Peakbagger's Brewing

Fosters: Australian for "day-off"

2010-08-03T11:40:00.000-07:00

Had a free day, took a drive to Evangola State Park for a round of frolf (frisbee golf) with my good friend Keegan McNichol. The beer of choice for outdoor exertion? Fosters' Ale and Lager 22oz cans... Surprising ammount of flavor for a macro- reminds me of a lighter yuengling, sweet, with a nice bite. Armed with a pair of Macanudo Robusto cigars, we made the most of our day off.

Check out Evangola, and other local courses

The Great Belgian Beer Quest!

2010-08-02T18:36:00.001-07:00

Week 2: Ommegang Abbey Ale

Ommegang is located in Cooperstown, NY. Despite the great distance between the brewery and the country from which it draws its inspiration, Ommegang manages to transport the beer connoisseur deep into the heart of Belgium with their bold, flavorful brews.

Ommegang Abbey Ale is an excellent example of a classic Belgian dubbel. It pours a rich hazy red, with a light tan head. The aroma is a pungent blend of spicy, citrusy orange with sweet, ripe fruit and malt.

The flavor follows suit... full bodied, almost chewy ripe fruit flavors are well balanced with a spicy yeast finish.

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Little Rock City, NY

2010-07-27T08:29:00.000-07:00

Had a chance to sneak away to Ellicotville for a nice day of climbing with my buddy Bob Warner. Past the ski lodges and lifts, way back in the forest, Little Rock City is a climbers' paradise... With a six pack of Sierra-Nevada Pale Ale in hand, we had a blast all afternoon, and plan to return soon.

Deleware 2010: Dogfish Head and Victory Brewing

2010-07-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

Each year, my extended family rents a beach-house as a group and spends a week on the shore catching up, cooking, and finding creative places to fill with sand. This year, we chose to go to Rehoboth, Delaware. This was a fortunate choice for me, as the Rehoboth itself is the hometown of Dogfish Head Brewing, and the route we took through Pennsylvania just happened to swing rather close (with a little creative GPS'ing) to Victory Brewing in Downington, Pennsylvania.

Delaware is a small state, but is surprisingly diverse from North to South in several ways. As we drove through Wilmington, we were greeted with a substantial skyline comprised of the glimmering windows of some of the worlds' most powerful financial institutions. However, as we drove just a few miles past the City to the south on Route 1, we were slightly surprised to come across rolling fields of corn and soy. Route 1 was only lightly populated for the majority of our trip south towards Rehoboth, mainly by quaint roadside stands, all claiming to have 'the worlds best/sweetest/cheapest/freshest/original' products... whether they be 'crabs/cars/corn/tobacco/ or seashells'. As we passed through Dover and continued down route 1, we began to see the landscape change from agriculture- to tourism. The sheer size of the seasonal plazas were dumbfounding... Outlets, liquor stores, mini-golf courses, and surf shops were present on every block... sometimes store locations of the same franchise would be only blocks apart (i.e. Candy Kitchen, Seashell Shops, Crab shacks).

Dogfish Brewing and Eats is located in the middle of the chaos on the Rehoboth Strip. The menu is populated with 'off-centered' offerings. I chose the "Land and Sea" Gumbo, and was impressed by the healthy portion filled with buttery craw-fish and andouille sausage, absolutely delicious. For my beverage I chose 'Johnny Cask: 75 Minute IPA', a cask-conditioned blend of the 90 and 60 minute IPAs that made dogfish famous with their 'continual hopping' technique. The beer was excellent, served at cellar temperature (just-cool), and topped with a one-finger creamy head. The copper-orange ale was a perfect blend of the two IPAs, just light enough to be drinkable, but still full-bodied. The hop aroma and flavor were complex, reminiscent of pine, and grapefruit. I highly recommend a trip to Dogfish Brewing and Eats... the atmosphere is hard to beat, the wait-staff drips enthusiasm, and the combination of fresh brewed beer, and small batch spirits pushes the pub into the top 10 brew-pubs I have ever been visited.

