Pairing Halloween candy with craft beer

By Dathan Kazsuk  | October 25, 2016

Twitter: @TriangleAT | Facebook: Triangle Around Town | Instagram: @trianglearoundtown

Halloween is tomorrow night, and by you should be stockpiled with candy to hand out to all the little kids that will knock on your door. Treat-or-Treat. The little ninjas and Kylo Ren's extending their bags in hopes for something good to eat. A miniature Snickers bar or a bag of Skittles. With all this candy in the house we decided to put together a beer and candy pairing of our own. Some pairings were better than others – and all the added calories has the makes of a new diet plan starting on Tuesday.

Below we paired up six different types of candy with six different beers purchased from a local bottle shop here in town.

THE UNKNOWN BREWERY
1327 S. Mint Street, Charlotte, NC

Unknown’s Ginger Wheat (5.1% ABV) paired up with the original Haribo Gummi Bears. The slight taste of the ginger and citrus in this creamy wheat beer paired well with Gummi Bears, especially the red and orange bears.

 

DESTIHL BREWERY’S

1616 General Electric Road, Unit #1, Bloomington, IL

Lynbrook Berliner Weisse is part of Destihl’s Wild Sour Series and its sour raspberry taste was a perfect pairing with the Lingonberry flavor of the original red Swedish Fish. The sour beer also went well with the lemon-flavor fish.

LYNNWOOD BREWING CONCERN

1053 E. Whitaker Mill Road, Raleigh, NC

We thought the 7% ABV IPA would pair well with some Watermelon Sour Patch Kids. We were wrong. Don’t get us wrong, Sour Patch Kids are a great treat, and Hop on Top is one of our favorite Raleigh IPA on the market – just that this combo didn’t blend the way we thought it would. The aromas of citrus, grapefruit and pine and that medium-high bitterness of the hops didn’t pair with the tangy sour of the candy.

SOUTHERN TIER BREWING COMPANY

2072 Stoneman Circle, Lakewood, NY

The Imperial Sour Ale brewed with tart cherry juice was our favorite sweet candy pairing of the tasting. We paired this up with the original strawberry Twizzlers. Cherry and strawberry mixed together? You can’t go wrong with that. Sour. Sweet. Tart. We loved it all.

 

DEEP RIVER BREWING CO.

700 W. Main Street, Clayton, NC

Although we feel the whole “pumpkin” beer craze needs to go away, there are a few good local beers out there that use pumpkin – and Deep River makes one of them with its Pumpkin Pie Porter. The aroma of pumpkin, dry cocoa and a hint of smoke made this a good pairing with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. And being that there was pumpkin in the beer, of course we had to pair it with the Pumpkin shaped cups! More please!

NODA BREWING COMPANY

2229 N. Davidson Street, Charlotte, NC

We went back to another porter to end the tasting. This time we went with NoDa’s Coco Loco Porter brewed with cocoa nibs and coconut. It was only fitting we paired this up with with some Almond Joy miniatures. With both the beer and the candy containing chocolate and coconut, it was a double dose of sweetness. The aesthetics of this bold, rich porter drinks like a dessert – making it a beer suitable for (at least for us) daily consumption.

With Raleigh's "beer week" around the corner, where does N.C. rank in number of breweries

Raleigh Beer Week starts on September 18th - 25th.

By Dathan  | September 15, 2016

Twitter: @TriangleAT | Facebook: Triangle Around Town | Instagram: @trianglearoundtown

With Raleigh "Beer Week" coming up next week, it seemed like a good time to delve into the state craft beer sales and production stats from last year. With thanks to the Brewers Association, it’s relatively easy to find out where North Carolina ranks in terms of number of breweries, annual production of barrels produced each year and our rank in terms of gallons of beer consumed by adults 21-years of age and older.

The statistics from the BA are for 2015, so some of these exact brewery numbers might be slightly askew, but pretty close. What I’ve done below is ranked the top 10 in the number of breweries, but still ranked the other stats so you can see where NC ranks across the U.S.

The Top 10 should come as no surprise to the beer connoisseur out there. There was one shock to me, and that was the number of barrels produced by the state of Pennsylvania, which came in at No. 1 with a whopping 4,059,330 barrels per year.  And that’s a huge contrast compared the state of Washington, whose 305 breweries almost doubles the breweries in Pennsylvania, but only produces 426,462 barrels per year, ranking them 19th in the country.

Another shocker was if you think the great state of California would be No. 1 in gallons per year drank by adults – you’d be wrong. Californians only drink a total of 4.3 gallons per year, bringing them in at No. 12 on the list. But it’s Vermont that leads the pack, with its adults consuming 17.4 gallons per year per adult. I guess if you can get your hands on The Alchemist and Hill Farmstead on a daily basis, you’d be drinking 17 gallons a year too!

