Underground Beer Tasting Dinner
Cheers to 2017! We are so incredibly honored to have our Beer Tasting Dinner Party published in the current issue of Mingle Magazine. Copies are available on newsstands. Below is a glimpse of the magazine spread and article. Enjoy!
Underground Beer Tasting Dinner
By Jeanette Yoon & Ngoc Nguyen Lay
On Saturday May 14, 2016, Skybox Event Productions paired up with Provisions LA for a dynamic Underground Beer-Tasting Dinner Party. The idea was inspired by Albert Y. Lay who is a true beer connoisseur and founder of Sad Dad Brewery. His passion for making beer and love for food is what brought this dinner together. This event was limited to about 50 guests and was hosted by the owner of Provisions LA, Lisa Feinstein, at her lovely home located in Pasadena. The dinner itself was held outside in Lisa’s backyard which had a very rustic vibe with an urban twist to it. To help complete the setting, Dolphin Event Services provided us with beautiful dark wooden crossback chairs and tables, as well as crisp white cushion seats. There were various dinner candles and votive candles outlining the burlap table runners. Each table was complete with beautiful green and white floral arrangements created by Linda from LV Floral Events. The kraft-paper dinner menu was completed with a sprig of rosemary, and there was a tall dark oak tree that stood in the middle of the yard holding a beautiful chandelier and a few lanterns from its thick branches. When the sun set, the chandelier and lanterns shined elegantly over the tables, setting the mood for the evening. As the guests arrived, they were greeted by a long red carpet that ran up the driveway into the backyard. Upon entering, they were welcomed by the talented jazz duo Scott Bramer and Chris Rolontz, who were strumming bass in the corner.
It took a few months to plan the concept and its final details. We went back and forth with the menu for a few weeks, but we delegated the the majority of the food choices to our head chef. Once the menu was set, we were able to pair the beers with each course. Since the beers that were chosen were not easily attainable, we researched which vendors carried the selected items. The event designed was inspired by the backyard style of JunkYard Chic. We pulled items from the chef’s home and created an organic tablescape that fit with our existing setting.
After everyone checked in, Chef Carlos Rodriguez began preparing the first of the five-course dinner. As guests seated took their seats, the waiters began serving two cutting boards per table featuring an array of cheese, fruit, artisanal bread, and bacon candy. The first course there was a lovely chicken liver mousse served on Bread Lounge baguettes with a homemade chipotle jam, paired with Dudes' amber beer. The second course was a very light and refreshing compressed watermelon and feta salad that was paired with Tieton Smoked Pumpkin Cider, and the third course featured the Hitichino Nest Beer with a hamachi crudo that was topped with an orange blanc sauce over sticky rice. The fourth course featured the Lucky Duck Blonde Ale Beer with Thai fried chicken topped with a lime coconut sauce and garnished with fried lime leaves and shallots. The fifth and final course featured the Samuel Smith Chocolate Stout which paired really well with the Guinness-flavored ice cream affagato. This course was served in a mason jar and the ice cream (that also had Ten Speed cold brew as an ingredient) was topped with a Guinness chocolate cake crumble.
Each guest was sent home with a personalized inscribed pint glass and customized beer-shaped cookies as favors. Andrew Le of Andrew Le Photography captured this whole evening. His photos clearly unfold how remarkable this night turned out to be. For the next event underground dinner event, we would like to involve our guests and ask them to make their suggestions of particular craft beers that they favor or would like to try with their meal. That way the guest will feel like they contributed into the dinner in some sort of fashion.
All photography is courtesy of Andrew Le Photography.
Post Published on January 5, 2017. Magazine Cover Photo above by @alovelydesign
