Beer & Desert Tasting

Over the weekend I attended a Beer and Desert Tasting seminar at a local non-profit organization given by an East coast writer. (E-mail me for the details. I don't want to post the name and place as I don't want search engines bringing people here unintentionally.)

Months ago when I first saw the ad I thought "Hmmm, seems like an good idea. Drink a variety of beers, eat a variety of deserts, listen to a reputable author talk abouy the two. Pretty good deal for $30." Man, was that an understatement! I had the best time there! For an hour and a half, me and thirty others had a great time! The author said more that "Drink this beer with this desert." He gave us the history of that beer style, why that specific style paired well with the specific desert, and a lot of anecdotal stories about the breweries, the brew masters, and other beer info.

It wasn't a high-brow, snobby, "wine connoisseur" crowd, nor was it a drink-beer-'till-you-puke crowd. About 1/3 of the crowd were beer enthusiasts like myself, 1/3 patrons of the non-profit, and 1/3 people who knew enough about beer that they wanted to learn more. There were a few surprises for me. One of the beers was a Baltic porter that I had recently read about and just heard that they're going out of business. Too bad as it made a great beer float with black raspberry ice cream. I had read about beer floats and thought they were a waste of good beer and good ice cream. Wrong! That was the best damn combination! Other pairings were more straight forward - stout & chocolate, porter & biscotti, weisen & fruit.

And there was some eye candy there as well. I arrived early and just sat at the nearest table. I should have waited. Just about the time the talk started, two 20-ish ladies walked in and sat at a table across from me. One was wearing a summer dress and wedges. I admired her legs from afar. The other gal wore low-rise jeans, open-toe mules, and a tight top, showing off her ample bust. She had pouty lips and a great smile. Oh! If I were only sitting next to them!