More than Beer Brewing at Wrecking Bar Brewpub

steak tar tare, house pickles, Wrecking Bar whole grain mustard, crusty bread

Chef Terry Koval just sealed a fresh barrel of Wrecking Bar Brewpub whole grain mustard in a Collier and Mckeel Tennessee Whiskey barrel.  After a month of aging, the blend of yellow and brown mustard seeds, apple cider vinegar, and spices will have a hoppy kick, melding with the Wrecking Bar beer of the season and the smoky richness from the barrel. It will then be used as an ingredient in dressings, German-style potato salad, hollandaise on house made pastrami hash, accompanying Bernhard's Bakery Bavarian pretzel and with beer brats made by Rusty Bowers at Pine Street Market. It pairs well with the new addition to the menu- the steak tar tare and pickled veggies slate with crusty bread.  As fresh, local peppers (including those in the Wrecking Bar garden) start coming in, Terry plans on starting some hot sauce in barrels as well.
 

A Proper Valentine

This is how I send Valentine's love--with Pine Street Market Applewood Smoked Bacon.

100 Mile Dinner: Winter on the Lake

On a mild winter evening in January, I paused to take in the scenery of the picturesque Lake Avondale. The night was calm and quiet and I kind of let the stillness set in.  I thought of the recipient of the evening’s ticket proceeds, Ryan Hidinger, a beloved chef fighting a devastating diagnosis. Before I reveled in the food and fellowship that 100 Mile dinners always bring, I wanted to consciously dwell and hope. I saw another person standing on the porch and wondered if they too were caught up in emotion.

The hosts of The Avondale Community Club greeted me with such southern charm and the band Tonestar was already harmonizing in the foyer. Arianne Fielder’s welcome drink, Musk-u-dine-local, was in my hand- sorghum infused Muscadine wine from Chateau Elan with rosemary, soda, and pickled blueberries from Phickles Pickles out of Athens. Just a few seconds in the door, I encountered people I had met at another 100 Mile dinner. Loved this

The tables were set . Tiny vases of flowers and pretty menus awaited diners.  I chose a seat at random and wondered who would be next to me when I returned.

Forced meat stuffed trotter with sausage and bacon pate. I would have been happy sampling here all night.
Rusty Bowers really is a "meat magician.'

The set up for the Southern Smorgasbord was pretty perfect- a stone patio surrounded by pines, next to the glimmering lake. I am not just throwing our adjectives here. The lake was sparkling in the moonlight. It was cool enough to feel like “Winter on the Lake,” but mild enough to not need a jacket. Very  nice for mingling and sampling. So many things to nibble on. There was even a selection of Nick Melvin's homemade pickles. His pickled carrots are the best pickles I have ever had. I didn't have any this evening. I just remember from the last time I tasted them. That good. Wish I had taken photos and had descriptions of all of the offerings. One spoon was topped with crispy chicken skin. One was a play on a reuben. They were going fast.

A fellow diner said “If I could eat salad like this, I would eat it every day.”

People began wandering inside and taking their seats. This is always the fun part, getting to know your table mates. “So what brings you to a dinner like this?’ and “Have you been to a 100 Mile Dinner before?” My seat mates were enchanting. We only stopped talking to listen to the chefs and mixologists describe their offerings. I wanted to put them in my pocket and take them with me.

Rusty Bowers of Pine Street Market and Nick Melvin of Garden District welcomed us with excitement and joy and Nick spoke about how the dinners are to showcase seasonal, local food and “in a way, educate people that this is the way it should be done.”  He quickly brought the tone down to purpose. Nick spoke eloquently and purely from his heart about his dear friend (and a friend to many in house), Ryan. We were dining to celebrate eating locally and appreciating our food’s sources but also to uplift Ryan.

The first course arrives along with a colorful cocktail. Daniel Chance of Campagnolo introduced Duck Two Ways: “roll mop” pickled duck breast and duck sausage accompanied by an herb salad, truffle honey mustard, and bacon marmalade. I used different herbs from the salad with each bite of the sausage which had pine nuts, juniper, pepper, and fennel included. I especially loved it with celery leaves. The Darby Farms duck breast was brined, seared, and pickled similar to a pickled herring preparation. It was insanely good.

Pairing so perfectly with the juniper in the sausage was our cocktail from Arianne Fielder of Seven Lamps: 13^th Colony gin, Sweetwater IPA reduction, Savannah Bee Company Tupelo honey, ruby red grapefruit soda, and blackberries.

