Why we do what we do ...or, Beer Dinner at The Plough with Sam and the Sparrows

(Photo Eddie Jim from The Age)

There really is something to be said for the old adage that work is something you do when you’d rather be doing something else. Or something like that. However the saying goes it holds equally true that if you get to ‘work’ at something you really enjoy, you don’t question why it is – you just embrace it.

This version of ‘livin’ the dream’ was displayed by a handful of friends gathered around a table in a corner of an otherwise empty country pub about an hour out of Melbourne in the middle of last week. We had just shared the joys of a Beer Blokes Beer Dinner at The Plough where five very different beers had been craftily paired with five delicious courses, a tie-breaking trivia challenge, more than a little jolly banter and the addition of a very special guest.

Sam Fuss has been in the brewing caper for eleven years now (as those who had listened to her Radio Brews News podcast debut the previous week would already have known) and it seemed that her name had been mentioned more than once during the six previous dinners the Plough and Chef Mark Mills has held. So it was no surprise to see her warmly welcomed and made to feel well at home with a comfy couch by the fire and a chilled glass of amber happiness in hand by the time we were ready to roll.

Perhaps the fact that she came bearing a keg of her Red Truck Marzen explained the depth of the welcome? Sam regaled the 80-odd guests with tales of time spent with Little Creatures and Matilda Bay, of doorless delivery trucks and experimentation with ingredients like mint and cherry and coconut. All I can say is that her hand must have finished sore, so many vigorous handshakes was she subjected to as the guests left.

And here’s the point of the post. Sitting around over the last of the Red Truck – and perhaps a bottle or three of fine Australian red wine – it became apparent to me that doing what you love doing is the name of the game. Plough owner and Chef Mark Mills made the lifestyle decision to leave the hustle n’ bustle and head for the hills and plains of Myrniong, a shift that has been beneficial for his young family and for the locals as well.

Sam is the same. She is someone who is perfectly suited to talking about the passion required to make good beer and to watch her engage with the punters one-on-one is to watch someone doing just exactly what they love doing – and doing it well. There is so much of her own personality and style in her beers and in the way she approaches the challenges of brewing and you can’t help thinking that she moves a fair bit of beer just because she is able to instantly make friends. She will be the first to admit that she often has to stop and pinch herself that she actually gets paid to do all this.

Her travelling companion for the night, True South Events Manager Tanya Harrowell, was there to keep Sam company (but I have to secretly suspect she was there to see just how a beer tasting/food matching event is run by a seasoned professional). Having said that, spending some quality time with Tan made me realise a couple of things. One; True South is a definite ‘Go To’ destination for the whole hospitality and beer experience and has some pretty cluey staff on board and, two; Sam is a pretty darn good person to work with!

As to the title of the post? Let’s just say that “what happens at Beer Dinner, stays at Beer Dinner” and after a couple of late nights in Sydney, a delayed return flight and a peak-hour drive which got me to Myrniong just in time to take the mic and welcome the guests, a 4.30am finish was perhaps not what the doctor ordered.

(Photo from The Weekly Times)

But for people like Tan, Sam and Mark – I’ll always make an exception.

Cheers,

Prof Pilsner

The next Beer Dinner at The Plough Inn in Myrniong is one well worth setting time aside for. In an attempt to do a sort “Best of the Best” guests will be given two things – a scorecard and twenty beers. We will gather together as many of the beers as we have showcased over the last year and serve them one after the other with plenty of delicious finger food in order to find the People’s Choice Top 5 Beers.

Wednesday November 23^rd will see beers from around the globe, around the country and around the corner go head-to-head to see what all this beer thing fuss is about. Call Mark at The Plough to book - Phone: 03 5368 7173

Oh and Sam and Tan – can’t wait to do it all again!

An Englishman, an Irishman and a Scot walk into a bar...

While it might sound like the opening line to a politically incorrect joke it came to life in living, breathing, drinking colour recently when The Courthouse Restaurant in Berwick held its first Great British Beer Dinner.

When putting together a wishlist for beers to showcase for the average punter in the outer eastern suburbs it soon became apparent that some of the favourites were representative of the united Kingdom’s combined classics. With a reasonably large population of ex-pats living in and around Berwick it seemed logical to offer a taste of traditional and new world interpretations of regional styles and match them with similarly themed dishes.

As for the post title? I figured it was a logical step to match three traditional beer drinkers to their land of origin and, to this end, I convinced three mates to join me in selecting, presenting and drinking these fine beers. James Smith (The Crafty Pint, The Age and father of Good Beer Week) agreed to represent England even though he was born in Scotland and often secretly curses his father for moving the family from Fife before he had the chance to craft a fine Scottish accent.

