Last meal of #2013: homemade savory umami soup with mushrooms, home rolled oshizushi salmon sushi pressed in a wooden oshizushihako (top left), home canned (ball jar in bottom left) Filipino -style atchara (achara atsara) (pickled papaya and pickled ginger), served with green tea and @devilsbackbonebrewingcompany ‘s Vienna Lager . This beer had enough malt to complement the mushroom flavor while still being light enough to work with the fish for a great craft beer pairing. 

#bottleshare from last night: #ciscobrewers (#ciscobrewery )#thewoods #pechishwoods #ladyofthewoods #newbelgium#accumulation #lipsoffaith #leterroir #weyerbacher #althea#devilsbackbone #sixpointipa #eviltwin #justinblabaer#leftcostbrewery #leftcost #voodoostout #stout #hopjuice#rodenbach #sourbeer

Homemade crab cake on fresh home baked light angel-style biscuits garnished with homegrown micro-greens with a bowl of home cooked mushroom soup made with homegrown garden fresh herbs. For this craft beer pairing, I pulled a wild ale that I haven’t had before out of the beer cellar to try. This ale is a collaboration beer from anchorage brewing and @mikkellerbeer (mikkeller ) called AK Alive , While this wild Alaskan ale was a bit different than I expected, it had a wonderful, although subtle, fruity berry-like flavor.

Christmas pudding (figgy pudding ) (plum pudding ) à la bièr cuisine from the Homebrewchef Sean Paxton ’s recipe in @beeradvocate magazine. Steamed Christmas pudding with dried figs , golden raisins , currants , tart cherries soaked in @sierranevada ’s stout. Served with a side of jameson whiskey hard sauce and a @schlaflybeer ’s Christmas ale the perfect beer for a Xmas day beer pairing.

Santa ‘s sick of all the milk and cookies and tired of the cold weather, so instead of the usual fare, leave him a tropical craft beer pairing for Christmas eve of beer with dessert ! a @maliburumus Malibu pineapple rum roasted pineapple base, with a mini pineapple upsidedown cake, garnished with a home dried candied pineapple and rum roasted sauce made from home juiced pineapple juice paired with @thebruery ‘s (@thebruerytr )’s Christmas beer five golden rings . The heat in this ale has cooled off a bit after a year in the beer cellar , allowing the cinnamon, allspice, and ginger space to mesh with the caramelized flavors in the cake. 

Biased on these mud tracks, it looks like I just missed crossing paths with a wild raccoon on the trail while hiking in the woods.

Hardwood-grilled eye round steak with blue cheese polenta, thyme roasted potatoes, and a homemade raspberry steak sauce paired with @newbelgium ‘s seasonal frambozen. The caramelized, smokey char on the outside of the meat and onions synched with the roasty, slightly dark flavor from the chocolate and caramel malts in this brown #ale while still balancing intensity; the homegrown wild home canned raspberry juice in the steak sauce teamed up with the delicate raspberry flavor in the beer for a complimentary craft beer pairing.

a homemade peanut butter tart served with @duclawbrewingco‘s chocolate peanut butter porter sweet baby jesus: chocolate ganache icing top, a sweetened creamy peanut butter center and a crust comprised of home baked chocolate wafer cookies garnished with @lindt_chocolate ‘s lindt 70% coca dark chocolate shavings, chocolate malt sauce, home cooked peanut butter cookies (my great grandmother’s recipe), and striped peanut butter brittle (made with white chocolate). This craft beer pairing takes the strong peanut butter and slight chocolate flavor from the beer and pairs that up, like with like, for a great beer with dessert pairing 

Inspired by the @fattedcalf ‘s in the charcuterie recipe for lamb rib chops with ras el hanout; these homemade rib chops were seasoned with freshly zested Mandarian oranges, homegrown dried basil, fresh parsley, bay leaf, and other spices; served with homecanned red wine and bay leaf jam made from an apple pectin stock base; as for the beer pairing, this meal was complemented by inbev ‘s leffe brun : this slightly Abby style beer provided the carbonation necessary to stand up to the rich fattiness of lamb and was just barely dark enough (in flavor) to hold its own against the meat while letting the spices shine through. 

Homemade shrimp roll on homebaked New England-style split top rolls with home juiced green apple infused celery, homegrown micro greens + chive flowers, and home dried tomato leather strips; served with a fresh spinach salad with mushrooms and dried cranberrys; all paired with@breweryommegang ‘s brettanomyces fermented wild at heart. The homemade salad dressing with @castellocheese ‘s Danish creamy blue cheese had a buttery fattiness that the tartness of the craft beer could first cut through, and then cleanse the palate with the carbonation; this tartness matched the “horse-blanket” earthy flavor that blue cheeses have. The beer ‘s tart acidity provided a complimentary flavor to the meal without detracting from the seafoods light sweet flavor.