Top 10 states with the most breweries:

10. Illinois
Number of craft breweries: 157
Breweries per capita*: 1.7 (ranks 26th)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 595,237 (ranks 13th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 2

9. North Carolina
Number of craft breweries: 161
Breweries per capita*: 2.2 (ranks 19th)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 675,469 (ranks 11th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 2.9

8. Pennsylvania
Number of craft breweries: 178
Breweries per capita*: 1.9 (ranks 23rd)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 4,059,330 (ranks 1st)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 13.3 (ranks 3rd)

7. Texas
Number of craft breweries: 189
Breweries per capita*:1 (ranks 42nd)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 1,135,043
Gallons per 21+ adult: 1.9 (ranks 23rd)


6. Michigan
Number of craft breweries: 205
Breweries per capita*: 2.9 (ranks 6th)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 769,897 (ranks 10th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 3.3 (ranks 13th)

5. New York
Number of craft breweries: 208
Breweries per capita*: 1.4 (ranks 33rd)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 1,086,718 (ranks 7th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 2.3 (ranks 21st)

4. Oregon
Number of craft breweries: 228
Breweries per capita*: 7.7 (ranks 2nd)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 1,081,152 (ranks 5th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 11.3 (ranks 5th)

3. Colorado
Number of craft breweries: 284
Breweries per capita*: 7.3 (ranks 3rd)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 1,775,831 (ranks 2nd)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 14.1 (ranks 2nd)

2. Washington
Number of craft breweries: 305
Breweries per capita*: 5.9 (ranks 6th)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 426,462 (ranks 15th)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 2.5 (ranks 19th)

1. California
Number of craft breweries: 518
Breweries per capita*: 1.9 (ranks 1sy)
Barrels of craft beer produced per year: 3,799,785 (ranks 2nd)
Gallons per 21+ adult: 4.3 (ranks 12th)

*per 100,000 21+ adults
Source: Brewers Association

North Carolina Wine & Grape Month is finally here

By Dathan  | September 4, 2016

Twitter: @TriangleAT | Facebook: Triangle Around Town | Instagram: @trianglearoundtown

Just in case you haven’t heard – September is officially North Carolina Wine Month.

The picturesque view of Raffaldini Vineyards. This
Winery is known for its Italian-style wines.

Yes, a whole month devoted to drinking wine. Who would say no to that? This is your chance to see, better yet, taste, what the state’s $1.7 billion wine industry is all about. With more than 180 wineries in our state and a whopping 525 grape growers in North Carolina from the mountains to the coast – you’re bound to find a bottle you can call your favorite.

North Carolina has four distinct Viticultural areas, which include Swan Creek, Haw River, Upper Hiwassee Highlands and of course Yadkin Valley. Our favorite destination is a massive stretch of the Yadkin Valley, visiting such well known wineries such as Raffaldini, Shelton, Hanover Park and Jones von Drehle.

We’re fortunate enough to have visited close to 30 of the wineries in the Yadkin Valley, and still have a few more to visit to cross off the list. These are great weekend or even day trips. Our last day trip took us to the tasting rooms of Jones von Drehle, Roaring River Vineyards and Piccione Vineyards – and back home before 7 p.m.

Jones von Drehle Vineyards is
located in Thurmond near Stone
Mountain State Park.

But why should you try these places first hand? Because most of these small, quaint vineyards don’t have any distribution here in the Triangle-area. So the only way to try these wines is to get in your car and pay them a visit. 

Oh, you are one of those who think or heard that North Carolina wines aren’t really that good. I would have to say you are sorely mistaken, but just like everything in this world, there are a few bad “grape” seeds out there. 

Roaring River Vineyards is a
new winery that exists on top of
an old gristmill in Traphill.

There are many wineries in our state producing some award-winning wines with winemakers hailing from all over the U.S. and producing French-, Italian- and New World-style wines that could hold their own against any other region. You might think because we’re in North Carolina, the winemakers here are old tobacco farms who are raised in that good ole’ boy way of the South and have bitten off more than they can chew producing wine. Again, that is not the case.

In the past several years, the two of us have been to around 70 wineries here in the state and have purchased many good wines that we’ve enjoyed with friends or just sitting out on the wine porch watching a storm pass by. And with September being NC Wine Month, we plan on popping the top off many more in the next 30 days … and so should you.

If you can’t make it to any of the amazing wineries here in our state this month, there are still ways to enjoy some NC wine. Check out the wine menu at your favorite restaurant. You might be surprised at what you’ll find. Or pay a visit to your local wine shop and see what they have to offer. Even places like Total Wine has a section devoted to the wines of our state, albeit the wines will be more of the “commercialized” product such as Biltmore, Shelton, Childress or Duplin.