Jason Kemp of The Family Dog described our next sip, a 2009 Voignier from Tiger Mountain Vineyards as having “a little bit of funk.” I completely agreed. I also tasted a minerality I could only believe comes from the granite outcrops of the north Georgia Mountains. Voigniers are great food wines, especially with root vegetables .

Enter Rusty and Nick’s Celeriac Buttermilk Soup. The Blue Ridge trout were cured 24 hours then cold smoked and flaked into a celery leaf salad. Also in the luscious bowl of celery root soup were smoked trout roe in mustard oil. This dish could go on my last meal wish list. The flavor combinations and textures were powerful and really played off one another. I want this to be on a menu somewhere.

Our third course presented by the effervescent Terry Koval of Wrecking Bar Brew Pub was beautiful Scotch ale braised beef cheeks with root veggies and parsnip puree.  I heard so many diners say “what’s a cheek? Where is it from?” A cheek is well, a cheek; or more specifically, the fine grained facial muscle of a cow. The cheeks were super tender ( no small feat when you think of how strong a cow’s facial muscles must be from chewing all day) with a hint of the braising liquid flavor. I loved knowing the cheeks were from Moonshine Meats in Athens, a farm that uses this statement:  Moonshine Meats is just meat the way it should be: raised on pasture by producers who have a deep sense of humility, humanity and awe for both animal and land. I loved the baby carrots, turnips, and rutabagas- soft but not too soft, and left in their natural state as opposed to cubed. I could have eaten a bowl of the parsnip puree.

The dish paired so nicely with the Colin’s Wee Heavy Scotch Ale from Wrecking Bar and Brewery. The beer, named for Bob the brewmaster’s son, Colin, is a malty, rich, warming with chocolate undertones ale that was aged in bourbon barrels. It’s a masterpiece and such a wonderful brew for a cold winter’s night. Bob Sandage, founder of Wrecking Bar, was even in the house.

The final dish of the evening came with an introduction from delightful Layne Lee of Sweet N Sinful Bakery. She said it had always been a mission of hers to get her equally delightful sister to try squash. Who would have thought to put butternut squash in a cobbler? Sweet, light and warm, the cobbler sat on top of sage ice cream. I watched her sister eat it and watched Layne beam.

Jason Kemp ended our night with the perfect nightcap: Ivy Mountain apple brandy with warm Mercier Orchards apple cider and allspice dram. So good. It could only have been better if were were outside next to a campfire.

The band came from the foyer to wish happy birthday to a guest, play, and sing amongst us. It was a really fun moment. They encouraged us to dance. I was sad the night had to end. I was satiated but wanted the conversation to continue. My table mates were interesting, fun, and thrilled for this sort of dining experience. Each course we tasted together brought forth lively conversations, anecdotes, and funny stories. We laughed. We even shed tears over a shared experience.

We tasted the seasons and the local offerings of Gum Creek Farms in Roopville, Flat Creek Lodge in Swainsboro, BesMaid Garden in Decatur, Serenbe Farms in Chattahoochee Hills, and Moonshine Meats in Athens. We didn't start a revolution or change the world but we ate a delicious five course meal sourced from 100 miles and further discussed a better worldview on sourcing food. We didn't just eat, we conscientiously placed value on our foodstuffs and how they arrived at our table. For this conversation, I am grateful to The 100 Mile Dinner and the chefs and farmers who provided a forum.

I left with hugs for my new friends and for the chefs and servers who put on such a great night. My anticipation for the next 100 Mile Dinner in March along with Nick’s restaurant, Garden District, is already beginning. I walked gently into the night. Seeing the lake and moon again made me take pause and send good thoughts out to Ryan.

For Team Hidi info, click here.

100 Mile Dinner Garden Party

Even if only symbolically and in the form of a pop-up dinner, there is a need to reexamine the way we are sourcing our food in America.  Our global food system diminishes our sense of connection to our food, our landscape, and our food culture. 1500 miles is the figure often thrown around in the media to describe the average distance food travels to reach our plate in the U.S. Numerous research studies can be found to substantiate as well as discredit the number of “food miles” products have attached to them, but what holds true is our food generally travels far and with this comes consequences. Food grown closer to home tastes fresher, is more nutritious, and supports local growers. As the distance decreases, so does the need for preservation and processing not to mention fewer transportation emissions associated with it. We can add to this the bidirectional connection between consumer and producer that is created when we know the source of the product we seek. A trip to a farmers’ market can bridge the gap between rural and urban locales. Besides strengthening the regional economy, it can make a small town out of a big one. The simple act of picking fresh, local, and seasonal food stuffs from the producers is an act of reconnection to the land, to community, and to traditions of the past. 