After several beautiful days (and cool, breezy nights) in Delaware, it was time to make the long trek through Pennsylvania back to Buffalo. It seems that no matter where/when you attempt to pass through the Keystone state, you will somehow always manage to be trapped in the vortex of back-roads, and poorly placed construction zones. To break the monotony, we took a small detour to Victory Brewing in Downington, PA. We were blown away by the beautifully designed brewpub. The remnants of old copper brew-kettles adorned the top of the long, hardwood bar, and the impressive draft offerings (nearly every victory beer made) including 3 cask-conditioned ales would keep even the most critical pub-goer occupied for hours. However, the menu (surprisingly enough) is where Victory truly shined. Victory does an excellent job of balancing pub-favorites (sweet potato fries, hot sandwiches, nachos, etc) with enough variety of entrees to keep you interested. We tried the 'thrice fries', a heaped serving of steak fries, sweet potato fries, and fried leeks served with a chipotle-Russian dressing, as well as the 'dietrich' (a massive pastrami sandwich) and the 'whitney', a smoked-turkey and fresh slaw sandwich on fresh rye. The portions were large enough to force us to wrap most of our meal, and the beer was of course, excellent. The "Mad-King" weissbier recommended by our waiter was delicious (light, fruity, spicy) paired with the rich flavors of pastrami and rye.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and I am back in East Aurora with my shoulder to the wheel... Will check back in soon!

16 mile amber ale

2010-07-20T09:28:00.001-07:00

Greetings from Delaware! I'm here in rehoboth beach at the Purple Parrot Grill with my brother Christopher Sasiadek (sasiadizzle.blogspot.com) and we were lucky enough to find fresh local beer and oysters on the menu.

Our beer of choice? Deleware's own 16 mile Blues golden ale. Very sweet lightly fruity ale, no trace of hop character... good for a hot day with oysters.

Later on this week, We'll be checking in from Dogfish Head Brewing and Eats in Rehoboth!

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THE GREAT BELGIAN BEER QUEST!

2010-07-13T16:50:00.001-07:00

I've decided that I will attempt to become a Belgian beer expert on te next year. This will entail several things.

1- drinking and reviewing at least one Belgian style brew a week.
2- brewing Belgian styles at least once a month.
3- cooking/pairing with Belgians.

Review: Ommegang Rare Vos (draft)

Pours a hazy golden orange with hints of red highlights. Beautiful head retention.

Aroma is slightly sweet, like marmalade... but with a tinge of sour.

Flavor is similar to the aroma, sweet and smooth, finishing with a slightly tart, yeasty bite.

Overall: Great entry level Belgian ale... approachable level of sweetness, and good balance of acidity. Would go well with barbeque, or anything on the grill.

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2010-07-13T12:38:00.001-07:00

Alright, After much delay, I am prepared to begin blogging again.

This however will change the overall tone of the blog, as I've chosen to include distillation, music creation, and rock climbing on the list of blog topics.

Will update soon!

A long Summer of Fun.

2009-10-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

Dear Blog Followers (if you're out there),

I'd like to apologize for the long break in posts, alot has happened in the life of a Peakbagger in this past summer, let me hit a few highlights for you.

1) I've been offered a job as a brewer at a local establishment that is planning to move from a restaurant to a brewpub... needless to say, this is an incredibly exciting development, and while I can't speak to where this will occur yet, as soon as the ball starts rolling, I will make sure EVERYONE knows when they can get my beer on tap.

2) I have a new house! I've moved into an absolutely awesome house with fellow Peakbagger Keegan McNichol, as well as computer savvy gourmet Andrew White--> expect alot more posts now that we have more space to brew and cook :)

3) I took a trip to Boston with fellow Peakbagger Wally Klubek (went caving and cliff-diving along the way in Schoharie), and visited many a pub, but the most exciting stop was Harpoon Brewery. We also had an opportunity to tour the local scene with Boston native Sarah Pruski (of www.catalogingpruski.com) We had some delicious lobster ravioli amongst many glasses of beer, wine, and spirits.

4) I bagged 2 peaks with my brother (and fellow Peakbagger :) ) Christopher Sasiadek (of sasiadizzle.blogspot.com)--> Algonquin and Iroqouis Peaks! Great hike the first day, but as you can see in the photo, the weather caught up to us while we summited- possibly the coldest and windiest days I've ever experienced. We could only stay on the peak for a few minutes, but still an amazing trip- If anyone has the chance- hike into Lake Colden via Avalanche Pass... some of the most gorgeous views I have ever seen.

