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On May 18, Mutineer founders Alan Kropf and JJ Bagley joined “Three Sheets” host Zane Lamprey in celebrating their magazine’s launch at Falcon Hollywood.
The first issue of Mutineer hit stands in July 2008. The publication has since gone national and is now five issues into its run. According to press materials, “Mutineer covers the world of fine beverage from a cultural perspective, providing readers with content that is as entertaining as it is informative. Food is also covered with an emphasis on local agriculture, restaurants with notable beverage programs, and food and beverage pairing.”
Kropf and Bagley convinced distributors to contribute an impressive array of beer, wine, liquor and sake to the event. It wasn’t a mix-all-the-alcohol-and-pass-out kind of night (never is), so I limited my exposure to beer.
The hotspot for beer was definitely the San Diego Brewers Guild table, which supported a gigantic tub of bottles, plus growlers of rarely-seen beers like Green Flash Summer Saison, Ballast Point bourbon barrel-aged Black Marlin Porter and lip-curling Ballast Point Tongue Buckler, an ultra hoppy but highly drinkable brew that scores anywhere from 90-108 IBUs.
It was a great opportunity to try new beers, so I worked my way through the table two ounces at a time. Mission Brewery Blonde Ale was a German style Helles that was malt forward, smooth and citrusy. Ballast Point Dorado Double IPA was hoppy but clean tasting and good on a hot night. They even broke out a growler of Ballast Point Sour Wench, a sour blackberry brew brewed with one pound of Oregon blackberries per gallon.
My final sip of the night came from a jeroboam of Chimay Blue, which is widely available but still enjoyable, rich at 9% ABV with caramel notes.
Wetten Importers poured several European samples, including 2008 Gouden Carolus Cuvee Von De Keizer Bluew, an 11% brown ale; Affligem, a Belgian blonde ale; Curim, a Celtic wheat; and Olde Suffolk, the only monastic style beer in the U.K., which pours dark but goes down smooth, with subtle caramel notes.
Barrie Lynn – The Cheese Impresario – staffed a table to help offer “a taste of the good life.” She prepared a plate with chunks of 10-year cow’s milk cheddar from Hook’s Cheese Company in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. The excellent annatto-stained cheesed had good bite and textural depth. She also slathered Sid’s Cave Aged Mellage on bread. Barrie Lynn said the Cow, Goat & Sheep cheese is “cured in specially designed aging caves. It develops the flavor complexity of sheep milk cheese with a slight goat finish and the creaminess of cow’s milk.” To fill out the plate, she loaded on cashews, pecans and a sweet Calimyrna fig.
Falcon contributed tray-passed hors d’oeuvres, but the tuna tostadas, pepperoni pizza and chicken skewers were hard to come by. Not that it mattered.
Part of the proceeds from the gala party, tasting and silent auction benefited AIDS/LifeCycle, an organization that hosts a 545-bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to heighten awareness about HIV and AIDS.
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