Nick Melvin and Rusty Bowers greeting guests

Labeling food as “local” seems to coalesce around the 100 mile limit. Enter Rusty Bowers of Pine Street Market and Nick Melvin of the upcoming Garden District. Together they created The 100 Mile Dinner, a series of pop-up dinners in Avondale Estates where partnering with chefs, farmers, and friends from the local community, they collaborate on a menu utilizing ingredients farmed entirely within 100 miles of the neighborhood. Some featured items may even be grown or raised exclusively for the events.

151 Locust in Avondale Estates

 I attended the 100 Mile Dinner Garden Party on a stormy September night at one of Avondale's oldest buildings, 151 Locust. The rain was not a factor; in fact, it seemed to bring us together. We huddled as a mass of like minded diners under twinkling lights that occasionally went out with the storm.  The background bluegrass enriched the stories being told of the tent we sat underneath and its most recent journey from Burning Man. We ate, talked, shared twitter accounts, and discussed our relationships with the dinner. I sat near a woman who is a vegetarian, unless the meat is locally sourced from a butcher she knows, like Pine Street Market. I also had the pleasure of Alicia Searcy’s company. She and her husband Tommy run Gum Creek Farms, the source of our lamb for this dinner (as well as the source of Pine Street's award winning Coppa). We left full of food as well as the notion of how we could carry this meal into the rest of our lives. At least I did.

Rustic yet elegant. Silver meets burlap.

 

The evening began with passed tastes and cocktails inside the house. This deviled "potato salad" was completely enchanting and unexpected. I loved the smoked Blue Ridge trout roe as a topper.

 

Another taste, Pine Street Market applewood bacon on Heirloom Garden's greens and preserved cherry tomato with cracked pepper aioli. This smoky-sweet bacon is always in my fridge and should be in yours. The greens were good too but I was really making the bacon face while I ate this dish. Oh my goodness, this bacon.

High Strung String Band were the the perfect musical accompaniment to this meal- a taste of traditional bluegrass mixed with a bit of folk but played with an edge. The music was much like the food: comfort laden with one foot in the past and a modern twist.

 

From the top, clockwise: North Georgia apples with Pine Street lardo, young arugula, & candied local nuts, roasted pumpkin, apple, and Flat Creek Lodge Natural Cheddar soup with creme fraiche & spicy pumpkin cheese straw, Deviled potato salad, Local cheese & honey. Along with these "Crostini ala Cachinni," a mini meat ball with sweet pimiento jelly. Jason Kemp of The Family Dog served a Flor Rose Brut with fresh grapefruit, thyme, and rosemary. It was a lovely beginning.

 

Appetizer from Terry Koval of Wrecking Bar Brew Pub and Rusty Bowers of Pine Street Market: Darby Farm's duck rillette with pickled peppers and chopped salad with Green Goddess dressing. The level of delicious was high and this plate was empty in a few seconds. Such great textures together, the smooth, luscious duck with the brightness of the dressed greens.



Duck Rillette pairing

 

Braised Gum Creek Farm's Lamb Farotto with grilled lamb sausage, mushroom conserva, and roasted local pumpkin. All I can say is suddenly I knew it was fall. This dish by Kyle Griffith of Pine Street Market and Andy Gonzales of Steinbeck's Pub was rich and hearty, yet the lamb was delicate. The  lamb was clean and herbaceous tasting, indicative of grass pasturing.  Pairing the lamb with a Highland Oatmeal Porter was perfect.

 

Serious fun while the rain was spilling through the branches of the surrounding trees.

 

"Derby Cocktail" from Jason Kemp of The Family Dog: 4 Roses bourbon and a champagne shrub.

Even before dessert arrived, I was sweetly enchanted with this drink and this evening.







