Krampusnacht is a collab between Otzi Tattoo Studio and Smartmouth Brewing Company in Norfolk, VA.
The tasting room was open during the CRAFTED event.
Running Around Town - Oct 11, 2014
October 11th was a busy day. Saturday kicked off with the CRAFTED: Indie Arts & Craft Market at O'Connor Brewing in Norfolk, VA. Local crafters were joined by crafters from Richmond to display and sell their work. We saw a lot of friends and our buddies at HomebrewUSA were there serving up their beer; a demonstration on home brewing was setup for those who wanted to see how it's done.
After O'Connor went headed over to Smartmouth Brewing--also in Norfolk--because Shelby saw that New York Souvlaki was setup there that day. We kept missing it when it was out so this was the perfect opportunity to finally try it. It was great! Lucas inside poured me a nice, cool Rule G Shelby and I finished while we ate our chicken and pork kebabs.
We went to Cheap and Cheery at Grape & Gourmet in Virginia Beach, VA after we finished up at Smartmouth. I've posted plenty of Cheap and Cheery event photos and it's one of the events Shelby and I look forward to every month. We bumped into a bunch of friends while perused and sampled wines, beers and ciders on the tables. A great event that lets you sample things you might not normally buy. Wen we finished at Grape & Gourmet we took a little break at home to finish up a pita full of meat called "The Bomb" we got from New York Souvlaki earlier. After our brief down time we headed out again.
The last stop of our run for the day was at Lynnhaven Pub to meet the local chapter of Barley's Angels. Barley's Angels Coastal Virginia is a group of female craft beer enthusiasts who aim to educate and promote craft beer in their region. One of the ways they do this is through volunteering and that night's meeting was a big one because the next day they were going to work the Treasure Chest event.
San Diego brewing company Green Flash has held a breast cancer awareness benefit called Treasure Chest Fest. This year is special for Virginia Beach because it was going to the first one and held on the future spot for a brand new Green Flash brewery! We bumped into a lot of friends and met the friendly people from Green Flash mingled about.
We headed home at a decent time but I still stayed up too late. In the morning I was headed to Treasure Chest Fest where I was asked to be the event photographer. I'll write about that later.
Oyster Crush 2014!
Known as the Party of the Year--the 2014 Oyster Crush Charity Fundraiser by Cape Henry Rotary at The Yacht Club at Marina Shores. The date is Sunday, September 21, 2014, 1:00-6:00 PM. There will be Virginian Eastern Shore Oysters (served roasted or on the half shell), Smartmouth beer, Rodman's BBQ and live music by The DeLoreans.
I was at the party last year and it was a ton of fun. All the oysters you can eat, all the beer you can drink and 80s music & dancing if you that's your thing. $50 a ticket, go here to purchase them. Check the photos from last year's celebration.
Busy Friday!
This past Friday was set to be an busy, but exciting day. A couple of big events were happening: Back Bay Brewing's soft opening in Virginia Beach and Chayce's band, Long Division, playing their CD release show in Norfolk.
First, Back Bay Brewing had a soft opening over the weekend. Friday and Saturday they were going to have the taps pouring for anyone who might stop by. Friday night Nick Vitale from Zeke's Beans & Bowls next door invited some of the area's food trucks to hang out and serve food. There was no shortage of food options.
Tasting room at capacity
From what I hear, about 1,000 people came through the tasting room. I was impressed with the staff, they kept the drinks coming and didn't skip a beat (with the lights flickering here and there.) We met our friends John and Connie and shared a couple of flights while catching up with a few familiar faces. Afterwards, we decided on dinner at Field Guide; and made our way to Norfolk.
Field Guide was packed, it's not uncommon for there to be a little wait if you go in for dinner or lunch. The line was moving fast though and the wait gave us a moment to check out the menu. Shelby grabbed a specialty cocktail made with the house soda and gin. I had a sip, it was refreshing. After a bit we were seated and we ordered our meals. I got the Lou-Wow and Shelby ordered the Boaring Meatloaf. The Lou-Wow was a delicious pork BBQ with a little Hawaiian flair and the Boaring Meatloaf was a pork meatloaf served with mac and cheese and kale. Both dishes were beautiful and delicious--I have to say it was tragic later that evening when we got home and I forgot the leftovers in the car overnight! I almost curled up into a ball on the couch the next day after I realized what I did. Oh! I need to mention that I had a Smartmouth Safety Dance Pilsner. This is served exclusively at Field Guide at the moment - loved it.