Andrew ‘Shandy’ Gargan couldn’t say “YES!” quickly enough when asked to represent the rolling hills and rolling drunks of Scotland and promised to use all his skills as the host of The Local Taphouse’s Ale Stars beer appreciation sessions to regale the assembled diners with tales of beer history and Scottish lore. As a vegetarian, I promised not to make too much fun of him.

Chris McNamara may have an accent as laconic and broad as the Queensland beaches for which he yearns but his surname and his knowledge of beer was passport enough to get him the gig representing The Emerald Isle. Each lad was asked to suggest food matches for beers of their choosing and the stage was set for a night of fun and frivolity.

Kicking off with a Celt Cwrw Lager as a token representation of Wales (Tom Jones wasn’t available) we got straight into the first course of Scotch Pie with Clapshot and the gentle charms of Fraoch Heather Ale. Shandy’s tale of paternal loyalty and recipe protection had the room wondering as to the true nature of the Scotsman and his beer. (Without wishing to give away the ending if you don’t know the story – they all die)

Chris then regaled us with tales of youthful devotion to a cute Irish lass and how he felt a little giddy – not from her Emerald charms but from the near cardiac arrest-inducing qualities of a traditional Irish Fry and Boxty such as was paired with the Kilkenny Irish Ale. It was up to James to provide some semblance of history/culture/context to a night that was fast becoming a series of stories of drinking and misspent youth.

Not to be. James kicked off by reminiscing about the last time he was at The Courthouse and had to endure the double pain of being sat next to Shandy for the night AND having to drive an hour home and therefore unable to savour the joys of our extensive beer list. Tonight he was able to sip plenty of Samuel Smith’s Old Brewery Pale Ale with his beer battered fish supper & mushy peas.

We finished with a dish whose provenance seemed something of a mystery to the guests. Is Sticky Date Pudding an Irish, Scottish or English dish? Is it even originally from those parts? Some figured English merely because it has the word ‘pudding’ in it and that’s just about good enough for me. The beer we matched with it and a serve of homemade banana chip ice cream certainly WAS English – though far from traditional. Wells & Young’s Banana Bread Beer worked a treat with both the pud and the ice cream and of that there was no argument.

A very special ‘Thank You’ has to go to the boys – not the least for the trek of some two hours on public transport from their cosy, craft beer friendly inner suburbs – but for the generosity and compassion shown to those of us ‘East of Glenferrie’ who don’t have the world of good beer on our doorsteps. Their insights and anecdotes were well received, if only because it meant that the regulars didn’t have to listen as much to me.

The next Beer Blokes Beer Dinner at The Courthouse Restaurant Berwick is our famed Oktoberfest dinner and the boys have already revealed that they are at least 1/16^th German one and all.

Cheers

Prof Pilsner

[I first published this 'tale' back in August 2009 when I was setting the menu for a beer dinner at The Courthouse. As we will be unleashing this ale on a hundred or so country folk at The Plough in August this year, I thought I'd do a bit more research and revisit this story of beer, broads and political correctness. Or something.]

Some more Beer Karma. I was sorting out the beer selection for the Beer Dinner at The Courthouse Restaurant featuring Spring Beers and had decided on Jamieson Raspberry Ale for the dessert. It just so happened that I had a couple left in the fridge from my recent visit and I thought to myself, “well, that’s as good an excuse as any to crack one and remember what it tastes like – for research purposes, of course!”

Looking at the label I recalled how Jeff Whyte had changed the look of this one to reflect the line that the beer is ‘Anything But Sweet’. It now has a stylised raspberry shaped hand grenade which suits the beer nicely.

It also made me recall the lasting impression I got as I left the brewery with my takeaways. A large poster frames the exit door and, had I not been in a hurry, I would have unpacked the camera and snapped a memento.

The poster depicts a beautiful and artistic representation of a reasonably well known fairy tale character who lived with seven ... short statured? ... diminutive? ... under-sized? .... oh, for f*&@s sake, they’re DWARVES (I’ll get around to giving you a serve soon, do-gooders!).

Again using the tag line of ‘Anything But Sweet’ ‘Ho White’ is seen blowing Smoke Rings (the mysterious Eighth Dwarf) while snuggled up in the bed with her seven live-in miners. I thought it was one of the funniest pieces of tongue-in-cheek advertising I had seen in a long time.