Spiced Pecan Panna Cotta with mulled cranberry, preserved peaches, and pralines from Nick Melvin of Garden District and Layne Lee of Sweet N' Sinful Bakery. First there was a sound of spoons clinking on porcelain, then silence as fellow diners disappeared into this dessert. I took delicate, tiny bites of each flavor then bigger bites with one or two. The panna cotta appeared simple, but was anything but with the emanations within the bowl. First, a forward sweetness then smoky-spiced mulled cranberry arose from the depths to mingle with the tangy Georgia peaches canned at the peak of ripeness. The peaches managed to place both summer and autumn on my palate.

Rusty and Nick thank their guests.

Left to right: Jason Kemp, Kyle Griffith, Andy Gonzales, Nick Melvin, and Rusty Bowers

Far right: Terry Koval

 

It was at this moment I remembered a passage from Jack Kerouac's The Dharma Bums, which I had recently re-read: "...and he's going into the city to get drunk with the butchers, enlightened." I was full, a little tipsy, hanging with the butchers, and enlightened.

 

The next 100 Mile Dinner is in November I won't hesitate to purchase a seat. I cannot wait for Nick Melvin's Garden District. Follow his progress to the restaurant here.

 

 

 





 

 

Wish: My favorite local things

Someone on twitter mentioned that there were only 104 days until Christmas today. I wasn’t ready to entertain the thought until I thought of Wish parties. Each year during the holiday season a group of girlfriends and I gather for a fun night out and exchange gifts. Sometimes we set a limit and sometimes there is a theme. My favorite evening was when the gift to bring was a re-gift of a piece of jewelry or accessory that you just didn’t wear but loved. I came home with a gorgeous scarf that came with a story. I gifted a necklace that was so pretty but had never been worn.For years it sat lonesome in a box in my bathroom drawer. Now I get to see it regularly on a friend who adores it. Besides giving a loving home to things we couldn’t let go of otherwise, the narrative behind each gift was the best part of the evening. When I host a Wish party this year, I am going to combine the stories with a basket much like Oprah’s favorite things episode she used to produce. Each guest will bring a number (depending on the number of guests) of their locally made favorite item. Everyone gets one of each and goes home with a basket full of goodies. My ideal basket:

 

Sweet Grass Dairy Green Hill Cheese

This creamy, buttery, and smooth cheese with a thin bloomy rind and golden color is similar to Camembert. Jersey cow’s milk gives it the gorgeous color and I am convinced being made with love gives it its taste. Sweet Grass Dairy is a family owned and operated farm in Thomasville where the cows live as cows should and cheese making grew out of new found joy at a cheese-making class. It’s delicious, local, and sustainable.

 

French Broad Chocolates Vanilla Bourbon Caramel

True perfection. They had me as a loyal customer at our first meeting a couple of years ago but my intense love for Jael and Dan Rattigan stems from their business plan: "To explore our perpetual lust for culinary creativity through the medium of chocolate. To create a beautiful space and a beautiful menu; to witness the emotional impact of our creations on our patrons; to further hone our place in the community and lighten our environmental impact, all the while living as decent human beings." Many business owners say things like this this, but Jael and Dan actually have achieved their objectives. I love everything about French Broad Chocolates, from their meticulous sourcing, their Willy Wonkaesque factory harnessing the sun to roast the beans, to the lovely packaging. My friends know of my great love and make sure to stop for me each time one of them is in Asheville. My favorite confection right now is the Vanilla Bourbon Caramel filled with Knob Creek bourbon. Sweet, rich and at the same time a lil smoky from the bourbon. Runner up: Lavender & Honey truffle with local lavender & wildflower honey and  Peruvian dark chocolate. It is layered bits of the Blue Ridge Mountains wrapped up inside of exotic dark chocolate. You can smell, taste, and feel the lavender bits and the honey. Pretty sure it tastes like sunshine and bluegrass too.

Emily G’s Berbere Sauce

Inspired by a spice mixture that is the flavor foundation for Ethiopian cooking, Emily G’s Berbere Sauce makes grilling or crock pot dinners easily exotic. Super inspired by the spice combination, Emily woke with the flavor in her head and worked all day crafting a batch that eventually became this sauce. The “love” that is printed on her jars can be tasted. She tries to create jams, sauces and relishes simply, naturally, and with the best ingredients available. I can’t wait to get my hands on a jar of pear honey which came about after she tasted an amazing pear from South Georgia and dreamt up a slow cooked, thickened version of it with just a hint of honey. It’s much like how her Emily G’s story began- a mom (who also happens to be a classically trained chef) on a strawberry picking play date in Lawrenceville with buckets full of fresh berries. The play date turned into a jam making day. This is how Emily’s grandmother from Alabama did things. When you have a fresh ingredient in excess, you put-up. Friends and family loved what they tasted, wanted more, and Jams of Love was born.

