Vino & Ale Party Food

I know you’ve all been waiting for the Vino & Ale party details! This is post 2 of 3…there was just so much information to share, I couldn’t keep it all in one, or even two posts. Today, I want to focus on the food and drink!

As mentioned the other day, I offered three types of beer and wine for the tasting. Each drink had a paired food to go with it.

Because there was to be so much drinking at the party, I was nervous about not having enough food for everyone. The husband’s step-mom made her delicious homemade meatballs, and we laid out a veggie tray in addition to the paired foods.

There was a separate table in a room apart from the tasting room which held the non-alcoholic beverages, plates, and non-paired snacks. Cucumber water is a delicious and refreshing way to cleanse the palate when tasting, so I made a large batch of that for our guests. There was also Tejava iced tea {the husband’s favorite} as well as White Zinfandel Fre {alcohol-removed wine}. I wanted to make sure there was an assortment of options for the new mommies and mommies-to-be.

Many of our friends enjoy a good cup of coffee in the evening, so I made up a well-stocked coffee bar using our Keurig. We had an assortment of Eight O’Clock K Cups, creamers {Sweet Cream and Triple Sweet Cream}, and a variety of sweeteners.

In true tasting event fashion, we provided several palate cleansers for our guests. Each table had small bowl-fulls of oyster crackers to much on, and there was a bowl of sliced french bread and butter available. As I mentioned before, the cucumber water also acts as a palate cleanser.

Each table had a list of the appropriate pairings.

The St. Francis Zinfandel paired with a delicious fig-slathered baked brie. Incredibly easy to make, I think this was my favorite food of the evening. To make your own, slice a small wheel of brie in half horizontally and fill with fig jam. Wrap the entire cheese wheel in a sheet of puff pastry, and bake for 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees. Serve with an assortment of party crackers and enjoy!

The Red Splash wine was one I had never seen before. It was from our St. Francis wine club vineyards, but the interesting thing is that it is a combination of many different grapes. It is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, and Zinfandel. The biggest plus? It tastes great and is incredibly affordable! In fact, I found these bottles at our local grocery store – Marsh.

In my opinion, bruschetta goes well with everything! But, the fresh tomato taste was incredible when paired with the ripe flavors of Red Splash. There’s not a set recipe for this bruschetta, simply throw fresh tomato, basil, garlic, olive oil, and balsamic vinaigrette together to your liking. Spread on a slice of toasted garlic bread, and you’re good to go!

Usually, I tend to stick with sweet wines, but this 2010 Chardonnay was refreshing, and no too sweet.

The wine paired well with sliced cheddar over sweet red apple slices.

I know a decent amount about wines from living in California, but I genuinely know nothing about beer. And, honestly, I don’t much care for it. So I went into this tasting blind.

After researching, I figured out a general list of beers that would be appropriate for a tasting. Several hours in the liquor store and I came out with three tasty options.

The rugged flavor of Sierra Nevada’s Ruthless Rye IPA paired well with a variety of sliders. We provided two different options, ground beef and sausage. The beef burgers were slathered in mayonnaise, and the buns on each sausage burger had mustard on them. This made it easy for guests to just walk up and grab a sandwich without having to add their own condiments.

Something healthy had to be available, so I split bagged salads into individual servings topped with Olive Garden salad dressing, and garnished with croutons. Each salad cup came with a mini fork, which makes it 10 times more fun! The refreshingly crisp salad paired with the surprisingly smooth flavor of Breckenridge Brewery’s Vanilla Porter.

The delicate yeast flavor of Paulaner’s Hefe-Weizen made for a delicious pairing with my BBQ Cocktail Smokies. If you have a large group coming over, and are looking for a simple recipe to make, these are perfect! Throw a bottle of honey BBQ sauce and 8 oz. of grape jelly into your crock pot. Mix in 2 packages of smokies and cook on high for approximately 3 hours, until heated through.

For dessert, I made up these adorable individual bites of strawberry shortcake. These were so easy to make, and everyone raved about them! In each tasting cup, I put a bite-sized square of sara-lee pound cake. Top the pound cake with a spoonful of macerated strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream. This is a fun, and healthier, alternative to a traditional birthday cake.

We ended the evening with a platter of ice cream shooters. Using a small melon baller, we placed individual scoops of french vanilla ice cream into plastic spoons. The ice cream was scooped before the party and placed on a platter in the freezer until it was time to serve. When we removed the platter from the freezer, each spoon was garnished with a fresh raspberry, and salted pistachio.

Since the dining room where we held our tasting was relatively small, having most of the food plated and easy to grab, helped keep the crowd moving. Plus, I think it’s fun to have a little bit of a lot of things.

I must say – I think the food was a hit! If you have any questions on recipes, and you don’t see them listed here, feel free to leave a comment or e-mail me atkinsondrive {at} yahoo {dot} com.

Vino & Ale Tasting Party {Overview}
Vino & Ale Tasting Party Decor
Linking to These Parties