This morning I read that the Evil Empire, The Disney Corporation, has had a Dumbo-sized hissy fit that THEIR sweet little girl was being used without their permission. By which I’m sure they mean a large hunk of cash. Call me crazy, but I didn’t think anyone owned fairy tales except those that wrote them in the first place. I could be wrong and maybe Disney has bought the cheeky little Woodsman Woo-er and her crew of Dopey, Grumpy and otherwise mal-adjusted mates.

Either way, lighten up. The kids won’t see it and no one else cares.

The beer, by the way, is a cracker.

Cheers,
Prof. Pilsner

Check it out here

Beer Blokes Gold Medal Dinner at the Terminus Hotel

Well, Good Beer Week is almost upon us and there are now only a handful of tickets left to the Opening Night Gala (well, the first event of GBW, but, you know, I like to talk it up...)

Friend and top beer bloke Dave Bonighton will be in my very special guest, the beers are all lined up and the menu ready to roll.

Get your tickets by calling the Terminus on 9481 3182. Menu is attached here somewhere ...

Trumer Pilsner

Crumbed pigs head, parmesan mayo

Salt & vinegar tripe

Salt & Pepper Calamari

Crab Cakes

Bridge Rd Chevalier Saison

Black Angus carpaccio, goats cheese mousse, caramelised vinegar, rocket

Feral Brewing Hop Hog IPA

Semolina gnocchi, freshwater crayfish, pine mushrooms, sauce Americaine

Holgate ESB

Slow roasted suckling lamb, pomme puree, mushy peas, watercress & snow pea salad

Surefoot Stout

Chocolate marquise, chocolate beignet, honeycomb

Good Beer Week

Beer Blokes Gold Medal Beer Dinner at The Terminus Hotel

Time for a little shameless self promotion.

Let’s face it; Good Beer Week is going to be bigger than King Kong’s bollocks and every self respecting beer lover will be hitting venues all over this marvellous town to indulge their passion for good beer and good beer company. But don’t forget to keep your stomach, as well as your soul, nourished.

What better way to kick the week off than with some of Melbourne’s finest pub grub matched with five beers which hooked Gold Medals at last year’s awards, served up in one of Melbourne’s nicest pub dining rooms in the company of possibly one of Melbourne’s top six or seven nicest Beer Dinner hosts?

The Beer Blokes Gold Medal Beer Dinner will showcase a range of beers designed to delight the experienced drinker while taking the novice on a giddy ride through the wonders of beer. From light, refreshing Pilsner through yeasty and earthy Saison, to malty English Ale and hoppy and punchy American style pale ale before finishing with the richness and depth of a big bold Stout this selection will highlight the flavour range, the aroma differences and the colour variation that beer offers.

Alongside the beers will be the culinary art of Chef Matt Merrick which he has crafted to match the flavours, aromas, bitterness and texture of each brew. Diners will experience the remarkable ability of the malted beverage to compliment or contrast the flavours and tastes of the dishes with the malt, the yeast or the hops or to cut through the richness and refresh with its bitterness.

Elements of the much loved Beer Blokes Beer Dinners will be included such as the Prof Pilsner’s Beer Trivia Quiz and BEERducation but a couple of surprises are also planned. After all, it IS Good Beer Week and this dinner needs to set the bar high for those who follow. What is assured is that those present will come away with a greater understanding of, and love for, the amber nectar. And the black gold. And the golden liquid. And the bronze beverage.

Seating is limited and just over half the spots are already sold so get your party together and book a table by contacting The Terminus Hotel on 9481 3182. Tickets are just $79 for five courses matched to five different beers plus all the fun of a Beer Blokes Beer Dinner. The Terminus is located at 492 Queens Pde Clifton Hill.

The Beer Blokes Gold Medal Beer Dinner at The Terminus Hotel is proudly supported by The Crafty Pint – ‘putting class in your glass’. And in between courses you are welcome to pop down to the front bar for one of the lovely Australian craft beers selected by The Crafty Pint himself, James Smith. Crafty will be curating the taps at The Terminus and its sister pub, The Royston Hotel during Good Beer Week. Tough gig, eh?!

Cheers

Prof Pilsner

http://www.terminus.com.au/www/content/default.aspx?cid=641 For more details, the menu and bookings.

http://www.goodbeerweek.com/ For everything your beery heart could desire in Melbourne between May 16 and 22^nd.

http://www.craftypint.com.au/ For everything from new beer news and venue and event listing to the musical and lighter side of beer. You might even end up ‘going on a march’. You never know.