If her curry ketchup collaboration with Rosebud is ready by the holidays, I might put it in my wish bag too.

 

Southern Gal Bath and Body

These are luscious lip balms that I use every day. I have one in my purse, one in my car, one in the kitchen, and one right next to me at my computer. It began with a crafting whim at making soap and has grown into a full bath and body line. Tricia’s soaps are beautiful, creamy, and have lasting scents. Making them allows her to be an amazing mom at home. For the holidays this past year I bought soaps, candles, scrubs, and lotions for everyone from Southern Gal Soaps/ Bath and Body.

Beautiful Briny Sea Salts

Beautiful Briny Sea Salts are made here in Atlanta. I especially love the truffle salt and the lavender salt. The blends are made with hand harvested salts from around the world and certified organic herbs. All ingredients are sourced from the growers with sustainability as a focus.  More importantly, they are incredible delicious.

Garlic Clove Foods: Gluten Free Garden Pilaf

The D’Angelos make delicious, healthy, and quick cooking foods a family affair with Garlic Clove Foods. Everyone pitches in to produce blends made with a combination of 100% Whole Grains (Quinoa, Bulgur & Millet), Vegetables, Legumes and natural herbs and spices.  The Gluten free Garden Pilaf is a mixture of organic millet and organic quinoa with vegetables, herbs, and spices. I love being able to gift something made near my home by a family trying to bring better food to everyone's table. My gluten free friends will love it!

Phickles Pickles: Rasta Beans

Phickles Pickles began in 2009 in Angie Tillman’s home kitchen and has since moved to a facility in Athens. The entire family pitches in from the filling of the jars, sticking on the labels, and delivering the boxes. Each jar is hand packed with locally sourced veggies and fruit. I love all of the pickles but Rasta Beans are my favorite of the bunch. Rasta Beans came about as a gift to a local Athens restaurant that served a few dishes with jerk seasoning. They now have quite a cult following. Rasta Beans are not always available but she will make them to order. Look for Angie and her sweet booth adorned with heirloom linens at farmer's markets and local shops.

H & F Bottle Shop Bloody Mary Mix

It’s not a spicy mix but that is easily remedied with the addition of hot sauce and a few of those Rasta beans mentioned above. I love the mix’s  brightness and thickness. The mix begins with hand-milled tomatoes, not juice, but tomatoes and includes hand-squeezed lime juice, Worcestershire, horseradish, Trappey’s hot sauce, celery seed, and cream Sherry. The bottle encourages you to add to it what will make your bloody Mary best for you. I absolutely love the handwritten batch date on the label.

Pine Street Market Cured Meats

Pine Street Market meats begin with local pork from Berkshire hogs from Gum Creek Farms in Georgia. Humanely raised pigs forage off the land using a rotational grazing method without antibiotics, pesticides, or herbicides. CIA trained Rusty Bowers is a skilled craftsman in the art of salumi. His house-cured meats made on site in Avondale Estates and aged in custom-built, climate controlled curing caves. My favorites are the speck and the applewood smoked bacon. My kids call it the “good bacon” when they are asking for it.

 

NaturAlmond Almond Butter

 





When Jamie Foster couldn't find almond butter in stores that could compare to her grandfather's, she began making her own. With the enlivening support of friends and family, NaturAlmond was born and continues to grow in Chamblee, Georgia. Handcrafted using just two ingredients, roasted almonds and sea salt, it is both delicious and nutritious.

photo from Milepost65.com

Jack Rudy Tonic

This small batch cocktail syrup made in Charleston is gorgeous in apothecary bottles with letterpress labels. Besides quinine, the tonic is composed of a blend of lemongrass, orange peel, sugar, and citric acid. It is concentrated and can be used as a sweetening agent for a cocktail or traditionally as “tonic water” with the addition of fizzy water. I confess that I have yet to try it but I have had stellar cocktails from Brooks Reitz at Fig Restaurant in Charleston. What’s not to love about a handcrafted tonic from a southern gentleman who named his product for his grandfather?