The Goose Island and TAP beer dinner hit the spot!

Here is the starter: 312 Urban Wheat paired with delicious Bruschetta of fava bean puree with burrata and Calabrian peppers.

I'm ready for the next one!

Chef Nick did his thang!

A group of about 20 of us enjoyed an awesome beer dinner in Midtown hosted by TAP and Goose Island on Tuesday. Chef Nick McCormick flexed his culinary muscles with a four-course menu complemented by Goose’s 312 Urban Wheat and some of the Chicago brewery's Belgian-style ales including Sophie, Matilda, Pepe Nero, and Pierre Jacques. To add, General Manager Brandy Ramsey was sweet and hospitable as usual. On the brew side, Goose Island rep and good friend Curt Dawsey did a great job breaking down the brewing history of each sipper, including an interesting myth on how Matilda was linked with the world renowned Belgian trappist pale ale, Orval. As always, everyone at the table became best friends by the end of the night. 

Okay, enough talk. Peep these shots. By the way, did I ever tell you I love beer dinners?

Here was the setup. A nice view of Peachtree in Midtown set things off lovely. Now for the courses...

The Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat was also paired with these Crab-Stuffed Deviled Eggs which were slammin'! My boy from Baltimore, Mike Moore, is a crab fanatic like myself and he simply said after a bite, "I gotta make these!"

The Sofie was paired with Chilled Lobster Salad, mache, cucumbers, sauce gribiche, shaved fennel, lemon vinaigrette. Chef Nick made me smile when I saw those large pieces of lobster claw dominating this dish. 

The Matilda was chillin' with Crispy Camembert, stewed strawberries, arugula, spiced almonds, and balsamic reduction. Yep! Another winner.

Arguably everyone's favorite pairing, the Pepe Nero went down flawlessly after a bite of the "Hot Pastrami" beef brisket, grilled Vidalia onions and pasilla peppers, creamed potatoes, with mustard sauce.

And for dessert, Goose Island's Pierre Jacques was used for this one and worked well with the delectable Dark Chocolate Parfait, dark chocolate mousse, beer-soaked cherries, milk chocolate popcorn, and cherry mousse. Chef Nick and I discussed this pairing, but we both agreed that Georgia should seriously consider raising the limit for the Goose Island Bourbon County Stout which, at 15% ABV, would have made this course even more heavenly. Pierre still held its own though and gave this dinner a happy ending.

My man Curt D. had everyone smiling!

Cheers to Chef Nick, Brandy, Curt, and everyone who attended the dinner. It was awesome.
Keep 'em coming!
Ale