This Week’s Events: Dutch’s, Alton Brown, Bitters Workshop, Rosemont/Piccolo Class

altonbrownTuesday — it’s the opening day of Dutch’s located at 28 Preble Street.

WednesdayAlton Brown will be at Merrill Auditorium, orchardist Waite Maclin will be giving a talk entitled The Seven Secrets to Fruitful Fruit Trees, there will be a wine tasting at Rosemont on Brighton, and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.

Thursday — Engineers Without Borders’ is holding Uncorked, their 3rd annual beer & wine tasting and silent auction.

Friday — there will be wine tastings at the Rosemonts on both Brighton Ave and Congress Street.

Saturday — Veena’s Fizz House is holding a bitters workshop, Dobra is offering a course on the 6 types of tea, Rosemont and Piccolo are collaborating on a cooking class, and the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.

Pocket Feast Game Dinner

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Pocket Brunch and Family Feast collaborated to produce a Maine game dinner last night in collaboration with the Maine Brewers Guild and Down East. 6 courses, or perhaps 8 depending on how you count, utilizing more than a dozen different game meats. The game bird ragu served with spelt/rye bucatini, the hare pie, and the panacotta with autumn olive sorbet were my favorites from the menu. There was a standing ovation at the end of the dinner for the kitchen crew.

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Sangillo’s Hearing

sangillosadSangillo’s liquor license appeal is starting this morning in the council chambers at City Hall. According to a report from the BDN,

The hearing, postponed >from Sept. 11, will be conducted by staff from the state Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages & Lottery Operations. Laurence Sanborn, who manages the agency’s Liquor Licensing and Enforcement Division, said in June that public comment will be accepted at the hearing, which will reconsider the evidence heard by city councilors on March 17.

An ad ran in this week’s Phoenix letting people know about the appeal and encouraging them to speak on Sangillo’s behalf.

MECA Mixology Class

The Blueberry Files reports on the MECA mixology class she recently attended, taught by bartender John Myers.

Myers started out by saying that he’d structured the class like an art history class, “from cave drawings to the modern weirdos.” After a short history of early American drinking habits (a lot of cider, rum) we delved into the first time a cocktail was defined. First appearing in a New York newspaper in 1806, the cocktail was described as “spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters.” None of us guessed the answer, but that definition also describes the recipe for an Old Fashioned and thus, our first drink of the course. 

This Week’s Events: Blind IPA Tasting, Terry Theise, Champagne Tasting, Pocket Brunch Game Dinner

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Monday — Allagash is releasing Farm to Face, a pale ale fermented in stainless with pediococcus and lactobacillus added along with 3lbs of peaches per gallon, and Portland Beer Week continues until Friday.

Tuesday — The Thirsty Pig is holding a Blind IPA Tasting; correctly name all 10 and win a $500 prize.

WednesdayBill Murray themed beers will be on tap at bars across the city, and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.

Thursday — award-winning wine expert Terry Theise will be the special guest at Hugo’s for a 5-course wine dinner, and there will be a beer and cheese tasting at the Public Market House.

Friday — Terry Theise and Rosemont are collaborating on a champagne tasting featuring “special, rare, and never-before-available-in-Maine grower-produced Champagnes”, and Bite into Maine will be featured in an episode of Eat Street at 8pm on the Cooking Channel.

SaturdayPocket Brunch and Family Feast are working together on a Game Dinner (tickets), and the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.

Portland Beer Week Starts Today

pbwToday is the official start of Portland Beer Week. You can find a detailed schedule on the Portland Beer Week website. Here are a few events that look especially interesting:

  • On Saturday Austin Street is releasing their new beer called Grist Mill, an “interpretation of a classic saison. Brewed with a blend of grains, hopped with Sterling and fermented with a blend of saison yeast and brettanomyces, this beer features a rustic malt base complimented by a spicy hop character and earthy brett funk”
  • On Sunday is holding Freshmen Orientation, an event to celebrate the new class of brewers that opened in 2014, and the Maine Brew Bus is leading the 2nd Annual Home Brew Tour.
  • On Monday Oxbow will be at Novare Res for a special bottle tasting of their beer.
  • On Tuesday there will be a blind IPA tasting with a $500 prize for whomever can name all ten correctly.
  • On Wednesday Bill Murray themed beers will be on tap throughout the city. Proceeds will be going to a charity of Bill Murray’s choosing.