There have been alot of other developments, but from here on out, I'll just keep it to the recipes- look forward to alot of earthy beer-braised dishes coming this winter-season!

Adam

Cedar Plank Salmon

2009-07-08T19:42:00.001-07:00

Roasted Red Pepper Soup

2009-06-25T15:35:00.000-07:00

Hey all! (if anyone's reading this)

I'm in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA visiting the lovely Whitney Snyder (Peakbagger's finest beer wench), and decided to cook up something delicious to thank the Snyders for their hospitality.

Today's Recipe is a roasted red pepper soup garnished with avocado and smoked Gouda cheese to add some richness to the otherwise fresh pepper flavors. I chose 'Spaten Optimator' as the beverage pairing for the beers' complimentary sweet and roasted malty flavors, as well as the clean, german-lager finish to wash the palate for the next bite. However, you can pair it with almost any Munich lager or rauchbier for an excellent compliment to the roasted and smoked tones of the soup.

Peakbagger's Smoked Pepper Soup
Yields: 5-6 qts of soup

Ingredients:

8 Red Bell Peppers
5-6 Roma Tomatoes
2 Yellow Bell Peppers
2 Green Peppers
2 Medium sized onions
2 sprigs fresh basil
1 full garlic clove
2-3 cups white wine (in this case, I used McManis Pinot Grigio)
3 qts chicken or vegetable stock
1.3 cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 cup flour
Juice of one lemon
cayenne pepper to taste
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup grated smoked gouda.

1) Begin to make a roux in a large, thick crock. Add one cup flour to 1.3 cups extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Stir constantly, whisking out any lumps. Continue stirring until the roux reaches a rusty-red color (this will take anywhere from 1-1.5 hours, so continue to the next steps once you get the roux going, but keep stirring! its helpful to have a little sister in situations like this) The longer you cook the roux, the better it will be, so be patient!

2) Blacken the red peppers using a flame stove, blowtorch, grill, or broiler until they are black on each side, place them in a large bowl, splash with 1 cup of wine(speeds cooling), cover with foil, and set aside until cool. When cool, scrape the blackened skin, and remove seeds from the peppers, saving any juice that is inside the bell (if you can't get rid of all the seeds, don't worry too much). Cut the peppers into sugar-packet sized pieces.

3)Dice the onions, celery, and garlic into small pieces.

4)Cut the roma tomatoes into medium sized pieces for roasting, and place with half of the onion, celery, and garlic in a stainless steel bowl with 1 cup of wine, and 1/4 cup of olive oil. Mix well, salt and pepper liberally. Pour the entire mixture onto a baking pan with a raised edge, roast at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until onions are fully cooked, and all liquid is simmered off.

5)When the roux reaches the desired color (dark brown/red), add the remaining half of the onion, celery and garlic. Brown well, then add the stock, stirring constantly.

6)Puree the roasted tomatoes, garlic, onions, and peppers to your desired texture in a blender, and add into the pot. Add sour cream, heavy cream, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, basil, and 1 cup of grated smoked gouda cheese, and stir vigorously, or use immersion blender, if you have lots of gadgets :) Simmer for at least one hour. Season to taste AFTER the soup has reduced.

Garnish with roasted red pepper slices (or grilled avocado) top with grated smoked gouda and enjoy with a tall glass of Spaten Optimator!

Peakbagger's first Blog!

2009-06-09T21:38:00.000-07:00

My name is Adam Bystran, I'm an avid homebrewer/cook/distiller/hop-farmer/musician who hopes to one day own a brewpub that provides patrons with an intense culinary experience by pairing delicious food with delicious beer, wine, and spirits. This venture was concieved of by several good friends, namely, Keegan McNichol, Walter Klubek, and Garret May in the summer of 2007. This blog is an attempt to catalog our experiences with the hope that the recipes contained herein will serve as reference when we create our menu and house brews. Each week, a new beer recipe and an accompanying dish will be added. Hopefully, you'll get the chance to make all of them!