After finishing up at Field Guide we had about an hour so we decided to head over to The Birch and say "Hi". We met our friend Matt, who was at the bar with Malia - owner of The Birch; and the other Matt serving behind and bar. I ordered an Italiano TipoPils, it’s my go-to when I’m there--it's good!
We had just enough time to chat a little bit, take a few goofy photos before we were off to Belmont House of Smoke on 21st St. That's were Long Division was playing.
Super Bonus: Marleigh was meeting us at Belmont. She drove down from Richmond to see her brother play what might be his last show with the band before he leaves for the Navy.
Marleigh and Kelsie at Belmont
It was about 10:30 when we arrived at Belmont. There was a good crowd upstairs where the band was playing. They were still setting up for their set we walked in. We said our hellos to the those we knew in the room and I ordered a Smartmouth Rule G.
Long Division played to a packed out and the set was great. I really am going to miss not seeing Chayce on stage playing with the band. Knowing this was going to be one of his last shows with the band made it special.
Long Division
After the show we chatted with Chayce and several others, then we hit the merch table for some Cds and a t-shirt. We bought a copyof their new album for John and Connie and one for our friend Cappy who was there too. We made the rounds and headed out.
John drove us home. Sadly, our leftovers never made it out of the car. I hope it didn't smell too much like BBQ pork in the morning.
Listen to Long Division at their Bandcamp page. Here is one of my favorites off their new album called Skipping Rocks.
Chow. Norfolk, VA
Coming home from the Williamsburg Outlets we stopped at Chow in Norfolk, VA for dinner. I was looking for something filling and meaty and ordered the Duck-4-Ways special and Shelby got the lamb burger.
I lucked out because Smartmouth’s Notch 9 was on tap too. Smartmouth recent won a bronze medal in a national competition with this beer so I was dying to try it. The duck was delicious. The plate came out with Seared Duck Breast, Braised Duck Thigh and Leg, Duck Cracklin’, and Duck Gravy with sides of Brussels Sprouts and Mashed Potatoes. The breast tasted like a great steak and I couldn’t believe I was eating fowl. The braised meat fell from the bone and the gravy was tasty. The cracklin’ could have been a little more crackling but it was good fresh.
The lamb burger was cooked perfect and dressed nice. We both ate about half our food and took the rest home. I did get a O’Connor Great Dismal Black IPA before we finished out meal—love that beer. I was very happy with Chow and the Southern, comfort food style menu. I’m looking forward to eating there again.
Oystercrush 2013!
Oyster lovers were at The Yacht Club at Marina Shores in Virginia Beach, VA this past weekend to attend Oyster Crush 2013! Hosted by the Cape Henry Rotary. Proceeds went local charities, a favorite local area cover band The Deloreans provided live entertainment, and there were raffles for door prizes. Over 1500 tickets were sold for the event!
Over 10,000 oysters fresh from the Bay were consumed attendees; the oysters were provided by Little Sully’s Clams on the Eastern Shore. In addition to oysters and clams, local BBQ came from Suffolk’s Rodman’s Bar-B-Que, World-Famous Clam Chowder from Redfearn’s, and all of it washed down with beer provided by Hoffman Beverage company—a special treat was having Smartmouth Saison Ale on tap!
The oysters were delicious! They were available raw or roasted, tables were setup for shucking. The raw were particularly popular with weaving lines, converging on the single table serving them. The crew working that table had to be the busiest of the day.
10,000 oysters leave a lot shells, the Oyster Crush shells will be donated to Lynnhaven River Now for restoration efforts. If you missed this year’s event, make sure you save the date for Oyster Crush 2014, September 21st of next year.
*Special thanks to Jeremy Johnson who allowed me to cover the event. I’m looking forward to next year!
More photos at i<3food fb.
Battle of the Beers - Norfolk Edition
Battle of the Beers - Norfolk vs. Virginia Beach. Tapped Gastropub in Virginia Beach, VA hosted a friendly competition allowing locals to try beer from the area breweries. Proceeds went toward a benefit for Seton Youth Shelters and the event put together by Beach Ambassadors was highly successful.
Young Veterans Brewing Company won the trophy for their Jet Noise—A double IPA. O’Connor Brewing Company, Smartmouth Brewing Company, Beach Brewing Company, and Back Bay Brewing Company.