Have fun with the month and try something new … I know we will!

The view from the top of the hill at Piccione Vineyards is a site to see – especially at dusk.

Southern Ideal Home Show comes to Raleigh in September with new Brews & Bites

 

LOCAL EVENTS

By Dathan Kazsuk | August 23, 2016
Twitter: @TriangleAT | Facebook: Triangle Around Town | Instagram: @trianglearoundtown


Looking for some new ideas for your home? Be it kitchen remodeling, or adding a granite countertop to your bathroom. Or maybe some ideas for landscaping the backyard into a island oasis … it can all be found at the Southern Ideal Home Show at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds, September 23-25.

At the Southern Ideal Home Show, one will snake their way through hundreds of booths featuring the latest in remodeling, bathroom and kitchen renovations and ideas, environmentally safe products, roofings, outdoor and landscaping by hundreds of local and regional exhibitors.

Some of the businesses gracing the home show over the weekend will include Audio Advice, Baker Roofing Company, Choice Pool & Spa, Lowe’s Home Improvement, NC Solar Now and many others.

Author of The New New Home, Boyce Thompson, will be the special guest, as he talks about the 10 most innovative new home products of 2016. And after his presentation, you can take a tour of an interactive exhibit featuring some life-changing products, including robots that monitor indoor air pollution and countertops that recharge phones.

Making its debut this year will be the Showcase of Local Artists held in the Exposition Center.  The showcase will feature 10-15 local artists from the Triangle displaying their work which will be available for viewing and purchasing.

In the Brews & Bites section of the home show, one can sip and sample creations by some of the areas local chefs and breweries. Food sample courtesy of Fogwood Food, b.good, Capital City Chop House and City Barbecue; while tasting beer from White Street Brewing, Big Boss, wines from Adams Vineyards and hard cider from Bull City Ciderworks. Please check out the webpage for exact days each business will be available at www.SouthernIdealHomeShow.com.

Admission to the home show is $9 for adults at the door. Advance discount tickets available at area Walgreens for $7. Hours for the home show are Friday: 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Parking for the event is free.

A love for animals and beer makes this Hendersonville brewery a must when in town

By Dathan Kazsuk | August 19, 2016
Twitter: @TriangleAT | Facebook: Triangle Around Town | Instagram: @trianglearoundtown


Sanctuary Brewing Company
Address: 147 First Avenue E., Hendersonville, NC
Phone: (828) 595-9956

We first visited Sanctuary Brewing Company this past April during a brief vacation up in the Hendersonville/Lake Lure area of Western North Carolina. I'm usually the one excited to visit a new brewery, but it was Jen who was a little more excited than me about Sanctuary. Really? Jen more excited about a brewery than Dathan? Yes. That's because the co-owners of Sanctuary, Lisa McDonald and Joe Dinan are huge into animal advocacy - just like us. From puppy adoptions in the taproom to yoga with cats on Saturday mornings, Sanctuary Brewing loves animals just as much as we do.

Although we missed the yoga with cats that morning, we arrived at the brewery for one of the puppy adoptions with a local animal shelter. So before we even started drinking beer, Jen and I were playing and petting the adorable puppies who were all hoping to find their forever home.

Prior to arriving at Sanctuary, we reached out to co-owner McDonald, so when she had a few free minutes to chat with us, we sat down and talked about how her, along with Dinan came up with the concept of the brewery. The story goes a little like this: McDonald was tired of the corporate world and Dinan's home brewing skills were peaking – add that to their love for animals – and hence, Sanctuary Brewing was born. Yes, it is that simple.

Once we finally pulled up a couple seats to the bar, it was time to order. We looked over the expansive list of beers on draft – 16 beers to be exact that day we arrived. And, as usual, we decided to order up a flight, so that we can both enjoy an assortment of beers without adding extra inches to my gut. Our typical flight will be filled with stouts, porters, sours, anything barrel-aged ... and for me, we'll toss in an IPA or two.

This time we selected the following: Caturday (IPA); Ollie the Destroyer (Imperial IPA); Cranberry Saison; Scottie's Red (Red Ale); Carolina Panther (Chocolate Porter) and the Weekend Joe (Coffee Stout).

One by one we sampled each beer. Each beer ended up being pretty true to style, with Jen's favorite being the Weekend Joe, and mine being Ollie the Destroyer. There were so many different beers to sample that day, and I wish we could have tried more – but unfortunately we had a few more breweries to hit up that weekend, including a tour of Sierra Nevada and a stop at Bold Rock Cider's North Carolina production facility.

Would we go back to Sanctuary? In a heartbeat. With great beer, live music, and a small assortment of Vegan salads and pizzas, if you're ever just a little south of Asheville, you must check out Sanctuary Brewing Company.