Mike Loves Beer

Surprises can absolutely kick major ass.  Especially when out the blue you get invited to attend a beer dinner.  Such an event happened last week when I was invited to attend a beer dinner last night hosted by Holy Mackerel and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza.  Luckily I was available for the night so it was not something I would turn down.

I arrived slightly late of the 7:00 pm start time due to work and the every lovely South Florida traffic but apparently things started a bit late and I didn’t really miss much.

The first course was a salad with mozzarella and fresh tomatoes paired up with Magic Hat #9.  Yes I know it’s not Holy Mackerel and was the only exception.  All of the mozzarella was gone by the time I got there so I passed on the salad and just had the beer.

The second course was really three courses in one.  First we were brought meatballs that were about the size of a baseball with ricotta cheese on the side.  Up next were oven roasted chicken wings with caramelized onions and rosemary.  Then even after that were short ribs with peppers.  These were all paired up with Holy Mackerel Panic Attack.

Then the main course of pizzas just blew my mind.  Three different types of pizzas from plain cheese to sausage, peppers and onions to my favorite of the night (and one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had) cauliflower.  Trust me it was as close to life changing as a pizza could be.  And I don’t think food can really change one’s life so take that for what it is.  This was paired up with Holy Mackerel Special Golden Ale.

The finally for dessert was New York Style Cheesecake matched up with Holy Mackerel Mack in Black.  The cheesecake was delicious but the cinnamon sprinkle over top didn’t match great with the beer.  Some shaved chocolate or fresh raspberries over top would have matched up better in my opinion.

Now if you remember when I posted about this event the other day I gave you the price for this.  For $30 this was probably the most bang for your buck beer dinner ever.  So much food to go with some really good brews was something you couldn’t beat.  If Anthony’s didn’t treat me to this dinner I would have gladly paid this much for it.

Plus I got to meet Anthony Bruno himself, the man behind Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, as well as talk with Bob Gordash of Holy Mackerel.  And hanging out with Ed Roberts of Total Wine and Rob from Daily Beer Review (all be it shortly with Rob) isn’t a bad night either.

I thought the event was great and from talking with Toby representing Anthony’s they hope to do more of these in the future at other locations.  These will be something that you have to try if you missed this one.

Again a big thanks to Anthony and Toby from Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza and Bob from Holy Mackerel for having me.  It was a pleasure.  And Toby provided me with a Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza gift card for me to give out to a reader.  I will come up with some brilliant scheme idea on how to give that away to one of you folks.  Keep an eye out for that next week.

Another year of the Jupiter Craft Brewers Fest is in the books after Saturday and there was yet another great turn out.  The weather despite being reported would rain all afternoon stayed nice for the entire event.  Don’t you wish you could be a weather person and be that wrong so much?

The brewers came out in full force again for this one so here are my top 5 beers of the festival.

BrewBar – Ziko’s Revenge – The upcoming brew on premise spot in Jupiter came out with a number of solid beers but their Ziko’s Revenge stout offered complex flavors with a nice full body.

Cigar City Brewing – White Oak Peach IPA – White Oak IPA from CCB is one of my favorites and their Peach IPA is a really tasty one.  Put them together and you get an awesome IPA with mixes of the peach and a nice white oak finish mixed in with those hops.

Due South Brewing – Saison du South – While many were talking about the Caramel Creame Ale (and rightfully so) it was the saison from Boynton Beach’s newest addition that got me happy quick.  Light, dry, citrus, cloves, horse blanket and enough funk in this would make anyone think it was made in Belgium or France.

Funky Buddha Brewery – Maple Bacon Coffee Porter – Yes I’ve had this plenty of times before but it’s been awhile.  The line for this was ridiculous with people once again chanting “bacon” just like last year.  There was even a fight in the lines during this.  I don’t condone this sort of stupid behavior at all but I think Funky Buddha has a new t-shirt they can make. Beer You Would Fight For.  I want credit.

Due South Brewing – Caramel Creame Ale – I couldn’t go the top 5 without having this one on there.  Yes I liked the Saison du South more but damn is this a fine beer.  Just think of those little candies that have the caramel with the creame in the middle of them.  Now imagine that taste in a beer.  It’s all there.

Honorable Mentions
Funky Buddha Bonita Applebum
Cigar City Church on a Hill
BrewBar Mystery Beer
Brewzzi Double IPA
Treasure Coast Brewers Club Key Lime Wheat

Those were my tops.  What about yours?  Leave a comment if you agree or disagree.

Beer dinners rock, plain and simple.  You can get to have a number of great dishes paired up with excellent beer that just compliments each other more than high school sweethearts.  And the long standing pairing of pizza and beer is something that just needed to be explored.  Well Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza is teaming up with Holy Mackerel to present such a pairing.

This Wednesday night at the Coral Springs location of Anthony’s you will get four courses paired up with beers to offer a delicious dinner.  Just see below.

• Fresh Mozzarella & Tomato salad paired with Magic Hat #9
• Pork Ribs with Vinegar Peppers, Meatballs with Ricotta Cheese and Coal Oven Roasted Chicken Wings paired with Holy Mackerel’s Panic Attack
• “Well Done” Pizza paired with Holy Mackerel’s Special Golden Ale
• New York Style Cheesecake paired with Holy Mackerel’s Mack in Black

Plus ACFP founder Anthony Bruno and Holy Mackerel founder Bob Gordash will be in attendance for this special event.  The dinner is $30 and space is very limited so be sure to call (954-340-2625) to reserve your spot.  Things start at 7 pm.  I received a special invite from Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza and will be in attendance.

Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza
9521 Westview Drive
Coral Springs, FL 33076