This Week’s Events: Wine Dinners, Portland Beer Week, Pocket Brunch, East Ender Pig Roast

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MondayJason Loring will be the featured chef at a sold out Flanagan’s Table.

Wednesday — Vinland will be hosting a dinner with four organic winemakers from northern Italy– Elisabetta Foradori, Silvio Messana, Alessandra Bera, and Elena Pantaleoni, and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.

Friday — Rosemont is holding a Halloween Party at their store on Commercial Street.

Saturday — It’s the first day of Portland Beer Week,Rosemont is hosting Italian winemaker Giorgio Rivetti for a wine dinner, Rosemont and Piccolo are collaborating on a cooking class, both LeRoux Kitchen and The Farm Stand are holding wine tastings, and the Deering Oaks Farmers Market is taking place.

SundayPocket Brunch is serving a 6-course brunch in collaboration with Marshall Wharf, In’finiti and Novare Res, the East Ender is holding a pig roast, Italian winemaker Giorgio Rivetti will be at The Corner Room for a wine dinner, The Maine Brew Bus is leading the 2nd Annual Home Brew Tour, and the Maine Brewer’s Guild is organizing Freshmen Orientation which is an event high the new breweries that launched in 2014.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.

Wine Dinners: Terry Theise, Italian Organics, Frank Cornelissen, La Spinetta (Updated)

Several wine dinners have been announced:

  • A group of four Northern Italian organic winemakers—Elisabetta Foradori, Silvio Messana, Alessandra Bera, and Elena Pantaleoni—will be at Vinland for a dinner on October 29th.
  • Winemaker Giorgio Rivetti and Rosemont are teaming up on a wine dinner at O’Maine Studios featuring “rich, graceful, intense wines, from organically grown grapes, biodynamically farmed” from La Spinetta Winery in Piedmont and Tuscany. The dinner is on November 1st, tickets are $85 per person.
  • Winemaker Giorgio Rivetti will be at The Corner Room for a dinner featuring La Spinetta Winery in Piedmont on November 2nd.
  • Hugo’s is hosting James Beard award-winning author Terry Theise for a dinner on November 6th. Theise is the author of Reading Between the Wines. $165 per person.
  • Terry Theise will be joining Rosemont at the Mayo Street Arts Center on November 7th to lead a tasting of several “special, rare, and never-before-available-in-Maine grower-produced Champagnes” along with small plates provided by chef Brad Messier. $85 per person.
  • Frank Cornelissen, a leader in the in the natural wine movement, will be at Vinland for a dinner featuring his wines from his vineyard on Mount Etna on December 6th. Natural wine guru Zev Rovine and Ned Swain from Devenish Wines in Portland are co-hosting the event.

This Week’s Events: Harvest on the Harbor, Rising Tide, Indie Biz, Triple Nickel

harvestonthebar_logoTuesdayKate McCarty will be speaking about her book Portland Food: The Culinary Capital of Maine at the Maine Women Writers Collection, the monthly Local Foods Networking Breakfast is taking place.

Wednesday — the winners of the 7th Annual Indie Biz Awards are being announced, it’s the first day of Harvest on the Harbor, Black Tie is serving a farm dinner in New Gloucester, and the Monument Square Farmers Market is taking place.

Thursday — artist Sam Van Aken will be at Thompson’s Point for a kick-off of the Tree of 40 Fruit grove, tastings are taking place at the Public Market House and The Corner Store, Five Fifty-Five is throwing the Triple Nickel Bourbon & Bacon Bash, and Harvest on the Harbor continues.

Friday — it’s the third day of Harvest on the Harbor.

Saturday — Oxbow is holding The Goods from the Woods at their homebase in Newcastle, it’s the last day of Harvest on the Harbor, and the Deering Oaks Farmers Market are taking place.

SundayRising Tide is throwing a party to celebrate their 4th Anniversary.

Pocket Brunch Tickets — after nearly a year and a half sabbatical the Pocket Brunch crew is back with a 6-course brunch in collaboration with Marshall Wharf, Novare Res and In’finiti. It’s scheduled for November 2nd. Tickets are now on sale.

For more information on these and other upcoming food happenings in the area, visit the event calendar.

If you are holding a food event this week that’s not listed above, publicize it by adding it as a comment to this post.