A beer true to its origins; deeply hopped and bolstered for a long voyage.

From The Vault: Vintage Beers and Chocolate Truffles with the Beervangelist

New Holland Brewing Company’s Beervangelist Fred Bueltmann will delight your senses while he guides you through an indulgent experience, pairing hand-made chocolate truffles with vintage beers from the brewery’s not-so-secret library. Dragon’s Milk barrel-aged stout, Black Tulip trippel and Pilgrim’s Dole wheatwine, among others, offer intrigue and nuance as they age. They will undoubtedly elicit remarkable flavor and character from the chocolates provided by one of the nation’s premier chocolatiers, Gail Ambrosius.

A Study in Barrel Aging with Captain Lawrence and The Bruery

Scott Vaccarro of Captain Lawrence and Patrick Rue of The Bruery share a love of oak aged beers. It made sense to Scott to invite Patrick to collaborate on this Salon and the audience will reap the benefits of this study in barrel aging with two of the cutting edge breweries making this well-loved style.

Scott brings three beers from his Smoke from the Oak Series to demonstrate how aging the same beer – a smoky, malty, roasty Imperial Smoked Porter – in 3 different barrels (a rum barrel, wine barrel and apple brandy barrel) will give each beer a new story to tell, laced with the flavors of the barrel.

Patrick will be sharing:

Sour in the Rye A deliciously sour rye ale, bursting with spicy rye notes and hints of oak from the barrels it was aged within. This particular vintage was aged in wine barrels, but The Bruery is currently aging this in third-use bourbon barrels as well. The Bruery loves their rye beers, and this one is no exception–they used 40% rye malt to make it!

100% Bourbon Barrel Aged Cuir Layered with complex flavors of dark fruit, vanilla, oak and burnt sugar, Cuir is a robust ale, perfect for marking the third anniversary of The Bruery.

Black Tuesday 2010 A massive imperial stout aged in bourbon barrels for over a year. Rich caramel, toasted malt, vanilla, burnt wood and anise are just a few of the many flavors of this rich, decadent stout.

Joie de Vivre (Joy of Living): Beers Crafted for Cajun, Creole and Foods of the Deep South

Karlos Knott of Bayou Teche Bierre in Louisiana and Leslie Henderson of Lazy Magnolia Brewing in Mississippi partner up to bring some southern hospitality, good beer and eats to share with SAVOR attendees. Karlos will share Grenade, their passion fruit wheat beer paired with Prima Donna Gouda cheese, and Boucanee, a cherry wood smoked wheat beer paired with Pinacorda, a Spanish blue cheese.

Leslie will share Jefferson Stout and Southern Gold. Jefferson Stout is Lazy Magnolia’s original Sweet Potato Cream Stout, their version of the ideal southern-style stout. Southern Gold utilizes locally grown honey from nearby Ellisville, Miss., which is provided by Mark Henderson’s own bee-keeping Uncle Milton. The stout pairs well with oysters so there are plans to do an oyster and stout pairing. Southern Gold and andoullie sausage may also be on the agenda. Be sure to get there on time, before Karlos eats all of the oysters!

A Tasting with Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada

Here’s your second chance to hear stories and talk with a pioneer of the craft beer movement who continues to push the limits of creativity. Ken Grossman shares the newly released beer from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s Ovila Abbey Ale series, which closely follows the traditions established by centuries of monastic brewing. The first beer in the Ovila series—a Belgian-style Abbey Dubbel—was released in March and is packaged in 750mL cage-and-cork bottles featuring artwork inspired by the historic Santa Maria de Ovila monastery. Ken will wax philosophical about this new series, Sierra Nevada’s recently celebrated 30 year anniversary and more. Sure to be a hot ticket!

A Vertical Tasting of Alaskan Smoked Porter

With over 20 years of smoking his own malt and brewing with smoke, Geoff Larson, founder of Alaskan Brewing Co., knows the smoky palate inside and out. In this salon, Geoff will share a rare treat: a vertical tasting of several years of Alaskan Smoked Porters with samples of his favorite pairings with each vintage.

Granite State of Mind

Join Peter Egelston, the founder of New Hampshire’s Smuttynose Brewing, as he shares some of the Granite State’s most unique flavors. Peter will present the delicious flavor combinations of various artisanal New Hampshire cheeses paired with a two-year oak aged Baltic Porter and 2011′s hoppy Smuttynose Barleywine. To keep things interesting, there will also be an extremely rare surprise beer.

Chocolate City – Up for the Down Stroke

Join Fal Allen, the super-creative and innovative Brewmaster at Anderson Valley Brewing Company in Booneville, Calif., as he shares Barrel Aged Sour Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout & Brother David’s Belgian Style Double Ale and pairs them with, you guessed it…mmmm, chocolate.

Brother David’s Double has a rich mahogany appearance, firm and substantial head that slowly fades to dry fruit aromas including apricot, figs, raisins, as well as malt and spice notes. The full body of this Belgian style ale supports initial fruit flavors that give way to malt notes and chocolate covered cherries, while suffused throughout with the distinctive flavor of the Belgian Abbey yeast. It finishes rather spicy and quite dry, with the warmth of its 9% alcohol. The flavors become more pronounced, blending and complementing each other as the beer warms. If you like Belgian beer, you owe it to yourself to try this American brewed Belgian-style beer.

Barrel Aged Sour Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout is a special treat from Anderson Valley’s private archives. Imagine what happens when Barney Flats’ deep, garnet-tinted ebony hue and dense, voluptuous mahogany head get intermingled with the aged, deep fruit flavors of a Port wood finish. Aromas of fresh-baked bread, toffee and dark espresso coffee get melded with dried cherries, plumb, raisins and earthy wood undertones. Add to this the piquant tartness of a clean lactic acid bacteria fermentation and what you get is something deep and smooth like Barry White yet sharp and funky like James Brown. Now have this with chocolate. Uh’Huhhhn.

You can also listen to the salons from previous years: